When I found my latest treasure in an antique store (that is porbably not an antique at all), I had never heard of a liquor called St-Germain. I have since learned that it is delicious elixor made of elder flowers. I responded to this tall glass carafe (designed to mix drinks in following the markings on the side) because of my first trip to Paris with Dan.
In 1996, my dad pointed out an advertisement he saw in the newspaper for a Valentine's Day promotion. If you could turn on a dime, Delta was offering round trip airplane tickets to Paris for $199 each, as long as they were booked within the next 2 weeks. We were going to Paris!
I clicked around Delta's website and booked a room at the hotel, The Abbatial St. Germain on the left bank. We had a wonderful time, despite the cold of February and I said "Abbatial St.Germain" far too many times in the coming weeks just for fun.
So when I saw a beautiful glass carafe marked St. Germain, I was sold. It was $12 and would make a gorgeous and unusual vase. Yep, I saw it and imagined an arrangement like this, but that's just me.
What's your favorite unusual vase?
Ok, how do I really use my Hamilton Beach Set and Forget Convection Toaster Oven? Baking! I was sure that I would be making lots of homemade dinners in our hotel room (with a kitchen, but no oven) and that premise justified buying and shipping this little beauty to our hotel. But in truth, it was my love of baking that kept this little oven busy.
I believe that food is love and that the effort you make in creating sweets for someone speaks volumes. My husband is working very hard on this project and he needs cookies, I'm sure of it.
Because I am in a new city, it is tempting to drive all over the area exploring, taking photographs, trying the local ice cream. Day after day, I am out and about. So when I specifically plan to be "home" all day in our hotel room, I do a baking blitz.
On this particular day, I made Blueberry Gateau, Baked Washington Peaches (I bought a bag of fresh frozen sliced peaches and they were delicious!) topped with a Granola Crumble and a batch of classic Chocolate Chip cookies. The room smelled heavenly and we had lovely treats to choose from the rest of the week. Win-win.
Can you really bake in a little Toaster Convection Oven? Absolutely. I really didn't see much difference in the baking time either. I kept an eye on things, but the gateau was ready in the expected amount time and the cookies took a minute longer.
It was easy and it made me oh-so-happy to be mixing flour, sugar, salt again.
The key word that was missing was oven. This year, I was planning on living in Seattle with my husband for the months of April and June, and the Residence Inn we would be staying at sounded perfect: it was clean and comfortable, was in a great location and we'd have a nice room with a kitchen (full refrigerator, dishwasher, microwave and a 2-burner cooktop). Bueller? Bueller? No one said anything about an oven. As an enthusiastic home baker, a kitchen without an oven was something I had a hard time imagining.
It was around the planning stages for this trip that a friend got married and I was looking at her registry online. Hmmm...she wanted a toaster oven. Would a toaster oven do me any good in Seattle? I knew it was used for more than toast, but I wasn't sure for what.
I'd never had even the most basic toaster oven, so when I began researching them online I was surprised to see the features that were possible and the praise they could inspire. Convection cooking? Meat Probes? When I saw that this Hamilton Beach "Set and Forget" Toaster Oven with Convection Cooking was $99 and would ship free with Amazon Prime, I couldn't resist. I looked up the address for the hotel and had it sent there, along with a set of toaster oven-size pans. Ha!
No oven my foot.
And I love it! I call it my Easy Bake Oven in jest, but it works like a dream. In honor of being in the Pacific Northwest, the first thing I cooked in it was:
Broiled Salmon with Apricot Mustard Glaze
Place salmon skin side down on cookie sheet. Broil under high heat until fish is partially cooked, then spoon a apricot mustard sauce (1/3 dijon mustard to 2/3 apricot preserves) over the fish and return to broiler. Sauce with warm and bubble, browning slightly. Remove from heat when salmon is cooked to your preference. Serve with boiled new potatoes or sticky rice.
I am staying at the beautiful Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas. My husband is attending a conference and I am here searching out things to bring you delight.
I have stayed in 3 Las Vegas properties in the last 5 years and the Bellagio is by far the best. Look at our beautiful room on the 28th floor. It has a 5 ft x 5 ft picture window with a view of the city and mountains.
(When writing about Las Vegas, I have to mention indoor air quality in the public areas of the hotels:
MGM Grand: The strong smoke and fake raspberry scent pumped in to mask it, is enough to keep you from spending too much time there. In the same vein, I visited the Venetian Resort last night - on my way to Bouchon - and the fragrance/air freshener in the lobby almost had me running right back out the revolving door. I pressed on and thankfully, the air freshener was not noticeable in the area in and around the restaurant, Bouchon. The Bellagio is pleasant and as the day progresses, it's the smoke that will bother you, not the fragrance. I award the "best air quality within a casino" status to Mandalay Bay. Breathing felt clean and pleasant and I couldn't "taste" any perfume/air freshener. Those sensitive to scent and smoke, beware in Las Vegas.)
The water fountain show (on the half hour, daily, and every 15 minutes, starting at 8 o c'lock) is spectacular and in sync with classical music. It is a lovely way to enjoy a few minutes outside on a crisp Las Vegas night. I took a video on my phone and I will try to attach it here when I get home. The temperature was approx 39-45 degrees at night, so bring a jacket and pashmina for a February visit.
I am just getting settled and have started taking photographs to bring you the latest on Las Vegas. Stay tuned!
