Worth the wait

Sometimes, waiting around can be a difficult task for me to handle.  Quite often, I am some one who thrives on efficiency.  Spending most of a Saturday morning waiting around for this cinnamon raisin swirl bread to rise was definitely worth the wait. I found the recipe on a blog that I have been reading frequently, called Cate's World Kitchen. She is an avid runner, enjoys photography, and loves to spend time in the kitchen.  I sincerely enjoy reading her entries and couldn't resist making this bread when I stumbled upon it.  After mixing the ingredients and kneading the dough, you must wait for it to rise.  After pounding it down and forming a loaf, you must wait for it to rise, again.  You also must wait for it to bake in the oven and for it to cool in the pan before removing it.  The recipe says you must wait for the bread to be completely cooled before cutting into it, but by this time, we were tired of waiting and ate it warm. 
I will be the first to admit that I have had some major mishaps in the kitchen over the last few weeks.  From blowing up a glass jar of maple syrup to melting a bear shaped honey container into a pan on the stove to spilling red curry sauce all over my favorite shirt, I have had my series of disasters.  While making this bread, I had a minor mishap, thank goodness it only had a small effect on the finished product.  I am going to tell you what I learned about yeast so you do not make the same mistake that I did.  As for blowing up syrup and turning a teddy bear full of honey into a volcano, well, just don't let me in your kitchen.  Here's what happened: I emptied the packets of yeast into a large baking bowl and poured the warm milk on top of the granules.  The yeast clumped together and didn't start to activate like yeast should.  I immediately called the baking emergency hot line (my Mama) and she quickly told me that the warm liquid should be poured into the bowl first, adding the yeast on top of the warm milk. Each granule of yeast must be exposed to the warm liquid (in this case, milk) in order to activate and not clump.  In an attempt to rescue the yeast, I stirred it using a fork to break up the clumps. Eventually, began to foam.  The bread didn't rise quite as much as I would have liked, but was still darn good.   I know yeast scared some people, but please, don't let it.  It's not a scary as you might think. This bread will be made again, no question about it.

Cinnamon Swirl Bread (Cate's World Kitchen)
2 tablespoons dry active yeast
1 teaspoon granulated sugar + 1/4 cup
3/4 cup warm milk (not hot)
1 large egg, lightly beaten
3 tablespoons agave or maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
2 1/4 cups bread flour, plus additional for rolling
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, divided
2/3 cup raisins
Combine the warm milk, yeast, and 1 tsp sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer. Let stand 5 minutes, then stir in 1/4 cup sugar, 1 tsp cinnamon, salt, butter, vanilla, agave, and egg and mix well. Add the flours gradually, then mix with the dough hook on medium speed for 10 minutes.
Cover the bowl and let the dough rise for about an hour and a half.
Roll the dough out to a rectangle about 10″ by 20.”
Combine 1 tsp cinnamon, the brown sugar, and the raisins in a small bowl. Spread evenly over the dough then roll up and pinch the ends closed. Put in a greased loaf pan, cover, and let rise for about 45 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Bake the bread for 40-45 minutes, until golden brown on top. Cool in the pan for about 20 minutes, then turn out of the pan and cool completely on a wire rack before slicing.

Delancey

I am still in complete and utter disbelief as I type this post.  Our entire trip to Seattle stemmed out of my desire to eat at Molly Wizenberg's restaurant, Delancey.  I read Molly's book, A Homemade Life, this past summer and this kindled my desire to spend more time in the kitchen. If you are looking for a good  spectacular read, I highly recommend this book.  (Travis read the entire thing in three days on our trip.  Shhhhhhh... Don't tell him I told you.) I have cooked and baked many of Molly's recipes.  I listen to her podcast, Spilled Milk and read her column in Bon Appetite.  I also follow Molly's blog, Orangette, religiously; when I notice she has a new post, I drop everything and read it, taking in every word and picture on the screen.  In addition to being a fabulous writer and cook, Molly is an extremely talented photographer.  Sigh.

Anyways, we went to Seattle for an overnight and to get a taste of the city.  I never imagined that Molly would agree to meet me at Delancey and discuss her second book, while I devoured pizza made by her handsome husband, Brandon.  Here is how the most perfect night of my life went.  Travis and I hoped on a bus to a smaller side neighborhood of Seattle, just over a small river.  We walked (I may have skipped/ran while I carried my very own copy of A Homemade Life) a few blocks through a quaint neighborhood and arrived outside Delancey.  As we stepped inside, the restaurant was everything I expected it to be based on Molly's descriptions on her blog.  As I peered over the small bar, I immediately noticed a young man with curly hair and a bandanna, who I instantly recognized as Brandon, Molly's husband.  I have only seen a sketch of Brandon in Molly's book, but knew it was him without a doubt.  Travis and I were greeted by a man who told us the wait would be at least 55 minutes.  I informed him that I had talked to Molly through an email and she had agreed to meet me at Delancey between 7 and 8pm.  The man looked at me, chuckled a bit and said "good luck, she doesn't always make it down here."  My heart instantly sank, but I refused to lose hope.  Within 5 minutes, we were seated at a table by the man who had greeted us.  He shook my hand and told me his name was Sam.  Sam is one of Molly and Brandon's dear friends whom she talks about in her book and I was ecstatic to meet him!  (I'm sure Sam could sense my excitement, as I was grinning from ear to ear, still holding my copy of A Homemade Life firmly in my hands)  We were given small paper menus, as the fresh items change with seasons, and ordered beer and wine.  Travis knew what pizza he wanted to order within seconds of the menu being placed in his hand.  He has been on a bacon kick lately, and was sold on the bacon & onion pizza.  I, on the other hand, could not decide which of Molly's masterpieces to try.  I decided on the Brooklyn (tomato sauce, fresh and aged mozzarella, Grana)  and was pleased to find out from our waitress that I had unknowingly ordered Molly's favorite pizza.  Our pizzas were delivered and covered our entire table, which was quite tiny.  Most other couples in the restaurant shared one pizza, but we just had to try two different types.  We ended up splitting the pizzas and savored each and every bite.  I think I ate more pizza than Travis did. This is one night in which it was completely acceptable to out eat my date.  As we were winding down on our pizza, wine, and beer, Sam came over and told me that a certain author and food blogger was here to see me.  In walked the stunning Molly Wizenberg, looking exactly how I had imagined.  I often create images in my head of what someone will look like, how they will act, or how a certain place will feel.  Most of the time, if not all of the time, these notions I conceive in my head are very inaccurate when I actually meet the person or visit the place.  Sometimes this leads to a slight sense of disappointment, when something wasn't quite how I imagined.  This, however, was not the case with Molly or Delancey.  Both were exactly how I had pictured them in my mind and that made it even better.
Many of you are probably wondering why I was so elated to meet a female author/photographer/blogger.  Eating pizza created by Brandon, while in the presence of Molly at Delancey was the equivalent of a cyclist going for a ride with Lance Armstrong or a swimmer doing workout in the pool with Michael Phelps.  An incredible experience.

Molly and I talked about A Homemade Life, the book proposal she just submitted, (I am already counting down the days until it is released), what we had done with our time in Seattle, and the pizza we were currently enjoying.  She signed the copy of A Homemade Life that I brought with me from Wisconsin and we said goodbye.  Soon after, our waitress came by and said that Molly wanted to buy us each a dessert.  Could life get any better?  Oh, yes. And it did.  Just looking at the dessert menu was heaven, eating what we had ordered is a whole different story.  Travis and I decided to get 2 different desserts and split them (a common theme on this trip, given the fact that we both love to try new things and have a passion for food).  We ordered one caramel-poached apple with triple ginger streusel and chantilly cream and one key lime mousse with whipped coconut cream, macaroon and rum caramel. Words cannot describe the desserts we ate at Delancey that evening.  I can still taste the fresh coconut whipped cream and it brings me right back to Delancey.  As we paid our bill and put our jackets on, the waitress handed me a small package.  She said that Molly wanted me to have one of her famous chocolate chip cookies with gray salt for the road.  That gray salted chocolate chip cookie is reason enough to go back to Seattle.  As we left, I went back near the wood fire, where Brandon was cooking pizza and told him how much I had enjoyed my Brooklyn pizza. Yes, I talked to Brandon, even if it was no more than 4 words...
We decided to walk to a bus stop further away so we could burn off a bit of what we had just ate.  I think we both secretly knew we were only trying to make room for a few bites of that cookie that I was carrying home.  Only a little bit of the cookie made it to the next day.  We went to back to our 100 year old Bed and Breakfast on Queen Ann's Hill and I went to bed with an enormous smile on my face. 

I do not have any quality pictures from Delancey.  I did not want to spend my time behind my camera lens in an attempt to get a perfect photo.  Instead, I enjoyed every second of my evening with my own two eyes.  Here a few snapshots from the night, just to give you a brief taste.

Walking/running down the street to Delancey, book in hand

Delancey

Every utensil was unique and antique!

Key Lime Mousse with whipped coconut cream, macaroon, and rum caramel

Caramel-poached apple with triple ginger streusel and chantilly cream

The kitchen/wood fire area.  Brandon is back near the oven

Coos Bay and a bit of back country Oregon....

Let me appoligize ahead of time for this post being very long and loaded with pictures.  I wouldn't normally do this, but so many people have been asking me about my trip and begging to see some pictures.  Here you go!
On Monday, we headed to Avis car rentals to pick up our subcompact car.  Upon arrival, we were told we made reservations for the wrong day and they would have to give us a different car.  You had to be 25 years or older to drive the minivans....so they gave us a 2010 GMC terrain with built in navigation, XM radio, a sunroof...the list goes on.  What do two college kids do in a brand new SUV?  Cruise to the coast for a few days, of course.  We made a stop in Eugene, Oregon so Travis could have a beer at the Rogue pub Brewhouse.  Our next stop was Coos Bay, the hometown of the legendary runner Steve Prefontaine.  We drove along fog covered mountain roads the winded by rivers and stopped along the way at an elk viewing area.  After seeing the Prefontaine memorial, we decided to drive 20 miles further to see the ocean.  We arrived at a beautiful state park and watched the waves crash in to the shore.  As dinner time approached, we made our way though many small coastal towns.  We saw a sign for the national sand dunes viewing area and decided to take a detour.  Travis had a bit of fun playing with the 4 wheel drive SUV on the dunes, but we won't let AVIS know this.  Around 8 PM we arrived in the small town of Scottsburg, just outside of Elkton.  We spent the night at the Daybreak Bed and Breakfast, which was located right on the Umqua River.  Our hosts were not the typical B&B hosts, we were definitely in back country Oregon, but we had an exciting time at DayBreak.  We were served champagne with lemon sherbet, grapes, cheese and crackers, and freshly smoked salmon that was caught right on the river.  We were in heaven.  In the morning, Travis and I talked to our host about where to go for a run.  We followed his directions and found ourselves running up a mountain through fog and rain. It was beautiful run minus the fact that it was very steep and I was concerned about being eaten by a bear the entire time. Best part was the waterfall we found!  After our run, we returned to a lovely breakfast of Belgium waffles with strawberries and whipped cream, scrambled eggs, bacon, and hot coffee and then took a ride in Pat's (our host) boat up the Umqua River. Pat fishes for salmon everyday during the 90 day season, catching  $600.00 worth each day.  Travis and I learned more about fishing during our stay to last us the rest of our lives.

Our sweet ride to the coast

Veggie Chips from Wholefoods

Rogue Brewhouse in Eugene

Elk Viewing Area

Steve Prefontaine Memorial in Coos Bay

Beautiful View of the Pacific

Playing on the sands dunes in the GMC Terrain

Smoked Salmon Platter at Daybreak Bed & Breakfast

Nice enough for a run?

Running up the mountain

We discovered a waterfall!

Boat ride on the Umqua River

Seattle

On Wednesday, we were scheduled to take the AmTrak from Vancouver to Seattle, but ended up taking a bus instead.  A landslide had washed out part of the train track.  We arrived in Seattle with no maps and little information about the city.  Having both traveled around Europe, Travis and I managed to navigate the city very well.  We found a bus information station, gathered maps and worked our way to the Inn of Twin Gables Bed and Breakfast. After checking in with our host, Emily, we ventured down to the heart of Seattle. Needing some afternoon coffee, we stopped at what we thought was the very first Starbucks in the world.  Turns out, it was not the original SB, but happened to be the first completely sustainable Starbucks!  Everything was made from recycled material-the counter tops, the tables, everything. After indulging in a grande slow roasted, clover brewed coffee, we made our way to the world famous Pike Place Market.  We explored the market for a while, gazing at the seafood, fresh produce and flowers.  Pike's Place is referred to as the Soul of Seattle and is the country's oldest publicly operated market. We were in disbelief of the size of the market, and it wasn't until the next day we discovered there were 6 more floors we did not know existed!  I really wanted to see the original Starbucks and eventually located it after inquiring with some locals.
We had dinner at Delancey and you will have to wait for details about this lovely evening.  It most definitely deserves its own post.
On Thursday morning, Emily prepared us a delicious breakfast.  We devoured sliced pears drizzled with pomegranate syrup and fresh rosemary, followed by mushroom, asparagus, spinach, pepper, bacon and feta cheese omelets with Irish soda bread. (It's was St. Patrick's day)  This, of course, brought me right back to my time in Ireland and made me extremely happy. With full stomachs, we ventured to the Space Needle.  The sky was clear, which is not something that happens often in the Northwest.  Atop the needle, we were able to see Mt. Rainer and the Olympic Mountain Range. It was breathtaking. The remainder of our morning consisted of tea sampling, indulging in hand crafted truffles from a local chocolatier and having a beer at Pike's Place Brewery.  It was St. Patty's day after all. For lunch, we returned to the main floor of Pike Place Market and had a bowl of Seattle's best clam chowder followed by a fresh salmon sandwich.  Need I say more?

Inn of Twin Gables Bed and Breakfast

Pike Place Fish Market

First Starbucks

Pears with pomegranate syrup and fresh rosemary

Beautiful day in Seattle

A the top of the Space Needle

Pike Place Brewery

Freshly caught grilled salmon sandwich at the market

Oh, the adventures...

How on earth do you sum up a 10 day vacation in a single blog post?  If you are me, you don't.  I just arrived home from the West Coast and feel like I have so much to write about: running, scenery, food, family...the list goes on.  I am going to do a few shorter posts on my trip to break the story of the adventure up (it was one of the best adventures I have been on to date), because its crunch time back here at school, and well, some topics deserve a post of their own. 
I will start with the Amtrak train ride.  Travis and I booked our train tickets back in January and were very excited to take the Empire Builder route across the country.  The route travels along the Mississippi River, through Glacier National Park, and twists n turns through the Columbia River Gorge.  It takes you places that cars are not able to drive.  As our trip approached, the reality of the 41 hour (each way) trip set in.  41 hours? Oh my. To make matters more interesting, I became very sick the week before break and was taking a whole collection of medicine.  I could barely breathe and coughed until my lungs hurt.  An hour before the train left, my Aunt Maribeth (whom we were staying with in Vancouver) called me.  SURPRISE!  She had upgraded us to a sleeper car for the ride out, she knew I was sick and wanted us to have a fun experience.  We boarded the train with the help of Paul, our personal attendant, who showed us the way to our sleeper.  Immediately, he asked if we wanted dinner.  Next thing we knew, we were making our way to the dinning car and enjoying steak, bison meatloaf and wine.  When the waitress asked if we wanted dessert, we jumped on the opportunity to indulge in chocolate peanut-butter pie and cheesecake.  I am not someone who typically orders dessert at a restaurant, but heck, everything was included in our upgrade.  We were living the high life.  Just as we made it back to our car feeling stuffed from dinner, Paul brought us champagne.  He made our beds for us (the seats turned into the bottom bunk and the top bunk came down from the ceiling) and placed  Ghirardelli twilight dark chocolate on our pillows.  We woke up somewhere in North Dakota where the local paper was delivered to our room.  Prior to the trip, we figured we would be bored out of our minds.  We were quickly learning that our days were busy living the first class lifestyle (not something either of us had done before or will probably do again for a LONG time, but we soaked it up while we could).  Paul made us breakfast reservations and while we waiting, we had Mimosas.  As we recovered from breakfast, an old man wearing suspenders that were covered in musical notes stopped by our room.  Turns out, Ray Cartell was an 85 year old pianist who had taken the train from Oregon to Chicago and was on his way home.  Every few hours, Ray would stop by and tell us a few jokes and check in.  Later that day, he gave each of us a copy of one of his CDs. While we were playing a game of cribbage in our car, Paul stopped by and asked us if we wanted to participate in the afternoon event for first class passengers.  Why, yes, of course we would like to partake in the wine and cheese tasting.  We sampled four different wines, three cheeses, and were lucky enough to win our own bottle of wine.  Travis and I had a wonderful dinner and dessert the second night and woke up in Spokane Washington the next morning.  The final hours of the trip were breathtaking.  We sat in the viewing car as the train chugged along the Columbia River. After 45 long hours (the train was running late) we arrived in Portland. Maribeth met us at the train station and drove us to her and Michael's home which is just across the river, in Vancouver Washington.

First Night at Dinner in the Dining Car

MMMM Steak on the train

Wine and Cheese Tasting

Mimosas and Cribbage

We got to step off the train in Havre Montana for a few minutes

View out the back of our train car

First night in Portland!

On Sunday morning, we woke up at 5AM to head over the river to Portland for the Shamrock Run.  I signed up for the 8K (5 mile) distance and Travis the 15K (9.32 mile) distance.  When we arrived at starting line at Natio Park, which is situated along the Columbia River, it was drizzling out.  I was still recovering from my bacterial infection and a terrible cough and was not really in the mood to run.  This quickly changed as over 31,000 runners gathered for the run, decked out in all sorts of St. Patty's day apparel.  Irish music blasted through the park as I lined up among over 10,000 runners participating in the 8K.  At the 1 mile mark, I looked down at my watched and saw 12 minutes.  Now, as most of you know, I am not a runner by any means.  I can win the swim in a triathlon and be in the bottom half in run portion.  Despite this, I could have walked a 12 minute mile when I was 11 years old.  This was not acceptable.  I began to panic even though I felt like I was managing a good pace.  I decided to pick two girls out who looked like decent runners and forced myself to stay with them the rest of the race.  As we wound up and down the rainy Portland streets, a college aged man ran in front of me who was wearing green tights and carrying a boom box that was spray painted green and blasting music.  A mile from the finish line, there were was green beer and brownies for anyone who wanted them...I had to pass them up, but only because I was running.  I crossed the finish line in just over 43 minutes. Out of 4,086 women who ran the 8K, I came in 362.  If I were healthy and had not spent 45 hours on the train, my goal would have been 45 minutes.  I was happy.  Maybe they should place the mile markers at the incorrect places more often... Travis finished the race 31th overall out of over 6,000 men despite a very bad case of tendinitis.  We were in rough shape, but had a great time in the rain.  After the race, all runners were given warm salmon chowder and a Widmer Brothers Beer.  There is no better way to finish off a race....

Shamrock Run in Downtown Portland Starting Line

It was cold and rainy, but we made it

Widmer Brothers Beer at the Finish Line

Nothing like a little beer and some running on a Sunday morning