New day, New city.

Last night Becky and I went to Four Swallows Italian restaurant with her dad.

Don't think I forgotcha foccacia!

Such beautiful colors.

I ordered Pasta Pomodora with garlic, basil, pine nuts, (with the direction this is going you'd think it was covered in pesto!) parmesan shavings and mascarpone. Yep, mascarpone, (John). It was as fantastic as it looks but so filling.

Then I said by to my friend Hannah leaving for a Semester at Sea. She's thrilled. 

It's that day----Chicago bound! Bainbridge has been a treat, let me tell ya! I head to Sea-Tac very soon and I'm off! I can't wait to see my siblings tonight (and my parents in a few days!)

Later PST! 

               Best, 

                     Anne

Let's review.

Let's talk about the movie Eat, Pray, Love, shall we? In case you aren't aware, Julia Roberts stars in the movie based on the novel by Elizabeth Gilbert. I like Julia Roberts the appropriate amount I guess so I thought she would be pretty good in the role. 

This is the review from imdb.com

'Liz Gilbert (Roberts) had everything a modern woman is supposed to dream of having - a husband, a house, a successful career - yet like so many others, she found herself lost, confused, and searching for what she really wanted in life. Newly divorced and at a crossroads, Gilbert steps out of her comfort zone, risking everything to change her life, embarking on a journey around the world that becomes a quest for self-discovery. In her travels, she discovers the true pleasure of nourishment by eating in Italy; the power of prayer in India, and, finally and unexpectedly, the inner peace and balance of true love in Bali."

 I read the book (okay okay I read almost the entire thing---I became rather bored) a long time ago but thought the movie could be interesting. My aunt and I went to the movie this past weekend. We discussed the reviews we'd heard. People said "I like the book but not the movie" or "I loved the movie but hated the book"...people are so difficult. We went in with an open opinion and especially enjoyed the beginning in Italy. Who doesn't like watching people eat pizza and gelato?! After a good chunk of the movie,  my aunt ran to the restroom. Then I ran to the restroom. Then I realized Liz was still in Italy. Still. Liz, can your four months travel a little faster on the screen please? I found myself constantly checking the time. It was such a lengthy movie that I didn't want to enjoy it anymore. I wanted to leave and nap and eat gelato at least. Julia Roberts was genuine but overshadowed by my impatience. Sorry, JR. But, if you have two and a half hours and ten dollars to burn, check it out! 

(P.S. You don't have to agree with me. I'm completely okay with that!)

In other news, I saw The kids are all right last evening. Just to show you that I am not a harsh critic, I did enjoy this movie. 

Let's talk food!  

This morning I had a hot cup of honey vanilla chamomile tea. A bit robust for me, but I drank it. 

More toast. 

I went out to lunch with Brooke, another wonderful person on Bainbridge Island, and I had Wild Rice and Lentil soup. It was pretty good. The oatmeal bread on the side stole the show though.

And that's that. 

               Best, 

                      Anne

I don't have stories but I did have ice cream for dinner.

I used to have stories on this blog. I'm not saying they were all great but at least I had them. Ever since I started my food blog I just tell you all about that through these pictures. While that is fine with me, since I love food, but I love stories too... So what happened to them? I'm getting concerned that my life has turned quite mediocre recently and all I have to show for it are these pictures. I've been thinking about my recent past and there isn't anything overly exciting to share with you. Surely I must be wrong, but why can't I think of anything? My goal is to work on sharing more stories in addition to everything I'm stuffing into my face each day. Sound like a plan? In the meantime, let me take you back to Tuesday. 

Yogurt and cereal with blackberries that we picked at the park. Do I hear local ingredients? :-D

For lunch, Becky made sure I tried a Veggie place on the Island. Well if she is gonna twist my arm...

To be honest, I don't remember what I ordered. Luckily we can all guess by the depiction. I believe they were (orange?) rice noodles with broccoli and two petite egg rolls. It was phenomenal (not pho-nomenal).

We worked on a crossword while enjoying our lunches. I think I should carry these around more often. I'm horrendous at them but I feel like anyone with a crossword looks like they've got things under control. They are wise and love to test their brain skills. It's worth a shot!

Becky's mom made some banana bread that I just sorta kinda had to try in the afternoon.

She also whipped up some homemade blackberry ice cream that would be my dinner on Tuesday. That's right.

Wow.

Well it's my last day on Bainbridge Island. I'll be back later! 

                    Best, 

                             Anne

A day late...

Another day on Bainbridge, another day of fun. 

Yesterday was another exceptional day at Becky's.

Started the day with some more toast and jam. And une banane.

Lunch was a mix of her mom's granola/cereal, yogurt and more banana.

For dinner, her dad cooked all the fix-ins for fajitas! I had beans, cheese, peppers, onions, guacamole and cucumbers. And then I had another...:-D

After feeling sufficiently stuffed, we went to get ice cream. I indulged in some Mango sorbet. 

More later. Much love. 

                    Best, 

                          Anne

Pre- vacation Vacation

You know you're on vacation when: 

1. You forget what day it is and don't care at all.

2. You absolutely go with the flow.

3. You have homemade meals that just about take your breath away...like this one.

And the winner of largest salad bowl I've ever seen is........this one! Full of chunks of bread, arugula, garbanzo beans and so much flavor!

It's not everyday someone makes artichokes. They are pricey and hard to come by when not in season. Today happened to be a good day for me. I ate artichokes. I also had a few bites of grilled salmon. Those went undocumented because my fork got to the salmon before the camera and I quickly devoured it. You understand...

How does a homemade blackberry pie look? It looks just like this but tastes even better, if you believe it. I'm so lucky to eat such delicious food on my pre-vacation vacation. 

I still don't know why I can't have pie for every meal. I'm sure I got a few servings of fruit beneath the flaky, buttery lattice work.

Now I'm going to enjoy more vacation time and eat delicious food. Join me?

See you when I see you.

                   Best, 

                         Anne

Bainbridge Cuisine

Toast and raspberry jam.

Tomato Roasted Garlic soup and whole wheat toast.

Blackberry and Banana Muffin

It's been a good day so far...

                 Best, 

                         Anne

On to the next one...

Greetings. I have been away from the internet for a little while but in the meantime, I was eating delicious food. On my ride to Seattle, I was given an Appeal drink from Becky. It's basically juice, which I liked. Except, there were chunks of Aloe in every gulp. Once I got past that strange factor, I was able to finish the drink. I arrived in Seattle on Friday afternoon to stay with my Aunt Susan. 

Aunt Susan always has the food ready! She had half of a sandwich for me and grapes.

Grapes are so addicting. Why is it that every time a bowl of grapes is in front of me I eat about 100. Then I wonder why my stomach feels funny later. I must be grapeful. Literally.

We decided to take a nice long walk to get out of the apartment. When dinner rolled around, we were making quesadillas. (I mainly sat and watched as she got all of the ingredients out. Turns out, offering to help didn't receive much positive feedback!)

How beautiful? On my quesadilla I had black beans, cheese, red pepper and onions. I added salsa and more guacamole than you see here ;-D

Breakfast on Saturday morning was a bowl of Shredded wheats and blackberries. Boy are those blackberries in season! Mmmm. Delicious!

Aunt Susan had been mentioning this Italian restaurant that she wanted to take me. Even though I hate Italian, I tagged along. (.....kidding) We couldn't have stumbled upon this place at a more perfect time! It's called TuttaBella and won the 2010 Indie Pizzeria of the Year in Pizza Today Magazine! While that is all fine and dandy, what is even greater is that they had a week-long promotion giving out one free pizza per table! We chose one with fresh mozzarella, artichoke hearts, basil, (mushrooms on her side) and it was unreal.

Her view from the apartment isn't too shabby.

When I arrived on Bainbridge Island to stay with my friends, we went for a Mexican feast.

I ordered a Veggie Tostada and well, this clearly isn't it. They gave me a veggie burrito instead which I ate. I'm easy going, after all. 

I'll be on Bainbridge until Thursday and then it's sweet home Chicago!

                Best, 

                      Anne