Escape

About a month or so ago, I jokingly said to a girlfriend that we should run away for the weekend.

A few days later, train tickets were purchased and we had a plan to spend two nights in Seattle. Other than checking out the Gauguin exhibit at the Seattle Art Museum, we didn't make any plans. Mostly we just walked and ate and enjoyed being unencumbered adults for the weekend, where nobody needed anything from us and we were free to roam at will.

In no particular order, here are some images I captured of our time there:

I confess that the train travel and the opportunity to snap some candid photos with my new camera has got me itching to get to France. We leave two months from today!

Finally

After a punishing start to spring, we finally got some beautiful weather, just in time for our usual round of holiday fun.

There was a very abbreviated Passover seder, complete with a paper stand-in for the shank bone on the seder plate, and chickenless matzo-ball soup. There was easter-egg-hunt mayhem. There were beautiful blooms and lots of resultant sneezing. There were fairy houses and there was chocolate. Even some really good chocolate.

There was sitting in the sun with everyone on the block, because we finally could. It finally, really feels like spring.

Amazing chocolate macaroons

(adapted from E. Guittard cocoa powder)

1/2 c. good quality cocoa powder

1/2 c. ground almond meal

1 c. powdered sugar

pinch of salt

2 large egg whites

1 t. vanilla

1 cup unsweetened coconut

Mix first 4 ingredients. Add egg whites and vanilla. Mix on low speed until glossy. Mix in cocnut. Drop rounded spoonfuls onto a cookie sheet (I used a Silpat) and back for 15-20 minutes at 350F. Super rich, chocolatey goodness. And gluten-free!