The shimmering light.

Passion Overcomes the Cold

The shimmering light was just too hard for my beautiful wife to resist.  Nether the chilly water nor the jagged shells beneath her feet could sway her. The slight ripples in the water made the sunlight dance almost as fast as her shutter finger moved.  Nothing and no one escaped the lens of her camera.

Like cooking, if you are going to get good, you have to practice.  She is a good photographer now.

By the end of this trip she is going to be great!

As for me, I'm practicing patience.

From Nice De Ville to Coop De Ville

Finding a funky dockside bar and restaurant isn't hard to do on an island, but finding one with good food, great service and pocketbook friendly prices is rare.  Coop De Ville on the harbor in Oak Bluff on Martha's Vineyard fills all the squares.

Their fish and chips sailed us back to London, the hot wings flew us to Buffalo and the $14.99 whole lobster special was the Maine event.

Food for Thought

Oak Bluffs

We left the heat of the south to enjoy the cool breezes of Nantucket Sound.  As most first time tourist to an area, we spent our first morning on the island of Martha's Vineyard reading the numerous visitor brochures and magazines. One such magazine, "Experience Martha's Vineyard" had an unbelievable passage that I felt
the need to share. On page 27, reads a sentence, "For many years, a significant number of African-Americans have vacationed or made their year-round home on the island, especially in and around Oak Bluffs."  My wife and I weren't sure if this was a warning or a suggested photo opportunity.

Even today, people who are different than the majority still often feel the weight of prejudice.  A case in point, while riding the ferry, my wife and I met a delightful artist from Martha's Vineyard.  The conversation went from art to food and as a result she invited us to her house to cook Seafood Paella but before we could answer she felt the need to tell us that she was gay and her spouse was a woman.  You could see the relief in her face with our reaction.

I am glad I don't have to warn people about my life style or find that tourist are being warned about me.

Can't Decide??? Go With Both!

Surf & Turf with a with a hint of German flair

My favorite times cooking are when the menu is blank and the ingredients are scarce and I really don't know what I am going to create until I start.  Last night was one of those nights.

Most days, I don't know what will be on the menu until I head home from work.  But, yesterday I woke up with a craving for shrimp pasta.  That is until I saw a restaurant ad featuring a delicious fillet mignon.

It just so happens that the seafood market in my neighbor carries great steaks.  So when I eyed a lobster tail beside the fresh shrimp, my mind flashed back to the photo of the fillet.

While I had the ingredients to cook the shrimp pasta, I had to be creative with what was on my market shelves in the kitchen.  The result; surf & turf with spätzle and cabbage.