What A Weekend

This was an amazing weekend filled with many great local food treats, great music and most importantly time with my husband, friends and family.

Friday night was dinner at my house to celebrate the birthday of my very good friend. We started with bacon wrapped cherries and savory puff pastry treats that the birthday girl brought for hors d' oeuvres. For dinner we had delicious grass fed ribeye steaks from Millgate, local corn, cucumber yogurt salad with local cukes and green onions and Great Scott's cupcakes for dessert.

Saturday morning it was a joy to see a bustling crowd at the Coit Rd. Market. The Shaker market was quieter than usual but I was pleased to see a new family there selling local, pasture raised, heritage pork and beef. I also got the chance to chat with a friend who just came back from a trip to Italy where he and his sister visited family in the town from which their parents came. This was his first trip to Italy so listening to his enthusiasm for the trip and what they experienced was a real treat.

After the markets I had a wonderful surprise. Several dear friends arranged a surprise lunch at Gerracci's to celebrate my 40th birthday that had happened while Steve and I were in Europe this spring. It was quite a surprise! It took me a minute to realize that it wasn't a funny coincidence that my friend and I ran into other friends at Geracci's but that they were actually there as a surprise for me. I keep laughing at the delay in my figuring that out (it was the balloons that finally gave it away)! We had a completely wonderful time visiting and lunching and guess what we had for dessert? Great Scott cupcakes for my birthday! Ha! I highly recommend celebrating ones birthday after the fact, as it was great fun. I felt very lucky and very special. The past week was a difficult one and this surprise was just what my heart needed.

Between the cupcakes Friday night, the half a cupcake I had for breakfast Saturday and the cupcakes at lunch, that was 3 meals in a row with Great Scott's cupcakes!

After lunch I went home and packed a picnic lunch to have that evening at Blossom. I made three kinds of sandwiches with imported meats, cheeses and trimmings from Gallucci’s on a rustic Italian bread from the new Blackbird Baking Company. Steve and I and another good friend had the sandwiches, lupini beans and castelvetrano olives along with a nice bottle of red before hearing the Cleveland Orchestra at Blossom. Steve is very fond of Rhapsody In Blue so the outing to Blossom to hear the orchestra’s program that included that piece was my surprise for him. The whole program was wonderful, great American pieces, performed at Blossom on a July evening, that is the epitome of summer. Oh, and don’t tell anyone but I had half a GS cupcake when Steve and I got home that night. 4 meals in a row!

Today was the Rocking BBQ at Beachland Ballroom followed by a visit to my Dad’s to sit in the park that is his yard and visit with him and my Step-mom then a late evening visit to Honey Hut for a kid’s scoop of honey pecan ice cream with salted pecans and hot fudge that served as dinner.

Life is good.