Fresh Dungeness Crab (and Beans and Rice- Congrats to the NOLA Saints!)

Grant just returned from a trip to the Oregon Coast with stories about 15 pound fish pulling his float tube up and down the river and a cooler full of fresh dungeness crab- one of the best foods of Oregon!   Yesterday I made Linguine with the crab meat from the bodies and claws tossed with Piquillo Peppers, Artichoke Hearts, fresh Chevre, Parmesan Reggiano and some green onions.  Super easy, super fast - incredibly rich and delicious.
Plus, I still had 12 legs for dinner tonight.
I thought about it all day as I painted at the new BELLA store location in La Grande.  The N'Orleans Saints played some influence on my decision to go in a beans and rice direction.  Congratulations to the city of New Orleans!
I stopped at the market and grabbed some veggies and came back and created this delicious dish!

Fresh Crab with Beans and Rice
2 slices lean bacon (Hill Meat Co. in Pendleton make fabulous bacon!  This is optional of course, but incredibly delicious!)
1 sweet onion, sliced thinly
1 Poblano Chile, sliced thinly
1 T. olive oil
1 c. vegetable broth
1 c. fresh green beans, chopped into bite-sized pieces
1 c. jasmine rice
1 c. cooked black beans
1 c. crushed tomatoes
2 T. chipotle sauce (a really smokey one like Bufalo)
1 avocado, cubed
1 c. cilantro, rinsed and chopped

1. Saute bacon in heavy bottomed pan.  Add onions and cook until transparent.
2.  Add chile and the olive oil (if the bacon is super lean) and saute for a minute and add rice.  Stir until rice is coated with oil and add broth and cover.  Cook 5 minutes and add tomatoes.
3.  Stir in black beans, green beans and chipotle sauce .   Add another cup of water, cover and lower heat.  Cook for 15 minutes.
4.  Turn off heat and let rice mixture relax and thicken.
To serve, sprinkle plates with fresh cilantro.  Portion beans and rice mixture onto plate and top with crab, fresh avocado and garnish with a bit of the chipotle. 
Serve with a great NW microbrew and ENJOY!

Bittersweet... real life and real heroes.

Got back to Baker City in the middle of the night from a whirlwind buying trip to NYC with a mind full of beautiful images. I didn't take a single photo, even though my hotel was just blocks from the Chrysler Building which I think is one of the most beautiful buildings in America! I've taken hundreds of pics of it and yet it always seems like "I've never seen it from that angle" or "the light is just so perfect" and so it's become an obsession of sorts.
The weather was cold- but with cloudless blue skies and brilliant sun every day- it was absolutley gorgeous in Manhattan! Every corner turned presented a new sparkling image that I captured in my minds eye.
Somehow it seemed a little sweeter that way.

As I crossed the Harlem and then the East River on my way to the airport, I looked back at all the shimmering towers of one of the most magical cities I've ever seen, knowing that I was leaving with only memories and no proof to share other than the telling....
I liked the thought.

Today was back to work and the first item I tackled (after a delicious "so glad to be back to the best Coffee Latte") was the 100 e-mails. I worked through one-by-one until I opened a message with an unfamiliar nickname. One of the sons of my Guido, the man who inspired nearly everything that "works" about BELLA, had written to share with me that Guido was gone.

Guido had been on my mind for the past several weeks and I suppose this one of the hard parts of staring down 50... my heroes are older and some of them are more fragile than others.
His words were very touching, he recognized how much his dad had mattered to me (and so many others) in his role as the owner of Checkerboard Grocery for 55 years and a dedicated public servant.
Guido was my superhero.
He owned the most perfect little market. He talked to me like my opinions mattered, even when I was 8. He recognized me when I walked into his store after a 30 year absence and challenged me a couple of years later to keep BELLA open 7 days a week, "so that the community will trust you and know that they can count on you".
Guido Rachiele, son of Salvatore and Rosina, the grocer who caught my father waxing his windows in the early 50's and held my hand during the 4th of July Parade in Price, Utah in the mid-60's; a man who could pop a top off of a Coke bottle and make me feel like the most important person in the world at ten and even at 40-something had lived 84 very full years and touched many lives including mine.
Rest in Peace Guido. You were "bigger than a Kennedy"to me as a child and still feel like my guardian angel/business coach. Your presence and influence are a visceral part of the little store called BELLA and the checkboard will always be here as an homage to you! You will always be my superhero.

Cellar Discoveries at years end

Mom called today and wondered why 'no news' on the blog. I'd actually written something at home and just hadn't gotten to the computer yet.
Here it is Mom, enjoy the delicious words and have a wonderful warm and sunny holiday!

There is always a new wine to get excited about, some new varietal grabbing headlines from South America, or a fabulous new label from the farthest reaches near Cap Finesterre. Every once in a while, I have been lucky enough to experience and enjoy the brilliance of fine wines that have had the time and opportunity to become memorable.
This Christmas presented one such opportunity. I was invited to spend Christmas Day with my friend Colleen and her family. They were planning a prime rib roast with all the fixings, I volunteered to bring the wine. My day began quietly, I was both thankful for and exhausted by the very busy season at the BELLA and I slept in a bit before getting up and baking Huckleberry Scones. I arrived just in time for the opening of the stockings with those aromatic scones warm from the oven! Colleen greeted me at the door with a glass of Prosecco and showed me to my place... where I discovered my very own stuffed stocking.
It was a banner year for Smart Wool! Mom sent me a bundle of new Smart Wool socks, and Santa must have gotten the memo too as there was a purple pair in my stocking with fabulous "dot" earrings as well.
We went for a walk after the stockings and gifts- it was an absolutely beautiful day in Baker City with clear blue skies, warm sun and perfect white snow everywhere except the nicely shoveled walks! The air was crisp, and it was a treat to spend
unscheduled time with such a good friend (oh my, there should be much more of this in my life- must make a note for New Years Resolutions!) When we returned,
the whole house was filled with the perfume of roast beef and garlic. Such a glorious aroma!
We teamed up and to play SCRABBLE and I opened the 2000 Corton Charlemagne from Boillot. We marvelled over the cork (does anyone use higher quality corks than those bottling Corton Charlemagne?) and were amazed by the youthfulness of the color- still brilliant and bright with no signs of age. The mouth was every thing you expect from such a great wine, even more so for it's lengthy rest in my basement over the past 7 years! I certainly could have planned a menu around this wine, but matching it with a word game and good friends gathered at the base of a decorated tree seemed the perfect way to celebrate this beautiful wine. Colleen and I won the first game, making up some rules as we went along but having a great time. At last the prime rib was ready to serve, the candles were lit and everyone pulled their poppers and put their paper crowns on as I pulled the second cork. This baby had been resting in my cellar for a very long time, it was a wine I had saved from my very first BELLA store in McMinnville,a magnum of Bethel Heights Reserve Pinot Noir 1990. Bethel Heights has been one of my dear favorite Oregon producers, I loved their old labels which featured a small photo of the grape varietal on each label and although the new labels are very classy and elegant, I really have a soft spot for this label and all the memories of my early days in the Oregon wine business that it evokes!
Anyways,
the wine was simply beautiful. I remember doing a tasting at Salishan Lodge once with Oregon Pinot noir from the 1980 vintage-in 1989!! We were so worried about how old the wines were and how they would show. I remember the Adelsheim very specifically, although it's moment of brilliance was fleeting, it was absolutely brilliant and complete for a window of time. This bottle of wine was made the next harvest following that tasting and while the larger format bottle certainly has allowed it to age longer,the wine was in perfect condition. I have always liked the Pinot noir from the region just northwest of Salem and there are qualities from the grapes in this microclimate that remind me of Vosne Romanee, my favorite French Burgundies. There is an element of spice, and sometimes candied orange peel, along with a depth of color and intensity that defines the Pinot of the Eola Hills region.
The Bethel Heights Pinot noir had intense color, with no browning at all and the flavors were very defined and elegant with an exceptionally smooth finish although still well built, not lacking acidity or structure. It was delicious with the beef and extremely satisfying, 6 adults and a lengthy dinner and there was still 3 glasses left in the bottle at nights end.
Not to worry, we gathered for leftovers the following day after a long and busy day at the store. The wine, even after being open for an entire day was still just gorgeous. I was truly impressed by the color and the fact that the fruit was still so center stage. It's not often that you find Pinot noir that is still beautiful and lovely at over 10 years of age, and Oregon is still such a young grape culture! The last glass was savored, and the sediment reminded us about all the reasons why we think unfiltered wines are better... especially in the LONG RUN!

Birthday Dinners
I want to cook more and I want to try really new things. I started last night with a Thai inspired menu idea and a package of frozen squid. As I worked out on the eliptical yesterday morning, I flipped through the pages of a Thai cookbook. I took stock of my pantry and freezer and made a few notes before going to work. I finished work at 2, grabbed a few produce items and the Holy Basil Chile Sauce and headed to my kitchen.
First was the dessert, afterall, this was a birthday dinner and Will loves pie, especially Rhubarb Pie! I made a whole wheat Pate Brisee crust and filled it with frozen huckleberries and rhubarb, the juice of 2 mandarin oranges and some fresh grated cinnamon and nutmeg. I cut stars out of the rolled pastry and topped my tart with overlapping stars- I should have taken a picture! (Note #2 for New Years Resolutions!)
I had written up my menu and began prepping my ingredients:
Carmelized Leeks
Sauteed Edamame, Broccoli and Green Beans with Fish Sauce
Shredded Fresh Spinach
Homemade Peanut Sauce
Satay Spiced Panko Breaded Cubes of Halibut
Pan Roasted Garlic, 14 cloves!
Shredded Cabbage
Julienned Sweet Potatoes
Julienned Peppers
Cleaned and cut squid
Coconut Rice
Everything was prepped and set aside in ramekins so that once my guests arrived, it would take less than 10 minutes to prepare the first course and about the same amount of time for the main course. I turned on the rice cooker once everyone had a glass of Limoux Brut and we relaxed and enjoyed some crusty french bread and the Rouge et Noir Triple Cream Brie. When I was ready to start the first course, I stirred the rice once and turned up the flame on the wok.
The prep for everything took about 1 fairly relaxed hour. The cooking time took mere minutes and the food was delicious. I'm going to make the Halibut
again soon, it was fantastic!

Satay Breaded Halibut on a bed of Carmelized Leeks and Spinach
2 T. butter
2 leeks, cleaned and cut into thin rounds
1 c. edamame
1/2 c. green beans
1/2 c. broccoli
1 T. fish sauce
1 # halibut, cut into 2" cubes
1 13 oz. can coconut milk
1 1/2 c. jasmine rice
1 1/2 c. panko crumbs
1 egg, whisked
1 Hand Brand Satay packet

1. Melt butter in hot wok, add leeks and lower heat. Stir to evenly coat leeks, cover wok and stir occassionally unti carmelized but not limp. Remove leeks from butter and set aside.
2. Mix together spice packet and panko crumbs. Dip cubes of halibut in egg to coat and then dip into crumb mixture to evenly cover. Set aside in fridge.
3. Saute edamame and vegetables in remaining butter, add fish sauce.
4. Mix peanut sauce packet with coconut milk in saucepan and bring to low boil for 15 minutes.
5. Heat heavy cast iron fry pan or large wok. Add 1 T. sesame or peanut oil. Place cubes of halibut in pan, turn when browned to evenly cook.
6. Add leeks back to veggie mixture in wok, toss until evenly heated.
7. Arrange shredded spinach on serving plates. Divide sauteed veggies onto plates, top with 2 cubes of halibut and top with sauce. Garnish edge of plate with Sriracha sauce!

Holy Basil Squid and Coconut Rice (with a nod to Victor)
1 # cleaned and peeled squid, cut bodies in rings
1/2 small head of cabbage, shredded
4 sweet potatoes, julienned
14 cloves garlic, pan roasted to carmelize
2 c. diced peppers
1 c. chopped flat leaf parsley or cilantro
1 roasted chile
2-3 T. holy basil chile sauce

Heat the wok, add 1 .t peanut oil and stir fry cabbage and sweet potatoes. When tender, add peppers,chile and cooked garlic and toss to mix thoroughly. Add squid and stir fry for 2 minutes on medium heat. Stir in Holy Basil sauce and parley and serve!
Place large scoop of coconut rice in center of plate, top with Squid and sauce. Serve with Holy Basil Chile and Sriracha.

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a GOOD NIGHT!

Orin, Sam and their mother Whitney made this eggscellent Christmas display for BELLA using shells from our local happy chickens that supply fresh eggs for the store.
They hand picked tiny little branches for the antlers- I just can't believe how adorable this is!!
So my Santa's Eggspress is on display at the wine tasting bar until New Years Day. Stop by for a Cappuccino or a taste of the Montelliana Prosecco- we'd love to see you!
BELLA has tickets for the double feature movie on New Years Eve. The feature film is Herb and Dorothy, the true story of a postal clerk and librarian that lived very frugally and collected art "they liked" resulting in an incredibly important and amazingly complete collection of contemporary artwork that is now housed in the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.
http://www.herbanddorothy.com/
There will be music, dancing, wine tasting and good food before and after the movie. Sherlock Holmes will be the second feature.
Tickets are $10 and are available at BELLA and at the door.

BELLA Gift Catalog!

The Baker City Twilight Parade was fabulous and the kids are already planning for next year! We took down the float the morning after (it was SOOO cold - in fact, it still is!) and Colleen helped me move the DOT towers back to the store to stack beside our tree.

We had to get a photo while we had the chance!

Aren't these just too fun?

Anyways,

the tree is up,

the lights are on,

the carols are playing

and

the Gift Basket Catalog is LIVE!

Check it out at:
http://www.bellabakercity.com/catalog/catalog.pdf

Happy HoliDOTS!

Tonight was the annual Baker City Twilight Parade, the official Christmas season kick-off event. What has always been the "shortest parade" in Oregon was simply fabulous tonight. It's been known to be short because it's usually around 20 degees and it's one FAST MOVING parade!

Tonight it was 22 degrees and there were twice as many floats and entries as last year,

it was fabulous!

The BELLA Happy HoliDOTS float followed the Baker Middle School Marching Band. All the BELLA staff and their kids were ringing cowbells, wearing their elf hats and having a great time. After the parade, it seemed like the entire city gathered at the intersection of Main and Court for the tree lighting and some carolling. Santa cruised the crowd and then everyone stormed back in BELLA for one last Hot Ghirardelli Chocolate with extra whipped cream!

Happy HoliDOTS to Everyone!

Here's another short video from in front of the store!

Who Doesn't Love Fruitcake?

Well the Holiday Showroom at BELLA Main Street Market opened up this past weekend and we had an absolutely fantastic celebration on Saturday with the Grandmas, Great Aunts and Fairy Godmothers crew! The chocolate fountain was a bit hit with cubes of Italian Pannetone, fresh strawberries and MARSHMALLOWS! Everyone raved about the Twila's English Toffee (still my favorite treat and guilty pleasure!) and the Sweet's Chocolate Covered Orange Sticks and Raspberry Sticks elicited a LOT of childhood reminiscing,

More customers picked up the real fruitcake (the Trappist Abbey Fruitcake!) than inflatables and even more took the Trappist Abbey Date Nut cake, but the Blow Up Fruitcake got the most laughs for sure!

The Fruitcake "infomercial" is the result of our late night 'final touches' work party. Work for sure, but it's a party if there's a little champagne! Here's another moment of levity as Colleen and Vicki model the measure/mixing bowls!

Now it's time to start thinking about turkeys... specifically Grandpa's Farm locally raised, free range, happy hens from Haines!

Grandpa Kurt and Grandma Connie have really filled a huge gap in our local food circle. We've brought in free-range and organic birds from California for the past 4 years, but have dreamed of the day we could offer chickens that didn't travel!

Lucky us! These birds grow up with a view of the Elkhorn mountains under crystal clear skies, with no light pollution, traffic hummmmm and nothing but the rhythmic squeak of Grandpa's rockin' chair on the porch each night as they bed down. The turkey tastes even sweeter when it grows up in such idyllic circumstances and we are just so excited for Thanksgiving dinner this year because of it!

Turkeys are available in 9-12#, 12-15#, 15-20# and we have a few birds available over 20#.

Give us a call at BELLA to get more information or to reserve your turkey today!

541-523-7490

My first Halloween!

I was born under the sign of Mars and have always embraced my Aries nature- including the seemingly senseless ability to 'ram' my head against the so-called walls of my world- but my mom just saw the horns and dressed me appropriately for my first Trick-O-Treat.

What began the day as my dad's red hoodie was transformed into a baby devil by evening!

My First Steelhead

I spent Columbus Day weekend on the Imnaha River. It was my first trip to the area and a memorable one indeed! This part of NE Oregon is wild and breathtaking. The drive from the town of Imnaha is not for those (like myself) that get carsick. It's a LONG, windy, bumpy, narrow - and surprisingly traffic heavy piece of road but if you carry enough candied ginger and stop regularly to take pictures, it's well worth the drive! The cliffs of columnar basalt and pillow rock, the dal sheep and bighorns and ruggedness of the land is just remarkable!
There are century old farmsteads along the river - so remote and idyllic but that's a really long way to drive a hay truck! After a crazy busy week at work, I found myself dreaming about living in that kind of pastoral isolation and peacefully tending my cabbage plants.
It's a nice dream, but the only reason I was there was to catch a fish!
And I did!
I caught my first Wild Steelhead on a fly, an itsy bitsy fly in fact! I can't even honestly call myself a fisherwoman yet. My casts are inconsistent- although at times quite marvelous- and my feet get really, really cold still when standing in 34 degree water for over an hour- even with the fabulous neoprene waders and fancy fly fishin' boots.
I may look good but my feet get COLD!!
I took over 100 photos of the river, the canyon and the fishin'. The poison ivy was brilliant red and is actually really beautiful this time of year! I've attached my Imnaha Photo Albumn for your to check out, just click the photo to the top right side of the blog!
The steelhead that made my day was about 28 inches long, bright and wild- so she's still there in the Imnaha where she belongs. I hooked several more, didn't set the hook more than a couple of times and lost a huge one but got a great photo before it took my fly and swam away!
Anyways, it was a quick planned trip- didn't even pack my gas burner and little stove-top espresso (a mistake I will not repeat!) - but we picnic'd like royalty and stayed toasty warm in the tent with layers of quilts atop our down sleeping bags. I took a 'box' of the Green Path Organic Australian Shiraz, Oregon Raw Milk Cheddar, Emerald Valley Hummus and roasted Hazelnuts. Great food, excellent wine and no glass bottle to haul back!

This year has been an amazing one for Oregon fishing! The limits have been increased on the Grande Ronde River because of the incredible number of fish making their way up the rivers. It's been an incredibly lucky season for me!
This picture is one of my 'old favorites' from 1963- I was always the camp cook it seems. Uncle Don caught this image of my cousins Bryan and Janae with their catch of the day as I stand there with those glorious chipmunk cheeks and a frying pan in my hand. I especially love the BandAids on Janae's forehead!

When You LOVE it... Write About It!!

I had a call back from a customer last week that claimed he'd found the "dream deal" for his passion of BBQ on his recent visit to BELLA.
I asked if he'd be willing to write a review!
We will be featuring the Kingsford BBQ Wok and Grill Basket in our
Top 20 Great Gifts They Will Use
catalog this year. But I'll let David tell you more!!!

KINGSFORD BBQ WOK REVIEW
DAVID BAGNARD, GARDEN VALLEY, IDAHO

As a life long barbequing practitioner I have always been frustrated when trying to grill fresh vegetables on a barbeque. Fine screen grill attachments I have purchased in the past were poorly constructed, wimpy, and usually failed in a short period of time. I even tried using paint roller screens designed to hook onto a painting ladder. Unfortunately the results were unsatisfying and the ladder hooks made the process clumsy to say the least. And, lots of beautiful veggies were sacrificed during this unsuccessful experimentation, ending up in the bottom of the barbeque along with the charcoal.

Finally, due to the buying genius of Beverly Calder and her extremely competent staff the miracle product showed up on the shelves of the wonderful BELLA Main Street Market in beautiful downtown Baker City, Oregon. Unbeknown to me, the Kingsford charcoal briquette people started marketing a fantastic BBQ wok. Carefully thought out, perfectly engineered, and extremely sturdy, this is the ultimate veggie griller for use on an outdoor barbeque. And it even has handles for lifting it onto and off the grill.

My suggested method of using this great little round basket wok is as follows:

Take a mixing bowl and fill it with various vegetables you have selected from your garden or the local purveyor. Before the veggies go into the bowl chop them up in one inch lengths.(Cut at a forty-five degree angle for artistic effect if you like.) Various squashes, onions, peppers, eggplant and anything else you can think of work great. Roma tomatoes are particularly delicious and juicy and grill perfectly. I love to add several jalapeños sliced length-wise with the seeds left in. (This adds a delicious heat to all the vegetables that are being grilled.) When your bowl is filled to your satisfaction drizzle a little olive oil over the mixture and add some high quality garlic salt. Stir things up and you are ready for the grill. Take your new BBQ wok and spray it with Pam or just brush on some of the olive oil you used for the veggies. Place the empty and oiled BBQ wok onto the barbeque grill and wait until it is good and hot. Dump your prepared vegetables into the wok and stir with a soft (Teflon) spatula while you drink a delicious glass of excellent wine from the BELLA inventory. When the veggies are cooked and nicely browned, remove the wok from the barbeque using two pot holders and dump the contents back into your kitchen bowl that still contains olive oil and garlic salt residue from the original mixing. You might consider throwing a few raw shrimp into the BBQ wok while cooking the vegetables or you could buy two woks and cook shrimp, scallops, pieces of fish or some chunks of chicken breasts separately while the veggies are grilling. I haven't tried small pieces of steak yet, but I believe they would be outstanding. Remember to treat your BBQ wok(s) with consideration and respect. No automatic dishwasher or abrasive scrubbers. Just hot water and a little liquid dish soap will work fine. Bon appetite.

The Grill Basket is one of my favorite pieces, if you love kebabs and you hate trying to turn those little skewers- you will absolutely LOVE this basket!! Line up the kebabs, lock it up and put it on the grill. Turn the entire basket once and voila!! no burned fingers and perfectly grilled kebabs! I've also done steelhead and salmon steaks in the basket.

Tastes Like CHICKEN SHOULD!!

Grandpa's Farm is what you'd call a small family operation.
Real Small.
It's just Connie and Kurt who decided that they weren't ready for rockin' chairs on the porch but loved the idea of raising baby chicks and putting
LOCAL
FREE RANGE
HAPPY CHICKEN
on the table for local consumers to enjoy! Whoopee!
I for one am a happy chicken eater and I couldn't help but smile when a devoted customer (who has her own cookbook and has lived in this valley for somewhere in the neighborhood of 60+ years) called to tell me she hadn't "tasted chicken this good in 30 years!"
I thought it was good chicken before but then I was sure!
I've roasted them (stuffed with lemons and herbs), BBQ'd (with Spicy Chipotle Sauce from Red Tail Ale), cubed and stirfried with fresh veggies and each time I take a bite (and then marvel over the flavor) I just giggle with glee!
How many people can pop over to their local market and pick up a chicken raised less than 15 miles from the store and processed by the owner of the chicken?
NOBODY touches Grandpa's chickens 'cept Grandma!

I am so proud of these folks and so thrilled to offer their chicken at BELLA Main Street Market (7 'til 7, 7 days a week - now and forever!)
Last night was the BBQ option, I simply quartered the bird (you won't believe it, there's NO FAT on this poultry!!) and rubbed it with the sauce, popped it into a hot oven and roasted it until the juices ran clear. I served with Napoli Bucantino Pasta tossed with roasted NE Farms Roja Garlic, Caspian Pink Tomatoes, sweet Walla Walla Onions and some of that absolutely amazing Fiorentina Zucchini from my own garden. A pinch of sea salt, some crushed peppercorns and a small bit of the Mamma Junes's Tuscan Tomato Herb Blend is all I add (plus the required amount of olive oil!) I grate a bit of fresh Pecorino Romano over the top and pour a glass of Ciacci Piccoliamini Rosso and all is well in the world!
Of course, we'd had fresh grilled steelhead the night before and it's always hard to follow something so incredibly tasty and fresh like Deschutes big fish but Grandpa's Farm Chicken was getting no complaints!

If you'd like to try it for yourself, join us in historic downtown Baker City this Saturday for the Taste of Baker City and the festivities of Fall Festival. BELLA Main Street Market will be celebrating local agriculture from 4 'til 8 pm under sunny skies. Come on down, grab some 'wooden nickels' and enjoy the fruits of Oregon's harvest!

• NE FARMS Roasted Organic Garlic with Sourdough Baguette


• Free Samples of Grandpa's Farm Chicken and Turkey


• Horse Drawn Organics Oven Roasted Sweet Corn on the Cob


• Eagle Creek Orchards Fresh Alberta Peaches & Whipped Cream


• Michele's Handmade Chocolate Truffles


• Weiser Classic Candy Company Hand Dipped Velvet Mints


• Oregon Peppermint Chai

And last but not least, it's the wine tasting of the season!! Buy a crystal BELLA wineglass for just 6 wooden nickels ($6) and taste through the new shipment that just arrived from Spain and Italy along with an amazing dessert wine from Malaga, sparking Moscato d'Asti and a fabulous little Oregon Pinot noir that we are simply mad about!

HOPE TO SEE YOU ON MAIN STREET THIS SATURDAY!!

By the way... Congrats!!! to Charles Smith - the genius behind the wheel of K Vintners. We loved you even before you were famous in WW2 and we still think your wines absolutely ROCK and that's why we feature them so proudly in the cellar at BELLA!

Great story about wine labels - check it out!

http://www.kval.com/news/59563347.html

That's FIRE... THAI FIRE!!

Sarah called to correct me - and suddenly everything made more sense!
Aha!
It's not Thai Fine... it's THAI FIRE!

This garlic has a slow building heat that is sumptuous and breathtaking all at the same time. Gorgeous cloves with an intense yet complex aroma, but take a tiny bite of the raw and you'll be stunned with the most wonderful hot flavor. It reminds me of Thai Holy Basil sauces - all these layers of flavor and then you realize... wow, there's some heat too! It mellows beautifully on the palate and was delicious in the roasted aubergine, tomato, basil and pork dish I created for dinner! Just tossed with herbs, pepper and sea salt--- oh and a good healthy drizzle of really, really good Italian olive oil --- 45 minutes in the oven and served over Carnaroli rice. It was delicious and Will was happy because there were plenty of leftovers - he calls it 'fish food', as it's what he's eating this weekend while fishing the Deschutes. All the other fisherman have bags of Cheetos and beefsticks, Will dines on Thai Fire Caponata!

After dinner, there was pie.

All you need... is PIE!

Say it with PIE!

and ALWAYS,

Save Room.... there's PIE!

Fresh local Red Haven peaches from Eagle Creek Orchards with 2 cups of Wild Huckleberries and made with unprocessed cane sugar and a bit of fresh grated nutmeg.

All is well in the world.