Sylvia's Scenario

We're already having a heat wave and it's only April!  The temperature reached 89 degrees at the airport today and it was pretty close to that at our house, too. That broke an all time record around here and we're expecting another one tomorrow.  Yesterday, it was also in the 80's so we went down to Alki Beach to enjoy it all.  We weren't the only ones, as you can see... But it's always fun going down there, especially when we stop into our favorite  Cactus  for a little refreshment.  That really hit the spot on a hot day.  So, today we barbecued chicken in the backyard and I made this lovely Spring salad that was perfect for a hot day. The quinoa made it very light and fluffy and high protein, too. (1 cup of cooked quinoa provides 8 grams of protein). I got this recipe off another blog Two Peas and Their Pod and loved the aparagus and avocado in it. I also loved the basil in it because we just planted our basil in the backyard and it w

Happy Record Store Day! Did you know there was such a thing? Neither did I, until this week. One of our local cafe/coffee shop/record stores is celebrating Record Store Day today so Bruce and I had to walk up there and check it out. We've eaten breakfast here a couple of times and we always recommend it to our visitors, as well. The food is so-so, nothing to write home about, but to tell you the true, it's not really about the food here at all. This place is so much more...and it finally hit us this week. It's about Rock 'n Roll! They are big supporters of local music scene here in Seattle and there is a lot of it. We didn't realize how big of supporters they are until we saw this video from Easy Street Records last year on Record Store Day. They hosted a concert by a local group called the Sonics who were popular in the 60's in Seattle.  We knew they must have been popular awhile ago because of their ages...but we thought they were still p

This week and next week is Seattle Restaurant Week, always a much anticipated event.   We stopped into a neighborhood favorite, Salty's , after the Mariner baseball game this week to test it out.  Restaurant Week participants offer a three course dinner from a pre-selected menu and a few of the restaurants also offer lunch.   Most of the restaurants offer three different appetizers, three entrees and three desserts to choose from. (Lunch is an entree and dessert.)  You can look  on-line  to see which restaurants are participating and what their menu offerings are.  It's basically a good time to go try out a place you've wondered about.  Dinners are $30 each which is a good deal for three courses and lunch is only $15.  Most of the places that participate are really good, high-end, quality restaurants like Salty's.  We've been there multiple times including our  anniversary  last summer so we know it's one of our favorites.  We thought it would be a good tim

We had another memorable Masters dinner last night.   We watched the final day of the Masters golf tournament yesterday at my sister's house this year since we now live in the same city.  She and her husband have journeyed to Boise for the past 5 years during Masters weekend so we could spent it together after our trip to the Masters in 2010. Bruce and Jim would golf Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday and then come home and watch the tournament on TV.  A true golf weekend.  Barbara and I would prepare a Southern food dinner, in honor of Augusta, Georgia, where the Masters is held every year.  (We loved all the Southern food on that trip in 2010!)  So, Barbara prepared a delicious Southern food dinner for us yesterday, the last day of the tournament.  We had Tall and Fluffy Buttermilk Biscuits from Cook's Illustrated that had a perfectly crisp outside and soft, fluffy inside.  I love Southern buttermilk biscuits.  Who doesn't? The main entree was Cajun Grilled Por

I've always loved the banana/chocolate combination.  Remember my  chocolate swirl banana bread ?  It's one of my favorites.  Now I have a cookie version!  I made these last night while Bruce was catching up on the Masters Golf Tournament that he recorded.  This is Masters weekend, you know. S ince we live in Seattle now, we're getting together at Barbara and Jim's house instead of them driving to Boise and spending 4 days watching it at our house for our usual  Master's Weekend .  Living near each other is a lot easier.  Since we all four went to the Master's together in 2010, we feel the need to be together on this special weekend.  Now, we live only 20 minutes away.  So nice.  We can each stay in the comforts of our own home so I have lots of extra time this Master's weekend.  I had one over-ripe banana left in the fruit bowl, which is often the case.  After moving, I decided I'm not freezing bananas anymore because they accumulate too quickly