24

Another year, another birthday! No matter how old I get, I still get excited about birthdays. What's not to like? It's the one day of the year that I get to be the center of attention without trying! I get presents and cake! I love presents and cake! I celebrated early last weekend with good food and my cute boy. We took a walk in the rain around historic Ellicott City, one of my favorite places to be, followed by dinner at The Rumor Mill, an amazing fusion restaurant in a turn-of-the-century building off of Main Street. It's our go-to place for special occasions.

 I saw strawberry beer on their drink menu and I had to try it. When I poured it into my glass I squealed when I realized it was PINK! How fabulous is that? It was definitely the girliest beer I've ever had. Perfect for sipping while wearing a frilly dress and mary jane shoes.

 The food was spectacular as always. See that pile of fried something up there with sauce on it? Yeah, that's an avocado. A curry tempura fried avocado stuffed with jumbo lump crab meat and drizzled with preserved lemon aioli. Stop drooling. You'll ruin your keyboard and I don't think your warranty covers it.

 Dessert consisted of chocolates from a local candy shop. I saw a sign in the window for "Old Bay chocolate crabs" and had to go in. They did, in fact, have molded chocolate crabs with Old Bay seasoning mixed in. How very Maryland! Sounds crazy, but they are delicious. If you've ever had chocolate covered bacon, it's sort of like that. Sweet, salty and smoky, with a hint of spice. Yum.

I cherish these dates with the man I love. We slow down, we indulge, we laugh, we take time to enjoy the things we often take for granted about each other's company in the day-to-day busyness of our lives. It's the best birthday gift he could give me.



P.S. SQUIRREL UPDATE: We ended up taking the babies to Frisky's Wildife and Primate Sanctuary in Woodstock. It's a sprawling animal rescue run by a compassionate and savvy woman who has been saving wildlife and exotic pets since the 70s. I trust that they are in capable hands and they will grow up to be healthy, strong little squirrelies.

local flavor

 Today we attended an annual summer barbeque at the Prigel Family Creamery, a local dairy store that sells delicious homemade ice cream along with milk, eggs and meat from a small family owned farm in Glen Arm. We sat picnic-style in the grass and enjoyed live music while the kids drew with chalk and ran through the sprinklers, followed by the consumption of quite a bit of ice cream.

 Is it me or does food just taste better when it's fresh and local? It just seems so much cleaner. The ice cream was pure and flavorful and so perfect in every flavor we tried; mint chocolate chip, chocolate peanut butter, and a flavor made from a trio of summer berries. All amazing.

Maryland is a state rich with small farms and artisanal foods like these, and I feel so lucky to live right in the middle of all of it. There are so many wonderful flavors and places to experience, especially in the summer time. I'm looking forward to finding as many of them as we can this year.

photo friday: sushi

Chicken Walnut Roll from Sushi Hana in Towson, MD: tempura chicken and fresh apples inside a roll topped with walnuts and a sweet sauce.

I could eat sushi every day. For reals. When I moved to Maryland I was surprised to find that the Baltimore area is chock full of fantastic sushi restaurants. This meal is from one of my favorites. The combination of warm chicken, crisp apples, crunchy walnuts and the tangy sweet sauce is to die for. Just looking at this makes me hungry for it again.