Conundrum completed, plus other stuff

Thanks, everybody, for weighing in on the great Christmas Cookie Conundrum of 2007! I thought I'd share the voting results, as well as what I've decided to do. :)

APRICOT-ALMOND SANDWICH COOKIES
votes: 5 yes, 6 no
I've decided not to make these this year -- although the flavor combination seems heavenly, I think they might just be too much work. I may make them for Valentine's Day instead, using rasperry jam instead of apricot! (And cutting out heart shapes, of course.)

BUTTERSCOTCH BLONDIES WITH CRANBERRIES AND PECANS
votes: 3 yes, 3 no
I will make these because they seem super-easy, and also, I love the flavor combination of cranberries and pecans. Yum.

CHAI SHORTBREAD
votes: 5 yes, 1 no
Can one go wrong with slice-n-bakes? I think not. This is a definite "yes" for me this year.

CHOCOLATE, COCONUT, AND ALMOND MERENGUES
votes: 4 yes, 5 no
I will make these, mostly because Dan actually likes merengues, and he doesn't like many sweets at all!

CURRIED SUNFLOWER BRITTLE
votes: 5 yes, 3 no
I think this one was in the "yes" column all along, because I love curry in sweet things (both chocolate and ice cream, so far,) and also because Dan likes brittles, too.

GINGER THINS
votes: 2 yes, 1 no
I'm going to hold off on this one this year -- if I make that and the chai shortbread, there might just end up being too many round, brown cookies on the plate!

GRANDMA'S CHRISTMAS COOKIES
votes: 5 yes, 2 no
I'm not going to make these this year -- I'm feeling lazy, and my mom makes them every year anyway (with vanilla frosting -- the peppermint is my spin on things.)

PINE NUT BISCOTTI
votes: 6 yes, 4 no
I haven't made biscotti in several years, and I can't wait to try again! Lemon and pine nuts together . . . double yum? Anyhow, this is a definite yes!

PRINCESS TEA CAKES
votes: 3 yes, 4 no
I'm going to skip these, since pretty much everyone and their grandma makes Russian Tea Cakes. Maybe next year.

SWEET AND SALTY PEANUT CHOCOLATE CHUNK COOKIES
votes: 6 yes, 1 no
These will make the cut this year, too! I can't wait to try the sweet-salty cookie!!!

So, of course, I'll post pictures once B-Day is complete, and the flour settles.

Segue . . .

Here's the picture of the banana muffins I made for the cake walk at work:

They were very yummy. I think all muffins might have to have sprinkles from now on!

I was shopping (without a list . . . disaster!) at the Wedge this afternoon, and I discovered this yogurt, made locally!

There are so many things I love about this yogurt!
1. organic
2. local
3. the name is just plain clever
4. low sugar
5. comes in my two favorite yogurt flavors (the other one is peach)
6. the cup is actually recyclable!
7. it tastes good! (more like plain yogurt with a hint of fruit flavor, as opposed to sugary goo)

Speaking of my shopping "disaster" this afternoon, does anyone else have trouble coming out of the grocery store under eighty bucks? Sheesh.

Christmas Cookie Conundrum

With a delicious Thanksgiving dinner under my belt, my thoughts, of late, have turned to Christmas. Christmas gift shopping, Christmas decorating (I was certain I wasn't going to put up the tree this year . . . but I bet I will!), and Christmas cookie baking.

Again, I thought I would maybe not bake this year -- what will I do with all of those cookies? In years past, I've made between two and four different recipes, always including gingerbread dudes and my Grandma's Christmas Cookie recipe (frosted with peppermint buttercream and covered with sprinkles,) and possibly one or two new favorites.

This year, I have a problem. I have, um, ten recipes I'd like to try? Now, obviously, I'm not going to make all ten recipes. I do plan on boxing up some cookies to take to my coworkers, and will probably take cookies to Dan's family over Christmas, and my parents and Grandparents the weekend following Christmas, so I'll use up all of the cookies this year.

Still, ten recipes is a LOT of baking. The real trouble is, I've selected ten very diverse cookies . . . and I need YOUR help making a couple of cuts! I'd like to get the list down to six recipes, but I think I'd be willing to go up to eight if I just can't cut one or two options. Please leave me a comment and let me know what you think about the following ideas -- ones that you think are must-keeps, ones that you think I should cut, even just rank them from best-sounding to ok-sounding!

APRICOT-ALMOND SANDWICH COOKIES
These are basically an almond windowpane cookie and apricot jam sandwich that you dip in a chocolate glaze. I've never made these before. Pros: They look absolutely stunning (a cover recipe from Eating Well a few Christmases ago,) and I love the flavor combination of apricots and almonds. They also call for whole-wheat flour. Cons: They take several steps (including making the dough, rolling and cutting (including little windows,) baking, cooling, filling, and dipping in the glaze;) and the glaze calls for corn syrup, albeit only 1 1/2 teaspoons.

BUTTERSCOTCH BLONDIES WITH CRANBERRIES AND PECANS
I made this recipe last weekend without eggs, with somewhat, erm, flat and sticky results. I'd like to give the recipe another go. Pros: The flavor of these bars was spot-on blondie fabulousness. Also, bar cookies are a snap to make -- they take almost no time. Cons: The cookies were a little bit sweet for my tastes (hopefully the addition of fresh cranberries will balance them a bit better.)

CHAI SHORTBREAD
This is a slice-n-bake chai-spiced shortbread that I'm excited to try for the first time. Pros: The dough can be made ahead and frozen, which would make baking a snap on the day I plan to have my baking marathon, and I think the combination of spices sound delicious and interesting. Cons: They call for powdered sugar as the only sweetner, which is pretty processed, as well as white flour.

CHOCOLATE, COCONUT, AND ALMOND MERENGUES
Aren't merengues fun? Pros: Flavor combination first and foremost, with the portability and storability being close seconds. Cons: Merengues can be a bit persnicketty to prepare, and can go soft if stored for too long.

CURRIED SUNFLOWER BRITTLE
I'd like to try my hand at a little candy-making this year, and this was the most interesting-looking of the brittle recipes I have on hand. Pros: Brittles are pretty foolproof as long as you don't burn the sugar, and well, sweet curry and sunflower seeds just sound addictive, don't they? (I could buy some hot curry powder for extra-fun good times!) Cons: Calls for corn syrup.

GINGER THINS
I thought this recipe might be a nice alternative to gingerbread dudes this year -- less rolling/cutting/icing work, with some of the same flavors. Pros: Uses whole-wheat pastry flour and a whole host of amazing spices, as well as some molasses and candied ginger! Also, it's a drop cookie, so I could freeze the dough ahead of time. Cons: Calls for several ingredients I don't typically keep on hand, so they may end up hanging out in my cupboards for an indefinite period of time.

GRANDMA'S CHRISTMAS COOKIES
Is this one a gimme? Maybe not. Pros: Biscuit-like dough is less sweet than a traditional sugar cookie, so they balance all that frosting and sprinkle action quite well. They also look very festive when all decked out! Also, the dough can be made ahead and frozen. Cons: Rolling, cutting, baking, frosting, and sprinkling takes a long time. Also, should I veer from making the "same ol' thing?"

PINE NUT BISCOTTI
I haven't tried this recipe yet, but have made biscotti in the past, and was surprised at how easy they were to make. Pros: Pine nuts with a hint of lemon . . . need I say more? Biscotti also keep well. Cons: Double-baking can be quite time-consuming. Also calls for white flour.

PRINCESS TEA CAKES
Ohmigod do I love Russian Tea Cakes, but everyone makes them, right? Pros: Calls for whole-wheat pastry flour and canola oil (instead of butter.) Cons: Lotsa powdered sugar; lots of people make these, right? Also, the double-dipping in powdered sugar can be a bit time-consuming.

SWEET AND SALTY PEANUT CHOCOLATE CHUNK COOKIES
These sound decadent and incredible, and play up that whole sweet-salty trend (using coarse sea salt in the batter,) that's been going on lately. Pros: Drop cookie, so I could make the batter ahead of time, drop out the dough and freeze it, so it would be all ready to go on baking marathon day. Plus, sweet-salty chocolately peanutty goodness . . . yum. Cons: White flour; also, is it too much like an ordinary chocolate-chip cookie?

Ok. Let me know what you think!

catchin' up (ketchup?)

I have actually been taking pictures of things I've cooked -- don't you love it when those pictures pile up?

Anyhow, here's what I've been eating lately.

Thai-Tofu Soup with Coconut and Lemongrass:

I realize I make this about once a month, but I'm willing to bet that's not nearly frequently enough for Dan.

Cranberry-Banana Smoothie:

Fresh cranberries have been plentiful at the co-op lately, and I've purchased several pints and stuck them in the freezer for moments such as these.

Mystery Soup:

After defrosting some leftover potato-garlic soup, I added half a leftover baked sweet potato, cubed, and an enormous handfull of fresh spinach. Topped this with shredded cheese and green onions, called it lunch. (Very tasty, and much better than I was expecting it to be!)

Chili in the Crock Pot:

I'm not even sure I can remember what went into this! Ingredients that I can remember: onions, garlic, green pepper, corn, potatoes, kale, tomatoes, kidney beans, black beans, pinto beans, brown rice, vegetable broth, chili powder, and cumin.

Chili, hiding under many garnishes:

After topping a bowl full of chili with cheese, green onions, cilantro, avocado, and lime juice, I scooped it all up with some organic blue corn tortilla chips.

Sushi:

Can one enjoy sushi too often? I think not. :)

Shoot! I totally forgot to take pictures of the banana muffins I made for the cake walk at school tomorrow night. I have a few left . . . I'll post about them next time!

I'm headed out of town this weekend -- travel safe everybody, and Happy Tofurkey Day!

(P.S. We had a gift-giving idea-generating competition at the store during last night's staff meeting, and my teammate Stephen and I took third place, which meant we each won a $25 gift card! Wahoo!)

27 questions

Bazu and Daiku answered the questions to this survey recently, and, like Bazu, I'm a sucker for these, too! Here I go . . .

1. Favorite non-dairy milk?
Soy for coffee, rice for cereal. Since I just bought a soymilk maker, however, that's been the milk of choice lately. I can't wait to try out almond and hazelnut milks, though!

2. What are the top 3 dishes/recipes you are planning to cook?
Chili and cornbread, sushi, and probably eggs and hashbrowns.

3. Topping of choice for popcorn?
Fine-grain sea salt, and nothing else!

4. Most disastrous recipe/meal failure?
I have had some pretty disastrous adventures in the land of homemade bread-baking.

5. Favorite pickled item?
Oooh . . . I do love pickles (i.e. cucumbers,) but I think my favorite pickled item is pickled ginger.

6. How do you organize your recipes?
I organize recipes I clip out of magazines and print off the internet in five big binders, sorted by category and then alphabetized. I also have a computer program called "notebook" that I use to organize the rest of my recipes -- no more recipe box, thank you very much!

7. Compost, trash, or garbage disposal?
I live in an apartment, so I'm stuck with trash only. Someday I will have a fabulous composting system at the back of my gigantic garden, however!

8. If you were stranded on an island and could only bring 3 foods...what would they be (don't worry about how you'll cook them)?
Bread, cheese, and peaches.

9. Fondest food memory from your childhood?
Cutting out and decorating Christmas cookies, probably.

10. Favorite vegan ice cream?
Soy Delicious cookie avalanche!

11. Most loved kitchen appliance?
Hmm. Tough one. It might be my Bamix!

12. Spice/herb you would die without?
Fresh basil. (Cilantro, too!)

13. Cookbook you have owned for the longest time?
The basic Betty Crocker big red cookbook.

14. Favorite flavor of jam/jelly?
A tie -- apricot and strawberry.

15. Favorite vegan recipe to serve to an omni friend?
Tempeh bacon, lettuce, tomato, avocado, and vegenaise on wholegrain toast, with sweet potato fries and watermelon!

16. Seitan, tofu, or tempeh?
TOFU.

17. Favorite meal to cook (or time of day to cook)?
I like to spend a whole day cooking and prepping on the weekend -- that day usually ends up being Sunday afternoon/evening.

18. What is sitting on top of your refrigerator?
My large cooling grate, unpopped popcorn, half a bag of blue corn tortilla chips, my lunchbag, and a package of cardboard to-go coffee cups (Dan has a habit of losing/forgetting to return my travel coffee mugs!)

19. Name 3 items in your freezer without looking.
Active dry yeast, tons of leftovers, and coffee ice cream.

20. What's on your grocery list?
Paper towels, dish soap, cat food, sugar, maple syrup, coffee, Earth Balance, fruit, flaxseeds, conditioner, frozen pizza, bag o' salad, cucumber, red pepper, frozen edamame, green pepper, frozen corn, jalapeno, big can of tomatoes, black beans, pinto beans, green onions, limes, cheese, avocado, and pickled ginger. (We're going to the grocery store today.)

21. Favorite grocery store?
The Wedge!

22. Name a recipe you'd love to veganize, but haven't yet.
Mac and cheese (that doesn't taste oppressively of nutritional yeast. Blech!)

23. Food blog you read the most.
Oh, I read them all . . . ! I'm not the best commenter, however.

24. Favorite vegan candy/chocolate?
A tie: Dots and Sweedish Fish (the multicolored kind!)

25. Most extravagant food item purchased lately?
Hm. Four boxes of Yogi tea, because it was on sale?

26. Veganaise or Nayonaise?
Veganaise, all the way.

27. What is one recipe or ingredient or cooking technique that you've become familiar with in the last year that you can't imagine you ever lived without?
Sushi! How had I lived before without nori rolls filled with avocado, cucumber, and red pepper???!?!?!?

Let me know if you answer these 27 questions, so I can read your answers!

soymilk maker!

After the September staff meeting at the store, I had the opportunity to purchase a Soyabella soymilk maker (at cost) -- and I did! Wahoo! Why buy a soymilk maker? For starters, I'll save a ton of money over time. The maker is expensive, (over one hundred dollars retail,) but when you consider a half gallon of soymilk is at least four dollars, the maker will pay for itself in not too much time because bulk soybeans are so dang cheap. Also, other reasons include: soybeans weigh a lot less than a carton of soymilk when transporting groceries home from the store, I have an easy time finding locally grown soybeans, and homemade soymilk calls for zero packaging, minimal processing, fewer ingredients, and has a very fresh taste.

I finally unpacked my soymilk maker this weekend:

That's a lot of parts! (And that's not even including the cord, instruction book, or cleaning utensils!) However, when I learned that most of these extra parts are for different applications (like rice paste and coffee grinding,) I packed most of them away and kept out only what I needed.

How to make soymilk? Easy.

1. Use the scoop to measure 1 scoop of soybeans. Rinse the beans and soak them for 4 to 6 hours.
2. Place the soybeans in the metal cup, attach it to the top of the machine, fill the machine with water to the line, and press the "milk" button.
3. Wait 15 minutes.
4. The soymilk is done! (Pardon the blurry picture.) Add sugar, salt, and vanilla, per the recipe included, or to taste.

5. Clean all of the parts thoroughly. (This was honestly the hardest part of soymilk making -- the pieces need to be cleaned right away so they don't get gunky.)

I really like their recipe for vanilla soymilk, although I may cut back on the sugar a little bit. Dan said the soymilk tasted like a thin vanilla milkshake -- which I'll take as a positive review. :)

ALSO, I can use my soymilk maker to make nutmilks -- almond milk and hazelnut milk, here I come!

Anybody else have a soymilk maker? What have your experiences been?

by request . . .

Here's the recipe for the pumpkin pie I posted about earlier this week.

Tofu Pumpkin Pie (modified from a recipe on vegweb.com)

Preheat oven to 425.

Puree together:
15 to 16 ounces canned pumpkin puree
3/4 cup maple syrup (or sugar, if you're broke)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 package (10 to 12 ounces) silken tofu (i.e., Mori-Nu) (this time I used firm lite)

Pour the pumpkin mixture into a pie shell (I used a vegan, whole grain frozen shell I found at the co-op,) and bake for 15 minutes. Lower the heat to 350 and bake for 40 more minutes. (Watch the edges of the crust -- you may need to cover them with foil to prevent over-browning.) Cool and chill the pie before serving.

P.S. (Courtney,) If you don't like pie crust, you can bake the custard in a greased pie plate with excellent results, too. :)

pumpkin, pumpkin, pumpkin!

First, Dan and I finally got around to carving our pumpkins this past Sunday night:

I'll let you guess as to which one is mine, which is Dan's.

Next, we saved every last pumpkin seed from our carving to make . . .

Tamari-Roasted Pumpkin Seeds! (They are all gone already. Bummer.)

Last, I used a can of pumpkin to make . . .

Tofu Pumpkin Pie! Even though the crust crumbled off of this piece a little bit, it still tasted stellar. I love this recipe so much, I will probably never make a regular pumpkin pie ever again!

Happy belated Halloween!

North Shore Adventure!

Hello!

And welcome to Dan and Catherine's North Shore Adventure.

(We went out of town last weekend. The first two days were a lot of average diner food, average pizza, and time spent doing band stuff, since Dan's band headlined the UFO convention in Duluth. However, after all the "hurry up and wait" was over, we spent two more days exploring the North Shore, armed with a full tank of gas and no plan, other than a list of recommended restaurants from my coworker Missy, who grew up in Duluth. Hence, Dan and Catherine's North Shore Adventure, beginning on Day 3.)

I posted in reverse order, so the posts will read chronologically as you scroll down.

Enjoy my little tour of Lake Superior and northern Minnesota!

Day 3 (Sunday) -- Gooseberry Falls

After a just-okay, diner-typical breakfast, we decided our first order of business, now that our "real" vacation time was beginning, was a nice, long hike. Gooseberry Falls, here we come!

This sign is so "Minnesota:"

Yeah, we don't put signs in our state parks that read, "NO SWIMMING." We are too "nice" for that -- we prefer to say, "Swimming Not Recommended." Sheesh. :)

Gooseberry Falls:


After hiking down along the falls, we decided to continue along the river, all the way to the lakeshore. Saw these cool tree roots as we hiked:


This was a hike peppered with signs of wildlife. Clearly, a beaver was here!


More wildlife -- this little squirrelly friend was interested in us, but smart enough to keep a safe distance. Thank goodness, since I am more than a little frightened of overly friendly squirrels!


Gooseberry River:


Lake Superior!

You can just barely make out the "line" in the water -- where the brownish, clay-rich river water butts up against the clearer blue lake water. This obvious distinction between the two was just fascinating to me!

There were a bunch of these driftwood-made tee-pees along the beach:

Dan was afraid he was too tall for the tee-pees, so I decided to climb in and check one out.

Dan, communing with the rocks and water:


Another wildlife interaction. On our hike back, Dan suddenly yelped and grabbed my arm back -- I jumped about a foot, until I noticed what I almost stepped on:

Thanks to Dan's attention, I didn't step on this little snake dude. Dan helped him off the path and back into the forest using a small stick.

After our hike, we looked forward to a sit-down in the car, while we continued to drive further north.

Day 3 (Sunday) -- Split Rock Lighthouse

Tired from our hike but still having a little bit of energy left, we decided to continue north and stop for a tour of Split Rock Lighthouse. This was, by far, the most tourist-ey thing we did during the entire trip, but we both enjoyed the tour (our guide was a cool, old guy who was very excited and informative,) and learned a little bit, too.

The lighthouse:


View of the keepers' homes, from the deck of the lighthouse:


Going up . . .


The lens (this was huge, and very beautifully constructed):

The lens is, as I understand it, clock-operated, so it needs to be wound periodically. It was neat to watch it rotate over our heads, catching the light. (Although it was not actually lit -- the lighthouse is only lit a few times a year nowadays.)

Old Skool stove in the head keeper's home:


Christmas card worthy:

(Too bad I don't send Christmas cards!)

After our tour, we decided to move on and up -- up north, that is!

Day 3-4 (Sunday-Monday) -- Grand Marais

After little debate, we decided to make the drive "all the way" up to Grand Marais. Ravenously hungry, the first order of business was finding an excellent place to enjoy some dinner. Dan had heard of The Angry Trout Cafe, (his brother had eaten there during a past trip to the North Shore,) and remembered where it was located, so after a brief glance through the menu, we settled in at a table overlooking the lake. Angry Trout serves sustainable, locally-grown, mostly organic, incredibly tasty seafood and vegetarian fare. (We're talking so sustainable, they use small cloth napkins to conserve wash water, and only have reuseable, hard-plastic to-go containers -- you leave your name and promise to return the container the next day!) Dan started with a cup of their fish chowder, featuring several of the day's catches, (and Yukon Gold potatoes, which might be one of his favorite foods,) and also enjoyed an order of fish and chips, and I had homemade spinach pasta tossed in an amazing hazelnut pesto, with a huge buttermilk-bleu cheese dressed salad on the side. We also ordered organic hot tea, which was served in gigantic, hand-thrown teapots, with hand-thrown mugs to match. An incredibly delicious, incredibly satisfying meal to end a very busy day. (I couldn't help but order a slice of their lemon-ginger cake to go, which our waitress kindly packed in a waxed paper bag for me, so I didn't have to worry about bringing back the to-go container the next day.)

After dinner, we found a hotel, checked in, went for a walk along the lake, and turned in for the night. (Having cable TV is a nice treat! We watched shows about bears and tigers on the Discovery Channel.) The next morning, after Dan slept in and I had some oatmeal at the free hotel breakfast, we took a walk along the shoreline.

We had noticed this lighthouse the night before:

We decided to wander our way over.

View from the beach:


Puddles along the rocky shore:


A stream trickling through the rock into the lake:


Beautiful, sunny morning:


I thought these rocks, covered with orange iron deposits, were pretty dang cool:


After much meandering, we finally made it to the lighthouse!

Nothing too terribly exciting, but we did meet a cool guy from Israel who asked us to take his picture. He was in Minnesota visiting a friend, and he said he liked Minnesota very much, although it was very, very cold for him!

After our walk, we worked up an appetite and decided to have lunch at Gunflint Tavern. Dan had eaten there during a previous trip, and remembered the amazing food, hip atmosphere, and again, commitment to organics. Unbeknownst to me, Grand Marais is this little, quaint, town full o' hippies in way northern Minnesota! Wahoo! (They even have a co-op!) Anyhow, back to lunch. Dan ordered tap rootbeer and the burger of the day -- covered with sauteed portobello mushrooms and gouda cheese, and I ordered their wild mushroom ravioli, which was served with a side of deliciously simple sauteed veggies dressed in what I think was some kind of balsamic glaze. (Oh yeah -- big salad to start, again.) Dan ordered an espresso after we finished eating, and I couldn't help ordering dessert again -- espresso pot de creme! Sigh. Lunch was amazing . . . and boy was I FULL!

After lunch, Dan let me do a little bit of shopping -- we poked into a couple of stores and an art gallery, where we scored some free herbal tea. (Yum!)

Dan skipped rocks while I browsed in a teeny, local bookstore:


After our shopping adventures and a quick debate as to whether we should head further north or start heading back south, we piled into the car, making the responsible choice to slowly start heading towards home. Southward bound, with two hikes planned for the afternoon.

Day 4 (Monday) -- Cascade River

As we began the drive back south, we made our first hiking stop of the day at Cascade River. It is my understanding that Cascade River begins in a lake in the Boundary Waters, and eventually empties into Lake Superior.

After a very short hike, you can start to hear the water rushing, and then . . .

. . . yeowza! The river was high, fast, noisy, and those falls were damn impressive. Dan and I agreed that Cascade River was much more impressive than Gooseberry Falls, and much less crowded.

We continued up and along the river for a while, and the river continued to impress us. There were several areas where you could climb out on the rocks overlooking the river and falls.


Dan pointed this out:

I believe he used the phrase "stabbing the sky" to describe this dying birch tree.

After turning off the main trail into a less-travelled trail along the creek and up "Lookout Mountain," which we never made it to the top of, we returned to the river and hiked along to the end. There goes the river, under the highway and into Lake Superior!


Here comes the river:


River water rushing out and mixing with lake water:


Beautiful afternoon sun:


I convinced Dan, even though it was only about 50 degrees out, (and the lake water had to have been MUCH colder,) to go wading. Dan's feet:

I think this is my favorite picture from this trip.

After Dan dried his feet and put his shoes back on, we returned to the car and continued south, planning one more stop before dinner.

Day 4 (Monday) -- Tettegouche State Park, The End.

As we continued south back along Hwy 61, we made one last hiking stop at Tettegouche State Park. We hiked out to Shovel Point, a large cliff along the rocky shore.

This is Shovel Point:

Yes, indeed, we hiked all the way out there. According to the map the trail was only about a mile round-trip, but because of the rocky terrain, uneven ground, and many many stairs, the hike took us almost an hour. Was it worth it, though!

Just as you begin the hike, you make a choice between hiking down to the beach (below,) or turning and heading uphill.

We went uphill, obviously.

As we hiked through the woods towards Shovel Point, I noticed these two trees growing over a large boulder:

When we looked back through our pictures, Dan noticed that the roots on the left look like a person, leaning back with its head behind the tree in the foreground. I love when nature has so much personality!

Almost there . . .


Amazing views . . .





Fully exhausted, we hopped back in the car, beginning to feel a little sad -- our vacation was almost over! On our way to Duluth, we finally visited one of the places on Missy's list -- Betty's Pies in Two Harbors. I picked up a piece of strawberry-rhubarb pie to go, planning to save it for dessert later on.

Arriving in Duluth and craving Thai food, we settled on Vietnamese. Dan and I pigged out on cream cheese wontons, tofu and veggies, and curried mock duck at Taste of Saigon, located in Canal Park. After dinner, we took one last walk along the lake shore, waving good-bye to Lake Superior as we turned back to the car and drove home.

As much as we both wish we were still on vacation, we know all good things must come to an end. We convinced ourselves that if we had vacation every day, we'd just end up taking all of that free time, relaxation, and nature's beauty for granted, right?

Anyhow, we had so much fun, we've decided to make the North Shore Adventure an annual trip.

Man, I miss the lake already.