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Monday and Provincetown Part 2

June 15, 2009 in Uncategorized by traveleatlove | No comments

Well, I am happy to say that Monday is officially over! This morning I had a big case of the Mondays, partially because I had SUCH a fun weekend, but also because of a bad night of sleep. I never sleep well on Sunday night, but we watched Milk last night and it was so sad that I couldn’t get to sleep. Note to self, don’t watch sad or disturbing movies on Sunday night!

I fueled myself for the day with a really great smoothie- romaine lettuce, spinach, blueberries, banana, butternut squash, flax, almond butter and some water. It was SO filling! My walk in was under a constant threat of rain. It has seriously been cloudy, cold, and rainy here for 6 out of the last 8 days and looks like 9 out of the next 10 are going to be the same. I am all for a cloudy day once in awhile, but the pressure in the air is weighing on me and making me feel sleepy.
Anyway, I had a great run home today and did a DVR arms workout, so I am feelin pretty good at the moment and getting ready to eat some of Trader Joe’s meatless meatballs in a homemade sauce I whipped up:

8 whole roasted plum tomatoes, pureed in the food processor
2 teaspoons olive oil,
A ton of chopped garlic and onion, sautéed in the olive oil
Pinches of basil and oregano
A couple of dashes of red pepper flakes for heat

Our meatballs and sauce will be accompanied by roasted sweet potato slices. Yum! I have posted the rest of my weekend away below. Lots to do for work and around the house. Maybe someday someone will want to pay me to eat and travel? Mario and Gwyneth, if you are looking for an extra for the next round of Spain on the Road Again, call me.

Provincetown Part 2

Sunday morning we woke up to a rainy beachy morning. I didn’t get great sleep but still felt great. The misty sea air definitely affects me in a positive way, guess that’s the Piscean in me!
My friend made delicious homemade waffles with Nutella, strawberries, blueberries, and whipped cream, plus some super spicy Bloody Mary’s made with Bloody Bold mix, Ketel One vodka, limes, and hot sauce. They were okay, but I really prefer to make my own mix with a LOT of spice!

Getting ready for brekkie

After breakfast, I went for a walk on the beach in the rain and did a few cartwheels down there as well. Being on an empty beach with just the sound of the waves was a perfect time to just reflect and think about the week ahead. I know its going to be a very busy one, and unfortunately I still feel really tired from last week!

While we did most of our eating in the cottage, Provincetown offers a real variety of great places to eat. The Lobster Pot is a seafood lover’s dream, with fresh fish of all types, and a great little raw bar downstairs where you can get shrimp, oysters, and clams to go or eat right there.
Bayside Betsy’s is another favorite for dinner and brunch. Beware of their cocktails though as they are quite strong and tasty.
Box Lunch has famous rollwiches, sandwiches in lavash bread with an endless variety of fillings that are always fresh and delicious. These sammies are SO satisfying too. I normally graze all day, and if I have Box Lunch for lunch, I can spend hours at the beach feeling full.

Provincetown also offers a myriad of beach town treats – fudge, ice cream, candy shops, hot dogs, French fries, milkshakes, etc. I was very good this weekend and stayed away from all of these things. . . except for the small caramel sundae I shared with a friend, and it was delicious!

Quiet Sunday morning

I realized I didn’t include this yesterday, but for those of you who don’t know, Provincetown is at the very tip of Cape Cod, MA, about 2 hours in the car from Boston or a 90 minute fast ferry ride. It is an artsy, funky little town that often has a carnavale like atmosphere, and there always seems to be a festival on in the summer. It has a great Portuguese heritage which can be seen in some of the cuisine available. I just love learning about different cultures, especially through food! This weekend was my second trip this year to P-town, and I am hoping to get there at least once more before the summer is over. There are some great little boutiques that sell unusual dresses, jewelry, shoes, you name it, at reasonable prices. I want to go back!

Home again

Tags: Boston, Dining out, Food, New England, Travel, weekend

Coastal NE Wine Trail Kickoff

June 7, 2009 in Uncategorized by traveleatlove | No comments

What a great day! The Coastal Wine Trail Kickoff was everything I hoped for and more- a total wine, beer, and foodie paradise! Thank you Sakonnet Vineyards!

One thing to note- oh my gosh, grownups are total vultures when it comes to free stuff. I heard more than one person talking about getting their money’s ($40) worth. At 29 I still often feel like a kid, and am always surprised and a little horrified to see adults pushing each other out of the way to get a piece of cheese. . .

Anywho, what a GREAT day! Thank you to Sakonnet Vineyards for hosting the kickoff! It was such an incredibly blue sky, sunny day by the sea, that I think nothing else could compare, though I am willing to attend more events to try :). There were so many stands with food, wine, and beer, and I am going to write a bit about my favorites below, including the winners in my wine awards.

White wine– the overall majority of wines we tasted were white, so I have a couple of favorites:

Sakonnet Vineyards Vidal Blanc, a super drinkable, peachy, delicious white

Greenvale Vineyards Vidal Blanc, also very lovely, slightly drier, but summery white wine. The ladies at the Greenvale booth were very friendly, and I am looking forward to visiting their vineyard soon.

My favorite Rose of the day was easily Travessia Urban Winery from New Bedford, MA. They also offered a stunning, un-oaked chardonnay. Normally I really do not look forward to drinking chardonnay, but this one was exceptional. The Rose has not yet been released, but once it is, I know it will be a star!

Dessert wine – Running Brook Ice Wine. This was sweet, rich, and syrupy, perfect for a dessert wine any time of the year. I really loved tasting the New England winter in this one. A small glass will definitely suffice, as the alcohol content seems quite strong!

Red wine– The easy winner in the red wine award category is Truro Vineyards of Cape Cod. They offered a gorgeous Cabernet Franc (Tasting Notes Cabernet Franc is the signature varietal of Truro Vineyards. Open vat fermentation, extended maceration and 18 months barrel aging all contribute to rich varietal fruit flavors and herbal tannins. This tasty dry red wine is best served with beef, pork and varied roasted dishes.) and a Cranberry Red, which would be a perfect fall/winter dessert wine. I loved it!

Sparkling – The only sparkling wine offered at the tasting was Westport Rivers’ which I have tried before and will surely drink again. After the event, we went inside Sakonnet’s tasting room and were offered some of their chardonnay champagne, which I ended up buying for my weekend at the Cape with the girls. It is lovely and tastes of honey and a slightly floral bouquet. I know my friends will love it, and it truly speaks to celebration of any kind!

Beer- By far the stand-out beer of the day was Newport Storm’s amber ale. On top of being offered a generous pour, the staff member at the booth was knowledgeable, friendly, and interesting. I loved the amber ale, and the hub loved the summer ale. We will be looking for these at local liquor stores like Kappy’s and Martignetti’s.

Food- Great wine has to accompany great food, right? We had a light lunch at the cafe at Sakonnet Vineyards prior to the event- a chicken and tarragon salad wrap, served by some very friendly young ladies. At the event itself, we bought oysters from Sakonnet Oyster Company, and they were briny, salty, plump, and delicious. I am a lover of east coast oysters, and these did not disappoint. The other favorite of the day was the blue goat’s cheese from Westfield Farm which was both salty and sweet and had the perfect goat/blue mix. I will definitely be following up with this cheesemaker to see what else they have to offer.

I have only covered about half of the vendors at this amazing event. A big hats off to Sakonnet vineyards for organizing it so wonderfully. I leave you with some great photos of what was a perfect day.