More great Ohio Eats!

In Columbus, Matt took me to the North Market. An awesome indoor market. We picked up some excellent lunch and fun finds!



FOOD!





Raviolis!



Vietnamese



Pho! The best allergy-free hangover cure! So glad I can eat chili pepper now.



MMM!



Jenis ice cream! Great flavors like: goat cheese and cherries, rhubarb, lime and cardamom, and whiskey and pecans.



Their dairy-free sorbettos were great: riesling poached pear and cherry lambic. Wasn't sure how to feel about it at first but I wish I could have it every day!



Matt had some sort of meaty sandwich.



He seemed to like it just fine.



I picked up some specialty finds: smoked paprika and saffron. Not super cheap but fun to get here. Can't wait for paella!



Out to HAIKU! Matt's brother Jeromy was our server. Rated on allergyeats.com. I asked for a drink that matched my hair :)

Per recommendation after the allergy conversation, I had LakasaAyam Vermicelli Noodles with Chicken and Vegetables in Rich Curry Sauce. Fun to have a white sauce (coconut milk). It was fabulous.

Not entirely sure what my friends had but it all looked fantastic!

Vietnamese Beef Noodle Spicy Beef Broth with Rice Noodles and Beef

General Tso Battered Chicken Tossed in a Spicy Sweet and Sour Sauce

YUM!



What a great night!

The weekend in Seattle

After chowing at Gramma's we headed to Seattle for Thanksgiving and it was awesome. Mom, Rich, Dan, me, Rich's twin brother Andy and his girlfriend Angie. We stayed in a house on the Sound in West Seattle. It was a mansion compared to where any of us live. It was incredible to spread out and not have 5 people in mom's parlor (seated for 3-4). Andy and Angie went out on the town on Saturday but we were completely satisfied with just hanging out at the house. Big screen, big couches, big kitchen, and a hot tub. What more do you need?







THIS is vacation. Hot tub and mimosa at 1pm. Yes!



Momma made turkey soup with leftovers from Thursday.



I made a GF pizza but look at that stove!



GF dumplings are a' cookin'. Made with GF Bisquick which rocks!



Everyone else's dumplings all done.



Dan caught me in a rabbit pose. Mmm basil.



Pizza ingredients: kalamatas and fresh basil,



sun-dried tomatoes and mushrooms,



Prosciutto too! So gourmet.



Whoa, what else can we put on the table!



eating, eating, eating



Luxory! The weekend was absolutely glorious. Lucky us! :-)

My talented goddaughter... and I...

So Debra plays the alto sax, the flute, and the bassoon! Super cool. I pretended to make a sound out of the flute and failed-never been my thing. The bassoon was super cool, I had never really seen or held one. It's like a giant oboe/clarinet. I did play the clarinet so it was fun to give it a go. She taught me a scale which is as far as I got. It's much more complicated than a clarinet. It was exciting to hear her play. Thanks for sharing Debra!



Go Deb!

Lake Tahoe Nevadadventure!

Yes! I was fortunate to be taken on a Nevadadventure (coined by Rift). We went to Lake Tahoe during my time in Reno and of course it was beautiful! Some interesting information: Lake Tahoe is largest alpine lake in North America. The maximum depth is 1,645 ft. The maximum elevation is 6,229 ft. Lake Tahoe's water is 99.9% pure. The water is so clear that a 10 inch white dinner plate would be visible at 78 feet below the surface. There are also five 24-hour casinos in South Lake Tahoe. Important information. :)

My goddaughter/cousin Debra and I!





Twisted tree over the lake.



Mountains behind the lake.



Some very dedicated, crazy jet skiers, it was probably about 45 degrees for the high.



Our mini-snowman.



Eagle Falls.





Here's Uncle Leo.



A great shot, lots of snow!

Allergy-Friendly Tahoe!

The Fresh Ketch restaurant at the marina in Tahoe was incredible!

We walked in and sat down with a view of the marina. I alerted them to my allergies and they were immediately receptive. The manager came to our table and said that his girlfriend has Celiac disease so he understands the frustration and difficulty of going out. I handed him my allergy 'calling card' and he sought out to see what he could do. He returned with a variety of choices asking me what sounds good. They seemed just as excited to be creative in the kitchen and meet my needs-as I was to eat the food. It was an excellent meal and it's always nice to feel special and not... without (just like I did at camp :).

My customized dish of seared scallops laid on potatoes and broccolini with a passion fruit reduction sauce. The originial dish was: scallops with potato hash cakes (cheesey), baby carrots and passion fruit beurre blanc (creamy).



They ended the meal with something that they had 'tried out' earlier in the week. It is not on the menu and is a work in progress. Knowing I couldn't have other desserts, the manager brought out a cucumber, black pepper sorbet. It had an initial fresh cucumber taste and ended with a black pepper punch. It was fantastic. He even knew that black pepper has anti-inflammatory properties. He said he hopes to serve it as an appetizer-perhaps with oysters. It's a bit of a bang to have at the end of a meal but, I was excited to taste it for him.

Edna had salmon with broccolini and rice pilaf topped with onions and beets.



Debra had fettuccine alfredo with chicken. Very pretty.



Leo had cioppino (fish stew) with lots of fresh seafood.



Leo had to gear up for the shellfish.



Ready Set Go!