Bugatti at the Concourse d' Elegance, Boca Raton, Florida

Bugatti at the Concourse d' Elegance, Boca Raton, Florida, a photo by chloe & ivan on Flickr.

ooof. This car is so beautiful.

Flickr Meetup in New York City

So many good people, so much talent gathered in one place!

 Flickr staff came with goodies, and were rewarded with cheerful enthusiasm for Flickr.

We took epic group shot (s!) and walked the High Line, a narrow park built around a set of old elevated railroad tracks, talking and taking pictures. There were funny bits as people introduced themselves, and you had to ask, "But what is your Flickr name?" Then people were delighted to exclaim, "Oh you're so & so!"
Contacts and mutual friends were discovered.
Marcus and Tilly made the trip to New York from Providence.

 Marcus was very happy to meet Markus from Flickr!

 The Mice In Black followed them to the city, but were busted by all the photographers.

I ended up waiting for the Megabus to get back home near Times Square, so I snapped a few final pics before it was time to leave.

Great time, great people! Will be looking forward to looking at everyone's work and seeing what the future brings.
Here are the rest of the pictures from the great day -http://www.flickr.com/photos/chloe-and-ivan/sets/72157629387736369/

This little graphic was made with Picnik. 

I'm in Florida now!  With a bit of time to catch up with everyone, and lizards outside.   ♥Chloe

Shopping for Florida.

Shopping for Florida., a photo by chloe & ivan on Flickr.

in a panic!
Pics of me, look away.

Italian Wedding Soup

Italian Wedding Soup, a photo by chloe & ivan on Flickr.

Found everywhere around here.
Now I want to make some from scratch.

Beignets and coffee.

Beignets and coffee., a photo by chloe & ivan on Flickr.
Fancy fried dough.
I didn't eat them all.
They were sweet and tasty.

Today at work

Today at work, a photo by chloe & ivan on Flickr.

*yes, I felt the need for an ornate decorative over the top Rococo figurative flower set.
I already made more modern ones.

Superbowl Snacks

Superbowl snacks arrived!

The friends were all cozy on their Patriots fleece and were looking forward to the kielbasa snacks,
hot and melty.
The kielbasa snacks made Juliette feel welcome.
There were plenty of sausages in Toronto.
She wasn't sure about all that pasta and gravy in Providence.

Noooo! Suddenly the cat was there.

Juliette had never been so scared in her life!
She had never been so close to a real cat in her life!

Tilly was so mad.
She had left a melty kielbasa snack in the kitchen for the cat.
The cat was so greedy it was coming to get their snacks
Tilly was so mad.

The rest of the story is here http://www.flickr.com/photos/chloe-and-ivan/sets/72157623001687695/with/6826675261/
Watching the rest of the game now.  Chloe

Juliette's arrival.

Marcus and Tilly waited at the airport to pick up Juliette.

Juliette was coming from Toronto.

They stood by a big window and watched the airplanes come and go.
Marcus was concerned about getting home from the airport in time to watch the Superbowl.

"That must be hers!"
The plane was right on time.

Tilly was happy her friend was coming to visit, they hadn't seen each other for quite a while.

Tilly rushed to greet Juliette.

Marcus rushed to get a few shots of the happy reunion.
They all rushed to make it home for the football game.

Juliette didn't care one bit about the Patriots, but was looking forward to football snacks and relaxing with her friends.

Marcus's photo of Tilly and Juliette at the airport.

The rest of the story is in a set on Flickr, you can catch up here http://www.flickr.com/photos/chloe-and-ivan/sets/72157623001687695/with/6826064745/

Almost gametime!  Greetings from New England, home of the Patriots!   Chloe

Spinach

The other day I had extraordinary pizza at work.
Round about 11:00am every day, people begin to discuss lunch.
That is because our factory is located deep in the heart of the most Italian part of Rhode Island.
Think Goodfellows. Think a trial is about to begin for yet another mob boss, and they are asking for an anonymous jury. Really Italian.

Anyway, this pizza has spinach, olives, and pepperoni, with fresh (really fresh) mozzarella.
From here http://theoriginalitalianbakery.com/bakery.html
So my sister on the West Coast writes when she sees the picture, and says that she never thought of spinach on pizza. 
I am floored by this. 
Living over here, we take for granted the abundance of fresh spinach and garlic in and on so many things, even as as side dish, just sauted spinach in olive oil with garlic.

Here is an Uno Chicago Style Pizza spinach pizza

 This has the spinach with Feta cheese and a little onion in a buttery deep dish crust. 
It does not begin to compare to the luxurious richness of the first pizza, but for $3.99 from a chain restaurant
it is a very tasty bite and a great value.
Here's the thing. 
Uno calls this Spanakopita.
http://www.unos.com/menus/smallPlates.php
It is very good, but it is not Spanakopita!
This is Spanakopita -

When I was young and beginning to bartend I worked with a Greek bartender named Gino in Hollywood.
To this day, with any question about the bar, I think "What would Gino do?"  He was a pro.
One day between shifts he took me to his Grandmother's house.  She served us Spanakopita.

I thought I'd died and gone to heaven.  It was so good.
Spinach and Feta, seasoned and wrapped in filo flag fold triangles.
I learned to make my own.  Here is the recipe.

Now, years later my family has come to expect them at any family gathering.

They are not fast and easy to make. 

 But they are so delicious that they are worth the time and effort to make them.

To me, Spanakopita is the supreme spinach experience.

Here is a link to a set on Flickr about making them.http://www.flickr.com/photos/chloe-and-ivan/sets/72157622823010111/with/4877573534/

I am not done about spinach.  That is enough for now!  Chloe.

Applesauce

Applesauce, a photo by chloe & ivan on Flickr.
I woke up this morning and it came over me to cook all my apples.
So I did.
This small bowl is 8 apples, with a few bites out.
Apples really cook down.
There is a lemon in there, and a bit of water.
And you see the cinnammon stick.

Better be serious for a moment, there are 3 kinds of apples in this.
That is what makes it good. Always combine apple varieties.

Rule.
That is like
Word.
Combine apple varieties.
With lemon.

Local Flavor for lunch

Three wieners and coffee milk for $4.99?  The sign had been making me laugh for days, had to go in.

Had to.

The first day I went in and bought a very good grilled chicken sandwich.  Tender and juicy. 

But not 3 wieners and a coffee milk.  So I had to go back. The wieners were calling me. 

Lovely Lexi here with the wieners getting the works on her arm, that's how it's done. 

Close up on the works.  The meat sauce, the mustard, the celery salt, the onions.

Real coffee milk, with Autocrat Coffee Syrup.  The real thing! http://www.onlyinrhodeisland.com/autcofsyr.html

Back at work with my wieners and coffee milk. 

Have to say that I could not make it through all three wieners!

This was a real Rhode Island lunch. 

 L.A.System 1219 Atwood Ave, Johnston, Rhode Island