On April 14 from noon to 4:30pm, 30 wineries and 6 restaurants will be presenting their wares at the Port of Anacortes Transit Shed down by the water. There will be live music and a festive atmosphere. Tickets are $40 if purchased in advance or $45 at the door. This is a fun event, and centrally located so you can walk from there to one of the great restaurants in town: Adrift, Rockfish Grill, Brown Lantern and the Majestic are all close by. www.anacortes.org
Creative, comforting crepes
I love making crepes; it’s sort of therapy for me. My favorite way to serve them is the simplest: with lemon. But you could put any kind of soft fruit inside. Some might like yogurt inside, but it melts quickly. I like a fried apple and raisin filling. Or soft pear slices with hazlenut chocolate spread, topped with whipped cream. Or any pie filling. Or jam mixed with cream cheese. I like peaches diced and mixed with marmalade, topped with a marmalade sauce. And then there are the savory crepes: chicken with mushrooms and Swiss cheese; salmon with dill, celery and onion; ham and egg with cheddar. I usually make my crepes the day before I need them. They keep in the refrigerator for a few days or in the freezer for 2-3 weeks. You just take out however many you need, fill them and heat just until warm in the microwave. It’s easy to do and oh so good.
Indian restaurant in Anacortes
I’m very sorry to say my favorite Italian restaurant, Il Posto, has closed. In its place will be an Indian restaurant which I don’t think is open yet. When we have tried it I’ll let you know what we think. I will miss Il Posto though. I don’t know why they left. Perhaps there just isn’t enough business in the off season. Restaurants have to appeal to locals (taste and price-wise) to make it, and Il Posto was a little pricey. Worth it though. Anyway, it will be nice to have an Indian restaurant in town. We already have very good Mexican, Greek, Chinese and Japanese. For Italian we’re down to pizza places, but some of them serve spaghetti and things too so they might be good. We have lots of other restaurants too: Anthony’s is great, Cameron’s, Adrift, Rockfish Grill, Brown Lantern, the Majestic, even the bowling alley are all good. Well now I’m hungry, maybe I can get Roger to spring for dinner out tonight.
Destination Anacortes
After summer, when it’s cooler and quieter, guests at Autumn Leaves usually stay closer to “home” when they’re here. They don’t go to other islands or do day trips so much, they relax more and enjoy what’s here. They are more likely to have a later breakfast and linger at the table until checkout time. Often there is only one couple here so we can really customize breakfast to them. We recently had an English/Australian couple here who love marmalade so I made a marmalade stuffed french toast with marmalade/apricot sauce for them–something I wouldn’t ordinarily do, as so many people don’t like marmalade. It was good! When you come, remember to tell us your preferences.
Waffles and whipped cream and fruit…Oh my!
Roger and I seldom eat the type of breakfast we serve to guests. He’s an oatmeal man; just tea for me. But we make an exception for waffles. I mix the batter the night before, as it contains yeast and needs to rise a little overnight. I put it in the refrigerator and next day it’s ready to go. I usually use a Belgian waffle maker, the kind the motels use. But there the similarity ends. Theirs are heavy, doughy waffles; ours, because of the yeast, are light and fluffy. I like to fill the pockets with fruit and syrup and top it all with whipped cream. Someday I’ll figure out how many calories are in them, but it shouldn’t be too many. No sugar (except one teaspoon mixed with the yeast and whatever syrup you add), nonfat milk. I guess I should figure in the whipped cream. I use light ReddiWhip, which isn’t too bad. Anyway, sometimes you just have to treat yourself, don’t you?
What’s for Breakfast?
It’s always interesting how different people are. We all have our preferences, and some have allergies. So breakfast at Autumn Leaves can be interesting. I rely on our guests to let us know what they like/dislike and especially what doesn’t agree with them. We have found that Europeans often do not care for sweets at breakfast time, or potatoes with their eggs. Most of us have preferences (except the guest whose wife told me he would eat a doorknob if it had gravy on it!). Many adventurous souls are willing to try something new, but some just want to stick with what they know they like. Works for me, we just want them to be satisfied with whatever they have here. We can usually adjust our normal menu to accommodate most people. If their diet is extremely restricted they need to tell us what they can eat, or even bring something from home that they know is safe for them. This is something that should be discussed at the time the reservation is made. I’m always thinking of new things to cook. After all, it may not be ALL about the food, but it is MOSTLY about the food, isn’t it?
Anacortes–Entertainment while you Eat
Quite a few of the restaurants in Anacortes have live entertainment, especially in summer. The Majestic Hotel has an outdoor concert every Thursday night. There are heaters to keep you (and your food) warm. Rockfish Grill often has live music, and the Brown Lantern has a “Friday night dance party.” Watertown Pub has live music most weekends and Thai Season often does too. So if you’re in the mood for peace and quiet, go to Cameron’s or Anthony’s. But if you’d like something a little livelier, try one of these more casual restaurants.
New restaurant in Anacortes
Bob’s Chowder House on Commercial has been open for a couple of years now and is very popular with locals. Good food, reasonable, but no ambiance. Well now the same owners have opened Flounder Bob’s in Skyline. It used to be Flounder Bay and was one of my favorites until it changed hands some years ago and then closed altogether. We haven’t been to Flounder Bob’s yet but I looked at their menu online and it looks really good to me. It’s a nice location, you can see the boats, very light and open. Definitely worth a try; we plan to do that soon. Check out their menu: http://flounderbobs.com
New French Toast Recipe
I got this one from the internet and tried it this morning on Roger and me. We liked it a lot! You make the regular French toast batter and pour it over 1″ slices of French bread. Put this in the fridge overnight. In the morning beat one egg white with 2 tablespoons sugar and a dash of salt. Beat with a whisk, you’re not making meringue. When frothy add a handful of sliced almonds. Spread/pour this over the bread and bake at 375 for 35 min. We had it with fresh strawberries. It was really good!
Your Favorite Breakfasts
When you make a reservation at Autumn Leaves Bed & Breakfast we ask if you have any dietary restrictions or preferences. This is the time to tell us! If you have a special favorite, you hate scrambled eggs or love waffles, let us know. Or if you have a very special favorite, tell us when you make the reservation so we’ll have the ingredients on hand when you arrive. If you’re leaving before breakfast time tell us before you arrive so we will buy what we need to give you a breakfast to go. Breakfast is an important part of your stay here so help us make it a special one for you.
