Tuesday, July 4, 2023

Three Beautiful Things 07-03-2023: Raisin Cinnamon Bagels Debut at Beach Bum, Charcuterie in the Afternoon, Remembering Everett on His 92nd Birthday

1. Over the weekend, Beach Bum Bakery posted its Sunday menu on Facebook and asked readers if they'd like to see anything on the menu. I've been very (very) happy with Beach Bum Bakery's plain, sesame, and everything bagels, and, at the same time, have yearned for a raisin cinnamon bagel. So, I responded on Facebook that I'd like to see raisin cinnamon bagels added to their offerings. Lo and behold, Rebekah loved the idea, jumped right on it, and today I bought a dozen bagels, four of them raisin cinnamon.

Sidenote: I love raisin cinnamon bagels, but, I've found that certain bagel bakers skimp on the raisins and the cinnamon.

Not Rebekah!

Much like Beach Bum Bakery's cinnamon swirl bread, these bagels were loaded with cinnamon and Rebekah was most generous with the raisins.

Upon arriving home, I immediately cut a raisin cinnamon bagel in half, toasted it, and applied a thin layer of cream cheese.  

I was blown away by how delicious it was and ecstatic that raisin cinnamon bagels will be a regular Monday offering at Beach Bum Bakery.

It's a development I simply never expected to come about when I moved back to Kellogg six years ago and I couldn't be happier.

2. Debbie thought it would be fun to try a HelloFresh charcuterie board while Josh, Adrienne, Jack, and Ellie are here, so I pulled the bag out of the icebox along with the sealed tray of meats and went to work.

I sliced the two small baguettes, drizzled olive oil over the slices, and baked them for about 10 minutes in the oven.

Presto! Crostini!

I seasoned packets of walnuts with Tuscan Heat Spice and cooked them in olive oil until toasted. I put the nuts in a small bowl. 

I whisked Ricotta cheese and seasoned it with truffle zest in a small bowl.

I mixed fig jam and balsamic glaze in a, yes, you guessed it, small bowl. 

I sliced a cucumber.

I rolled mozzarella cheese pieces inside pieces of prosciutto, Black Forest ham, and coppa.

I cut Grand Cru into wedges.

I put a packet of grape tomatoes in a small bowl.

Along with disks of salami, I put the crostini, roll ups, cucumber slices, and Grand Cru wedges on a platter.

My presentation wasn't quite as handsome as the picture of the board done right on the recipe card, but it sufficed and Josh, Adrienne, Debbie, and I loved noshing on this delicious variety of snacks. 

3. Later, I followed the HelloFresh directions and made a rich tomato sauce and cooked two packets of tortellinis in the sauce. I topped the tortellinis and sauce with a panko/Parmesan cheese combination and put the dish under the broiler until the bread crumbs were golden and toasty. 

This dinner entree worked.

Later on, Christy and Tracy came over and we all yakked on the patio and, when the time was right, we raised a toast to Everett on his 92nd birthday and spent a good amount of time reminiscing about his life and his most admirable character. 

Great stories emerged. 

Everett's remarkable life definitely lives on beyond his passing away in late 2020. 

*By the way, just for the record, I raised the question in an earlier blog post as to whether Carol had initiated the big party for her 40th birthday held in the backyard of what was then Mom's house.

She did not. 

Mom, Christy, and Paul put their heads together and hatched the plan.

But, when Carol and her family went to New York City to volunteer for the Salvation Army and to enjoy shows on Broadway, among other things, in celebration of her 50th birthday, Carol initiated that! 

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