one year in Alaska

We celebrated with an old standby, the usual salmon recipe, along with buttered and herbed pasta, green salad and a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon. The food was delicious, but I was more excited about the dishes we ate it on. For my birthday this past September, my husband arranged to have some pottery made for me to match a set we got from my Aunt Debbie for a wedding present. The pottery arrived last week, and we now have place settings for 5--dinner plate, salad bowl and soup bowl. I love the cool green color, and the variation in each piece that comes with being handmade. All the green pottery you see in the pictures was made by Dick Lang, a ceramic artist in Alfred Station, New York. Thanks so much to him for adding more beauty to our everyday lives! Thanks for the amazing packing job, too...all the pieces made the long trip to Alaska intact.

In other news, I made this coffee ice cream last week. It could almost be called espresso ice cream. The coffee flavor was strong but delicious. As it melted in my bowl, I imagined I was eating the thick, foamy cream off the top of a cappuccino. Mmmm. Next, I think I'll try a basic chocolate ice cream.