Chartreuse

The word "Chartreuse" comes from La Grande Chartreuse, a monastery located in the Chartreuse Mountains near Grenoble, France where an aromatic liqueur has been made by the Carthusian monks since the 1740s. 

Chartreuse liqueur is a yellowish-green colour and is made from distilled alcohol, herbs and flowers. 

It is one of a handful of liqueurs that continues to age and improve in the bottle.

There are two types of Chartreuse: the green Chartreuse Verte (55% alc/vol).

and the yellow Chartreuse Jaune (40% alc/vol) which is sweeter than the stronger Chartreuse Verte.

Chartreuse is classified as a digestive. It has a pungent spicy and sweet taste and is served very cold either straight or on ice, and in cocktails.

Chartreuse gives its name to the colour "chartreuse" and varies from a clear yellowish-green to a strong greenish-yellow, such as the colours in the next three photos.

On our initial shopping trip to Tlaquepaque, after the construction of Casa Que Sera was completed, I fell in love with the exquisite chartreuse plate in the next photo.

This vibrant, one of a kind plate would be the first of many chartreuse objects I would purchase for our casa.

Next came this fabulous fused glass fish with its glistening, iridescent eye and fins.

After all these years, I still get energized whenever I look at all the bright and cheerful, chartreuse objects that decorate Casa Que Sera.  

You will notice that chartreuse appears in the paintings, pillows and glasswear in the next few photos.

I have been lucky to find so many beautiful things in so many different shades of Chartreuse.

Things get moved around from time to time especially when I find a new piece that needs to get incorporated into my existing decor.

 I continue to love all my chartreuse plates, glasses, fish, etc. that decorate and liven up Casa Que Sera.

Ciliegia Villas in Osoyoos

When we are tripping around B.C.'s Lake and Wine Country, we often like to stay in a beautiful little town called Osoyoos.

Sunny Osoyoos is in the southern part of the Okanagan Valley in British Columbia near the border with Washington State.

Beautiful, warm Osoyoos Lake  forms the heart of the town and attracts thousands of visitors each summer.

On one of our many drives around the area, we discovered a little gem of a place called Ciliegia Villas (ciliegia is the Italian word for cherry).

Ciliegia Villas has five villas that have large windows, jacuzzi tubs, French doors that open onto a private patio, and stunning views  over their orchard. 

There is a rooftop deck that gets a nice breeze and is a great spot to visit with other guests or just relax with a book.

A complimentary continental breakfast of fresh fruits, from the orchard, and home made muffins and other goodies is included in the room rate.

Breakfast is served in a small dining area that is equipped with a full size fridge, microwave and lots of dishes.

The owners of Ciliegia Villas are very good hosts who turned on the coffee and delivered fruit and freshly baked goodies to the dining area each morning before we got up.



I think I've checked out just about every place to stay in the Okanagan and have found that if you are looking for a nice clean place with a great view, at a really reasonable price, you can't beat Ciliegia Villas.

Tacos

One of my very favourite street foods down here is tacos.

Some of the taco stands open early in the morning and close about three in the afternoon.

And others open early evening and stay open 'til there's no one left to buy their tacos.

This particular stand serves both billy goat (chivo) and beast (res).

Res would normally be beef.



Taco stands offer a few choices of fillings, such as chicken, beef, pork, chorizo, fish, prawn and intestines.



They also offer many condiments to enhance the flavour of your taco filling.

 I really like either pork or chorizo tacos.

And Bruce tends to order beef tacos.

 Occasionally we'll order chicken tacos.

Or prawn tacos

Or fish tacos.

But we never order intestine tacos.  We leave them for the Mexicans.

Laura's Baby

At the spa, I go to in Guayabitos, it seems there's always one or two girls leaving because they are pregnant.

Laura, one of the girls who used to do my nails, left and moved to Puerto Vallarta for the term of her pregnancy.

Yesterday Laura visited the spa to show off her new, three week old,  little bundle of joy.

Laura is one very proud and happy mother.

Mexican babies are just so cute. 

And especially this one.

Japanese Chicken Wings

When my kids were growing up, one of their favourite meals was Japanese Chicken Wings and Fried Rice.

And I must admit that Bruce and I love them, too.

I begin by rinsing the wings in some water and then I dry them thoroughly with paper towels.  I place the wings on a parchment lined pan, leaving a bit of space between each portion of wing.

Then I sprinkle a bit of seasoning salt and garlic granules over the wings and into the oven they go.

While the wings are roasting, I make the sauce that makes the wings taste so yummy.

I combine some soya sauce, white and brown sugar, plain old white vinegar, some minced ginger and a bit of water.

Then I stick the sauce in the microwave and heat it 'til it boils and the sugars are dissolved.

When my wings are nicely browned, I remove them from the oven.  I do love my parchment paper.  Once more there is no grubby pan to wash.

I place my wings in a baking dish and pour the sauce over the wings.

Then back in the oven they go for about 15 minutes or 'til the sauce is bubbling and starting to thicken.

  

These wings are super easy to make and taste every bit as good as they look.

I will publish the recipe in a separate blog.