August Visitors Part 2

Introducing my great friend from the north, Megan, who managed to escape the claws of corporate life to goof around with me in Colorado for a big, fat four days!  Thanks to her amazing camera and observant eyes, we had many photos to remember time together (I'm not always the best at remembering)!   

Megan documenting her first taste of what Colorado does best: beer. 
Megan tried the "Wixa Weiss" and for me the "Mile HiPA."
Wyncoop Brewery, Denver. 

Megan arrived at the Denver International airport around 8:30 AM on a sunny, hot Thursday morning. Since we had the whole day ahead of us, we relaxed and chit chatted over some homemade blueberry coffee cake and a round of coffee before driving to downtown to explore the iconic 16th Street Mall. The sun was brutal that day, so we stopped in various shady tourist stops, such as the Union Station, bookstores, The Wyncoop Brewery, and eventually settled for a modern-Mexican lunch at "Tamayo" located within Larimer Square. Tamayo's fine-dining atmosphere (air conditioning, modern art, comfortable chairs, and quiet chatter between small groups of people wearing suites) was just the escape we needed from the sizzling hot, busy sidewalks we came from. 

The top of our 16th Street Mall tour. 

Tamayo, Larmier Square.
Picture from: http://www.westword.com/bestof/2003/award/best-high-end-mexican-38468/

Later that day, Joe met up with us after work and we all traveled to Uptown for happy hour and dinner at Steuben's Restaurant!  You may recognize this place from the pictures that I posted from my family's visit to Denver. Yep, it has become a must-see! Vintage cocktails and comfort food, served with a side of humor. What more could you ask for? 

Introducing Meg to my favorite vintage drink to sip: Moscow mules!
Dreaming that someday these copper mugs will be in my cabinets... 

And did I mention we know how to celebrate?
We ordered a flaming volcano brimming with fruit and liquor
known as, "The Scorpion Bowl" for the table to share.
Lesson of the night: Do not drink the flammable liquid on top!

A gal that Megan studied abroad with in Spain ended up making
dinner that night as well, so there were just enough straws to go around!

If Day One wasn't already busy enough, we made the most of our time during Day Two as well! That morning we packed water and a change of clothes and headed to Boulder for some morning hiking and Old Pearl Street shopping, only to be followed by driving to Fort Collins for the evening. By the time we reached the trailhead for our hike, it was nearly 11:00 AM and the sun (once again) was quite strong. With lunch hour fast approaching we decided to hike out until we were ready to turn around and hunt for food. We managed to stumble upon a trail called, "The Flatironette."It wound up and around rocks and trees until we ended up with a spectacular view of the 1st Flatiron face, the snow-capped Rocky Mountains, and a bird's-eye view of Boulder below. 

There wasn't a cloud to be found that morning.
Flatirons from Baseline Road, Boulder, CO.

Beginning our hike at the Chautauqua Trailhead. 

Perhaps the best group shot at the scenic turnaround point of our hike.
Searching for a safe rock to balance the camera was a bit tricky!

Bouldering in Boulder.

Upon finishing our hike and parking near Old Pearl Street, we were feeling so famished that we walked right up to the first restaurant we encountered and ordered lunch! It was an Italian place and we both thought the lunch special sounded appetizing. We enjoyed Eggplant Parmesan sandwiches, garden salads, and glass of wine for only $10 each. The service was a bit slow, but what can you expect in one of the most relaxed cities around? Later that day we realized we were so focused on the food that we forgot to note the name of the restaurant! For the record it was, "Trattoria On Pearl." 

Enjoying the shade with the last few sips of our wine at the Trattoria.

Walnut Brewery for some afternoon quenchers? Why not?

They provided a sampler deal that we couldn't refuse.
You can tell by the levels of beer in the glasses which tastes we liked the best.
At one point Megan began to mix some of her less-than favorite brews in hopes
of diluting some of the bitter hops. Fail. We also failed at making black
and tans from the porter and lager samples!

For one last hurrah in Boulder, we stopped at the Red Stone Meadery for
complementary tastes and lessons about fermented honey.
Mead tasted like wine of the Gods! It is slightly sweet and effervescent,
with some varieties having a specific fruit flavor (like blackberries)!   

Megan with her tasty souvenirs to take home, including
mead-filled chocolates and some neat glassware.

We arrived in Fort Collins around 6:00 PM, after getting a bit turned around trying to find Jennifer and Brandon's new cottage in the outskirts of the town.  This included walking into someone else's home and chasing two dogs back into the premises as we realized we were at the wrong residence! (YIKES)!  The cottage was beautiful and Jennifer was nice enough to let Megan and I freshen up and spend time admiring the rustic scenes of the foothills from their back porch. We were so comfortable, in fact, that we lost track of time and in a hurry we were out the door and off to the streets of downtown Fort Collins to see a music festival and meet up with some other gals. 

Envious views from Jennifer's back porch. 

Arriving at the Bohemian Nights free music fest, featuring "G. Love and Special Sauce."
We were terribly disappointed when the vendors had closed down for the day.
We could have really gone for some fried cheese! 

The lovely group of music fest attenders! Right to left:
Jennifer, Megan, Julie (a good friend of Jennifer's, also from Madison, WI),
 and Julie's sister.  Soon after this picture was taken the gathering
crowds became hungry to get close to the stage and the group was separated.
Megan and I left before too late to make the dark drive home,
only to have a late dinner before surrendering to sleep.

Day Three was spent driving west to visit a couple of the state's most cherished mountain towns: Crested Butte and Breckenridge. Joe volunteered to be the driver for entire trip! I was thankful that he could come along for the adventure, and also because driving a manual through unpredictable mountainous highways tends to displace my heart into my throat. We left Denver around 6:30 AM, stopped in Buena Vista for a restroom, coffee, and sugar fix, and then continued to Crested Butte's visitors center to pick up a few hiking trail maps.  We hiked, ate and then had to move on towards Breckenridge...

Buying some local cherries at a nearby fruit stand that was located
in the visitor's center parking lot in Crested Butte. 

Ready, yet again, for a memorable hike.
This time, instead of red rocks, we got to admire sprawling, lush
meadows blooming with wildflowers as we traveled
 along the Copper Creek Trail near Gothic Mountain.
This was when Joe and I realized we needed to return the
following weekend for an extended camping/hiking trip
(see "Playing with Fire" blog entry).

About 30 minutes into our hike we encountered this gushing waterfall,
known as "Judd Falls."  This was our cue to return to the car.
It was hard to leave despite grumbling tummies.  

Roaming downtown Crested Butte in search of the perfect lunch spot
and admiring their many unique benches!  This moment was
dedicated to our friend, Kelly, who loves photographing benches.
We wished she could have joined us!

The Sunflower Deli.
Serving up seriously-delicious, gourmet sandwiches.

A sunny back patio allowed us to continue enjoying
 the beautiful weather as we waited for our lunches.
I loved the yellow umbrellas. They almost resemble sunflowers! 

Upon reaching our final destination of the day, Breckenrigde, it was 5:45 PM. Since we had a late lunch, we weren't in a hurry to find food just yet, so we wandered main street and looked for Colorado memorabilia. Along the way we stopped for a few craft liquor tastings made by the "Breckenridge Distillery".     

Looking the part.

I can't say either of us really enjoyed sipping straight liquor
from tiny plastic cups without something sweet/salty to follow up with,
but then we got to try their chocolate variety! It is so special we had to share. 

One taste of this and we were both seduced.
We were both flirting with the idea of purchasing their last bottle,
but Megan realized she could't check it onto her returning flight
and I couldn't justify such a luxurious expense.
So we will just have to return this winter during ski season!

Cheers to our last moments in Breckenridge!
We stopped here, at the "Kenosha Steakhouse," for some
appetizers and Breckenridge brews before enduring the long drive home.
I think all three of us felt like kids that perhaps played a bit too much...
but in the best, most fulfilling way!   

The next morning we slept in a bit after trying to pack as much excitement into four days as humanly possible. We slowly meandered to a nearby breakfast place, "Snooze," for some pancakes and eggs benedict. Despite the great brunch, the last meal is always hard to stomach since good-byes are just around the corner. However, great friends never stay apart for long and I'll be visiting Megan in Minneapolis this October. Lets hope September passes in a jiffy! I miss you already! 

Even though we change and we're all finding our won place in the world,
we all know that when the tears fall or the smile spreads across our face,
we'll come to each other because no matter where this crazy world takes us,
nothing will ever change so much to the point where we're not still friends.
~Quote forwarded from Megan. <3

August Visitors Part 1

The month of August has been an extended celebration of friends and family, being that Joe and I have been blessed with many visitors. The first was my dear cousin, Whitney, who managed to skip away to Denver for a few days in the middle of a trip to see relatives in a neighboring city. Whitney and I, along with our younger siblings, have an extensive history of silliness and shenanigans (for our sake, let's just say it usually had something to do with couch cushions, tabasco sauce, and our parents video recorder). I was nearly bursting from the seams with excitement to be able to spend some quality time together since distance + work/school conflicts = rare cousin togetherness.  

We always had great fashion sense.
Whitney (right), sister Kelsey (left), me (center). 

Whitney arrived in Denver on Friday afternoon and we reminisced over a few Boulevard Beers (Tank 7 Smokehouse Series) to commemorate our roots in Kansas. Later that evening, Joe and Ken, an old friend of Whitney's who also currently lives in Denver, joined us and we celebrated by having dinner at the new Breckenridge Brewery BBQ joint located in the lower highlands, "LoHi," district of downtown. Titrating fresh food with cold Colorado brews, we sat for hours on their sprawling outdoor patio talking and admiring the way Denver's skyline illuminated the dark horizon to the east. 

http://littlemanicecream.com/

Despite leaving with stomaches stretched, we were lured to a nearby ice cream hub known as, "Little Man Ice Cream". I was so charmed by this vintage, milk-jug shaped creamery. Their daily flavors were plentiful and creative, and  on a Friday night, the line wound down the street. Upon reaching the glowing windows housing employees wearing funny paper hats and scoop ready in-hand, it takes a bit of nudging to spit out what flavor you want to order! If I can recall, Joe and Ken got refreshing fruit sorbets while us gals settled on combinations of gelato and ice cream. I am still trying to figure out who the "little man" is...

Morning in the mountains.

The next day we rose early to begin our an adventurous day in Estes Park! Ken picked us all up at 7:00 AM and we snacked on banana bread and coffee while enjoying the progressive views and smells of the mountains. We hiked around the Rocky Mountain National Park, beyond Bear Lake, Nymph Pond, Dream Lake and turning around at the majestic Emerald Lake. Along the trail we encountered waterfalls and wildlife, including elk! Somehow I managed not even to snap one photo from the beautiful hike. Boo. Afterwards, we re-fueled with some great Indian food and caffeine. 

Ken, Whit, and Joe out front of a local coffee-studio shop.
From the loft window we could see the tip of Long's Peak!

After-thought picture of our marvelous Indian lunch spot
(squint to the back where the white plastic chairs are)!
We ate buffet style and enjoyed a bevy of curry dishes and naan. 

Taking a stroll around Estes Park main street.
Can anyone name this local flower?

We also did some tourist-ing!
Studying the haunted Stanley Hotel from a "safe" distance.
This hotel is historically known for inspiring
Stephan King to write (and film) "The Shining".   

By the time we reached the Denver city limits once again, it was already past 5:00 PM. Whitney was returning to her relatives house that evening only to wake up and drive home to Hutchinson, KS the following morning! It was a quick 24 hours but, Whit, I am so glad we were able to make it work! Despite so much time apart with our time in college and beyond, I know that we will remain great friends in addition to being cousins, whatever direction our lives lead us. Plus, we both realized we have a thing for food (and blogging)!  I can't until we meet again... 

Death by Brownies

Earlier this summer, I got a knock on my apartment door to sign for a package addressed from one of my dear friends, Kelly. What a marvelous surprise to pull off the packing tape and have Argentinean chocolates, sweet biscuits, coffee, dulce de leche, and a bottle of wine come spilling out! Kelly had just returned from a two-week vacation in Argentina and was generous enough to share some of her favorite flavors of the country with Joe and me. I have to admit, the chocolates and wine disappeared quickly that week, however, I told Kelly that I wanted to make something special with the authentic dulce de leche sauce. I found a recipe for decedent brownies complements of my favorite recipe search site,  www.tastespotting.com.  If you have not visited this website, I apologize for introducing you to it because you will be seduced and consumed by it (and you may even begin to feel a bit insecure about your own cooking abilities). That said, check it out!

Typing "dulce de leche" into the search bar, many jaw-dropping recipes appeared. I decided that I absolutely must make some rich, chewy, moist brownies dreamed up by the young and talented Flour Child.

The following pictures document my attempt to duplicate her recipe, however, please referencer her blog, as she is totally deserving of all praise! 

Combining what I call, liquid heaven.
Melted semi-sweet chocolate and butter,
mixed with cocoa powder, sugar, and vanilla. 

Getting ready to add the special ingredient: imported dulce de leche.

Swirling the dulce de leche into the fresh brownie batter.
Dulce de leche is thick, milk-based sweet sauce that originated in
Buenos Aires, Argentina in the 1800's. For those of you who have
 never tasted it, think of thick caramel sauce, but better!

The finished product, fresh out of the oven.
The surface was still bubbling and crackling, and yet I couldn't
help but grab a knife and spoon to begin sampling.
As you can see, these brownies are quite delicious...
I nearly had a fourth of the pan before it was even cooled!

Thank you, Kelly, for giving me the excuse to make these out-of-this-world brownies!  For those of you attempting this recipe at home, feel free to use caramel sauce or make your own dulce de leche sauce. The same gal, Flour Child (that I referenced for the recipe above) provides a wonderful homemade recipe for the sauce. These brownies are so delicious you will probably be eating them for breakfast. A perfect pair to a hot cuppa of Joe.  

A snippet of me and Kelly (left) complements of perpetual silliness.
Friends reunion, Atlanta, GA 2010.

Playing with Fire

Last weekend, Team Lazar decided to embark on their first camping adventure. What better place than the quant wildflower capital of Colorado- Crested Butte!  On Friday afternoon with the Civic stuffed with camping supplies, fresh ice in the cooler, and big smiles on our faces we headed southwest. The 5-hr drive from Denver turns out to be incredibly scenic, as the highway often narrows to two lanes as it twists up and down mountains ranges, through the fertile valleys of cattle country, passing through three different national forests. We arrived in Crested Butte at about half past eight, after dust had settled over the small mountain town. We were hungry, but we didn't stop at any of the nearby restaurants, attempting to lure us in with the smells of garlic and sounds of laughter drifting through our open car windows. We were thinking, instead, about roasted franks and hot beans over a small campfire. 

Link to Google Maps: http://g.co/maps/fhgs

It took us another half an hour to find our final destination for the night. We were following directions from a friend, and in true Colorado dialect, the navigation descriptions went something like this: 

Follow Slate Rd about 10-15 min up. You go past the big gorgeous pond, through a couple thickets of aspens surrounding the road, and then there's a relatively unmarked left turn-off down a pretty precarious road (you guys have an SUV, right?) that takes you right down to the river where the campsites are.

Since it was after dark, we felt like we had passed three various ponds and wondered if the trees we were seeing were aspens or birches (or did it matter?) and the only roads turning left were completely unmarked instead of "relatively unmarked." To make a long story short, we took a left turn after spotting most of the reference landmarks only to nearly lose the undercarriage of the car on the "precarious" parts of the dirt road (she wasn't kidding about the SUV). But as luck would have it, we ended up down by the quiet banks of the Slate River. We sat there for a while with the engine still running, staring at the silver stream before us and wondering if we should set up camp here or turn around to continue searching since we were not confident that our location was the same "x" on the map that our friend was referring us to in her directions. We couldn't see other tents or campfires. Glancing at the rocky road that we just descended from in the rear view mirrors, we decided to stay put and call this place home for the night (neither of us wanted to admit our fears that the car wouldn't make the return trip).  

Our nerves quickly dissolved into giddy excitement! We were in the middle of nowhere with nothing but a star-freckled sky over our heads. The air was crisp with the night's chill but we stayed warm as we buzzed around setting up the tent, unloading the car, and hunting for dry kinder for a fire.

Joe and I tag teaming the tent assembly.
This tent was gifted to us at our wedding (such a wonderful gift)
and can be assembled in less than 10 minutes! 

Once we got the fire steadily crackling, we perched ourselves on two river rocks that Joe dragged from the banks and starting heating dinner. I would highly recommend bringing along lighter fluid for "just in case" scenarios, such as random afternoon rain showers that keep wood debris damp well into the evening hours.  We passed Smokey Bear on our way into town holding a sign advertising for "moderate" risk for forest fires. Thank goodness it wasn't "high" since we quickly discovered that lighter fluid soaked pine brush takes flight quite easily in small wind gusts whiles its needles are still glowing with heat. Yikes!

My happy mountain man tending to his first hotdog of the evening.
We decided to open a special bottle of beer that my brother, Michael,
had given us back in July (The Lost Abbey Avant Garde Ale).
We were saving it for a special occasion and couldn't think of a better way
to appreciate a fine brew than our first camping adventure.

A small, foldable grill and extendable skewers make
for a luxurious outdoor dining experience.

A close up of what I call, "Cowboy Cuisine".
We got franks a roastin' (with no added nitrates thank you very much),
bread a toastin' and a fine can a beans a boilin'. 

One of my favorite things: baked beans.
It was even my lucky night because I caught the bacon piece.
I equate that to getting the maraschino cherry in can of cocktail fruit.
Anyone else with me?

After feasting until nearly 11:00 PM, we took the empty beans and beer containers, filled them with river water and drowned our cozy campfire before retreating to our tent for the night. One of the wonderful things about Colorado is that there are no blood-thirsty or light-drunken critters, like mosquitos and june bugs, swarming around your head or your flashlights. It is like camping in the heavens!  There is the risk of bigger animals. For this reason, we stored all food items in the car overnight.

The next morning, we awoke trembling with cold and fighting the cobwebs of sleep. We managed to dissemble camp by about 8:30 AM, by which point we had time to study the hiking trail maps and visually devour our campsite now that the sun was up. It really was beautiful...

View from the car, looking at our tent location across the Slate River.

Looking downstream from our tent's perspective.
We got really lucky both nights with diverted storm clouds.

Lookout for what?
A sign located on Slate Road.

We drove back towards town to get to an intercetion that would lead us north down Gothic Road. This took us into along a route through another small town of Mt. Crested Butte (an appendix settlement of Crested Butte we decided) past Crested Butte Mountain flanked with ski lodging, past rural log-hut communities to a narrow dirt road skirting a large meandering stream with emerald waters. Around 9:30 AM we reached the trailhead for the "401."  The 401 is a mountain biking trail starting from the lowlands between Avery Peak and Gothic Mountain and ending at the Schofield Pass. At 16 miles roundtrip, we figured we could just hike out as far as our legs could carry us, squat for lunch, and then return by mid afternoon. We ended up doing about 10 miles total, a hearty 5-hr hike! During this time we encountered four wooden bridges crossing various streams full of water from mountain snowmelt, birch tree forests, tall grasses mingling with colorful wildflowers. Being late-August, we missed the peak season for the blooms, which occur mid-July, but it was beautiful nonetheless. We stopped frequently for water and photos (such as the following).

Essential food items that we carry in our hiking bag includes, 3-5 liters of water dispersed between a CamelBak and Kleen Kanteens, trail mix, energy bars, chocolate-coated coffee beans, and peanut butter sandwiches. Much of this can be eaten at the onset of mid-trail tummy rumbles, however, we try to make a point to stop for a heartier snack (like our sandwiches) at the turnaround point of trails. For the 401 trail this day, our turnaround point was located on a switchback overlooking the river valley and Mt. Crested Butte. We brought two cans of soup instead of sandwiches, but Joe settled for a Cliff bar and I snacked on warm condensed soup before enduring our returning trek. Needless to say, when we finished, we were hungry and thirsty for some "real" food.

After stopping in the main town of Crested Butte to refill our water supply,
we wandered down the town's main street and stumbled upon a local
brewery, the Eldo, with roof top patio seating.
Two beers, please, for the weary travelers!

"A sunny place for shady people," is what their motto is, haha. 

Fat, starch, and salt become the desire of post-hiking hunger.
These were probably the most memorable cheesy fries I have ever had,
as they were freshly cut, spread thin, and topped with aged cheddar
and pepper jack cheeses until they became one gooey mass of greatness.
This picture was snapped quickly before completely disappearing. 

After spoiling ourselves with food and drink at a modern eatery, it was back to work setting up camp and  fire. After a few more hot dogs and roasted granny smith apples (a Lazar family tradition), we tumbled into a deep slumber for our final night in rustic mountain country. Unfortunately, it was an even colder night than the one before. I woke up with dreams of a large cup of piping hot coffee just out of reach. In addition, both of us felt as if we had just hibernated for months and decided to have a nice meal in town before saying goodbye and returning to Denver. We knew we had found our brunch spot when we spotted a donut rising over the mountains...

Quite the popular place among locals.

The last meal was complete with generous portions of hot coffee, buttered
toast,  homemade potato latkes, eggs and challah bread french toast.
Unfortunately, we were so quick to stuff our faces that this photo came
as an afterthought and only captures the last few bits.
Take my word for it... soul warming. 

Until next time Crested Butte!
Thank you for your mountains, hiking trails, and delicious food.