Sunday Errands: Brioche Buns, Olive Oil, a Sweet

The best way to "run" errands is to walk them with a little one in tow and attach a cookie and a cupcake to the adventure. First stop is to Beacon Bread Company for brioche buns for weekday packed lunches. Next it's to the Scarborough Fare olive oil store to fill up this bottle with olive oil that tastes like "fresh cut grass and artichokes", to be used later in gazpacho and dipped in white bread from All You Knead and fresh Parmesan from a block from Beacon Pantry. Then it's off to Key Foods for rolls of fresh mozzarella and Applegate provolone cheese for a homemade pizza dough, the dough for which we will pick up from Pleasant Ridge on our way back home.

All on foot and a Radio Flyer bike!

What are your favorite errands on a Sunday?

The Hudson River Kayak Tours Paddles Onto the Outdoor Getaway Scene

One of the more relaxing ways to experience the Hudson River is by kayak, paddling up or down the river. In Beacon, Mountain Tops is a go-to source for kayak rentals and tours (see their 4th of July paddle under the fireworks).

For a getaway outside of Beacon, to travel by water under the Bear Mountain Bridge instead of commuting over it, The Hudson River Kayak Tours company has paddled onto the scene with three very different tours every Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. You don't even need to think about when a tour is, just pick a day, pack a lunch or bottle of wine, and go!

For a long lunch, try their Stony Point Lighthouse and Battlefield Tour, a four hour tour on Thursdays and Fridays where you pack a lunch, launch from Stony Point to paddle around the marshes and return for a guided tour of the lighthouse and the Stony Point Battlefield. On Saturdays and Sundays, paddle under the Bear Mountain Bridge during the Poplopen Creek and Iona Island Tour for a little bird watching at the Iona Island Bird Sanctuary, and on Friday - Sunday, enjoy a romantic night on the Hudson River during their Sunset Tours.

Enjoy!

Summer Wine Picks from Artisan Wine Shop

Summer and wine...such a happy combination. Of course your inspiration for different wines will come from different places, so we talked to Tim and Mei at Artisan Wine Shop for their recommendations on the perfect red, white or rosés wines for summer occasions available in their wine shop right now. Keep in mind, Tim recommends that most red wines should be served chilled in the summer. About 30-45 minutes in the 'fridge should do it...

GARDENING

You've been gardening, pulling weeds, harvesting beans, transplanting hostas, building decorative walls, and you're ready for a glass of wine. You're hot and tired, but you feel great after all of that physical work that looks so rewarding. What wine should you pair with your mood?

WHITE
Arca Nova is a Vinho Verde that is a refreshing white with a lightly bubbly effervescence to keep the taste fresh and you cooled off. It's a white wine from northern Portugal made from light, crisp grapes that are green and lush.

RED
The red Gamay from Domaine Les Hautes Noelles should be chilled and is a 'vin de la soif' (a wine for thirsty people) pulling in a cherry flavor that is low in alcohol.

PICNICS IN THE PARK

You're heading to Riverfront Park for a picnic, music festival, or a stroll down Long Dock, or are having an Alice in Wonderland type picnic in the pruned shrubbery at Dia (get some cheese from Homespun's Dia location), you'll want a wine that will match the early night breeze.

WHITE
You'll enjoy the Schlossmuhlenhof, a Riesling, but not just any Riesling...a dry Riesling Trocken that is native to the Germans who make and drink it. According to Tim, the Germans don't drink any other type of Riesling, certainly not ones that are sweet, which can be considered the norm by Americans. It's lower in alcohol, crisp, clean and good with food.

RED
The Fuori Off Road Strada, a liter of Tuscan red wine in a box.  Packs well in a sack, and you'll get more wine with less packaging! Put this organic boxed wine on ice. It's a Chianti, but not officially classified as such, being that it's in a box. It's light and crisp with some structure and dryness from the tannin. It will have dryness on the finish and is good with food.

BBQs & BACKYARD GRILL OUTS

You're going to a friend's BBQ or backyard grill, and everyone is bringing their craft beers and growlers from The Hop, but you want to bring wine.

WHITE
The Effet Papillon is a Cotos du Roussillon blanc from the southern part of France. It's wrought with soft texture and stands up to the weight of grilled chicken, fish and vegetables. The Effet Papillon picks up flavors well to enhance your meal.

RED
La Flor is a Malbec that is full of flavor. It handles heavy foods like meat well, but could be drunk by itself. This red wine is tangy in nature, and works well with BBQ sauce.

TIM'S FAVORITE ROSÉS FOR SUMMER

Tim was especially excited to share his favorite bottles of rosés. The Lieu-dit Cocagne Coteaux du Vendomois and Pigoudet Premiére. The Coteaux du Vendomois is dry and savory with no sweetness, and is best 15 minutes after opening. The Pigoudet is made from a blend of grapes and is more fruity because of the warmth of the region.

WINE CUPS FOR THE OUTDOORS!

And of course, you must have the proper glass! If you are on a picnic, traveling or just want to drink from a sturdy cup outside, the govino wine glass is shatterproof, reusable, disposable and available locally at Utensil. So fit in the trip from one end of town to the other when you are headed to your event and are picking up wine on your way! And don't forget, if you need a quick apple pie, there are usually mini apple and cherry pies ready at BJ's. 

All of these wines are available in the Artisan Wine Shop, so print out this guide or mention the Summer Wine Pick Guide on A Little Beacon Blog for some guided direction on picking your wines!

Movie Night at Howland Public Library

Tonight-ish is family movie night at the Howland Public Library!

Starting at 4pm, watch The Lego Movie! In partnership with the Wee Play Project, the library is kicking off summer with the release of this DVD. Popcorn will be served at this free event and no registration is necessary.

To learn more about events for kids at the Library, visit the Beacon Library Parents Group on Facebook, and check the main calendar of events at the Library.

City Wide Yard Sale Well Stocked as Ever!

Rain fell the entire week leading up to this year's City Wide Yard Sale. But hours before starting, the clouds parted, stopped drizzling, and the yard sales were out!

This year we went on foot, stopping at a yard sale behind Beacon Barkery to find a pink raincoat and matching rubber boots for $5. Onward we forged to fuel up at Culture for their delicious lattes (for my friend...I'd already fueled up at home thanks to my aero press from Mountain Tops that I love).

We found more sales on Beacon and S.Walnut, that had these craft supplies, cute trade paperback books, windows with glass for projects, porch lights still in the box, so much.

Cars and pickup trucks drive by, usually with a man in the driver's seat scouting and a woman jumping out to scavenger before his truck can fully stop. Usually the yard sales offer lemonade and are dotted all over Beacon, from residential streets, to even a cat hospital in the woods! Some specialize in certain things like tools or baby gear, but all offer many things you forgot you needed.

It's one of my favorite weekends in June.

Did you go? What did you find?

How Does Your Garden Grow?

Alright, let's check in to see how your garden is growing! This year, as planned, I started out using the hay mulch method, as loved by Ruth Stout, who wrote the book on it. After I'd witnessed my very droopy, withering basil that needed watering 2x daily completely thrive to the tune of growing 3x as big and hardly needing watering again (or weeding), I was convinced. It was my neighbor who introduced me to this hay method when he came over to put down the hay because he couldn't resist converting me to the Ruth Stout method.

Trouble is, this year I planted seeds before putting the hay down. And, I didn't mark where I seeded. And I didn't trust that all seeds would grow, so I threw down a bunch, and a bunch has sprouted! Wonk.

Because I was late on the hay, I had to wait for seed growth to emerge before I put hay down. Which resulted in two big rounds of weeding, and as you can see, mini weeding still needed because the hay isn't covering the nooks and crannies around each plant.

But, I have not needed to water my pees, tomatoes, carrots, basil, cilantro or parsley! This week's constant overcast is helping, with the light drizzles keeping everybody plenty hydrated.

To my husband's dismay, I have also hay mulched our recently transplanted hostas in the back, and two little widow boxes that don't catch rain and usually dry out. Hopefully everything will grow better and he will let me keep the hay...

Patio and Pooches at Lucky's for Happy Hour

Pretty much a dog parent's dream...bringing their dog to a Happy Hour. And this flyer in Beacon Barks says it's ok to do just that! Lucky's, the patio bar down the hill a bit on 9D near Long Dock, is having Yappy Hour every Wednesday from 5-8. Yes, you can bring your friendly dog to their outside patio! Not sure how long this offer will last, but it's worth the stroll or drive down there to take them up on it. You get a view of the Hudson River and you may even get an early dinner or snacks.

Easy Druzy Heart Necklaces and More Style at Lorraine Tynne

If you're in the mood for new bling, walk on into the stylist's shop, Lorraine Tynne for quick and easy updates to your jewelry collection. Quick and easy because there are so many styles that the curate onto the shelves. From costume jewelry with rhinestones or bright colors, so stones like druzy used in heart shaped necklaces. If you have a careful child, it might be a fun place to treat a little girl to something sparkly.

And, their summer sale is going on! 20% off until May 31...

Homemade Pizza Night

Pizza is really easy to order from anywhere around here (Leo's, Brothers, Pleasant Ridge, Andoline's over the bridge in Newburgh) but really fun is buying freshly floured dough from Pleasant Ridge of Brothers and making our own. Sometimes a square deep dish in a silly baking dish works, and my personal favorite, the calzone loaded with grilled chicken, spinach, tomatoes and cheese (provolone and mozzarella).

As you can see here, sometimes we go rogue and each make our own pizzas! Some prefer the pizza stone (me), and others prefer the metal baking dish (hubby). We both love buttering the bottom, and I sprinkle some salt on the baking surface. The next goal is to stop into Utensil, the kitchen store on the east end of Main Street to get a wooden pizza oven thing so that I can more easily transfer pizza onto the pizza stone.

And, I haven't tried to buy gluten free dough from Brothers, but they do serve a gluten free pizza! So maybe they'd sell you the dough (but shhh...you didn't hear it from me...)

Junior's Cheesecake at Mary Kelly's

Beacon...we have a problem. Junior's Cheesecake is being served as one if many very deliciously sinful desserts at the Irish pub Mary Kelly's. Normally, I get my fix of the Brooklyn based cheesecake at Grand Central when I'm coming home on the train. Yes - I'm that person eating an entire slice of New York style cheesecake with a giant red syruped up strawberry by myself. But it's worth it. And now...it's only moments away by car! Danger zone. :)

Osteoarthritis: Roosevelt Vet on the Hudson Solves Mysterious Licking and Itching in My Dog

When we moved from Manhattan to Beacon, I was leaving my longtime and most trusted vet for my dog and two cats. In fact, my dog has saved my cat when she was a kitten because my dog obsessively licked her ear until the fur faded in color. Turns out my cat had a polyp in her ear, and my dog, Gerdy, knew it.

When Gerdy was licking her own self over the past few years, either biting itching or licking, I chalked it up to her "seasonal allergies" that vets had come to call it. When it didn't go away, I had her tested for mange, but she was all clear. Totally perplexed, I'd ramble on and on about Gerdy's itching to Libby at Beacon Barkery, who suggested an allergy to chicken. So I pulled all chicken out of her diet, which was really tricky because chicken is in everything, including the cat food that Gerdy sneak eats.

The itching subsided, but she was still licking her paws and ankles. I went on a 12hour road trip to Ohio and Gerdy had her own back seat in the car. The night after our arrival, Gerdy couldn't get up. Her legs wouldn't work and I thought she was having a stroke. At 1am, I rushed her over to an animal emergency room at Ohio State University, where 4 vet students took her out of my car on a gurney (on which Gerdy promptly stood straight up and I had to promise that she really wasn't walking).

It was in that emergency room that the doctors told me that Gerdy had a lot of arthritis which had crippled her body, and after the long road trip of not moving, her body was in pain. They had me feel her back, which felt rocky. I had no idea. I'd been going to another vet in the Hudson Valley, but they had never mentioned arthritis. It was then that I went in search of a new vet to immediately start a new system for Gerdy's arthritis so that she would live in less pain, and to stop the progression of the arthritis.

Roosevelt Vet on the Hudson had been on Main Street for a while, and I called them up to inquire about an appointment for Gerdy and her arthritis. Emilia, Roosevelt Vet on the Hudson's office manager, let me know that one of the vets there, Dr. Tamara McArdle, was very knowledgeable in osteoarthritis and could see Gerdy right away.

The first question Dr. McArdle asked me was: "Is she licking her joints? Because if she is, she could be licking where her joints are in pain from arthritis." Dr. McArdle gave me a handout she'd written about how to identify arthritis, ways to treat it, and how to prevent it. I learned that “Osteoarthritis” or “degenerative
joint disease” is painful inflammation and cartilage loss in one or more joints. Osteoarthritis can affect any joint in the body – even in the back or neck.  In dogs the hips or knees are most commonly affected. Dogs may show joint pain by limping, having difficulty with exercise, or just “slowing down.”  Early on there may be no symptoms. Trouble is, Gerdy was 13 when I first noticed it, and according to Dr. McArdle and the OSU vets, Gerdy could have been taking joint supplements years prior to help her keep her cartilage healthy and cause less damage.

We started Gerdy on a regimen of pain medicine, an antihistamine (for the mystery itching until the chicken was gone from her system), and Dasuquin®, a joint supplement that has glucosamine and chondroitin, which are both components of healthy cartilage, and Roosevelt Vet carried a chicken free flavor in their office! Dr. McArdle worked very closely with me to monitor the pain meds, test Gerdy's blood, and suggest alternatives when it appeared that Gerdy's kidneys were too old to handle the preferred pain medicine of NSAID pain relievers (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs), and needed something milder. We are currently considering an injection of Adequan®, which is a polysulfated glycosaminoglycan (PSGAG) which slows the progression of arthritis and aids in joint healing.  Because it is given by injection rather than by mouth, the molecules can reach the joints without having to survive digestion first.  Adequan® is initially given twice weekly for 4 weeks then as often as needed for comfort (often monthly).

What has been key, however, is the joint supplement Roosevelt Vet on the Hudson recommended. In pet stores, there are a lot of joint supplements one can buy. So I asked Dr. McArdle what makes her recommendation of Dasuquin® so special, and what can we watch out for when researching other brands? She says: "Independent testing has shown most glucosamine products (human and animal) to be pretty good about containing as much glucosamine as advertised.  Chondroitin, however, is not so consistent - many products (even high cost human products) fail to meet the labeled levels of chondroitin when independently tested.  Cosequin® & Dasuquin® are the two veterinary brands I generally highlight because I know that what they claim is in the bag actually is.  Because chondroitin-containing products are much more expensive than glucosamine-only products, I would encourage careful research before buying any other chondroitin product.  Consumer Reports is a good place to start."

Dr. McArdle and Roosevelt Vet on the Hudson are also "big believers" of Omega 3 fatty acids (i.e. fish oil) because of their anti-inflammatory properties and are helpful for joint disease as well as skin, brain, and heart health.  Dr. McArdle believes that Omega 6 (i.e. corn oil) or Omega 9 (i.e. olive oil) supplements are less beneficial.  A high quality purified EPA / DHA supplement such as Free Form Snip Tips will be more effective than a regular “fish oil” pill.  EPA / DHA supplements are also generally preferred over flax oil, another common source of Omega 3’s.

In terms of how to purchase Omega 3s, Dr. McArdle issues this word-to-the-wise: "Omega3's are best supplemented rather than being included in the dog food since Omega3 fatty acids break down in contact with air and light.  So even if they are in the bag when they make the food, they may not be present at adequate levels by the time your pet eats the food. The dosage of DHA & EPA recommended for pets with arthritis is often much higher than what is on the label (the dose for arthritis is very close to the maximum safe dose).  You should consult with a vet for the appropriate dose for your pet."

There is lots more to learn about osteoarthritis in my dog, and how to treat and prevent it, but it is amazing to know that Roosevelt Vet on the Hudson is on my team with this, as we take steps to improve Gerdy's life. I wish I had started her on Dasuquin and Omega3 supplements earlier!

[a Partner Post with Roosevelt Vet on the Hudson]

For Goodness Bake: Best Bake for Charity Sale Donates to Kids R Kids Feeding Program

 

You've seen the flyers. You've read the cover story in the weekend edition of the Poughkeepsie Journal, Southern Dutchess Focus. You listened to the story on WAMC. But have you been to the For Goodness Bake bake sale yet? This year, it's May 10, 2014 (Mother's Day Weekend) on the corner of Main and Cross Streets (rain location is Zora Dora's at 201 Main Street) from 10AM-4PM.

A SPECIAL BAKE SALE CREATED FOR ONE CHARITY A YEAR
Last year, Kristen Cronin and Tara Tornello started the bake sale, "For Goodness Bake" as a charity event to raise money for 6-month year old son of their friend. The food nearly disappeared in 2hrs. And these baked goods aren't the kind found in your 6th grade bake sale to raise money for Spring Break. Kristen and Tara have an exceptional gift at creating the most beautiful, domestically blissful, Martha Stewart Would Be Proud kind of bake sale. If you were to collect cute bake sale ideas in a Pinterest board of yours,  For Goodness Bake would have several pins in your board.

DONATIONS GO TO CHARITABLE ORGANIZATION
This year the girls are donating 100% of all sales to the Kids R Kids Feeding Program, a Beacon based organization dedicated to reducing childhood hunger especially in the Beacon City School District, "until all are fed." Kids R Kids provides transportation for the meals and organizes the volunteers and events for the program. Free meals are available for kids 18 and under at these locations in Beacon throughout the summer.

To make a donation, visit their website, and/or drop in on to the For Goodness Bake bake sale on May 10th! Arrive early to get the treats!

Beacon Open Studios Weekend

This year, the Beacon Open Studios city-wide art studio tour will be on the weekend of May 3-4th from Noon-6pm. There are over 50 artists to visit (maybe 66 but who is counting) in 25 different venues, some of which are shops on Main Street like Bank Square or even apartments, and some of which are studios located in the artist's homes. Artists are also showing at The Lofts further up Fishkill Avenue (Rt. 52) and worth the drive.

If you're jogging around Beacon as I was several years ago, you've seen the white signs with this big red dot saying "Beacon Open Studios". Can't miss it. Walk in to wherever you see one and explore the art that is hidden there. The discoveries will keep you busy all weekend, and you'll have plenty to eat and sip at the neighboring restaurants and cafes. You will even find one of a kind jewelry from artists like Kit Burke-Smith, Martha Humphreys and Kat Stoutenborough.

And it's even kid-friendly with an art studio at their headquarters. Play-dough, yes!

Brioche Buns Up Your Sandwich at Home

For those of you who pack a lunch or work from home, one easy way to up your game with your sandwich is to use this brioche bun from the Beacon Bread Company. And if you needed a dippin' bread, like for saucy cheese in an extra cheesy mac and cheese from April's Rachael Ray cover story, their baguette is nice and fluffy on the inside, ready for soaking. Because you won't eat all of this at once, just slice up the baguette into 3 sections and place into a big Ziploc bag.

The brioche buns pictured here were used for:

• A really good egg salad sandwich courtesy of Easter eggs.
• A grilled chicken sandwich with melted munster cheese and sauteed (in butter) spinach and mushrooms.
• Brioche buns are also good on breakfast egg sandwiches...

And if you have better bread storage ideas, share them in the Comments below!

OMG It Smells So Good In Our Car! Pizza from Andiamo's in Newburgh

Pizza for dinner but not just any pizza in a box...pizza from the wood burning oven of Andiamo's Restaurant across the bridge in Newburgh right off 84. I mean....right off 84.

Fresh mozzarella, dough that cooks in 3minutes in a wood burning oven. So worth the drive for pickup. We are going to tailgate it tonight and go to the Hudson Valley Fair.

Mmmmmmmm.