This past Friday became a bit of a milestone for us. We closed on the sale of the building in Stevens Point, lifting a substantial amount of stress from our shoulders.
no longer our concern…
The next day we took off for a night in Minneapolis, feeling freer than we have in months. And the weekend was pretty much as lovely as could be. The weather was perfect for fall, sunny, bright, warm but with just the right amount of chill in the mornings and evenings. We had such a fun dinner out on Friday. We met up with my cousin Brian and his wife Melissa at HauteDish, where our cousin Mike is one of the chefs. I brought chocolate sandwich cookies for Mike and the other chefs, and in return they sent out such a bounty of delicious food (a small sampling is pictured below).
Pretty much the best tomato soup I have ever had, served with an incredible little toasted cheese crouton and foie gras.
A fun, deliciously spicy pumpkin stew sent to our table from the kitchen.
Duck 4 Ways, plus kimchi and some incredible sauces.
HauteDish’s take on Apple Pie. Deep fried with cinnamon ice cream? A thousand times Yes!
We were also able to get tickets to the Ben Folds Five concert that was taking place at the Orpheum Theater. We were very exited about this concert, as the group hasn’t released an album or toured together since we were in college. I was also exited to see and hear the opening act, Kate Miller-Heidke, as our Aussie friend Mylo had introduced me to her music over a year ago. Both sets were phenomenal, and these artists definitely know how to interact with the crowd.
Kate Miller-Heidke, easily winning over the Minneapolis crowd.
Ben Folds Five had the Main Floor crowd up on its feet for the majority of the show. We were glad we were up in the balcony with the normal(boring) people that stayed seated.
On Sunday morning, after spending a substantial amount of time in the hotel’s fitness center, we headed over to Edina to meet up with our friends Mark and Kerry and their boys for lunch at the Original Pancake House. I’m pretty sure there is a picture of Riley and Logan in the dictionary next to the definition of “Energy” and it was fun to interact with them and catch up with Mark and Kerry. From lunch we headed over to IKEA (went in for ONE thing and walked out with four, but in under 35 minutes, so that was counted as a victory) and then over to the Mall of America to waste some time. We both decided we needed some quiet after a bit, so we headed over to Rustica for a piece of sugary bread and an espresso (for Justin) and a Chai latte (for me). It was nice to relax and read a bit before dinner. And because it had been 3 months and we were starting to suffer withdrawal symptoms, we knew we had to fit in supper at Piccolo. I think Justin is putting up a link to see the pictures of all the dishes we enjoyed, but here are a few of my favorites from the evening.
Brioche and Foie Gras… Why yes, I would like a foie gras sandwich, thank you!
Acorn Squash Pasta, ham, and truffled cheese. Taking a picture was far from the first thing I thought of when this dish was set in front of me. Get in my belly!
Duck breast with Roman Gnocci and fig and pistachio mustard. Assembling a bite with each component was key – definitely equaled more than the sum of its parts!
We typically pass on the cheese plate at restaurants, but decided to go ahead with it for this meal. And we were so glad we did. The three cheeses, a goat’s milk cheese, and English Cheddar, and an Italian Taleggio were all phenomenal (though we both were partial to the taleggio) and the poached pears, fig jam, and fresh figs paired beautifully. Definitely worth giving up the precious space left in our tummies!
We arrived home late on Sunday night, with very full bellies and very happy hearts. It is so nice to feel settled into this new routine of ours living in Wausau. And it was so nice to celebrate the end of this time of transition with a short trip to one of our favorite cities.
And in the midst of the busy, I’m feeling really humbled and thankful. I absolutely 100% could NOT be where I am today without the oodles of support and love and help given by Justin, and by our amazing family and friends. I can hardly describe what it feels like to have the kitchen completed and the bake shop open to customers. Pretty remarkable. We were interviewed by a reporter for the local newspaper last week and they asked for pictures of the 
