We retreated up to the mountains this weekend to escape from cell phone service and the rest of civilization. As you can see in the photo above, it was a rough time lounging by the fire, drinking wine and cooking gourmet meals in my friends Jamey and Phil’s kitchen. With my pup Winston by my side, nothing could be finer. The cold rain and fog hardly put a damper on our time  (all time except for puppy business trips) as it was much cozier inside by the fire with friends. We ate our way through the weekend from a lighter version of Jalapeno Poppers and Turkey Chili on Friday night to a Roasted Leg of Lamb Provencal Style with Roasted Potatoes and Bibb Lettuce and Radish Salad on Saturday night. The retreat made the sound of my phone chiming hard to hear on our way back into town yesterday.

I’ll post the recipes this week while I try to shake off all the weekend calories.