Ratatoullie

Yesterday, we went hiking at Lake Serene and Bridal Veil Falls.  

One of my friends recommended this hike.  So we were pretty excited. We left pretty early in the morning which was a good thing because the parking lot was packed after we got done hiking. The hike is 8.2 miles round trip with a gain of 2000 feet. So, it was quite a challenging hike for us since we've done shorter ones that don't incline as drastically. 

There were quite a few bridges and stairways. It took us around 1.7 miles that lead upwards to Bridal Veil Falls. It was steep stairs but it was nice when we got to the falls. The mist from the falls was refreshing. 

Wayne - being Mr. Explorer

Bridal Veil Falls

After Bridal Falls, the trail went on for 2 miles gaining about 1,300 feet. Oh man, my legs were feeling it. We saw a lot of hikers with poles and definitely could see how useful they would have been. 

The terrain got really rocky and steep with stairs. It was funny. Wayne was like, "Why are we hiking upwards to a lake?"

Although the hike up was tough, the views were worth it. 

I sometimes have to pinch myself that I live in the Pacific Northwest. It's so breathtaking.

When we finally got to Lake Serene, we could see why it was a popular hike. The view of the lake was gorgeous. 

A lot of people were at the lake with their dogs and eating their lunches. It was like a lovely hidden oasis.  It was funny when we climbed up though. We realized that there are like different groups of hikers. The early birds/serious hikers that are out at 4am or 5am. The low key hikers and crazy runners around 7am. Then afterwards come the tourists, athletic girls in lululemon gear, the fraternity bros, and the families. We like gong out around 7am when it is still chilly out and less people out on the trail. The crazy runners were insane though. There was one guy that was running up the rocks as fast as he could go. There's no way I would trail run. I'd probably break my leg doing so! 

Although we were tired afterwards, this was one of of the best hikes we've done so far. My legs were shaking but it was definitely a worthwhile accomplishment of the day.

Today, I was nursing my legs. 

I'm excited because summer has the best produce and I love making one of my favorite summer dishes, ratatouille. I love how versatile this recipe is. You can eat it warm or cold.  My mom's recipe is a bit different than the one I made today, but nonetheless, it conjures up good memories - making this dish together with my mom, or coming home from college to have a steaming hot bowl waiting for me. 

Let's get started!

First, I pretty much chopped up the eggplant and let it sit with some salt. 

Then I cooked the eggplant till lightly browned. 

Next, I chopped up some onion, garlic, basil, red & yellow peppers.

 

So colorful!

Then I added some chopped up summer squash and zucchini and then added the eggplant and tomatoes. The recipe called for fresh tomatoes, but I was 

Ta-da! Finished product. The recipe called for a lot more garlic than I normally add. Which was fine by me, because I love garlic. But it wasn't as good as my moms. :)

I know I've probably mentioned this a lot, but Food52 is probably one of my favorite websites. I love how it is a collaborative site where cooks of all degrees can share their recipes. I recently bought Food 52's recipe cookbook. This was one of the recipes in it.  

You can find Alice Water's Rataouille recipe here. 

Stay tuned for more adventures and food.

Emma