Fastest and Most Delicious Route to an Old Fashioned Italian Sugar Coma (And a Pretty Fall Wreath To Go)

Dispatch from Beantown.  Let's start with a wreath I passed walking through the North End.  Because you know I LOVE wreaths. (Also check out my "I Have a Thing For Wreaths" board on Pinterest!)

Pretty wreath on the shiny black door of a restaurant in the North End.

Mike's Pastry, the iconic North End shop of Italian pastry heaven.

Mike's gets ready for Thanksgiving.

No fewer than Eight flavors of macaroons (with two o's, different from the exquisite almond flour French macarons - one O ), my all-time favorite Italian cookie/sweet/dessert rainbow layer cookies) and magical looking marzipan on the bottom row.

Cannoli extravaganza:  this summer, Mike's expanded the traditional cannoli flavors to include twelve more -- including the four above, limoncello, strawberry, Oreo, and peanut butter. 

The cannoli parade continues (under the fists of an excited customer!): chocolate covered (shell dipped in chocolate, ends dipped in chips), Florentine (candy and nut shell), chocolate mousse (the filling, as you guessed), pistachio (dipped in the nuts) and on and on they go.

And of course, all kinds of cupcakes.

One of my all time favorite restaurants in the Boston's North End is Piccolo Nido ("Little Nest" in Italian). It is the epitome of what I believe a great Italian restaurant should be: warm and comfortable space, an experienced owner from Italy who is also a wonderful host, the freshest hand made pasta, minestrone of fresh small-chopped veggies in a light tomato broth, all at a good price.  Full review coming next week.  It is a true hidden gem, tell owner Pino that I sent you!  Your meal will be glorious!

Yours, in sugar coma just from posting these photos,
JPV

Lobstapalooza -- Kicking off the Summer Right

Boston, Memorial Day weekend.  Friday and Saturday:

Lunch on the waterfront with hubby and Mom (What? The DV has never participated in a lobster boil? Clambake?  Wha?  Poor deprived hubby ... Mom and I decided to bring on Lobstah Fest for Saturday's lunch.)

Saturday woke to the smell of sauce mom had starting making at 5 AM -- mmmm heaven. (Dinner for Sunday ... today is lobster!)

Commence Lobstarama:

In the middle of Downtown Boston, neaar the waterfront, is J Hook:

Where we met lunch (and future lobster ravioli):

Boiled 14 pounds of Mo, Larry, Curley and Snappy, stinking up kitchen (Hmmm, we usually do this at the beach house where smells disperse a little better and more quickly ... )

Is the Holiday Weekend Over? Can I Have it Back? Pleeease?

It was fantastic!  Pictures and stories to follow all week.  And my homemade by me lobster ravioli for snacks all week, too!  We picked those lobstahs alive ... this is some dead serious ravioli.

  Not bad for a pic with the crackberry ...

More to come.  Hi Mom!

xoxoxo