This darkly comic painting from the Di Rosa Collection shows a malevolent looking child, her somber appearance not at all relieved by a red daub of color where her heart might be. She is unaware of a giant hand (actually a copy of Mickey Mouse’s hand) whose fingers are about to swat her away like an annoying bug. I couldn’t help but smile, albeit guiltily, at this composition, which is disturbing and amusing in equal measure.

Crème Brulee is one of my favorites. I love making it, serving it and eating it. So I should definitely share my recipe. Combine 2 cups of heavy cream, ¼ cup of granulated sugar, a vanilla bean (split with the small seeds scraped free) and a cinnamon stick in a medium saucepan. Bring to boil and transfer to a measuring cup. Prepare an ice bath in a large bowl. Lightly beat 5 egg yokes in a medium bowl placed with the bath. Slowly add the cream in a steady stream, whisking all the while. Cool the bowl for about 30 minutes. Fill 6 small 4-inch wide ramekin dishes with the custard, and place in a large pan. Fill the pan with warm water halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes in a 300-degree oven. Remove, let cool and refrigerate for at least an hour, preferably overnight. Prior to serving combine 2 tablespoons brown sugar and 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar. Sprinkle one teaspoon of the sugar over each custard. Brown the tops with a kitchen blowtorch (my favorite part).

On my last trip to Portland I discovered Annie Meyer, a local artist whose work I’ve mentioned before in Chez Catherine. This time she was in her studio when I dropped by, and we had a lovely chat. She explained the technique she uses to create her exquisite landscapes using paint and ink. She also showed me her nudes, explaining that her model of eight years had recently retired from modeling, much to Annie’s chagrin. Her landscapes combine serene, almost abstract vistas with vivid color choices, while her nudes are deceptively simple and starkly dramatic. I purchased several landscapes and nudes, which I will show in future posts.

From Seattle (Steelhead Diner–incredible black cod), through Portland (Andina–superior seviche), to Ashland (Chateaulin–duck a Parisian bistro would be proud of), to San Francisco (Yank Sing-the best Dim Sum in the world) our trip convinced us that if we lived in the Northwest we’d have to do a lot of bicycling to make up for the weight we’d gain eating at some of the finest restaurants in America. Oh, and Oregon/Washington wines are better than Napa/Sonoma.

Everyone goes wine tasting in Northern California, but we had the pleasure of taking part in a tasting every bit as delicious, if not quite as alcoholic: a tomato tasting. Guillame Biename, son of my old friend Beatrice, invited us. Guillame is the Chef at Marché, a leading Palo Alto restaurant. The tasting was held at his local supplier’s organic farm about an hour from Palo Alto. The tomatoes came in a broad array of colors, textures and shapes, each with a distinct full-bodied flavor. Guillame is working with his farmer to create a new species of tomato, to be available next year. In the spirit of the occasion, he created a tantalizing tomato sorbet that I will by trying to emulate in the near future.

When Rene Di Rosa sold his vineyard in 1986 to pursue full-time his passion for collecting modern art, he accelerated the process of creating what is the most significant collection of Bay Area art in the world. You visit The Di Rosa Collection in Napa by appointment only, to view 2,000 pieces of art by more than 800 artists, all from the San Francisco region. The museum includes his former home, as well as exhibit spaces both indoors and out. It is a staggering collection, endlessly entertaining, with pieces in every conceivable medium, from chewing gum to oil paint, from multimedia to a VW hanging from a tree. What is most exciting, however, is that every piece, no matter how diverse, is tied to Rene and Veronica Di Rosa’s pure love of creative expression. I could have spent far longer than the three hours allotted for the tour.

In northern California south of Eureka there is a road that snakes through a forest of redwood trees for 31 miles. It’s called the Avenue of the Giants. To say it is otherworldly is an understatement. The trees of Pandora in James Cameron’s “Avatar” might have been bigger, but they were no more mystical or awe-inspiring. The silence that enfolded us as we stood among these towering 2,000 year old behemoths was deafening.

Nature seems to have a greener thumb on the west coast. Our visits to Pike Place Market in Seattle and the Ferry Building Marketplace in San Francisco confirmed this with some extraordinary finds. If you like garlic you’ll love the elephant variety, as big as a your fist. And lobster mushrooms may look like the crustacean, but taste like a particularly meaty and textured mushroom. Everything seems to grows bigger and more colorfully in this benign climate. Driving through Castro, California we were informed that we had entered the artichoke capital of the world. Outside one restaurant we saw a six foot wooden artichoke; the real thing is just slightly smaller.

Ashland is a jewel of a small town of 20,000 in the hills of Southern Oregon. It is convenient to no major metropolitan area, yet hosts perhaps the most distinguished, and certainly the oldest–75 years–Shakespeare theatre festival in America. The Oregon Shakespeare Festival is much more than a summer theater, however. It is open nine months of the year, boasts two venues, and produces 11 major productions, including new plays, revivals and, of course, Shakespeare. The play we saw, “She Loves Me”, was a revival of an early work by the creative team behind “Fiddler on the Roof.” Everything about the production—sets, costumes, performances—was perfect. We stayed at the landmark Ashland Springs Hotel (85 years old and renovated in 2000), about 100 yards from the theatre. We must find a way to return for a longer stay to this town that combines art, history and magnificent scenery in equal measure.