Snow, and enough of it to ski on! This is turning out to be a great year for cross-country skiing at our local state park: Wild River State Park in nearby Almelund.
http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/state_parks/wild_river/index.html. Wild River State Park is located along 18 miles of the St. Croix River. There are 35 miles of trails for skiing and hiking. We keep our skis alongside the front door so we're ready to go. (If we're in the mood for downhill skiing or snowboarding, then we visit Wild Mountain in Taylors Falls
http://www.wildmountain.com/).
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| A trailside bench with view in Wild River State Park. |
So, on Valentine's Day this year we kept it local. In the late afternoon it was warm enough to enjoy skiing at the state park. The trail conditions were very fast on the advanced loop. It was a great workout and a terrific way to enjoy some winter sunshine.
Next, it was time to prepare a Valentine's Dinner. I love to cook great looking, wonderful tasting food. This custom kitchen makes it easy. The cabinets are made of cherry and the countertops are butcher block. It is a galley-style layout with the requisite work triangle and a gas/electric combination cooktop and oven. There is lots of natural light from the south and east facing windows and skylight.
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| Galley-style kitchen in the strawbale home. |
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| A view from the kitchen to the living/dining room open floor plan. |
Local food after the local recreation: corn-fed Chisago County venison, dry-rubbed and grilled to medium rare. The venison chops were served with roasted grape tomatoes with garlicky white beans, and a mixed baby greens salad. Warm chocolate fallen cake with whipped cream was enjoyed for dessert!
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| Local grilled venison chops with two salads. |
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