Monday, July 30, 2012

Fruit Bruschetta


Imagine the buttery crunch of crisp bread topped with
juicy ripe berries and a light glaze as you bite into this
fabulous Fresh Fruit Bruschetta.

We just had this as an appetizer on the houseboat 
on our maiden voyage.  My friend Rachel made these
and she got the recipe from the cookbook

I don't have this cookbook yet, but I think I am going
to have to get it.  They also have a blog by the same name.


You start by slicing a baguette into about 1/2 inch
slices and brushing them with melted butter.
 Then the bread is baked until crispy.


The bread is topped with a mixture of fresh fruit.  Rachel
chose mango, strawberries and raspberries.


Finally the light glaze is spooned on.  This was such a 
great summer appetizer and we all want to have it again and again.

Fresh Fruit Bruschetta
with
Orange-Honey Cream
(From Our Best Bites Cookbook - slightly tweaked)

1 baguette sliced into 1/2 inch slices
4 T. melted butter
2 T. sugar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 C. honey Greek yogurt
3 T. honey
1 tsp. orange zest
1 C. diced strawberries
1 C. diced mango
1 C. fresh raspberries

Brush the bread slices with the melted butter and broil until
golden.  Watch closely so you don't burn it.  While bread is
cooling, gently toss the berries and mango.  Set aside. 

In a small bowl mix the sugar, cinnamon, yogurt, honey
 and orange zest.
(The original recipe says to mix the sugar and cinnamon
and sprinkle it on the bread before toasting.  Rachel just
mixed it in the topping accidentally and it was great too,
so I am giving you the recipe
that way.  I am sure the original is wonderful too.)

Place bread slices butter side up on a serving platter.  Place
about 1 T. mixed fruit on each piece of bruschetta.  Spoon 
a little sauce on each bruschetta.  Serve immediately.


This creative dish would be a hit anytime and
you could adjust your fruits according to the
season.

Enjoy!


Monday, July 23, 2012

Her Maiden Voyage - Captain Kirk's Enterprise


Captain Kirk's Enterprise - to boldly go where no
 boat has gone before!

One of our huge building projects for this year is done
(well, almost done!) and we had our maiden voyage
on her.  I had done a post about building a new
houseboat
and we did get it finished enough to have our first trip
on it.  

Captain Kirk and I held a competition to name the boat.
We offered a cash prize.  My 24 year old niece suggested
the Enterprise (as in Captain Kirk's Starship Enterprise).

That ended up being the winning name!


I told you I would show you the rest of the 
houseboat when we finished.


This is the main salon, one of many spots where the 
whole group can gather.  


We are not big on television and movies when we are
at Lake Powell, but it will be fun to watch slideshows
and videos of the day's activities.


In the newer houseboats the main salon has been moved
from the front of the houseboat to the rear of the
houseboat with a sliding glass wall so that you can
enjoy the view of the water and the water activities
that are all located at the rear of the houseboat.


The other end of the room is the large kitchen with
bar seating for eight.  This was really fun when meal
preparation was taking place as it fit many cooks and
observers.


The kitchen features dark maple cabinets with brown
tone-on-tone glass tile for the back splash and 
Copper Canyon granite tops.  The Copper Canyon
reflects the colors of the Lake Powell sandstone walls.


A large hammered copper sink is great for
washing up and such a nice size.


This fridge and freezer were such a joy as they easily
fit in all of our food for the week.
Our very first houseboat had a small marine
fridge so we always had to use extra coolers.


One of the big needs for a week of houseboating
is ice and we have two clear ice icemakers.  They
were perfect.  We never ran out of ice.


This is a view back into the kitchen with the beautiful
stainless steel and glass hood hanging almost 
as a piece of art.  
The floors in the main cabin are all 
engineered wood which can withstand the 
wet environment.


Captain Kirk's quarters
are the most luxurious, as fitting
his status of course!


The tufted headboard features blinged up buttons
(as fits the taste of his First and Only Mate -
 that would be me!)



Along with the bling, the First Mate also likes some
 touches of animal print throughout the boat.


The houseboat is manufactured by Bravada Yachts
in Phoenix and Tracey, the co-owner had the most
wonderful sources for blinged up pillows and bedding.
The bedding came from Eastern Accents.
Tracey and Jim created the unique look of Bravada 
yachts and were so delightful to work with.


Needless to say, the bedding was love at first sight for me.


The master bath is connected to the stateroom.


It features Tyvarian, Whitewater's
newest bathroom products 
which are now being sold internationally.

The master has double shower heads and double
faucets in a textured bronze trough sink 
which was also manufactured


This is the second full bath also featuring Tyvarian on
the counter, walls and in the shower.  I chose beautiful
vessel sinks for the main bath 



and for a sink between two of the cuddies (lower
bedrooms).



The half bath turned out beautifully with a 
nautilus shell sink in brushed bronze also made
It is fun to have a project that I am designing that
they can then carry out my designs.  


The water spirals down the sink!
  It is undermounted in Tyvarian also.


There are six additional staterooms.


Each stateroom is individually decorated.



Four staterooms are on the main floor 


and two are down below.


But each of them have their advantages with the
lower cuddies having more space but only queens
while the upper staterooms have king sized beds. 

In addition their are two crawl-through cuddies for
children.


In the end we decided we didn't need quite that many rooms
even for our largest crowds so we turned one into a 
massage room complete with remote control 
electric candles and music.  
This room will have an electronic roller massage
bed, which is on order.  That way you don't have to find
someone willing to give you a massage.  For now, we have
a traditional massage table.


Now we move up to the middle deck which has been designed to
comfortably entertain crowds.  I found this super comfy piece
on Costco.com!  This looks out the back of the houseboat
at the lake.


Whitewater custom made this 7 x 7 foot table
that seats 12 beautifully.  It is also made out of Tyvarian.


Tyvarian is an 
imaged cultured marble product so you can
create any design you would like.  This is a faux wood finish
with interesting hidden details and I chose to add a vine 
pattern to it.  
Shaunna is the graphic's designer working with Tyvarian
to create the custom design.


At the last minute I chose to add a chandelier embellished
with shells to hang over the table.


We do a lot of outdoor cooking on the lake.  There is a
built in BBQ and side burners,


...a sink, dishwasher, ice maker, trash compactor and 
audio equipment.  Each bar is 14 foot long so it can
accommodate many cooks and many cleaners.


Past the kitchen is the driver's station where everyone
loves to gather as we travel up lake.


I included two wonderful lounges up by the driver's
station so that the whole group can gather there.

These and the dining chairs and barstools are all
manufactured by Tropitone.


The very top deck is open air and we love to gather here
in the evenings and stargaze.  These king sized day beds
are from Babmar.   The summer sky is amazing
at Lake Powell.  You can see the Milky Way so clearly
it almost looks like a cloud painted across the sky.

The special treat is to be able to see shooting stars.

Captain Kirk has put together a collection of 
stargazing music which includes music from
Celestial Soda Pop by Ray Lynch, Sam Cardon, Kurt Bestor, 
Enya and Kenny G.
Listening to this music and watching the stars
is one of my favorite activities at Lake Powell (after water sports!)


We have four king sized beds on this top deck.  They can also
be used for sun bathing and sleeping under the stars.

Dave Taylor owns Houseboats Unlimited and is the
dealer for Bravada Yachts.  Dave also builds the third 
decks in Page, AZ.  He manages the boats and provides
services for Antelope Point Marina and Wahweap Marina.
It is amazing that they can provide any service you need
during the busy summer days and can do it with a smile!


We post the weekly menu.  Everyone onboard 
becomes a guest chef.


I also have to include a picture of this 
that my daughter got Captain Kirk for Father's Day.

Captain Kirk is now including Star Trek music to listen to 
as we leave the slip.


(Still left to be done - screens on the second deck, logos
for the boat and some artwork.


This is one of the art pieces that Captain Kirk designed and
 that shows the map of 
Lake Powell and pictures of our family and guests
over the last 20 years.  It will also be made out of Tyvarian.

While it has been a lot of work


to go from this


to this - we know it will bring many years of 
family togetherness and time spent with friends.

All we need to add is family, friends and some 
H2O!

You can see the video of the houseboat produced
(Jim, the owner of Bravada Yachts
is featured on the video with his family
and I have to admit that I thought
some of the prices were overinflated
in the video - but you know how
these things go!)

I will be posting this with




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