September 17, 2021 Lunch - Legacy , la Veta. Dinner - Elk Bourguignon with sautéed potatoes and green beans

September 17, 2021  Lunch - Legacy , la Veta. Dinner - Elk Bourguignon with sautéed potatoes and green beans 

I awakened at 7:30 and Suzette and I ate a breakfast of 1/3 toasted bagel slice spread with goat cheese and garnished with slices of onion and Gravad lax a slice of tomato and cubes of melon. Suzette drank coffee and I drank hot chocolate made with milk, water, a bag of Swiss Miss cocoa mix and Hammond cocoa mix.

After breakfast we walked 1 mile up Lake Rd. past three private lakes and homes and an aspen grove to Ruby Lane and back.

We then drove to La Veta and met BIlly and Elaine for lunch at 11:00 at  Legacy Restaurant.

BIlly ordered enchiladas, Elaine and I ordered Calabacitas Quiche with salad, and Suzette ordered a chilled butternut squash soup with Thai red curry, coconut milk, and nutmeg.  Suzette’s was the most interesting dish, but she ate some of my quiche to get a proper meal.  Legacy is a sister restaurant in Santa Fe that I don’t recall ever going to.  The food was well prepared and presented.

We then walked the Main Street to a gallery featuring local artists.  There were many good potters among the artists featured and I bought a lovely porcelain tea cup for $22.00.

We then went to an Indian import shop owned by Jonathan Evans and his wife.  He was familiar with Nicolas Roerich so I gave him my history of how Roerich was the connective link that created the Transcendental Painting Group. Suzette bought two rugs and I admired Jonathan’s batiks.

We then drove to the L & M Ranch two miles out of town where BIlly and Elaine bought peaches and Suzette and I bought quinoa and artisanal butter.

We then drove to Walsenburg to look at antiques and ended up going to a contemporary art museum that is owned by an interesting couple who have spent most of their life in art and have a collection of over 1600 pieces, mostly having been given to them.  They write grants to fund the museum and are heroes for keeping the museum going.

After getting some gas we returned to the cabin in Cuchara.  BIlly and Elaine were reading and we joined them after opening the salami, our wedge of Iberico cheese, and toasting slices of French baguette.  BIlly and Elaine surprised me with a wedge of Leyden cheese.  I opened the bottle of Chateauneuf du Pape and we drank some with the cheese and salami at 4:00.

Then we read and I took a nap.

At 6:00 Suzette began to cook dinner.  We snapped the green beans we had bought yesterday at the Farmers’ Market and Suzette quartered some creamer potatoes and blanched both in water and then sautéed both in butter and olive oil and heated the elk Bourguignon we made at home.  I opened the bottle of 2018 Ropeteau Haut Cotes du Beaune burgundy.

When the stew was hot and vegetables cooked Suzette filled bowls with stew and the sautéed potatoes and green beans for a delightful one dish dinner.

After dinner we walked up to the middle pond to see if we could see a beaver. It was too dark to see anything except ripples in the brIlliant almost full moonlight so we came back and watched “Freedom Writers” a Hillary Swank and Scott Glenn movie about a heroic high school English teacher in Long Beach, California who mentored a class of poor kids through high school.

After the movie I made a cup of hot chocolate and this time I added cognac to make a nice after dinner drink. Suzette sipped a cognac as we talked to Billy and Elaine until 10:30 when everyone went to bed except me.  I stayed up to blog until 12:00.

Bon Appetit