a taste of sonoma.

An evening spent catching up with missed friends over crisp wine, PapaGrish-caught Alaskan halibut, property foraged produce, & a pooch, made for the perfect welcome back to california. Awakened to a sun soaked sonoma & pool-side breakfast.

This place's a winner.

{sun kissed morning view.}

{vine covered hills.}

{fresh off the boat alaskan halibut}

{almond-crusted halibut w/citrus salsa & crunchy kale salad.}

{mint spiked peaches w/mango, pineapple & walnuts,
garden fresh frittata w/queso fresco.}

{breakfast of champions.}

{cone-head, Kibo, getting thirsty}

back to the bay.

Summer flew by before my eyes. It was filled with so many new and wonderful experiences. It was nostalgic and sunny, I couldn't have been happier. Unfortunately, summer had to come to an end. I am now back in san francisco, but I remembered to pack all the fabulous memories with me.

“Mascarpone, Apricots, & cherries, oh pie!”

Crust:
1 cup raw walnuts
1 cup raw cashews
1 Tbsp raw honey
6 Tbsp butter
pinch of sea salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Pulse nuts in a food processor to a powder. Melt butter and honey and combine with the nuts and a pinch of sea salt. Press dough into a pie pan. Cover edges of the crust with foil, to prevent from burning. Bake for 10-12 mins, remove foil and continue baking for an additional 5-7minutes. Remove and let crust cool completely.

Filling:
16 oz. Mascarpone cheese
1 cup raw cream
4 Tbsp raw honey
1 Tbsp maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
farmer's market picked cherries & apricots, pitted and halved

To make the filling, whip cheese, honey, and maple until light and fluffy. In a separate bowl whip cream and vanilla to a stiff peak. Fold whipped cream into the cheese mixture. Pour filling into the cooled crust and top with halved, pitted cherries and apricots in a spiral pattern. Chill for several hours.
Serve and indulge!

summertime.

I decided to move to portland for the summer, and summer it is. The weather has finally hit the high 90's, even 100 this week. It is great to finally have a true summer, quite different from san francisco style. With the warm weather I am taking full advantage of all oregon has to offer- pietopia, farmers markets, and the great outdoors. One of my favorites, thus far, has been getting to the sandy river. I even caught my first baby salmon, not a keeper, but still I hooked it.

And with that in mind, a little fishing inspiration-

photographs, ring, romper, cookbook, boots, vintage tape measure, & basket.

almond joy!

I found this recipe on Nourishing Gourmet, and reminiscent of my favorite Halloween treat, I had to give it a try.Unfortunately they didn't turn out quite as beautiful has my childhood delights, but I think the flavor definitely held its own.

Almond Joy Candy

1 cup shredded organic coconut (unsweetened)
1/2 coconut oil
5 Tbsp raw honey
1/3 cup chopped almonds
1/3 cocoa powder
2 Tbsp agave nectar
1 tsp vanilla extract
pinch of sea salt

Melt 1/4 cup coconut oil and 3 Tbsp honey in a double boiler until fully combined. Remove from heat and stir in the shredded coconut. Divide mixture evenly among 12 mini muffin tins. Sprinkle the chopped nuts on top of the coconut mixture. Place in the freezer until set. Meanwhile combine cocoa powder with remaining coconut oil and honey. Heat in a double boiler until melted. Stir in the vanilla extract and agave nectar. Remove from the freezer and top each one with the chocolate mixture. Top with a few grains of salt, and put back into the freezer. Remove after about 30mins and pop the candies out of the tin. Indulge. Store in the freezer. They will keep for at least two weeks, (or at least that's how far I made it until they were all gone!) The tops cracked a bit in the freezer, so I need to do some more experimenting. All in all thought, a tasty success. Watch out Hershey's!

it's official!

Today, I was blown when I got my acceptance letter from Bauman College. I just applied to their natural chef program, and I'm in! I can't believe I'll be enrolled in the fall. It couldn't be happening at a better time. It's the perfect fit, and I am beyond excited.

I celebrate with my favorite- a bowl of fresh stove-popped popcorn!

lemon heaven.

Today I spent the latter part of the day playing in the kitchen with a friend. We were on a jammin' mission and successfully canned about eight delicious jars of strawberry jam. Still having the 'baby boom' bug in me, I decided to attempt making raw honey lemon curd. It was so simple and turned out creamy and refreshing. It was perfect for dipping the strawberries I had leftover from the jam. Unfortunately I didn't make quite enough in this batch, but I can't wait to try these lemon bars next.

{recipe adapted from the nourishing gourmet}

Lemon Curd
3 eggs
5 Tbsp raw honey
1/2 cup lemon juice (meyer)
5 Tbsp raw butter
lemon zest

Heat eggs, honey, and lemon juice in a double boiler whisking until thickened. Stir in lemon zest and butter until melted and fully combined. Pour into jars. Refrigerate for 24 hours.