Suzie's Farm & El Take It Easy: Tonight in North Park

Tonight, 29 July, from 6-9pm, El Take It Easy in San Diego's North Park neighborhood is partnering with Suzie's Farm for a party featuring vegetarian dishes from the farm. In an effort to promote Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) and gain new shareholders, they are cooking up delicious recipes like black radish taquitos and eggplant & squash blossom cazuela. This should be a great event to mingle and meet. In addition to the food items, there are drink specials on beer, micheladas and wine. I have been wanting to learn more about CSA, and have heard great things from friends and family both in California and back East. I think it'd be a fantastic way to support your local farmers and enjoy delicious healthy fare! To top it off, I've also heard great things about El Take It Easy. If it's anything like the Linkery, I assume those guys know how to put together a fantastic establishment.

Grilled Pizza

I have a weakness for pizza. No longer are the days of Little Caesars and Domino's deliveries, of standard pies of pepperoni and cheese. These days there are plenty of restaurants and bars that concoct recipes of untraditional ingrediants that make your taste buds dance. Take for example one of my favorite dishes at Wine Steals (Downtown, Hillcrest, Point Loma & Cardiff), it's a Gouda cheese, apple and pulled pork pie. But I can't hold back from creating my own versions in the comfort of my own kitchen, and started experimenting. Finding a great dough at Trader Joe's (they have plain, wheat and herb), a favorite became a mixture of cranberry goat cheese, grilled chicken, fresh fig and caramelized onion (pictured above). I was cooking them in my oven (without a pizza stone), but was struggling to obtain a crispy crust. I then received a pizza ceramic for the grill from Crate and Barrel as a birthday gift. I used it last week, and its amazing! The results are similar to that of a wood fire oven, leaving the crust very crispy and a taste of char grill. This time I made mozzarella, basil chicken sausage, roasted tomato and fresh rosemary (pictured on the grill above). I must admit, I was wildly tempted to eat the whole pie!

An Afternoon at the Nursery

Part of becoming a homeowner is the joy of getting to have a decision and impact on every detail, inside and out. Not being the lucky one with a green thumb, I struggle with what we should do with our landscaping. I have to factor in upkeep, the SoCal sunshine and dry weather, my dog and growth capacity. My mother gave me a book, Container Gardening, which I foresee as being a helpful tool. I do have some gorgeous large aqua pots from Pottery Barn for my patio that could hold succulents, cacti or some other greenery. I spent a better part of this afternoon at the nursery and left feeling overwhelmed. There are so many options and so many levels of coverage! Homework this weekend is to look up what plants survive in this region, as well as cruise around Cardiff looking for ideas in my neighbors yards. Sunset magazine online had some good examples that provided my inspiration today (included above). The website is a good resource- if only I could get them to come out for a consultation!

patio images: sunset magazine

plant images: megan*christine

Opening Day: Del Mar

It's an annual summer tradition in San Diego, heading to the Del Mar race track for Opening Day, clad in big hats, sundresses and sear sucker suits (well maybe SoCal doesn't go that far....). It is always a blast! A sunny day spent sipping fine beverages, picking random ponies, and betting on the hopeful trifecta win.

It's my first year living in California that I won't get to partake in the festivities, as I am back East on business. But from the looks of my text messages and social media, everyone has already started the house parties, bus rides and celebration - let's see how the day turns out......

Rain's End ceramics

The other day I was surprised with an unexpected package from an Etsy artist in MA, Rain's End. Inside was this white ceramic dish, filled with mossy grass, perched by two tiny birds, with two white ribbon strings attached at the center. A little card inside explains that this wedding ring holder secures each of the wedding bands with the ribbon, weaving them together. I later learn that this wonderful gift came from my future sister-in-law and that I could use it for my ring bearer. Such a thoughtful present!

Familiar Pace

It's been quite some time since I last wrote, and I must admit, it's been a whirlwind of a month. After returning from Bali, we moved out of our rental (a little premature of closing on our house), crashed with friends like gypsies, traveled East for business, family & friends, and returned to California to our new house in Cardiff and a proposal. The latter part of the month was filled with such excitement, joy and surprise, that I don't think that I have had a moment to exhale and realize what exactly is going on around me.

But, tucked away, scrawled in chicken scratch on unopened envelopes and scratch paper are my ideas for a plethora of blogs. So now that I am somewhat unpacked and life is slowly finding its familiar pace again, I am ready to begin writing again!