Food

Last Weekend on Tomales Bay

Saturday

Last weekend Jeffery and I drove up to Marshall, where Marina was conveniently house-sitting the Inn on Tomales Bay. We took a lot of walks, explored the coast, and ate incredibly well. It was the perfect reset after two long work weeks since returning from the Big Island.

Tomales Bay from Clark Road, the Strauss Family Farm below.

We enjoyed a late lunch of Oysters Rockefeller and tri-tip sandwiches as the Marshall Store (highly recommended).

Evening walk on Dillon Beach

Elephant Rock

 

Where's Waldo?

Sunday

Marina's pop-up studio, I spy a naked lady bottom right.

Breakfast of smoked salmon Eggs Benedict, sautéed mushrooms, and mimosas.

Ed's Dock, Tomales Bay

Salad Niçoise and Scrabble for lunch

Recipe // Portabella, Shiitake and Herb Lasagna

Mushrooms are my soul food. When we go out, if there is a mushroom dish on the menu I can't order anything else, and I have yet to be disappointed. One of the most memorable meals Jeffery and I ever made was on Valentine's Day about 6 years ago. We slow cooked polenta with 4 types of cheese and made a sauce out of hedgehog mushrooms and heirloom tomatoes. Paired it with macadamia nut crusted halibut. It was all delicious, but that mushroom tomato sauce is what sticks in my mind. I can even remember savoring the leftovers. If I concentrate hard enough, I can taste it. I lost the recipe, but I think I'll try recreating it sometime soon. When I was mushroom shopping for this meal, I did see some furry little hedgehog mushrooms.

You will need:

16 lasagna noodles (4 layers)

4 cups milk

1 stick butter (I used salted, if you use unsalted, add more salt to your sauce)

1/2 cup flour

About 3/4 tsp. kosher salt

About 1/2 tsp. fresh ground pepper

1/2 teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg

3 garlic cloves, minced

3 tablespoons chopped Italian parsley

1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme leaves

4 tbsp. olive oil, divided

1/2 an onion, diced (or two medium leeks sliced into rings)

1 1/2 pounds portabella mushrooms, sliced

1/2 pound shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and sliced

1 cup finely grated fresh parmesan cheese 

 

Prep.

Determine how many noodles it takes to make a layer in your pan and multiply by 4. Soften noodles in a pot of very hot (but not boiling) water. Noodles should be soft but not fully cooked. 

Make béchamel sauce: Bring milk to a simmer in a small saucepan and remove from heat. Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in four until slightly browned, about 2 minutes. Whisk in milk all at once, keep whisking until smooth. Add salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Sauce should be thick enough to coat a spoon, if too thick add more milk, if too thin, cook over medium-low heat, stirring, until thickened. Remove from heat and stir in garlic, 1/2 tbs. thyme and most of the parsley (leave some to sprinkle on dish after it bakes).

Preheat oven to 375°. Heat a deep, wide pot over medium-high heat. Add 2 tbsp. olive oil. Sauté the onion (or leeks if you have them) until translucent, set aside. In the same pot, add the remaining olive oil and sauté mushrooms, covered, until mushrooms are tender and beginning to release juices, about 5 minutes. Lightly salt and pepper mushrooms. Uncover and cook until edges start to brown. Stir in the cooked onion and remaining 1/2 tsp. thyme. 

Assemble lasagna: Lightly oil a 9-by-13-in. baking dish. Spread a few spoonfuls of béchamel over bottom. Add a layer of noodles, then spoon on a layer of béchamel sauce (about 1/2 cup), followed by a third of the mushrooms and third of the cheese. Repeat layers twice more. Top with a final layer of noodles and remaining béchamel and sprinkle with the rest of the cheese. 

Bake lasagna until browned and bubbling, about 45 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining parsley and let sit for 15 minutes before slicing. Pair with chilled Lambrusco (Trader Joe's has a good one).

Recipe adapted from here. (Warning, this recipe creates a mountain of dishes. And in our case they are still waiting to be washed...)

Dead on the Creek 2013 // Friday Night

We drove up to Willits from the Bay Friday night, and got up String Creek just in time for the late night party to start. Mars Hotel was rocking. The coals in the outdoor oven were nearing perfection, and the popcorn was popping. Pizza turned art, fresh cookies, late night badminton. The music kept playing long after we were full of food and fireside conversation with old friends and all zipped into our tents for the night. And that's how it started. 

For more information on the festival, click here

Getaway

anderson valley postcard

Over the weekend, Jeffery and I drove to Mendocino County to celebrate my 25th birthday in Anderson Valley. On the way up Friday night, we stopped in Healdsburg and had dinner at Campo Fina. The restaurant had great ambience with an outdoor pizza oven, bocce ball, and really beautiful landscaping. The staff was super friendly, and the food was pretty good. The meal was mostly small plates, and they didn't have to a cook much, instead it was finished with a lot of of pickled garnishes and arugula. But it was overall a satisfying meal.

healdsburg restaurant campo fina
campo fina bocce ball healdsburg
roses campo fina restaurant
campo fina outdoor pizza oven

We stayed at the Boonville Hotel, which we had heard good things about. It far surpassed our expectations. The staff was amazing, the rooms are beautiful. As soon as we arrived we were upgraded to a suite. And the food...wow. More on that later.

gardens at the boonville hotel
boonville hotel room 4
boonville hotel room 3
boonville hotel room 2

Flowers in every room.

boonville hotel porch and antique car

On Saturday morning, (after a breakfast of homemade granola, local strawberries, yogurt and scones), we drove through the redwood trees to the coast, stopping for a trek to the Navarro river.

mendocino county redwood trees
Jeffery at the navarro river

I finally got a good shot of him. No awkward face.

Navarro River Mendocino County

It was so beautiful inland, and then when we got to the coast it was windy and cold and the water was choppy, but there was still sun and the fog was lifting.

Mendocino coast fence
pacific ocean from mendocino
mendocino houses
mendocino coast wildflowers
mendocino coast

We came back to the valley for lunch and picnicked at the Philo Apple Farm, which pretty much stole my heart.

philo apple farm sign and strawberry starters
Philo Apple Farm products for sale
philo apple farm eggs for sale
philo apple farm greenhouse
philo apple farm jasmine in the greenhouse
apple trees
apple tree blossom
philo apple farm tree arch
philo apple farm flowers
philo apple farm garden

Next stop: Toulouse Vineyard. We were glad to have just eaten, because they were generous with their pouring. The atmosphere was relaxed and everyone was extremely friendly and knowledgeable. They waived the $5 tasting fee with purchase (some bottles were on sale for as low as $16!). We left very happy with a bottle each of pinot noir and pinot gris, both tasty and affordable.

toulouse vineyard barrels
Toulouse wine tasting

We parked back at the hotel, and with a frisbee in one hand, ice cream cone in the other, walked to the Anderson Valley Brewing Company Brew House to taste some beers. We tried all the ones we'd never had and Jeff was extremely fond of the Bourbon Barrel Stout, which is aged for three months in Wild Turkey Bourbon barrels.

Anderson Valley from the Boonville Ukiah road
Anderson Valley Brewing company brewhouse beer tasting

Arms full of bottles in brown paper bags, we walked back to the hotel for eats.

furry flowers in the sun
enjoying a beer at the boonville hotel

We dined at Table 128, the hotel's in-house restaurant. It was the best meal of my life.

It started with a bite of shiitake mushroom in puff pastry and a complimentary splash of rosé...Then there was a curried cauliflower soup with savory bread salsa crumbs and romesco sauce drizzled on top...A mixed baby green salad with slices of blood orange, ricotta salata, savory candied pecans and an apple balsamic vinaigrette...Roast duck leg over shiitake, farro grain and black olive topped with a fennel and fava bean tapenade...And lastly, early strawberry and rhubarb shortcake with warm cream sauce and orange caramel.

All of the flavors were so clear and developed. The soup was simultaneously subtle and surprising. I wanted a whole lot more of the salad, and I could have licked my duck plate clean. The textures were spot on, everything was cooked to perfection. And my shortcake came out with a candle on top.

I went to bed feeling filled to the brim, filled with delicious food, with love, beauty, peace, all those cheesy things and awoke Sunday morning to birds chirping. Great weekend. I'd do it all again.