Kinfolk Honey Event

Everyone! We need to save the bees! Without them, basically nothing gets pollinated. Nothing gets pollinated, nothing grows, and there is no food. Not a good plan. Our dear bees are dying because of pesticides and other toxic things 'popping up' in our environment. The balance is broken! One way to help is to get a beehive. This is one thing we learned at Kinfolk's Honey Event. What a joy it was to see such passionate people speak about their love: bees. On top of infusing our own honey, we were served a delicious, local ingredient lunch on a perfectly decorated table. Kinfolk, you always know how to throw a fabulous party...

 A beautiful bee, hard at work.

 Our very own honey bottle.

 Infusing station.

 The menu, by Kim Schiffer, with reusable utensils.

 Gluten free breaded chicken on salad full of edible flowers.

 Cheese plate including goat cheese made the night prior!

Coconut sorbet and lime basil infused melon.

If you don't know Kinfolk Magazine, you should check it out because they are an inspiration and capture all that I hold dear: friends, gatherings, hospitality, sharing special moments with special people and so much more...

Kinfolk is bringing a series of events to Santa Barbara that they are calling Fruitful Collaborations. Check out the next ones here and get tickets soon as they are small, intimate gatherings!

Oh, the fun to be had! See you there!

Spare Parts Bistro - Pop Up Dining in Santa Barbara

In my humble opinion, Spare Parts Bistro is the coolest thing you can do in the food world in Santa Barbara right now. Each week, Spare Parts pops up at a different location inviting 20 guests to dine around a long communal table and eat an amazing 5-course meal made from fresh ingredients. Santa Barbara local's Chef Weston Richards and restaurant owner Alvaro Rojas joined forces to create these unique experiences.
This past Sunday's dinner was amazing. We sat at their custom wooden table, al fresco, in a residential neighborhood home's backyard. Chef Weston Richards, who has worked at many of Santa Barbara's top restaurants, is full of passion and love for his craft. Each dish that is served comes with a little explanation of creation, inspiration, and story by Weston, which makes the dish even more of a gift from his passion to our plates. Yum.

The table set up.

 

Delicious, super cooling and relaxing Margarita. Cheers!

Sourdough flatbread, grilled pacific squid, spicy greens, egg yolk. The word FRESH is going to occur many times in this post as that is just how all the ingredients were. Clean flavors were the star and the squid was prepared perfectly and had the perfect bite. The egg yolk dressing was out of this world. Well, there you go, now I am drooling...

Halibut ceviche, roasted summer corn, jalapeno, cilantro, creme fraiche. This dish he created just for that night and wasn't sure how it would be in the end. Let me tell ya...spot on. The balance of flavors elated my taste buds. He even makes his own creme fraiche and when speaking about it he said smiling, "It's just a cream and acidophilus thing..." As if making every ingredient in one single dish was the easiest thing in the world. Oh the patience of these inventive chefs! This is one of the best halibut dishes I've ever had!

Pork broth, carrots, egg noodles, herbs, olive oil. At last! A menu that lists herbs and you actually taste herbs! Vibrant, vibrant dish. And the pork broth...oh, the pork broth. The amount of time and thought that went into that broth including pig hooves. Delicious. Probably cures most any ailment one might have.

So very beautiful!

Lamb carnitas, cannellini beans, sofrito, asparagus, salsa verde. The lamb was cooked in olive oil. Do I need to say more? There was an amazing crust on it and the beans, fondly referred to as 'crack beans' for their addictive quality, lived up to their name! The sofrito mixed in with all the other flavors married wonderfully.

 

Meyer lemon, shortbread, strawberries, bavarian cream, mint. Beautifully tart meyer lemon paired with the shortbread and sweet berries was just what I enjoy for dessert. Not too much sweet and just enough to make it a proper ending to a most delightful meal. As dessert was served, the sun had set and the darkness started in. The candlelit table and happy banter made for a festive ambiance.

Wonderful. Amazing. Satisfying. Thank goodness Spare Parts Bistro happens every weekend!

Get on their email list through their site: http://sparepartsbistro.blogspot.com/ or on their Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/sparepartsbistro?ref=ts
Usually $75 and usually is BYOB

Santa Barbara to Santa Cruz...Island

My friend Caroline, her mom, and I went on a mini adventure to Santa Cruz Island last week. Arriving at Island Packers in Ventura at 9:15am we were very excited to get out on the water and hit the island. After a bumpy ride out there, we set foot on land and got ourselves oriented.

 We hiked to Smuggler's Cove where we ate our peanut butter sandwiches and apples.

A cold wind blew as we walked back from the warmer side of the island back to Prisoner's Harbor.

This is officially the largest and oldest looking Eucalyptus I have ever seen!

This was a wonderful, little adventure and a great few hours of peace. We checked out some great camping sites and already can't wait to go back!

Good Times & Eats in Santa Barbara

Did you know you can hire goats to clear brush so as to help prevent fires? My condo complex hired some goats, and their guard dog, to clear brush. I could hear the jingle of their bleats from my living room. What fun!

Milpas street has a plethora of Mexican restaurants. My friend was astounded that I had never been to La Colmena. As I do not like to miss out on great food experiences, I met up with her for lunch. This is a very straight forward kind of place...no fluff. Just simple, great tacos on homemade corn tortillas. I enjoyed one of their shrimp tacos and some Alambres. Seen above is the chicken, green chile peppers, and cheese. It must have been cooked with some sort of fat because it sure was tasty! GrubStreet Los Angeles did a comparison with La Super Rica and La Colmena seem to win the battle. I'd have to agree.

Solstice in Santa Barbara is always a grand affair! The sun came out for us, much to the joy of all of Santa Barbara. I thought these zebras were outstanding!! Check out those eyelashes!

Tea time! Aren't those cups cute? Tea at Savoy Deli is such a treat. They carry organic, loose leaf teas and serve them in the appropriate tea pots. A fresh molasses ginger cookie with some Earl Grey tea and you are all set!

Back on the menu at my place, brown rice pasta with a fresh, uncooked heirloom tomato. Besides peaches, tomatoes are my obsession during these summer months. Our farmer's markets are full of both and it is oh so wonderful! Too divine for words...

Nature's Surprises

An entry from my journal about a recent hike:

The forecast called for rain, but we awoke to a splendid sunny day. The wind was blowing lightly and white puffy clouds framed our mountains above Santa Barbara. Deciding whether to run by the sea or go hike in the mountains, we scrambled up some eggs and toasted some bread for a light breakfast. Stomachs satisfied we ventured out to Romero Canyon in the hills of Montecito. 

As we took our first steps up the trailhead, a brisk wind blew making my ears ache from the cold. The previous night’s rain had really cooled things down. It almost felt like one of our winter days. Up, up, up we went along the dirt rode cutting around the side of the mountain. Stunning, expansive views of the coast in both directions took our breath away. The valleys and details of Santa Cruz island were visible from where we stood. A wind blown ocean, kissed the shores of a sunlight filled city backed by a cloud-framed mountain. As we continued on, a dark, ominous cloud was rolling over the mountain’s rim. The smell of fennel filled the air mixed in with sage, emphasized by the humidity in the air. We exchanged a few words about how it felt very much like being in Costa Rica or Hawaii, but a whole lot colder. 

As we rounded the corner and entered the valley area of the mountain range, little cool drops began to fall. Only a light drizzle we walked on, only to stop a moment later when the drizzle became a downpour. Partially protected under a large oak tree we watched the rain fall in streaks. Ironically, we could see blue skies if we looked left or right, but where we stood it was dark cloud cover and rain.

Soon the droplets were bouncing off our clothes and sticking to our hair. Hail! It was hailing. Mid-May and hail…who would have thought? In awe, we stood there enjoying the sounds of little ice balls hitting the leaves on the trees and bushes all around us. The rain returning we decided to continue on, even if this meant getting even wetter. A few minutes later, the rain subsided and a very warm sun shone onto the soaked hillside. Mist rose from the drenched earth and a lovely herbal aroma filled the air. The strangely warm sunlight felt amazing on our chilled bodies. Water droplets hung off fennel leaves sparkling like little diamonds creating Nature’s own chandelier. Passing a small oak grove we admired the beauty of the light hitting the dark oak leaves and the filtered light hitting the fallen leaves and darkened rocks below the great oak. Large fuchsia thistles lined the overgrown path; glowing in the fresh, clean light.

Before beginning the trail back down the mountain, we stared out onto the stunning view between the two mountain tops, clouds hanging in between, blue sky, the islands, the deep blue ocean, and the green city, all framed by this mountain. At this moment, water dripping off my eyebrows, I felt very much alive and present. The hike down went quickly as we walked briskly through oak groves and over running creeks. The weather changing from sun to cloud cover to frigid wind to drizzles from the wind blown trees, our descent was beautiful. 

Back at the trailhead, where the weather was quite warm and the clouds still stood over the mountains but not the city, we laughed at the morning’s crazy weather and for getting caught in the thick of it. Sometimes it’s great to not be prepared for life’s little surprises.