London

I arrived in London this morning for a short vacation and continued celebration of my brother's recent marriage. I would like to say that we arrived early but sadly it wasn't in the cards for us.

We arrived in London at 6:30 when we were originally supposed to land at 7:30. After circling the airport for 15 minutes we were finally given the go ahead to land and touched down at 6:45. At which point we found out that our gate was occupied because we had landed early. So we were shuttled off to the remote parking area where they bring steps to the plane and then shuttle bus you to the terminal. Sadly, when we arrived to the remote terminal it was also full and we had to wait until 7:15, when it was free and we finally could pull in. Unfortunately the guiding system on our plane malfunctioned and it was another 15 minutes of waiting before we could pull the last 10 meters into the remote gate and finally get off the plane. Which of course took longer then normal because instead of getting off the plane and into the terminal we were getting off the plane, going down the stairs and waiting for shuttle buses to take us to the terminal.

Once inside things ran a lot smoother. Customs line was short, my bag was already going around the baggage reclaim and the tube was waiting for me at the stations, both originally and at my connection. It couldn't have been smoother.

After a 2 hour nap, I joined my parents for lunch and then this afternoon we headed over to my sister's house where I met my niece for the very first time. As cute as a button and very curious. Definitely a keeper. I also presented my nephew with a new construction book which seemed to go over quite well. He kept running around the house yelling out "digga!" and looking at all the pictures.

This evening mom, dad and I went out for traditional Fish and Chips with a side of mushy peas. Nothing better out there to give you energy to overcome jet lag. I am now waiting for my brother and sister-in-law to get back from Paris so I can give them a hug and then crawl into my bed and get a peaceful nights sleep. Tomorrow morning M arrives and we are going to tour London. It's his first time here.

Basil Aoli

Last night I went to a cooking class at Sur La Table. It was so much fun and, surprisingly, the recipes were pretty simple. One of the most basic recipes was this one for basil aoli, I had no idea how easy it would be to make and yet how tasty it could be. We had this served with Salmon, I am sure you could use it on a sandwich or with other dishes as well.

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 cup packed basil leaves
• 1 tsp lemon juice or juice from 1/2 a small lemon
• 1 medium garlic clove, pressed
• small pinch of salt
• 1 cup of good mayonnaise

Combine olive oil, basil, lemon juice, garlic and salt in jar of a blender or food processor. Process until smooth like pesto, pausing every now and then to scrap down the sides of the blender/food processor. If you do not have a small blender/food processor you can also put these ingredients into a mortar and pestle and grind until the consistency of thin pesto.

Put the mayonnaise in a small bowl. Add the basil mixture and stir well to mix. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed. Enjoy!

One Year

Last night M and I went to Sur La Table for a cooking class in celebration of our one year anniversary. It's so hard to believe that it's already been a year and also hard to believe that it's ONLY been a year.


The cooking class was entitled End of Summer Bounty and it was to feature items that you can find at the farmer's market this time of year. There were about 16 people in the class and in teams we worked on making all of the dishes.

• Gorgonzola and Grape Pizza
• Wild Mushroom Pasta
• Oven-dried Tomato Tart with Goat Cheese and Black Olives
• Roast Salmon with Basil Aoli
• Blackberry-Champagne Sorbet

I wasn't a huge fan of the pizza because the dough was made with Kamut flour, supposedly a healthier flour with more protein, which made it very hard and dry. The rest however were delicious! I think we are definitely going to make some of these in our kitchen, especially since M couldn't stop raving about the oven dried tomatoes.

Herb Garden

While mom was here over the weekend I decided to put her gardening expertise to use and have her help me plant an herb garden. Back when I was in grad school I bought the Chia herb garden, thinking it would be super easy as Chia plants always were. Sadly I just never got the plants to grow. Since we've been here in California I have been inspired by all the plants we have around us, grapefruit, blackberries, grapes, olives, etc. That and we always seem to be running to the store to buy mint for our cocktails. At $2 a packet I figured it must be cheaper to just have a plant.

So off we headed to Home Depot to buy seedlings, pots, soil, and patio containers. We also stopped by the local farmers market to pick up a few missing herbs that we didn't find at Home Depot, mainly a mint plant. While we were at the farmer's market we also sampled chocolate mint. If you ever see it, try a leaf, it's pretty much awesome. If I can figure out what I would use it for and I can keep these first herbs alive I am definitely going to invest in some.

What we did end up with was flat and curly leaf parsley, basil, chives, cilantro, thyme, rosemary and mint. So far they are happily sitting on the patio enjoying the sun and the ocean breezes. We have used the cilantro in homemade guacamole, parsley in our pasta salad and mint in our cocktails. And next time we do our mustard glazed pork loin we are going to use home grown thyme instead of the store bought stuff.

P.S. If you have any recipes that use fresh herbs, definitely send them my way!

Carlsbad History

Monday was mom's last day here so we decided to have a leisurely morning and then explore a little bit of Carlsbad history. First stop was Magee Park and the Carlsbad Historical Society. The actual building and museum was closed but we did get to wander around the park, read a little about the barn and granary, and see the rose garden. It was such a beautiful day.


After the park we wandered toward the center of town and came across Carlsbad Mineral Water. Earlier in the weekend mom had spotted the statue of a man near the water dispensing pagoda. I had seen the water before but didn't think much of it and had no idea who the man was. So we decided to investigate.


Turns out this man discovered the famous Carlsbad mineral waters and was one of the founders of the city of Carlsbad. His name is Captain John A. Frazier. When drilling for wells on his farm he came across both fresh water and also artesian springs with mineral water. What I also didn't know is the water that you can buy to fill up your gallon containers is this famous Carlsbad mineral water. Supposedly it has health benefits and is better for you then regular water. Sadly we didn't have a gallon container with us so we have yet to try it out.

Flaxseed Banana Bread

This recipe is from Moosewood Restaurant New Classics, p. 396. I haven't actually gotten around to making it yet, but it sure does look delicious!

Flaxseed Banana Bread
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
2 eggs
1/3 cup nonfat plain yogurt
1 cup mashed bananas
1/2 cup rolled oats, ground into flour *
1/4 cup flaxseeds, ground into flour *
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

* Use a spice grinder or blender to make the flours. We prefer the blender because it can grind the oats and flaxseeds simultaneously. To save time, put the rest of the try ingredients in the blender with the ground flours and whirl for 1 minute. (I used a food processor)

Preheat the oven to 350-degrees F. Butter or oil a 5x9-inch bread pan. (You may use a 12-cup muffin tin).

In a mixing bowl, combine the oil and brown sugar. Add the eggs and beat well. Mix in the yogurt and bananas. In a separate bowl or a blender, combine the three flours, the baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the dry mixture to the banana mixture and stir just until combined.

Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan (or muffin tins) and bake for about 1 hour or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean (I do the muffins for about 16-18 minutes, but I start checking on them after 13-15 minutes, because the flaxseed makes them brown up quickly. Also, I have found that the bread is done in about 40 min, not 1 hour). Remove the oven and place the pan on a rack to cool for 10 minutes. Tip the bread out of the pan onto a platter to cool completely.

Per 1-ounce serving: 86 calories, 2.1 G Protein, 3.6 G Fat, 11.9 G Carbohydrates, 0.9 G Saturated Fatty Acids, 17.7 MG Cholesterol, 77.6 MG Sodium, 1.3 G Total Dietary Fiber

Audobon Nature Center

Tips of the bullrush from the nature trail.

On Saturday mom and I went for a walk over to the local nature center. I have been waiting for her to come visit to check it out and, though small, it was lots of fun. On our walk over from my house we saw a baby grebe on the road and we also came across a few men fishing in the lagoon.

At the nature center we saw many different birds and also learned a little bit about the white pelicans that come to Carlsbad during the winter. After looking around the nature center we took a short walk down the nature trail which took us through the bullrushes and towards the lagoon. It was a little too hot to stay for too long but it was still lots of fun.


Beginning of the Nature Trail down by the lagoon

Fungus growing on a tree trunk.

Sycamore Tree

Cuckoo Spit

I'm so smart!

Lately I've been doing some job searching online. The problem is that every time I try to open a pdf file, Mozilla seems to stop. It won't load, it won't close, it won't do anything. So after a little research on the Internet I found a solution. And now it works perfectly!

I guess this means no more yelling at the computer when Mozilla crashes and I'm left losing all the tabs that I had open with different job related items. As for the job search . . . it goes on.

Farmer's Market

Every Saturday and Wednesday from 1-5 there is a farmer's market here in Carlsbad. Recently I have found myself only making it to the Wednesday market. Partly because I originally thought the market was weds and sun, and partly because there are people to spend time with on the weekends instead of wandering around the market.

Some of my favorite items to purchase at the market are zucchini, avocados, potatoes, corn, and prickly pear. If you haven't tried a prickly pear I highly suggest it the next time you are at your local farmer's market. They taste a little like guava and a little like a mix between a pear and a banana. They have seeds like a pomegranate inside the flesh which you can just swallow.

The other highlight of our new place are the grapes and blackberries growing in the back. I'm not exactly sure what to do with the grapes as they are very small, sweet flesh, sour skin and have little seeds inside. With the blackberries I want to try to take a cutting and see if I can grow them on the front porch. That way they would get more sun and would turn from red to black and probably be more sweet.


Lastly in the front of our house we have a grapefruit tree. Sadly they are not ruby red grapefruits but rather large yellow ones. We pulled one off the tree the other day to try it and despite the super thick rind, the grapefruit inside was pretty tasty. A little sour to eat the whole thing but probably good for making grapefruit juice.

Sunset

Regardless of the time of day, there is always someone else on the beach.

I usually forget my camera when we go for our evening beach walks but lucky for us, this has been a nightly occurrence.

I love that not only does the sunset reflect in the water, but it also reflects off the sand as the waves crash in and out.

Although not a beach view, the view of the sunset from our deck is still pretty impressive.