Emma E. Christensen: Travels

Showing posts with label Travels. Show all posts

Sunday, December 23, 2012

Seven Snaps: Christmas Eve (Almost) Edition! 12/8/12 - 12/21/12

Sweet Potato and Kale Pockets (this recipe) for airplane food on all my upcoming travels!

The Christmas tree situation in New York (1 of 3 upcoming travels) -- selling on the center median on Lafayette St!

Taken from the Apartment Therapy offices in SoHo. I never get tired of this view.

Apartment Therapy holiday party fun times!

My amazing friend Dan Delaney showing us how brisket should be done.

Brisket is serious business, folks.

New York Flips in New York!

Brooklyn Flea Market. (Attn all introverts: duck and cover)

Porchetta happening at the Brooklyn Flea!

Hipsters in their native environment

I'm pretty sure the rugelach multiplied while I was gone. I know I ate more than this.

I'm loving the new Tintypes lens on Hipstamatic. Even this misfire.

Mooney, circa 1880

I'm off to visit my folks in Minnesota this week (2 of 3 upcoming travels). Expect many snaps of wintry snowscapes. Happy holidays!

Thursday, June 14, 2012

A Weekend on Tomales Bay (Starring: Oysters!)

Apparently, when you are finishing a book, many things fall by the wayside. Like laundry. And making dinner (Burritos again!). And also your birthday. Mine was about two weeks before the book was due and other than a birthday scoop of ice cream, I didn't do much but nod a hello as the day passed by.

This is why my husband planned a secret getaway for the weekend after I turned in my manuscript, kind of a double celebration for both the book and my belated birthday. We left as soon as Scott got home from work on Friday, waited in traffic on the Golden Gate Bridge, dined at Lagunitas Brewery, but didn't get to our secret getaway spot until well after dark. We both collapsed into bed almost immediately and slept straight through to morning.

When we woke up, we were greeted with the view you see above. Scott had taken me to a little cottage called Anne's View on a bluff overlooking Tomales Bay. It also happens to be about a hopscotch court away from Hog Island Oysters, a place I'd been wanting to check out ever since moving to the Bay Area.

This was going to be a great weekend. Of that, I had zero doubt.

Should you ever finish writing a book or celebrate a birthday or do anything else of similar note, I highly recommend a weekend getaway of this caliber. We feasted the heck out of those oysters - two dozen EACH! Ka-POW! Scott fell in love with Hog Island's barbecued oysters in particular. By the third or fourth plate, we struck up a conversation with the grill guy and ended up getting a lesson in how to grill a mean batch of oysters. If you'd also like to know how to grill a mean batch of oysters, you can!

• How to Grill Oysters: A Lesson from the Hog Island Oysters Pros on The Kitchn

After the oysterfest, we basically didn't move for the rest of the day. That's Scott up there lounging on the sofa at the house and reading through the guest book. I alternated between creative vocal interpretations of the book's many entries and watching the birds outside the window. Just before we closed the curtains and opened a bottle of wine, we got this visitor below.

A super special weekend with my super special someone. Thanks, Scott. You're the bestest.

Places of Note:

• Anne's View On Tomales Bay, Marshall, CA
• Hog Island Oysters, Marshall, CA
• Lagunitas Brewery, Petaluma, CA

Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Seven Snaps: Goat Edition! 4/21/12 - 4/27/12

Baby goats! Hello!

I'm still tied up with finishing my cookbook manuscript, so I bring you seven snaps of adorable goats! These pictures were all taken at Redwood Hill Farm, a goat farm and creamery up near Sebastopol in Sonoma County. They invited a bunch of cheese-obsessed food bloggers to come chillax with the goats for the day and sample their tasty dairy products.

Maggy of Three Many Cooks and Marla of Family Fresh Cooking -- Teacup poodles are old news. Baby goats are where it's at.

Feeding time!

Shauna of Gluten-Free Girl -- Snuggle time!

Old mamas ready to get milked.

Rumors of tin-can-chewing goats are greatly exaggerated. Apparently they nibble clothes (and cameras) to learn about their environment, just like babies. Science!

And while technically this shot should go in next week's round up, this is my birthday ice cream from Bi-Rite Creamery. Rhubarb + Coconut = In my belly

I'm totally smitten with Redwood Hill's goat and the treats they make with their milk. And I do mean treats, because how could apricot-mango yogurt and teensy rounds of aged goat cheese not be considered treats? Also, the smoked cheddar had me at hello.

Redwood Hills is a small, family-owned farm tucked into a lush Sonoma valley with views of vineyards on all sides. Totally solar powered. Totally clean and cared for. Totally idyllic. By the end of the day, I was ready for the Bice family to adopt me — though with nine brothers and sisters, they probably think they have a big enough family as it is.

Their yogurts, kefirs, milks, and cheeses are distributed at Whole Foods and other stores nationwide, so definitely seek them out. They also have some open-house days coming up, so stop by for your own baby goat cuddles if you're in the neighborhood!

Redwood Hill Farm, 5480 Thomas Road, Sebastopol, CA, 95472 (707) 823-8250

I didn't actually intend for this post to turn into a love-fest for Redwood Hill Farm, but that's totally what happened. Love will not be contained. I also have lots more pictures from the farm stashed away on my grownup camera. (Including a shot of yours truly milking a goat. What what?!) Never fear, this is not the last you've seen of my new baby goat obsession.

(Information for this post was gathered during a press trip to Redwood Hill Farm. All views and opinions expressed in this post my own.)

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Good Coffee, Creatures at Monterey Bay Aquarium, and a Flying Submarine

But before jelly fish, there was coffee.

It was coffee of the Barefoot variety, modeled here by Motorcycle Cop Jana. It makes me happy to have a good coffee roaster nearby. Look out for that Jana, though.

Then there was Monterey Bay.

And its famous aquarium.

There were tiny little fishies swimming in perfect circles, and big fishies looking menacing. There were octopuses with suckers and eels poking their heads out of rocks. There was a wise old turtle that flew through the water. And there were teeny-tiny little seahorses hiding in the shrubbery.

And there were jellies. I love these guys. So weird and beautiful. And stingy. But mostly beautiful.

Hello, tunas! I would like to eat you!

But wait, what's that lurking behind you? Egads!

Craziness. Sheer craziness.

At dinner, we had one more surprise.

A flying submarine! Sadly, the lift-off controls were out of order.

If you're ever in Santa Cruz and find yourself thirsty, I recommend a stop by the Cellar Door, the restaurant of Bonny Doon Vineyards. Sit at the bar with its view of the flying submarine and order yourself the wine or beer of your choice along with the chef's pizza of the day. You won't regret it. We certainly didn't.