Doesn’t eveyone just love the idea of a Wine Country picnic?  You and your sweetheart tucked  in amid the vineyards and the rolling hills of Sonoma Wine Country, or out on the Sonoma Coast, toasting your everlasting love with Russian River Valley sparkling wine (or maybe pinot noir), nibbling bites of locally made Laura Chenel cabecou cheese, hand-crafted salumi and Farmhouse cured olives…  Well I do.   Throw in some lovely Russian River Valley spring or summer weather and nothing to do for the rest of the afternoon and I don’t think there’s much that can beat it.

For some time now, I’ve been asking our fabulous team of chefs to come up with the “Perfect Wine Country Picnic”.  Which, now that I look back, is sort of a lot of pressure.  Not just the “Ok” or “Fine Wine Country Picnic”, but perfect.  Definitive.  A brown tote bag filled with a lovely selection of delectable foods, all prepared by us or our friends.   And, easy to prepare, maintain, tote and enjoy.  So, ok, a little pressure.

We’ll they’ve finally pulled it together.  We offered our first picnics to guests about two weeks ago.  And, the feedback’s been worth the wait.  I’ve even packed one off to the beach myself- and loved it!  The picnic changes with the whims of the chef, but always includes salumi, olives, local cheese, house-made hummus or something similar, fresh greens and a vinaigrette, seasonal fruit from our ranch or a neighbor, flatbread and the most amazing desserts from Patti (right now it’s a decadent chocolate brownie).  We offer some great wines that you can purchase to take along, or, if you’ll be picnicking at a winery, pick up wine there.

Copain Winery

Our concierge team is equipped with a list of our very favorite spots.  From Copain Winery, up on a hill overlooking the Russian River Valley, to Quivira Winery, deep in Dry Creek Valley, where you can picnic in the biodynamic vegetable garden overlooking their vineyards, to the Armstrong Redwood Forest

Armstrong Woods, Redwood Forest

or, my favorite, out on the Sonoma Coast… we can send you in a million great directions.  Oh, last Monday, we packed up and headed down to Marshall to Hog Island Oyster Company where we added briny, fresh sweet water oysters to the mix. 

Oysters at Hog Island

 (If you visit their website, download their clam chowder recipe.  I brought home 5# of clams and made their chowder with carrots and celery from my garden….So crazy good!  But that’s another post…) 

Summer’s heating up, the produce coming in from our farm is incredible, the winery gardens are in full bloom or full swing, and, doesn’t a picnic just evoke magical images of timeless, laid back, romance and good old fashioned fun? 

I’d love to know some of your favorite picnic ideas and locations- around here, where you are now, or around the world. 

My own naivete continues to amaze me.  I could be talking about any number of weird little things that come up during the course of a day- but, in this instance, I’m talking about a little conversation my brother and I had, sitting in this very cramped, little office, about a year ago.  It went something like this, “Cath, this construction project is really a lot of work”.  “True, Joe, but once the building’s up and we have all of the interior work done, then we can really relax for a while.”  “Yeah, wow, what are we going to do with all of our time??”  “Well, Joe, I hadn’t thought about that.  Probably take some vacations?  And I’ll have time to blog all the time!”…

Needless to say, once we finished building the building and expanding the property, we had to learn how to run the thing.  And, while it’s been challenging in a number of ways, to go from a tidy little ten room country inn to what really amounts to a small hotel, in a recession to boot,  I don’t think we’d change a thing. 

So, this is a long way of saying that I really thought I’d have more time to write blog entries.  But, I spend all of my time working on sales, marketing and public relations programs, plus all of the wonderful fun day-to-day stuff that still goes on everyday.  Joe and I have brought on some amazing, incredibly talented consultants to help us brand and position Farmhouse, and now we have a lot of meetings.  But, boy, have we learned a lot.  And it has actually been so much fun!

But, here it is, a super-rainy day.  Joe’s gone on an actual vacation (Nevada to take the kids to see the in-laws, but I’m calling it a vacation…)  My meetings are done for the day.  The river is rising, and I’m drinking a fabulous cup of cocoa and thinking about how lucky I am. 

Here’s the recipe for the cocoa and marshmallows- in case you’re in the mood for something cozy.  (This is a great rainy day project with kids, too).

Cocoa Mix

2 cups powdered sugar
1 cup cocoa (we use Valhrona)
2 1/2 cups powdered milk
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 pinch cayenne pepper, or more to taste
Homemade marshmallows
Hot water or millk
Preparation:

Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl and incorporate evenly. In a small pot, heat 4 to 6 cups of water.Fill your mug half full with the mixture and pour in hot water or milk. Stir to combine. Add marshmallows to taste. Seal the rest in an airtight container, keeps indefinitely in the pantry.

Vanilla or Peppermint Marshmallows       
 
3 envelopes of unflavored gelatin ·        
1/2 cup cold water ·        
2 cups granulated sugar ·        
2/3 cups corn syrup ·        
1/4 cup water ·        
1/4 teaspoon salt ·        
1 Tablespoon pure vanilla or peppermint extract ·        
Confectioners’ sugar for dredging
Preparation:
In the bowl of an electric mixer, sprinkle gelatin over 1/2 cup cold water. Soak for 10 minutes.
Combine sugar, corn syrup, and 1/4 cup water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil and boil hard for 1 minute. Pour boiling syrup into gelatin and mix at high speed. Add the salt and beat for 12 minutes. Add extract and incorporate into mixture.
 Scrape into a 9 x 9-inch pan lined with oiled plastic wrap and spread evenly.
(Note: Lightly oil hands and spatula or bowl scraper).
After pouring marshmallow mixture into the pan, take another piece of plastic wrap and press mixture into the pan.
Let mixture sit for a few hours. Remove from pan, dredge the marshmallow slab with confectioners’ sugar and cut into 12 equal pieces with scissors (the best tool for the job) or a chef’s knife. Dredge each piece of marshmallow in confectioners’ sugar.

Hope you enjoy it.  I sure am.

So, back in January, Rod and I decided the kids were big enough, and the economy was getting tight enough that we’d finally invest in that sexiest-of-all-vehicles, the Fleetwood  tent trailer.  Yes, the one your folks, or your neighbors, or that somewhat geeky person that you knew had.  Or maybe someone really cool, but my associations are pretty geeky. 

There she is in all her camping glory!

So, on a really dismal, pouring-down-rain-day (because when I decide it’s time, it’s time, rain or not) we loaded up the kids (Helen in a black cat suit, tail, ears and all) and trekked down to our local seller of RVs.  And lo and behold, there on the lot, all popped out and splendid in it’s fabulous navy blue and burgundy trim with its oh so homey curtains and linoleum, was our soon-to-be home away from home. 

Do you think we were aspiring to great adventures in Yosemite or the Grand Canyon?  Treks down into Monterey or up into Eureka?  Nope, we just wanted to camp at the coast.  And that’s all we ever do.  Ten or more times now since January.  Down to Doran Beach, up to Wright’s Beach.  Our friends (and especially my brother Joe, who also has a tent trailer, was our inspiration, and travels all over the greater American West with it) have come to find our very limited selection of destinations a little boring.   Maybe even a little weird.

The view from our campsite.

But not us.  We love it.  This past weekend, we were out at Wright’s Beach. Spot number nine.  Eight has better views of the insanely dangerous surf and astronomically huge waves- and occasional whales- but nine is cozy, tucked in and has its own little fairy forest where the kids explore and play endlessly.

The weather, this past weekend, was epic.  The first night, Friday, while we were all fast asleep in what has become a really beloved little home, Sonoma County and beyond was attacked by a totally out of character September lightening and thunder storm.  We awoke to a pattering of soft rain and a lightening show, over the ocean, that was beyond cool.  It lasted for hours, and we sat around the revived camp fire, all bundled in our foul weather gear, sipping wine and feeling like we were a million miles from Wine County in late summer. 

By morning, the sun was out, everything was dry-ish and the lightening from the night before seemed like a dream.  Except for the fact that all of our neighbors couldn’t stop talking about it.  Wright’s Beach is like that.  It’s set up like a little neighborhood.  And as often as not, all of the kids form an instant pack and all of the grown-ups meet on the beach at some point, and it gets very friendly.  Which we usually like.

Rocco flying a kite with our neighbor, Mike.

Yes, and breakfast and lunch too!  We’re sold, we’re excited, we’re totally turned on.  How did this come about, you might ask.  Well, slowly actually.  We’ve been reading about the health benefits of various seaweeds and sea vegetables- they’re really high in trace minerals and vitamins, and they’re reputed to have wonderful, medicinal qualities.  But, we haven’t been able to commit to integrating it into our daily routines.  Until this past weekend.

In an effort to regroup and come down from a really crazy summer/year, Rod and I rented a little house up at Sea Ranch for a week. 

The view from our house

Sea Ranch is one of our absolute favorite spots in the world.  Just an hour away from Forestville, but a whole world away from our day to day.  Seven days of nothing but rugged coastline and, beautiful beaches, totally isolated, but surrounded by a really exciting, eclectic community.  When things get crazy, we pack and head up the coast.  We eat, we drink and we just hang out together.  And inevitably, we encounter something new and exciting that comes home with us.  No, not the snake. 

Helen and her "beach pet" a small, friendly snake

At the Gualala Farmer’s Market last Saturday, we were pleasantly surprised to find a small but thriving community of

Biodynamic for 32 years.

biodynamic and just plain-old farmers, beekeepers and environmentalists all working together and producing/creating a diverse and beautiful collection of crafts and edibles.  Of course we picked up loads of dry farmed tomatoes, lacey lettuces and absolutely gorgeous coastal berries and some fantastic pickles. 

Wild halibut tacos with local tomato salsa, shell beans and, of couse, kombu!

 But, what really caught our attention, were two different stalls.  One with beautifully crafted containers of salt and what looked like a seasoning mix.  And one with bags and bags of dried seaweed and vegetables piled in big baskets. 

The first turned out to be a new venture, The Mendocino Sea Salt Company,

Bob and Lora La Mar, and their bounty

started by Bob and Lora La Mar when fishery closures forced their commercial fishing business to close its doors.  Rather than dry up and move away, they discovered another sea harvest.  Salt!  Bob takes the boat out into deep areas off the Mendocino and Sonoma Coasts and gathers water.  He brings it ashore and through a painstaking and meticulous process, crystalizes the salt, extracts it and packages it for sale.  Lora, who’s a passionate cook, has created a blend, using locally harvested seaweeds, ground and blended with the salt.  At first taste we were hooked.  We picked up some salt and some of the blend, which they call Seasoning Sand, and we’ve been using it on everything. It’s local, it’s amazing and it’s healthy!  They’re bringing in samples.  I”m hoping to start using it in the restaurant.

The other stall housed Gualala Seaweed Products.  Founded by the self-proclaimed, and I think actually Renaissance woman, Donna Bishop, they sell all kinds of edible seaweed and seaweed products.  Donna does all of the harvesting, drying and processing herself.  We picked up some of her Kombu- which is particularly great added to beans, while they’re cooking, stews and soups. 

If you haven’t tuned into seaweed yet, look into it.  It doesn’t just taste good, it’s easy to use, really versatile, and a super-powerhouse.  Best of all, for me anyway, now we can get it locally!

Helen and Rocco having a tong battle. Things get interesting when we're just hanging out...

I know, that sounds really cute.  Gotta get my Farmer’s Market fix?  Or what?  I go postal for want of fresh picked peas?  I go into fits from the absence of perfectly ripe heirloom tomatoes perched, all fragrant and enticing, on my kitchen counter?  Well yes.  Actually.  I realize that that’s just kind of precious.  I live in Wine Country, it’s all about the “lifestyle”, here, right?  So we put on our big straw hats, grab our chic, but totally organic market baskets, and we head to the market to see and be seen by other fabulous Wine Country-lifestyle-types, while we purchase perfectly peeled, dewy produce and feel so good about “doing the right thing”.  Isn’t is just so green to be addicted to the Farmer’s market? 

Actually, that’s not it at all.  Eating fresh, seasonal food, grown or made by people you know and like, is addictive.  Not gotta have my Twinkie addictive, but it becomes a sort of food for your soul as much as anything.  Plus, our Farmer’s Market is just so much fun!   We go to Sebastopol and Occidental.  Western Sonoma County.  The Green Capital of America.  More kids per capita than any other towns anywhere.  Barely even Wine Country at all.  Not to say that Wine Country doesn’t have it’s share of Farmer’s Markets that are more, say, glamorous.  But they’re not over here in West County.

Sunday morning is all about the market.  We roll out of bed, load up the kids and the stroller, grab coffee and a donut at My Friend Joe’s (yes, an actual donut.  Helen likes the ones with sprinkles,

Pink sprinkles for Helen thank you very much

Rod goes for Old Fashioned and Rocco will take anything we give him.  For me, it’s those greasy double-fried apple fritter things.  I know it’s gross, but it’s only once a week… And, we’re on the way to Nutrition Nirvana…) and head for Sebastopol. 

The Farmer’s Markets are a weekly festival.  Music, food, crafts and incredible produce grown by dynamic farmers.  We load Rocco into the stroller/shopping cart  (the super-grubby, falling apart thing that used to be Helen’s) and away we go. 

First stop (always, can’t be missed or skipped) Hector’s stand, for honey sticks.  $.25 each.  Everyone gets two.  Helen is in charge of choosing flavors and passing out.  We also get spring garlic, sweet onions and lemon cucumbers from Hector. 

That's Hector

Next, once the kids are good and sticky, we make our way all the way to the end of the market.  Got to see who’s got what.  And it gives the kids a chance to “check out the scene”. 

While we sort of “troll” the market, we decide the menu for the week.  We have to be strategic- because we’re committed to eating everything we buy.  Before next Sunday.  Beautiful squash blossoms?  Great, what are they going into?  And when?  

This week’s Sunday dinner ended up being our favorite salad of yellow wax beans (the ones tinged with green that are unbearably fresh and sweet tasting) and grilled fresh, wild Copper River salmon with a sorrel aioli. 

Full Circle Breads

The salad is one we live on in the summer.  My grandmother made it religiously every Sunday for my uncle. When she had beans in the garden, anyway.  We called it “Cuncia”.  I’m not sure where it got the name, but it’s basically tender green beans with sweet onions, olive oil and red wine vinegar.  The trick it tossing the beans with the oil and vinegar and salt when they’re still warm.  They get the most amazing flavor.  In my family you could add canned tuna- the really good Italian stuff packed in oil, you could add potatoes, starchy ones, so the potatoes break up and coat the beans, pesto (that’s from my great grandmother, who put pesto on everything), and that’s it.  End of the line.  Can’t add anything else.  Well, we do.  Tomatoes, olives, cucumber, you name it, it all works and is really good. 

The sorrel aioli or mayonnaise is also a basic at our house.  Pretty much every Sunday Rod makes some form of aioli from whatever herbs we find: nettles, sorrel and basil are standard for us with our eggs and some McEvoy olive oil.  We smear it on everything all week. 

Jill from Crescent Moon Farm

Anyway, back at the market… We make our stops at Crescent Moon for all of our hot fresh and dried ground chili peppers (we use a lot of peppers) and heirloom shelling beans, Laguna Farm for lettuces and the sweetest carrots you’ve ever had-their corn is fantastic too.

Then we head over to see Mateoat his Yucatan Tamale cart for “Farmer’s Market Huevos Rancheros”.  Fresh duck eggs, housemade tortillas, fresh salsa, peppers from Cresent Moon.  You get the picture.  And an agua fresca- this week was peach and thyme. 

We eat while the kids dance in the fountain with the other jillion half naked, tribal toddlers and pop in for occasional bites and slurps.  There’s always live music.  Sometimes its great, sometimes it’s not, but the kids always love it, and actually we do too.   The Farmer’s Market, like the seasons themselves only lasts a short while.  We anticipate its arrival, we mourn its departure and we sure make the most of  it while it’s here.