Wine Tasting 101

we

recently

had family

visiting

from 

Scotland

...via South America

as

they

are

in the

throws

of

their

Round the World Adventure

(Ram and Katie at Claiborne and Churchill Winery)

we thought

that

taking

Katie and Ram

wine tasting

   in the

      Edna Valley

         would really

              help them get a

                 "taste"

                     of what the 

                          Central Coast

                               is known for

First Stop   Baileyana Winery

Baileyana Winery

and

Niven Family Wines

Tasting Room

is

housed

within the 

1909

Independence School House

It has

local

color and history

and

is the

perfect

spot

for a picnic

        a bocci ball throwdown

             or just to taste some delicious Niven Family wines

There 

are

methods

to

wine tasting...

the simplest:

1.  Swirl the wine in the glass 

2.  Stick your nose in the glass

                                and breathe in the nuances of the wine    (what do you smell?)

3.  Take a sip and let the wine fill your mouth

4.  Taste the nuances  (does the wine taste like it smelled? or are there different flavors?)

5.  Enjoy!

      

Baileyana and Niven Family Wines

   have many

       different varietals and blends

              to enjoy        

       

and the surroundings are truly breathtaking

We

continued

on 

Orcutt Road

inhaling

the beauty

of

Spring

and the vines

with

their new

growth

we

next stopped at

Claiborne and Churchill Winery

            where we revelled in

                  their Alsacian style wines:

                        Dry Gewurtztraminer

                         Dry and Semi dry Riesling

                            and their Pinot Noir

Katie and Ram

caught on

quickly

to the

methodology

of 

wine tasting....and YES!  enjoyed it quite a bit!!

There

are

over

thirty wineries

close

to

San Luis Obispo

all are unique    all are charming  and all have stellar wines

We have all sorts

of maps

and 

wine information

at Petit Soleil

and

we would

love

to help

you

with you

own

Wine Tasting 101

Kudos to SLO

I

always

knew

San Luis Obispo County

was

a 

special

place

                   clean air

         no traffic

           fabulous restaurants

stellar world-renowned wineries

outrageous hiking

biking

and running

trails

                      beaches

and

                          mountains

history

great shops

and the nicest peeps

hey!

I am a bit

prejudiced..

but

I

 am not the only

one

that

feels this way

about 

SLO County!!!!

look what others think:

Indulge in San Luis Obispo County... the news has! San Luis Obispo County Ranked #4 on Lonely Planet’s Top 10 Places to Visit in 2014 Paso Robles Wine Country – Wine Region of the Year by Wine Enthusiast Sunset Magazine names Avila Beach among the top 25 Winter Wonderland Places to Visit San Luis Obispo’s Higuera Street Named Among America’s Best Main Street’s by Fodor’s Travel Guide  The Guardian, a UK publication – Names Paso Robles #15 Holiday Hotspot in the World for 2014 Active.com named the SLO Marathon on the Top 14 marathons to do in 2014 - SLO Marathon is #5  Amgen is Coming to Town – A Finish in Cambria and A Start in Pismo Beach  Peter Greenberg, Travel Correspondent for CBS TV features San Luis Obispo County on Hot Places to Hit in 2014 Come SLO down!

      

                                 

Thank you, Jo Packham!

When

I 

first

started my

blog

I admitted

to

being

hopelessly

addicted 

to

magazines

...see here

I

have

been getting

better

       really...

well..

a little better

there

are

a few

magazines

though

that

I am unable

to walk

past

or

not

order

on

Amazon

Where Women Create

Where Women Cook

Where Women Create - business

publications

created

by

Jo Packham

and

I still

have

each

and every

magazine

here a just a few

and

each and every 

magazine

has 

 continued

to

inspire

me

I 

always 

love

Jo's

From My Kitchen Table

and

I

inhale

the

 stories

about

all the

passionate

artists

cooks

bakers

crafters

designers

and

business folk

that

the 

publications 

highlight and feature

Thanks

to

Judy Watkins

and 

Remnants of the Past

I

got

to meet

Jo Packham

and

she

stayed

with us

at

Petit Soleil

for the

Remnants of the Past weekend

that's Jo at Petit!!!!

I mean..

to me

Jo Packham

is a

ROCK STAR!

Needless

to

say

I was beyond 

flattered

when

she

asked

us

about

featuring

Petit Soleil

in

Where Women Create- Business

as

a

husband and wife team

in

 business

awesome, right?

Thank you

Jo Packham

for

recognizing

our

passion

Petit Soleil

AND

thank you

Jenny Malott

for

your

gorgeous 

photography....

       and endless support

to 

read

about

the 

genesis

of 

Petit

and the

ins

outs 

craziness

and

fun

of running a

bed and breakfast

Where Women Create - Business  Jan 2014

A Really REALLY Good Cookie - continued……….

My

Aunt Martha

was

so

right-on

with

her

Pearl of Wisdom

ONLY

yes, only

eat a 

really really good cookie

here

(courtesy of Isabel)

is

a

Really Really Good Cookie

remember

the 

Speculaas

blog?

(it is highlighted for easy referral)

I

baked

these 
Speculaas Nutella Cookies

as

a

birthday treat

for an

old

(not OLD…..  but old)

family 

friend

that was 

born in

the Netherlands

you 
mix up
Speculaas
with
butter sugars flour….
then
s w i r l
in
Nutella

then roll

the

dough

into

balls

make a criss cross

with

the

tine

of a 

fork

bake

and

indulge

crispy

on the outside

and

perfectly 

chewy

in the inside

Here's

the

recipe:

Izzy's Speculaas Nutella Cookies

1/2 c. Speculaas spread

1/2 c. softened butter

1/2 c. sugar

1/2 c. brown sugar

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla

1 1/4 c. flour

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 c. Nutella

375 degree oven

In a mixer (or with a mixer, if you like the hand kind better) combine Speculaas

and butter until well combined and pale in color

Beat in sugars, egg and vanilla.  Set aside.

In a separate bowl, whisk flour, baking powder and soda and mix into Speculaas batter until just combined.

Swirl Nutella into dough.

Form into walnut sized balls and criss cross with the tines of a fork

Bake about 12 minutes until a teeny bit brown around edges.
Cool on a baking rack (if you can…  …)

This would be an amazing Christmas Cookie !!

Speculoos

Speculoos

or

Speculaas

is a

Dutch 

or

Flemmish

Cookie Butter

What is a cookie butter?

Isabel,

our 

Petit Soleil

Belgium waffle expert,

tried

desperately

to explain

"cookie butter"

to 

me and Ashley

….."it is really popular in Belgium and the Netherlands.  It looks like peanut butter, but like Nutella, but not chocolate, with cookies in it - like gingerbread"

uh?  what?

        the next day,

             Isabel brought me Speculoos

                      from Trader Joes

                                and she wrote down three recipes 

                                          for me to try

this

is

SPECULOOS

Speculoos

does

look like

peanut butter

and it

does

taste a

bit

like

gingerbread

and

the

recipe

bakes

up

into

a 

beautiful

light

fragrant

banana bread

a bit spicy

and

so

delicious

and

like Nutella,

Speculoos

would be delicious

spread

on toast

or graham cookies

or apple slices

IZZY'S SPECULOOS BANANA BREAD

3 ripe bananas

1/2 c. plain Greek yogurt

1/2 c. Speculoos

3 TBS. melted butter

2 eggs

1/2 c. sugar

1 3/4 c. flour

3/4 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

350 degrees - I loaf pan, or 3 mini loaf pans, greased (or Pam'd)

In the bowl if a mixer, combine first 5 ingredients until creamy.  Set aside.

In another bowl, mix together sugar, flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon

Slowly pour dry ingredients into wet ingredients and mix until batter forms.

Bake one hour for large loaf and 45 minutes for mini loaves

Sadly for Petit Soleil

the love for

Belgium

(and her grandpa)

has 

called

Izzy
away

…

we hope she 

will

return

to Petit

when 

she

gets back

to

Cal Poly

Thank you

Izzy

for

introducing

us

to 

Speculoos 


and for all 
the 
extra
little
special
things
you did 
for
 Petit Soleil


we will miss you!

Picking Daisies at Petit

Time

to rid

Petit Soleil

of

those

dastardly

paper napkins

of

yesteryear

and

time

to 

GO GREEN!

Picking Daisies

napkins

are

made with 

love

they

are

F U n

happy

colorful

easy to care for

and

now

Picking Daisies

napkins

are

a

beautiful

new

addition

to

the 

sun filled

dining room

and 

breakfast

tables

at

Petit Soleil

Come by

Petit

and see

how

the

colorful

mismatched

fabric napkins

have

created

such

whimsy

and

cheer

or

go by

Picking Daisies

and

choose

your

own

whimsical

and cheery

napkins

to share

with

family

and friends

Cilantro, Food Styling (or lack of) and a Recipe

An

abundanza

of 

cilantro

cries out

for

Cilantro Pesto!

I harvested

about

2 cups

(and a few basil leaves)

a

and 

tossed it

my food processor

with

1 c. walnuts

zest and juice 

of 

1 lemon

 a

seeded 

jalapeño

and salt

the

food processor 

whirled

for about

1 minute

and 

I 

poured

 in

3 TBS. of water

and 

1/4 c. garlic flavored olive oil

this

pesto

rocks!

a bit of heat

 from the jalapeño

freshness 

from the cilantro

and lemon

(spread it on ciabatta with brie and spinach and press in a panini press)

OOOOoooo, baby

so good!

…for some killer salmon

I had

a leek

a couple 

carrots

and

a celery stalk

that 

called out

for a quick sauté

I

topped

the sauté with

boneless

skinless

salmon filets

drizzled

maybe

1/4 c. dry rose

over the salmon

covered

the pan

turned the heat to

low 

it cooked 

the salmon for

about 20 minutes

~

and then topped

each piece 

of fish

with a dollop

of 

pesto

If

I

was a

food stylist

or

a photographer

I could have made

this look

as 

delicious

as it tasted

alas…….

trust me!
delicious!!!

Salmon

with

Cilantro Walnut Pesto

2 c. cilantro (a few basil leaves or tarragon can be fun additions)

1 c. walnuts

1 lemon - juice and zest

1 jalapeno - seeded

1 tsp. salt

1/4 garlic flavored olive oil (or your favorite olive oil)

3 TBS. water

Combine the first 5 ingredients in food processor and process for about 1 minute  - With motor continuing to run add water and olive oil through the feeder tube.  Voila!

Salmon

1 leek, cleaned and sliced

1 carrot, chopped

1 stalk celery, sliced

1 TBS. olive oil   (I used Lemon infused)

2-3 salmon filets, boned and with or without skin

1/4 c. dry white or rose wine 

1 c. of same wine to enjoy while the fish cooks

Saute the veggies in the olive oil for about 4-5 minutes (they still need to have a bit of crunch). Season the salmon filets and lay on top of veggies.  Add the wine, cover your pan and cook over low heat for about 20 minutes (if your fish is very thin you might want to only cook fish for 10-15 minutes).

Top salmon with a good sized dollop of pesto.

The Beautiful Bounty of the Central Coast

Farmers' Markets

anytime

anywhere

are

such

fun

places to visit

farm to table

salsa

flowers

radishes

onions

glorious

beets

strawberries

red

ripe

and oh, so sweet

we are

SO lucky

to have

local

seasonal

produce delivered

to Petit Soleil

every two

weeks in great big boxes

from

SLOVeg

this weekend on Petit's

morning fruit tray

are

sweet local kiwis, strawberries and

grapefruit

we'll make

amazing

Brussels Sprouts Quiche

Broccoli and Bacon Strata

Carrot Muffins

and tonight

at

our house

for dinner

Salmon with Sauteed Kale

We so

appreciate

all the local

organic

farmers

that work so hard

to

bring us

such

gorgeous and delicious

produce

and thank you,

SLOVEG

for bringing it to

Petit Soleil

p.s.

check out

SLOveg's website

for

delicious

recipes

and ideas

on

how to prepare

the seasonal produce