objects in my grandmothers house

Some treasures I found while in my grandmother's house.

All photos by me.

my grandmothers house

My grandmothers house is in the process of being sold. Since this would most likely be my last visit, I decided to take some photos.

All photos by me.

kauai cookoff 2011

I'm proud to say that I come from a family who enjoys cooking, drinking and most of all, competing. For our last family vacation we engaged in a fierce cooking contest, and our trip to Kauai was no different. Not wanting to give up our reigning title, Jeff and I pulled out all the stops when it was our night to compete. Cooking for fourteen people is no easy feat, so we started out day early with a trip to the Hanalai farmers market and fish market.

Cocktails and hors d'oeuvres were served on the patio: a Hemingway daiquiri and an individual serving of cucumber mint soup (above). The soup was served with a macadamia nut gremolata, tobiko and a slice of watermelon radish. 

After the soup, everyone came inside for the pasta course, a fettuccine with fresh tomato sauce, scallops and shrimp (we used a simpler variation of this recipe). We served this and our main course with a William Fevre Chablis.

For our main course we roasted Hebi (a local white fish) and served it on wilted escarole (sorry for the poor photo). We had made an avocado-mango salsa to go on top but forgot to serve it (whatevs - it was good for breakfast the next day!).

Our dessert was a roasted pineapple crostata (recipe curtesy of Brooks Hadley, pastry chef at Del Posto) served with vanilla ice cream.

The other teams had strong showing as well (see their meals here), but there can only be one winner....

Champs! Take that family!!

hawaii anniversary

Jeff and I were lucky enough to be in Hawaii to celebrate our fourth anniversary. We took a little break from the family to have lunch at the Dolphin restaurant:

 Followed by cocktails and a view at the St. Regis Princeville:

 We completed the afternoon with shaved ice (served with ice cream on the bottom - delicious!):

Thanks to Uncle Bob for the drawing! All photos by me.

hanakapi'ai beach/falls

The hike to Hanakapi'ai Falls was one of the most difficult I've ever done. Good thing it was so lovely (and smelled like passion fruit!). More photos here.

All photos by me.

highlights from hawaii

After my annual houseboating trip, fourteen members of my immediate and extended family met up in Kauai. We spent a week swimming, snorkeling, hiking, cooking and drinking. What more could you ask for?!

More photos here.
All photos by me.

shasta lake

Some of my favorite images from this years trip to Lake Shasta. More images here.

Also, images from 2008, 2009 and 2010.

aloha

Because I am the luckiest girl ever, I'm taking this week off for a much appreciated vacation. See you soon!
Photo by me.

i'm on a boat

Another year, another houseboating trip.

the other apartment

In San Francisco, I had the pleasure of staying at what must be the perfect studio apartment.

 

Thanks E!

socal|nocal

Left: Thursday in LA, right: Tuesday in SF

chabelita

I must have been craving Mexican food something fierce - I could not stop taking pictures of the murals at Chabelita.

Photos by me.

western heights

Right next to Harvard Heights is Western Heights, another lovely historic neighborhood.

All photos by me.

harvard heights

My friends recently bought a 1909 craftsman style home in the historic Los Angeles neighborhood of Harvard Heights. 

 All photos by me.