The long weekend

It was another great weekend for Sherry and I.  It actually started Thursday night with dinner at one of our favorite places, Riviera Ristorante.  Giampaolo and crew were up to their usual high standards and he was even able to sit and chat with us for a bit.  I choose the pasta special of the evening while Sherry had the carbonara.  We left the wine selection up to Giampaolo and settle in for a lovely dinner.

Friday started in an unusual way for me.  I had taken Friday off to participate in a ride that afternoon so I slept in and didn’t get up until almost 7:00 (I usually get up at 5:00).  There is something so civilized about waking up gently to the sound of birds singing and not being jarred awake by some obnoxious alarm.    

After a little early morning relaxing, we ate breakfast at Viola  Pastry Boutique & Café followed by a few errands.  The rest of the day was uneventful in a relaxing way.  I did my ride while Sherry decorated our tree and home for the holidays.  For dinner, it was pizza and stand-up comedy specials on TV. 

Saturday was a beautiful, but chilly, day in the Sonoma Wine Country.  After another ride with friends, Sherry and I joined our neighbors, Bob and Karin, to go see the play Hello Dolly.  Surprisingly, none of us have seen either the play or the movie and I didn’t even know the storyline.  The play was performed at the Roustabout Theater, which is a local theater group that supports the developing talent of kids 11-20.  The show was excellent and there was a consensus among us that these kids are already very talented.

After the play, it was off to another favorite of ours, Kenwood Restaurant.  As soon as we were seated Bob brought out a 1964 Barolo to be opened and decanted.  When our server started to open the bottle she asked, “What year is this?”  Bob simply replied, “It’s older then you!”  So with our magnificent Barolo, we ate our way through a collection of tomato soup, foie gras, crab cakes, cassolet, beef, frites and chocolate truffles.  It was a fantastic evening of good food, great wine and even better company. 

Sunday started with homemade waffles.  About a year ago we purchased the Waring Pro® Belgian Waffle Maker and it is fantastic.  If you are a fan of homemade waffles this is your machine.  It is very easy to use and clean.  It is also nearly foolproof in producing great waffles.  For a real treat, host a Sunday brunch, ideally outside, and make waffles “a table”.

Since Sunday’s weather was not that conducive to riding we did a little holiday shopping.  We also stopped by Luther Burbank Home and Gardens to enjoy the festive decorations and period dress of the late 1800’s.  This is one of those things you say you are going to do but never get around to.  I have lived in Santa Rosa for over 20 years, Sherry was born here, and it was the first time we visited this historical site.

As the cold, wet weather settled in so did we.  We watched football and relaxed.  In the afternoon, we drank eggnog and brandy just to be sure we stayed warm.  As I was heating the eggnog on the stove, you cannot use a microwave for this, it reminded me of making pudding.  Of course that made me want pudding.  Butterscotch pudding to be exact.

So I decide to make butterscotch pudding from scratch.  After a few recipe searches on the internet I decide to use the recipe of David Lebovitz, who is currently a pastry chef in Paris.  After collecting all the ingredients, I start cooking and quickly discovered that pudding is one of those recipes that when you read it you think, “Oh, that’s not so hard.”  But the timing is fairly tricky.  In the end, it tasted fine but was a little lumpy.  Still, it was a great way to spend 40 minutes in the kitchen on a chilly, rainy Sunday afternoon.

Next weekend it looks like it will be raining so who knows what culinary adventures are in store.

Until then . . .

Au revoir!