Breakfast: Staying at Dave’s house is like being at a Bed & Breakfast. He had baked a Sourdough bread that he served with Inna Jam, made with apricots grown locally in nearby Gilroy.
Then he showed us all of his coffee-related paraphernalia and toys. I am not a coffee drinker but after hearing about Dave’s coffee passion, from finding and choosing the beans, roasting them himself at home I decided to try a cup. This is my once-a-year-day coffee. Gary is off caffeine and he indulged with a decaffeinated coffee. Dave had Soy Milk and Almond Milk for his vegan guests.
After breakfast we went for a walk. After passing some wetlands we ended up near Target and decided to stop in to pick up maple syrup. Dave wanted to make pancakes for breakfast tomorrow. After a romp in the store we continued our walk and stopped into the City of Watsonville Nature Center. It’s in a trailer off a trail near the shopping complex. I was playing with the display that demonstrated how much water is saved with a low flow shower head. I was mumbling to myself about how one could really save water and Cindy, who worked there heard me. She quickly brought out a display that she often uses, especially with teens, showing how much water is used to make a hamburger. I was thrilled to discover this important bit of activism. If you are ever near Watsonville, visit the Nature Center. They have special events and offer a free, bilingual nature walk every Sunday at 1:30 p.m where you can explore the award-winning trails through the rich wetland habitat.
Lunch: After our walk I went hunting in Dave’s kitchen and put together a lunch, with Gary’s help. We made some Hummus, Corn Cakes (with green onions), Celery, Carrots, Spinach Salad and Sourdough Bread.
We headed back to Carmel since we all love it there. On the way we stopped at the Whole Enchilada Market Place. I mentioned how expensive Avocados are these days and Dave thought they might have some for a reasonable price. They didn’t, so we continued on to Carmel for some wine tasting at Paseo San Carlos Courtyard. We sampled Blair Wines and Shale Canyon Wines.
Dinner: The plan for dinner was Pesto. Dave had a big planter on his patio bursting with Basil leaves. We stopped at a Trader Joe’s to pick up Pine Nuts and a few other items. I was craving bitter Greens, like Broccoli Rabe but there wasn’t any. Gary suggested Arugula so we grabbed a bag. Back at the house, I assigned the pesto-making task to my Italian boy. Dave had a very large Shallot which I thought would be wonderful sautéed with the Arugula. Gary took on that task as well. Dave put up the water for the pasta and opened a bottle of Pinot Noir he had been saving for a special occasion. The Pesto was perfection!
The Arugula was spectacular!
