I got to see my itty-bitty-teeny-tiniest (okay, she's the youngest) sister, Tessa, this past weekend and my heart is so full. I feel so at home with her, so content and happy and so me. She seriously brings out all the good parts of me. She is such a beautiful creature from the inside out. Man, I wish we lived closer.
Tessa lives in San Francisco with her super awesome hubby bubby, Charlie, and their undeniably cute and witty dog Kayla.
I had never been to San Fran and was super excited to do some city crawling. We visited the beach where we let Kayla run wildly after a tennis ball, and let Anna eat her yearly quota of sand while she spied on the Golden Gate Bridge.
We rode the BART downtown and ended up in a building that was my wildest fantasy (yeah, I have really exciting fantasies). The Ferry Building was an unbelievable marketplace full of specialty food stores. SPECIALTY FOOD STORES! As in, a whole building full of stores that do not exist in or anywhere near Missoula, MT and I might move to San Francisco based on this building alone. Cheese, chocolate, a whole store dedicated to mushrooms, jams, herbs, wine, olive oil, aaahhhhhh!! I went totally crazy imagining the dishes I could create with this resource at my fingertips. And, I tried my very first macaron in this building. I know, I know, how could I never have had a macaron? But, I haven't. I fell madly in love at first bite. Oh, pistachio macaron, how I love thee! Now I'm on a mission to learn how to bake thee.
Anna also showed us what Swiper has taught her and had her first shoplifting experience:
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| Anna fell asleep while Tessa was carrying her around Sur La Table. About 10 minutes after we left the store we noticed she had this little treasure in her paw. Don't worry we took it back. |
Our cousin Laura lives in the Bay Area and has a son that's a month older than Anna. We went to their house for a delicious lunch and I finally got to meet her little guy. It was so awesome seeing them and wish we could do it more often!
Charlie is an amazing cook and I got spoiled rotten on this trip. I didn't have to lift one single finger and had food delivered directly to my face on a daily basis. What a treat!
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| Manicotti w/homemade ricotta & caesar salad w/homemade croutons |
And my personal favorite, a light and delicious lunch: brie, apple butter and arugula sandwiches. I picked Charlie's brain during the entire meal to make sure I could replicate this at home (and share the recipe with you). And guess what? The apple butter was homemade too. I am really glad my sister married this guy.
What's your favorite meal that someone else has cooked for you? I know, those of us that love to cook sometimes have a hard time letting go and allowing someone else to cook for us. But, when we do, it can open up our eyes to new flavor combinations and recipes like the one below.
I am going to be very vague on amounts in this recipe because it really depends on your tastes and how much of each ingredient to put on. So, just go with your gut, follow your tastebuds and then enjoy it!
Brie, Apple Butter & Arugula Sandwiches
Created by: Charlie
1 sturdy baguette (like sourdough)
Apple Butter
Brie
Arugula
Remove from oven. Add arugula on top of the cheese and then "close" the baguette and slice into individual sandwich sized portions.
Eat it!
Sunshine, food, sisters...what could be better? So happy you had a great trip!
ReplyDeleteStumbled on this one yesterday...
ReplyDeletehttp://orangette.blogspot.com/2005/01/odysseus-and-macaroons.html
I have 3 great sisters, too...aren't we lucky??? What a fun visit...love that Sur la Table in the Ferry Building...somehow it's SO much better than our local one :) And your sandwich sounds delish...I'm so glad you were able to share the recipe!
ReplyDeleteWhat fun, a get together with your sister, time at the beach and the Ferry Building in SF. I lived in California at one time and loved to visit that city.
ReplyDeleteThe sandwich is a great combination of flavors-how I do love brie. Have a great day!
@ Hope-those are macaroons...macarons are something very different. Although I am also crazy about macaroons because of the coconut. Mmmm...!!
ReplyDelete@ Lizzy-you have 3 sisters too! That's so awesome. Lucky lucky us!
@ Tina-SF was a great place to visit! So glad my sister lives there so I have excuses to go back!
One of my favorite things that someone else cook's for me is Huckleberry Pie. No one makes a huckleberry pie like my grandmother. I would love to have the recipe, but she won't give it to me. She says that then I wouldn't need her to bake them for me!
ReplyDeleteOooh, those sandwiches look amazing! I just got some apple butter from my CSA, this recipe sounds perfect to use it in.
ReplyDeleteLooks like you had a wonderful time with your sister :)
Great post, now I can't wait to see my sister next month, I'd better get fed as well as you :) You may like this... I Love Macarons by Hisako Ogita, a book worth buying for the cover alone.
ReplyDeleteOh yum, these sound like fantastic sandwiches. And you and your sister seem so close, it's so sweet!
ReplyDeleteThat sandwich looks so yummy!! I'll try it :)
ReplyDeleteI adore brie and apple sandwiches - can't believe I never slathered on apple butter! Great idea.
ReplyDeleteHere's to sisters!
How wonderful! Your post made me smile! I'm very close to my two sisters (we even have matching tattoos) and we take a sisters only trip once a year. ....and a building with nothing but specialty stores? Be still my beating heart!
ReplyDeleteHow fun! San Francisco is a beautiful city and it sounds like you had a blast with your sister. I know I would miss my sisters so much if they moved somewhere else. And that sandwich that your sister's husband made, OMG it looks so delicious! I want a bite! My favorite thing that someone else has cooked for me would have to be anything my mom makes me, she's an amazing cook!
ReplyDeleteGlad you got to see your sister! Looks like you guys had a really fun time together!
ReplyDeleteIt seems like you had a great visit! :)
ReplyDeleteMy favorite meal I've ever had made for me is what I've been eating as long as I can remember. My Grandma Blogna makes "scapellis" (no one has ever heard of them, but apparently they're a Sicilian dish she learned from my Grandpa's mom and it supposedly means "hot hands"). They're this delicious sort of crepe cooked in "pig back" in a skillet then they soak in chicken broth, then you take them out, sprinkle Romano cheese on them then roll them up and put them back in the chicken broth. That's it. It doesn't sound that exciting but it is SO SO SO delicious! That's the top of my list for things I want to learn to make.
What a great trip. So glad you were able to see your sisters and catch up with friends :)
ReplyDeleteWow, what a ridiculously delicious sandwich, & yet so simple! Love!
ReplyDeleteIt looks like you had a great time on that trip. BTW the sandwich looks delicious!
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely recipe and a sweet time with your sister. Thank you for sharing another inspired post with me. I hope you are having a great start to your week. Many blessings this Thanksgiving to you and yours!
ReplyDeleteLoved your photos! I'm originally from SF and really miss it, your beach shots brought me home. We took our kids there this summer and the fog was in so much they never actually saw the bridge!
ReplyDeleteLOVE the sandwich you posted as well... many of my favorites all wrapped up in one. Nicely done!
What a great trip to San Fran. I'm very close to my brother and he is my only sibling and my best friend. We only live an hour apart but just recently have made a better effort of seeing each other more frequently. Although I swear he got me sick the last time I saw him.... lol. My favorite meal ever made for me was when my hubby made me pork tenderloin for my bday. He never cooks and was having a hard time and all the sides were kinda awful...but it was just the sweetest thing ever.
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