Over the last few years of heavy work travel I’ve become less and less a souvenir person. I rarely bring back “things” from my trips – the exceptions being yarn from cool yarn shops and food. All kinds of food.
So how could a trip to San Francisco have been complete without take home treats?
Now really? The chocolate sables from Miette and the satsumas from a farm I can’t recall are to sustain me through the next few days of work conference in Sacramento. I hoped that the sesame glazed walnuts would make it home to top the Thanksgiving  salad, but now that the bag is open and I’ve remembered the taste, I’m not holding my breath.
The thing I’m most excited about though? The four pounds of Rancho Gordo beans that I picked up. I might have been tempted to buy more, but they didn’t have a couple of the varieties I was most interested in (mail order will be my friend). As it is, I’ve easily filled up the space vacated by the chicken, eggs, jam and dilly beans that went to Anita and Cameron with Yellow Eye, Black Calypso, Pebble and Anasazi beans. I can’t wait to get my copy of Steve’s book and start serving beans with every meal (remember the stinky rhyme?).
All the pictures from my trip are also on Flickr if you’re having trouble with the slide shows.Â
Hallelujah! It’s not just me!
I went to the East Coast recently and returned with Amish blue popcorn, an amazing Gruyere, chocolates from a Pensylvania company, and a very full tummy from a lot of tasty local fare. Meanwhile, my other half returned from a conference in Denmark with yogurt, butter, and cheese stashed in his suitcase. And, of course, whenever I go home for the holidays, it’s with a suitcase bulging with citrus from the neighborhood and pecans or dates from the general area. I find this to be one of the really fun things about going somewhere new, and I’m so glad for the farmers’ markets and local businesses that make it possible to still find regional specialties. And, of course, all the folks that give me permission to harvest their mesquite beans and prickly pear fruits.
[...] were surprised to see the bean guru himself behind the baskets and bags. In addition to the four varieties Laura chose — old favorites Yellow Eye and Calypso, plus two others that escape me Pebble and Anasazi [...]
[...] olives, avocados, citrus, and other items we’ve been limiting in our own diets. Much like Laura, our preferred souvenirs come in the form of food, and this trip did not disappoint. By the time [...]