I’ve taken the drive between Northern California (NorCal) and Southern California (SoCal) many times in the last 10+ years. I’ll save the stories about why so many drives in another post. But nonetheless, a few weeks ago, I took the drive again. This time was for a very special reason. My sister-in-law is having her second baby and we made plans to throw her a sprinkle in San Diego. In case you are wondering, a sprinkle is the hip word for a 2nd baby shower. Instead of showering the mama-to-be with gifts, you celebrate her with a modest, casual gathering and sprinkle her with the bare baby necessities.
I have been particularly adamant about only driving 5+ hours with my 3 year old son if my husband is with me. But my hubby had some business to attend to during the weekend of the sprinkle. I knew my sister-in-law would totally understand if I couldn’t make it. But you know those times when you trust that your family will understand, and you know that it probably doesn’t make the most logical (or economical) sense to do something, but in your gut, you just want to say “Screw it, I’m doing it!”. This was one of those times.
So I rented an SUV, threw all the must-haves into it (snacks galore, extra clothes, extra blankets, many toys, i-Pad), took more than a few deep breaths, and said ‘”Let’s do it!”. Yes, I shouted it and my son repeated “Yeah, let’s do it”. Love him.
We made it to the sprinkle safely and with only one minor setback (a carsick accident where the extra blankets became life-savers). The sprinkle was a beautiful day with family, made perfect by how happy I was to surprise my sister-in-law and how happy she was to be surprised.
I forgot to mention that on the way down to San Diego, I picked up my mom. She (at no surprise to me) offered to drive back up to NorCal so I wouldn’t have to go at it alone again. After the sprinkle, my mom, son and I spent a couple days in San Diego, primarily to give us a solid break from driving. But also to spend more quality time together, just us three. We aren’t able to do that very often. When we’re together, we usually have plenty of other family around. That’s fun too. But seeing Grandma and Grandson being so silly together is absolute perfection, especially now when my son is so energetic, has so many words, is starting to tell jokes, and starting to be a little mischievous too. These are the moments that tug at my heart strings and will stay with me.
When the day had come to drive home to NorCal, my mom and I agreed to take it slow and easy. Usually my husband and I are aiming to make good time, avoid rush hour, ensure nap time goes uninterrupted, etc. etc. It seems like that’s just what happens when you have a young child. But every once in a while, you gotta get crazy. LOL. You might end up buying a toy to appease your little one, but that’s the cost of disobeying the routine. I know, great parenting, right?(#momoftheyear).
Solvang
Located in the Santa Ynez Valley is something you might not expect, a small Danish village. Sunny Fields, pronounced Solvang in Danish is a great walking town full of boutiques, wine & beer tasting rooms, international cuisine, and bakeries. It’s a lovely way to capture a small taste of Denmark.
Upon arrival, we were eager for lunch. We briskly walked toward Petersen Village Square and stumbled upon the ‘Succulent‘ Café. What a perfect name to catch our eye and entice our empty tummies. We noticed charcuterie on the sign and were completely sold.
We ordered the 3+3 charchuterie and cheese platter for lunch. I’m a girl that loves variety so for me, it doesn’t get much better than a platter filled with cheeses, meats, house-made jams, pickled veggies, nuts, mustards, and dried fruits. I mean, look at this stuff…drooling over here.
When in Danish country, it’s mandatory to devour buttery-rich flaky pastry. After lunch (and after buying a toy train for my son…told ya’…damn that adorable toy store window we passed), we stopped into Mortensen’s Danish Bakery, a family-owned authentic bakery that will happily ship you their famous 70-piece tub of assorted Danish all-butter shortbread cookies. By the way, I love these pictures. Seeing my mom and son hand-in-hand makes my heart burst.
After much indecisiveness, we settled on a few things including this apple strudel. Oh how I love you flaky apple filled layers. Never change Solvang, never change.
Gilroy
Gilroy refers to itself as the ‘Garlic Capital of the World’, a statement as bold as the garlic aroma that awakens your nose when you drive in. For over thirty years in July, Gilroy has held its annual garlic festival and served its garlic ice cream.
I love me some garlic, but my love for Gilroy is actually rooted in their cherries. Bold, beautiful, giant rainier and bing cherries fill the many road-side stands.
And these beauties are the inspiration for the cherry-almond rustic galettes.
Galettes and me get a long really well. My pie crust skills are an everlasting work in progress so these are a nice way to boost my confidence and focus on making a super flavorful filling.
I’ve researched a lot of different crust recipes and have found that a combination of butter and shortening in the dough makes for a fantastic crust. Plus the sprinkling of turbinado sugar creates a crust that has a likeness to the Danish shortbread cookies in Solvang.
The recipe below makes pastry dough enough for three 9-inch pie or galette crusts. When you go through the trouble of making dough, it’s nice to make extra, especially now that summer potlucks, BBQ’s, and picnics are coming in waves.
After making these cherry-almond galettes, I used the extra dough to make an all-berry version and another one with nectarines & raspberries. Loving the summer fruit!
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