Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Two down! 9 to go! We have completed the first two of our winter tours and are on to the third.
Southern California Winter Warmer was all but warm for the first two days: torential rainpour in Chula Vista and freezing cold in Julian. But all was comfy in Borego Springs, albeit the wind. Don't you love cooking - or cycling for that matter- in the wind? A pot of water takes twice as long to boil! The desert wild flowers were just popping out, and if you're ever there the hike into Palm Canyon Oasis is amazing.
I promise in the future to blog the food as we go, as I can now not remember what was cooked on what day! A few highlights though:

Honey glazed pork chops with a homemade apple chutney...wow. Brush the pork chops with honey then season them with a combination of: ground cumin, sea salt, smoked chipotle chili powder, ground corriander, paprika, ground garlic and black pepper. Grill them until just done, and serve with apple chutney. (peel and core apples and cook with diced green chili, cider vinegar & sugar) Want the whole recipe? I can post it next week when I am back to my truck which houses my books.

Texas Pecan Pie Bars. Totally yummmmmy.

Southern Arizona was a beautiful trip. The weather was great the whole trip and the desert in the spring has such unique beauty. The food mirrored that of California. New to the menu:

Curried eggplant and potatoes! A great yellow curry full of plump eggplant and yellow poatatoes.
Greek lemon chicken joined us once again from being on vacation for a couple of years.
Peanut butter and walnut sandwiches on Raisin bread were all the rage. Something so simple, yet sooo good.

On to Texas and a daily update of places, wild flowers and food! Much more on the food. Recipes anyone?

3 comments:

  1. Kathy is a joy to work with. She is extremely creative when it comes to meal planning. The meals she creates are all five star... Cooking with her outdoors has it's challenges, wind, rain and cold, but it is also very rewarding. I am looking forward to the Texas Hill Country and all of it's beautiful wildflowers.

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  2. I can echo Jack's comments about the creative five star meals Kathy provides ACA tour participants and staff. I'm in the envious position of getting to dine on Kathy's fine meals for 4 tours this year as tour leader on the CAWW, SAR, TXHC, and ID Family Fun. Next week we're all off to TX for the last of the ACA Spring Triology Tours! I tip my staff cap to both Kathy and Jack for excellent meals!

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  3. Can't wait to see the pork chop recipe Kathy. Looks delicious. Get ready for a pretty spring ride in TX this year. Lots of water, lots of green and by the time you arrive, should have LOTS of wildflowers. Rode in the Hill Country last weekend and still a little early for the wildflowers, but was really pretty none the less. Nice to see water in all the creeks. Got my shoes wet numerous times at the low water crossings. Heading to Kerrville Thursday for Easter Hill Country Tour. Will have an updated wildflower report when I return. Watch my Twitter and Facebook posts for updates. :-)

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