Holy Guacamole

My blogging mojo disappeared last week because I hit a mental wall.  I started a new project for work last week, which happens to still be in Dallas and with the same client.  It's a totally different type of assignment, though, and I think more in line with what I actually like about my job!  And mostly working from home!!!  So that's always good.  What's not good was my insanely delayed flight from SF to Dallas last Monday! >:\  That, on top of the jetlag, totally screwed me up for the week.  I was permanently tired.  And then when I finally got home on Friday, I slept in until 10am!  Who am I???  Lucky I have a very flexible work schedule.

Anyway, I'm finally back on track with sleep and exercise (I had to take off almost an entire WEEK because my legs were so sore from running those SF hills!), and I'm ready to blog 'n' roll.  I'm working from home this week and next, so I stocked up on groceries and got back in the kitchen.  I may or may not have neurotically planned out every meal for the next week... I found too many good recipes!  I got excited :)

But first, I shall finish SF...

There's my lovely hostess as we ride the little gondola up to the Sterling winery in NAPA VALLEY!  EEEEK!  It was so beautiful and kind of like a fantasy.  The wines at Sterling were AWESOME.  Really unique flavors and high quality.  I ended up buying a dessert wine -- Port Zinfandel (so weird for me to buy a dessert wine!) and a bottle of Pinot Noir to drink with my mom.  I didn't buy it, but I was SO impressed with their '02 Chardonnay.  It was so buttery and not oaky!

I adore California topography.  Get a load of this background!

Then we moved on to a boutiquey little winery that Sarah belongs to, where we tasted a whole slew of things.  Oddly enough, I liked the whites more than the reds.  Almost never happens with me.

We broke for lunch at the Rutherford Grill, where I had a pretty incredible veggie burger.  I was only able to eat half!  It had all kinds of veggies, including beets, and I had it with a side of spaghetti squash with pesto.  Mmmmm...  We also split the skillet cornbread, which was outrageous.

Lastly, we stopped at Frog's Leap (just in time too... they were about to close), which is a farmy, organic winery.  The grounds were beautiful, and we tasted out on the wraparound porch.  It was so serene.  I probably could have stayed there for the rest of my life.  Wine country in general!  I did not want to leave.  At Frog's Leap I bought the most unusual Cabernet I have ever tasted.  It was a little pricey, but so unique.  I need to find the right occasion to drink it!

That was all Saturday... then on Sunday we went to Supper Club for dinner, which was super funky and playful.  You sit on beds that surround the perimeter of the restaurant, and there are performances in the middle.  Rated PG-13.

The lights kept changing colors...

The lighting was obviously not conducive to food photography, but we had a mozzarella bruschetta and some SUPER tender chicken.  I almost never order chicken in restaurants, but maybe I should start?

Monday was, sadly, my day of departure (or should I say evening?  AARRGGHHHH RAIN DELAY!), so we went for the one thing I still hadn't gotten my fill of: Whole Foods.  JK, I totally had my fill of Whole Foods.  I think I went to Whole Foods 4 times in 5 days.  What I actually wanted was Mexican!  We went for a driving tour of the city, and then for burritos in the Mission!

The burrito stands alone.  Literally.  It was so big it could sit on its end.

SO GOOD.  I can't believe I ate almost the whole thing.  But I had been for a run earlier and was famished.  I got a veggie burrito (grilled carrots, potatoes, and mushrooms) with black beans, rice, salsa, cheese, and guac in a WW tortilla.  Holy guacamole, was this incredible.  I think it would have been overboard with meat, so I'm glad I didn't go there.  I'm also trying to be socially responsible about the way I eat meat, and something told me this place wasn't serving organic, grass-fed beef.  Just a guess.

I LOVED SF so much.  Not that I'm going anywhere anytime soon, but I could see myself living there for sure.  It's so pretty and laid back and close to wineries... wink wink.

Will be back later with my many recipes for this week!  Get hungry.