krismulkey.com

Rombauer, Cakebread, Caymus and Silver Oak I brought these four bottles home to take a picture for a piece I was writing. I was so sad to return them. I've tasted them all and they are mighty fine. We call these "special occasion wines" in my house because of the price tag. They're not exactly in our everyday wine budget. Actually, they're not in most people's everyday wine budget. It's too bad. The wine is so smooth and delicious, it's like velvet on the tongue. I know that sounds kind of weird. But if you've ever had a really good sip of red than you know what I'm talking about. You immediately appreciate all that went into making it and realize why you won't find it on sale at CVS.  If you're a winemaker you just cringed. Buying wine at CVS probably makes you shiver. Not that I buy my wine there either. But it's right there when you walk in the door. BAM. We sell wine. Fake grapes hangi...

I do. It's been one of the most bizarre, stressful, and amazing years all wrapped into one. I lost my job in January. I interviewed like a mad woman all over San Francisco. Nothing was right for me, or for them. For the first time in my life I felt old. I was qualified for all of these positions, but felt oddly out place. Was all my experience for not? Our store in Napa was on the verge of bankruptcy. The recession had not been our friend. Our customers loved us. But buying high-end furniture during a shaky economic time is not a smart decision. Things were not looking good. I started going to the store with Don. It was better than hanging out at home sulking. I would bring in my laptop, perch myself on a stool and surf the net looking for jobs, blog about random stuff, and check email. It was hard going from an incredibly busy job to nothing. Our store was slow. Creditors were hounding us. We weren't sure if we would make it. I felt empty. We had no income. No...

Remember a few weeks back when I emptied out my fridge? I neglected to mention that my neighbors also donated canned goods when they moved. In addition to all the pickles, jams and jellies I received, I got 4 cans of chick peas, 3 containers of chicken broth, black bean soup, tuna, olive oil, 3 containers of Kosher salt, and other assorted items. I was okay with all of this stuff because I cook with most of it on a regular basis. Well, sort of. "You make homemade hummus, right?" Joanne asked as she handed me bags of food. "Of course I do. We love hummus!" I smiled back as I accepted her unwanted items. Her kitchen was all packed up. This is what was left. The truth is, I've never made hummus. We do eat it. But when we want it I just buy it at Whole Foods or Trader Joe's. I made it once and used raw garlic and it haunted us for days. Since I was incapable of saying " No, thank you ."  I now had 4 cans of chick peas staring at me in the pant...

I was reading Twitter one day and a tweet caught my eye. It was something about bloggers swapping coffee mugs. For some reason this sounded fun to me so I clicked on the link to find out more about it. Liz from a belle, a bean & a chicago dog was gathering bloggers to do a coffee mug gift exchange. She would send each of us a name and address and we would send that blogger a mug that represents our blog. My immediate thought was FUN! Sign me up for that! Which is totally weird because Don and I got rid of all the miscellaneous coffee mugs years ago when we bought new dishes. I guess I just liked the idea of being part of a group. And this sounded like a fun, inexpensive and creative way to spread bloggy love. And I do drink coffee. Tori from Kindergartenstolemyzen got my name. She was a super ninja blogger. I received my mug immediately. As in we got our names and two days later I got my mug. Holy schnikes. The pressure was on. I love it! I got Erika from fr...

We made these crescent rolls on Thanksgiving. They were so good, I had to share them with you again. Because you might want to make them for Christmas. The recipe makes a bunch of rolls. We baked a batch for Thanksgiving day, then rolled the rest out, put them on a baking sheet, and stuck them in the fridge for the next day. All you have to do is set them out to rise for a few hours and bake them when you're ready. It's a great recipe to make with kids. Even boys. They can use their brut strength to roll the dough. You do need to allow some time though. It takes 3 hours to make them. So keep that in mind. Don't be intimidated by the time. This is a good rainy day/snow day activity. The dough is really easy to make. You do have to use yeast but it's really forgiving. I screwed it up and they came out great. I misread the instructions and put 2T of sugar with the yeast and water. It was supposed to be 1/2 teaspoon. And the best part? You get to eat these lit...

The winner of the Driscoll's Goody Bag is........ #4 Mike YAY! Congratulations!!

Have your kids gotten into this? Elli asked for Duct Tape for her birthday. Don and I both thought this was an odd request. Then she came home from a friends with a cool flower she made and we got it. She was not talking about the kind of tape you get at the local hardware store. This is fancy tape. Yes, you could actually use it as tape. But that's not what most kids are doing with it. It comes in all different colors and patterns. There are actually videos to show kids how to make cool things like flip flops, purses, wallets, dresses, headbands, hats, and shoes with laces. Seriously, why didn't I think of this?  Check out MonkeySee.com for all kinds of ideas. I guess it's kind of expensive, because Don started acting a bit like the tape Nazi one day when Elli said she was going to make a second pair of flip flops. He settled down and the two of them made a new project. She made a wallet and he made this cool cougar. He is now the duct tape champ. ...

I'm so excited to share these blackberry recipes with you! I tried every one of them at the Driscoll's party and they are really tasty. Plus, I have my first ever giveaway. Somehow I walked away with an Extra Goody bag - so one lucky reader will get it! Driscoll's Tote Bag, Driscoll's Fruit Colander,  NEW Cookbook from Rick Rodgers, a Driscoll's Apron, and a Driscoll's Flash Drive with all the recipes, and a Coupon for berries worth $5.00 Retail value: priceless (hee hee) Scroll to the end to see how you can win. Back to the recipes..... My favorite of the evening was the tartlet. And you're not going to believe this. There was goat cheese in the tartlet and I didn't even know it because you mix it with cream cheese. Even though I liked it, I won't use any goat cheese when I make this because I'll buy the wrong kind and it will taste like barn. I'll just go with cream cheese all the way. 'Cuz you know me and all things ...

Last week I attended a blogging event sponsored by Driscoll's berries. They had Chef Rick Rodgers there doing a cooking demonstration, photographer Caren Alpert leading a photo workshop, and a baking contest for us bloggers. I brought Blackberry Shortbread Bars.  Blackberry Shortbread Bars 2 sticks unsalted butter 1/2 t. vanilla bean paste 1 cup white sugar 1 t. baking powder 2 3/4 cup flour + 2 T 1/2 t. cinnamon 1/4 t. salt 1 large egg 12 oz fresh blackberries, sliced in half (two, 6oz containers) Brown the butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. It will melt, then foam, then turn clear golden, and will finally start to brown and smell nutty. Stir frequently, scraping up any bits from the bottom. Don't let it burn! Remove from stove and stir in vanilla. Transfer to a small dish and cool in freezer until firm (~30 minutes) Preheat oven to 375˚ Butter a 9 x 13 pan 1) In a medium bowl whisk together sugar, baking powder, flour, salt, and cinnamon 2) Dice chilled but...