Strawberry Omelet

It’s the strawberry season! So my family and I can now enjoy one of our favorite omelets! I found the recipe online a few years ago, and it’s very delicious. A true special occasion breakfast!

6 eggs
2 tablespoons water
½ teaspoon salt
dash pepper
2 ounces cream cheese, cut into ½ inch cubes
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 ½ cup sliced strawberries
confectioner’s sugar

In a bowl, beat the eggs, water, salt, and pepper. Heat butter in a 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat; add egg mixture. As the eggs set, lift edges letting uncooked portion flow underneath.

When the eggs are almost set, sprinkle cream cheese, brown sugar and one cup strawberries on one side. Fold omelet in half. Cover and cook for 1-2 minutes or until brown sugar begins to melt.

Top with remaining strawberries and dust with confectioner’s sugar before serving.

I'm linking this recipe to Foodie Friday at Designs by Gollum.

More Fun in Carmel

In my previous post I started a narration about my mini vacation in the coastal village of Carmel.

There is one special place there that I visit whenever I am in the area - La Playa Hotel. It holds so many sentiments and wonderful memories. It is the place where I got married!



Unfortunately, at the time of our visit the hotel was under renovation, so these pictures do not fully reflect La Playa’s splendor.

We tied the knot at this gazebo.





After our visit at La Playa Hotel, my husband and I headed to Chateau Julian winery. It was my first ever wine testing experience. Honestly, I’m not a wine connoisseur, so I was not so much interested in the wine itself but rather in all the beautiful architecture and the vineyards of the estate. I greatly enjoyed the tour of the estate and learning about grape growing.












A bit tired but merry after the wine testing, we headed to our hotel, Hyatt Highlands Inn. What a gorgeous place! The views were spectacular, and the people who work there were so welcoming and obliging.

This was the view from our room.



After a short rest at the hotel, we went out for dinner. I don’t remember the name of the restaurant that we had dinner at. But it was a warm and cozy place with fireplaces and great food.

We finished our first day in Carmel with a walk on the beach enjoying the sunset.

Carmel-by-the-Sea

My husband and I just returned from our little getaway to the Carmel area. We only spent three days there, but what glorious days they have been! I will remember this mini vacation for many years to come.

We started the exploration of the area with a cup of tea at Tuck Box tea room. I once had a brochure about Thomas Kinkade paintings, from which I learned about this place. And I wanted to visit it ever since as it looks so charming and quaint in Kinkade’s painting.



My husband and I enjoyed our brunch there. And I also bought a jar of sour cherries preserve to enjoy with my own scones later. After we recharged our energy with delicious scones and tea, we set out to explore the streets and courtyards of the village. What a beautiful and peaceful place!













I have many more pictures to share. I will post them a bit later as right now I need to focus on all the house chores that accumulated while I was gone!

My Etsy Shop Update

Some of you might be wondering how I am doing selling my crocheted items. Not so bad!

My Etsy shop is quite small because I don’t have much time for crocheting, especially now in spring. But I did sell a few items, and I slowly continue to make new ones.

It’s quite exciting to have my own little shop. It doesn’t bring any profit, but it does bring lots of fun!

I am trying to expand it beyond finished crochet products. Right now I’m adding some vintage pattern pamphlets and books. And I am learning how to write crochet patterns in English, so I can sell my own patterns as well.

The biggest hit of all of my crochet items was this baby blanket. My mom came up with the pattern and crocheted the first one. Then she taught me to make it. I gave a few of these blankets away at baby showers, where everyone “Ohhed” and “Wowed”! And I also sold one at my community. I think in addition to Etsy, where competition is just too great, I need to seek more customers in my own community.



In short, I didn’t make any money, but I still enjoy my “crocheting business”.

By the way, my doily postings on Etsy will expire soon, and I won’t re-post them. So they all are on sale now!

My New Big Project

It’s summer again (at least here in CA)! And I have lots of household and garden projects to keep me busy. I mean I have a lot of them in my head, but I think I will actually implement only a few. The biggest one I want to focus on is an herb garden!

I recently bought an interesting book on the subject, and I was surprised how many herbs and medicinal plants I already have in my yard!

For instance, blackberry and raspberry! I didn’t know their leaves can be used for making herbal teas.

I also have nasturtium, which seeds by itself year after year. Fresh flowers and leaves can be added to salads.

Another self-seeding plant that I never take care of is calendula. I always had known it’s a medicinal plant, but I didn’t really know what to use it for. I now found out that dried petals can be used as saffron substitute in rice and soups. And petals from fresh flowers can be used for making teas.

Some of the other herbs and medicinal plants that grow in my yard are rosemary, lavender, mint, chives, and sage.

From my last trip to a local nursery, I brought home chamomile, tarragon, thyme, lemon balm, fennel, purple sage, and chocolate mint.



Blackberry blooming


Nasturtiums


Garden Sage. I love making butter sage sauce


Lemon Balm


Chocolate Mint. I haven’t had a chance to try it in a tea yet. But it smells like chocolate, so I hope it will taste like cocoa ;-)


Chives. They are so pretty when blooming

I dream of a beautiful and luscious herb garden. I even cut off some pictures from magazines for inspiration. But with all the summer heat here in California, it won’t be an easy task. So all the advice and gardening tips will be greatly appreciated!

I'm linking to Tuesday Garden Party at An Oregon Cottage.