The Penny Ice Creamery-Santa Cruz, CA

Pivot Sorbet-a bit tart, not too sweet, definitely fresh taste

Chocolate Sorbet and Pivot Sorbet $4, the combination was fantastic!

Our tongues did happy dances upon the arrival of the chocolate and pivot sorbet combination! There was a line of about 10 people upon arrival. The staff (Zach and team?) were friendly and helpful.

The most delightful part? They make their ice cream in house from scratch!

ice cream machine

around town, tower near the ice creamery

The Penny Ice Creamery

913 Cedar St
Santa Cruz, CA 95060

(831) 204-2523

http://thepennyicecreamery.com/ 

A Brief Quest for Vietnamese Vegetarian Cuisine

We found a savory Vegetarian Place! This is now our favorite Vietnamese restaurant. It's delicious, friendly, authentic, quick. and affordable.

What is it? Dong Phuong Tofu on McKee Road in San Jose.

mushroom stuffed tofu. Deliciously fried! So crispy

bun "bo" hue, a central Vietnamese noodle soup

Mi (egg noodle)

Vegan Mien Mang Ga--savory with salad on the side $6,

Vegan Chao Thap Cam $6--light, not too salty, with lots of goodies in it. Definitely a fan of their imitation "cha" (Vietnamese ham), the veggie meatball was delicious!

Vegetarian Eggrolls- best vegetarian eggrolls we've had--perhaps it has some yam in it?

Fish cake (non-vegetarian) the cashier said it was 魚 糕 $2---delicious, not dry, definitely good value

assorted mix: $5, salad,eggrolls, tofu tomoto patty, bamboo, 

yum!

Update: Vegetarian treats!

sweet banh beo la dua (pandan flavor)

re-heating eggrolls and mushroom tofu

4.5/5 stars on Yelp

2359 McKee Rd
San Jose, CA 95116

(408) 251-6838

Castello di Amorosa

Wine Tasting Room

Vegetarian Chopsticks on Honeymoon

Chateau Montelena, Calistoga, CA

Chateau Montelena, Calistoga, CA

Love letter...to who?

peek-a-boo :)

My husband chose these cake toppers and he couldn't have made a better choice! They're now our travel companions.Thanks to Y&A for the idea!

Post-wedding photos: Dress by Maggie Sottero

 My husband and I are budding photographers. Of course, we had to take photos of the wedding dress after we picked it up from our bridesmaid. The dress went through a lot of labor after being used and abused. It took us almost an hour to iron it after taking it out of a trash bag.  It was priceless to see it receiving some love from the hubby :)

Hotel Booking Tip:
-If you can afford to be flexible, try booking via www.hotwire.com
-Once you check in at the hotel, ask for upgrade to honeymoon suites. We stayed at the Sheraton and were upgraded upon request. Hilton gladly upgraded up to their Jr. Suite
-Rates are best on weekdays

Joy

balloon

Often, it is a spontaneous act which one person commits, without prior plan, because he/she thinks it would make his/her mate happy. Often, the intuition is right. Take this balloon, for example. My husband's company had an event. He saw the balloon, thought of me, and brought it home as a surprise. I bet he had imagined the giant grin on my face and he was right. The giant, round thing made me so happy the moment I saw it.

Thank you, husband, for thinking of me. In doing so, you've brought me joy.

Homemade Coconut Flan Cake

Flan Creme Caramel Mix

We used the mix and followed instructions, with the exception of using coconut milk instead of regular milk. It was yummy!

Vegetarian Stir Fry: oyster mushroom, bell peppers,tofu

oyster mushroom, bell peppers, tofu

Ingredients:
1 red bell pepper, thinly diced as above
1 green bell pepper, thinly diced as above
2 oyster mushrooms, thinly diced as above
1/2 block of firm tofu, thinly diced as above
1/2 jalepeno
1-2 scallions
1 tsp garlic
1/2 tsp oil

Procedure:
1. Heat pan
2. Add oil, wait for 30 seconds- 1 minute (until oil is hot)
3. Add garlic, diced scallions (finely diced)
4. Add oyster mushroom & tofu, mix
5. Add 1.5 tsp hoisin sauce, 1 tbsp of soy sauce (adjust amount for taste)
6. stir fry until the oyster mushroom and tofu have absorbed the sauce
7. Add bell peppers and jalepeno, stir for 30 seconds.
8. Turn off heat. Place lid on pan. This will allow the bell peppers to cook but still maintain the crispiness.

Serve with white rice or pineapple fried rice (recipe to be updated)

pineapple fried rice and stir fry

Enjoy!