Math Proves Bacon is Miracle Food

http://www.wired.com/design/2013/10/bacon-is-a-miracle-food/

Machka

One of my favorite things to do is find hidden gems for culinary experiences in the City. Financial district is packed during the day but at night it tends to clear out to a ghost town. There's gotta be great restaurants still open, I thought. I thought right! Dinner at Machka was amazing, particularly the house hummus and kunefe.

Happy Birthday Matchmaker

Happy birthday dear Matchmaker. Truly a day of shock and awe.

Good Bites Cafe

We stumbled on this cafe by pure accident but sometimes the best things happen without any planning. Traditional filipino breakfast you say? Yes please! Good Bites Cafe is a family run restaurant with a Greek twist. Breakfast comes with the traditional sampling of choice of meat, plus garlic rice and eggs, but for good measure they throw in freshly made pita bread and hummus.

Full and happy. Now this is what I call happy food.

Climb On

Today's exploration in fitness is to Pipeworks in Sacramento for a round of bouldering. It's always a joy for Husband to get to explore new climbing gyms with new problems. I took my turn at a rough overhang problem and although I wasn't able to complete it, the challenge still brought a smile to my face (and hopefully some muscle to my back).

People's Guy

Wife: Do you think they ban Family Gun in China?

Husband: Maybe they just refer to it as People's Guy.

Sea Caves

Yet another adventure we can cross off the list. Kayaking through sea caves- check! Seeing a huge school of dolphins, double check!!

Future contestants on the Amazing Race? More like future winners!

Sunny State Street

State Street- with its countless restaurants, beautiful and colorful designs and pathway to the beach. What's not to love!

Filorium Nature Preserve

Husband and I took a leisurely hike with my parents to Filorium Nature Preserve. I love when my parents do active things like hiking. Family bonding at its best.

As usual, Husband took this opportunity to practice his mad climbing skills and I took to practicing photography. What's better- clear and vivid or rustic and vintage?

Breakfast Quinoa

Husband and I stumbled upon a new idea for breakfast- quinoa. Crazy I know. Move over oatmeal, you have met your match.

PB&J Quinoa with cashew milk and local jam // Quinoa with cashew milk, fruit and nuts

Pinnacles

It's amazing the nature that's in your backyard. Case in point- Pinnacles. It's a short 25 minute drive off the highway and once you're in the park, it feels like you've gone to another world. Nature truly is spectacular.

Andersen's Pea Soup

I have passed the sign on the highway for this place countless of times and wondered, should I stop in and try this highly publicized pea soup? Well wonder no longer I did. Husband and I stopped at the locally famous Andersen's pea soup for (what else)- pea soup.

Verdict- If it's on your way, totally worth it. The place is truly an establishment full of interesting snacks and cheesy trinkets, including a year round Christmas section. The pea soup was excellent and since that's what they are famous for, getting our respective bowl of pea soup was quick and painless despite the tourist frenzy. Happ-pea and Pea-wee were we :-)

Ladies Who Lunch

It was a girls outing for lunch today, complete with an addition to the hummus challenge, a healthy pizza and a not-healthy round of cupcakes. The lunching ladies went to CPK for lunch and tried the hummus with wheat flat bread, and the thin slice California club pizza.

The wheat flat bread was great, the hummus was eh. A little too oily and runny for our taste.

The pizza on the other hand was amazing! The thin crust was thin but not too crispy and it was piled full of arugula, avocado and tomato, with just a sprinkle of bacon.

As part of my continued quest to eat everything with bacon as a component, we stopped at Sprinkles for their limited time maple bacon cupcake. 

Normally I'm not a big Sprinkles fan because their frosting is a bit too sweet for me and their portion size is quite large which of course leads to eater's remorse. However, I have had a change of heart. The maple bacon and the German chocolate cupcakes had very balanced frosting and the flavors were so good that there was not even a slight inkling of regret. My only regret was not getting this sooner!

Every busy work week should end with lunch with the ladies. This is true living. #livablesnotbillables.

Vitamin D

After hearing me say for the millionth time how great lechon is, Husband's response: "Yes, lechon is chalked full of Vitamin D- Vitamin Delicious."

Me: "You get me, you just really get me."

Go Pig or Go Home

Best plaque ever, courtesy of the Basque Center.