Southern Sonoma Country Life

Honey for Your Honey — Stocking Stuffing for Grown-Ups!

Michael's Honey From Thistle Meats

Stocking stuffers unite. It doesn't have to be a last minute nightmare scramble to fill those floppy red socks.

There have been Christmases past in which  family members here on Rivetti Mountain have completely forgotten about shopping for the one who typically takes care of the proverbial 'stuffing'.

So, if you are reading this and it serves as a timely reminder that someone in your midst might indeed like to find a few well chosen treasures after Santa's midnight visit, now's the nick of time to stock up on the sorts of treats that you, yourself would enjoy over the winter months.

And if you're the one wondering if anyone will remember, take the initiative, leave a little bag or box by the fireplace and act surprised when your stocking is mysteriously not rocking as the solo 'flat' on the 25th! 

If you're the stuffer in your world, head out for some eleventh hour shopping at farm stores and neighborhood fine food purveyors. Who doesn't love a jar of local honey? Some decadent and delicious olive oil? Goat milk soaps, spices, olive wood spatulas, tea and coffee? Be creative. It's fun to see how many treasures we can find in the made local market. Petaluma Home & Garden on Petaluma Boulevard South has a great range of Danish kitchen utensils and Italian imported jars of yumminess that anyone who enjoys cooking would enjoy. 

Photo:Della Fattoria  You can't go wrong with a Christmas Eve pit-stop at your favorite bakery. Coffee and carols are sweeter than ever with festive baked goods. Close by Petaluma? Bovine Bakery's another top pick. 

Mandarin oranges remind me of Christmastime in the UK, where we awaited the arrival of these glorious, gorgeous orange wonders on fruit and vegetable stalls and greengroceries each dark, wintery December. Don't forget that old fashioned tradition of tucking an aromatic orange or two into Christmas stockings.   

As many of us move away from too many packaged candy treats, specialty (if you can't lay your hand on homemade) jams and marmalades will never go out of favor. 

 

 

  

Pride of Petaluma — Nicky's New Tea Towel

Just in time for Christmas, Fog Valley Crush illustrator extraordinaire and dear friend, Nicky Ovitt has released her latest Pride of Petaluma tea towel in gorgeous orange and mustard hues to brighten our rainy winter days.

Though Nicky's textile work is almost too lovely to dry dishes with and works beautifully as a wall hanging or decoratively on the door handle of the kitchen stove, her tea towels make me smile each time I take a freshly laundered one out of the clothes dryer and fold it for delivery back to the counter top. 

Find them at B Street Mercantile, on Fourth Street in downtown Petaluma or on Etsy if you are out of the area. 

Though ordering online is so convenient, if you are able to pick up a hand crafted product locally, in person, it's so much more efficient for all, boosting business for small merchants and supporting artists (writers) and food producers, good for your social skills and all the while keeping the carbon footprint to the soles of your own feet! 

 

Eat, Drink and Make Photos With Murray Rockowitz and Cookbook Author Suzanne Carreiro in Umbria in 2015

Umbrian cookbook author Suzanne Carreiro and photographer Murray Rockowitz invite you to join them on a one-of-a-kind Photography, Food & Wine Tour in September 2015.

This is  the only tour that we know of in Umbria lead by a master photographer and an Umbrian cookbook author. Photography is woven into each days’ events–eating, cooking, sightseeing, tasting wine, plus lessons at villa accommodation and individual consultations with Murray.

Take this trip and you'll get to decide how much of your time you want to spend making photos. Make time for shopping, delicious food, earn to cook an authentic recipes or two and learn about the region’s wine, as well as the region’s glorious architecture and enchanting landscape. While Murray's focus is for all to improve their photography, Suzanne will make sure you have a rich cultural, food, and wine experience.

 Click here for more info. 

Make a Mini-Road Trip for My Fiber-Friday (Dec 19th) Book Signing in Valley Ford

Oh What fun it is to ride on a four wheeled closed-top sleigh! Weather reports are looking good for a West Country foray out to Valley Ford on Friday, December 19th, for last of the pre-Christmas book signings for "Fog Valley Crush".

Please join me at the warm and cozy Valley Ford Mercantile and Wool Mill in the heart of Valley Ford, where I'll be merrily signing away books for holiday gifts and reads from 5pm to 7pm. 

Mark from Tea & Trumpets will be there too. A cup of tea and a new book, plus lots of top-notch fiber gift products for perusing, now that's a great start to the weekend and the Christmas countdown. 

If you've yet to pay a visit to the Valley Ford Hotel's welcoming bar and wonderful Rocker Oysterfellers restaurant, make it a full evening out and I'm betting you'll likely see me over there after the signing!

This week has been great for book reviews and I'm especially honored to have been written up in the Press Democrat by the region's savviest food writer, Heather Irwin. Click here to read the article. 

Ode to Our Mail and Parcel Carriers

via Pinterest

“If it takes the entire army and navy to deliver a postal card in Chicago, that card will be delivered.” 

Grover Cleveland

'Tis the season and all and I've been spending more than my usual time allowance for December errands in the post office or, preferably, a half block down the street at the Mail Depot (where Fourth Street's maven of shipping, Maureen & Co make the biz of packaging so much more festive in a signature pithy sort of way). 

From what I've been hearing around town, friends and neighbors are more than ever, shopping locally this holiday season, or online. As for the malls up and down the freeway, not so much. Especially in the rain. 

Parcels zip around the world at record speed these days (unless traveling under the snail pace of media mail, as I'm frequently being reminded of since embarking on my own book distribution project). Tracking systems come to our rescue daily in the plotting and planning of gifts, home and business goods. 

As for those hard working folk who actually make all this happen. Do we stop in our festive tracks to say a proper "Thank You"? Not nearly often enough. 

If you are reading this, Trisha, best mail carrier in the west, Maureen & the Mail Depot, Cody, Jeanette and the counter staff (including the tediously slow and grumpy one we likely all do our best to avoid) at the P.O in downtown Petaluma, Fed-Ex & the UPS delivery team in my neck of the woods and everyone, anywhere who delivers mail and parcels for a living, you are keeping us off the freeways, freeing up time for us to shop more locally and get back home to our cozy nests for you to bring the world to us. Each card, each parcel that travels into my hands has had a tag-team, often international army of hard working people behind it. Happy Holidays to you all. And may you rest your feet a while in January.  

“I've always felt there is something sacred in a piece of paper that travels the earth from hand to hand, head to head, heart to heart.” 

Robert Michael Pyle

 

 

The Hills are Alive! Mysterious, Magical Jack-O-Lantern Mushroom Bonanza

Photo: Dominic Rivetti

Correct me if I'm wrong, but the abundance of these magnificent, orange-colored mushrooms on Rivetti Mountain this December appears to be a bounty of Bay Area Jack-O-Lantern Fungus, Omphalotus olivascens to be precise.

According to the Bay Area Mycological Society: "The “Jack-O-Lantern” mushroom gets its name not only because it’s orange like a pumpkin, but because, like a pumpkin carved and candled for Halloween, it provides its own light.

On the West Coast, Omphalotus olivascens is our most spectacular bioluminescent mushroom. It glows most strongly at the peak of spore production (some claim to be able to read a newspaper by its light)."

To view this effect, mushrooms should be in their prime. Best viewed outdoors at night. Taken indoors, in a darkened room, or closet, wait for your eyes to adjust. Don't be tempted to eat this particular mushroom, according to the experts at the Mycological Society: "The toxins, similar to muscarine, present in a mistaken meal of Omphalotus may produce hallucinations (a plus for some), but will also open you, prodigiously, at both ends, for a not so fun time with fungus". 

 

 

Book Signing & Tea! Fog Valley Crush and Tea & Trumpets Team Up for Tasting at a Festive Valley Ford Mercantile & Wool Mill, Friday December 19th 5pm to 7pm

Mark your calendar for this lovely event out in Valley Ford. If you haven't yet visited the  best little Mercantile and Wool Mill  in the west (opposite the Valley Ford Hotel/Rocker Oysterfellers), Friday, December 19th is the perfect pre-Christmas time to stop by. 

The store is packed to the rafters with natural, organic, sustainable and US- made homewares, clothing, jewelry, cheeses and gifts. My favorite is the gorgeous all natural bedding made right here in Valley Ford. 

Already have a copy of Fog Valley Crush? Come out to the Mercantile anyway, it's well worth the short drive and I'll be so pleased to see you! 

Wonderful review for Fog Valley Crush on Epicurus.com - check it out by clicking here.

"Frances Rivetti has written an excellent book – Fog Valley Crush, that can only be described as one of the best new books of the year out of the Golden State," – Robert Angelone.

Help Fund Critical Roof & Home Repairs for 16 Extremely Low Income Seniors This Winter

During the intense thunder and lightning storm in the area recently, Rebuilding Together Petaluma team was relieved to know that the elders in the 53 homes it was able to repair this past year were now safe, warm and dry. RTP couldn't have done this without our community's support!

photos: Frank Simpson

And with the current storms RTP is concerned about the roof replacements and window leaks still on its list. Your donation will help accomplish critical home repairs for the 16 very low income elderly and disabled homeowners on the waiting list who have no place else to turn.

Please consider supporting Rebuilding Together Petaluma as this vital non-profit helps our neighbors stay safe warm and dry. Your contribution will have a significant impact on how a Petaluma elder with very limited income will be living this winter. Your tax deductible year end gift to RTP can be made online here: www.rtpetaluma.org

In addition to leaky roofs and other repairs, one of the most pressing needs right now is to raise $5,500 to replace a rotted bathroom, laundry room and hot water heater in a mobile home for a 79 year old woman who has been volunteering in the Petaluma community since the days of Helen Putnam. In past years she won both the Woman of the Year and the Citizen of the Year awards. Now is the time for our community to give back to her.

Donate online at www.rtpetaluma.org or call 707-765-3944 or mail to Rebuilding Together Petaluma, 402 Petaluma Boulevard North. Petaluma, CA  94952

Join Top SoCo Chef Tony Najiola from Central Market for a Special Farm to Table Demo and Dinner Fundraiser at Homeward Bound Jan 15th

Imagine an event not unlike being in studio at the Food Network: a high profile chef demonstrates his or her signature craft and you eat the food! Students at Homeward Bound of Marin are studio assistants in such that they handle all the prep work, service and cleanup.

What a brilliant idea by Homeward Bound of Marin, our neighboring county’s chief provider of shelter and services for homeless families and individuals.

One of its outstanding and innovative services is a culinary job-training program called Fresh Starts Culinary Academy. Prestigious Chef events attracting culinary stars such as Central Market, Petaluma's inimitable Tony Najiola, have evolved from this excellent training course as a way to offer hands-on experience to students as well as provide events that would be an asset for the community.

Fresh Starts Chef Events take place in The Key Room in Novato, an event venue located next to Homeward Bound's training kitchen (both opened in 2008), which was built with the express idea of having students cater events booked by outside parties.

The Key Room boasts a showcase kitchen where renown chefs from around the region and students prepare their recipes for guests to experience a chef’s demonstration and a delicious dinner.

Chefs continue to embrace this concept to present and to boost the training morale and skills of Homeward Bound students and 1oo plus seats typically do sell out. Chef Tony Najiola already  sold more than 50 seats for his Jan. 15th Farm to Table class. 

I'm looking forward to seeing one of my favorite chefs in action for this great cause across the county border. Won't you join me?  Click here to register for this upcoming January event. Dinner is included in the $55 ticket price. 

Tony at his downtown Petaluma restaurant (above) and a few of the chef's own Muleheart home Farm flock and herd (below).    

 

Make it a Murray Christmas with Black and White Photographic Portraiture by a SoCo Classic — 25 Years of Rockowitz

Photographic portraiture is a collaborative art form, a blending of style and perception with the needs and expectations of the people to be portrayed. "Bringing forth the essence of a person is the ultimate challenge in photography," says Petaluma-based photographer, Murray Rockowitz. 

I had a good catch up with Murray at the Petaluma Arts Center fundraiser this month (featuring the fab Foxes in the Henhouse). Seeings as the Arts Center is all about putting the 'S' back in Arts right now, it was the perfect time to chat about our respective crafts: writing and photography. 

Here in Petaluma I have more photographer friends than I have writer friends and that's saying something, as there are plenty of scribes in my community tribe. As with wordsmiths, photographers have such incredibly distinct styles. Murray's profound and distinguished portraits are instantly recognizable in homes and public spaces, mostly (but not only) around the North Bay.    

Photos: Murray Rockowitz

"For over 25 years, I have had the good fortune to be invited into the lives of many wonderful people, to work/play in this intimate process," says Murray. "I provide a safe, comfortable space to transcend the surface. Together we create honest, sensitive and meaningful portraits.  Encouraging a full range of personal expression to unfold, we portray the whole of the being, sometimes with a single photograph, other times with a series of images".

 Using the tradition of film and darkroom printing the magic continues. Murray makes hand crafted photographs on the finest paper available to produce silver rich Black & White prints that will live on for generations to come. 

*Watch out for upcoming information on an opportunity for you to reserve a space in a custom SEPT. 2015 FOOD, WINE & PHOTOGRAPHY - UMBRIA TOUR with guides: Suzanne Carreiro, author The Dog Who Ate the Truffle: A Memoir of Stories and Recipes From Umbria and Murray Rockowitz,  photographer.

Murray is currently accepting commissions. Contact his studio now. 

707 765-1972         128 Petaluma Blvd. N.  murray@rockowitz.com        rockowitz.com