I went to the Foodbuzz Festival in San Francisco last weekend, and all I got were these silly photo booth pictures with my dear friend Tracy of Shutterbean.  

Ok…. that’s entirely untrue.  

I walked away from the Foodbuzz Festival with more kitchen gear than I could carry, pockets full of fellow food blogger business cards, and a belly full of incredible food.  

A room full of food bloggers means a room full of cameras.  So many.  Rather than crowd around and take pictures of food…. I just took pictures of people taking pictures of food.  Weird.  I know.  

This also happened…

…which was extremely surprising and extremely exciting.  The fact that I ran off the stage after accepting this award adds to my charm, right?  First I blushed.  Then I stumbled a bit.  I dropped my phone.  I might have thrown in an awkward curtsy… and then I ran.  

 Thank you to every single one of you who voted for me.  Seriously, friends.  This means a lot to me.  

Also… a big, fat, wet kiss to all of the darling people at Foodbuzz who put such a belly filling event together for us.  I hella heart you Foodbuzz.  And Tracy…. we’ve had heart-to-hearts at two different blog conventions…. we’re totally friends now, like it or not. 

Five hours in Napa… ready, set, GO!

Drink wine.  Talk about tannins, body, oak barrels and finish.  Blah Blah Blaaaaahs.

Stomp around the vineyards like you own the joint (pictured above).

And stop by Fatted Calf to talk about how approachable and awesome American charcuterie can be.

More later!  Right now I’ve got more ground to stomp, and a plane to catch.

Settle in friends. You might be here a while. Come and experience the better part of 48 hours behind the camera with Joy the Baker in San Francisco.

From the Oakland Bart Station to the streets of San Francisco and back again. It’s a whirl wind trip. Hold my hand and play along.

Have you met my sister? This is Lauren. She is my San Francisco connection, and incidentally, one of my reasons for living. She’s carrying my bag, leading the way to breakfast at Citizen Cake.

Puppies and people living the good life outside of Citizen Cake on a flawless San Francisco day.

Sitting at the bar, doing it up omelet style.

I came up to San Francisco for a few reasons. My sister was having a Halloween party and insisted that I make an appearance, I love love love San Francisco, and I wanted to met up with my Foodproof friends.

Of course no party that I attend would be complete without some sort of baked yummy. For this reason, Lauren and I made Candy Bar Blondies. These beauties are the best way to consolidate and enjoy all your favorite Halloween candy. It’s just the most practical Halloween option, right!?

Candy Bar Blondies

adapted from Gourmet

Print this recipe!

2 sticks (1/2 lb) unsalted butter
2 cups packed light brown sugar
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups of your favorite candy bars, roughly chopped (We used Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, Heath Bar, and Peanut Butter M&M’s)

Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle. Butter and flour a 13- by 9-inch baking pan.

Melt butter in a 3-qt heavy saucepan over low heat, stirring, until smooth. Remove from heat and cool to lukewarm. Whisk in brown sugar and vanilla. Whisk in eggs 1 at a time until mixture is glossy and smooth.

Whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt, then whisk into butter mixture. Stir in candy pieces reserving 1/2 cup to sprinkle on top.

Spread in pan and sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup candy. Bake until a pick inserted in center comes out clean, about 35 minutes. Cool completely.

What’s this? A box of Jello? This particular box of Jello had a Jello Shot recipe printed on the back. How convenient! Trust me when I tell you that I’m simply too old for Jello Shots. Just take my word for it.

These are the neighbors we’re going to keep awake until all hours of the night with my sister’s party. As stated earlier, I’m too old for Jello Shots.

I am, however, not too old for good, clean pumpkin carving.

This fiendish smile is a sure sign of an impending party. Caution. Party. Big, crazy party.

And this is where the party began and the nights pictures ended. I’ll spare you the madness. Combine these images in your head and you’ll have an idea of how the party went: Pabst Blue Ribbon, movie projector, cute Michael Phelps, drunk Jenga, cowboy and cowgirl friends, pass the guerrilla suit, turn down the Michael Jackson or you’re going to be evicted. Where are my glasses? Seriously, where are my glasses?

Got it?

So yea. It was a good night.

The next day’s adventures took me across the bay to Oakland. Time to get my Foodproof on. I’ve mentioned Foodproof before, but allow me to do it again with more ferocity.

Meet Mitch. Mitch is one of the minds behind Foodproof, a really fun, super intuitive, easy to enjoy, new food site. Here’s Mitch videotaping (yes, that’s a tiny camera) Simon outside of an Oakland cafe.

Say hello to Simon. He’s on the other end of Mitch’s camera. Together, Mitch and Simon are Taste Buds- hilarious friends who eat and talk about it on camera. They’re relaxed, they’re fun, they’re unintentionally hilarious. Check out One Day’s Eating with Simon. There’s a kitty and a cookie… and I’ll leave you with that.

If you don’t yet support Foodproof, what are you waiting for!?

This concludes this installment of 48 hours behind the camera with Joy the Baker. I’m living the good life. Thanks for being a part of it. Really, thanks.

]]> http://www.joythebaker.com/blog/2008/10/48-hours-with-joy-the-baker/feed/ 19 http://www.joythebaker.com/blog/2008/06/bakers-day-off-san-francisco/ http://www.joythebaker.com/blog/2008/06/bakers-day-off-san-francisco/#comments Mon, 09 Jun 2008 05:32:12 +0000 joythebaker http://www.joythebaker.com/blog/?p=98

Has the Baker had too many days off recently?  

Forgive me, but with such beautiful mild summer weather, I can’t bear to keep myself in the kitchen.  

With the spirit of summer under my wings, I took an overnight trip up to San Francisco to visit my darling sister.  She’s a bartender at Citizen Cake in San Francisco’s Hayes Valley.  

Citizen Cake is a great place to get a unique dish without staring at your plate, wondering what the the hell happened.  It’s a creative and still approachable culinary experience.

Powdered Sugar Dusted Donut Balls are served warm with a fresh raspberry and sugar glaze dipping sauce.

An Omelette with Chick Peas, Fava Beans and Asparagus.   Tasted like a fresh from the garden breakfast.  

Warm biscuits with scallions.  Hard to tell if they were sweet or savory.  The sweetness really came through and made these biscuits amazing.  Simple and delicious!

The view from my bar stool.