Santa Rosa Heart of Sonoma County

This November I scoured Sonoma County to find the best holiday pie (for the sake of good blog content of course) I decided to compare pumpkin pies in particular so I could compare apples to apples or in this case pumpkins to pumpkins. I have never really been a big lover of pumpkin pie but this endeavor has changed my heart. A store bought or mass produced frozen pie can not compare to these wonderful bakery pies. The four bakeries I liked the most were from a larger sampling of restaurants and bakeries throughout the county - each that make their own pies.

My favorite bakery overall was “Costeaux French Bakery” in Healdsburg. I was pleased with the packaging for the to-go pieces of pie I ordered and they were perfectly happy to slice into whole pies from the case to let me have just one piece (I tested this willingness on a piece of blackberry pie also) I liked the texture and flavor of the filling although the crust could have been more special. The best things about this bakery that the others were lacking was a nice eating area and a great location in relevance to doing other things in the same outing. The inside of the bakery, recently remodeled, has lots of places to sit including the little outside patio area that feels a bit European without being thematic. After eating a delicious sandwich at Costeaux French Bakery, I took my pie to the nearby park square in the city’s center. It was a great way to enjoy a pleasant fall day.

I discovered a little pie shop close by in Santa Rosa that is on our list of favorites. “Betty’s Fish and Chips” is in an “on the way to somewhere else” kind of location so it can be easily missed. Don’t let the fish and chips part of Betty’s scare you away from trying the pie shop that resides next door to the fish and chips restaurant. The auxiliary bakery shop was added because the word-of-mouth about Betty’s pies created the need. They are well-known for their mini fruit pies that have the most heavenly crust and are perfectly sized for our picnic lunches we take to the nearby Spring Lake at Howarth Park. The pumpkin pie we sampled had a really nice crust and very good texture. In comparison to some of the other pies I thought it was just a little bit bland but my partner in pie sampling duties thought it was very good.

If you are looking for the prettiest pumpkin pie to impress your guests I would recommend “Michelle Marie’s Patisserie” within Montgomery Village in Santa Rosa. Michelle Marie’s Patisserie is a bakery and cafe with some really yummy bakery goods and consistently good lunch foods. Their pumpkin pie had the very best crust and an excellent texture and appearance but not as flavorful as Costeaux or Mom’s.

“Mom’s Apple Pie” in Sebastopol is a bit away from Santa Rosa (about 20 minutes) but it is fully worth the drive to experience their pumpkin pie. Our pie was served up just out of the oven; it still had little swirls of steam coming from it as we sat down in the patio area to eat it. I don’t think I will taste a better pumpkin pie - ever. Thinking maybe Mom’s had an unfair advantage because it was warm out of the oven and it had the swirling steam thing going on - we went back to give it another taste. This time we bought a whole pie and we ate it chilled; it was still the best pumpkin pie ever.

I think you will be pleased with the pumpkin pies from all of these bakeries. Try all of them while pumpkin pie is still in season. For our holiday dinner we ended up ordering a pumpkin and an apricot pie from Costeaux French Bakery in Healdsburg. We wanted an excuse to have lunch there again and walk around the little nearby park before fall slipped away.

July 15th through September 15th is prime time for picking wild blackberries in Santa Rosa and other nearby cities in Sonoma county. You can find wild blackberry vines just about anywhere you find water - even drainage ditches. My favorte blackberry bramble is at Howarth Park in Bennett Valley. Most of the vines that are easily accessible are around Spring Lake. You can pay to drive in close right by the swimming hole and snack stand area or you can park on Montgomery Drive just a few blocks east of Summerfield Road and walk about 100 feet to the paved trail that leads around the lake.

If you take your children to pick blackberries you will most likely need to sort through their berries before they are consumed. The berries that are ripe will be a little soft to the touch (or even mushy) and will come easily off the branch. The berry should be completely black. Bring wipes for purple sticky fingers and plastic bags or cups for holding your berry booty. Poison oak looks a lot like blackberry foliage and grows in similar shaded areas. in summer the poison ivy leaves are green and as the evenings get cooler in August they turn red; “leaves of three - leave them be”.

There will be lots of things to see; plan on about 2 hours for getting around Spring lake as you pick berries. There are lots of geese and ducks; If you would like to feed them, a trip to “The Wild Bird Store” for some cracked corn might be something to consider as you make plans for your day (see the map for store location). There are several scenic spots along the paved trail looking towards the lake for great picture-taking so don’t forget your camera.

After you have sorted through the berries and made sure they are all edible, you will need to rinse them. Do not rinse until just before you are ready to eat them. You will find the berries are very sensitive to pressure so handle gently. If you want to eat them at the lake, poke a few little holes in your plastic bag or cup and fill with water (don’t use lake water) and let the water drain out as you gently swirl the berries. On a hot day we like to take a handful of blackberries to use as a topping on ice cream or frozen yogurt. Our two favorite spots are on Mendocino Avenue close to the Santa Rosa College and High School. Rendez Vous Cafe is an interesting little shop that serves organic ice cream, located at 1810 Mendocino Avenue. Yogurt Farms is a very cute little shop that serves quite a variety of soft serve frozen yogurt; it is locate at 1223 Mendocino Avenue (see the map below for store locations).

For an easy baking project to share with your children, get ready-made puff pastry dough or circular sheets of pie crust dough - no rolling needed. You can get these at just about any store. In some stores it will be in the frozen section and in others it will be in the ready-made cookie dough refrigerated section.

With the puff pastry, cut sheets into squares a little over one inch wide. Next, brush with egg whites and plant a blackberry in the center. after baking for prescribed amount of time on the package, as your blackberry puffs are cooling, sprinkle with confectioner’s sugar.

For a pie or galette put one sheet of the circular pie dough sheets on a cookie sheet or in a pie tin. In the center, place your rinse, drained berries. If you do not have enough blackberries from your pickings, you can pull some blueberries out of the freezer and add those to your mix. Wild blackberries are loaded with antioxidants and even just a handful will add super powers to your galette or pie. I find the wild blackberries to be very sweet so I add very little sugar if any to the berries. After you have placed about 2 cups of berries in the center of the pie crust dough, fold the edges over one another as shown in the picture and bake as directed on the pie crust package. It takes about 25 minutes once you have the berries rinsed to the point of taking it out of the oven. It is especially delicious served warm with vanilla ice cream.

I was so anxious for berry season to start that I checked the vines often on my lake walks. The vines are beautiful in the early summer when they are covered with blossoms and young fruit. I shot lots of reference shots for possible paintings. the painting “Blackberry Pie Promise” is on 12 x 12 canvas. You can see this painting and more of my art for sale at HeideHibbard.com From October 17th through November 18th 2009 my painting will be part of a show “Imagine California” at the Kevin Milligan Gallery in Danville

Print out these maps to help you find your way for your berry picking day

Poppies bloom year round in the form of public art throughout Santa Rosa’s arts-oriented community - thanks to Art Start, a Santa Rosa student apprentice program. The Poppy art can be found along a 1 1/2 mile, round-trip, walking route. The murals, mosaic and benches make colorful backdrops for vacation picture poses. You will find lots of interesting things to see along this picturesque route.

There are several little sweet spots for coffees, breakfast, lunch or mid afternoon glass of wine at Railroad Square. The Square is about one block north of the Hyatt Vineyard Creek Hotel, at Railroad and 3rd Street, which makes it a great place to start out. To find the poppy mosaic, go just behind the Hyatt to the Prince Memorial Greenway.  The Mosaic is just about 300 feet heading west under Railroad street along the creek walking trail. After viewing the mosaic you will head east along the creek for a few blocks until you come to Mendocino ave From that point you will head north to 4th street. At 4th Street you will go east 1 1/2 block; Jeju Way (cut through) is on the north side of the street. There are several art benches there for your coffee sipping and art viewing pleasure. On your way back walk on the opposite side of the creek for a different perspective and to see more art benches.

Real life poppies are a Santa Rosa gardener’s favorite. The best yard displays can be found throughout the Bennett Valley neighborhoods of Santa Rosa. The flowers in gardens bloom until early fall but are most plentiful and beautiful between April 1st and May 10th - depending on how early spring comes to the area. Poppy wildflowers can also be seen along the hiking and biking trails, around the lakes in the sunnier areas, at the nearby Howarth Park. There are several neighborhood access points just west of Summerfield road; the main access to the park on Summerfield Road is just south of Montgomery Drive.

I recently moved to Santa Rosa and have grown to love this little city more each day as I discover it’s treasures. This is my first blog about Santa Rosa but there will be many more, as well as information and experiences to be had in the surrounding areas in Sonoma County. if you are planning a trip for an upcoming vacation check back soon to find other day activities for couples or families, in and around my new hometown.

To see more of my artwork like “Poppy Party” below, go to HeideHibbard.com From October 17th through November 18th 2009 my painting will be part of a show “Imagine California” at the Kevin Milligan Gallery in Danville