Happy 16th Birthday Lauren: Apples, Apple Butters, Apple Pies and... Sushi?

First off, my little sister is SIXTEEN!!!! 

Crazy, I am 10 years older than her so that means I am almost 26... does that mean I am soon to be in my late 20s... OH NO! 

Anyways I can't believe she is now old enough to drive! I am so impressed with the young lady she has grown to be, but she will always be little Lo Lo to me. 

When asked what she wanted to do for her birthday she said, go midnight black friday shopping, then join us up to apple hill, and then sushi for dinner! And we did exactly that. 

No pictures from shopping, thank God. 

But after we "napped" we headed up to Apple Hill for some delicious treats, great scenery, and a brief visit with some Santa Barbara friends. 

  

THIS IS THE WINNER OF THE DAY: WALKING PIE! 

(below)

Who wouldn't want a pie that is completely surrounded by crispy, flaky, buttery crust? And free ice cream, we scored!

After we ate dessert for lunch we headed home for a bit to relax before we went to Mikuni for dinner. 

This has been my favorite sushi restaurant since I was about 16! And I couldn't pass up getting a picture with my little brother and my favorite dishes, Citrus Blossom and the Incredible Roll.  

So long for now Sacramento, watch out Lauren Craig is on the road! 

Why hello NOR-CAL!

At the beginning of July (sorry, so late), I took the 6 hour road trip north to Sacramento to visit my family!  My grandparents from Colorado were in town for the weekend.  This was the first time the whole family was under one roof in a LONG time!

I had an amazing time bonding with my brother and sister, eating and more eating.  I wouldn't call the food I ate paleo, but I would say it was tasty!  I did a little (actually A LOT) of off-roading this weekend!

Bryan & I on the way to the River Cat's game

Jack's Urban Eats! One of my favorite places in Sacramento.  Great tri-tip sandwiches and I don't know why it took me reading Baked Bree to find these Urban Fries!!! Sweet potato fries with Creamy Ranch, Blue Cheese, Chili Oil

Lauren & I at the River Cat's Game

My Mom's house from high school! Oh the memories! 

Making homemade pork sausage with Bryan!  He was a pro!

California State Fair

FFA Animal Show - I wanted to take one of these well raised animals home, but where would I store it in my 1 bedroom loft? 

The one thing you can't leave the fair without! Fresh Baked Cinnamon rolls! 

Yes, I did leave with a stomachache, my gut wasn't ready for this trip.  It is a tough fight between my taste buds and my gut.  My taste buds usually will win on vacation and my gut wins the rest of the time!  

Vegan Moments...

The last few days, not trying to, I started to eat like a Vegan! Please don't be confused, I will never be a full time Vegan, but I don't mind exploring!

Monday morning before I left Sacramento, my mom and I had breakfast at Orphan Breakfast House.  This place was busy for a weekday, but I understand why, it was fabulous! So you are probably looking a the pictures of our food below and saying that isn't Vegan, well you are right, not everything.  But my Omelet had soy chorizo, which I would call a Vegan food.  While enjoying my somewhat vegan omelet, I sipped on Coffee Con Panna, a fancy name for coffee with whipped cream.  I am a huge whipped cream fan, and this was just delicious! My mom ordered the G. F. Y. (Granola Fruit Yogurt), which was very good, and it was beautiful.  She also had the Banana-Blackberry Smoothie, and she would highly recommend it. 

Next vegan moment, this time it really was vegan! To thank my friend Austin for picking me up at the airport, I treated him to dinner at Native in Culver City.  I was very overwhelmed by all the options on the menu, I decided to go with the Nuevo Native Nachos.  This colorful plate included everything you would want on Nachos (the non-vegan ones), but this time it was meat free.  I loved all the fresh fresh ingredients, but the most interesting part of these was the cheese.  Native cheese is made from nuts blended up into a creamy mixture which topped a chip full of beans, salsa, Native meat, great!

(But I slight missed my melted, greasy cheese, have you ever been to Freeb!rds in Isla Vista?)

Last, on Tuesday night I met my girl friend Danielle at Adama in downtown Santa Barbara.  We are both new at the whole vegan thing, so we asked for suggestions.  My friend Mark, who's mother owns Adama suggested the Panang Curry and the bartender recommended the Vegan "KFC."  We had to also order the Buffalo "Hots!" We both love wings, so we had to test out the vegan version.

The "Hots" were delicious and spicy, and the ranch was AMAZING!  I am very picky about my ranch and this stuff was good!  The KFC, was crispy and tender and I feel like it is really hard to tell the difference from a real chicken nugget and a "vegan" chicken, I think the vegan may be better.  The Panang Curry, was great, it was probably the most obvious vegan dish of the night, veggies and tofu, but tasty.  Finally, I saved the best for last.... DRUM ROLLLLLLL...

THE CARROT CAKE!  Please someone buy this cake for me, maybe for my birthday, your birthday, or hey, Easter is coming up.  This cake is delicious and you won't miss a thing because it is vegan. I don't even think you will know it is vegan, you will just know you are eating one of the best slices of carrot cake!