Beautiful Cordevalle Property!

Gorgeous Cordevalle Vineyard Estates Property

One of the fun aspects of my work is getting to see a variety of homes (including seeing how the other half lives). This is a beautiful home located at Cordevalle in San Martin. Located at 1285 Lions Peak Lane, some of the highlights include a French Clay Roof, Copper Gutters & Trellis, Vineyard, Stone Courtyard with Pond, Mahogany Floors & Cabinets, Gourmet Kitchen (of course), Master Suite with His & Her Bathrooms & Closets, Detached Gym, Oversize Garages plus more in this 4 Bedroom, 4 Bath Home with 4132 Square Feet and lot size a little over 2 Acres. Plus this Private Gated Community also offers Tennis, Gold, Spa & Fine Dining. Could be yours for $1,999,999! Some homes just have that special feel to them and this is one of those - shows beautiful with a comfortable, well thought out floor plan.

More Harriet's Picks - Gilroy this time!

Gilroy Favorites -

My last pick’s blog started with sushi and so shall this one. For a good sushi meal and fun atmosphere, go to Ninja Sushi, located at 715 1st Street in Gilroy. We’ve always had great food there and I enjoy the upbeat, friendly energy of the place. I also like finding (& telling people about) restaurants and places that would be hard to find on their own especially as someone new to a community. O.D.’s Kitchen is one of those places and it is “unassuming with no real atmosphere” but has great breakfasts and lunches with excellent burgers. It’s located at 28 Martin Street and it is a find. Also does take out. Victoria’s Mexican Restaurant can be found at 757 1st Street for excellent Mexican goodies. Although for super quick, we go to Super Taqueria which can also be found in Gilroy (and Morgan Hill and Hollister) at 401 East 1st Street. Their homemade beans and green & red chili salsas are excellent. Try a super burrito for a filling meal and good buy. I love a lot about Gilroy, but especially the feel of the wide streets and the mature trees. Also, there is also a lot of effort going into building up the downtown area. One of Gilroy’s big attractions of course is the yearly Garlic Festival. You have to go at least once especially if you are moving here because once you live here, you will probably end up volunteering for this event (it's a huge fundraiser for our communities). Coming this summer July 24, 25 & 26th and who doesn’t enjoy garlic? And speaking of coming soon, Gilroy will have its own Gilroy Dog Park. This is due to be finished this summer and will be located at the Las Animas Park.

Stay tuned for more area picks!

Morgan Hill High End!

High Priced Listing in Morgan Hill!

We've looked at the low end so why not look at the high end of the market (just for fun)? This property at 2400 McDonald Lane has 7550 sqare feet with 6 bedrooms and 5.5 bathrooms. It is a grand home, very elegant with more rooms that you can figure out what to do with. It is located on 21 acres (about half is usable). On the market for a mere $3,999,999 (recently reduced from$4,350,000).

While it is fun to look at what we call 'McMansions', it gives me pause about what we really value in our homes. If you could have anything in a home, what would you pick? Do you have a dream home? Do you know what your priorities are? Personally, having to clean a 7550 square foot home gives me the chills. But having 21 oak studded acres sounds very nice. So does a porch - my dream home has a big friendly porch looking over a beautiful vista! How about yours?

My Biscotti Recipe!

This coming Tuesday, the Morgan Hill office of Intero is having our yearly celebration of "Italian Day". Due to a large number of our group with an Italian heritage, we spend one day celebrating by eating great food and drinking great local (and Italian) wine. This has been a tradition for many years and as long as I have been a part of our gang. I must have some Italian in me somewhere, somehow, because I am famous for my biscotti. I usually make them around the holidays and always on Italian Day (this year being no exception). And they have their following! Since they are very time consuming and I spent about 6 hours baking today, I am sharing my recipe with you. It's not really difficult, it just takes time and love.



HARRIET'S BICOTTI


INGREDIENTS:

6 eggs
2 1/2 cups white sugar
1/2 lb butter (melted and cooled)
1 1/2 tsp anise seed (I usually use 1 Tablespoon)
6 oz nuts (pecans, walnuts or almonds)
6 oz raisins (I like golden raisins)
1 tsp vanilla
2 1/4 lbs flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
Pinch of salt

Separate six eggs and beat yolks with 1 1/4 cups sugar. Beat whites stiff and fold in 1 1/4 cups sugar gradually. Fold into egg yolk mixture and add 1/2 lb butter. Blend anise, nuts, raisins and stir in vanilla. Mix dry ingredients and fold into egg mixture gradually. (At this point I usually fold enough flour into mixture to keep it together and then I dump it all on the counter and knead it. It is too unwieldy in a bowl at this point and you really don't want to over work the dough either.) Roll dough into cylinders (1 1/2" by 8 to 10" long - I usually end up with four and bake two at a time.) Put on buttered baking sheets at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes or just beginning to be lightly browned. Remove and cut 3/4" wide at 45 degree angle. Bake 5 to 10 minutes (I bake them on each side for 5 minutes but be careful not to overcook them).

ENJOY!

Harriet's Picks

Good Finds in Morgan Hill

We had dinner at Creasian this past weekend and I was remembering when we would go to San Jose for sushi. Creasian Cuisine is located at 207 West Main Avenue not far from downtown Morgan Hill and serves excellent sushi with grace. Another favorite of ours is Vietasia at 1295 East Dunne Avenue where you can eat delicious Vietnamese salads, soups and entrees at very reasonable prices. Plus you can walk over to I Love Gelato after dinner for a sweet treat (grapefruit sorbet maybe?). Another pleasant surprise is El Rincon on East Second Street in downtown Morgan Hill. It is so small that the night we were there, the host, waiter and chef were all the same person! The chef trained at a restaurant at Santana Row and the quality is excellent. Sometimes you just need something fast however and we are not fast food folks. For quick and excellent, try Super Taqueria at 15840 South Monterey Road. We have joked about getting a job there just to figure out how they make their beans and wonderful salsas. Did you know that Morgan Hill has a wonderful Farmer’s Market on Saturday morning at Depot Street at the train station? Make sure you check out the wonderful produce, great baked goods and great energy! I’ve yet to check out D’Vine Jazz & Wine over at 775 Cochrane Road where you can listen to music while you sip good wine. However, I’ll keep you posted on my picks in South County.