lake tahoe volkswagen roadtrip: memorial day weekend, 2017.

this is lake tahoe.

ain't she a beaut!!?!?!?

^^^ one night during our road trip we stayed at this cute airbnb on the north end of lake tahoe! it was like a treehouse/lakehouse wonderland. not really a treehouse, but felt like one. it had SO much character and the big porch and view were just amaHzing.

our trip started out cruising through oregon where we stopped at caldera brewing in ashland. 

^^^this photo is the lay of the land around the brewery. loved it.

and their food & beer is delicious!! i definitely recommend stopping there if you're passing through southern oregon.

^ waitress gal said my salad might fly away because it gets really windy out there. lol.

helloooooo mt. shasta!

driving by shasta is so cool...its just RIGHT there.

^ random photos from a place we had breakfast burritos & beermosas, and then sierra nevada brewing company for our second visit. we also stopped here headed home during our road trip down highway 101 a couple years ago.

camping at oroville lake, california. those are "floating campsites" for rent, aka little house boats.

cheddar bus was having a great time on her first big trip of the year.

we thought this was lake tahoe at first.. we were both like hmmmm it must just look reeally far away from up here.....

^ it was actually donner lake. it was pretty!

then we found tahoe for suuuuuure. iss huuuuge!

we got suuuper lucky with a first-come first-served campsite at fallen leaf lake right near tahoe. super lucky. we thought for sure we'd just be sleeping on the side of the road.

i'd tried to book campsites at tahoe like 3 months prior to this trip, and they were ALLLL booked. i reckon people are booking these spots a year in advance.

but fallen leaf lake was gorgeous and the campground was great and we were happy.

see? happy camper pete totally in his element.

tahoe! so blue you are!

seriously gorgeous everywhere you look. it all feels mediterranean.

but the water did not feel mediterranean. it was collllllllld cold cold.

our airbnb at crystal bay! hellooooooooo i could have sat out on that porch for the rest of my life.

lake life perfection.

we went on a really fun kayaking journey that ended up in a not so fun full submersion into the ice cold lake (twice) with all our belongings and cell phones. i won't name the name of the two-time kayak flipper, but lets just say i was veryverymad.

^ is it totally weirdo to take pics of a stranger's shower? i liked her southwest vibes + plant motif.

and suddenly, snow! on the way out of tahoe.

^ weirdass middle of nowhere spooky shoe tree.

^ most of northern california & southern oregon looks something like this. this is the part of the drive where you go straight looney toon and lose yer mind.

so then you stop to let the bus cool down, drink a brewski, and take a whiz on the side of a highway.

^^ this photo is so forrest gump to me and i love it. because pete & forrest are my faves.

the last night we stumbled upon odell lake in oregon, which was a stellar random find and perfect timing as the sun was setting! this was princess creek campground.

as usual, these trips are so so fun but go by so so fast. the cheddar bus did great with no issues this time. busdriver pete did great, too!  love ya bof!

previous memorial day weekend volkswagen road trips:

here, to utah!

and here, down the west coast to san francisco!

all photos taken on my iphone 6.

qp

blackberry sprinkle ice cream.

hubba hubba.

my gurlfriends & i were obsessed with this one flavor of ice cream at molly moon's in seattle a looong time ago now. like 8 (!!) years ago. we'd stand in that damn line wrapped around the corner on a hot summer's day to get it. it was called bumberberry and it was for the bumbershoot music festival. all i remember of it was there was blackberry involved and sprinkles!

and bbbbbboyyy was it durn good. i've been thinking about it for about 8 years and needed to take this matter into my own hands.

oh, the woes of special edition goods.

thanks molly moon's of yesteryears for the inspiration!!

this is a super straightforward small-batch recipe. you do need an ice cream maker to churn it, though. 

just need to combine all the ingredients in a bowl and pour them into the ice cream maker!  mash & simmer some fresh blackberries on the stove with a touch of sugar. 

THE COLOR IS AMAZING.

best believe i gobbled up most of my props here. shooting ice cream is hard & stressful, haha. that clock is ticking with the melting factor.

i'm going to experiment with eggs & other thickening agents in ice cream recipes, but this one is super simple & egg-free. i recommend letting it sit out for about 10 minutes before trying to scoop it. 

but i mean... yurrrrrmmm. so refreshing. sprinkles just for lookzies. & crunchiez.

perfect kick off to summer! so so good on a sugar cone, too.

Blackberry Sprinkle Ice Cream

Makes about 5 cups

Active Time: 30 minutes // Total Time: 4-8 hours

Ingredients:

• 1 cup whole milk
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1/3 cup white sugar
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 12 oz. fresh blackberries (about 1 1/2 cups of blackberry sauce)
• 1 TB. coconut oil
• 1 TB. brown sugar
• 1/4 cup colored sprinkles (coat in a bit of powdered sugar)

Instructions-

Freeze the bowl of your ice cream maker for 24 hours before beginning.

Combine the whole milk, heavy cream, white sugar, vanilla and salt in a bowl or pyrex with a pour-spout and whisk.  Pour the liquids into the ice cream maker and turn on. Churn for 20 minutes.

While the ice cream is churning, heat a large pan on medium-low heat with a big tablespoon of coconut oil. Rinse the blackberries well and add them to the melted coconut oil. Mash with a potato masher or large fork. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of brown or white sugar over the berries and a pinch of salt. Let the berries simmer for about 5-10 minutes to release the juices. 

After 20 minutes of churning, add the blackberry sauce to the ice cream maker. Churn for 10 more minutes. Coat the sprinkles in a little bit of powdered sugar. Add to the ice cream maker and churn for a couple more minutes, just until the sprinkles are incorporated. 

Transfer the ice cream to a parchment lined baking pan or glass container and freeze for at least 4-8 hours. Let the ice cream sit for about 10 minutes before scooping.

ENJOY!!!

qp