Sonoma Race & Uncle Ronnie

Quite the busy past couple weeks, and what a great time they were.

You may know in my past I cooked for Jeg Coughlin Jr. for 8 years. I traveled with his team and cooked for them while they were testing the car or at a race. It was always exciting and fun. Jeg made his pro-stock debut in Sonoma this year and asked me to cook for he and his crew. I also got to cook for Erica Enders and her crew because both teams were part of Elite Motorsports run by Richard Freeman. If you know Richard… you know we had fun!

Cooking for 30 people at a racetrack can be a little challenging especially if it is just once in a while. When I traveled with Jeg, I new exactly what to expect weekly, I cooked in a custom built kitchen and I could almost cook blindfolded because I knew where every utensil was in the kitchen. This was a little more challenging because it was my first time with this set up. It all worked out and was a success.

Uncle Ronnie came to town to help out and be part of the fun. He used to come to the races all the time when I traveled with Jeg. He would sometimes even travel with the team. He loves racing and racing loves him. I call him uncle, but he is not my real uncle. He is my mom’s first cousin. Everyone at the track knows him as Uncle Ronnie. It’s great when he comes because he can fix anything. This time, he helped customize the oven so I could cook pizzas. He and Randy (Jeg’s right hand man) definitely took care of me.

So, pizzas, floats, homemade cinnamon rolls, BBQ, etc… were a few of the items on the menu over the few days. The deep-dish meatball pizza was a hit and one of my favorites to make. I loaded it with whole meatballs.

After having an amazing few days at the track, Uncle Ronnie and I headed to San Francisco Monday for some good times. We hit Fisherman’s Wharf, China Town and Little Italy.

Mitzi and I met with Jeg, Samantha, Carly and Woody Tuesday night for dinner at Pietros #1 Italian restaurant in Vacaville. Joe Murdaca (the owner) took good care of us. It seemed like we had one of everything on the menu.

This week has been amazing too. Mitzi and I took a day and headed to Point Reyes for a little picnic. I recommend putting this place on your bucket list. I think I will leave it on mine because I want to go back. There is no way you can appreciate the whole place in one day.