Paris

Just returned from 8 days in Paris and am all topsy turvy with jet lag. I look forward to sharing more pictures and stories, but for now, I just wanted to put this out there.

Ah, Paris- you are more beautiful than I ever thought you could be.

spring picnic days

We had a spate of gorgeously sunny weather this past weekend. Even I, a devout rainy gray day lover, was lulled into happiness by the streaming sunshine. Yes, even living in Southern California the first warm spring days are cherished- leaving a certain giddy optimism in the air. On a Saturday morning walk with Harriet we stopped and sniffed roses and sweet peas; wished good morning to our neighbors and said hello to lots of other dogs (turns out, Harriet is a very social dog. She insists on it.)

In the afternoon, I baked a ham. The spur of the moment, post-Easter purchase fed us for a couple of days. Saturday evening, a large wedge accompanied us to dinner at a friends house. It was a casual, laid back supper of darn near perfection- our friends brought out a large cutting board on which we artfully arranged wedges of beautiful cheese, prosciutto, salami, small dishes of mustard, and different crackers. On the side, an arugula salad, a cold lemon basil pea salad and slices of the ham. It was such a happy little feast with friends and made me resolve to eat similarly more often.

The next day, I assembled the little plate above for my lunch: ham, smear of mustard, cornichons, Aknak crackers, narrow wedges of cheese, and a cabbage slaw. I enjoyed it in between loads of laundry and a run to Target. Not a glamorous day, but it was momentarily elevated by a thoughtful meal.

The cabbage slaw was quickly assembled in between errands. We recently began getting a weekly box of organic veggies. This weeks box included lovely little crowns of red cabbage and of green cabbage and a very young red onion (okay, so I do not know all the farming words, but the onion looked fresh and young, not old and worn out.)

The slaw recipe is from Alice Waters cookbook, "The Art of Simple Food." Our weekly veggie box has pushed me to a new understanding of eating seasonally and I confess that I now regularly consult Ms. Water's book for direction on fruits and vegetables new to me. Her writing is very approachable and conversational (see below.) Under her tutelage, I am learning about the importance of a good vinaigrette.

Coleslaw

Tear off and discard the tough outer leaves of:
1 small cabbage
Cut into quarters and remove the core. Turn cut side down and slice crosswise into thin shreds.

Mix together in a large bowl with:
1/2 sliced red onion, sliced as thin as possible
salt

Prepare a vinaigrette by mixing together:
1 tablespoon cider or wine vinegar
salt
fresh-ground black pepper

Stir to dissolve the salt and then whisk in:
4 tablespoons olive oil

Taste for acid and salt and adjust as desired. Pour the dressing over the cabbage and onions and mix well. Taste again for salt and acid. Eat right away or let sit for awhile to let the flavors permeate and the cabbage soften.

daffodils in Spring

For the past few years, I have taken a spring trip to visit my older sister in Seattle. It is one of my favorite weekends of the year. We have the best time just being together and adventuring around. She is a phenomenally creative and amazing person. I return home charged up and full of love. Sadly, this spring the trip did not work out.

As the weeks go on, I find myself missing our time together more and more.
Which is why this morning I dug up pictures of our visit to the daffodil fields in Skagit Valley- a seemingly endless sea of golden yellow.

 

I also met this lovely cow (bull?) I think it must be a pretty nice life to live next to daffodil fields.

 Look at the eyelashes! (Yes, I got a little closer to the cow/bull than my sister would've liked.)

roasted grape tomatoes

There is no shortage of ways to enjoy these tomatoes. Friends of ours serve home grown grape tomatoes straight from the skillet as a side dish on summer nights. Ina Garten roasts them in the oven to accompany steak. In our house we love to serve them as part of a British breakfast: roasted tomatoes, sautéed mushrooms, hash brown cakes, scrambled eggs, toast, and plenty of hot hot coffee.

I also love them as pictured here- piled on toasted bread with cream cheese. The sweet jammy-ness of the tomatoes is a wonderful contrast to the cream cheese and toasted bread. We are still a long ways off from tomato season but I find roasting kicks up the flavor of the tomatoes we do have available now.

I hope you try them yourself and find new ways to enjoy (tossed with pasta, tucked into grilled cheese sandwiches...)

roasted grape tomatoes

1 pint grape tomatoes
1 tablespoon olive oil
kosher salt
fresh cracked pepper
dried thyme


1) Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2) In a cast iron skillet, toss whole tomatoes with olive oil, salt, pepper and a pinch of dried thyme.

3) Roast in the oven for 30-35 minutes, until skins burst and just begin to char at the edges. While in the oven, give the pan a shake every once in a while to keep the tomatoes from sticking.

gray and yellow: yarn vase still life

There is pleasure in creating, even when it is as simple as taking an old jar, wrapping with yarn, and filling with flowers. Recently, inspired by an image found on pinterest, I assembled the above vignette.  It turned out to be a happy little scene to greet us all week long.

The yellow ranunculus' practically vibrate with color. Against the gray palette, they seem to glow.

I always look forward to the arrival of daffodils.

I stacked up gray books to give height variation. The small white pebbles are from a favorite beach back home. The grapefruit candle is from here.

I picked different gray yarns for the vases- thick wool, cotton, etc. Some of the yarn was easier to apply than others. The thick yarn covered a multitude of crafting mistakes, while the skinny yarn was a bit trickier. To make the vases, I simply liberally applied Elmers glue to a clean glass jar and wrapped the yarn around and around until the jar was covered. (If it is not evident enough from the visible errors in the vase pictures, I will say that I am not a terribly crafty person, which is why I have not even attempted my own tutorial on making yarn vases. I am sure there are some excellent ones already out there, like this one.)

I like the juxtaposition of textures between the smooth petaled flowers and the nubby yarn.

I also think these vases would be a great (inexpensive) table decoration for a spring baby or bridal shower- there are a myriad of options between matching yarn and florals. They would also be lovely on an Easter buffet table.

Harriet is starting to become quite the little photo bomber.

chocolate chocolate hazelnut cookies

I really love the combination of chocolate and hazelnut. I know I am not alone in this and there exists already a plethora of chocolate hazelnut concoctions and recipes to satisfy but I submit this one more: the chocolate chocolate hazelnut cookie.

In addition to really loving the combination of chocolate and hazelnut, I really love a good unpretentious drop cookie. Now days it's all french macaroons and fancy cupcakes (which I adore as well) but sometimes it is nice when just a straightforward drop cookie comes along. I have noticed hardly anyone is making them from scratch anymore. I think me and you, friends, we should start a drop cookie revolution.

I made these cookies on Saturday. I had already created a doozy of a to-do list but in the slump of the afternoon (post Ikea visit- need I say more?) I snubbed my to-do list in favor of the kitchen and this batch of cookies.

The original recipe is from Ina Garten. I adapted it because The Barefoot Contessa includes white chocolate chips. I disagree with her on very few points in life and white chocolate is one of them. Instead I add to the chocolate dough base 2 (2!) bags of semi sweet chocolate chips and 1 1/2 cups of rough chopped hazelnuts. The result is more like eating a candy bar than a cookie and I am perfectly okay with that.

chocolate chocolate hazelnut cookies

1/2 pound unsalted butter at room temperature
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 extra-large eggs at room temperature
2/3 cup good unsweetened cocoa
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 12 oz. bags semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups rough chopped hazelnuts

1) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2) Cream the butter and two sugars until light an fluffy in the bowl of an electric mixer with the paddle attachment. Add the vanilla, then the eggs, one at a time, and mix well. Add the cocoa and mix again.

3) Sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt and add to the chocolate with the mixer on low speed until just combined. Fold in the chocolate chips and hazelnuts.

4) Drop the dough on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, using a 1 3/4-inch ice cream scoop or a rounded tablespoon. Dampen your hands and flatten the dough slightly.

5) Bake for exactly 15 minutes (the cookies will seem underdone- listen to wise Ina on this one. Otherwise, hockey puck cookies.) Remove from the oven and let cool slightly in the pan, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

This cookie should really be served with a glass of milk. Also good with coffee for breakfast.

Sunday afternoon biscuits

It is a rainy gray afternoon. The puppy is snuggled up sleeping on the couch. I am bouncing between books (my usual habit) and right now that includes revisiting Anne of Green Gables. It has been a few years since my last reading but I never fail to be charmed by the scenery, the characters, the pitch-perfect language.

Inspired by all of this and wanting a cozy afternoon at home, I settled on making a batch of biscuits. It is Ina Garten's recipe. I omitted the chives to better pair the biscuits with a small jar of raspberry jam I brought back with me from my last visit home. Whenever I read Anne, I feel a distinct lack of good preserves in my life and an urgent sense to remedy it.

From the picture you can see I did not cut the biscuits into rounds. Instead, once I patted the dough into a rectangle shape, I simple cut it into smaller rectangles. In this way, they could be considered lazy Sunday afternoon biscuits. Or maybe just greedy Sunday afternoon biscuits, as I did not want to lose one scrap of butter flaked dough.

Biscuits

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 pound (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, diced
3/4 cup half-and-half
1/2 cup chopped fresh chives or fresh parsley (optional)
1 egg mixed with 1 tablespoon water, for egg wash

1) Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

2) Combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add the butter and mix on low speed until the butter is the size of peas.

3) With the mixer on low, add the half-and-half and beat until just mixed. Add the chives (if using) and mix until just combined.

4) Dump the dough out on a well-floured board and knead lightly into a rectangle 3/4 inch thick. Cut out rounds with a 2 1/2 inch round cutter and place on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Brush with the egg wash.

5) Bake for 20 to 22 minutes, until the tops are browned and the insides are firm. Serve warm.