in the library 12.28.09

This Christmas I found some great books for my collection under the tree. Unfortunately my scanner is out of commission until late January (technical difficulties with Windows 7) so we're going to do this the old fashion way...

My book pick this week has nothing to do with design, but I would be doing a great disservice to my readers if I didn't share. It's called Vefa's Kitchen and it's all Greek to me.

With recipes like cracked potato tossed in coriander and cheese pastitsio, this book truly is the bible of Greek Cooking! I'm inspired just by looking at the gorgeous photos.

Many of the recipes are surprisingly simple. I guess that's the beauty of Greek food: simple, natural and delicious. Everything has a 'thrown together' feel to it, something that inspires my earth-mother sensibilities.

I can't wait to try some of these recipes, though to be honest it will mostly be David doing the real cooking...I'll probably stick to the lentils and rice. Either way, this book is a must have for your library.

inspired by...

Julian, California

It's the perfect time of year to visit the sweet little town filled that makes it's living from apples and antiques. Julian is famous for it's apple pies (and cider doughnuts and apple butter), which are amazing, but we were there to take in the view. The weather was cold, making it a perfect walk up and down the small streets of the town. It was exactly what we needed for a little rest and relaxation last weekend.

here is a view of downtown, seen from the cemetery. It really is that small and yet somehow the line was out the door at every pie shop on the block!

driving on the windy roads you get a vista of mountains, hills and the desert in the distance. I was so taken by the burnt trees from the somewhat recent San Diego fires, especially this one. Hollowed out by fire but still standing, I find this absolutely beautiful!

I picked these cool antique cups up at a shop on the main street. I'm told they are over 100 years old...guess I have some research to do.

We wandered into this store off the main drag, filled with wall to wall yarn of every color and combination imagineable.

And it wouldn't be a trip to Julian without stopping at the Pie Company. We brought home lots of goodies to share with our guests on Thanksgiving too.

To plan your own getaway to Julian, visit the Chamber of Commerce.

The Menu

This week I've been menu planning for our Thanksgiving feast. We will be serving turkey, but we mostly stick to vegetarian fare in our home so I'm on the lookout for interesting twists on traditional veggie dishes, and I've come across some awesome recipes that I just had to share.

For Starters
This sounds delicious, simple and it's pretty cute (the perfect combo). Recipe is from the October issue of Southern Living.

A new spin on the classics:
Carrot Soufle

recipe from House Beautiful

Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Mushrooms & Spinach

from Sunset Magazine. Click here for the recipe

Browned Butter and Hazelnut Mashed Potatoes, also from Sunset mag

And for the morning after...

French Toast Bread Pudding! This is a Barefoot Contessa recipe from a recent issue of House Beautiful. I'll be serving this with fresh squeezed orange juice mimosas. Yum.

If you want a recipe for anything that wasn't included or linked let me know and I'll send it to you. Happy cooking!

in the library 11.16.09

I'm still a-buzz with excitement over hosting Thanksgiving this year! This week I will be working on planning my menu, so The New Thanksgiving Table is a perfect book to add to the library. It has some beautiful food images, but the bread and butter (pardon the pun) are the amazing recipes inside.

Check it out.

Find it at Amazon, along with these other holiday books:

Thanksgiving 101: Celebrate America's Favorite Holiday with America's Thanksgiving Expert

Williams-Sonoma Entertaining: Thanksgiving Entertaining

Betty Crocker Complete Thanksgiving Cookbook

Farm to Table

Check out this great article on what to do with those seasonal finds at the farmer's market, courtesy of the daily green.





What's in Season at the Farmers' Market?

get your weekend started early

This is a great article posted today on the Daily Green, with recipes and ideas on cocktails you can literally whip up from your backyard.

Organic Cocktails: I Grew It in the Garden, Then Drank It with Booze

End of Summer Party

Labor Day usually signals the end of summer (and the use of white pants and shoes) but it doesn't mean that you have to give up that laid back summer attitude. Give your grill and patio furniture one last go-round before the weather starts to turn with an end of summer party.

fretwork glass and wood tray, Dransfield & Ross
ceramic take-out dishes, Lorena Barrezueta
black and white table runner, plum party
natural oval baskets, plum party
tree towels, Branch Handmade
strawberry angel food trifle, epicurious - recipe
frosted glasses, vivaterra
parmesan roasted butternut squash, epicurious - recipe

spotlight on: Austin, TX

It seems that, in spite of the economy, people are still doing a fair but of travel this year. I myself have been dreaming of a mini-break to Austin and it seems like I'm not alone - almost every magazine I look at these days has a travel guide for the live music capital of the world.

This image, from a recent issue of Southern Living, really fueled the fire. The first thing I thought was that it looks like the French Riviera, the place that my summer vacation dreams are made of.

The aptly named Oasis, is a restaurant overlooking Lake Travis. It features live music most evenings and a spectacular view of the sunset. Oh how I wish I was there right now...

To plan a best of Austin vacation, check out some of these travel guides
Southern Living, Weekend Itinerary
Design Sponge, Austin Design Guide
Austin Visitor's Bureau
Austin's 10 Best

Martha Stewart Cupcake Contest

I know this is a design blog but technically these fall under well-designed food. Plus, they are just too cute and I'm a total sucker for anything cake.

Martha Stewart is doing a cupcake contest to promote her newest book, Martha Stewart's Cupcakes. To enter, upload a photo a your best-dressed cupcakes and you may just win a copy of her new book. Here are a few of my favorites so far.

organic wine country

One of the must-do activities while in Santa Barbara is to visit wine country (no argument there). I was very pleasantly surprised to find that there are now a number of organic and biodynamic wineries-so many, in fact, that we could not see all of them in a day. So, once settled into our hotel room I sat down with the wine map and charted our course through organic wine country.

We ended up visiting three: Presidio's tasting room in Solvang, Beckman and Sunstone. Each place was very different and we had ourselves a day of fun and education. What could be better than that?

the tasting room at Sunstone

my hubby in the wine vault

If you want to know more about organic wines, here is a great article from the daily green. It gives a nice short breakdown of sustainable wines and their differences.

Organic Wine - Biodynamic Wine - Organic Wines - thedailygreen.com