Happy Birthday, Dear Georgia

O'Keeffe, Two Pink Shells

Today, Georgia O'Keeffe would have been 125 years old.  She is perhaps one of the most misunderstood painters of the twentieth century.  All too often, critics and historians attempt to alter her abstractions into something she never intended (but how can we really ever know what she intended).  

While the temptation to see things buried within her shapes will always challenge viewers, I appreciate Georgia's work on a purely  aesthetic level.  Her soft colors and crisp lines enchant me.  From the time I first copied her sunflowers in elementary school until I wrote my master's thesis about The Lawrence Tree, Ms. O'Keeffe has occupied a very special place in my creative mind.  

John Loengard’s 1967 portrait

Pretty Monday: Cookbooks

The Food of Spain...is delicioso!

Ahem...yes, darlings, I realize we are but a few mere hours away from Tuesday, but my Monday was not especially pretty.  Be it late, here are some pretties for your Monday (or Tuesday or Wednesday)...

One of Miss Dahl's Delights

On a lazy afternoon, one of my favorite pastimes is slowly meandering through a lavishly illustrated cookbook.  Sure, the old Larousse Gastronomique or Mastering the Art of French Cooking are invaluable to cooks for their methods and steps and advice...in other words: words.  But, the cookbooks I like best are those with glorious photos.  As an inherently visual being and an always-hungry one, books brimming with beautiful photographs transport me.  We eat with our eyes first, right? 

A Sense of Place: Le Terroir

"I like to think about the life of wine.  How it's a living thing. I like to think about what was going on the year the grapes were growing; how the sun was shining; if it rained. I like to think about all the people who tended and picked the grapes. And if it's an old wine, how many of them must be dead by now. I like how wine continues to evolve, like if I opened a bottle of wine today it would taste different than if I'd opened it on any other day, because a bottle of wine is actually alive. And it's constantly evolving and gaining complexity." -Maya in Sideways

In the cellars at Zaca Mesa winery

Le terroir is a most wonderful French concept.  Loosely translated, the term means "a sense of place," but in actuality, it is so much more.

Sugar & Spice

“This is my invariable advice to people: Learn how to cook- try new recipes, learn from your mistakes, be fearless, and above all have fun!” 
― Julia Child, My Life in France

My dad is the culinary expert in my family.  He is a fearless cook who leads with instinct rather than recipes.  In my thirty years as his daughter, I can only think of one time when I didn't love what he served (the infamous puréed tuna Niçoise of 1997).  Generally though, when I'm stumped in the kitchen, I call dad.  He always know exactly what to do.  What should I add to this chicken dish?  Which herb suits sautéd green beens?  What is the perfect way to poach an egg?  

Pretty Monday: For the Table

Thanksgiving is just three weeks away.  If you're hosting this biggest of all dinner parties, while menu planning and taste testing, take a break to imagine something pretty on your table.

A cozy farm house table with benches & cozy blankets

A Persimmon & A Parsnip

A Persimmon and a parsnip walk into a bar...wait, no, that's not it.  Let's just say a persimmon and a parsnip are sitting on your kitchen counter.  What to do, what to do? 

I grew up an apples and oranges kind of kid.  Though my parents did try to expose me to unique foods, we really didn't have that many exotic fruits or veggies in rural Missouri in the eighties.  I don't think I had a mango until college.  Shocking, I know.  Life without mangos is very sad. 

Flowers for Friday (and chocolate too!)

“All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn't hurt.” 
― Charles M. Schulz

Another week of hard work has passed.  Time to celebrate the weekend with people you love.  Today I treated myself thrice---why stop with a bunch of ruffled tulips when you can also indulge in a bottle of vino and some dark chocolate? 

A Sun-drenched Elsewhere

“Now more than ever do I realize that I will never be content with a sedentary life, that I will always be haunted by thoughts of a sun-drenched elsewhere.” 
― Isabelle Eberhardt, The Nomad

All Hallows' Eve

May your Halloween be filled with tricks, treats, sweets and treasures.  Enjoy the spookiest of holidays and the magic of autumn.  Eat, drink and be scary, my friends! 

Le Halloween

Halloween ("l'alowine!") is certainly not a major (or even minor) holiday en France.  Perhaps you'll find a pumpkin carving kit in a market or a store front decked out in spooky style, but the French seems far less enthusiastic about Halloween than us Americans.  

Pretty Monday: Autumn by the Brush

Vincent Van Gogh

With the array of warm colors in autumn, it's no wonder artists of the nineteenth century often paused to paint fallen leaves or architectural arbors.  Autumn makes us pensive.  It causes us to consider inevitable change both in the natural world and in our lives.  Bright orange and red leaves juxtaposed next to crisp blue skies, ethereal and hazy sunlight make fall visually stunning and emotionally moving. Here are some of the loveliest looks at autumn in art history. 

On Motherhood & The Pursuit of Happiness

Try as I might to be optimistic and sunshiny, sometimes life spirals evermore out of control and I just want to curl upon the couch with a blanket and a Bridget Jones movie and a bottomless bowl of peanut butter M&Ms.  In recent weeks, it seems that sickness and sadness have been around ever corner.  Though I'm not quite sure my funk is over, I need to take today to celebrate some happy moments. 

A Taste for Nature

Today has been cool and overcast and lovely.  We spent our morning at the second pumpkin patch of the season.  Each pumpkin patch we've visited this year has a little collection of farm animals to expose these cloistered Southern California kiddos to some creatures they don't ordinarily see.  I adore watching my daughter and the other children giggle in delight as goats say "maaaaa" and ducks waddle throughout their little temporary Halloween homes.  

Flowers for Friday

Finally after weeks of lingering summer, the weather has turned crisp and cool in Southern California.  Yesterday after our first good rain since spring, my little one and I walked through the park, feeling the bright sun on our faces, listening to the winds rustling the changing leaves and noticing that unmistakable, diffused autumn light.  

To celebrate this welcome shift in temperature and seasons, I've adorned my table today with autumnal mums and bright green hypernicum berries.  Don't forget to treat yourselves to a cheery pumpkin or fall flowers today.  Harvest those last few perfect days before chilly winter blows into our lives yet again.  Happy weekend, my dears!

Brunching: The Ramos House Café

I've said before how much I adore brunch.  I love a meal where both sweet and savory foods share the spotlight, a meal where the whole day is still ahead, a meal where coffee and champagne are both sipped with pleasure.  Yesterday my sweet hubby and I brunched for our anniversary at perfect local spot in San Juan Capistrano. 

The Perfect Pear Spice Cake

 

My husband declares when I make him something new, "this is the best _________ I have ever had!"  I love this about him. His enthusiastic endorsements of my baking efforts keep me cooking and keep his belly full.  Yesterday with a bowl of ripening baby Bosch pears sitting on the counter, I was determined to make something different, something to celebrate the arrival of autumn. 

The Season I Love

“Autumn...the year's last, loveliest smile.”
― William Cullen Bryant

Even though it has been nearly ninety degrees here in California, I cannot resist a celebration of the autumnal equinox.  Here's what I'd love to do this fall: walk with radiant fallen leaves underfoot, sip cider by a crackling fire, take a hay ride, make s’mores with gooey marshmallows, listen for the ding-dong of trick-or-treaters at the door, collect acorns, pick a perfectly imperfect pumpkin, wrap a scarf around my neck and done my worn leather boots, tail-gate with a bowl of chili and savor the season I love most.

Perfectly Pumpkin Pancakes

Well good morning!  You may well be thinking, another pancakes recipe?  Is this the only thing she knows how to cook?  As far as I'm concerned, Saturday mornings must always have pancakes.  Each and every Saturday, I find the perfect seasonal recipe to start the day right and spice up the weekend.

Flowers for Friday

“I must have flowers, always, and always.”
― Claude Monet

Au revoir, No Reservations

"The journey is part of the experience - an expression of the seriousness of one's intent. One doesn't take the A train to Mecca.”
― Anthony Bourdain
A Cook's Tour 

Eight years ago, Tony Bourdain began taking us on his adventures to Paris and Penang and all places in between.  Now, he's onto his "Final Tour" of No Reservations and I am feeling a little sad that he won't be letting me vicariously hitch a ride any longer.

Taste of Indian Summer: The BLT

As much as I hope for the crispness of autumn, around here the weather is still stuck in the hot, humidity of summer.  Since we can't yet start cooking up batches of chili or soup, most of our dinners lately have been those that require no oven or stovetop.  

Picnicking the French Way: Dîner en Blanc

I recently stumbled upon a delectable social phenomenon that intrigues me. Twenty-four years ago, "Dîner en Blanc" was launched in Paris.  Of course, the pleasure-loving French developed this most lovely of dining concepts.  

At the very last minute before the event, a secret location is revealed for a picnic en masse.  Then, thousands of food-lovers and wine-lovers and just regular old lovers descend on the picnic spot dressed entirely en blanc, in white. But, my cheries, this is no mere salad of pommes de terre kind of picnic.  Dîner en Blanc has very specific rules to create an ambiance conducive to the most chic and civilized of outdoor dining experiences, one in which even Marie Antoinette would delight.

The Art of Sushi & Jiro Dreams

"Once you decide on your occupation... you must immerse yourself in your work. You have to fall in love with your work. Never complain about your job. You must dedicate your life to mastering your skill. That's the secret of success... and is the key to being regarded honorably."

-Jiro Ono

When I first heard about Jiro Dreams of Sushi, I wondered what a documentary about an octogenarian sushi chef might really offer me?  As I watched the film, I quickly learned Jiro Ono, the eighty-five year old proprietor of Sukiyabashi Jiro, is no mere restauranteur or chef or fishmonger, he is a philosopher and a culinary prophet.  

Coveting: Fall Fashion

“Autumn seemed to arrive suddenly that year. The morning of the first September was crisp and golden as an apple...”

-J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

September First!  That means we can start talking about fall now, right?  I can burn some pumpkin candles and watch football and make chili now, right?  Without hesitation, autumn is my favorite time of year to shop...to eat...to frolic in the leaves...to sip warm beverages.  There is something about the slowed pace after a busy summer and the cooling temperatures that triggers my creativity and delights my sweater-loving sensibilities.

Cocktail du jour: The French Fizzy

This evening I had a cocktail conundrum.  You see, my lovelies, I bought a bottle of booze based merely on the pretty label. It turns out, Lillet is a French aperitif made of white Bordeaux wines and orange liqueur.  How bad could that possibly be, right? Mixed with a little gin, a touch of citrus and a bit of bubbly tonic water, the "French Fizzy" is a most delicious late summer cocktail featuring the lovely Lillet.