Home | An evening with Julia Child

Okay, so more like 15 minutes with Julia Child.

Cody, Seb and I explored the nearest public library branch today, and I couldn't resist coming home with a dvd of 18 of Julia Child's most celebrated episodes of The French Chef. Cody is at a friend's house this evening so I thought I would be merciful, and get some viewing in while he's away. Without hesitation, I clicked the "play all" button on the menu screen, and with equal speed hit "stop" after the first episode. This lady is good! I know, I should probably get with it, you say. She is Julia Child, after all. What did I expect? I couldn't bear to go on to another episode until I let this first one, all about vegetables, sink in, and, pardon the pun, marinate for a little while.

I would most definitely categorize myself as a haphazard and experimental cook. You never know what I'll throw together, and you better believe I experiment on guests on a regular basis and without thinking twice (you've been warned!). All of which, I think Julia would approve of. But, I think she would also shake her finger at me for lacking some basic, or at least necessary, skills of preparation, and for heaven's sake, chopping. You see, I often fall into a rut of preparing all vegetables the exact same way, and seasoning them in a likewise lackluster manner. I only recently perfected pasta (at least in my mind). Not because cooking pasta is that difficult, but because I never experimented with timing or water amounts to achieve a better outcome. It was cooked, right? In fact, I never knew my pasta was wanting until I accidentally made it differently and Cody raved about how perfectly cooked it was. Thanks to Cody's impeccable taste buds and Julia's perfectly educated and whimsically haphazard ways in the kitchen, I think I've finally realized the need to begin reevaluating my methods in the kitchen.

First, I think I'll start with more butter, and as Julia taught me this evening, always use my hands to taste and prep (after I've properly washed up, of course). Oh the gems, Julia, oh the gems...

Bon Appétit!


image left / image right

Food | Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum.

I'm currently reading Treasure Island for the first time and completely loving it. The language, the characters (Long John Silver above) and the story itself are captivating. So you can imagine my excitement when Ashley and Aron from Hither & Thither posted, just minutes ago, a recipe for hot buttered rum. Now, I'm not sure I even like rum, but if I did, I think this would be delicious.

Little One | Etsy and supper

I thought these knitted items were just lovely when I ran across The Velvet Acorn on Etsy. They look so warm and I love how this knitter's creativity shows through each project. What's more is she makes them available in the most lovely colors. Isn't the Sydnie Slouchy just perfect for a little girl? I want the one above for my little guy, and this for myself.

We had dinner at our place with my sister, her roommate, and the F's with their baby girl. It was so fun and, surprisingly, I wasn't very stressed about the evening. I even took a nap this afternoon! We had Pork with french fried onions and mushroom gravy, red potatoes with butter and chives, asparagus cooked with coconut oil, acorn squash, and LGF brought some of the most delicious brownies for dessert. I. Am. Stuffed. And newly obsessed with baking acorn squash. Have you ever tried it?

1. Halve an acorn squash
2. Scoop out the seeds and stringy stuff
3. Put a daub of butter and brown sugar in the hollow
4. Place (skin down) in a pan with 1/4" of water at the bottom
5. Put in the oven at 350˚ F for 45 min. to 1 hour or until soft when you poke a fork in it.
6. Let cool for a few minutes, scoop out the insides and enjoy!

Hope you have a lovely evening. Dishes are done—I'm off to bed!

[image via]

Food | Leeks

I have found something delicious, and although I am probably the last person in all the earth to have discovered this marvelous vegetable, but will nonetheless share my enthusiasm for leeks as if I were the first to have stumbled upon it.

I first used leeks in a potato leek soup. To be honest, I only decided to try it when I read an article about them from David Lebovitz, that highlighted their best qualities, including—what I was most interested in—their affordability. I was delightfully surprised to find that their flavor is much more subtle than onions. The aroma that filled my house was not the choking, let's open the window type of smell, as is often the case with onions, but was actually quite pleasant. Their flavor is the same way.

Want tips on how to clean leeks from Apartment Therapy?
What about David's potato-leek soup recipe that got me hooked? To cut down on the cost even more, forgo the white pepper unless you already have it, and just use black.

Even if you don't want to try a soup recipe—after all, summer is nearing, which means soup season is saying goodbye—I would still recommend following the above recipe link for great tips on preparing leeks. It's a fantastic introduction to this delightful vegetable. And seriously, leeks not only taste good, but are so beautiful. It was really fun and very aesthetically pleasing to prepare.

Enjoy!