Melissa

Current Crush-Wabi Sabi

“Japanese art, infused with the spirit of wabi sabi, seeks beauty in the truths of the natural world, looking toward nature for it’s inspiration. It refrains from all forms of intellectual entanglement, self regard, and affectation in order to discover the unadorned truth of nature. Since nature can be defined as asymmetry and random imperfections,…

Welcoming the New Year

Jeff and I are busy cooking from Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking this evening. We’re sipping good wine and making roast goose with a prune and foie gras stuffing…and doing a lot of laughing and reminiscing. We’re looking forward to the new year. This will be the beginning of the 12th year…

What I’m Listening To~ Lia Ices

I usually wait until Friday to share what I’m listening to, but I am so excited about this new artist I had to share today. Her voice has a dreamy, whispery, fantasy-like quality that I think is perfect listening on winter days. Visit her website HERE…and read about her in this VOGUE article. Grown Unknown…

Relaxing Ritual~ Reading to Each Other

We all know the many benefits of reading to our children before they can read to themselves. Once they do start reading, it’s still fun to read bedtime stories together and sometimes enjoy a longer book like Harry Potter, Little House in the Big Woods, Anne of Green Gables or Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.…

Tangerine Dream Hand Cream

“I carry the sun in a golden cup, the moon in a silver bag.” ~William Butler Yeats This hand cream smells citrusy and feels wonderful on chapped, winter hands. Great for moisturizing elbows, knees and feet too! This recipe is from my book, Welcome Home, and is easy to make. Enjoy! ~Tangerine Dream Hand Cream~…

Current Crush~ All Things Julia Child

As I mentioned in my previous post, Boeuf Bourguignon, Jeff and I are starting our own little cooking course at home using the 2 volume set of Mastering the Art of French Cooking as our focal point. I can’t wait to share our adventures and some of the recipes here on the blog. We’re also…

Boeuf Bourguignon

“Cooking is not a particularly difficult art, and the more you cook and learn about cooking, the more sense it makes. But like any art it requires practice and experience. The most important ingredient you can bring to it is love of cooking for it’s own sake.” ~Julia Child, Louisette Bertholle and Simone Beck Hello…

steph’s apple crisp

This is my friend Stephanie’s recipe for apple crisp. I’ve made lots of apple crisp, and this one is by far the best I’ve ever tasted. I would have never thought to add raisins, but when I tasted it in this crisp…I decided that this was a genius move. Thanks for a great recipe friend!…

Maraschino & Lemon Bon Bon Cookies

These buttery little lemon cookies are rolled in  chopped walnuts and are so pretty with a cherry on top. ~Maraschino Lemon Bon Bon Cookies~ yield: 24-36 cookies 2 sticks butter, softened 1/2 cup sugar 2 eggs, separated 1 Tablespoon grated lemon rind 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg 2 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 2-3 Tablespoons milk 1…

Cami’s Sugar Cookies

“Recipe shared in the spirit of giving, sharing, and honoring friendship!! May they warm your heart (and belly!) as you’ve warmed mine!!” ~Cami Funkhouser ~Cami’s Sugar Cookies~ 1 cup butter, softened 1 cup oil 1 cup sugar 1 cup powdered sugar * Cream the above ingredients until light and fluffy. To this, add: 4 1/2…