Out of the house

I guess I'm going to time out and go on a mini blogging break. I've been busy thinking about new projects and trying to get older ones "out of the house," as my friend Anna likes to put it. So see you back here soon enough.

Running on Ugly

I finally got myself a pair of these Asics trainers for running. I know that they are hideous but they are comfortable. I got them at Paragon Sports, where they analyze how you run by having you run on a treadmill for a minute or so and then help you to pick the best sneaker for your feet. It took me forever to decide on these and admit that all the designs out there are awful ugly and I had to look past the glitz and trim to find a comfortable pair of trainers. So far so good.

Goat Milk Ice Cream

G really loves goat milk. When I was at Whole Foods the other night, I was tempted to have something sweet. I picked up a pint of La Loo's Chocolate Goat Milk ice cream. A pint is alot, and my eyes are way bigger than my stomach and sweet tooth. It was perfectly rich and creamy, and you could definitely taste the goat milk, which I liked.



I ended up ordering a cup of coffee so I could dunk scoopfuls of ice cream in and finish it off. (Very brilliant idea because it's amazing this way!)

Reading the Tao at 80

My dear friend, Ann B. Knox, is putting out a new book of poetry titled, Reading the Tao at 80. You can prepurchase it at Finishing Line Press.

Stitching

I bought this Old Navy flannel night gown a while ago because the fabric reminded me of French ticking. R cut of the bottom and altered the top for me. I decided it needed something more to make it even less like pj's. I ended up embroidering it with some red floss along the buttons and the sleeves.

Endorsement

Watch Colin Powell as he endorses Obama on Meet the Press. Very well put and quite eloquent as he states his points because it was very hard for him to cross party lines and turn back on his friend of 25 years, John McCain.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/27265490#%2327265490

Thank you Anna!

Apple picking

We've had the fortune of having a mild October so far and this weekend was no exception. The skies were bright blue and the leaves were changing. On Saturday I went apple picking with some friends at Wilkens Farm, on the Taconic Parkway. It's just about an hour north of NYC, so it's super easy to get to. We enjoyed an afternoon of taste testing apples as we we picked them, all the while breathing in the fragrantly fresh air. At the end of the day, we stood in line back at the farm store, as we waited for the fresh apple cider donuts and hot cider. These donuts were certainly worth the wait as they were hot, fresh, and absolutely delicious. I'm sorry I don't have a photo, my camera battery died. I had 3, so you have to trust me that they were that good because I never eat donuts. The cider was tart and perfect as the air around us cooled down at the end of the day. It was a really fun day.













Here's Lisa with a branch mustache.

Sweet potato fries

Sweet potato fries with cilantro, salt, white pepper, and cayenne. It's hazy because it was steaming hot when I took the photo!

What Remains

I spent several days watching the documentary, What Remains, about the life and work of photographer Sally Mann. Sally Mann was the first photographer I was introduced to in my High School photography class. We had a copy of her Immediate Family book in the classroom. After all these years, I find her work even more compelling and intriguing. I had not seen her series, What Remains. This opportunity to see the work and hear her talk about it is inspirational. The theme of life and death is something I've been dealing with in my own series, Inventory of Mortality. Her ability to verbalize what she has gone through in her career, the influence of her father over her life, with her family exposes her completely as a vulnerable, successful artist. I highly recommend this film!

Studio Violet Launches

Two of my daily read bloggers, Elisabeth Dunker and Camilla Engman have joined together to form Studio Violet. They just launched their blog and shop this week. I'm super excited and look forward to seeing what they will make when they put their heads together!

We Americans

Last Friday at Union Square, there was a big flag some people spread out amongst the crowd. It reminded me that this is the time for unity as Americans and change, no matter how you vote. The debates will be on tonight at 9pm on PBS. I hope you will be watching with me.

Butternut Squash Soup

It's definitely Fall according to my CSA farmer. I decided to embrace all the fall squashes we got and made a thick and creamy butternut suash soup.

Ingredients:
olive oil
1 butternut squash (peeled and cubed)
1 acorn squash (cubed)
2 leeks (chopped, I did quarter inch ringlets)
2 apples (peeled, cored, and cubed)
veggie broth (I use packets from TJ's)
some Greek yogurt
rosemary
thyme
salt and pepper to taste
roasted cashews
optional: turkey bacon

This is loose recipe. You can add as much squash as you like or have on hand. You can substitute onions or shallots for leeks. Any kind of apples will do. Use vegetable or chicken broth. You can use sour cream instead of Greek yogurt. Instead of turkey bacon, you can use real bacon or if you want a vegetarian version, I would suggest mushrooms.

Chop leeks and sautee in olive oil over medium heat until it starts to brown. Add butternut squash and acorn squash. Stir around and add enough broth to just cover the mix. Add apples. Boil for about half an hour, or until the squashes are soft. Add salt and pepper to taste (use less salt if you are going to add bacon). Turn of fire and start scooping batches into the blender to puree. I only blended 80% so I had some chunks left. You can do whatever pleases you. Turn fire back on, stir and boil down until you get a relatively thick consistency. Turn off fire. In a flat pan, fry bacon. When crispy, take out and chop into bits. Add to soup. Serve with roasted cashews, rosemary and thyme, and a dollop of Greek yogurt. Stir to blend yogurt. Fall wonderful-ness! (Not a great photo, sorry, I was in a super big rush because I was starving!)

Tres Dorky

This is info for folks who don glasses. Did you know you can donate your old glasses to a good cause? My old Y collected old glasses but since I switched Y's I've been accumulating my old ones in a container at home. AT wrote a good post with links on where to donate your old glasses. Again, for dorks like me who find this bit of info important.

Stroll through the old neighborhood

I grew up in Corona, Queens. On Saturday, armed with a new camera for testing, I headed over to to my old stomping grounds. Corona was traditionally an Italian neighborhood, where you can get Italian Ice from Lemon Ice King og Corona and stroll to Flushing Meadow Corona Park. Today it is a diverse neighborhood with a heavy Latin American population.

My first stop was Empanadas del Parque, my favorite emapanada joint. Empanadas are little fried dumplings with filling. It can be savory or sweet, wrapped in corn or white flour dough, or anything else for that matter. Empanadas del Parque has an organic whole grains version. I wish this place was around when I was growing up, but then again, I would have spent every penny I had on a little empanada. Here's a photo of some empanadas from Empanadas del Parque, served with their special cilantro, avocado, and garlic sauce, which I can never get enough of. My favorite is the shrimp in corn flour.



I also ordered one of their homemade icepops in rice pudding. Rich and creamy dessert on a stick!



Here's the Unisphere in all it's glory. Most of you will recognize it from Men In Black.



And Just before I left the park, I had some mangoes in hot sauce, lime juice and salt!

Black and White Noodles

Buckwheat and cream noodles in vegetable broth with cabbage, tomatoes, and shrimp, served with a side of sauteed spinach. The mix of stuff that we get from our CSA helps with creativity!

Apple Cake

My friend Wilson turned me onto the food blog, Smitten Kitchen, a couple of months ago. Her husband takes gorgeous photos and she makes delicious looking food. What's not to love?

She posted a recipe for apple cake that looked so heartbreakingly good that I had to try it. Plus we've been getting a batch of apples every week from the CSA.

You should really check out Smitten Kitchen's photos for real inspiration. Here's a shot of my version from the top.



My changes: I used a 9x13 baking pan and it worked out fine. I'd maybe cut the time down 5 minutes. I used 8 small apples (don't know what kind- from my CSA). I substituted one cup of white whole wheat flour (doesn't sound right but that's what it says on the package) for one of the cups of all-purpose flour. For the batter part, I only used one cup of (brown) sugar, instead of two. The batter was pretty thin so there was only one layer in my cake. And I added the walnuts that were optional. Result? Great fall recipe that is really handy for all those apples from apple picking and the CSA. I would definitely make it again.

Alejandra Laviada

Juggling, 2008 Alejandra Laviada

Head over to the Nymphoto blog to check out my Conversation with Alejandra Laviada. I love her work and hope to own one someday soon!


Giraffe, 2007 Alejandra Laviada

Fall Vegetable Stew

I made this yummy veggie stew with pumpkin, zucchini, tomatoes, parsley, cilantro and served it over some nutty tasting multi-grain rice from Fairway. It's the season for cozy meals.

The Noodle Man

Every time my friend Liu comes to the city, he has to have some noodles. He's usually up and out of the house before I'm even awake. I had a restaurant in mind for him this time around. I passed by this Lanzhou hand-pulled noodle place when eating at Minangasli the other day (it's next door). I saw the guy stretching out the noodles at the counter and decided I needed to come around with Liu.

We both ordered the beef noodles. The noodles had a good chew and the broth was good. Not the most amazing bowl I've ever had but pretty decent.



The best part was the hot sauce which had tons of sesame seeds in it. It wasn't too spicy but very fragrant.

Roasting

This chicken took up half of Saturday. My mom's been asking me to roast a chicken for at least a year now and I finally got around to it. Unfortunately, the oils splattered all over the oven and smoked up the kitchen. I used a recipe from good ol' Martha Stewart. Good thing it was tasty. Otherwise I would have been extra bitter as I scrubbed the oven.

Indonesian

I've been craving chicken, and realized that though I'm not a vegetarian, I eat less meat than most. The other day I ventured over to Minangasli, an Indonesian restaurant in my neighborhood to try something new. I order the fried chicken with hot chili peppers which came with a side of artichokes (???), a hard boiled egg that looked like it had been fried (or something), and rice. The chicken was pretty tasty, spiced well, and though the sauce was a bit salty, it was nice and yummy. The sides were a bit disappointing. I would have been happier with better and fresher looking greens. That's why I'm happy to cook at home right? I thought the place was worth trying again some other day, when I feel like venturing out of my kitchen.

Reunion

Can't wait to see who shows up at this one. It seems like I'm contantly going to reunions right? (I've actually never been to a HS or College one.)

The Orla Obsession

Heal's in the UK is now carrying Orla Kiely furniture. Thank god they don't ship to the US, otherwise I'd want one of everything, please.





But in reality, I can only afford this mug.


(images from Heal's)

Mr. Sugimoto

I just met Hiroshi Sugimoto, who is one of my favorite photographers. This qualifies as an excellent day!

China's City of Ambition

I met Ferit at Fotofest and he showed me prints of his project, City of Ambition, photographs of Chongqing, China. Chongqing is the largest growing City in China, and when I visited in 2006, I felt that I could really stay there a long time and make a body of work there. Ferit and bonded over the impressions that the city had left me. Spend some time on Ferit's site, it's well worth it. I hope he gets a book deal soon.