My cup runneth over.
Too sweet to be sour, too nice to be mean
My week, so far, in random pictures, especially for Sara Beth:
Sunday night supper: Salsa (homemade–my first, and it was a hit), creme fraiche mashed potatoes in the oven, shortbread cookies in progress, grits on the stove. For some reason, on Sunday and Monday nights this week I decided I needed to cook three things at a time. But planning ahead’s not such a bad thing.
Monday night creation: Lately I find myself cooking with creme fraiche and lemons as often as possible, so I finally bought a full bag of lemons instead of two or three at a time. It seemed far too depressing to stick them in a refrigerator drawer, but I was out of big bowls–so I turned instead to this crystal vase. I like.
(I may have gotten carried away with lemons in my dinner, though. I had a lemon-thyme pork chop with linguine–made with creme fraiche and lemons, and I made fresh lemonade to drink. That’s the beauty of cooking just for myself!)
Tuesday evening: I was in a weird, stressed-out mood, so instead of working late (as I probably should have) I went to a friend’s apartment. Conversation can always be a little amusing when Jamie, Sara Beth and I get together–but this time, it resulted into hugs and, well, hugging milk glasses. We may not be cool, but we are not a boring people.
Tuesday night: My bed buddy. I dog sat for a friend’s German shepherd last night. I stayed up far too late writing, so I couldn’t bring myself to protest when Dagny crawled into bed with me. (I did protest when she wanted to go for a walk at 5 a.m. We almost made it until 6:30.) Just for perspective: Dag weighs about 20 pounds less than me. Not a small dog.
The end.
I want you so bad, it’s driving me mad
I’m not the only book lover in my house. (Emma requests that you ignore how massive she appears to be in this picture. I didn’t dare change angles for fear that she would evacuate her book fort.)
Last week my friend Lauren sent me an email, reminding me that one of the local libraries would be holding its annual book sale over the weekend. She intended to drive down there on her lunch break Friday, and I thought I should do the same.
I completely forgot about it until I was driving to her house on Saturday night. I briefly mourned my forgetfulness, then dismissed the thought. Surely all the best stuff would be gone by Sunday, I thought.
I could not have been more wrong.
I spent Sunday afternoon with another friend, Elisa, and when I arrived at her apartment she quickly told me about all the wonderful books she bought the day before. At some point we would take a break from our day’s project, we decided, and she would take me to the library sale.
Oh my word.
The sale was divided into two levels, and we started (and in fact, ended) in the basement. There were tons of people, lots of hustle and bustle, and I’ve never talked so much (or so enthusiastically! and loudly!) in a library. I started selecting books carefully, browsing the shelves and critically thinking about how much money I would spend.
Then we realized that a brown grocery sack of books cost only $7.
Elisa grabbed a bag and I dumped my armload of books inside. And we began grabbing every must-have book we could find. If I spotted a favorite that I already owned, it went in the bag for her. She must have selected at least seven or eight books for me. By the sale’s end, the bag was brimming over, filled with plays, classics, food books, novels… and days and days of reading to come.
We left the library on a book high. I was so excited that I literally turned cartwheels. (She followed suit.) Even hours later, I literally jumped up and down while telling friends about how many books I’d acquired.
I can’t wait to get home and stare at the beautiful pile of pages on my bedroom floor.
- To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee (Of course I already own it. I just couldn’t abandon it there on that shelf, and I figured I could find someone who doesn’t already have a copy!)
- Great Expectations by Charles Dickens (I’ve never read any Dickens!)
- Julia’s Kitchen Wisdom by Julia Childs
- Griffin and Sabine by Nick Bantock (I read this one last night. It’s beautiful, and now I need the rest of them.)
- The Book of Ruth by Jane Hamilton (One of many books Elisa tossed into the bag for me. I returned the favor!)
- Ellen Foster by Kaye Gibbons
- Macbeth by Shakespeare
- She’s Come Undone by Wally Lamb (One of the first books I picked up upon arrival. This was before we realized that a bag of books was so cheap. My sister’s former roommate recommended this to me; it’s been on my list for months.)
- Cold Sassy Tree by Olive Ann Burns
- The Chicago Manual of Style (Did I mention I’m kind of a dork?)
- Love’s Labour Lost by William Shakespeare (This is a beautiful edition—so pretty, in fact, that I was tempted to cram the entire set into my bag. But they wouldn’t have fit, and all of my favorite plays were already gone.)
- 1984 by George Orwell (I love Animal Farm.)
- The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde (When I was a substitute teacher several years ago, I was showing this movie to the AP English class. They were so precious—the kids stayed in my class during lunch so they could finish watching the movie. “We want to see how it compares to the play,” they explained. I figured if they were that curious, surely I should read it as well!)
- The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare (PS, 10 Things I Hate About You is still my favorite teen movie.)
- Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte (This is one of several books on this list that I pretended to read in high school. Please don’t tell Mrs. Robertson.)
- Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury (I actually read and loved this one in ninth grade. I had fun discussing it with my pastors’ sons at church last night!)
- A Separate Peace by John Knowles (I think I actually read this one, too!)
- Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
- The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster
- Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston (I was lectured at work on Friday because I had never read this one. I’m very excited about it.)
- Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser (I started reading this when I lived in Tuscaloosa, but had to return it to the library before I was done.)
- Plainsong by Kent Haruf
- Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
- One Writer’s Beginnings by Eudora Welty (Welty is one of my coworker’s very favorite authors. I probably should have snagged everything I saw with her name on it.)
- A Year in Provence by Peter Mayle (I just watched a movie based on a Peter Mayle book this weekend, so this was very exciting.)
- French Lessons by Peter Mayle (Oh, and have I mentioned that I like to think I ought to be French?)
- The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady by Edith Holden (I am super excited about this one after listening to Elisa talk about it.)
- In A Sunburned Country by Bill Bryson (I’ve never read Bryson, but I’ve been meaning to for years.)
(And yes, I realize I estimated 32 books. But Elisa also got eight, so really my estimate was over, not under.)
How many dishes can I dirty making a sandwich?, or, Dinner last night
Chez Fonfon is my very, very favorite restaurant and the site of the best meal I’ve ever eaten (some cut of lamb in navy beans—I don’t remember the details, but every bite was amazing). Beyond the atmosphere, beyond every lamb dish I’ve ever tried there, I love it because I can eat for about $10 (croque madame or croque monsieur) or $60 (Valentine’s Day 2007), depending on my mood.
On Sunday I sat down with a few cookbooks and flipped through recipes while composing my grocery list. One of the books I referenced was Kim Sunee’s Trail of Crumbs, and I couldn’t resist adding the ingredients for her croque madame to my list. Now, I’ve had both at Fonfon and I really prefer the monsieur, but I’ll try almost anything. Plus, this recipe looked easy.
A skillet, a sauce pan and one small cake pan later, my kitchen sink may have convinced you otherwise—but really, it was a pretty quick Monday night meal that required minimal coordination. (I did overcook the egg for my sandwich while I waited for the sandwich to bubble in the oven, but every first attempt deserves a little grace.) The result? Incredibly satisfying, despite the aforementioned egg and the fact that I substituted mozzarella for Gruyere. (Shush. It was what I had on hand.)
Croque-Madame
This is basically a really decadent ham-and-cheese sandwich with an egg on top to elevate it from a monsieur to a madame. Substitute thin slices of grilled chicken for the ham. I like my egg sunny-side up so I can swirl the cheese sauce into the warm yolk, but poached or over easy eggs would work as well.
Butter
4 slices sourdough or pain de mie (white sandwich bread)
4 slices good-quality cooked ham (or chicken)
Dijon mustard (optional)
1 cup grated Gruyère or Emmentaler cheese, divided
1 ½ to 2 cups Mornay Sauce
2 sunny-side up eggsHeat a large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Butter bread on all sides, and top 2 of the slices with ham (sometimes I add a smear of Dijon). Top with half the cheese and cover with remaining bread slices. Place sandwiches in skillet, pressing gently with back of spatula. Let cook about 1 to 2 minutes or until bottom is lightly golden. Top with Mornay Sauce and remaining cheese. Place overnproof skillet in oven, and broil 1 to 2 minutes (be careful not to burn) or until golden and bubbly. Top with egg, and serve immediately.
Mornay Sauce
I usually make this in a nonstick saucepan, which makes for easy cleanup.
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 ½ to 2 cups milk (whole or 2 percent)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon fresh- ground pepper
Freshly grated nutmeg, to taste
3/4 cup coarsely grated Gruyère or Comté cheese (about ¼ pound)Melt butter in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir in flour and cook, stirring constantly, about 1 minute (do not let brown). Add milk, whisking constantly. Bring to a low boil and cook, stirring constantly, about 2 minutes more. (Once it boils, if too thick add more milk.) Season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Remove from heat, and stir in cheese.
–Trail of Crumbs, Kim Sunee
There’s got to be a love that’s stronger than our fear of everything being out of control
I’ve got a weakness for several things–at work, they have appropriately dubbed them my soap boxes. Letterpress, words and (of course) Southerners rank near the top of the list. I fell in love with this little $5 poster at Kentuck last fall, and have found myself increasingly enamored since I framed it and hung it by my front door. I’ll often stop and re-read it on my way out, or even cross the room in the middle of dinner just to take another look.
These words (an excerpt from his 1949 Nobel Prize banquet speech), and my Ole-Miss-English-grad coworker, are convincing me that I need to give Faulkner another chance.
He must teach himself that the basest of all things is to be afraid; and, teaching himself that, forget it forever, leaving no room in his workshop for anything but the old verities and truths of the heart, the old universal truths lacking which any story is ephemeral and doomed – love and honor and pity and pride and compassion and sacrifice.
Merry Christmas from Dixie to everyone tonight
Linn Park at about 6 p.m. on Feb. 11
Looks like Birmingham forgot that Christmas was nearly two months ago. Lighting up three random trees in the park is a waste of money, I’m sure… but the Christmas lights still make me smile.