Big Spoon Roasters

I am such a sucker for packaging. I'm pretty sure that's probably what got me to mail order peanut butter!?! I saw a brief write-up for Big Spoon Roasters in Bon Appetit—along with a cookie recipe—and click, click, clicked my way through to two jars of heavenly goodness. Curses to the 21st century because now I am addicted.

Based in Durham, NC, Big Spoon makes artisanal, hand-crafted nut butters laced with the perfect trace of sweetness from wildflower honey. I ordered the Peanut (my favorite of the two) and Peanut Pecan. I will not divulge how long they lasted in the house.

A dear friend from Ann Arbor moved to Chapel Hill for the summer, so of course I pointed her to the Big Spoon. She rewarded me by delivering two jars on a recent return visit. I can't wait to try the Peanut Cocoa—so new it's not even listed on their web site.

But who will be my next mule?!?

Logo design: Leocadia

I recently completed this logo design for a wonderfully warm and talented woman in the Cincinnati area who makes all kinds of sewn goodies with the most beautiful fabrics and great care: clutches, purses, children's clothing, accessories and more. Leocadia was the name of her grandmother who was a very successful hatmaker from Grand Rapids (I love the Michigan connection!) and the creative inspiration behind Patty's work and business name. She will be launching an Etsy shop in the coming months and below is a look at the shop banner I put together for it. Keep an eye out!!    

Book Business Tuesday

There is some serious book business this week! This coming Sunday is the annual Kerrytown BookFest — hooray! Rolling out a sparkly new logo designed by Ann Arbor artist and designer Susan Skarsgard, this year's event is packed with an amazing roster of signings, workshops, demonstrations, readings and artists. I hope you'll come down and take a twirl around.

I have been extremely fortunate and thrilled by the positive response my calendars get each year — thank you, thank you, thank you all for being so supportive. I am doubly excited to announce that I will be releasing my illustrated 2013 calendar at the BookFest this year. I thought I'd show you a little taste of it here … I do so hope you'll love it!

BBQ Ribs for Two

Ribs are one of those things you want to make for a crowd … right? Heck no! The boy and I had a hankering and decided to make it happen — on a weeknight no less. If you split this into a two-part process: Baking the ribs with a dry rub one night and then grilling the next, it's no biggie. 

This no-brainer recipe—adapted from a Bon Appetit recipe for 8 servings—with a five-ingredient dry rub you probably have everything for on hand and store-bought sauce (I know!) enhanced with the porkie drippings … it can't be beat. Throw in a little vinegary potato salad and pickled corn … you've got yourselves a party for two (with leftovers)! 

BBQ Ribs

Adapted from via Bon Appetit

1 1/4 tablespoons kosher salt
1 1/2 tsp dry mustard
1 1/2 tsp paprika
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2.5 pounds baby back pork ribs (1 rack)
Low-salt chicken broth (optional)
1 cup store-bought or homemade barbecue sauce plus more

Preheat oven to 350°F. 

Combine first 5 ingredients in a small bowl. Place the ribs on a double layer of foil; sprinkle rub all over ribs (you will probably have a little bit extra, but too much can't hurt). Seal up foil and place ribs on a baking sheet.

Bake ribs until very tender but not falling apart, about two hours. Carefully unwrap ribs — watch your face for steam! Pour juices from foil into a heatproof measuring cup and set aside to cool. Let ribs cool completely. 

(Ribs can be baked up to three days ahead (the flavor will be more developed, and the cold ribs will hold together better on the grill as they heat through). Cover and chill juices. Rewrap ribs in foil and chill.)

Build a medium-hot fire in a charcoal grill, or heat a gas grill to high. 

Remove layer of fat from reserved juices. Add broth or water to rib juices in an equal amount to what juices you have. I was left with just over a cup of juices, so added 1 cup sauce. Whisk well to blend.

Grill ribs, basting with barbecue sauce mixture and turning frequently, until lacquered and charred in places and heated through, 7-10 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board; cut between ribs to separate. Transfer to a platter and serve with additional barbecue sauce. 

Lick those fingers! 

Book Business Tuesday

I am a fiction junkie. I read all kinds of books, but a good novel is always my favorite reading material. It has also been my number one procrastination method this summer. I've lost many a daytime hour these past few weeks to "one more chapter." With just a few fleeting days of summer before Labor Day, I hope you're finding a little reading time, too. From my recent bedstand (hammock stand?!) favorites, there are two books — very different in nature and style — I'd highly recommend:

The Orchardist by Amanda Coplin

A quiet, yet grand family epic that fills you with images of Washington state and rich, compelling characters you wholeheartedly root for. Earnest and wonderful. 

The Family Fang by Kevin Wilson

An entirely different kind of family story: Contemporary, quirky and filled with equal parts desperation, oddity and humor. Clever and funny.

But I've cut myself off from daytime reading at this point and am eking out the final touches of my 2013 calendar. I'll have them available at this year's Kerrytown Bookfest, Sunday September 9.

In other book business, if you've been taking part in the amazing Ann Arbor library's summer game, this Friday is the final secret shop and it will be stocked with a few Sloe Gin Fizz items … so gather up your points and get ready to solve those clues!

Fall show schedule

I'm excited to announce my line up of fall shows. I look forward to seeing you all along the way! You can always check in with my show schedule page here on the blog for updates and details.

Kerrytown BookFest

Ann Arbor, MI

Sunday, September 9, 2012

DIY Street Fair

Ferndale, MI

September 14-16, 2012

Traverse City Makers Market

Traverse City, MI

Saturday, September 22, 2012

Bust Craftacular at the World Maker Faire

New York, NY 

September 29 & 30, 2012

Ginger muffins

These wonderful muffins are from home cook advocate and cookbook author, Marion Cunningham. She passed away last month at ninety and Lottie & Doof called upon this recipe in her honor. I followed suit and am new fan. If you are unfamiliar with Cunningham, Kim Severson — an amazing author and cook in her own right — wrote a wonderful obituary in The New York Times.

In the meantime, these muffins are delicate and simple, moist and delicious warm from the oven. I used the excuse of a somewhat upset stomach to gobble three in a row. Ginger settles the upset stomach, right?

I experimented using paper liners for half the muffins — I preferred those in the greased tin. The liners affected the texture of the baked muffins, making them a little stiff on the outside. 

Ginger Muffins 

From Lottie & Doof who adapted from The Breakfast Book by Marion Cunningham
Makes 12 muffins.

3 oz (or even a little more) piece of unpeeled ginger root, cleaned well
3/4 cup plus 3 Tbsp. sugar, divided
2 tablespoons grated lemon zest
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup buttermilk
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon baking soda

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Grease a muffin tin.

Cut the unpeeled ginger root into large chunks. If you have a food processor, process the ginger until it is in tiny pieces; alternatively, mince by hand. Measure out 1/3 cup – or a little more. As Marion says, it’s better to have too much than too little. Put the ginger and 1/4 cup sugar in a small skillet and cook over medium heat, stirring, until the sugar has melted and the mixture is hot. This will only take a minute or two. Set aside to cool.

In a small bowl, combine the lemon zest and 3 tablespoons of sugar. Rub the zest into the sugar with your fingers to release the oils. Add the lemon sugar to the ginger mixture.

Put the butter and remaining 1/2 cup of sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer (or, a mixing bowl, if you plan to use handheld beaters or mix by hand) and beat until smooth. Add the eggs, and beat well. Add the buttermilk, and beat until blended. Add the flour, salt, and baking soda, and beat just until smooth. Add the ginger-lemon mixture, and beat to mix well. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin tin. 

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until a tester comes out clean. Serve warm.
 

Refrigerator pickle madness

Has the pickling bug caught you yet? It's definitely increasing in popularity, and there are a million and one new recipe books I'm dying to get my hands on. That said, I haven't gotten beyond refrigerator pickles yet. Yes, it's true. But I'm all over those like crazy. This recipe has become my go-to for every which way of veggie. It doesn't even involve heating the brine. It's the perfect balance of tart and crunch with a little bit of zing from the red peppers and lots of garlicky bite. I've tried it with cucumbers — both spears and slices, green beans, radishes and carrots. I just keep adding to the jar as I eat my way through them, topping up with some new brine as necessary. They seem to best the first week, though I'm not sure we've had any that weren't gobbled up in that time around here! 

 

Spicy Garlic Dilly Beans

Adapted from Eat.Repeat

Approx. 1/2 lb green beans, washed and trimmed

2 to 3 cloves garlic

3 to 4 springs fresh dill

1/4 tsp dill seed

1/4 tsp mustard seed

1/4 tsp whole peppercorns

Pinch of red pepper flakes

1 1/2 tsp pickling salt or kosher salt

1/2 cup white vinegar

1/2 cup water

Wash a pint-sized mason jar with hot, soapy water.
Measure dill seed, mustard, peppercorns and pepper flakes into the bottom of your jar.
Pack beans into jar vertically. Slip garlic cloves in between beans.
In a separate jar combine salt, vinegar, and water. Shake until salt is dissolved then pour over beans.

Refrigerate beans for at least 24 hours.

Flowers on Friday

In the weeds …

Now what is this we have going on here? What your looking at is the growing pile of muck the boy and I have been pulling out of the lake. We're trying to clear the weeds to make a nice sandy swimming area. The pile was already started when we moved into the house — it looked eerily like a fresh grave. Eh. Not knowing where else we could put the stuff, we just started adding to it.

It was also our designated compost area for a brief period, until we decided we didn't like looking at it from the deck and moved it around the side of the house. So most recently we've just been adding what is some of the finest, most fertile soil around … 

Tomatoes! Our weeds and muck and more have sprouted a healthy, hearty tomato plant with lots of fruit and buds. Hooray for fertile grounds!

Inspiration: Marc Boutavant

I fell down the interweb rabbit hole today and just had to share one of my finds. It is illustrator Marc Boutavant. His images make my heart sing, which is appropriate as he is represented by the Heart Agency. Boutavant's illustrations are bold and bright and brimming with energy. I am particularly drawn to the contrast between the bold singular images on a white background and the complex, dense jam-packed compositions I can not even imagine creating. Where does one start? I hope you enjoy as much as I do.

Nautical toilet paper holder

Last fall I was in a home that had nautical cleats as drawer pulls in the kitchen. It was so simple and clean, I fell in love. Some day we may do a kitchen remodel that includes this clever idea, but in the meantime, I stumbled on this idea on Pinterest: a nautical cleat as toilet paper holder. Brilliant!

The Pinterest photo was a good starting place and we did some improvising with a dowel, red and white line and mini clamps. Kinda cute, right? There seems to be more and more red creeping into our home, which is funny because I think of myself as a blues and greens kinda gal … but I like this change!

Above is a (dark) peak at some of the art in our bathroom: The elephant was bought by my mom on the street in New York in the 1960s for $1 and the awesome cross-stitches are by Jenni of From J. Loo to You.