winter weekend soup

                                                photograph by Charles Jones circa 1900, Sussex, England

Someone gave me a beautiful bunch of leeks which inspired me to make soup on this snowy Saturday ...my favorite recipe is from Alice Waters's The Art of Simple Food and it never disappoints...



Leek and Potato Soup (Makes 2 quarts: 4-6 servings)

Trim off the root and and the tough upper greens from:
2 pounds of leeks
Cut the trimmed leeks in half lengthwise and slice thin.  Rinse in a bowl of cold water. 
Lift the leeks out of the water to drain.
Melt over medium heat in a heavy bottomed pot:
3 tablespoons butter
Add the leeks along with:
2 thyme springs
1 bay leaf
Salt
Cook until soft, about 10 minutes. Add:
1 pound yellow potatoes, peeled, halved or quartered, and sliced
Cook the potatoes for 4 minutes, then add:
6 cups of water
Bring to a boil and turn down to a simmer. 
Cook until the vegetables are tender, but not falling apart, about 30 minutes. 

Serve with cream or on its own...can be blended, but I like it just like this.

snowdrops

                    waiting for the snowdrops to appear...a sure sign of spring on its way...

I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day...

Poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote this incredible song on Christmas morning in 1863. He'd had a rough couple of years leading up to it. The Civil War was in full swing, and he'd just gotten word that his son was wounded in it. His wife had recently died in a fire. There wasn't any Christmas cheer for him that day he'd given up all hope. That is, until he heard church bells. What he wrote is not one of the more well-known Christmas songs. It wasn't even turned into a song until at least 10 years after it was written, by an English organist named John Baptiste Calker. But it may just be the best Christmas song ever written. This is Sarah McLachlan's version.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qn_1-z0d7iQ&feature=share

early morning...

a perfect day for soup making with the fire in the fireplace and sunday morning classical music...

sunday lunch outside ...

love setting up the big table outside on these sunny days, especially as the firepit warms things up...soup, cider and grilled bread are all we need for a casual fall lunch!           photograph by marili forastieri

poetry in porcelain

White porcelain vessels arranged in rows, in groups and on their own, are the work of my favorite potter, Edmund de Waal.  I discovered his work at a shop called Egg in London many years ago, when I walked up the stairs and found a small collection of cylinders in white porcelain and celadon in an empty room on a single shelf  and a fireplace mantel.  In this spare and serene setting, I fell in love with de Waal's pottery and have followed his work and his writing ever since. And now his newest collection is on exhibition in New York at the Gagosian Gallery on Madison Avenue where I spent this past Saturday morning  surrounded by assemblages of hundreds of his vessels...his new book is on his journey and life with the color white. I can't wait.

vergennes laundry

a long awaited visit to vergennes laundry in vermont did not disappoint... a wonderful lunch with friends in this beautiful white setting, with the best bakery and cafe....
all photos by tricia foley, portrait of owners by corey hendrickson via remodelista