Food

Tonight I'm off to see the Portland Powell's Presents premier of the documentary "Food, Inc" at Cinema 21. Definitely take the time to see this movie, read the book, or just visit the website to see how "industrial food is making us sicker, fatter, and poorer- And what you can do about it".


I'm also picking up my newly scanned negatives so I can share some pictures of Kansas with you soon!!

Lighting Design

Well, I'm back from Kansas and settling back into the 'design scene' here. I feel like I've really missed a lot! These lighting pieces by Moth Design are just beautiful and I HAD to share them. I really like a lot the organic feel these pieces have.






Pictures from the Kansas trip to come soon!!

Kansas

Heading home to Kansas for a week...won't be posting, but will be back soon with lots of pictures, stories and inspiration from the Heartland!

Portland Printing

Portland is home to many printing presses. Below is a selection of some of my favorites in town. Starting off with Oblation which is not only home to beautiful wedding invitations, but also a boutique with a great selection of paper goods from a variety of printers.




Below is Studio Olivine, a press which I first heard about via a sneak-peek on Design*Sponge and was very excited to learn that they are local!



Old School Stationers has got to be one of my very, very favorites. I LOVE the 'creature' and 'camping' series. I have purchased many of their goodies for loved ones.







Proletariat Press is a printer with a mission! Not only do they have great designs, they also have an excellent organization. Find out more here.



I really like all of the peek-a-boo cut-outs featured in Egg Press. The sasquatch is a pretty cool representation of the Northwest too.




Last, no Portland Press entry can be complete without a mention of my beautiful friend Chelsea Parker Guidry of Arugula Press. Below is a peek at her collaboration with Abby Powell Thompson as well as a beautiful wall-hanging available here.

Pineapple Upside-Down Cake

I had so much fun baking this pineapple upside-down cake! It actually turned out! I can't wait to eat it tomorrow at the bridal shower :) This was my first attempt at making this cake, and surprisingly, it wasn't nearly as complicated as I expected! I have posted the recipe below. It is one that I found in the Heirloom Baking book by the Brass Sisters.









1/2 C butter, melted
1 C brown sugar
7 slices canned pineapple rings drained; juice reserved
7 candied maraschino cherries
1C cake flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3 eggs, separated
1 C sugar
1 tsp vanilla

1) Pre-heat oven to 350. Swirl melted butter in 9 in. cake pan, coating the sides, but allowing most butter to settle on bottom. Sprinkle brown sugar over bottom of pan.
2) Wipe pineapple slices dry on both sides with a paper towel. Also dry cherries. Arrange in a decorative pattern on bottom of cake pan.
3) Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. Beat YOLKS in a large bowl. Add sugar, vanilla, and 5tbs pineapple juice. Mix well. Add sifted dry ingredients and combine.
4) Place egg WHITES in bowl of standing mixer fitted with whisk attachment. Beat until moderately stiff, fold into batter.
5) Bake 30-35 min. Cool 2-3 min. Invert cake. If bits remain in pan, retrieve and place on top of cake.

ENJOY!!

Heirloom Food

Being an avid NPR listener, I heard a great review for a new book called The food of a Younger Land by Mark Kurlansky. I love baking and recently checked out a cookbook titled Heirloom Baking, by the Brass Sisters. Both books are a collection of storied recipes handed down through the generations. They tell a tale of a simpler time, full of food made from whole ingredients found fresh and local. Needless to say, I can't wait to pick up a copy of Kurlansky's new book next time I'm at Powell's. I may even be too impatient and order a copy online today!! I'm also a big Michael Pollan fan...but more to come on his food philosophies and how they relate to using fresh, local products on another day...




The following is a review of the book from Penguin.

A remarkable portrait of American food before World War II, presented by the New York Times–bestselling author of Cod and Salt.

Award-winning New York Times–bestselling author Mark Kurlansky takes us back to the food and eating habits of a younger America: Before the national highway system brought the country closer together; before chain restaurants imposed uniformity and low quality; and before the Frigidaire meant frozen food in mass quantities, the nation’s food was seasonal, regional, and traditional. It helped form the distinct character, attitudes, and customs of those who ate it.

In the 1930s, with the country gripped by the Great Depression and millions of Americans struggling to get by, FDR created the Federal Writers’ Project under the New Deal as a make-work program for artists and authors. A number of writers, including Zora Neale Hurston, Eudora Welty, and Nelson Algren, were dispatched all across America to chronicle the eating habits, traditions, and struggles of local people. The project, called “America Eats,” was abandoned in the early 1940s because of the World War and never completed.

The Food of a Younger Land unearths this forgotten literary and historical treasure and brings it to exuberant life. Mark Kurlansky’s brilliant book captures these remarkable stories, and combined with authentic recipes, anecdotes, photos, and his own musings and analysis, evokes a bygone era when Americans had never heard of fast food and the grocery superstore was a thing of the future. Kurlansky serves as a guide to this hearty and poignant look at the country’s roots.

From New York automats to Georgia Coca-Cola parties, from Arkansas possum-eating clubs to Puget Sound salmon feasts, from Choctaw funerals to South Carolina barbecues, the WPA writers found Americans in their regional niches and eating an enormous diversity of meals. From Mississippi chittlins to Indiana persimmon puddings, Maine lobsters, and Montana beavertails, they recorded the curiosities, commonalities, and communities of American food.

Homage to the Swedes!

Maybe it's the little bit of Swedish I have in me, but lately I've been loving a bunch of Swedish designers. Typically known for being stark and modern; I really like the warmth these designers bring to clean design. Below images all found at Cosas.






Lotta Jansdotter is another Swede whose lovely designs make me smile.



Lotta Kuhlhorn's radish teatowls, below, are so much fun! I'd love to snag these if they ever come stateside...found via from Sthlm.

These doormats are so much fun!! I don't know if I want the bunny or the hippo more...both would be so cute in a mud room...or even in a kids bedroom!
Both of these wall stickers, below, are so whimsical! I'd be happy with either one!


And of course, no Swedish design homage can be complete without a mention of ikea...