dinner al fresco

i've set a goal to plan better, healthier meals. whole foods, fresh finds, and tasty treats. of course, this takes time. so: i resigned from my job and have all the time in the world to cook! (or so i think)

Tonight's Menu:
fresh greens from amy's organic
roasted chicken from orangette's blog (it hung out in the fridge for 36+ hours before baking as suggested)
freshly baked focaccia from Baking with Julia
frozen corn (a gal needs to cut corners somewhere!)
fresh cherries

we dined in the backyard under ye ole tent for the craft shows. it needs use in the between time. prior to dinner i was able to get some photos made of the new flower drawings--soon to appear on etsy. new earrings are in the works as well as some custom orders. i hope to be quilting soon!
new shop: find my goods at straw and feathers on lakeside here in richmond, va. a full shop listing to come. trying to put energy into new stores!

strawberry preserves

yum. i made strawberry lime preserves and they're great on yogurt, waffles, and to come: a drink base. we've only had a little time to try them since last night, but woo hoo, good stuff. i used the Italian Family Jam recipe from orangette and modified it by adding thinkly sliced limes and lime juice to the lemon juice. My batch has 2/3 fresh and 1/3 frozen (those remaining from last year's trip) and it's just good. in the recipe it recommends using the foam on top of yogurt and it's to die for. i was a little put off, but i think this is the equivalent of the foam that marcel and others create on top chef--only better. I made 18 pint jars. See a few here.
This picture catches the light and you can see how beautiful these strawberries are!

joseph said these were for drumming...how fun.

strawberry days

last weekend my friend elizabeth and i worked my silvertreeart booth at the strawberry street market benefitting fox elementary school. and i received an awesome henna tatoo from joan, a neighboring vendor. more info to come on how to have her over for a henna party!

check out an article with q & a with me at silvertreeart on the richmond craft mafia's blog.
this weekend joseph and i enjoyed picking strawberries at the berry patch (off Darbytown Road a couple miles past Dorey Park) which can be found on www.pickyourown.org.
it's so close to our home and i'll say. this year they did it well...live music (great, too), the BEST shrimp & oyster po boys we've had in richmond prepared by louisiana flair catering, great weather--though i'm not sure how much they controlled that--and more clean kids toys in the front yard. mmm...
of course! we have our own little tradition after picking strawberries: strawberry pie with a shortbread crust from our trusty simply in season cookbook. oh, what a weekend...
strawberry days...and strawberry preserves to come tomorrow night!

eat well.

beauty in small doses

i'm so pleased with how the stained glass panel i designed turned out. janet smith of images stained glass took my design, added her creative energy and here we are. a beautiful panel for the donor wall of the soon-to-be newly renovated chapel at VCU Medical Center. i'm thrilled.

fresh finds at the 17th street market

oh, the farmer's market is back. i'm so excited. i only hope to now get out the door soon enough to pick up the yummies from amy's garden at the market this a.m.


here's sight of the beautiful asparagus we found last week. mmm...so good.


and here you can see our fresh feast, what yummy veggies!

good eats!