the recipe list, movies, & the latest

...in which i try to tally and see just how many new recipes i tried last year. (this is also so i can feel proud about my resolution last year!) i don't read too many foodie blogs, i prefer to browse the cookbooks i own, however, i really love molly's orangette blog and i've tried many of her recipes with lots of success. they seem to all be relatively simple, with lots of yummy goodness & a twist of homey flair that i dig. check out her blog if these recipes seem intriguing to you. & if you are dying to try one give me a little shout and i'll email it to you :) i'm also a fan of martha's cookbook (yes, the martha) & i have quite a few veggie specific cookbooks too (as i don't eat meat) -- "a beautiful bowl of soup", "enchanted broccoli forest", "rice & spice", "a spoonful of ginger", "new vegetarian", & "the big book of vegetarian" -- just a few of my go to books to browse...i also fell hard for nigel slater's "real food" cookbook last year -- simple, easy, dee-lish recipes.

here goes the list:

*ginger chocolate cookie recipe (of course i start off with cookies, ha!)
*tomoto sauce with onion & butter (just about the simplest, albeit richest, sauce i've tried...)
*salmon mustard dill sauce
*stephanie's granola - super yum
*portabello mushroom parmesan
*lentil salad
*lentil soup with ginger, lemon & carrots
*cilantro pesto
*red & black bean polenta pies
*white bean and tomato saute
*tuna salad bruschetta
*lentil & swiss chard soup
*pumpkin pancakes
*shrimp & pasta puttanesca
*mushroom stroganoff
*carrot cupcakes
*rice pudding
*lemon risotto with asparagus & peas
*molasses cookies
*raisin bran muffins
*white bean salad w/ zucchini & parmesan
*tuscan bread salad
*homemade tortilla chips
*banana bread with ginger
*neo-southern pimento cheese
*grilled halibut with lemon & lime
*tofu noodle toss with peanut sauce
*coffee cake muffins
*cream-braised brussels sprouts
*oven fries with old bay
*sweet-potato biscuits
*warm butternut squash and chickpea salad with tahini
*split pea soup with moroccan spiced butter
*spiced lentils with coconut cream and ginger
*feta and cumin phyllo packages
*mushroom & onion marmalade tarts
*basmati rice-stuffed roasted peppers
*moroccan chick pea soup
*french vegetable soup

....and that's about all i have gathered in my crazy "pile" that needs organizing. i bought some of susie's cutie recipe cards to transfer the keepers onto. i need to get on that project. i guess i didn't do too bad last year, i have more on the books for this year -- definitely more seasonal, & more local. have you tried any good recipes you loved & that stayed in the rotation?

in other news, we've watched a coupla good movies lately: "be here to love me" - about townes van zandt; an amazing songwriter, very good film. we've also seen, "helvetica", "glory days", "sherry baby", & more "grey's anatomy" (my guilty pleasure!) i checked out abby's posts and all the participants of beautiful films week and i'm excited to try a few on that list that looked really amazing.

i also had the pleasure of hanging out with shash and mati (& her mister h.) on friday evening while listening to sean hayes play. thanks for a fun evening gals - even though we were all totally tired & it was super rainy out :)

...i'm off to finish up my artwork for a small show i'm in in virginia, back in my hometown of norfolk.

have a good week lovelies!!

vintage golden swan pin brooch

vintage golden swan pin brooch, originally uploaded by sproutgirl74.

sprout studio update in the works

sprout studio update in the works, originally uploaded by sproutgirl74.

sprout studio new year update

sprout studio new year update, originally uploaded by sproutgirl74.

a lovely little heart necklace

a lovely little heart necklace, originally uploaded by sproutgirl74.

new for sprout studio

new for sprout studio, originally uploaded by sproutgirl74.

busy in the sprout studio + slow down week recap.

good luck love birdies, originally uploaded by sproutgirl74.

so, i did slow down last week - you? somewhat because of that killer cold that is going around finally snagged me and made me slow down. humph...

i had a chance to read the entire nytimes, which i never do - my favorite sections are always the arts, travel, and the magazine. finished barbara kingsolver's "animal, vegetable, miracle" -- so so good. a must read. and we had some fun down time reorganizing and rethinking our studio live work space. which resulted in a trip to the resource center and inevitably ikea (which we all know is not slowing down) however, we have a grand scheme, and i think it's going to work out well!

we also went to cirque du soleil's kooza - always entertaining. saw the diving bell & the butterfly; highly recommended. had some drinks at a few different bars around the city & stopped into stella bakery, in north beach, where they make the most authentic cannoli's i've tasted. it was a good week.

we were also super busy in the sprout studio though for a new update coming soon. pictures above...

how were your weeks? do tell...

hanging with loo dog - slow down week, jan 13-19

hanging with loo dog, originally uploaded by sproutgirl74.

hiya everyone -- this coming week is national slow down week, january 13-19th...check out adbusters for their little cartoon illustrating such: drink a tea, smooch your lover, pet your dog :)

i'll be signing up to do more of just that. would you like to join me? i'll be back after next week to catch you up on all that i slowed down on.

xxx.

bye bye 2007 & being without internet...

bye bye 2007, originally uploaded by sproutgirl74.

i've been w/o the internets for quite some time now since the big ole storm knocked it out. but it's been good in that, what you don't know is brewing, is better sometimes way. like...orders? can't check them! blogging? no way w/o the internets! email? nope. surfing the web? nah, that's out too! and the mister's phone went dead after i spill in the drink-shower. so it's been real quiet. and really, very nice.

i've made some blogging/webby/posting decisions which basically revolve around me taking more time for me & pursuing my creative habit. (*not* just sprout studio product making, but art making too - hence the new "art & LIFE" category under my new site) i want to make more, look more in an inspirational way -- but not in a "omg they (whomever 'they' might be) are so much more prolific/creative/industrious/intuitive/better than me way", compare less, view less blogs that eat up my time. i'll be narrowing my list to the left there down to an even more slim blog list - just the ones i'm really interested in -- more of the peeps here in the bay area that i'd like to keep up with and be part of my community. (like shash & mati, whom i went to the MOMA with over the break - & had such a good time with).

i want more time for me, to do new things in this amazing city (that gives me sunsets like these? holy gorgeousness!!) & want more time to be a maker of art. i have so many ideas and feel behind all the time with no time to actually create. so that's a priority moving to the top o' my list.

and thinking about lists, i've been diligently trying to try loads more new recipes this past year as one of my unspoken resolutions of 2007 - and i think i did fairly well. i'll post a list of yum new foodie things i've tried and recipes later. the food thing on my unspoken to do list this year is learn how to make bread. and then do it. :)

i do love me some flickr though, so hopefully the blog pare down will result in more art time, and i can still get my flickr fix in.

do you do resolutions? i just kinda do a mental one or two...my neighbors decided to "commandments" - now that's heavy duty commitment!

hope you are having a lovely week. i have been :)

xxx.

poppytalk handmade market

poppytalk handmade market, originally uploaded by sproutgirl74.

hiya everyone!

so i'll be participating in the poppytalk handmade market coming up! i'm very thrilled to have been asked to be part of it :) check out sprout studio here when the market goes live :)