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Posted by Stephanie Meyer on Jan 31, 2006 at 12:42pm

A nod to a few of my senses today.

Cookbooks, good ones, for me, fill all my senses. I love to page through them, look at the pictures, read the background stories, imagine how the food will look, taste and smell, and if I s.t.r.e.t.c.h this, how it will sound (?) OK, maybe not all my senses. But you get the idea. Here are my favorites right now (but honestly, I love many more than this, my moods change with the seasons…):

Bittersweet, Alice Medrich
Fast Food My Way, Jacques Pepin
Mexico One Plate at a Time, Rick Bayless
The Zuni Cafe Cookbook, Judy Rodgers
Savoring the Seasons of the Northern Heartland, Beth Dooley & Lucia Watson
Lidia’s Italian-American Kitchen, Lidia Matticchio Bastianich
Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Julia Child
Casual Cooking, Michael Chiarello
The Gourmet Cookbook, Ruth Reichl
The NY Times Cookbook, Craig Claiborne

And two nods to my sense of smell, as I’ve said many times, I am a bath products fan (freak). Here are some of my favorite bath gels:

Molton Brown Invigorating Suma Ginseng
Kiehl’s Cucumber
Naturopathica Bamboo Scrub
Agraria Lavender
Molton Brown Seamoss
Neutrogena Rainbath
Afface Almond
Naturopathica Zesty Lime
The Sea
Bulgari Au Te Vert


And fragrances, my favorites shift with the seasons here too:

Cartier Must de Cartier
Frederic Malle Parfum de Therese
Lanvin Arpege
Clinique Aromatics Elixir
Jean Paul Gaultier Classique
Serge Lutens Un Lys
DSH Bourbon Vanilla
Floris Cefiro
Chanel Bois Des Iles
Cacharel Eau D’Eden

I most definitely should go for a walk today, but blech, it’s so dreary out there. I’m feeling lazy today. I’m more likely working up to a bath, therefore the musings on favorite scents. So predictable.

Orechiette with broccolini made a lovely lunch, I’m always glad for leftovers like that. I have lamb chops in the refrigerator for tonight. I’m thinking of keeping them simple, probably broil them with salt and pepper, and serve them on top of a pile of arugula/romaine salad. Oh, maybe I’ll do a killer Caesar dressing, hmmm, with a big toasted crouton to soak up all the juices. Get an anchovy/garlic/lamb thing going, definitely. Just don’t tell Nathan – he’s been requesting lamb chops, and he’s pretty open to salads lately, but he’d balk at anchovies, as any kid (and plenty of adults) would. Oooh, I’ll be giving that some more thought, see what I can come up with.

As a total aside, I just checked Susie’s blog, and she had this awesome picture on it (Cory took

it), so I had to snag it for mine. As I’ve said before, she rocks! When I “told” her (IM) that I’d posted it here, she said, what have you got me kicking? Arugula? Choux pastry? Nice choux(s) Suz? Ha! No greens or pastry, however I did post her (grandma’s) chili recipe just today, in the comments for the January 24th entry. Check it out, it was simple and delicious. Woo hoo!

When I picked Nathan up from school, he clilmbed in the car and said, “I don’t feel right.” Got home, took his temp, he’s got a low-grade fever and a headache. Poor little guy. So no basketball game tonight, which he’s very sad about. Sigh. And as a result, he’s of course not one bit into eating dinner tonight, which I prepared early thinking we were going to basketball. So he’s resting, and I ate alone (that’s me, alone, ha), just me and my lamb chop. And Sigmund, salivating all over the place, because even he, with his old-dog dulled senses (aww), can smell the fabulousness of a crispy, juicy broiled lamb chop. Man it smells good in here. Had it on top of what in essence is a Caesar salad without the cheese (dressing recipe in comments, below). Nice combo. I didn’t season the lamb chops with garlic so I could do major garlic in the salad, knowing I would eat the two together (as you can see, I even drizzled a dab of dressing on the chop). With a glass of leftover Sanford Pinot Noir from last night. I’m telling you… Fucking fantastic, I have to say it, I can’t help myself. I do love lamb. Almost as much as I love to swear…

Here’s hoping little Nate feels better. Time to go see him through his LOAD of homework, and hopefully he can go to school tomorrow. Have a good night.

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Older Comments

  1. By Anonymous on July 5, 2006 at 3:48PM

    Hi Stephanie!
    I live in Minneapolis too and share many of your sensualist interests it seems! I came across your blog googling Serge Lutens fragrance, Un Lys - which I am looking to smell and perhaps purchase for my rapidly approaching wedding! I am having the most difficult time finding just the right fragrance. Could you tell me where you found it? Thanks so much!
    Michèle Lehtis
    mlehtis@hotmail.com

  2. By Stephanie on January 31, 2006 at 7:02PM

    Caesar Salad Dressing
    From Lidia’s Italian-American Kitchen by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich
    Enough dressing for 6 servings of salad

    2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
    2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
    2 large cloves of garlic (the recipe calls for 4, but that is overwhelming to me, and I love garlic)
    4 anchovy fillets
    1/3 c. extra-virgin olive oil, or as needed
    1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
    1 hard-boiled egg yolk
    ½ tsp. salt
    ½ tsp. Worcestershire sauce
    freshly ground black pepper

    Combine 2 Tbsp. vinegar, the lemon juice, garlic, and anchovies in a blender or the work bowl of a food processor. Blend until smooth, adding some of the 1/3 c. of olive oil if there isn’t enough liquid to move the mixture around. Add the mustard, hard-boiled egg yolk, salt, Worcestershire sauce, pepper, and remaining olive oil. Blend until smooth and creamy. Taste the dressing; if it’s a little too tangy, pour in a splash or two of olive oil and blend until it’s incorporated.

  3. By Stephanie on January 31, 2006 at 7:02PM

    Bless you!

  4. By Suz on January 31, 2006 at 4:26PM

    That's just my kick for joy after having a snack of pickled beets. :-)

    Please explain to me how food sounds. I know how it sounds the next day, possibly...:-) Ha!

    Ahhh-CHOUX!