It was the crumbling bricks that first attracted me to the Georgetown neighborhood of Seattle, then the old signs, store fronts, cafes, bars, and the post-industrial, bohemian vibe. I’d driven through before, and promised myself that I would return with my camera when I had more time.
That was a couple years ago.
Last week, as I was driving around with my husband and daughter, looking for something random, and out of the ordinary, my husband suggested we hit Georgetown again.
Eureka.
As I was ooh-ing and aah-ing over the textures and colors of old bricks, facades, and signs, I stumbled backwards into a parking lot. Then, I turned around to discover the Georgetown Trailer Park Mall.
Random.
Out of the ordinary.
My heart swooned.
A caravan of converted trailers, plying assorted wares from handcrafted jewelry and locally produced art, to vintage furs and grandma’s Corning Ware.
I loved the vibe on this bitterly cold and foggy afternoon. I can’t wait to catch the vibe as the weather warms, and the crowds come out to mingle, at ArtAttack, or during a summer happy hour.
Tom Douglas, the guy who arguably put Seattle’s culinary scene on the map, took his place behind the stove of the demonstration kitchen at Macy’s, and started off by saying: “Today I want to talk to you about effort. If there is one thing I want you to take away today, it’s that it’s worth the effort.”
He was talking about cooking at home for your friends and family. He was talking about sharing not just the family recipes, but the stories that went along with them, such as the way the house smelled when his Grandma came to visit and made her famous schnecken, and the benefits of being the biggest kid in a very large family, when they all reached in to grab their favorite bits of the gooey treat.
“Create memories with your family around food, memories that involve all the senses. Those are what you will remember years from now.”
Tom Douglas
Take 3 recipes, he said, say for instance one pie, one cake, and one cookie recipe, even if you’re afraid of baking – especially if you’re afraid of baking. Make each one three times, following the directions exactly. The trick to baking well is following the directions. By the third try, you will OWN that recipe.
Pick recipes you want to be known for, and be the person who’s known for bringing it. You don’t have to be a great cook, just well practiced at a few recipes. You can grow your repertoire later, just start with three.
Tom prepared three recipes for us: Grilled Cheese with Caramelized Broccoli Rabe and Fontina, Coffee-Bean Turkey with Sweet Onion Gravy, and Pear Tarts with Dreamy Caramel Sauce.
Now, I don’t have room enough to share all three recipes in one post, so I’ve picked one to share today, perhaps more on another day. You’ll just have to come back and visit my blog again some day. Two of the recipes are from Tom’s new cookbook that he is promoting, The Dahlia Bakery Cookbook. Of course, the recipe I chose to share has something to do with coffee, Coffee Bean Turkey with Sweet Onion Gravy. This recipe is from the Macy’s Culinary Council Thanksgiving & Holiday Cookbook.
“Seattle is famous for its coffee. And that inspired me to stuff the turkey cavity with whole roasted coffee beans. Turns out they add a nice toasty-smoky aroma that seasons the bird from within. I leave them in even after the turkey’s done. If a few slip out at the table while I’m carving, it’s a good conversation starter.”
Tom Douglas
Get this one ready for Thanksgiving:
[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:2]
Tom Douglas and Judy Schwartz Haley
FTC Disclosure: This is a sponsored post. I was paid to attend this event, but as always, my opinions remain my own.
He had just completed two flights from Seattle to Newark, then JFK to Rome, and he had just a few hours in Rome before hopping another flight to Istanbul. Somewhere in his rush to see as much of Rome as he could, he zagged when he should have zigged, and found himself in front of St. Paul’s Basilica (also known as the Papal Basilica St. Paul Outside-the-Walls) instead of the the more popular tourist destinations.
He said it wasn’t even all that much to look at from the outside, deserted even, but once he entered the gates – wow.
Sometimes that’s how it works. Sometimes it’s the errant zags that lead us to the magic – magic we wouldn’t have found if we weren’t in motion in the first place.
…
I’ve been googling all morning, and I still haven’t figured out why “Outside-the-Walls” is so important that it became a crucial part of this basilica’s name. If any of you know, I’d love to hear your thoughts.
My husband just returned from a quick trip to Istanbul, where he presented a paper at the International Society for Iranian Studies conference. If you ever wanted someone with whom to discuss the Gothic Sublime, and repetition and imagery in Sadeq Hedayat’s The Blind Owl, I’ve got your man. Also, here’s some pictures he took of Istanbul.
Unfortunately, he had no time for sightseeing, but I think he got some great shots.
Above photos are all by Aaron Albert Haley
Check out Walking on Travels for more adventure tales from bloggers.
Oh, I love me some farmers markets. I love the festival feeling. I love the little individual stalls. I love the flowers. I love the fruits and vegetables. I love the hand made goods. I love being out and about, milling around other people admiring all these things I love.
As it turns out, this week has been designated Farmers Market Week here in the State of Washington. Farms and fresh food are definitely something worth celebrating, if you ask me.
Gem loves the markets as well. She loves the flowers, especially, and all the colors, the crowds, the blueberries, and all the energy.
Today, we went to the farmers market in Renton. This one had a bonus of a kids area, staffed with volunteers, with homemade play-dough and cookie cutters to make ornaments.
Gem was so taken with the dahlias that an elderly woman working in one of the stalls gave her one. Gem was beside herself.
Then she spent the rest of our time at the market looking for the white water-filled buckets that were used the anchor the tents.
Why?
Her flower needed water. So she she made a job for herself of finding all those water buckets, and dipped her flower’s stem in the water of every single one of those buckets at the market.
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