Posted in Inspiration, Nature Notes, tagged colors, droplets, floral photography, flowers, Inspiration, nature, petals, plants, water on October 24, 2012| 1 Comment »
I was watering herbs with a misting bottle while waiting for a paper to print. As droplets settled on neighboring cut flowers, I just wondered what would happen if I pulled a few petals and let them settle on my papers …
.. and on my notebooks …
and other items below?
As usual, beauty found in unexpected places.
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, Nature Notes, tagged black walnuts, breakfast, cooking, food, food photography, Inspiration, nature, recipes on October 24, 2012| 4 Comments »
Now I do not think that everyone would describe black walnuts as a beautiful food. Even for me it is a bit like cilantro. I can have a little, not a lot. But for Steve, black walnuts are one of those pungent, decidedly earthy fruits that should be savored and recognized as a culinary treasure. He and I have trekked through the woods of New England with plastic bags in hand searching out the trees, digging at their roots for the nuts covered in their brown-green husks, knocking squirrels out of the way if necessary.
The husks have come back home, sat in a basket in the hallway to dry out, and then the onerous process begins of extracting the nut from the husk. That process usually involves a hammer or vice grips. Now you see why these nuts are such a treasure. Steve has been experimenting with these nuts quite a bit. As unofficial taste tester, I’ve enjoyed Black Walnut Chocolate Chip Cookies, Wild Rice with Black Walnuts (served alongside Duck and Kale), and I think there was even Black Walnuts with Strawberries spooned over vanilla ice cream (or I might be making that one up!). Most recently, he served up Black Walnut French Toast. I’ve told enough folks about this dish that I thought I should share the recipe along with the few photos I managed before all I could think about was eating. Enjoy. 😉
Steve’s Black Walnut French Toast
enough for 2 people for Sunday brunch or perhaps a decadent dessert
leftover bread, sliced thick
3 eggs
black walnuts, chopped, approx. half a cup
cinnamon
nutmeg
cream
In large bowl, mix the eggs, add cinnamon, nutmeg and little bit of cream. Once well mixed, toss in the black walnuts. Warm a frying pan and add some butter. Dip the bread in the egg mixture. Coat well and then drop in the frying pan, browning on both sides.
For those who might like the crunch of nuts, be sure to scoop out nuts from the mixing bowl and press into the toast.
Serve with butter, warm maple syrup and perhaps some bacon on the side.
Posted in Inspiration, On the Road, tagged architecture, art, churches, colors, design, digital photography, dublin, glass, illustration, Inspiration, ireland, travel on October 23, 2012| 3 Comments »
Well, while in Dublin, I have to admit that I did take pictures of a few other things besides leaves and letterpress. Even on the rainiest of days, the interiors of the churches were beautiful to view as subdued light shone through stained glass windows and fell upon lovely murals.
Posted in Branches, Inspiration, Nature Notes, Science, tagged autumn, beauty, colors, Inspiration, landscape, leaf, nature, nature photography, outdoors, patterns, seasons on October 22, 2012| 7 Comments »
I do wonder if people think I’m crazy as I walk through downtown Boston and other city centers picking up leaves and sticking them in any available pocket.
I keep thinking I should plan a specific leaf-picking adventure with a proper bucket or plastic bag as container. But somehow it is more fun to be walking along to work or to shop and to be open to the possibility of finding … something … along the way.
Of course it is easy to behave that way when the sun is shining and autumn leaves glow like jewels falling from the sky.
I’ll be curious what’s to be found on the ground this day. Hope your day goes well wherever you are in the world. 😉
Posted in Inspiration, Nature Notes, Science, tagged autumn, Boston, caustics, colors, Copley Square, Inspiration, leaf, nature, nature photography, water on October 21, 2012| 8 Comments »
Posted in Branches, Inspiration, Nature Notes, tagged blue, colors, Inspiration, landscape, nature, Photography on October 19, 2012| 3 Comments »
Posted in Inspiration, Nature Notes, tagged art, autumn, beauty, calm, colors, food, Inspiration, nature, orange, Photography, seasons, whimsy on October 17, 2012| 4 Comments »
… because I am having an orange day. At least that’s how I’ve decided to define this day, by the color orange. I mean, I didn’t expect it to be a green day or a blue one. I knew that I would work with the color orange at least for a bit. On the list of to-do’s that I created last night, I had planned to post the following image with the title “a bit of autumn colors on a plate.”
Yet the day began with me finding a funny bug on a window so I posted that picture instead and likewise little else has unfolded this day as I imagined it might last night. Nothing horrible has happened. Just the beautiful unexpected complexities of life that can leave one breathless. But as I raced about, my eyes kept being drawn to sunlight striking orange items. And finally, as I stopped to catch my breath, I gave myself permission to take the time to snap a few photos of the orange world deigning to reveal itself to me.
Of course then I gave myself permission to play with a few other colors in the autumn palette.
I managed to find at least one leaf. Imagine that.
And there were a few extra tomatoes from the dish I made last night.
Now as I tuck my camera away, I don’t know that I am anymore calm but my head is certainly filled with orange-hued and golden thoughts. It is indeed a lovely colorful day. I hope you’re having a good one too. 😉
Posted in Inspiration, Nature Notes, Science, tagged animal species, beauty, bugs, entomology, environment, insects, Inspiration, nature, Photography, science on October 17, 2012| 5 Comments »
I found this fellow as I was opening the window this morning. Just look at those lovely legs. If anyone knows the name of this insect, please share. 😉
Posted in Branches, Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, Nature Notes, tagged autumn, colors, Inspiration, leaf, light, nature, Photography, seasons on October 16, 2012| 4 Comments »
Posted in Inspiration, Nature Notes, tagged communication, dublin, Inspiration, ireland, letterpress, Photography, printing press, printmaking, travel on October 15, 2012| 3 Comments »
…my traveling companion and I of course had to follow the arrow pointing to the National Print Museum. I’m not sure if the arrow was meant for people in a car or on foot. Regardless, for us two pedestrians, the museum took a while to track down. Many locals did not seem to know its location and warned us that sometimes young people like to twist the signs around to fool tourists. Well, we eventually determined that the sign was pointed in the correct direction. Hopefully, more people will visit this wonderful hidden place.
After seeing the Book of Kells exhibit earlier in the week and being reminded how precious books and the written word have been throughout human history, it seemed apropos to visit a museum focused on the evolution of the printing press. The main floor of the museum has several operating machines with trays of moveable type in different fonts.
We did not have enough time to gain any hands-on experience with the different machines but the museum does offer workshops and handling sessions.
I also highly recommend visiting the reference library on the 2nd floor containing many books and pamphlets that are likely out of print. Just the few minutes I had to peer inside a few books planted seeds in my mind for future projects.
Learn more about this fascinating museum via this link.
Words + Images 