A Homemade Life...stories and recipes from my kitchen table

I started reading the blog Orangette and really adored the way the author, Molly Wizenberg loved food.  She approached food in a way that was memory driven, full of naivete and rich with sensory descriptions.

I stumbled upon her book while relishing two hours found alone with my husband walking through working class, immigrant neighborhoods of Toronto.  Spring was just on the verge of pushing through the dullness of winter and we had the luxury to wander in and out of storefronts.  We were killing two hours and loving it!  We discovered a lovely artsy bookstore and lingered.  I found myself deep in the culinary section, my husband deep in biographies.  

A Homemade Life reached out to me.  The texture of the book as well as the simple design of the cover equally pulled me in and to settle into Molly's take on food sealed the deal.  I got that little excited feeling as I put the book under my arm and continued to move throughout the store.  

My husband and I then walked a few blocks, shot a few images of the bursting spring and sat ourselves finally in a little organic cafe that was featuring an organic black bean and red chili soup complete with a slice of homemade sourdough toast.  Luxury!!!  An hour to read, look across at my husband (without the distraction of kids) and to sit in a relaxed state only to mutter occassionally how wonderful the soup was, remark on a passage of our book or newspaper and of course, shift the eyes to a character that wandered into the cafe.  Bliss.  Thank you Molly for your book, thank you Toronto for your ambiance. 

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle - A Year of Food Life

I loved this book.  I admit, I am a wannabe farmer, a wannabe activist, a wannabe writer and I would definately say, I am a lover of food.  This book was for me and anybody else who dreams about growing their own food and one day owning a small organic farm, I would recommend you pick it up.


This is the story of a courageous family who pledge to only eat produce and meat that they grow or that they can find locally in their own neighborhood or they simply learn to live without it.  They left the industrial food pipeline behind and learned to make their own cheese, raise turkeys, grow a bounty of vegetable and learned to preserve the bounty to get them through the winter months.


It was written in part journalistically and gave thorough description of how we end up the industrial food on our plates (not always a pretty picture).  It was eye opening.  But the book was also a warm memoir about a family who took on a challenge and worked together.


This book opened my eyes and I have found myself pausing before buying a dozen eggs, looking to see where our food was produced, and even planning my own vegetable garden this summer.  I plan to take on zucchini, peppers, and a plethora of herbs.  I will let you know how it goes...yikes.


If you have ever dreamed tending a garden with the purpose of sustaining your family, pick up this book and read of one family that did!

The Story of Edgar Sawtelle

I had expectations for this book.  I bought it for my husband for Christmas, but truth be told; I was the one looking forward to reading it. 

Just this year we brought into our very busy lives a pound pup.  She was from the local Humane Society and she was found abandoned at 8 weeks in a ditch.  (Who can do that???).  We always knew that we wanted to add a dog to our family but my husband is the true "dog" person and he was leaning towards a breeder.  Thankfully our 8 year old daughter consistently begged to visit the Humane Society.  On this particular day, my husband was driving and he pulled in to appease her.  Once they walked in the front doors they were greeted by the sight of a penned in area with a cute little puppy scrambling around trying to escape.  The puppy ended up coming home with us and we named her Sadie.  She has been the brightness in our family this year in a time when we needed it.  We love her and she is now a part of our family.

So, knowing that this book was essentially about a relationship with a dog (or many) I was keen to jump into the story.  It enveloped me.  It consumed my husband first and he had a hard time trying not to look over my shoulder to experience along with me for the second time. 

The Sawtelle dogs are special and so is this story.  It is haunting, adventurous, suspenseful and inspiring.  It is a coming of age story and a story about communicating...the many ways of communicating.  This is a book that you don't want to put down, and one that you don't want to end.  It is a book that I need to share. My high expectations were filled.  Give it a go.   

Julie & Julia

As a self-acclaimed "foodie" and fellow blogger, I couldn't pass up reading this book by Julie Powell.  I am happy to say that I read the book first (really hate seeing the movie before reading the book), and just this evening, watched the movie with my husband.  We took bets on how long he would last before he fell asleep.  I bet 10 minutes, he bet 4 minutes.  He won.

It seemed like a good night to watch the movie but after enjoying a bottle of red wine with dinner, even I fell asleep for a part of the movie.  (I think it was the part when Julie and her husband get in a fight and he storms out of the apartment.  By the time I woke up, they were happy and in love again.)

It was a good read.  Not a great read but I did find it enjoyable for the most part.  I have since gone back to look up parts of her original blog and I suspect that her blog would be more entertaining.  What the book did accomplish for me was a curiosity for French cooking.  It made me wonder if I could actually do the same and if I could actually cook and eat that rich food for one year and still be able to walk up a flight of stairs? 

I know what I was drawn to was watching Julie Powell change her circumstances.  I love watching or reading about individuals who set their lives off on a different course not by methodical and logical planning but rather by listening to a quiet little voice inside that is encouraging and simply saying the word "yes".  I love that she struggled, cried, swore her ass off, doubted, felt pride, enjoyment, peace and a sense of accomplishment and ultimately, it lead her to a place that she was meant to be in from the very beginning. 

I thumbed through a copy of The Art of Mastering French Cooking by Julia Child yesterday at the book store.  It looked retro and appealing.  I just wasn't sure that the recipes could make it into a regular part of our lives.  I will let you know if I do venture down the French culinary path.  I'll add photos and let you know how much butter we consume and if I too, pull out a few "f" bombs along the way.

The idea of living past 100 years old is not appealing to many people because often it is associated with diminished health and mental abilities. After reading this book that stereotype will be put to rest.


The idea of aging has always fascinated me especially since having such a close relationship with my Nana. She lived in her own apartment with such life and vitality right up till the week before she passed away. She was two months shy of 92. I loved to brag about her age and how vibrant a life she was still living. When I read this book it was obvious to me how she encompassed many of the qualities that these centenarians shared.

This book was written by Dan Buettner who's groundbreaking work on longevity led to his 2005 National Geographic cover story "Secrets of Living Longer". He has since become the founder of Blue Zones, an organization that helps people live longer and healthier lives.

This book is not so much a "how to" but rather a book about a collection of amazing individuals who have common threads to how they live their lives. Dan Buettner and his team identify four of the world's Blue Zones; Okinawa, Japan; Sardinia, Italy; Loma Linda, California and the Nicoyan Peninsula in Costa Rica.

After spending time getting to know these inspiring men and women, the author Dan Buettner asks them what they feel is the secret to living. The key to them for living a full life was to live simply.

I love lists...this is a list of suggestions for living a healthy long life taken from the advice given by a handful of our worlds centenarians.

• Put family first where every member of the family is cared for. People who live in strong, healthy families suffer lower rates of depression, suicide and stress.
• Celebrate elders in our communities and in our families.
• Laugh with friends. Laughter reduces stress and is fun.
• Move. Be active without having to think about it. Walk. Dance. Do yoga. Plant a garden.
• Eat less meat and processed foods.
• Lower your daily calories. Stop eating when you are 80% full. Rather than eating till you are no longer full, try eating till you are no longer hungry.
• Drink red wine in moderation. (I like this one.)
• Have a purpose in life. See the "bigger picture".
• Take time to relieve stress. Consider reducing noise in your life, be early, try meditating.
• Belong to a community.
• Surround yourself with others who share the same values.
• Get outside and enjoy the sun, nature, water.
• Drink plenty of water, get plenty of rest.

My Nana was an inspiration to me and many of those around her. She did live fully. She had a sense of purpose, she felt grateful, she belonged and felt valued. She died happy and loved. This is a true achievement of success after living a long and healthy life.


Take a look at the Blue Zone website to learn more about living longer. http://www.bluezones.com/

"The Yellow Wallpaper"

I read recently on an old friend’s website that she needed a change of scenery or she was going to go all "yellow wallpaper" on us. At the time I didn't understand her reference. I went to high school with her and then remained in touch by working in the local art community as we emerged into the real world. I could always count on her suggestions of artists to explore, books to read, recipes to savor.

So after being puzzled by her "yellow wallpaper" comment, I looked it up and was amazed that I never came across this short story in my years of education.

This story was written in 1892 by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. It was one of the first feminist writings at a time when women were not encouraged to think independently. It was a time when women had to conform to the idea of what was "womanhood" in all its domesticity. This story describes a woman’s struggle with post partum depression after the birth of her daughter. Her husband “John” was a physician and also the absolute authority in her life. The treatment for her "nervousness" was "The Rest Cure". This meant that patients were isolated and discouraged to interact with others or even to read and write. The resting in bed for weeks or months at a time often proved to be a treatment that usually left most patients weaker and more disillusioned.

Her struggle in the story was with a depression and the lack of self confidence to do what she inherently felt was right for her. She felt the need to write but her physician husband would not permit it. She secretly wrote when she was alone. The room in which she was "resting" became her prison; the yellow wallpaper became the cage. It was not until her depression got so great did she begin to build her self confidence and seized to care what others thought of her. That is when an interaction with the yellow wallpaper began. She became obsessed and further delusional but in her delusions eventually found independence.

This book has a strange way to exude a feminist point of view but it was powerful. Mental illness is challenging in the best of times but to suffer in the days when women’s rights were non-existing would be tragic.

I believe we all have the ability to know what is right. We all have a voice that will guide us in the direction that serves us best. Tragedy comes when that voice is impaired by either mental illness or by a learned oppression of our society or surroundings.

To be able to be free to feel what we are feeling is the ticket. Nobody should be robbed of this. And from time to time, we all need a change of scenery as my friend mentioned, so that we also don't feel trapped by the designs of our own "yellow wallpaper"!

World Without End

I finally finished this book "World Without End" by Ken Follett.  I have heard it referred to the "Book Without End"...it is long but worth the read.  I did find myself waiting for it to be done (if only to lessen the burden of holding the book each night) but ultimately enjoyed the journey.  If you were a fan of "Pillars of the Earth" you should definitely put the time into this book.  I would recommend reading the soft cover edition however.  It was a little heavy to hold in bed after a long day!

Set in the fourteenth century but written for contemporary readers; the enjoyment for me was feeling the characters slowly settle into my imagination each night and then enjoying the ride of the ups and downs of their fascinating lives.  Full of love, sex, violence, human weakness and human strengths.  Women continue to live strong even in a time where male dominance is the only way.  It leaves you thankful to be born in this age!  Give it a go and let me know what you think.