Sweet
March 8, 2018
If it’s March, then it’s maple syrup season. The first of the new year’s harvests begins this month with the tapping of the trees and the cooking down of each precious drop. The soft rounded sweetness of maple syrup enhances everything from savory to sweet, morning till night. I have a preference for grade B dark amber for its particularly deep rich maple flavor. Here are a few favorite uses you might try to carry you through to the end of this relentless winter.
Top to bottom:
Gently simmer maple syrup to reduce by a third. Off heat, gently add fresh blueberries to warm and serve with your favorite pancake recipe. https://simplequietmodern.com/2014/04/13/blueberry-pancakes-the-remake/
A simple maple syrup vinaigrette is just right on a bitter green like frisée. https://simplequietmodern.com/2012/11/11/i-dont-love-brunch/
Jack Daniels Maple Ketchup? Yep. Pretty tasty. https://simplequietmodern.com/2013/06/08/i-do-know-jack/
You don’t need a special occasion for Spicy Maple Bacon Wrapped Shrimp…just a snowy night in. https://simplequietmodern.com/2014/02/05/valentines-day-befores/
Maple Walnut Fudge…pretty classic. https://simplequietmodern.com/2014/03/25/liquid-harvest/
Simple, simple, simple. Cayenne Maple Glazed Walnuts https://simplequietmodern.com/2013/11/30/mmmm-maplely/
Photos: gp
Everyone loves…
February 11, 2018
a happy ending. No matter what your Valentine’s Day plans are for Wednesday, finish things off with these Chocolate Raspberry Champagne Truffles. Gather your handful of ingredients and it’s as simple as melt, set, cut and dust.
G’s Chocolate Raspberry Champagne Truffles
Prep an 8″ loaf pan by buttering it lightly and lining with a piece of parchment leaving a couple of inches of overhang on the long sides.
Gather your ingredients:
20 oz. dark chocolate, chopped
1 cup heavy cream
a pinch of kosher salt
1/2 package Trader Joe’s Freeze Dried Raspberries ( 1.2 oz package) lightly crushed
1/3 cup Champagne or Prosecco
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted, for dusting finished truffles.
In a heatproof bowl over a pot of simmering water combine chocolate, cream and salt until smooth. Make sure the water does not touch the bottom of the bowl.
Remove from heat and stir in champagne until thoroughly incorporated and then mix in the freeze-dried raspberries.
Pour mixture into prepared pan and smooth top.
Refrigerate to set up at least 8 and up to 24 hours.
Remove truffle loaf from pan using parchment sling after loosening edges with a knife warmed in hot water, then dried.
Cut the loaf in half crosswise. Cut each half into sixteen pieces, re-heating and drying the knife as needed. Toss the individual rectangular truffles in the sifted cocoa powder to coat.
Yield: 32 two bite truffles
Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to 3 days.
Photos: gp
My inspiration was Cindy Rahe’s recipe for found here: https://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/champagne_chocolate_truffles/
Let’s Review
January 3, 2018
Another year has passed, and with it, another year of simplequietmodern. As I prepare for year seven, I’m excited to see what held your interest over the last twelve months. The MidCentury seating of Van Keppel Green, modern black fences, the “folded” plywood works of Harry Roseman, factory inspired windows and a cozy white Christmas topped the list. Thank you for your continued interest, for stopping and sharing your kind words, for your friendship…for indulging me.
We can’t celebrate without cake, can we? I’m thinking a Burnt Almond Torte from Prantl’s Bakery in Pittsburgh might be in order. And of course, some flowers.
Top to bottom: links to each of your favorite posts:
torte photo: https://www.goldbely.com/prantls-bakery/15395-burnt-almond-torte
5…4…3…2
December 31, 2017
Happy New Year! What better way to ring in the New Year than with a classic Champagne Cocktail? Simple enough…a sugar cube soaked in bitters topped off wth Champagne or sparkling wine and garnished with a twist of citrus. And, what better way to serve it up than in a simplequietmodern cylinder flute? That’s it…pop, drop, pour, clink.
https://www.cb2.com/set-of-8-cylinder-champagne-flutes/s422283
White Christmas
December 24, 2017
Snow, snow and more snow… a Bourbon Egg Nog Cocktail…a favorite place to relax and put your feet up…a cracking fire. Perfect. Merry Christmas.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=eZgHTVh2hoc#
Photos: gp
Womb chair photo: https://www.knoll.com/product/womb-chair
Virtual Yule Log: http://www.swiss-miss.com/2017/12/friday-link-pack-263.html
Really?
December 18, 2017
Inventive and imaginative, dramatically provocative and thoughtful…that’s how the Pantone Color Institute describes its selection for the Color of the Year 2018. Wax poetic if you must, at the end of the day, it’s purple.
Image: https://www.pantone.com/color-of-the-year-2018
Just Starting That List
December 13, 2017
or, tying things up? Either way a few gift suggestions couldn’t hurt. Smaller personal gifts seem to really hit the mark, even more so if that gift was made by you. So, I’ve included some DIY ideas as well.
A homemade hand cream would be welcome by anyone who works with their hands or is feeling the effects of Winter already. Simply blending a base of beeswax and olive oil with essential oils of peppermint, eucalyptus and wintergreen… your gifts will be ready to give in no time. Photo: gp https://simplequietmodern.com/?s=Salve
Perfect for getting into all of those nooks and crannies. What gardener wouldn’t love this hand rake? Photo:https://www.shopterrain.com/fall%2Dcleanup/sneeboer%2Dhand%2Dleaf%2Ddebris%2Drake/searchString/Hand%20rake
Pom Pom or not, everybody loves a cap. A quick knit project like this could have you completing several before the 25 th. Photo: https://www.purlsoho.com/create/2016/10/17/basic-hats-for-everyone-in-new-colors/
A simple modern knit, this Elementary Wrap from Purl Soho might just be the project to take the edge off all of the holiday stress. And, the end result will find you not only relaxed, but with another gift checked off of that list. Photo: http://www.purlsoho.com/create/2017/10/20/elementary-wrap/
For the design obsessed, it doesn’t get any more simplequietmodern than the work of icon Eero Saarinen. photo: http://needsupply.com/saarinen.html
Easily broken down into three separate gifts or two gifts and one for you…this trio of bud vases from Heath Ceramics in their Winter Seasonal glazes of Arctic, Shell White and Sequoia Fair warning, when they’re gone they’re gone. photo: http://www.heathceramics.com/winter-seasonal/bud-vase-set-12
Irresistible, and so simple. Cayenne Maple Glazed Walnuts…a little sweet, a little heat.. Photo: gp https://simplequietmodern.com/2013/11/30/mmmm-maplely/
You can gild that lily by presenting those walnuts in this Heath Ceramic Deep Serving Bowl. There won’t be any re-gifting here. Photo: http://www.heathceramics.com/cook-dine/bowls/deep-serving-bowl-110
What girl wouldn’t love the simplicity of semi- precious gemstone beads lovingly strung into this assortment of necklaces? Each Gemstone & Knots kit from Purl Soho makes 4 necklaces in the designs shown, and is available in nine color ways. Photo: https://www.purlsoho.com/create/2017/11/29/gemstones-knots-necklaces/
I received this mysterious blend of cypress wood and incense years ago and it’s been my signature fragrance ever since. Even Jaxon enjoys a spritz to start his day. L’Occitane Eau des Baux. Photo: gp https://usa.loccitane.com/eau-des-baux-eau-de-toilette,82,1,66807,262187.htm#descriptionSection
Feeling It
December 10, 2017
There’s still time to start feeling it…that holiday spirit. If you’re overwhelmed and you’d just like the holidays behind you, it might be time to adjust your thinking. Doing something nice for someone else everyday will have that smile you put on their face coming right back to ya…multiplied. The gesture needn’t be large. The greatest reward can come from something as simple as opening a door, paying for someone’s morning coffee, simply paying a compliment or offering a kind word. With only two weeks until Christmas, you might find the benefits reaped will have you wanting to continue this exercise right into the New Year. Start like I did, and pass out a pocketful of candy canes today.
photo: gp https://simplequietmodern.com/2013/12/10/candy-candy-canes/
Getting Started
December 7, 2017
Like it or not, it’s the holidays. Get out that pen and pad and start that list. Committing to paper will organize and simplify the tasks of shopping, decorating, cooking and entertaining, while every slash through an item accomplished will bring you that much closer to a Merry Christmas. Start with your personal traditions, add or subtract as you go, and keep your eyes and ears open for new inspiration and simple solutions. Three weeks to go…better get started.
From the top:
You can’t beat free. The last of my yard clean- up yielded perfect white pine cones to fill up a bowl or adorn a wrapped package. An added bonus…several birds nests to add to the mix.
Quince. A pot of Quince Paste simmering on the stove while decorating the house…a little holiday multi tasking. https://simplequietmodern.com/2012/12/14/small-plates/
An edited selection of vintage tree ornaments sets the color story. Have I mentioned I’m still into pink? The addition of more pink…flowers, wrapping or even the blush of a champagne cocktail can only help with an additional rosy glow.
If they were put away neatly you wouldn’t have a tangled mess. That said, a few lights are in order.
The addition of loose woven cotton metallic ribbon, also in pink, or maybe a simple spattered spritz of rose gold paint will elevate the simplequietmodern wrapping of newsprint or kraft paper. Ribbon photo: https://www.shopangelaliguori.com/products/metallic-loose-weave-wood-spool
A few more ideas can be found here: https://simplequietmodern.com/2014/12/09/low-cost-no-cost/
photos (except where noted): gp
Making the Cut
November 29, 2017
Well, it’s time to cull through the stack of Christmas cookie recipes, hold some auditions and see who makes the cut. Sounds brutal, but editing to one selection keeps things simple while still keeping the holiday festive. Espresso Hazelnut Cookies, classic Shortbread and Walnut Horns are being edged out by a twist on last year’s selection…the Chewy Molasses Cookie. By pressing a thumbprint into the center of the cookies while they’re still warm from the oven and filling them with 1/2 teaspoon of raspberry preserves…well, they were simply the hands down winner.
Chewy Molasses Thumbprint Cookies. Chewy, spicy with a little extra Christmas magic.
Photos: gp
simplequietmodern 