Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies!

Nothing says fall like pumpkin! Add chocolate chips and cookie dough, and you have one great seasonal treat. 

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 egg
1 cup pumpkin (cooked or canned)
1 teasp vanilla
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teasp baking powder
1 teasp baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teasp nutmeg1 teasp cinnamon
1 cup chocolate chips

Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
Beat in egg, pumpkin and vanilla
Mix and sift flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, nutmeg, and cinnamon,
Add to creamed mixture
Mix well.
Add chocolate chips and mix thoroughly.

Drop by teaspoons onto well greased cookie sheet.
Bake at 350° for 15 minutes.
Remove from sheets while still warm.

Eat Real

Last night I attended Eat Real Oakland, in Jack London Square. This three day festival celebrates all things tasty, fresh, and handmade with a focus on street food, local wines, handcrafted beers, and traditional food craft – all featuring sustainable, local ingredients. And no dish or drink costs more than $5.  I do love food, so you know I was sampling a variety of plates from sliders at Brass and Knuckle, to pickled vegetables from Forage SF, (both pictured below) to home made popsicles from Cranky Boots. This is pop up community at its best. If you go to one of the Eat Real events near you, be ready to deal with long lines and a crowd. I'm glad local street food is getting support!

Coasting

For my final ceramics project I made a set of four coasters.  Though, I must admit, I expected the glaze to come out brighter. There is always an element of surprise and mystery when it comes to firing a piece; sometimes the end product comes out differently than one expects.  I also tried wax resist for the first time. You dip the fired clay into hot wax (or alternately you can paint it on). It then burns off when the piece goes back into the kiln. The glaze doesn't stick to the wax, thus the wax can be used as another method to create texture, straight lines, specific designs and negative space.

So Magnetic

Continuing with my theme of gift giving and craft making, I created a series of ceramic magnets. I made a pair of bicycle magnets, a series of different colored flowers, and you may recognize the panda logo from this site!  Magnetic tape, which you can get at almost any art store, including Michaels (a store I love and hate), is inexpensive, easy to use, and can make magnets out of almost anything.

Salad Days Continued...

Today I learned how to make mayonnaise from scratch. It is a surprisingly simple recipe consisting of olive oil, one whisked egg, and a small amount of mustard. I made my special tuna salad and deviled eggs to celebrate.

Deviled Eggs
hard-boiled eggs
mayonnaise
mustard
horseraddish or wasabi
salt, pepper, and paprika

Curry Tuna Salad
Tuna
Mayonnaise mixed with garlic, curry powder, and mustard
Chopped apples (or grapes work too)
Chopped kale (cooked in coconut oil)
Cilantro
Mayonnaise mixed with garlic, curry powder, and mustard
Chopped apples (or grapes work too)
Chopped kale (cooked in coconut oil)
Cilantro

Hair and Feathers

I recently admired a hair accessory I saw at a local store, Gorin Bros. made out of finch feathers. So, you can imagine my delight, when I found a variety of feathers including peacock, at the fabric shop, Britex, in San Francisco. I quickly set about to make my own version of the clip at 1/3 the price. I used a hot glue gun to attach a basic sectioning clip to the back of the feather. Ta da! Now you can easily make a simple ponytail look sophisticated. Maybe it's time for me to set up an Etsy page?

Cards and Correspondence

In our digital world where we can communicate instantly with loved ones, it still feels special to receive hand made objects in the mail. I like spending time thinking about my friends and family and corresponding through letters and art. I have started to collect notes about what I make so I can keep track of the different sayings, graphic design layouts and creative elements that emerge as a result of this process. For me, it is playful and fun and I am usually surprised by what comes out.