Branching out.

I'm not really terribly gifted when it comes to gardening - but I don't kill everything I touch, either. Over the last couple of years, I've become braver and bolder when it comes to choosing and growing my herbs, and this year will, I think, be the best year yet!

Last week, I visited the Greenmarket with my friend Cristin to pick out my herbs for the year, and this morning I re-potted them - now all that's left to do is water and spritz them regularly, and make sure that they get plenty of that New York sunlight.

I branched a little out of my usual thyme-basil-sage trinity this year, adding some lemon basil, lemon thyme (which smells absolutely insane) and chervil (which I can never, ever find at the grocery store) to the mix.

Wish me luck!
From left to right, we have sage, sweet basil, lemon basil, chervil, thyme, lemon thyme.

Why - thank you, sir.

A woman who drinks Manhattans, especially a younger woman, is someone to be reckoned with.

Should you see a cocktail glass of clear amber before a lady, it is a good indication that her sense of self is centered on her humanity, not her femininity...

A woman who drinks so bold a drink as a Manhattan is not a chick. Like the Manhattan itself, she is true to herself, not the whims of her surroundings.

- Doug Winship, The Pegu Blog

Renewing my vows.

I looked at the calendar today and realized something pretty damn exciting: I have all of next week off from work! I carried over four weeks of vacation from 2008, which means I have a total of nine weeks for 2009. I'll never be able to get through all of it (and, yes, I know, I am wicked spoiled by the vacation policy of my current employer), but I have to use those four weeks or I'll lose them forever!

And, so, back in January, I decided to kick things off with a week-long staycation here in New York. I have some travel planned for later this year (Ohio, Napa and possibly France), but this week will be totally and completely about spending time with my city.

One of the craziest things about New Yorkers is that we tend to spend so much time working our butts off (we have to, if we want to afford the rents) that we rarely take time to pause and explore our city. I can't remember the last time I just wandered around the Village, browsing through shops, or struck out on an exploration of a new neighborhood in Brooklyn, or spent hours wandering the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Next week, I will spend my time doing the kinds of things I moved here to do - and I'd love to hear if you have any ideas for me to try! Here's a few things that are already on the list...

- Tickets to 9 to 5 for Tuesday night - Allison Janney FTW!
- Banh Mi sandwich
- Dinner or lunch at Marlow & Sons
- Shopping for furniture/house stuff in Williamsburg
- Lots and lots of Greenmarket-based cooking
- Lunch and shopping in Chinatown
- An outing to Stone Barns
- Lobster roll at Pearl Oyster Bar

What am I missing, people? What do you want to see? Let me know!

Cocktails for a rainy Wednesday.

When Pegu Club opened on Houston Street in 2005, New York's cocktail renaissance was in its prime. Milk & Honey and Flatiron Lounge had been slinging classic, perfectly crafted concoctions for a few years already, Little Branch opened that same year, and hot on Pegu's heels came Death & Company, followed by PDT.

Almost four years into its young life, Pegu has two personalities - sedate, sophisticated cocktail lounge, and obnxiously loud SoHo hotspot. The former is in effect on weeknights and early on the weekends, while the latter is on impenetrable display on Friday and Saturday evenings.

If you go on a weeknight, though, the emphasis is still on the cocktails, which are as good as ever.

Last Wednesday, after battling the rain and in the delightfully, intellectually bawdy company of Louisa and Deidre, I enjoyed a few of Pegu's creations - one was an old favorite, and two were new (to me, at least). First up, a Fleur de Paradis: gin, Champagne, St. Germain (an elderflower liquer) and lemon juice. To. Die. For. The gin and champagne nicely balanced out the sweet, floral St. Germain, and the lemon juice kept things nice and tart. Plus, it was garnished with pansies!

Next up was a delicious take on my go-to, the Manhattan. This version is called the Little Italy, and features the traditional rye and sweet vermouth, but adds a dash of Cynar, an artichoke-flavored liqueur (which lends some savory complexity). Served up with two delightfully boozy cherries, it's a Manhattan for people who find Manhattans a bit too sweet.

Finally, to finish things off, I went for a Zelda, named for Zelda Fitzgerald, and appropriately tart and tangy. Gin, muddled cherries (which lent an opaque, pink color) and lemon - heaven on earth, and a nice contrast to the rich bitterness of the Little Italy. Don't let the girly color fool you - this drink is all woman.

Small space love.

So, it's been kind of an exciting few days for me. My apartment has been featured on a couple of design blogs, and since I'm a bit of an interior design nerd, that makes me very, very happy.

The lovely and amazing Ana has posted a full-on house tour on her blog, Rearranged Design. Given some of the ridiculously beautiful interiors she's featured in the past (click here for a full set of her house tours), I am very flattered that she asked me to share my home with her readers.

Additionally, as part of their small space month, Apartment Therapy posted about my use of a large bookshelf as a room divider in my teeny tiny (350 square feet, people!) studio.

Finally, if you haven't gotten enough, you can go check out my entire apartment (including the family photo-bedecked bathroom and tons of kitchen shots) on Flickr.

Hopefully, these photos will convince all the doubters, once and for all, that you really can entertain in any space. I have dinner parties for up to six people in this apartment - and if I can do it, so can you. Seriously!

By the way, most of these photos were taken by the incredibly talented Miya Hirabayashi, my friend and fellow design nerd. Miya is a great artist in her own right - check out her blog to see some of her amazing graphic design work. She rocks, doesn't she?

Desperately seeking spring.

This morning, looking through my files for the photos of the ramps stand, I found a whole bunch of meals I made last spring, when the Greenmarket was in full swing and onions, eggs and herbs were spilling out of my shopping bags.

It's been a while since I felt seized by the urge to cook (as opposed to cooking for a purpose or reason, such as - you know - feeding myself), but I can feel it coming back now. I can't wait to make some of these recipes, and try out some new ones, too.

Links to the recipes pictured above:
Greenmarket Lettuce aux Lardons
Homemade Mayonnaise
Pork Chop with Nectarines and Pickled Ramps
Fettucine with Bacon and Ramps

Ramps are here. Related: all is right with the world.

It's official - spring is here! The first ramps of the season (well, the first ones that didn't head right for the restaurants) are here! Chances are they're already sold out, but if I have any luck when I visit the market this afternoon, I'll let you know!

Via Lucy's Greenmarket Report.