Polly Castor’s Blog an online journal of art, photography, spirituality, ideas, books, movies, food, poetry, and hope

Book Review: A Homemade Life

Wed, 16 May 2012 11:26:42 -0400

I really enjoyed this book and give it five stars. Officially, it is a book of essays preceding wonderful recipes, but it reads more like a sweet novel or an engrossing memoir. I found it in the stacks of a library that is not my own, and I’m so glad I did. It was published in 2009, written by the blogger of Orangette, which is a site I didn’t know of until I read this book. I just signed up to subscribe to her blog, and I realize I’m suddenly behind on three intervening years of someone I feel I’ve come to know a bit and definitely appreciate. Apparently she’s writing a new book for people like me who need to catch up, but you’ll want to read this one first.

Molly is from Oklahoma, and lands in the Seattle area, via Paris. She has multiple academic degrees, but what she really likes is food, so she quits graduate school to start her blog, which in turn spawns this book. She shares her journey; she introduces us to her parents, her boyfriends, and most importantly, her food. We are at her side when her dad dies, feeling her pangs of love-mingled sadness, and again we are with her when she meets her future husband like a needle plucked from a haystack, giddy and bewildered, and we’re there, too, when she marries him. The dad made potato salad, the new husband has a collection of vinegar, and they served an incredible flourless chocolate cake at their wedding that she made herself... All her stories are laced with humanity, and sincerity, as well as delicious food.

She’s a doctor’s daughter like I am, and blogs about food, as I do as well. She writes about Julia Child’s Tarte Tatin which I’ve pressed on my own blog readers. I’m also a fan of slow roasted tomatoes (here is my version) and my roasted Ratatouille is similar to hers, as my Puffy Oven Pancake is close to what she calls a Dutch Baby. Molly is a kindred spirit, with a first name 4/5ths my own, and a similar need for deep authenticity.

Although I’m doubtful about pickles in general, and radishes for breakfast in specific, you can see my marked tabs in this book for things I want to try to make, mostly because she makes them sound so good: Cranberry Chutney with Crystalized Ginger and Dried Cherries, Cider-Glazed Salmon, Dried Fruit Pie, Bouchons Au Thon, and Caramelized Cauliflower with Salsa Verde. And I’ll have to try some shaved bittersweet chocolate on arugula!

With more people like Molly and I “winning hearts and minds” (as she puts it) the world will be okay. To use her idiom... may goodwill, honesty, and delectable edibles “spread like wildflowers!”

That Bowl Came Out Alright After All

Tue, 15 May 2012 16:40:29 -0400

Two and a half months ago, I wrote of pottery angst in a blog titled Talking Clay and Discerning God’s Will. I told you I’d bring you an update, and this is it. The bowl shown here finally came home today and it is what I did on the wheel that day; it is the one I thought would not make it. True, it was too thin to carve, but I’ve done that successfully since, which you saw already on this blog post. Anyway, I’m loving this bowl, which was not what I planned, but maybe better for it. Listening is an act of unfoldment, which is never over or stagnant. And the things we obsess about can work out nicely all on their own!

Butterball Bush Photos

Mon, 14 May 2012 22:46:55 -0400

We call this a butterball bush... truly this is extraordinary every year...

Mother’s Day 2012

Sun, 13 May 2012 22:02:45 -0400

My husband bought me a bouquet from Costco: I’m not sure what the exotic spiky orange flowers are that they put with the orange gerber daisies... If you know what those are, please let me know.

We also upheld our mother’s day tradition of going to our local nursery for something for the yard. This year we bought perennials: delphinium, lupine, phlox, and blue-blooming ground cover....

Our oldest flew home from her Junior year today; she’ll be here for three weeks and it is great to have her back in our midst!

I’m missing my own mother (who languishes in a nursing home out of state) and have been wondering why kids are so self-absorbed and take their mothers for granted until it is too late?

Today was an unusually melancholy day for me, but regardless, motherhood is still by far the best thing I’ve ever done.

Here are photos of my day...

Photos from a Stroll Down Main Street Ridgefield, CT

Sat, 12 May 2012 12:53:52 -0400

This morning I dropped our youngest off in Ridgefield, Connecticut to go with her Sunday School class into New York City to see Wicked together on Broadway. Our church is on Main Street in Ridgefield, and I took this the opportunity to take a walk there on this particularly lovely Saturday. Here are some of the photos I took....

Movie Review: The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

Fri, 11 May 2012 21:39:39 -0400

I really enjoyed this movie and give it five stars. It delivered a message of hope, and communicated well what an adventure life is meant to be. You are never too old to embrace that. To quote the movie, “It’ll all work out in the end. If it is not working out, then it is not yet the end.” We are to treat disaster and triumph the same; both are opportunities. No one is untouchable, and marriage must be based on love, honesty, and positive sharing.

I love the energy and vision of Sonny, the Kipling-quoting young hotel manager, who has the idea of “outsourcing the elderly.” I appreciated his eagerness, and naive but enthusiastic optimism. The women played by both Judi Dench and Maggie Smith were wonderful – it was satisfying to watch them transform and come into their own.

And for those of us that may never travel to India, we catch a glimpse of the vibrant colors, jarring sounds, and chaotic pace of that place, which is changing as fast as the characters in this film. This movie was a feast to experience; be sure not to miss it.