Hello, I Must Be Going

So, Brian's set me up a brand new blog over at NoraSawyer.com. So, I guess I'll see you over there, huh?

Things I've Been Enjoying Lately

1. Sugar snap peas with hummus from our favorite corner store.

2. Tom Clark's nature poems on Beyond the Pale.

3. Sara Larsen's Novus.

4. Watching sleeping dogs dream in tandem.

5. Reading Catullus in Esperanto.

Reading Recap

Yesterday, Brian and I cohosted, along with our friend Erik Noonan, the first of what we hope will be many outdoor pairings of poetry and visual art.

This first 'Reading in the Garden' featured two local poets, Sara Larsen and Jason Morris, reading alongside Brian's artwork. Jason and Sara were wonderful, and I couldn't be happier with how the first 'Reading in the Garden' played out.

Sara Larsen reads from 23 Chromosomes

Jason Morris, post reading

Gougeres

So, as promised, I made gougeres for today's reading. "What's gougeres, precious?" you ask. Well!

Gougeres are a tasty French cheesy poufy thing. They look all sorts of fancy, with their puffed up and cheesy presentation, but really, they're as easy to throw together as your mama's biscuit recipe. Maybe easier, if your mama has a tendency to make things more complicated than they need to be.*

Anyway. I take my gougere recipe pretty much verbatim from here (the July 1960 issue of Epicurious! How retro!).

There's only one adaptation I make: I never cook it as long as the recipe says -- they're usually done in about 25 min (and I've tried this in ovens across San Francisco, so it's not just my own oven's special quirk. Perhaps it's the altitude).

It's so easy. Simple choux** batter, plus cheese. It'll look really funny after you've added the first two eggs, but just keep stirring. It all works out in the end, I promise.

*Not my mama! You should see her biscuit recipe. Clip, clap, clop and you're done.

** Pronounced shoe***. Add sugar, you're making eclairs. Add cheese, gougeres. It's the worlds most perfect dough.

*** A man I spent time with my freshman year of college was fond of shouting "Shoes! Everybody needs shoes!" when he answered the phone. His motivations for doing so are lost to history, but perhaps he, older (slighly) and wiser (much) than I, had already discovered the transcendent adaptability of choux.

Brian's got a brand new blog

As most of you know, my Brian, in addition to being as smart and as sweet as the day is long, is also a talented sculptor. And now he's a blogger, too. You should go check it out.

Happy Mother's Day

We have so much fun, my mother and I, that we are often blurry.

Mark Your Calendars

Next Saturday, May 16th, we'll be hosting a reading in the garden behind Brian's studio at 2221 15th St in San Francisco. Come hear readings by Sara Larsen and Jason Morris, visit with Brian's art , and have some snacks (will I make gougeres? I just might!).