BLOG - November 1, 2011 - November 30, 2011

I love me some good real estate gossip!  I am an avid reader of the blog "The Realestalker," and frequent everything from Curbed.com to Wendy Goodman's "Design Hunting" column in New York Magazine.  While I love seeing how others decorate their homes on the inside, I do quite enjoy getting a chance to view the outside spaces as well.  I always wish that a photo of the building facade or the block of the building would be included along with the interior shots in design magazines.  I think that the physical structure of a home is as important to understanding its character as is the inside.

While perusing New York Magazine today, I stumbled across Ms. Goodman's report on the home of the late Dodie Rosekrans, patron of the arts and socialite-extraordinaire.  "The Realestalker" had previously documented the home's history and very hefty price tag, but Ms. Goodman's new photos really piqued my interest.  The house, as you can imagine, is impeccably curated and has museum-worthy pieces scattered throughout.  The view of the bay to absolutely to-die-for - I imagine that if I ever moved to San Francisco, waking up to such a view would be the only way to live.  What really struck me most, though, was the inner courtyard.  I have never seen such an ornate and lush space within the confines of a home in a metropolitan area - I simply cannot imagine the thrill of being able to lounge in that peaceful garden, walled off from the hustle and bustle of the surrounding city!  Absolutely sublime.  Take a look for yourself below!

All images borrowed from realestalker.blogspot.com and nymag.com.

I couldn't resist sharing these photos of some wall upholstery we just did in a powder room.  It's not just any wall upholstery -- it is the first time we have used one of our fabrics on a wall!  Here are a few shots.  I think it turned out really well! Unfortunately I don't have great pictures, but hopefully you can get the idea.  It's a small powder room and we decided to go quite bold! This is a rental, so the fixtures and cabinets aren't great, and it wasn't in the budget to change them, but the fabric on the walls completely transforms this little room! 

My husband and I were in New York on our own this Thanksgiving and I decided to tackle the Thanksgiving feast for the first time. After two days of preparation, our meal tasted amazing!!! Below are the recipes for what I cooked up for us and a few of our close friends. Enjoy!

Roast Turkey with Rosemary and Lemon

Ingredients

1 whole turkey (about 12 pounds), thawed if frozen, neck and giblets removed, and rinsed and patted dry

3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons fresh rosemary leaves, minced

1 garlic clove, minced

7 wide strips lemon zest (from 1 large lemon)

Coarse salt and ground pepper

4 cups of Stuffing – I used cornbread stuffing.

1 large yellow onion, cut into 8 wedges

Preparation

1.The night before you plan on serving the turkey, make sure you brine the bird for at least 8-12 hours. (Whole Foods and William Sonoma both make great brining kits).

2. Let turkey sit at room temperature 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 400 degrees, with rack in lower third. In a small saucepan, heat oil, rosemary, garlic, and lemon zest. Bring to a simmer over medium-high and cook until garlic is soft and lemon is slightly shriveled, 1 minute. Remove rosemary-lemon oil from heat and let cool.

3. Tuck wing tips underneath body of turkey. Season inside of turkey with salt and pepper. Loosely fill large cavity and neck cavity with stuffing; fold neck skin over opening. Tie legs together with kitchen twine. Brush turkey all over with 1/2 cup rosemary-lemon oil and season with salt and pepper.

4. Place onion in a heavy-bottomed roasting pan. Set a roasting rack over onion and place turkey on top. Roast until turkey is golden brown, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Reduce heat to 375 degrees, add 1 cup water to pan, and roast, brushing turkey with remaining rosemary oil every 30 minutes, until an instant-read thermometer inserted in thickest part of a thigh reads 165 degrees, 1 1/2 to 2 hours (add some water if pan becomes dry).

5. Transfer turkey to a platter or cutting board and loosely tent with foil; let rest 30 minutes. Reserve pan with drippings for gravy. To serve, scoop out stuffing and carve turkey.

Cornbread Stuffing

Ingredients

Cornbread — an 8x8-inch pan’s worth, dried out over the course of one night

2 to 2.5 cups of dried breadcrumbs

1 to 1.5 cups diced onion

1 cup diced celery

½ cup of carrots diced

2 or 3 minced cloves of garlic

1 tbs fresh chopped thyme

1 tbs fresh chopped sage

2 large eggs

3 cups chicken broth

¼ cup of olive oil or ¼ of butter melted.

Preparation

1. Plan ahead and bake one 8x8-inch pan of cornbread and let it sit out overnight to dry out a bit. You'll also need 2 to 2.5 cups of dried breadcrumbs.

2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees

3. Melt ¼ of unsalted butter or olive oil in a heavy-bottomed pan on the stovetop and add about 1 to 1.5 cups diced onion and 1 cup diced celery and carrots, 2 or 3 minced cloves of garlic and about 1 tbs each of fresh chopped thyme and fresh chopped sage, and cook those to soften.

4. While you're keeping your eye on that, crumble the cornbread into a large mixing bowl and then toss that with the dried breadcrumbs.

5. Once you're happy with the celery and onions, add those to the bowl with the breadcrumbs. Add a little sprinkling of cayenne pepper, a little salt and black pepper to taste, and add 2 large eggs to the mix and fold everything to combine.

6. Add 3 cups of chicken broth and toss that together until the broth is all absorbed. Add a little more broth if you think it needs it, and then transfer that to a 9x13-inch buttered baking dish and place it on the center rack of the oven and baake for 30-35 minutes. It will be lightly browned on top and slightly firm to the touch when it's done.

Creamed Spinach

Ingredients

2 pounds fresh spinach, washed and tough stems removed

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/2 cup finely chopped shallots

1 teaspoon minced garlic

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 cup heavy cream

Directions

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the spinach and cook for 2 minutes. Drain in a fine mesh strainer, pressing with a large spoon to release as much water as possible. Finely chop and set aside.

Melt the butter in medium saute pan over medium-high heat. Add the shallots and garlic and cook, stirring, until soft and fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the spinach and cook, stirring, just until the liquid is released. Add the cream, salt, pepper, and nutmeg, and cook until the cream is reduced by half, about 4 minutes. Remove from the heat and serve immediately.

Sweet Potatoes with Marshmallows

Ingredients

2lbs of red sweet potatoes or yams

2 tablespoons of butter

Nutmeg

Cinnamon

2 tablespoons of freshly grated ginger

salt and pepper to taste

1 Bag of small marshmallows

Directions

Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees and place potatoes on middle rack and let bake until a fork easily goes into them on all sides. I like to poke them with a fork before I put them in the oven to speed up the process. Once baked, remove the sweet potatoes from the oven and let cool. Remove the skin and mash the sweet potatoes in a mixing bowl. Once mashed stir in the butter and ginger. Stir in the nutmeg (I only like a little) and cinnamon (I like a lot) as well as the salt and pepper. Spread the mashed sweet potatoes into a baking dish and cover with small marshmallows. Return to oven heated at 375 degrees for 30 minutes or until marshmallows begin to brown.

Popovers

Ingredients

softened butter for greasing pans

1 1/2 cups flour

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

3 extra-large eggs, at room temperature

1 1/2 cups milk, at room temperature

Directions

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Generously grease aluminum popover pans or Pyrex custard cups with softened butter. You'll need enough pans to make 12 popovers. Place the pans in the oven for exactly 2 minutes to preheat. Meanwhile, whisk together the flour, salt, eggs, and milk. The batter will be thin. Fill the popover pans less than half full and bake for exactly 30 minutes. Do not peek.

Recipe Credits: The Turkey and Sweet Potatoes were recipes that I either came up with by myself or altered from other recipes.

Cornbread Stuffing I found the Wednesday before Thanksgiving while watching NY1-Link Here to Recipe

Creamed Spinach is courtesy of Emeril Lagasse and you can find it here.

Popovers are courtesy of Barefoot Contessa Parties! and you can find it here.