Breakfast - Notes on Sugar

October 5, 2018 Jesi

In early August, I took a trip to France to spend a week at an ecumenical monastery in rural Taizé, Burgundy. With a group of 12 high schoolers. As a chaperone. Whew. In truth, it wasn’t nearly as overwhelming as it sounds. For one thing, I traveled with three other mentors, one of whom handled the lion’s share of the organization and logistics for the trip. And, most importantly, the high schoolers in question are just fantastic people, and it was a joy to travel with them. But it was by no means an easy trip. After a quick 24…

Breakfast Prune, Oat, and Spelt Scones

September 29, 2016 Jesi

About this time last year, I realized that I didn’t like my job. At all. I liked the people I worked with; by all accounts, my managers were pleased with my work; and I certainly couldn’t deny that being surrounded by so many amazing cheeses, most of which would have been out of my reach otherwise, was a rare privilege. But I did not like my job. I hated the feeling of dread that churned in my stomach when my alarm clock went off in the morning and never really went away, even when I wasn’t working. I hated that…

Breakfast Black Pepper and Pistachio Granola

February 27, 2016 Jesi 1Comment

I have never been a sports person. Despite having spent the first twenty-two years of my life in the Deep South, where football fandom is stitched into the very fabric of our existence, I could never convince myself to care much about it. I frankly resented being forced to play volleyball and soccer in middle school P.E., and I joined marching band in high school at least partly because it would get me out of taking any further gym classes. I did, however, spend a couple years in my early teens playing basketball (poorly) in a church league, and for…

Breakfast Lemon Cornmeal Muffins

October 7, 2015 Jesi

And we’re back– with more muffins! When life is so weird and fast-paced and confusing that I can barely even remember what day it is–which basically sums up my last couple of months–I find myself falling back on the comforting ease of muffins. As far as baking projects go, muffins are far and away the easiest: they’re simple to put together, they bake up in no time, and they’re pre-portioned: a perfect bit of order in an otherwise very un-orderly phase of life. This batch of muffins was the first thing I baked in our new apartment, which is a…

Breakfast Sourdough Waffles

March 15, 2015 Jesi

I should probably tell you right off the bat that I have absolutely no business preaching to you about sourdough. I love a good, tangy baguette as much as the next person, and while I do enjoy baking bread every once in a while, making sourdough at home has always seemed way beyond my skill level, something only to be attempted by people with far more talent and confidence than I have. Truth is, I wouldn’t be talking about this at all if it weren’t for my lovely friend Sam, who recently gave me a portion of his own sourdough starter, which…

Breakfast Kitchen Sink Granola

October 1, 2014 Jesi

In general, I think the word “amazing” is applied a bit too liberally in discussions about food. I’m guilty of it, too, of course; I typed “amazing” into the search bar over there to the right, just to see how many of my posts contain the word, and, uh… it’s a lot. So I know you’ll take it with a grain of salt when I tell you that, in the last few days, I’ve come across a couple of foods that were truly, dare I say literally, amazing. The first was fresh mozzarella from Wolf Meadow Farm. I really wasn’t expecting…