~ food for a rainy saturday afternoon... . . .

~

.   . ...what's on my table today ?

.  . ...what surrounds me ?

~

.  . ...room for two, or more ?

.  . ...or one ?

~

it's raining on the outside of the window.  another sunny day inside.

~

this time, i choose ... .  .    .

  a table for one, please~  

.  . ...maybe something with an   O r c h a r d   view ?

then when i'm done,

i'll just fold this day up.. .   .  

& into a drawer

for another use.

~

or i could pass it on.

such delicious   c h o i c e s .

i'll let you know. 

~

~a food blog~? ... . . .

so... .    .

you know, this is actually supposed to be a "food blog". i don't know if you can tell, really. but of course, that is the point.  well, my point anyway.

that everything we do~

is our Food.

Our pure nourishment.

~or not. 

~it's our choice.

so when i approached the window display this time... .

(( it being maybe one of the only windows i know of that is still traditionally based on the 'Current' season or holiday~ ))

 we are now talking... .  thee  ' giving thanks '  holiday.

(( Thanksgiving~ ))

so... .   .      .

what am i cookin' up here?

what am i serving people?

for family?

for friends?

and friends i don't even know yet. or in other words, the passers-by~

what do i taste and feel and nourish myself with while creating this... . 

. ...and what will others taste in turn~?

first of all, i must mention, the owner of this clothing shop is quite the stylist, and quite the cook.

yeah, needless to say... .  these things are dear to my heart.

so, i get to express myself here via  'all things beautiful & culinary' ~

so, the Chandelier/slash/lighting source, is my own.
embellished, of course, with thee serving and eating and nourishing utensils known as
the knife, fork & spoon

then ... .
candles, colored glass jewels, the most sincere ribbon, the spun webs of a spider's gold &  silver, then the tasty pure crisp parchment paper that i so love~

so... .   .      .
what would one wear?
what shall i suggest?
what could possibly encompass all of this majesty?

to keep it fun. to inspire. to entice?
for this sensory celebration of the seasons.
the tactile color and texture and crunch !

.     .  . ...just a few ponderings~

. ...what we Think we need~

" The best ideas are born when you don't have

what you  t h i n k  you need ! "

                                                         ~ me... i think

~

so i remember... .

 back when i had the most marvelous, fantasyland opportunity

with the Macy's Visual Merchandising  team. They actually called it 'a real job', complete with almost  total freedom, deserved respect, benefits...
and actually Payed me quite a bit to do it~!

  Anyway, there was a little blackboard in our Creation workshop next to the phone, the coffee grinder, ( fresh beans from the Housewares department, thank you, musssss.. . ) coffee maker, useful stuff...  mostly for messages, etc.,
that also held the permanent chalk message of :

" Repetition is the last Refuge of the Unimaginative~ "   

~

These wise words seem to be ingrained in my being, like the decadent alternative food i actually crave and can choose  when finding myself 'without' whatever i think i need, which is of course 'normal'... . if we stop to think about it~

So... .   .

maybe needless to say,
 that when i found myself 'without a pumpkin-like object' on Halloween day, after embellishing everyone else during the month...  .

 the shop windows for the holiday  ~

~ complete with
 a chance to make a not-too-dorky gourd lamp.. .   .

and a totally handsome crow with crown~

~

.  . . ..baking & delivering a few yummy pumpkin-ish tarts~

Roasted  Butternut  Squash   &  Garden  Rose  Petals

on an almond and herb crust... .

. ...with beautiful fall pears

topped with my favorite gorgonzola

&  d r i z z l e d   with a sweet  honey ~

mmmmmmm.. .  .   the comforting depth of the roasted squash

with the juicy freshness of the pear

the marvelous creamy, salty cheese

balanced with the sweet honey

supported by the nutty, herbal pastry underneath

& the rose petals for that backlit hint of question and elegance and beauty ~

. ...then baked 'til the natural sugars and cheese start to bubble
and you know it's done just by the smell ~

(  ...make sure there's one in the oven for the chef~! )

~ garnished, boxed and on the road

so anyway... .   .

i did initially cling to that self- and otherwise-ingrained notion
of carving  a largish, roundish shaped squash-family representative to poke holes in to let the obligatory candle/light within shine through-
 representing this otherwise pretty tacky holiday.
 or, to me...  honoring all these fantastic gourds and squashes i find myself
completely drawn to!

i also kept thinking... .
that what i really had here was the personally freeing choice to 'let  it go by' this year, which would actually be the first time since i could remember... let's say many years ago.

ok, that's cool ~

until the day got later and later.. .
and the  a r t i s t  in me got more and more anxious.. .   .

what i had here, was really
 an   O p p o r t u n i t y  ~


here's this  n a t i o n a l  holiday
where it is totally acceptable and actually encouraged...
to have fun carving one of these marvelous natural things into
 whatever your creativity desires~!

 hmmmmmmmm... .   .
the choices are seemingly endless, first of all... .
then the feel of it all, and fresh smell when you cut into it, and the great seeds left over
to Roast when you're done.
well, heaven to me ~

so... . as i had years ago moved on
 from the usual Orange, to carving the White pumpkins, then the Cinderella and the Blue... .   there they were... .  .    .
right on my studio table. the big, beautiful, white Patty Pan Squashes
i got from the Epicurean Farmer displaying his gorgeous Vegetables as Art at my last gallery show.
 raising and swirling their arms in an invisible way to get my attention... " pick me " ~

yes, they had become living sculpture, as many fresh edibles do.. . in that category for me of ' too beautiful to eat'... right away. which many times becomes... .   'a bit too late' .

no problem. my whole point really... .   .

just, food for the Soul ~

~
.   . . ... so what was i thinking ?
( surprised at myself for first clinging to the 'usual-ish' )

... . who needs a pumpkin ?

 the best ideas truly are born when you don't have

what you   t h i n k   you need ! 

~
                                                        
                                                                        .     .  . . ..... enjoy ~