Notes From The Studio
Can making lunch be a form of meditation?
I was asking my friend Lulie what I should write about. I always feel like I need to say more here, but this Substack is going to be a bit like lunch—thrown together when it feels right. She said, Write about what you’re eating.
My first thought was: I’m not eating anything interesting,but I used to love making beautiful food with good ingredients, especially before children. These days, I mostly rush, just trying to get something on the table. Still, because of her suggestion, I’ve been thinking about food again.
Today, after my nanny took my daughter to a playdate, I sat in my quiet house and made a simple egg salad. I used Flamingo Estate pickles by Pamela Anderson, everything bagel seasoning, a little mayo, and finely chopped celery. I ate it with tortilla chips.
One thing I’ve always loved is talking to people about food. There’s something endlessly interesting about the small, ordinary meals we make for ourselves. I’ve often thought a really good Substack series would simply be: what artists eat for lunch. Maybe this is my version of that.
Lately, I’ve also been loving A Painter’s Kitchen—a book about Georgia O’Keeffe and what she ate. There’s something grounding about seeing how someone else built their daily meals into art.
This morning for breakfast, I had leftover sheet pancake, crisped in the oven under the broiler, with thick Greek yogurt, fried banana, and maple syrup. What made the pancake divine was the mix from Night Moves, a bakery in Maine. I begged them to send me a bag, and I’m hoping they start shipping soon. I love the cornmeal in the mix—you can taste the fresh-ground grain.
Another favorite breakfast of mine is oatmeal with Blueberry Chia Jam. Cook everything together over low to medium heat for about 10 minutes, until it thickens into a jammy swirl. I love spooning it over a warm bowl of oatmeal with a dollop of nut butter, my very own PB&J breakfast bowl.
Blueberry Chia Jam
Two Cups of wild frozen blueberries
Juice of half a lemon
About two tablespoons of chia seeds
¼ cup maple syrup (I measure with my heart)
Some food-related things I’ve been loving lately …
I love this pan; highly recommended for sheet-pan pancakes!
I’ve forever loved Flamingo Estate’s products, and a friend recently shared this podcast with me over the summer. I found it to be such an enjoyable listen.
And I bought the pickles by Pamela Anderson x Flamingo Estate.
My Fruit Still Life Prints always make me crave fruit.