Periodical love...

I've been thinking a lot about magazines lately.  

I think it drives Jeffrey crazy, but I save them.  Not in the "collector" kind-of way, but in the dog-eared corners, post-it notes on pages, for reals reference library sort of way.  Last week at Ruby Rose, Stephanie and I were waxing poetic about missing Domino, loving Anthology magazine, and our mutual bewilderment of its elusiveness in town.  I mean really, Barnes & Noble, you can carry 40 varieties of "Tattoo Culture" magazines, but not a Made in SF quarterly design bible?  For shame!

Anyway, I thought I'd share a little run-down of my magazine library and how I've come to love the ones I do.

1. Living Etc.

This is a fantastic UK publication which focuses on modern interior design, and features excellent home tours.

2. Dwell

I remember how long-coming and refreshing it felt to open that inaugural issue of Dwell, and even now I rarely skip an issue.  It's such fabulous eye-candy for anyone with a pulse on clean, modern architecture.  Floor plans, home tours, green innovations...  I truly love it.

3. Lucky Peach

The brainchild of Momofuku's David Chang, this magazine is only on its third issue, but an instant favorite.  Amazingly candid interviews with top chefs, specialty recipes, food sourcing and provenance... and editorial by the bad boy himself, Anthony Bourdain!  Super fun reading for foodies.  Not for the squeamish.

4. Marie Claire Idées

I've yet to find an American equivalent to this beautiful French home and craft magazine.  Entirely in French, but guess what... photos translate effortlessly.  Each issue features darling tutorials and excellent DIY's.  Editorials focus on Seasonal decor, DIY fashion, recipes, and entertaining.  Bonus points: Animals from Deyrolle figure prominently and often.  Ahhh... the perks of Paris.  

5. National Geographic

Is this embarrassing to admit?  I feel like maybe this is the nerd who snuck into the bunch- but OH, do I love this magazine.  There's a reason why it's been around for ages, and why people bequeath their entire estates to its preservation.  National Geographic is so full of human interest, exotic locales, and mind-blowing imagery - it makes everything else just seem trivial and slight.  Ok, maybe I just answered my own question...  This may well be the grandad of published cool.

6. Vogue

Say what you will about Anna Wintour, but she and Grace and Andre keep this iconic magazine relevant, ahead of the curve, and honest-to-God glamourous.  More than any other, these are the magazines I flip through for years and years and reference again and again.  Classic.

7. Anthology

New classic.  Can't live without.  Just. So. Good.  Which of course makes me worry for its future.  Somehow the best of the best new start-up magazines in recent years have folded.  I have high hopes for this one, and fingers and toes crossed for its survival.  I love that some of my very favorite bloggers are contributors.  I love the photos, the stories, the design ideas...  now to find a local distributor.  

8. Cookie

FABULOUS.  Functional.  Defunct.  This magazine was an all-time favorite.  I would be giddy with joy when new issues arrived at my doorstep.  Wonderful recipes (including great variations depending upon ingredients on-hand), parenting and relationship advice, real moms, real homes, children's fashions, DIY's...  Even years later, the issues are relevant and wonderful.

What about you?  Are you a magazine fan?  Which are your favorites?

comfort food...

What's your idea of comfort food? In our house, it's fideo. It's like a bowl of cozy.

Elliott helped me make a big pot of it this week.

We start with fideo noodles. Basic semolina pasta, broken into little pieces.

I buy these bags for about .50 cents each, but you can break up your own pasta

in a big ziplock bag too. I used to toast them on the stovetop,

stirring constantly- labor intensive! Now I just

drizzle a bit of olive oil in a baking dish, pour in the fideo, and toss them

around so the oil coats all the noodles, and then pop them in a 350º

oven for around 10 minutes. They come out perfect. So easy!

Elliott and I are using 2 bags (7 oz. each) in this recipe.

Don't be afraid if your noodles look very dark. The fideo will be delicious!

Next, we chop and sauté one onion, with a few cloves of minced garlic- about 5 minutes.

Add 2 tsp. salt, and the toasted fideo noodles. Stir.

Add a large (28 oz.) can of diced tomatoes (undrained). Stir. Let simmer 5 minutes.

Fill the empty tomato can with water and add to mixture (twice).

While the pot comes to a boil, chop up 2 bunches of fresh cilantro. It smells SO good!

We like ours with lots of cumin. I use a whole 1 oz. package of it for one pot.

Add half of the cumin now.

Add a tablespoon of black pepper.

Add half of the chopped cilantro right away.

Let the pot boil until the fideo noodles are cooked through.

When the noodles are tender, I turn off the heat, add the remainder

of my cumin and chopped cilantro, and give it all a good stir.

Lastly, I add a large container of chicken broth (32 oz.).

Adjust salt and pepper to taste. Add extra broth, as needed- it will thicken.

This soup is SO forgiving. It's our favorite. :)