Whiskey Ginger

I shot these photos of a Whiskey Ginger recipe with homemade ginger syrup about a month ago for an Irish themed post on Eat Boutique.  You can click on through to see the recipe and more of the photos.  I'm about ready to pour myself one (or three) of these to take the edge off of today's events.

They have been after the second suspect in the Marathon explosions for over 12 hours now and we've been on 'lockdown' here in Boston since early this morning. Eagerly awaiting Dean to get home from work but that won't be for another few hours.  Here's to hoping this will all end soon.

Chocolate-Drizzled Oatmeal Shortbread

It's been a long and emotional 72 hours here in Boston. There isn't much to say that hasn't already been said. It's amazing how this city has come together and stayed incredibly strong. I'm not a die hard Boston fan like some of the people here in this city but I have to say that I've felt really proud this week to have called this place my home for the last seven years. Not because of the events that occurred but because of the way the people have reacted.

Monday was a scary day.  It was the first year since 2007 that I wasn't at the marathon cheering my Dad on.  Luckily, he and my aunt were already around the corner celebrating his finish at the Westin Hotel, so they were safe.  But those moments during a tragedy before you get in contact with loved ones and confirm they are okay make your mind go to all the worst scenarios. My heart truly goes out to all the victims and their families and, as so many have said, those are the people we will remember and not the bad guys.

You always feel shaken when events like this happen but it is a much more intense feeling when it happens in the place you call home.  Living and working in the area makes it that much more real and shakes you to the core. By nature I can be a very anxious person and in the last few days the best way I've been able to calm my nerves is to distract myself completely.  This world we live in today with hyper-connectivity allows so much information to be available at the touch of a button.  Twitter, Facebook and all social media outlets have been flooded with information and stories. I've had to make a point of putting my phone down, closing the computer and focusing on other things in order to not be consumed and stay calm this week.

This afternoon I took to the kitchen and chose these cookies to distract my mind for a few hours. The act of following a simple recipe can really put a mind at ease. This recipe is from The Sprouted Kitchen cookbook and I followed it exactly making no tweaks.  The dough comes together quickly; it is full of oats and lightly spiced with nutmeg.

The dough gets rolled in to a log and chilled for about an hour.  The cookies then get sliced, baked, drizzled with dark chocolate and flecked with sea salt. I received this lovely package of salt, along with some other pretty salts, from a good friend for my birthday and this was the first time I was able to make good use of them. Make these cookies, give them to loved ones and make sure to hug them a little tighter.

Chocolate-Drizzled Oatmeal Shortbread
from The Sprouted Kitchen cookbook

• 1 1/2 cup old fashioned rolled oats
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temp
• 1/2 cup turbinado sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• 3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 2 1/2 oz dark chocolate (60 to 72% cacao)
• Flaked sea salt for garnish

1. In a food processor pulse the oats to create a course flour. Set aside.
2. Cream the butter and sugar together. Add the vanilla and egg.
3. Add the oat flour, all-purpose flour, salt and nutmeg and mix together. The dough will be thick.
4. Using your hands roll the dough in to a log, approximately 2-3 inches in diameter.
5. Roll the log up in parchment paper and chill in the fridge 1-2 hours.
6. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
7. Slice the log in to 1/2 inch coins and spread them on the baking sheet. Bake for 14-16 minutes until the edges are golden.
8. Melt the chocolate and drizzle over the cookies.  I did this by placing the melted chocolate in a ziploc bag and cutting the tip of it. Sprinkle a bit of sea salt over the cookies. The chocolate will take about 15-20 minutes to firm up.  Cookies can be stored for up to one week in airtight container.

PS: Follow me on Instagram: @michellekmartin

Coconut Pancakes & Saturdays

Saturday started with slipper socks, hot tea, and a living room breakfast picnic since the dining room table has been overtaken by a Christmas factory of sorts - making gifts, wrapping gifts, and constructing cards has left glitter, bits of paper and lots of art supplies strewn about the dining room.


These pancakes were a result of that half a can of coconut milk that is always left over whenever a dinner recipe calls for coconut milk.  That small amount of coconut milk gets stashed away in the fridge with the best intentions to use it in something but then always ends up getting thrown away a week later.  The leftover milk, the remains of a bag of coconut flakes and a recently gifted griddle  lead to these pancakes.  I did a quick search online and ended up loosely following this recipe. We topped them them with almonds, raspberries, a little greek yogurt, and his & hers molasses and maple syrup.

We then headed north to spend the day finishing Christmas shopping in Kennebunkport, which is probably the quintessential New England town. The town was decorated with Christmas lights everywhere and they had a huge Christmas tree right in the center of downtown decorated with buoys and a lobster tree topper. 

We poked around at some shops and had lunch at Allisson's, where we also enjoyed a beer sampler of mostly Maine beers, per Saturday outing tradition.  Overall, a relaxing Saturday that all Saturdays should aspire to be like.

Cape Cod Weekend

Spent the weekend in Cape Cod this past weekend for an eagerly anticipated wedding of two close friends.  It was a weekend filled with friends, family, love, food and drinking.

Friday was spent frosting and decorating cupcakes (homemade by one of the bridesmaids!), making bridesmaids bouquets, delivering table arrangements and prepping for the rehearsal dinner.  

Following the rehearsal was a backyard cookout and a beach bonfire.  

No pictures from Saturday; the bridal party was up at 7 AM and we didn't stop until we all crashed late Saturday night after a beautiful ceremony and LOTS of dancing.  

Sunday was a perfect Cape Cod day.  A big brunch, a flats walk, and an afternoon whiffle ball game.  

A few of us stayed until Monday.  Sunday night we relaxed and enjoyed the amazing sunset.  

Monday we had a late morning and then finally made our way to the beach where we had sandwiches, soaked up some sun and swam.  

homemade veggie burgers

These burgers were one of the easiest things to make.  The above pictures show pretty much all the ingredients involved.  

I'd imagine that these burgers are a pretty good base for pretty much any combinations of flavors, I was tempted to use curry instead of cumin, but I've been on a curry kick lately so I am trying not to over do it. 

Sweet Potato and Black Bean Veggie Burgers

makes about 8 patties

1.5 cans of black beans, drained and rinsed

2 medium sweet potatoes, baked 

1 tsp cumin

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

fresh cilantro, chopped

2 tsp maple syrup

1/4 cup flour

breadcrumbs

Oven to 375.  

1. Pierce sweet potatoes several times and bake for 45 minutes, or until tender.  Once baked, scoop the flesh out and put into a mixing bowl.  

2. Add the black beans to the sweet potato and mash them together, leaving slightly chunky.  

3.  Mix in cumin, cayenne, cilantro, maple syrup, and flour.  Mix together well so that all the ingredients get distributed throughout. 

4.  Form into patties, coat with breadcrumbs.

5.  If eating immediately, heat oil in a small pan.  Place patty in and cook for a few minutes on each side, or until golden brown.  If not enjoying immediately, freeze patties for later.

6.  Top with desired toppings and enjoy!

good morning

A few photos.  I've noticed that since the start of the new year I've barely touched my camera, and when I have it's been for some pretty uninspired photos.  I'm not sure what it is all about.  I am currently taking a photography class and it has had quite the opposite effect on me, instead of getting me out to shoot more and inspiring me it seems it has crushed all desire to shoot.  Upcoming weekends away and some new opportunities will hopefully get me back in to it. 

Farm

This past week has been full of relaxing, family, and friends.  Having an entire week off from work has been quite enjoyable.  On Thursday my good friend Erica's boyfriend, Matt, welcomed us on his farm and took us on a tour.  His family owns a dairy farm in southeastern Connecticut where many cows, goats, and a few horses reside.  Here are some snapshots from the afternoon.  As I was first going through them, I didn't really love any of them, but converting them to black and white and editing them that way really did it for me.  I don't know what it is, since upgrading my camera I've found that black and white has been much more appealing to me than it has in the past.  It really allows the viewer to focus on the content and composition of an image rather than to be distracted by the vibrant colors, which I have yet to master the controlling the color on my new camera.

Enjoy, and Happy New Years!

Matt, whose family owns the farm

Christmas Calf, just under a week old

One of the goats

Fonzey, the friendliest goat

A young cow

In the barn

Feeding time

One of four horses on the farm

Pets

Pets.  Mention that word to anyone and you almost immediately get a response that involves them gushing about the pet they own (unless, of course, they hate animals). Most of the time it feels more like you are listening to a parent babble about their child, and in reality we all know that pets are just another type of 'child' for most people.  

Over the course of the last year pets have become a predominant part of my life.  

In January my cousin got a puppy, Cody.  He quickly became a staple at every family function, with family members treating him as if he were a new baby in the family.  We all coo and talk to him like he can understand us. We all laugh at him when he does stupid cute dog things.  

A few weeks ago two of my good friends also adopted a puppy, Rawley (pictures coming soon!).  Although his time in everyone's life has been brief so far, we have quickly shifted gears so that all attention is on him when he's around (and how could you not with that cute face!).   We recently took him on a trip to the beach and we all praised and admired him as he swam in the bay, dug a hole, and frolicked around on the beach, as if we were all expecting him to not be able to instinctively do these (normal dog) things. 

Along with the addition of two furry friends, there has also been loss.  One of our cats 'ran' away from home, and hasn't been seen in almost two months (and we're all pretty sure Toby couldn't make it out in the wild). And another, Socks, passed away at the age of 15, and it was the first time that I've ever experienced a pet die. It was sad. Really sad. I cried more than I expected to. This is the first time in over 15 years that we have had less than 4 cats living in our house. My cat, Quincy, whom I adopted four years ago was the basis for which I could decide which apartment to live in come September.  As I scoured craigslist for an apartment, I tried to justify to myself paying hundreds of dollars over my allotted budget just so that I could keep my cat (luckily, an apartment was found that fit relatively within the budget AND allows cats). 

So my point: animals can make us act a little foolish sometimes.  

What does this all have to do with photography?  It means that I really love photographing pets.  I love that they can make us all insane enough to treat them like people, and that I have the ability to capture this 'human essence' every time I get the opportunity to photograph them.  And let's face it, I get nostalgic looking at pictures of Quincy as a kitten. If I could, I would photograph everyone's pets from beginning of life to end of life, if only they were crazy enough to pay me for it. 

Quincy

Socks

Cody

Sophie

Vacation

The month of July was too good to me.  It spoiled me.  It created a monster that never wanted to go back to work again.  I'm still having trouble sitting through an entire day at my desk at work.  Between traveling for the first two weeks, to a wedding, to long weekends on the Cape, I am not eager to embrace the month of August (nothing personal, August).  You just won't be as exciting.  Oh well, a girl can still hope, right?
The following set of images are from Cape Cod.  The day that I took them it was overcast and a cool 70 degrees with afternoon fog rolling in.  Plus, I've been trying to expand my horizons and shoot in black and white since it requires a different eye while you are shooting.

Chatham Fish Pier
Chatham, MA

Pup
Chatham, MA

Finn at Lighthouse Beach
Chatham, MA