Soup on Sunday: Southwest Pumpkin Soup

If you are cooked out or have a few spare cans of pumpkin, this is the soup for you. Not only is it good, but it's dead easy. Enjoy.

3 1/2 cups vegetable stock
1 cup half and half
2 15-ounce can pure pumpkin
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Garnish:
Grated sharp cheddar cheese
Chopped fresh cilantro
Avocado slices
Sour cream
Toasted pumpkin seeds


Bring vegetable stock and whipping cream to boil in heavy medium pot. Whisk in canned pumpkin, cumin, chili powder, coriander and nutmeg. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until soup thickens slightly and flavors blend, about 15 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Ladle soup into bowls. Garnish each serving with cheddar cheese, cilantro, avocado slices, sour cream, toasted pumpkin seeds and serve.

Shopping on Saturday: The Loaded Trunk

I love shopping online year round, but at this time of year I appreciate it even more. Don't get my wrong, I do enjoy a bit of the holiday hustle and bustle. Yet, on a cold snowy day, few things beat curling up by the fire with a laptop and shopping for those on your list.

If you have yet to shop The Loaded Trunk, an online shop that stocks global goodies, you are in for a treat. Here are just a few of my favorite items:

Wood, Sterling and Shell Serving Spoon from Bali
Pewter Crocodile Stapler from Thailand
Bangle Bracelets
Earrings from Istanbul
Hammered Bronze Gold Leaf Bowl

Profile: Bunny Williams

I almost feel as if Bunny Williams needs no introduction, nor can I properly do one justice. For more than 40 years Bunny has focused on design that embraces gracious living. She spent the first twenty-two years of her career with the iconic decorating institution Parish-Hadley, before launching her own firm in 1988.

Bunny designs rooms in which dogs are welcome on the furniture, and you long to put your feet up with a good book. Her own book, An Affair with a House, showcasing her meandering Greek revival Connecticut farmhouse, is my go to book when I am in search of inspiration. Although her new book, Bunny Williams' Scrapbook for Living, just might have me reconsidering.

I still think Stephen Drucker said it best when he wrote, “She [Bunny] is one of the great decorators in the classical tradition that goes back to the roots of the profession. She lives the life of her clients; she understands how a house runs and what makes a room work; and her rooms are not meant to be ends in themselves, but instead a comfortable, sophisticated background for a rich, full life.”


How would you describe your personal style?
My personal style is about creating a comfortable welcoming house for my family and friends. And of course our dogs. My tastes are totally eclectic and I love mixing old and new pieces, and pieces with different silhouettes and pedigrees. I am passionate about architecture and getting the bones of a space correct.

Scale is also something I think most people have trouble understanding. It is vital to get the scale and proportions right when creating a room and selecting the furnishings. I learned so much from both Sister Parish and Albert Hadley whom I worked for before I started my own business. My style is definitely a combination of their fabulous eyes for design plus so many influences from my travels and passion for the decorative arts.


What is your most prized possession?
A pair of paintings of our dogs Lucy and Elizabeth by Henry Koehler that hang on the wall in our house in Connecticut.

What is your idea of earthly happiness?
Everyone has a home to call their own.


What is your favorite luxury in life?
Fabulous sheets.

What is the one thing in life you cannot live without?
A garden.

What inspires your creativity and designs?
Travel, books, and museums.


Who are your style icons?
Pauline de Rothschild, Syrie Maugham, and Frances Elkins

Who would you most like to collaborate with on a project?
I would love to work on a garden project with the superb Dutch garden designer Piet Oudolf.


What books are currently on your bedside table?
Memoirs of the Duchess of Devonshire, and Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.

Past or present who has most influenced your direction in life?
My Mother and Sister Parish.

Photo of Bunny by Miguel Flores-Vianna

Thank You New York Social Diary

A huge thank you to David Patrick Columbia for recently asking me to become a contributor to New York Social Diary. I have been reading the online version of NYSD since it launched in September of 2000. David's quest for the best and tireless focus on interesting people was one of the inspirations in founding All the Best four years ago. As you can imagine, it is quite an honor to now write for someone I have long admired.

You can read a more detailed account of my visit to La Castellane and Picnics in Provence on today's NYSD. Now I have to start dreaming of the next place to visit...

Green Interior Design by Lori Dennis

I am so excited about the lovely Lori Dennis' new book Green Interior Design. Lori's desire to be part of the solution to waste and pollution in the interior design and construction fields led her to write a wonderful "manual" for anyone wishing to create green interiors.

Every aspect of residential interior design–furniture and accessories, window treatments, fabrics, surface materials, appliances and plumbing fixtures, plants, and more–is discussed from a green perspective in terms of both avoiding pollution and protecting the occupants’ health.

I just adore Lori and her commitment to the environment. I am also very honored that my thoughts on Lori and her brilliant book are included on the back cover. Thank you Lori!

Daniel de la Falaise's Autumn Cauliflower Parsley Soup

Lucky me, lucky you. My wildly talented friend Daniel de la Falaise has promised to “bombard” me with soups recipes. You might remember his recipe for Carrot Tarragon Soup that I posted in September—so delicious.

What I love about Daniel is that he not only has a zeal for cooking, but also insists on doing it well and getting it right, while keeping it simple. You can get a sense for his passion when you read through his recipes. Even if you don’t cook, it’s easy to appreciate his dedication to freshness and seasonally appropriate creations. Always the best.


homemade chicken broth
a young leek (whites for the soup and leaves to infuse broth)
a generous bunch young autumn parsley ( first cut of parsley planted in August/ September)
a fleshy chili, for flavor not taste
a generous head of bay in bud
a young cauliflower

To create a light broth for the base of soup use outer leaves of the leek, stalks of parsley, bay and a hint of chilli. Bring to a simmer, cover. Allow broth to stand off the heat to infuse. Whilst the stock rests off the heat, the fresh herbs will gently continue to cook in the carefully accumulated temperature. Keep covered with a lid.

Mandolin the cauliflower, aspiring to paper thin proportions, and finely chop the leek. Heat olive in a pan and add bay, parsley stalks and chili to infuse the oil. Add a knob of butter to carry the flavor of the herbs and infuse the cooking fat some more.

Remove the herbs squeezing them for all they yield. Add cauliflower and toast it in the herb infused cooking fat. Add the leek. Toast some more; taste and season

Once translucent de-glaze the whole with a little broth so as to make an emulsion between the cooking fat and the essence extracted from the vegetables and the broth.

Add the remaining broth (less for a thicker soup and visa versa) and bring to a simmer. Add fresh bay, parsley and cover. Stand the pan off the heat to rest. It will infuse in its accumulated temperature.

Resist the urge to meddle for a good twenty minutes. As the soup is off the heat nothing bad can happen. It is merely a question of embracing a sensory awareness of the quality of flavour one aspires to. Once achieved remove the herbs squeezing them for all they yield.

Spoon the vegetables into a liquidiser then pour in the broth. Liquidize. Add an abundance of parsley leaf and olive oil for texture. Return the finished soup to the heat and gently bring up the temperature. Never boil or chlorophyl will oxidise—greens turn grey and delicate flavours turn to bitter tastes.

Serve immediately in hot soup plates. Garnish with a young sprig or two of parsley and a slug of good olive oil.

A Day with Nicky Haslam

Portrait by Vanessa Garwood

Today I had the great pleasure of spending an afternoon with none other than Nicky Haslam and his amazing creative director Colette van den Thillart. How lucky can a girl get?

Nicky's legacy, talent and influence as one of Britain’s ultimate interior designers is undeniable. Not to mention, in his spare time, he is an actor, artist, cabaret singer, book reviewer, art editor, memoirist, literary editor and he features on both Vanity Fair and GQ’s best-dressed lists!

But the best thing about Nicky is, well, him...he is a genuinely nice person and fun conversationalist. All in all it was a near perfect day. Thank you Nicky. Below are a few photos that I snapped in his office. Full profile to come.

And a very special thank you to my friend Susan Moolman for making the introduction!

I love Colette's chosen "Design Family"

Off to London

I will be in London for the next two days. I hope to have a few photos to share later this week. I am bursting to tell you about my lunch date for tomorrow...but I don't want to jinx it. I'll keep you posted.

Also, THANK YOU for sharing all of the soup recipes. I can't wait to make my way through the links.
Best,
Ronda

What is YOUR Favorite Soup?

I am under so many deadlines at the moments that I don't even have time to make soup today. That said, I would love to hear from all of you. Tell me your favorite kind of soup or leave a link in the comment section to your favorite recipe. I am always on the lookout for a good soup.
All the best,
Ronda

Save the Date: Design Bloggers Conference

click image to enlarge

Join interior design bloggers, new media innovators, and interior design industry leaders for the inaugural Design Bloggers Conference in LA - February 28 - March 2, 2011.

This premier two-day conference for new media and the interior design industry offers a unique opportunity to learn about and discuss the intersection of interior design with the world of new media including blogging, social media, and more.

I will be speaking along with Jan Showers, Barclay Butera, Tobi Fairley, Grace Bonney, Tracy Porter, Cassandra LaValle, Paloma Contreras, Stacy Kunstel, Anne Sage and Clinton Smith.

Register now and qualify for the Early Registration fee of $395. After January 16, 2011 the registration fee will increase to $495.

Ralph Lauren + SFERRA

Ralph Lauren Home announced last night that it has signed on with luxury linen company SFERRA. This new licensing agreement with SFERRA will take Ralph Lauren into the hotel, resort and spa market. The Ralph Lauren line will also be available to the company's own home stores, specialty store and high-end department stores.

SFERRA, a 120-year-old company, has expanded under president and principle Paul Hooker. "The opportunity to work with such a world renowned leader of fashion and exceptional taste is a natural for SFERRA," said Hooker in announcing the deal.


"We are thrilled to partner with SFERRA," said Frank Guzzetta, president of Ralph Lauren Home, "a world class company that has a genuine understanding of our brand and the luxury market."
 - Text from Home Textiles Today.

As the Brand Ambassador for SFERRA I could not be more delighted to see two fabulous companies coming together!

Image Ralph Lauren Home

Debra Shriver: Stealing Magnolias

I love that I just never know who is reading my blog or from where the next email might arrive. Certainly it keeps me on my toes. Most recently I received a lovely email from Sue-Jean Chun telling me of her dear friend Debra Shriver’s new book Stealing Magnolias: Tales from a New Orleans Courtyard.

As one who loves the city of New Orleans, I could not wait to get my hands on a copy after seeing the images. As luck would have it, I was traveling to NYC where Debra is based and had a chance to see it in person.

In addition to authoring Stealing Magnolias, Debra is Vice President and Chief Communications Officer for Hearst. I had the privilege of spending a wonderful morning with Deb in her stunning office at the Hearst Tower earlier in October.

Stealing Magnolias is a beautifully written, and illustrated, love letter to New Orleans, her newly adopted city. Immediately after Hurricane Katrina Deb bought a town house in the French Quarter and began renovating and restoring the house to its original state. During the process she became friends with many of the artisans, decorators and designers in the city.

Through Deb’s eyes readers are given a rare tour of this enigmatic city. The book is a cultural guidebook and historical reference of America's most European city, featuring the work of more than 20 photographers and artists. Chapters highlight food and entertaining, decorating, gardens, landscapes, local traditions, interiors, and architecture. Another one for the bookshelf!

Soup on Sunday: Venetian Crab Soup

Booooo! My newly acquired Venetian mask.

I just returned from a fabulous 4 days in Venice with SFERRA (more to come in a few days). Last night we hosted a Halloween cocktail party and our quests wore masks that I brought home for the occasion. While in Venezia I had an amazing, very complex, sophisticated crab soup that I am trying to recreate. This recipe from Epicurious just might be the ticket.

The truth be told, I should be posting Halloween cocktails today. My husband came up with a few winners for the occasion, including: an Ichabod, a Pumpkin French Martini, a Ghoultini and a Black Widow. They were the hit of the party.

Venetian Crab Soup:

2 tablespoons canola oil
1 small onion, chopped
1 celery rib, chopped
1 small fennel bulb, trimmed and chopped
Shrimp shells from 2 pounds shrimp (reserve shrimp for another use)
1 (28-ounce) can whole tomatoes in juice
1 (1/2-inch) piece ginger, peeled and chopped
1 large pinch saffron threads, crumbled
1/4 teaspoon curry powder
1/2 California bay leaf or 1 Turkish
2 quart vegetable stock
1 (8-ounce) Yukon Gold potato
1 small celery root (celeriac)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 pound jumbo lump crabmeat

Heat oil in a wide 6-quart heavy pot over medium heat until it shimmers. Cook onion, celery, and fennel, stirring occasionally, until golden, 8 to 10 minutes. Add shrimp shells and cook, stirring occasionally, until shells turn pink. Stir in tomatoes with their juice. Simmer, breaking up tomatoes slightly with a wooden spoon, 3 minutes, then add ginger, saffron, curry powder, and bay leaf and simmer 5 minutes. Add vegetable stock and boil uncovered 5 minutes.

Reduce heat and simmer uncovered 45 minutes. Discard bay leaf, then purée soup (including shrimp shells) in batches in a blender until finely ground, about 2 minutes per batch (use caution when blending hot liquids). Strain soup through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean pot, discarding solids.

Peel and dice potato. Peel and dice enough celery root to measure 1/2 cup. Add potato and celery root to soup and gently simmer uncovered until tender, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in butter and crabmeat. Season with salt and pepper.

Serves 8 as a first course.

Thank You Timothy Paul

A HUGE thank you to Mia and Timothy Worrell for hosting our most recent SFERRA Lose Count party. Their Washington, D.C., shop has a growing legion of fans, and for good reason—they both have an eye for the best. Timothy specializes in carpets, while Mia focuses her efforts on textiles, exclusive lighting and furnishings from the United States, Canada, and France. Their store really is the perfect backdrop for a party and SFERRA linens.

I also want to thank everyone who attended (despite a rainy start to the day) and my friend Malcolm for taking the train down from NYC at the last minute. It was especially fun to meet fellow bloggers and Terri Sapienza of the Washington Post.

We will be hosting additional parties in San Francisco and New Orleans in the spring. To learn more about Lose Count and great bedding tips click here.

Mia and Timothy Worrell, owners of Timothy Paul

Paul Hooker, SFERRA President; Ronda Carman; Aaron Stewart, Creative Director

Malcolm James Kutner and Aaron Stewart

Timothy Worrell, Meaghan Burdick, Marika Meyer

Paul Sherril and Jana Abel

Michele Ginnerty, Nester Santacruz, Barbara Franceski

Mary Early, Kathy Campanella, Amy Zantzinger

Ankie Barnes, Barry Dixon, Aaron Stewart

Joseph Ireland, Barbara Franceski and Malcolm James Kutner

Lindsey Nye and Katherine Boyle

Raji Radhakrishnan, Barry Dixon, Ronda Carman, Murali Narasimhan

Darrel Rippeteau, Kerry Putnam, Maegan Sweeney

Jeremiah Stapleton and Veronica Revilla

Soup on Sunday: Fisherman's Stew

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 medium onion, finely chopped

1/2 cup chopped celery

4 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 pound plum tomatoes, peeled, chopped

1/4 cup chopped flat leaf parsley

Sprig of fresh rosemary
1/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
3/4 cup dry white wine

8 cups fish stock
18 small hard-shelled clams (or mussels)
1 pound sea bass fillet, cut into 2-inch pieces

1 pound uncooked large shrimp, peeled, deveined

8 ounces uncooked bay scallops

Italian bread
Sea salt

Extra-virgin olive oil


Additional flat leaf parsley for garnish

Heat 3 tablespoons oil in large pot over medium heat. Add onion, celery and garlic. Sauté 10 minutes. Stir in next 4 ingredients. Sauté 2 minutes. Add wine; cook until liquid evaporates. Add 6 cups stock. Bring to a low boil. Reduce heat; simmer 20 minutes.

Add clams or mussels and then the remaining seafood to the soup base. Cover and cook just until seafood is opaque in center and clams open about 5 minutes. Remove any clams or mussels that have not opened.

Place thickly toasted slices of Italian bread in bottom of bowl and ladle stew over bread. Sprinkle with additional parsley and sea salt. Drizzle soup with olive oil.

Serves 4

Profile: Scot Meacham Wood

In all honesty I cannot remember exactly how or when I met San Francisco based interior designer Scot Meacham Wood. I vaguely remember a few blog comments from ‘Tartan Scot’ and I do remember being smitten with his design aesthetic, but I can’t recall our first conversation or email exchange.

Fast forward two years and I cannot imagine life without his friendly emails. In some ways we have become modern day pen pals. Because of the 8-hour time difference I will email Scot right when I am waking up and he is just climbing into bed for the night. Or I will get a quick email as I am falling asleep, “Honey I just had to show you my newly upholstered sofa!”

A love of Scotland, a southern upbringing and good design were (and are) the crux of our friendship. Fortunately, we have had several opportunities to spend time together over the past year. Always the gentleman, Scot is the perfect west coast "date" when my husband is unable to travel with me. We always have fun when we are together. But our ultimate outing has to be lunch at Hutton Wilkinson’s Dawridge. That day will remain a favorite.

After studying business and design, Scot spent 13 years working with Ralph Lauren in the "Creative Services" department in the San Francisco store, a place he fully credits for helping him to shape his eye and style. And while that my be true, I personally love his design philosophy, should he have to reduce it to one Tweet: “Create gracious spaces that work for the people who live there. Be vigilant about flow, creative with textiles, and abundant with style.” (Just 135 characters!)

How would you describe your personal style?
Looking through my work - there's a strong sense of European style, but I can clearly see the impact of my Southern upbringing as well. There would have to be a collection of beautiful textiles. A well crafted use of the space. And a few moments of flair. A combination of the gracious ‘expected’ with some whimsical ‘surprise.’ As far as my own home, I tend to experiment a great deal in the space. So the design of my house tends to be more fluid than I would EVER expect a client’s home to be.

What is your most prized possession?
My friends. Don't get me wrong, in case of a fire - I know exactly which piece of artwork I'm going to grab off the wall ( a self portrait by photographer and sweet friend, Patrick V Brown) on my way out the door . . . lol. But, I’ve been very lucky to have met the most amazing circle of people here in San Francisco. I can’t imagine my life without them.

What is your idea of earthly happiness?
Not wearing my watch. Despite the slightly over-scheduled way that I tend to live my life a great deal of the time, I treasure those magical weekends when I see that there’s NOTHING on my calendar. Being able to be spontaneous and truly live in the moment - either with a pile of friends - or quietly reading or puttering around the house. I guess the short answer might be ‘time.’

What is the one thing in life you cannot live without?
Oh, that’s easy. Music. I’ve been a musician most all of my life. And started college on a “piano performance” scholarship. Since then, I’ve been singing with the San Francisco Concert Chorale, a small mixed chamber choir, for about 12 years. There’s something sublimely magical about being on stage with a group of talented people - and knowing that what you’re creating is ‘larger than the sum of its individual parts.‘ Much like great design work - there’s an alchemy that happens when all the specific elements combine perfectly.

What inspires your creativity and designs?
It would have to be the people that I have had the great pleasure of working with. I always love that first meeting with new clients. Talking about their dreams for the homes. Before we get into the nitty gritty of budgets and time schedules, I often ask new clients to describe a day at home - but, in the new space that we’re just beginning to design. I remember a wonderful gentleman who spoke about how he loved the ‘ceremony’ of closing his heavy mohair drapes every night before bed . . . that says SO much to me about the space in which he wants to live. A lush, bespoke home. Maybe more formal. But, for someone who truly enjoys living in their space, and has a great eye for detail.

What books are currently on your bedside table?
The honest answer is my laptop. That covers many of the magazines I read, the New York Times, a collection of blogs, and whatever the internet brings me . . . lol. But, I just started reading Josh Kilmer-Purcell's "The Bucolic Plague."

What is your favorite luxury in life?
Well, we’ve already talked about my friends and my music - but, for luxury, there in nothing like freshly ironed Irish linen sheets.

Who are your style icons?
There's such a wide variety - the brilliant Michael Smith, exuberant Miles Redd, gracious and witty Charlotte Moss, and of course, I have to recognize the supremely talented Ralph Lauren. I worked for Ralph Lauren here on the west coast for almost 13 years. The man is brilliant. And his ability to create a fully-realized dream out of something a simple as a dessert plate is amazing.

Past or present who has most influenced your direction in life?
As I mentioned, I think the opportunity to spend so much of my early work experience with Ralph Lauren was, and still remains, a huge influence on my life. There was always such amazing creativity - it was like spending an 8 to 10 hour day in “business school” - lol. A perfect place to experiment with style . . . to learn about advertising . . . about customer service . . . to see the impact of long-term client relationships . . .

Profile by Ronda Carman