Happy Friday!

These are a few pictures that I took last weekend; I couldn't resist sharing them with you. This was one of the warmest and most joyful weddings I have ever been to. I hope you are as loved as these two are. Have a happy weekend!

From the Heart

Jordy and I have a running joke that our marriage is a constant battle between the Art Team and Team Science (guess who has the better T-shirts). He's been on his way to or in medical school since we've been together (over 7 years now...), and I've been messing up his meticulously clean space with my art supplies for nearly as long. For Valentine's Day the first year of medical school, when he was deep in the throes of anatomy, on a first name basis with an--ahem--previously alive person, I got him a t-shirt with a heart on it that said "I got the beat." I thought it was hysterical--it was a clear collaboration between members of both of our teams. Since that day, I have been dreaming of anatomy-related gifts for my favorite member of Team Science. These would be a great gift for anyone starting medical school. Say, "I'm proud of you," and also let the recipient know that you can dork out, too.

Left: Star Heart by Selflesh (we've featured her before; we can't get enough!); Right: From the Heart Card by Farouche (the geniuses who brought you the "You are Here Now" print)

Left: Eat Your Heart Out Dessert Plates by Folded Pigs; Right I Got The Beat Heart T-shirt by I Heart Guts

Left: Grey Matter Notebook by badbooks; Le Coeur - Hand Embroidered Pocket Cahier Notebook by Denki Ai

Have a great weekend everyone! We hope that the weather is good, your table is well-set, and that you have amazing people gathered around it.

Summer Corn Salad

Every summer, we go up to my husband's family's place in New Hampshire for some R & R and family socializing. Their place is summer communal living at its finest. Dinner is rarely set for fewer than 25 people, and there are at least three expeditions a day into town for ice cream. Last summer, I was up there with Emi, who was teeny-tiny, and my parents, who Jordy's family graciously hosted for a few weeks so they could hang out with the new baby in a space that wasn't my closet-like apartment. My mom made this recipe for dinner on one particularly busy weekend, and I still get calls and emails from people who were lucky enough to be there for that dinner asking for the recipe. This salad contains raw corn, which highlights the sweetness and juiciness of the corn. Folks, don't even try this during the spring, fall, or winter. This here is a full-on summer recipe. And since the days of fresh corn are winding down, you best get it in quickly.

Fresh Corn Salad

Ingredients:
8 ears of corn, shucked and kernels removed (like when you had braces--just stand it up on a plate and cut the kernels off. If you want to get super fancy, stick the pointy end in the hole of a bundt pan, and let the pan catch the kernels)
juice and zest from 2 limes
1 red pepper, diced
1 jalapeno pepper, seeds removed and finely chopped (you can add more or less to taste)\
2 scallions, well-washed and sliced thinly
salt to taste (I used about 1t)

Directions:
Combine all ingredients in your prettiest bowl. Serve immediately, or refrigerate (salad will keep for about 3 days).

Seating Chart

Hi there! Today is a big, big day. Have you checked out our giveaway yet? Huge news. Anyhow, I've been itching to share this project with you. Conor & Jerem got married this weekend in the Russian River Valley in California. The wedding was inspired by blues and greys, they also wanted a rustic feel as well. They asked us to come up with a creative seating chart that might also incorporate favors. We proposed making corsages & boutonnieres for all of their guests out of vintage buttons & vintage-inspired ribbon. We then hand-wrote all of the guests' names on paper luggage tags, and placed the boards on easels. What do you think?

Speaking of gay weddings, have you been to equallywed.com? It's a same-sex wedding magazine with great fashion, registry, fitness, and planning articles. Marni and Casey's Atlanta wedding is so. Freaking. Pretty. And their gold shoes? Swoon!

Photos by Drew Neman Photographers via equallywed.com

Giveaway!

GIVEAWAY ENDS FRIDAY, AUGUST 27 AT 5PM EST!!!
Folks, I really can't tell you how excited we are to offer this giveaway. We've teamed up with Brooke Fitts of Brookelyn Photography to offer one lucky reader a photo session shot by Brooke and styled by us. It can be an engagement session, a love session, a session with your family, your pet, your favorite place in New York, a session with your friends, or just to capture who you are at this moment in your life. To enter, just hop on over to Brooke's website and have a look-see at her photos (you might want to set aside some quality time with a cup of coffee to do this since her photos are insanely beautiful and inspiring!), then come on back over here and leave a comment on this post telling us which of Brooke's photos is your favorite and why. We'll pick a winner next Friday!
Fine print: We're sorry, but because of our busy schedules, the winner must be able to shoot in New York City between the 4th and the 9th of October. If you win, you'll also have to provide your own lodging and all of that if you're coming in from out of town (though we'll be happy to have you over for dinner!).

S is for School!

Dear You + ME*,

My son is starting kindergarten this fall, and I want to make his first day of school seem really special. What are some simple ways that I can do this?

Thanks,

R.

Dear R.,

We love that you want to make school feel special for your son, and we agree that the simplest gestures can be the very best in this case. Here are a few ideas that will get you going:

Start the day with some rainbow pancakes. These made the blog rounds a while back, but are worth revisiting for the first day of school. You might try adding natural color (and flavor) with strawberries, orange zest, bananas, blueberries, and blackberries. You won't get a vibrant rainbow like this, but you won't have to use the food coloring either. That said, it's one day out of 365...

{I Am Mommy}

Send him to school with his favorite lunch packed in a special lunch bag, and don't forget to put a note in it. If he's not reading yet, you can tuck in a picture of your family and draw a heart around him.

Insulated Lunch Bag by Julie Meyer

Every kid needs a little boost of super power on their first day of school. Order your son some custom super hero shoes, or make your own with some All-Stars and fabric paint.

Super Hero Shoes by Boy Girl Boy Girl

Create a gallery wall while he's gone to showcase all of the art he'll be bringing home from school. Include both frames and shelves so he can show off both his 2-D and 3-D work. Here's one idea (it doesn't have shelves, but the racks are far enough off of the wall so that you could feasibly hang thicker works of art from it):

{via ohdeedoh}

We hope you and your son have a wonderful first day of school, and we can't wait to hear about it!

xo,

ME*

Honey, Have You Seen My Keys?

I try to make "I love you" the phrase that my husband hears from me most. I'm afraid, however, that he likely most often hears "Have you seen my keys?" Maybe if I was using a cute little keychain instead of the flimsy ring that my apartment keys came on, I would be more likely to keep track of them. Here are a few that I am considering:

I would love to stash my keys on this--how much better would this pouch be than the little plastic bone to carry my bright blue conspicuous poo bags for walking the dog?

Pouchette Key Purse by Opelle

I love that this is cheeky; I feel like whimsy is right at home on a key chain.

Super Moustache Vinyl Keyring by Magesty, Inc.

Oh, Jack Spade, you get me every time. I love, love, love this. And it's in keeping with the dipped trend, recently spotted in the August issue of MSL.

Dipped Key Clip by Jack Spade

Have a happy Monday, everyone!

Your foodie friend who cares about the environment

It's birthday time for that foodie friend of yours, or maybe it's your mother-in-law or spouse. In any case, this is the friend who is on a first name basis with all the organic farmers at the market and would be raising chickens if coops could be constructed on fire escapes. What is a good present to show that you support his/her convictions and to snag you a dinner invite in the near future? Here are a couple ideas:

SodaStream Penguin Water Carbonator at Williams Sonoma. I happened to be the lucky recipient of one of these babies last Christmas and let me just say that the carbonated fun never stops in our home. Just fill a bottle with filtered tap water and adjust the level of carbonation to your preferences (from lightly bubbled like Pellegrino to fizzy like soda water). It has a fairly small footprint on your countertop, and it uses glass bottles that look perfectly appropriate on even the most well set table. Let your friend enjoy bubbly water to her heart's content without all the wasteful bottles.

Photo: Roberto Falck Photography for Stone Barns Farm

How about giving the fun of a working farm, without all the, well, work? If your friend happens to live in the general vicinity of Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture (it's just a quick train ride or drive from New York City), consider giving a membership. Members receive discounts on Farm Store purchases and on program registrations, as well as invitations to all sorts of special events and priority registration for the annual Harvest Fest. There are farms like this across the country. Even if you live elsewhere, with a little googling you should be able to find a fantastic farm that holds events and offers membership benefits.

Looking for a fun, but inexpensive option? Plan a date to check out your local Botanical Garden with your friend. The New York Botanical Garden happens to be featuring The Edible Garden: Growing and Preparing Good Food through October 17, which means there are loads of foodie events featuring phenomenal chefs and outstanding cooking demonstrations for bargain prices. Seek inspiration for the first part of the day and then hit up your green market for the goods you need to cook up a feast.

Parsley Pesto

Poor, poor parsley.  It's an amazing herb with a fresh, green flavor, yet it is often relegated to tasks well beneath it (garnishing eggs at IHOP, for example).  While it almost seems sacrilegious to suggest using something other than basil for pesto when basil is so abundant at the markets right now, this pesto is one of my go-to weeknight dinners, and I wanted to share it with you.  Most people, when I tell them I am making parsley pesto, have a hard time concealing their skepticism, but everyone to whom I've served it has come around to the virtues of parsley. Trust us on this one--you won't be disappointed.
This twist on basil pesto lets the herbacious flavor of parsley shine, and is similar to basil pesto only in hue.  It goes well on pasta, sure, but it is also delicious as a dip for veggies, spread on sandwiches, or drizzled on poached eggs and toast.  This recipe makes a nice big batch, suitable for a few dinners and dipping sessions and sandwich spread servings.

Ingredients:
4 cups parsley leaves, washed, dried, and loosely packed
1/2 cup olive oil
1.5 cups toasted walnuts (spread on a baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees for about 7 minutes, or until they are fragrant)
1T salt (or more to taste)*
1/2 cup lemon juice
*the trick is to salt the pesto until the flavors really sing.  The amount that you need to use to get this will depend on your ingredients and your palate.  Don't be afraid to liberally salt this pesto.

Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a food processor or blender, and blend until the consistency is paste-like.

For a pasta dinner that serves 4, cook 1/2 package of whole grain angel hair pasta according to the directions.  Drain pasta and return to pot.  Add 3/4 cup to 1 cup of pesto, and toss until the pasta is evenly covered.  Top with 3/4c toasted walnut pieces, and pat yourself on the back for having given parsley a chance.  Vow to picket IHOP for unflattering use of an awesome herb.

Enjoy!

YOU + ME*

If only this were meant for our business. We would blush and say aw shucks to Nick Schmitz. Maybe we'll hang it on our office wall and just pretend. 

You + Me, by Nick Schmitz
via Swiss Miss