Wednesday, February 1, 2012

perks of the job

hello! i won't bother to make excuses for myself - when i started this blog, i was essentially a secretary in an office i loved but didn't find very satisfying, and i've since bounced from job to job, remaining unsatisfied - until now. this blog served as a fantastic means of creative expression, a way to force myself to do what i love even though i wasn't getting paid for it - it's rather bittersweet that i've found a job now that is so fulfilling, where i get to be as creative as i can muster and do what i love all day long. it's a wonderful feeling, but leaves me feeling somewhat drained when i come home in the afternoon, and blogging has lost some of its urgency, for lack of a better term, for me - it's almost as if my job has become my creative outlet, and blogging has become more of a job. a job that i love, but one that i've been pretty awful about keeping up with.

so, anyway, here's an attempt at getting back on the horse. one of the things i was sad to leave at my last job was the freedom to wear whatever i liked. i've worked in bakeries before, and it's more a case of dressing for comfort that style - and i'm okay with that, but i do miss my fancy shoes and vintage dresses. so i've been rather delighted to find that the other girls who i share a kitchen with are unendingly chic while managing to be kitchen-appropriate. i've taken to wearing lipstick, tights and dresses with an apron careful placed over them; or on more low-key days, something like this:



shirt: j crew
pants: cheap monday
shoes: vintage, thrifted
belt: asos

another fantastic perk is that the bakery is the sister-store of a wonderful organic market, which is right across the street; i'm able to get off work, walk across and head straight to the meat counter, to see what's freshest and talk to the butcher about the best way to prepare it. last thursday it was a lamb, and the butcher recommended i bring half the neck home and braise it with a rub and some vegetables. it's not something i would ever make - for whatever reason, my cooking preferences tend towards extremely fussy, involved dinners - but i followed his advice and it turned out absolutely divine.








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braised lamb's neck

1/2 neck of lamb
a rub of spices - i used kosher salt, fresh cracked pepper, ground fennel seed, coriander, paprika, rubbed sage and fresh garlic
your choice of vegetables - i used what i had lying around: a leek, two potatoes, and a handful of cherry tomatoes
red wine and chicken stock, for braising
a pat of butter, for browning the meat

start the butter in a pan - once hot, add the meat, and cook for a couple of minutes on each side - just long enough to brown it. transfer it to a slow cooker with the veggies inside, and add enough chicken stock and wine to come halfway up the top of the meat. braise on high for at least three hours, or up to six. i served mine with a simple greens salad, tossed with some parmesan, breadcrumbs, salt and pepper and topped with a poached egg. (i'm pretty much topping everything with a poached egg these days.)




i have such a backlog of food to post, i'll do my best to stay on top of it this time! much love to all of you for sticking with me, and hoping you've had a great 2012 thus far.

xo audrey

12 comments:

  1. This is my favorite blog. Glad to see you're back!

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  2. so great to hear you love your job so much! that's awesome and hard to come by! I would LOVE to work creatively in a bakery! sounds so fun! you looks super cute:)

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  3. i was wondering how your job was going! so glad to hear how much you love it. and, that your fellow kitchen girls enjoy fashion like you do. i'll be in NYC next month and again in the summer, so i'd love to stop by your bakery to taste some of the yummy things you post on your blog.....yum.
    xo
    n

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  4. I just stumbled onto your blog and I have to say, I love your fashion sense and the food makes my belly rumble (which is good, except I don't have any of those things at home to make them). Will be checking by to see what else is here =P

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  5. Between your food porn and outfit inspirations I can only say I am relieved your back!

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  6. happy you're back! missed your posts.

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  7. Lovely to hear that you love your job!

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  8. This is my absolute favourite blog, no matter how infrequently you post! I'm always pleased to see a new post pop up in my reader, maybe even more so because it doesn't happen every day. I'm the worst at egg poaching/boiling/scrambling/etc (I'm always a minute or two off) but I'm determined to try that salad tonight

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  9. love your food photography! i'm just about to start work in a more conservative environment (i'm used to being able to wear skinny jeans to work), & have a feeling that a reliance on bold lipsticks will be my way of livening up my workaday wear too!

    Katie x

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  10. Your simple look is still incredibly chic! And this recipe is making me drool...the vegetables you chose look so good with the lamb. I've had much less time to blog and read blogs lately too...I get stressed out sometimes when I'm way behind in my blog reader and have to tell myself, "Okay, what is really important in life? Calm down."

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  11. I always leave your blog wishing I had received an invitation to dinner! Granted, it would involve us meeting and a plane ride, but that lamb looks like it would be worth the plane ride!

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  12. Great outfit, love the shoes.
    following you with bloglovin, you really have an blog!

    and your hair is awesome btw
    x

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