I’ve mostly been revising my syllabus recently, but I still have two things to show you today.
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Handmade present:
Denim clutch (upcycled from the leg of an old pair of jeans I'd cut into shorts).
Details. Hand-stitched because I am horrible with a sewing machine.
Doubles as its own gift envelope!
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And something edible:
Caramel Apple Galette
The recipe is sort of a mix of the pastry technique from Chez Pim’s rustic fruit tart, and the way my French (now former) roommate M does the filling for her delicious caramel apple tart. I used a thinly sliced pink lady apple and drizzled hot caramel sauce all over the top once the galette had finished baking. The caramel doesn’t make it taste extremely caramel-y, but it adds moisture and shine and a nice note of flavor. M usually uses store-bought pastry, but I decided to make my own this time; it turned out pretty good — nice and flaky — and was easy enough to make that I was encouraged to try making my own crust again a few days later when I made quiche for a lunch date. I think I’ve finally begun to conquer my fear of ruining delicate pastry doughs! Unfortunately, I don’t have pictures of the quiche (I used a variation of this recipe from Tartine Gourmande, with ham, spinach, scallions, and swiss cheese for filling instead of her kale, zucchini, & spices), or of the chocolate mousse I made (which was also inspired by M, though the recipe I found online was a little too rich; I’ll have to ask M for her recipe, which is much lighter). Whatever was left over was consumed very quickly by my family in the ensuing 24 hours. Which I’m not complaining about — it’s always a good sign when a new dish you’ve tried out disappears really fast!
Hi Iris – This is GREAT. The clutch is so pretty, and the first photograph is especially beautiful. There’s nice depth of color. Do you know the Annekata blog? Kathrin does a lot of hand sewing and it’s made me appreciate it so much more. I love to hand sew but often feel like it’s second-best to machine sewing, or it’s what people who aren’t pro enough do if they want to make something w/ fabric. She’s helping me to see it in its own right. I’ve been making these embroidered circles and I can’t stop!!
Thanks as always for sharing your handmade treats.
Thank you! And thank you for the recommendation — I checked out her blog and what she does is absolutely gorgeous! So much texture.
Still want to learn to use a machine better, though. It strikes me as much more efficient, when I want to do something like whip up a quick gift at last minute. :)
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