NOV. 2024
ISSUE 014
Keeping it Salty with an Incredible Produce Market in Midcoast, Silky Sweet Potato Soup, and Very Good Lighting
WHERE WE’RE GOING
Market Day at Chase’s Daily
Chase’s Daily for Market Day. Market Day at Chase’s Daily is truly one of my favorite Maine experiences. Chase’s Daily is a bakery, restaurant, coffee shop in Belfast, and once or twice a week (depending on the season) they have their Market Day where they bring in all of the flowers, herbs and vegetables that they grow on their family run farm. I have seen some impressive produce markets in my life, all over the world, and this one rivals them all. On a recent trip to Chase’s in mid October, I bought giant bouquets of dahlias, mint bunches that were a foot long, pink speckled beans, fresh corn, and a bouquet of herbs tied in twine. That coupled with a well made latte and a trip across the street to the Belfast Co-Op and I was a pig in mud. Going in November when it's a little quieter, you can enjoy the beautiful drive to Belfast, and you can be leisurely about your shopping is a dreamy day if you ask me. Take a book or a magazine so you can sit and enjoy. 10/10 recommend. Check their website for Market Day schedules.
http://www.chasesdaily.me/
WHAT WE’RE EATING
Sweet Potato Soup
Vegan sweet potato soup. This is one of the easiest, most delicious soups in my rotation. It is thick, comforting and perfect for November. Also, a great starter for your Thanksgiving dinner!
Ingredients
Olive oil
Salt
Pepper
6 sweet potatoes
1 onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
4 cups of vegetable broth
1 12 oz can of coconut milk
How To
Heat your oven to 450 degrees
Using a fork, poke your sweet potatoes five or six times all over (this allows them to cook evenly and more quickly)
Put your sweet potatoes on a lined sheetpan and put them in the oven. cook for approximately 1 hour or until fork tender
Dice your onion and mince your cloves of garlic
Add your onion and garlic to a dutch oven or stock pot with a healthy glug of olive oil, a big pinch of salt and some fresh ground pepper. Sautee over medium heat for approximately five minutes or until the garlic is slightly browned and the onions have begun to sweat. Turn the heat off and wait for your sweet potatoes to roast
When your sweet potatoes are done, pull them from the oven and let cool before peeling off their skin. This will be super easy now that they're cooked through. Give them a rough chop
Add your chopped sweet potatoes to your onions and garlic in the dutch oven, pour in 4 cups of vegetable broth and bring to a boil
Once boiling, let it simmer for 10 minutes before using your immersion blender (or pouring the contents into a blender) to blend
The secret to an ultra smooth soup is adding more liquid after you have full blended it– add your 12 oz can of coconut milk, another healthy glug of olive oil and blend again
Et voila! Soups on! I like to garnish mine with a little extra drizzle of olive oil and some flaky salt. Thinly sliced apples or pomegranate seeds if you're feeling very fancy
🎶 WHAT WE’RE LISTENING TO 🎶
Henry Mancini
I adore Henry Mancini. If you follow TSM on Instagram you know. I just think his music was made to accompany videos of our beautiful island.
Henry Mancini was an American composer, conductor, arranger, pianist and flutist. Often cited as one of the greatest composers in the history of film, he won four Academy Awards, a Golden Globe, and twenty Grammy Awards. He wrote the music for Breakfast at Tiffany and The Pink Panther, two of my favorite movies.
Our “Dreamy Scenes” playlist is available on Spotify.
WHAT WE’RE DRINKING
Traditional Chai
Blue Lotus Chai with maple and oat milk. I am not a barista. I love coffee and love a beautifully, well made cappuccino, but now that our storefront is closed and our baristas aren't around to spoil me, I have turned to the simpler, but equally delicious chai.
We use what I think is the most incredible masala chai, Blue Lotus, a very traditional, spicy masala chai. I steam oat milk on the stove, scoop about half a tablespoon of chai into my Salt Market mug, and add some of my friend Scott’s Maine maple syrup. It has truly become one of my favorite morning rituals. We will be carrying Blue Lotus Chai in the store next year, but in the meantime, you can purchase it from their website: https://bluelotuschai.com/collections/shop-all-products
WHAT WE’RE BUYING
Things to Make Home Cozy
Things to make your home cozy. It’s nesting time for me. It’s getting darker earlier, and it's quickly getting chillier. I’m spending more time at home, and I found that after a summer of being out most evenings and gone during the day, my home needed a little revamp. I've invested in the following things to make being indoors and working from home better.
I’m a sucker for a cozy, fuzzy throw, but I feel like most of the ones out there look really cheap OR are $300 (no, seriously, there’s one I loved but it's $360). Enter the Quince Faux Fur Throw. We have the 60” x 80” throw in Mink and not only do the humans in our house love it, so does Saul. Very cozy and very chic.
QUINCE THROW BLANKET IN MINK
Our home is mostly blues and neutrals, and a way I like to add color is with books. Not only can you add to your collection of beloved books, but you can use them as decor on shelves, coffee tables, in your kitchen, etc. Here are some beautiful ones, inside and out
Good lighting. I am the person who cares about wattage and lightbulb color. Lighting is very, very important to my home. After some trial and error, I found this bulb and I think it’s perfect. Warm, but not amber, bright enough to read by, but not bright enough to hurt your eyeballs. $2.27 each.
GE, RelaxLED, Soft White Light, 40 watts
WARM WHITE LIGHT BULD
(AVAILABLE HERE FOR $2.79 PER BULB)