Erin French of The Lost Kitchen: Book Tour in Seattle

When I moved to the Seattle area, I moved to the right place. Did you know that we have a cookbook bookstore? That's right. The Book Larder in Fremont sells solely cookbooks (swoon) and is known for filling the calendar with book signings and cooking demonstrations. Its really something. 

As long as you are quick to sign up, you can do a lot of really cool things, like meet Erin French of The Lost Kitchen. 

The event was held at the Fremont Abbey and Erin was there with her husband Michael, who gave a warm and loving introduction and then played a video that showcased The Lost Kitchen restaurant and world that Erin now shares on Joanna Gaines' Magnolia Network. She tipped her hand and said the the next season of the show, The Lost Kitchen would likely feature her and Michael taking their airstream on the road throughout America. I can't wait to see how it unfolds. 

Her television show The Lost Kitchen is a quiet and beautiful glimpse at a women-run restaurant where the customer fan-base, having been selected from a postcard drawing, already feels lucky to dine with her and therefore is primed to be enjoy whatever she whips up. I feel the same way as a viewer. I want to see a beautiful table with delicate wildflowers, clean wineglasses and beautiful soup being poured into stoneware bowls. A dollop of creme fraiche and a pansy floating on top and I'm happy to see it. It's beautiful and it feel like I'm reading Victoria magazine. This genre of television is soothing me in a new way and I like it. 

Erin French was very relaxed and very real with the audience. It was not lost on her that she was able to run her restaurant as she had for years and her new found fame was won simply by allowing cameras to capture the magic of it. Her attention to detail. The friendships and camaraderie of women. Her mother as sommelier. A normal bumpy life full of very real complications turned out well. She has told her story in her autobiography Finding Freedom and was very clear that she has no secret sauce. I found her to be charming and I am so glad that I was able to hear her speak and support her in this small way.

#bigheartsmallstove #booktour #erinfrench #thelostkitchen #lostkitchen #findingfreedom #seattle #beautyofeverydaylife #cookbook

Pasta Pretty Please: Salty Seattle Shares Her Colorful Pasta Process at Book Larder

Have I told you about the book store in Seattle that is only cookbooks? Can you think of anything more perfect for me? The store is called the Book Larder and it is a dream. Many cookbook authors that come into town, stop at the Book Larder to sign their inventory and if we're lucky, they do a demonstration. 

I attended one of their author nights in November and heard Linda of Salty Seattle talk about her success dyeing pasta with natural items like vegetables, herbs and flowers and the Instagram sensation that is rainbow pasta. 

When she does a demonstrations, she brings a variety of solid colored pasta dough balls with her so that she is ready to layer them together into stripes. She uses a small amount of vegetables pulverized with the eggs in a Vita-mix to incorporate the color into the dough. Have you ever heard of butterfly pea flowers? That is how Linda makes her dynamite shade of blue.

Linda sends the dough through a pasta sheeter to get each shade of pasta a uniform thickness. Then she cuts and lays down stripes of colors in a row and sends it through the sheeter again to create the pasta sheet itself. It is a relaxing process to watch and if you are interested in trying this yourself, be sure to buy her book, Pasta Pretty Please.

Cutting with a fluted pastry cutter creates the zigzag edge on each pasta square.

Practice makes perfect for making the perfect pinch in the center of each pasta square! This bow tie pasta is so cute and would charm any of your guests. The thinner you sheet the pasta (thin pasta cooks faster) and the sooner you cook it after making the dough, the brighter the colors will appear after cooking. 

If you're at all intrigued, you should try it! Thanks, Salty Seattle for the inspiration and thank you Book Larder for hosting this great evening. 

And remember, when you are browsing the incredible selection of cookbooks, be sure to check inside the cover. Your heart might just skip a beat when you see a famous signature.

#saltyseattle #pastaparty #pastaprettyplease #homemadepasta #naturaldyes #booklarder #cookbookcollector #cookbooks #seattle #seattleblogger