Hot Days, Hot Foods, Hot Chefs

I'm not sure what the weather is like where you are, but here in Nashville it's HOT.  Temperatures in the 90's, with high humidity and no end in sight.  The kind of hot where you can feel your skin start burning as soon sun touches it.  At least this ginger girl can.  My parents say I'm Irish, English & French, but I'm starting to wonder if there is some vampire in our background.  I'm pretty sure there is a serious chance of immolation when I next walk Astrid.

Thankfully the house is nice a cool.  A huge departure from the summers we spent in Kentucky, with spotty air conditioning that didn't extend to the kitchen at all.  I was constantly on the lookout for summery meals that could be made in the crockpot so I didn't have to stand in the kitchen at night, sweating over the stove.  This year I get to make whatever I want for dinner, regardless of outdoor temperatures.  What has all this got to do with jewelry?  It gave me the nudge I needed to finally put together a bracelet that's been in the works for months.

It started when I found the adorable little bulbs of garlic charms in the photo above.  (Far left, next to the clasp ring.)  They were so beautifully detailed that I had to pick them up.  Over the next few months I started seeking out more cooking charms.  It took over 6 months to gather them all, but I love the collection that I assembled, and was thrilled to finally be able to do something with them last week.  

All in all, the charms include garlic, cutting board & knife, fork, plate of steak & asparagus, skillet, cook book, spatula, pepper mill, plate, carrot, bottle of wine, cheese grater, measuring cup, rolling pin, sausage on a fork, and wedge of cheese.  They are all beautiful, but my favorites have to be the plate with a steak and asparagus on it, the pepper mill, and the cheese grater.  The detail on them is just amazing.

When I make a meal that I'm especially proud of, I tend to feel pretty bad ass about myself, and I wanted to capture that feeling in the bracelet.  To do so I mixed jet black beads with some fiery reds, oranges & yellows.  Most are Czech glass, but there are also some great goldstone beads thrown in for shimmer.  Thus the Hot Chef Charm Bracelet was born.

Finally, I'll leave you with the recipe I plan to make for dinner tonight, that I would never have considered making in our last house: Moco Loco.  A fragrant rice made with coconut milk, topped with spiced ground pork, a fried egg, and an awesome sweet & spicy soy sauce reduction.  The recipe was given to me by my Friend David, but it originally came from the book Breakfast for Dinner, and has become a favorite in our house.  I tend to alter the recipe slightly by adding some ground ginger, onion powder, and minced garlic to the pork.  Give it a try!