No. 9: Cooking Playlists
Plus the prettiest cake, secondhand items, and a true icon
One of my favorite things to do after a day of work is to immediately change into my comfiest clothes, pour a glass of white wine, turn on some tunes, and cook a delicious dinner. If I’m home alone or short on time, a “delicious dinner” might mean something quick and easy, like brothy beans with roasted fennel on toast. If I have the whole evening in front of me with no plans and nowhere to be, a “delicious dinner” might be something more involved or time-consuming, like Samin’s Crispiest Spatchcocked Chicken with parmesan risotto. But no matter what I’m cooking or how much time I have, I always, ALWAYS turn on some tunes. Nothing turns off my work-brain and sets the mood quite like music.
Some of my go-to artists/albums/stations while cooking include: The Sheepdogs; Fleetwood Mac; Sturgill Simpson; Goose radio; Tedeschi Trucks Band radio; and Bonnie Raitt’s Nick of Time album, which feels very nostalgic to me.
Because Andrew works in music, he listens to a really wide range of genres and artists, from Reignwolf to Kacey Musgraves, Kid Cudi to Silk Sonic. It’s been so fun to have him weigh in on the music for @books.to.cook—he’s introduced me to a couple new artists and lots of great new songs. Because I personally want to track all this music, and because I’ve gotten positive feedback about the song choices on the old ‘gram, I’ve started a Spotify playlist with all the music featured on @books.to.cook. Approx 90% of it is curated by Andrew, so you know there’s good stuff in there.
I hope you cook along to this playlist (which I’ll keep adding to over the coming months!), get inspired to start your own cooking playlist, and/or discover a new artist or song you love. Happy listening!
And now for May’s smorgasbord:
🛋️ 1st Dibs and Chairish: I was in the market for a new lamp and discovered these two sites, which sell vintage and secondhand furniture, home decor, and other items. Some of their stuff is pricey, but they’re good for special, one-off pieces and/or for inspiration. For example, I loved this Caprani lamp, but $$$! Did a quick reverse image search on Google, and found this copycat version from Urban Outfitters. Also eyeing these rattan napkin rings, these happy yellow plates, and this scalloped doormat.
💰 Succession’s final season, obviously. Enjoyed this Armchair Expert with Nicholas Braun, a.k.a. Cousin Greg (he sounds like such a sweet guy!), and I’m loving Hunter Harris’ weekly power rankings (there are spoilers, so only read if you’re caught up). Here’s a recap of some of the best and cruelest lines from the season, updated after each episode. They almost sound more brutal in print!
👑 Queen Charlotte, the Bridgerton off-shoot show on Netflix, which tells the story of a young Queen Charlotte and her marriage to King George III. (Had to include it—you know I’m a sucker for any period drama!) Although the show is centered around their love story, it’s not as sexy as the two previous seasons; it’s romantic, but in a different way.
👖 White jeans from Re/Done: At long last! A pair of white jeans that has the perfect off-white color, fits nicely, and has enough stretch to ensure all-day comfort. The linked pair is on sale right now!
🍰 This raspberry-covered cake, and also Carolina Gelen’s account in general. She posts new recipes almost daily, and they look SO yummy but still very achievable. Case in point: a simple vanilla pound cake becomes the prettiest pound cake I’ve ever seen when adorned with concentric circles of half raspberries.
Also! Not a rec, but I’d be remiss not to mention Martha Stewart’s Sports Illustrated’s swimsuit cover!!! A true icon. “Snoop is gonna just think it is fantastic.” Yes, Martha!! So much yes.
That’s all for now, stay tuned for some salad debriefing at the end of the month!
xo,
Claire