Joy the Baker

Summer 2011. As it Goes.

by 127 Comments

summer as it goes.

You’ve seen this part of my summer living… the part that’s in focus, well lit, and having everything to do with food.  You know this part of me well.  You’re probably hungry all the time, just like me.  This is why we’re friends… no doubt.

There were the Roasted Apricots and the completely uh-mazing Angel Food Cake.  Tracy encouraged me to pour vodka over strawberries… so I did.  I also made tender Almond Meringues, and individual Peach Cobblers.  These are the things that have kept us together all these years… am I right?  Let’s be real.

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There’s a part of my summer that you haven’t seen… the part where I scorch my skin to a lobster-esque hue, the part where I fall and scrape my knees, the part where I hang out with Tracy, eat in the grass, and meet new cats.

This summer has been graced with beauty and blessings.  Want to see?  It’s blurry.

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This is my dear friend Whitney on her 30th birthday.  She’s making a wish.  She takes her wishes very seriously.  Get it, girl!

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I brewed my first batch of beer this summer!  I.  Am.  Obsessed.

I’m changing the name of this blog to Joy the Brewer.  I hope you’re thirsty.

Because I’m so enamored by homebrewing, I’ve got a whole kit for myself:  buckets, carboys, funnels, syphons, strainers, thermometers… the whole deal.

I don’t even drink beer very often… oh man… I love making it!

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While my beer brews, I get down with this homemade ginger syrup.  With a splash of bourbon, some sparkling water ,and a dash of bitters… oh my word!  Success!

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This summer I made a mess with cocoa powder.  That’s nothing new.

What was I even making!?

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Oh!  I was making these double chocolate indoor s’mores.

I got my grub on with these darlings… major.

 

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There have been little get togethers and barbecues all summer.  Warm nights, late sunsets, hot dogs… I am in love with this time of year.

Oh!  The couple standing in the very center of this photograph… they are so in love.  They have the sparkle magic.  It’s completely beautiful.

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Layover

Charles Bukowski

One of my favorites.  It makes me sad.  I love the way this man puts words together.

 

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There was Hawaii.

I was very very lucky to visit.

There were palm trees and sunsets.  It’s a sweet lifestyle.

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This man was there.

What do you do if a man is so genuinely wonderful that it takes your breath away?  … because that’s happening to me.

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Oh!  I met a new cat in Hawaii too!  I think this might be Jules’ girlfriend… it’s long distance… they text a lot.

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4 friendship bracelets.  3 best friends.  2 watches.  1 major fox bracelet.

It’s midnight.

One of these best friend arms is leaving the trio.  This picture is important.

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Happy Birthday Jilly!

This picture is what life is.

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You know Tracy!

She invited me to a fancy French restaurant in Yountville.  We drank a lot of wine, ate amazing food, laughed, and talked about nail polish.  Friendship for real.

podcasting

I talk to Tracy every week.  We podcast.

She sits at a nice desk… like a civilized individual.  I sit on my bedroom floor and podcast off my bed.

When my friend Michael and I set up Homefries, I dunno… I thought I’d have a desk or something.  What’s up with that!?  Michael got the desk because he’s responsible for all of the fancy (and confusing) podcasting equipment.  I just have to put on headphones and talk into a microphone about nail polish and kittens.  I win.  I’ll stop complaining about the desk.  Sorry Michael.  High five teamwork!

That’s the fluffy cat sleeping in the back.

This is how I live.

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I met my family in Seattle.  We went for a hike.

Apparently we’re a family that hikes together!

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Well… wait.  We’re a family that hikes together if there’s lunch at the end.

Lunch in a Seattle field.  I won’t soon forget this day.

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Horseshoes are lucky.  Fried chicken is luckier.  Beer is luckiest.

Family dinner at Bravehorse Tavern, Seattle.

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And that’s it.  That’s game.  That’s summer so far.

There’s been love and travel, sharing and learning.  There’s been newness.  There’s been teamwork.  There’s been a little sadness.  There’s been morning fog.  There’s been big sun.  There’s been stunning sunsets.

I hope this season is treating you well.  I hope you’re excited for the future.

I hope you eat dark chocolate and fresh blueberries… and I hope you feel like you have a blessed life.

Get at this life!  Make it your own!

Past seasons of my living can be seen here and here.  Get nosey!  I totally would.

To keep up with my antics in real time, follow me on Twitter and Facebook.  Friendly stalk me.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  3. Meadowlark

    Oh Joy! How perfectly you were named. I love your blog! You always make me stop from being busy (like a very busy bee) and take stock of the nice things like the food and the love and the friends. Thank you! X

    Reply

  4. Johanna

    Hi Joy,
    This is a beautiful post. I agree that its a good thing to sometimes sit back and take stock of the wonderful things going on all around us.
    Also, I have a question for you of the beer/baking sort. My son Carson is about to turn 2 and we have home brewed a dark Belgian ale to pair with a birthday cake (beer for adults, cake for all), trouble is we can’t decide on a cake. Any suggestions?

    Reply

  7. KathrynKat

    What a wonderful Summer just filled with friends,good times and food just has Summer should be.
    I’m so jealous that you went to Hawaii! Fingers crossed,hopefully one day I’ll go there too.

    Hey, wait a minute you can’t go for a hike without stopping for a big lunch -that would be silly.
    My family loves to hike and eat too!

    Reply

  8. Lucia

    I’m hungry. I’m always hungry. I’m happy to know that you’re hungry. Always hungry.
    I’ve got a lobster-esque hue too. Once, I was white. Now, I’m lobster red., and I smell of coconut milk.
    Novels are precious. Poems are precious. Words are precious. Their music is precious.
    Men are precious. If they take your breath away, they’re even more precious.

    Thanks for being with us, Joy.

    Reply

  10. rachel h.

    marry him.
    make babies & name one after my middle name.
    then visit me, a lot. i’ll take terese out for frozen custard.
    and you out for a pedicure.

    Reply

  12. Kathy C

    MARRY HIM!!!!! That’s what I did- 12 years, 3 kids, 2 dogs and a hamster ago and I still get excited when he’s on his way home. Yipeeeee!!!!!!!!! for the wonderful ones!!!!!! They’re the best-est.

    The end.

    ? Kathy

    XOXOXO

    Reply

  20. Debra

    Aloha Joy! Love, LOVE this post! How is that I missed you when you were visiting on great state? Come during whale season next time. Awesome to see those creatures up close! Hope you enjoyed our local cuisine.

    Reply

  21. Alex @ fightcancerwithfood

    I love this post. I’ve actually kept it tabbed up on my browser since I read it… I don’t mean that in a creepy way. You totally deseverve those beers and those cakes, and all that genuine wonderfulness. I’m sending you more smiles for Autumn.

    (I’ll close this page now)

    Reply

  22. Nat

    Beautiful photographs, beautiful words.

    Beautiful woman :)

    Have a lovely rest of the Summer, I’m currently (trying, it doesn’t look the same as yours) baking the cinnamon sugar pull-apart bread, and it doesn’t even look like I’ve been baking in the kitchen! Sorry, I like to clean up after myself…

    xxxxxxxxxx

    Reply

  23. Nicole @BakeMeBlush

    Your summer must have been very memorable. With all those beautiful moments you captured, how could it not be? It makes me smile just to look at all those happy summer photos. I had a lovely summer too and I’m a bit sad to see it coming to an end. I really enjoy your posts, so thank you, and I truly hope your next season goes just as wonderfully.

    Reply

  24. Avelyn

    i love you joy. just being in your website lifts my spirit up! i love how your posts always manages to let us live in your world just for that few minutes. and boy is it a beautiful world! :)

    Reply

  25. christine [the sugar apothecary]

    This view of summer looks absolutely fantastic. Birthdays and barbecues and bracelets and backyards… and kitties. I love that you love all these things :) You are truly sweet, Joy. It sounds weird (in a friendly-stalker way) but I don’t think I have ever wanted someone (whom I have never met) to be happy as much as I hope that you are happy. I hope next season is just as wonderful for you. Thank you for sharing with us!

    Reply

  28. carla

    Love the summer round-up. Looking forward to Fall – can’t wait to make your Curried Sweet Potato Soup with Goat Cheese Biscuits and the Vegan Pumpkin Cranberry Apple Pecan Bread.

    Double thumbs up for Bukowski.

    Reply

  31. miss stacy

    I too love Bukoswki, friendship bracelets and boys who wear seer sucker shorts.
    So much for which to be grateful!

    Reply

  32. Celina

    A really lovely post. I would have to agree with A Little Coffee. By the way, I get good vibes from the partial profile of the man that might be taking your breath away. That partial profile could be my BFF if I didn’t know better so that is a good sign for me.

    Reply

  34. A Little Coffee

    This is really, really saying something because I sure love me some Joy the Baker blog posts, but I think this may be my favourite post of yours EVER. And it doesn’t even have a new recipe! What?

    Reply

  37. Cari

    Joy! I love you, and your blog, and your podcast, and your Tracy…you girlies would certainly be my friends in real life! Question: how do you get those soft edges on your photos??

    Reply

  38. Rosie

    “What do you do if a man is so genuinely wonderful that it takes your breath away?”
    Kiss his face and make him cookies.
    Obvi.

    Reply

  40. jomamma

    I recently got my sister-in-law hooked on your blog, she loves cooking and creating new taste combos like you. Now you’ll have my brother checking things out… he’s a brewer.

    Reply

  41. mandy

    Joy….do you hate Pomegranate?

    Looking through your recipes for the first time I am IMMENSLEY pleased with the amount of persimmon avacado recipes!

    Looking forward to trying Avacado Pound Cake Recipe.

    Reply

  45. Helen

    Joy, that was absolutely beautiful. I’ve come over all unnecessary!!! Glad to hear life is treating you so well. p.s. ginger and dark rum is also the business, give it a go!

    Reply

  47. Britt

    Hey Joy!

    Your Summer sounds like it’s been incredible… Amazing memories look like they’ve been made :)

    Your “homemade ginger syrup with a splash of bourbon, some sparkling water and a dash of bitters” sounds almost EXACTLY like a Thirsty Crow (except they use ginger beer instead of ginger syrup & throw in some mint to boot) – as a Bourbon fan I’m sure you’ve heard of the Thirsty Crow bar… It’s in Silverlake not too far from Lamill! That drink is holy yum delicious & dangerous cause I can’t taste a lick of liquor in it, if you haven’t tried it you really should!

    Summers not over yet, many memories left to be made!

    xo

    Reply

  53. cindy

    i love this joy!

    and, if a man is so genuinely wonderful you can’t even think straight and you think you might fall crazy in love, you just leap right into it–no fears and then…you marry that guy. i definitely did that.

    Reply

  54. Sarah

    This is so so beautiful! The end of summer always makes me sad, but also so insanely happy for how good everything was. Nostalgia at its finest. You have an amazing life, Joy, thank you for always being so open and sharing it with the rest of us!

    Reply

  55. Gen

    Thanks your cheering us up!
    You have a wonderful vision of life, your summer was great and I’m looking forward to reading your next posts!

    Reply

  56. Pip

    Your Ginger Ale Syrup has gotten me through the summer! I’m completely addicted and I haven’t even added Gin yet! I have already drank an entire batch and am making my second today! Thank you!

    Reply

    • Jenna

      Ditto! Yes, please! My boyfriend, dad, and brother are big home-brewers. I off-handedly told the bf you were brewing when you first mentioned it on your blog (he is very familiar with Joy the Baker via the giant surge in his treat intake this past year). Whenever I make a new recipe of yours since, he always ALWAYS inquires if you’ve posted about your beer. This is major because he usually rolls his eyes when I mention you (it’s ok, to his credit it’s because I’m a little obsessed… but it’s totally normal I get nail tips from a baking site- life overlaps people!) but now it’s like our interests inter-mingle. Or at least our interest in your blog. Anyway, we’d love to hear/see some details!

      Reply

  61. Meagan

    I love that you celebrate the blessings in your life. I love that you remind me to appreciate the blessings in mine.

    Thank you for sharing and for allowing me to friendly stalk you. You’re the best.

    Reply

  63. Katie

    This is a beautiful post and it made me think about all of the great things I’ve done this summer too – I even started making a list like this! Thanks :)

    Reply

  64. Erin

    Great post, seems like you have really taken advantage of the summer! I started a new job in Seattle this June, so I feel like I’ve let the summer slip away but your post reminded me I still have a few weeks to soak it up!

    I LOVE playing shuffleboard at Bravehorse, I hope you enjoyed Seattle!

    Reply

  65. Leslie

    Love the whole “montage of summer” thing. It reminds me of that part in movies where the music is playing and they show short clips of things–hanging out at a park, lounging in Hawaii, catching a fly ball (Oh wait, I think that was A League of Their Own)…but you get the idea.

    Loved the poem, too. I can’t believe how often I tear up at poems nowadays. I always made fun of my mom for that!

    Reply

  66. Alexis

    consider yourself friend-ily stalked. (did i mention we have the same birthday? …stalker award!) love your baking/life/love updates and podcasts. keep ’em comin’ x

    Reply

  70. Marissa

    “What do you do if a man is so genuinely wonderful that it takes your breath away?” You breathe. Slowly. You soak in every single moment, so that you don’t forget. You smile. You smile a lot. You get perma-grin. You take time to notice the little details that are so much better when shared. And you hold out your heart to him. Because it’s the only thing that you can do.

    At least that’s what I did when I met the man who still takes my breath away.

    Reply

      • Marie

        “soak in every single moment, so that you don’t forget”
        I second that!
        I have been married for 10 months! (and with my husband before that for 2 years)
        and I soo wish I could have captured all our first year together in slow motion in my memory. It was magical and exciting and lovely. (and it still is…but something about early love…it still gives me butterflies!)

        Reply

  71. Beth

    What do you do with a boy who takes your breath away? Love him in the present and don’t worry about the future. Be happy. Be there. And I think you’re already as good as gold, judging by this post. :)

    Reply

  72. Erin

    I heart you. Whether you’re Joy the Baker or Joy the Brewer… you are awesomesauce pretty lady, and I can’t even tell you how much I enjoy your blog and podcast. Keep doin’ what you’re doin’ because you’re awesome at it!

    By the way, keep breathing around the man that takes your breath away or else you might faint. He’ll probably catch you, but you may chip your pretty nail polish on the way down.

    Reply

  75. Nicole

    Well said! Joy…. you are my favorite booger…. wait huh? Blogger your my favorite blogger :) Every morning i come into my office and go straight to your blog.. before i check all those pesky emails and before i open that never ending calendar. You are better than coffee :) i dont drink coffee but that doesnt matter. The End

    Reply

  77. Melissa Marie

    “What do you do if a man is so genuinely wonderful that it takes your breath away? … because that’s happening to me.”

    Swoon. And Yay. And me too.

    Reply

  78. Karen

    Beautiful post, Joy. So happy you are having such an awesome summer. Tell us more about your new beau (sooo happy for you, he sounds amazing)!!!

    Reply

  80. tj

    “…There are so many days…
    …When living stops and pulls up and sits…
    …And waits like a train on the rails…”
    …Wow. *sigh* :o) I know, I know, out of the whole page THAT is what spoke to me. Not the “making love by a carpet redder than our blood”…I mean, I did swoon a bit on some of that but at this point in my life, at this very time, could relate to the living stops and waits. I can feel that.

    …And do you know just how awesome you are? Well, lemme tell ya, you’re pretty dadgum awesome! ‘kay? Yeah, it should be “Awesome Joy The Baker”. lol… ;o) And also, you asked, “What do you do if a man is so genuinely wonderful that it takes your breath away? … Count your blessings and count him twice. ;o) I’m happy for you and for him! Congrat’s to you both on your newfound wonderfulness! ;o)

    …And also, whatta cutie he is too Miss Joy! :o)

    …This is an awesome post, I enjoyed and loved every minute of it! I could leave a comment as long as this post explaining every lil’ thing I loved about it…but I won’t. I’ll leave with a big ol’ “Thank you!” for sharing you!

    …Blessings :o)

    Reply

  81. meg

    Beautiful. Especially the parts about kitties. And cocoa powder. I love that about cocoa powder–you can’t not make a mess with it.

    Reply

  86. gigi

    Just beautiful photos— I love the plastic camera look to them — and i just love how you write,…like you are talking to me! You inspired me to get busy producing my photos from my trip!

    Reply

  87. Lynne @ 365 Days of Baking

    Wonderful post, Joy! Great to see how you’re having a fantastic summer and there’s still some left to be had! Love the kitty sleeping on the bed and that poem is great.
    Thanks for sharing your life, your words and you.
    Hugs!

    Reply

  89. Charissa

    If you like Bukowski you’ll probably also like Pablo Neruda. Not as melancholy – but just as achingly intimate. Beautiful, poetic, dramatic stuff – the stuff of life and love :). I’m including his Sonnet 17 (my personal favorite). Enjoy!

    Sonnet 17

    I do not love you as if you were salt-rose, or topaz,
    or the arrow of carnations the fire shoots off.
    I love you as certain dark things are to be loved,
    In secret, between the shadow and the soul.

    I love you as the plant that never blooms
    but carries in itself the light of hidden flowers;
    thanks to your love a certain solid fragrance,
    risen from the earth, lives darkly in my body.

    I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where.
    I love you straightforwardly, without complexities or pride;
    so I love you because I know no other way

    in which there is no I or you
    so intimate that your hand upon my chest is my hand
    so intimate that when you fall asleep it is my eyes that close
    -Pablo Neruda

    Reply

  90. Katherine

    This was a fantastic summery tribute :) It has inspired me to do one of my own soon. I’m a newish reader and I must say, I love all your posts and recipes and photos. A whole lot.

    And canni just say… fox. bracelet. omg I need one.

    Reply

  91. Emily

    Loved your post, Joy! I was wondering if the restaurant you went to in Yountville was named French Laundry? I have a lot about that place and really want to go! French food is awesome!

    Have a nice rest of the summer! :)
    Emily

    Reply

  93. homegrown countrygirl

    Lovely post, Joy. You live and love and share so well… we are all so lucky to get to read your delightful words! (By the way, you now have most of the equipment you need to also make wine… I think you would enjoy doing that, too. It’s not nearly as complicated as people sometimes make it out to be.)

    Reply

  97. Dar

    Love your pics as usual. But I’m excited about your home brewing! What did you brew for you first beer? Me and my husband have been brewing for a year now, it’s very exciting! Also my blog is all about bread and beer, I make bread out of the barm from the home brewed beer and use the spent grain too! spent grain is awesome, I even put it in my granola :) There’s supposed to be a section on beer on my blog, but that’s my husband’s job.. and he hasn’t done it yet. Also, you should try to make honey ginger beer, it’s my fave and if you like gingerale.. you’ll love it. (Super easy to make too!)

    Reply

  98. Sasha @ The Procrastobaker

    I loved this post, it cheered me up :) Also to reply to one of your closing statements – i just ate half a bar of valrhona 68% choccy (after breakfast…not cool, i had cravings) and now feel very sick. BUT HEY, lifes too short to worry about my ever flobby stomach haha :) Lovely post

    Reply

  99. Merrilee

    Thanks for the poem, the inspiring photography, and most importantly, the reminder to treasure our friends and family.

    Reply

  101. Julie H. of Spinach and Sprinkles

    Aw, you have a great life beyond being Joy the Baker— you have such amazing friends and experiences…. Distance between true friends does not matter, your heart will feel as if you are sitting next to eachother when you’re talking.
    I love the friendship bracelet picture beyond words….

    Reply

  103. Averie @ Love Veggies and Yoga

    Joy what an awesome post!

    Thanks for the recap of summer. And for relinking indoor smores. That post feels like a lifetime ago since I read it the first time…that, or my memory is failing :)

    “Because I’m so enamored by homebrewing, I’ve got a whole kit for myself: buckets, carboys, funnels, syphons, strainers, thermometers… the whole deal.”–
    I dont brew beer but I brew komboucha. I have an oak barrel with a spigot, warming plates, thermometers, you name it, I have it and can relate to your brewing endeavors.

    Reply

  105. dawn

    Beautiful post Joy :)
    How do you get your friendship bracelets so neat and gorgeous looking? Mine have a few ‘charming’ holes in – Must try harder! :)

    Reply

  107. Irma

    Great post Joy!
    But, hey, I want to know everything about your beer making. Are you going to post about it? I’m very excited cause I’m into homebrewing too right now and I can’t wait for the results. I stil have to wait 10 days though.

    Reply

  109. katy

    Great post; I love the glimpse into both of your lives–bright and shiny and un-photoshopped and blurry. Thanks for sharing your ups and downs! To me, summer always seems be about change; I’m generally ok with that, as long as baked goods and my appetite don’t go away. :)

    Reply

  111. Bianca

    Great post! Looks like you’re having a wonderful summer. I’m freezing my butt off down here in NZ, and after seeing all of your lovely photos, I’m fondly remembering our last summer and sooo looking forward to our next one! :)

    Reply

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