I’ve been working on the granola section of the cookbook lately and have been enjoying the process of eating my handiwork. Eaten with a bit of yogurt, this ginger granola is particularly divine.

When I inherited this apartment from my grandmother, it came with everything in it. That included every from the food in the kitchen to the houseplants. I’ve carefully brought her Christmas cactus back from the dead and I’ve potted and repotted her ficus schefflera until it became the towering plant that it is today.

Unfortunately, the ficus schefflera has gotten too bit for the apartment. It desperately needs to be repotted, but I have no place to do that without spreading dirt all across my living room, dining room and kitchen. I think the time has come for the ficus schefflera to find a new home. If you (or anyone you know in the Philadelphia area) are in the market for a large, 10+ year old house plant, please let me know. I’d love to pass this plant along to a good home. It looks like the plant has found a new home at iFractal. Big thanks to Frank and his crew for being so willing to take it on.

A few hardcore vendors were at the farmers market today, selling their wares in the falling snow.

One of the dishes I’m working on for the March issue of Grid Philly. Eggs poached in a sauce made of tomatoes, onions and spinach. Served over crusty toasted bread that I rubbed with garlic. It’s delicious. If Scott liked poached eggs, this would be one of our regular meals.

I’m working on starting a journaling habit in conjunction with this new year. So far, so good.

For the first time in years, my sister is expanding her collection of worldly possessions beyond that which will easily fit in her car. To help her out as she sets up a kitchen from scratch, I’ve been culling my extras, boxing them up and sending them to Austin. It’s been such an incredible joy to be able to share with her. I just wish she lived closer, I’d fill her car with pots and pans.

The days are getting incrementally longer. It was such a joy to have this splash of light in the living room in the late afternoon.

I got the ceramic ornament on the left at the Goodwill in Portland, during one of those after Christmas sales when everything is half off. It reminds me a little bit of the Ood from Doctor Who.

Honor boxes at the corner of 20th and Sansom. I love the line-up of color.

Goodness. A new year has arrived. I don’t know about the rest of you, but the speed at which 2010 passed still leaves me feeling a little light headed. How could it possibly be over already?

Well, like it or not, 2010 is gone, 2011 is here and I’m ready to embrace the change with a clear head and fresh vision. For the last few years, I’ve done what so many people do and have publicly declared goals for the freshly minted year. Well, this year, I’m going to keep things simple.

• Get this cookbook I’m writing done with a minimum of stress and anxiety.
• More sleep, less television.
• Be happy and continue to expand my capacity for joy and goodness.
• Make Food in Jars even better and more useful.
• Get pregnant (although not until the book is done. I can’t deal with two such projects happening at the same time).