It’s curious how bright red stickers with the words why not? and Do. have been appearing around town, in the subway and on lamp posts. They’re our new Improvised Life stickers. We wonder who the guerilla(s) is/are that are tagging things and spreading the word?
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Just as we were getting ready to post another lovely recipe from The Cuban Table, our friend Ellen Silverman‘s brainchild created in league with Ana Sofia Pelaez, we heard the news that relations were getting warmer between Cuba and the US, that some of the embargo that’s hurt the country so terribly may be easing at last.…
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In our new favorite cookbook, The Cuban Table: A Celebration of Food, Flavors, and History by Ellen Silverman and Ana Sofia Peláez, Peláez writes evocatively about ventanitas, the street-front windows out of which Cuban bakeries and cafe’s often operate “like beehives scattered across the Miami landscape”. The recipe for el pecado (below), which layers three kinds of milk…
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At a crossroads in her life, Ellen Silverman traveled to Cuba where she fell in love with its unique culture. That trip catalyzed many returns and ultimately a rich and many-layered cookbook that would truly showcase the Cuban spirit and culture as expressed through its food: The Cuban Table. Here’s a start of our ongoing series on our favorite new cookbook.
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Photographer Ellen Silverman has a particularly fine eye for inspriational adhoc street signs. We love this wall she sent recently, whose messages resonate deeply with where we are right NOW. They are at once like stripped-down haiku, meditations and essential reminders…
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In the midst of our recent hospital siege, we received a number of very cool emails from friends and readers. This one from Ellen Silverman: So often we forget to look up, especially in a congested public space. This afternoon as we were saying goodbye to Luca in terminal 4 at JFK, Josh happened to…
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Our recent Fantasy Facelift post got quite a response, including a number of emails from readers. One very moving one came from our friend Ellen Silverman, who has been working on photography and video projects in Cuba. Here’s what she wrote:
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Ellen Silverman sent us a digital Valentine of hearts she found on the streets of Paris. Hearts seem to be hidden everywhere, if you LOOK.
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With the difficult weather, you may find your self on-the-hook for a Valentine’s gift for tomorrow. If you’ve got the basic makings in your pantry for brownies, we recommend our tried-and-true Essential Chocolate Cake for Improvising recipe. It’s as easy to make as a brownie, with a good deal more bang for the buck, AND there are endless ways to improvise on its essential formula, adding in all sorts of unexpected flavorings to delight your beloved.
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Photographer Ellen Silverman has been sending us images of perspective-shifting signs she’s found on the streets of Paris, where she’s taking a breather. We especially love that someone took the time to scribble ‘look at the sky’ on a random piece of plywood that appears to be hiding among construction work. It is a fine…
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The magic of salad is that while it can be a clean and quiet beginning, side or ending to a savory main course, it can also be a full meal unto itself–full of protein with cheese, meats, nuts, tofu, or an egg on top; a little sweet with dry or fresh fruits; or full of…
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We are thrilled to publish some of resident photographer Ellen Silverman‘s work from a forthcoming exhibit at the Umbrella Arts’ gallery in New York City, “Spare Beauty: The Cuban Kitchen” her ongoing project. This past year I travelled to Cuba three times; having a strong interest in food and food photography, the kitchen was a…
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Ellen Silverman is traveling with her family in Venice, sending us the occasional wonderful photo. First came this one of the Grand Canal – like a teeny vacation for us. Then came a few-line story of the clever idea she learned while visiting friends: We were invited to an impromptu lunch on our first day…
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Our friend Ellen Silverman traveled twice to Cuba in the past year, and came back with some amazing photographs of daily life there, in particular the kitchens of families she met. They are invariably improvised, deeply makeshift spaces, reflecting extremely limited resources coupled with extraordinary resourcefulness and spirit. Ellen’s images tell the story.
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It is high season for ramps, the pungent wild leeks that grow throughout the Appalachian and Catskill mountains. Ellen Silverman sent us photos of the sublime ramp butter she was given by a friend, with an utterly simple recipe that will keep you in ramp heaven for days. She wrote this in her email: “Cyd…
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Our dear friend Ellen Silverman, resident photographer at ‘the improvised life’, did all the photos for Gwyneth Paltrow‘s new cookbook My Father’s Daughter: Delicious, Easy Recipes Celebrating Family & Togetherness. To quote Heather Horn of The Atlantic Online “the book is an eyeful”, no doubt due to Ellen’s sensual and luminous images. Here’s a sampling of…
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When Ellen Silverman was over photographing Prunes in Armagnac for our holiday food gift post, we were hunting through our collection of tablecloths to use as a background. Nothing seemed right. It was the end of the day and the light was waning. In desperation, she threw a big linen apron of Sally’s onto the…
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