The Elle Nakahara Photography Project

A few shots from a trip to DC a few years back.

Playing with the afternoon light that’s streaming through my windows.

Catching beach vibes from objects around my house—colors and textures and collected treasures. Looking forward to warmer days just around the corner, but until then…

Stopped in Turin for a few days recently & spent a leisurely afternoon at the Museo Egizio, which houses the largest collection of Egyptian antiquities outside of Egypt, including an absolutely stunning hallway of monuments. I first visited this museum years ago, wandering through nearly-empty hallways. I remember feeling as though I had the place to myself—a rare luxury these days! So many charming details that I surely would have missed had I been navigating my way through a crowd.

A traditional Japanese sweet, manju are small cakes that are baked or steamed and are typically filled with sweetened red beans. As you can imagine, there is a wide variety of shapes, sizes, and fillings, but this is the classic version. Manju are meant to be eaten in 2-3 bites, so it’s a tiny snack but these will tide me over until lunch

This with a bowl of soup, and all is well on this perfectly ordinary Tuesday.

It had rained earlier that morning, and the air was cold and damp when I left the flat. The streets were fairly empty, despite it being nearly 10 am. Probably because it’s going to start raining again soon, I thought to myself, and a sensible person would have changed plans and stayed indoors. But I’d promised myself a day of exploring, rain or shine, so I wrapped my scarf tightly around my neck and made my way.

My first stop is the Institut Giacometti in Montparnasse to view the phenomenal reconstruction of Alberto Giacometti’s studio:

My next stop is the always enchanting Astier de Villatte in the 1st, for gifts and endless inspiration.

And then on to Le Pure Cafe in the 11th to meet up with a friend for coffee.

A favorite in our house when blood orange season comes around—a bright and lively mood booster for the pale days of winter.

3 cups (700 ml) freshly squeezed blood orange juice
¾ cup (150g) sugar
About 1.5 tbsp. (20ml) champagne or sparkling wine (optional)*

In a small nonreactive saucepan mix 1 cup (230 ml) juice with sugar. (Add the 1.5 tbsp. of champagne at this point, if using.) Stir over low heat until the sugar is dissolved. Scrape the dissolved sugar and juice mixture into the remaining 2 cups of blood orange juice. Chill thoroughly, then freeze in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s directions.

*Alcohol has a lower freezing point than water, so adding a bit of champagne will prevent the juice mixture from freezing solid. This tends to improve the consistency of the sorbet, giving it a smoother, creamier texture. If you prefer to omit the alcohol, just let your sorbet sit on the counter and soften at room temperature for 5-10 minutes before serving.

Makes 1 quart
(Recipe adapted from David Lebovitz)

Found an old favorite hidden away on a bookshelf, collecting dust. Flipped through the pages quickly in case something was tucked inside and then decisively placed it into the giveaway box in the hallway.  BUT THEN. After a pause, I picked it up again and hours later, I’ve abandoned the weekend agenda (groceries, drop off giveaway box) and am happily rereading it well into the wee hours of the night.