Two (Terribly Missed) Fat Ladies

I recieved an email the other day bearing some of the best news I've heard in weeks.

One of my favorite culinary TV series, "Two Fat Ladies," is finally coming to DVD!

For anyone who doesn't remember this fantastic British show (which aired back when Giada's decollete was just a glimmer in some TV executive's eye), there's still reason to check it out.

Don't expect healthy twists or 30-minute meals here. Instead, prepare to ride off with Jennifer Paterson and Clarissa Dickson Wright (by motorcycle and sidecar, naturalement) around Britain (and beyond) to prepare seriously hearty meals.

Happy Memorial Day!

Posted by Regan

There's bound to be plenty of parties to swing by this weekend for what many consider to be the official kickoff of summer.

Leave the burgers and beers to the hostess, but don't even think about showing up empty-handed. You can never have too many appetizers, desserts, or drinks at an outdoor shindig; here are some recipes sure to liven things up:

Appetizers: "The more, the merrier," is the general rule when it comes to dip. These are both great choices. Spiced-Up Hummus
Sweet Onion Dip

Bring the ingredients for this easy corn recipe for and you'll be the most popular person at the party. (Feel free to substitute a Mexican cheese such as cotija for the feta in the recipe.)

Dessert: Pies are easy to make (well, if you make one of these pressed crumb-crust varieties they are!) and are also easy to transport. They're also ALWAYS well received.
Espresso Cream Pie has it all -- it's cool, creamy, crunchy, and caffeinated.
Everyone loves Key Lime Pie

Drinks: Who doesn't like an unexpected beverage? These are all easy to make and sure to impress.
This Watermelon Punch is so simple and uses one of my favorite, often underappreciated alcoholic beverages--vermouth.
A Pimm's Cup is the perfect early-summer beverage.
And for the Puritans and the pregnant (myself, included), this non-alcoholic Punchy Cocktail hits the spot.

If you really want to keep the party going, join the Summer Workshop

Bring Back the Coffee Break

Posted by Regan

Why is the coffee served in offices so bad? If not weak and watery, it manages to be overly strong yet characterless. And who knows if that giant urn ever gets a good cleaning?

It's time to banish bad coffee for good. Do you have a hot water source and two hands? That's all you need (plus a few pieces of low-tech equipment) to brew a truly sublime cup right from your cube.

Start Your Spatulas

Posted by Bluelines

With much of the East Coast and Northwest in a rainy rut this week, it’s a perfect time to be holed up inside and baking.

And what’s better than licking that wooden spoon? Winning something for all your time and batter tasting (aka effort).

Enter the Martha's Favorite Cookie contest and you can score a signed copy of the New York Times bestselling book “Martha Stewart’s Cookies.”

The sweet prize

Here are some scrumptious baked wonders already in the running.

From slightly scary

to positively starry and many more.

Snap, Crackle, Gum

Posted by Kerstin

Inspired by Erin’s recent post on the virtues of White Rabbit candy , I thought I’d throw another sweet treat into the ring for ingenious design meets terrific taste: Jila Gum.

I first spotted it (also available in hard mint) at a fancy grocery store here in New York. I’ll admit the image of gleaming Chiclet-like pieces on the box is what first attracted me.

After I ripped off the clear plastic, I got the best surprise of all: A clever, hinged top that made a satisfying snap when I closed it. Truth be told, I think the sound is as enjoyable as the taste itself which is like an Altoids dressed in Chiclet clothing. Very refreshing

And really, how much more can you ask of a one-by-three-inch box of candy?

I recommend you look in your area or order your fix here.

My Peeps

Posted by Jodi

This being my first post for Bluelines, I thought I would share something near and dear to my heart: Peeps!

Although I’ve been known to whip up homemade marshmallow treats on my own (see below) -- and for my former magazine, Kids --  just found an oasis for a Peep-obsessed individual such as myself: “Peeps! Recipes and Crafts to Make with Your Favorite Marshmallow Treat.”  (Truth be told, I kinda wish I had written it myself). For now, I must be content with trying some of the book’s confections for my sister-in-law’s Easter dinner. I will certainly try to top what I made last year.

Here are a couple of things I learned last time around that I'm happy to share with any Peeps novices:  

* Ripping the marshmallows apart from one another leaves an unattractive, white, unsugared side behind. If you have to break them up, be sure to have matching colored sanding sugars on hand. I love the varieties they have at India Tree.    

* If you don’t have sanding sugar, you can use some pastel, candy-coated eggs on either side of the Peep.

After the sugar shock wears off, be sure to check out these gifted crafters from the Peeps Diorama Contest in The Washington Post.

Brand New Blue

Posted by Bluelines

As promised, Bluelines has undergone a facelift (the fun kind). It might seem subtle but we've made some big additions. Here's a rundown of what's new.

If they're not already drawn there immediately, direct your eyes upward and you'll see six cool new banners by the incredibly talented artist Keith Shore. (More about him later.) We'll be rotating the artist behind our banners every month so if you'd like to be considered or want to suggest someone, please email us.

We've got a new list of contributors who'll be blogging about what inspires them, makes them laugh, and generally makes them weak in the knees. There are a few familiar faces, and a couple of new ones sprinkled in. We hope you come to like them all.

On the top left, we've tweaked our navigation, so play around with it and discover the archived treasures that lie within. Here, you'll find all of the previous Bluelines posts archived.

Navigation button No. 10 deserves a paragraph of its own. We've created a source book full of our favorite websites, blogs, artists, and resources. Here you'll also find all of Blueprint's beloved 100 Reasons To...  -- which contain a bevy of links, facts, and inspiration. We'll be adding to that list constantly, so check back often.

You'll also notice that we've created home tours of our favorite Blueprint features. Take a virtual tour of Suzanna Bierwith's Chicago row house, and watch as Sarah Humphreys's tiny Manhattan apartment goes from claustrophobic to chic. Not only are they beautiful to look at, but they are also rife with great decorating tips and ideas to steal. And, of course, we'll be adding more of them.

New ideas, a new look, and new contributors -- we hope that's what you've been hankering for.

Just some of what's to come

Best Of Bluelines

Posted by Blueprint

While we're looking forward to our retooled blog, we've also been looking back at the posts over the past year. Here are just a few of our favorite posts:

120 Days Later

Too Much Of A Cute Thing

A Madman In The Heath

Creative Currents

The Writing's On The Wall

How Swede It Is

Go Ahead Jump

Making My Case

Ottoman Empire

Studio Tour: Binth

Family Trees

The Art Of Reduction

Do you have any favorite posts?

Blueprint's Legacy

Posted by Blueprint

We're so glad to see that you're excited about the new additions to the blog come March. And now we have another announcement: As of Friday February 29th, the Blueprint main page on MarthaStewart.com will cease to exist. It sounds intense, but here's what it means: If you come to Bluelines via blueprintmag.com, or through the Blueprint channel on MarthaStewart.com, please bookmark the blog's main page so you can come back. You can also still get to Bluelines via our Community and Blogs pages. (And all of those nice people's blogs who've linked to us.)

We know it's a little bit rough, so before anyone freaks out, please rest assured that all of your beloved Blueprint content will still be available online -- in fact, we've listed all the ways to find it below.

Home & Decorating

Take a peek at home ideas -- great and small with a Blueprint twist.

Also don't miss our Organizing Tip of the Day

Crafts

You'll find great DIY jewelry (a la Katie),  Page's flat-screen tv cozy, and our Craft of the Day (which includes many Blueprint ideas)

Entertaining

Find all of the Blueprint party menus, to-do lists, playlists and prep stuff here

Food

Blueprint recipes -- from soup to well nuts (...like Blueprint's roasted almonds)

roasted almonds

soup recipes

Health

Need ideas for a healthy & quick breakfast?  Want to take up jogging? Need a new makeup palette? Look no further.

and lastly...

Simply type "Blueprint" in our SEARCH box on MarthaStewart.com or any page to be directed to those great blue ideas in the sky.

*But most importantly, come here for your daily "blue" content.

A Tale of 12 Kitchens

Posted by Erin, Staff Writer

Beard on Books, is a wonderful series of lunch time talks (free for students, donations recommended for working stiffs) with James Beard-endorsed authors and two weeks ago I slipped out of the office to attend. The speaker I went to see was Jake Tilson, an artist, culinary explorer, and -- since October 2006 -- cookbook author. His book A Tale of 12 Kitchens (available through Amazon) is more of a gastronimical and visual exploration than a cooking directive. As an artist and graphic designer, Tilson photographed and designed the book himself and it has the look of a personal diary. While there are recipes, the book is a photographic celebration of food and family -- as Tilson said at the talk, "The graphic landscape of food has always fascinated me." Here are a few ideas from the book that I particularly loved.

Since Tilson was young, he has been making food diaries with his family that include pictures of meals (what's on the plate and who's gathered at the table), food wrappers and packaging, cards from restaurants, and recipes. It's an inventive approach to a travel diary (and also includes the normal things like ticket stubs, fliers, etc), and I'm planning on making one for the next trip I take.

A collage from a trip to New York

Tilson and I share a lust for food packaging. I have bottles of balsamic vinegars, spices, and canned goods that I'll never use because I was interested in the packaging rather than the product. Tilson has pages of his favorite food packaging in the book (we share many in common) and he takes it a step further by filling suitcases full of food when he travels. (This has become more problematic since the new flight restrictions were put in place.)

Musings on the beauty of food packaging

In addition to taking all the photos in the book, and laying it out himself, Tilson specially created some of his own fonts -- how very Blueprint! For a chapter on Tuscany he created a font from the script on a can of tomatoes, and for a chapter about Scotland he took pictures of street signs and created an alphabet from them.

A collage from a trip to Scotland

Personally, I'm not big on travel gifts for everyone I know but I loved Tilson's gift to friends after his annual summer visit to Tuscany. He trims herbs -- bay, rosemary, thyme -- wraps them nicely in a sheet of La Repubblica and mails them as soon as he returns home. I'd prefer fresh herbs over a postcard any day!