Let's Give "Som" Thanks

Teen Vogue asked a slew of American designers to talk about the taboo-iest of fashion topics: eating. Lots and lots of eating, as in Thanksgiving. and what they serve up in their Yumiko Sekine aprons.


When grilled everyone from Erin Fetherston to Jill Stuart listed a sweet dish from years gone by and Peter Som shared his mother's annual spinach souffle recipe. Surprisingly it sounds like the ideal Thanksgiving treat: heavy and nap inducing and something so rich and laborious that you'd never think to make it any other time of year.


Som claims "it's the perfect antidote to all the traditionally heavy thanksgiving food, so I think I'll be making this one for a while!"



I claim all those tablespoons of butter, cups of cheese and 9 eggs is hardly what I call "light", but fashion designers have some real wack-a-doo standards, so no shock there.


Anywho here's the recipe and below's the link for the other recipes as well. Salut!

peter som's spinach soufflé

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing the dish
1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese, plus extra for sprinkling
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup scalded milk
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
4 extra-large egg yolks, at room temperature
5 extra-large egg whites, at room temperature
1/2 cup grated aged cheddar cheese, lightly packed
1 package frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry
1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
Pinch of cayenne pepper
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper


Preparation:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Butter the inside of a 6 to 8 cup soufflé dish (6.5" to 7.5" in diameter by 3.5" inches deep) and sprinkle evenly with Parmesan. Melt the butter in a small saucepan over low heat. With a wooden spoon, stir in the flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Off the heat, whisk in the hot milk, the nutmeg cayenne, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Cook over low heat, whisking constantly, for 1 minute, until smooth and thick. Off the heat, while still hot, whisk in the egg yolks, one at a time. Stir in the cheddar, 1/4 cup of Parmesan and the spinach and transfer to a large mixing bowl. Put the egg whites, cream of tartar, and a pinch of salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat on low speed for 1 minute, on medium speed for 1 minute, then finally on high speed until they form firm, glossy peaks. Whisk one quarter of the egg whites into the cheese sauce to lighten and then fold in the rest. Pour into the soufflé dish, and then smooth the top. Draw a large circle on top with the spatula to help the soufflé rise evenly, and place in the middle of the oven. Turn the temperature down to 375 degrees. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes until puffed and brown. Serve immediately.

Read More http://www.teenvogue.com/style/2011/11/fashion-designer-thanksgiving-recipes#ixzz1eIet9m7y

Oh, Gemma Ward, Where Have You Been?

Just the other day I was talking to a co-worker about fave models and I casually referred to Gemma Ward and her moment when she was on every cover and the confirmed "on the up"

(V Magazine cover with Daria Werbowy and Freja Beja)

This was circa 2006 when she was working on taking the inevitable transition into an actress with her film debut, "The Black Balloon"

Rumours swirled on why she feel out of the spotlight right around 2007 though. At age 20, she definitely wasn't too old to continue on her modeling trajectory. Rather, she took a self-imposed dip out of the public eye and for the first time she recently opened up about it to her native Australia's Herald Sun

"I have taken a break from the media spotlight for the past few years and it was something spurred by Heath [Ledger's] death

 Hmmm... seems Gemma got involved with Ledger right up to his January 2008 overdose because they

 "were both struggling with things that I won't get into, and we bonded over that"

I won't begin to speculate on all that....

But I am glad she's returning to us, even if it is to clear the air and the path for her renewed focus on her acting. She will play queen of the mermaids in the upcoming "Pirates of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" movie and is currently in her hometown of Perth working with the Perth Theatre company on their debut, "The Ugly One". Not sure how Ms Ward will fill that lead role

(maybe if she cut off her eyelashes and eyebrows she could be The Ugly One?)

Either way, acting is swell and purging to the papers is nice and all but surely you have another one of these in you, right?

Because, to paraphrase Ram Sweeney,  "Jesus God in Heaven, why'd we have to lose such hot snatch? "

I'd Die Before I'd Steal a Design

Yesterday Rachel Zoe previewed her first namesake collection for editors and bloggers (my invite was lost in the mail) and Women's Wear Daily reported that she'd like it to appear in department stores along with contemporary lines like Diane Von Furstenberg, Marc by Marc Jacobs and Alexander Wang

But in no time flat the blogging community turned on her and is now all atwitter with this Tweet from Jane Keltner de Valle, Teen Vogue's Fashion News Director

Oooh, it appears Ms Zoe has been directly "inspired" by a vintage piece she styled for an October 2007 Teen Vogue article




Oh shock of the day! A designer is scouring the city for vintage designs to pass off as their own? NEVER! Why is the fashion industry acting like this is a HUGE revelation. Having worked vintage for so many years I cannot tell you the list of designers I've watched drape a vintage Alaia on a store dress form right in front of me

And you know what, if Rachel wants to take her place along fellow fashion designers, I'd say she's already succeeded