These wish lists are so fun! Following are Don and Samantha Lindgren’s holiday wish lists. As owners of Rabelais Books in Portland, Maine they see me on a pretty frequent basis. I love hanging out in their shop, it represents everything I love in life - food, land, agriculture, and books (tons of them) on all.
From Samantha:
As an adult the holidays are all about giving special homemade gifts to my loved ones. I love to give sweet treats whether baked or preserved. We can all use a little more sweetness in our busy lives. I try to can up some sweet preserves in the late Summer when everything is in season, but have been known to pot up jars of chocolate or caramel sauce this time of year. And then there are the cookies….
In no particular order, with no particular level of importance…
• A second mixer bowl and paddle for my Kitchenaid mixer. At this time of year, when I am in my cookie craze, a second bowl and paddle would make things go much more smoothly. I learned well in professional kitchens to clean as I go, but having two bowls would mean I could double my productivity before I had to wash anything….
• A Chatsford four cup Bone China teapot. Love my morning tea. For the past couple of years I have been quite happy with my Bodum glass pot. This year I feel the need to upgrade to the Bone China, just like my Grandmother would have used.
• A king sized down quilt. Sharing the bed with a dog and at least one, sometimes two, cats can make for some chilly exposed toes with our full sized quilt. We like to keep the thermostat cool, we both sleep better that way, but our beloved terrier mutt Raleigh uses up more covers than his small size belies.
• The perfect pair of black leather boots. Low calf height, flat heel, with real leather bottoms. Anyone seen these?
• A gift certificate to my favorite yarn store, Knitwit on Congress Street in the East End of Portland. My friend Anna, the owner, has the most wonderful taste in yarn, her shop is a wonderland of beautiful textures and colors. Oh the fun I could have, after Christmas, when all my Holiday knitting was done….
From Don
Here are a few of my favorite things to wish for, some in the plausible realm, others are a real reach:
• The English language edition of the Rene Redzepi’s Noma cookbook. It’s become the single hardest modern cookbook to attain, made even more difficult by the fact that the chef would likely buy back copies and destroy them if he could. The perils of perfectionism…
• New fences at our place, so we can go ahead and get the pigs and sheep we want. If our dilapidated fences had been strong and complete when we bought our place, we’d be overrun with farm animals by now. Fortunately, the fence was broken, and we had time to learn something before acquiring farm animals. Now we’re ready!
• A New Holland t4030 all wheel drive tractor with front loader. A useful (and expensive) toy.
• Good health for all of our friends and family members.
• More bookshelves!
Top photo brooklyntweed.
