How We Work
I picked up the most recent issue of Time Magazine to find Jonathan Franzen on the cover. I’m a big fan of Franzen and think what he does in depicting ordinary folks living ordinary lives is nothing short of genius. If you’re looking for intricate plots and ax murderers, you won’t find them with Franzen. But you will find average couples sitting around the breakfast table all out of milk, listening to lawnmowers in the distance and wondering why it is they got married in the first place. The good stuff. The real stuff. So while the article made me interested to read his new book Freedom, I was most struck by the way in which Franzen works–his process, his routine, his desk.
Franzen’s adamant about eliminating any and all distractions, and works in a rented office with absolutely no access to the internet, zero wall decorations and a completely empty desk. Basically, a shell of a room with an old Dell laptop. This got me thinking about the way I like to work and the ways I’m most productive. Since I do a lot of writing at home, I could relate to much of what Franzen said about eliminating distraction–although I’m not nearly as vigilant (and therefore, probably much less productive) about it as he is. That’s my desk below. I hoard dessert books and like to keep little plates of lemons around from my mom’s tree. And that’s my new Target binder. Yeah, I’m getting organized. Oh, and that’s my favorite coffee mug of all time.
I think when you live alone, your sense of how you best work naturally regardless of anyone else’s schedule, baskets of laundry cluttering up your space, or favorite television shows blaring in the near distance becomes quite amplified. I work more at night now then I used to. I gear up my Pandora and have fresh flowers around my desk. And numerous glasses of water. I won’t answer the phone and I’ll turn off twitter.
The other room, besides my office, where I get lots of work done and find a great sense of peace is in the kitchen. So I got to thinking about what kind of space I like to keep there and how I best function. I’m not one of those easy-going kitchen people. I don’t really like to breezily chat with girlfriends while I whip up something quick for dinner. I know people who do this. I’m so not in that club although I aspire to be. I concentrate, reread recipes numerous times, lay things out in minorly-obsessive ways, clean as I go, pace a little. I will never be one of those moms that includes their kids in major cooking projects. The thought of help in the kitchen–especially help from lots of tiny hands–makes me immediately begin to sweat.
Sometimes the nice thing about a recipe is that it allows us tightly-wound kitchen folks to loosen our apron strings just a little and ease into a new way of doing things. This is the case with this fabulous cookie recipe I found on my friend Kelsey’s blog, The Naptime Chef. Kelsey focuses on recipes that busy moms can accomplish during the time in which their kids are taking a mid-day nap. So these are darn simple cookies. But what I really love about them is their crackly tops, rich chocolaty flavor, and bits of chocolate and pecans scattered throughout. They’re also not at all too sweet–the espresso powder and unsweetened chocolate kind of temper that. I made a few minor tweaks to Kelsey’s recipe–mainly in the addition of pecans and just a little less flour. If you’ve got some cocoa powder lying around from the deluxe brownies, use it up here.
From uncluttered desks, to decorated cubicles, to telecommuting and skyping–whatever you do for work and however you find productivity and inspiration–I’m thinking a chocolate cookie always helps. Happy Monday.
Double Chocolate Espresso Cookies
- Yield: 40 small cookies
- Prep time: 20 mins
- Cook time: 10 mins
- Total time: 30 mins
Slightly adapted from The Naptime Chef
Ingredients
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy in a stand mixer or with hand beaters. This should take a good five minutes–you really want to aerate the cookies and fully work in the sugar here. Then add eggs one at a time, mixing after each addition until just combined.
In a separate bowl, mix together the dry ingredients: flour, cocoa powder, salt, baking soda, and espresso powder. Stir with a whisk to make sure the dry ingredients are well mixed.
With the mixer on low, slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, scraping down the sides of the bowl to ensure smooth incorporation. Don’t over beat–just mix until all ingredients are combined. Using a wooden spoon or spatula, mix in chocolate chips and pecans.
Line a baking sheet with parchment. Using a 1 1/2″ ice-cream scoop or plain old teaspoon, scoop dough onto the sheet and lay out 2″ apart. Bake for 10 minutes. Cool on a wire rack before
Megan's book! 
Healthy Comfort Food
Thai Carrot, Coconut and Cauliflower Soup
People describe raising young kids as a particular season in life. I hadn't heard this until we had a baby, but it brought me a lot of comfort when I'd start to let my mind wander, late at night between feedings, to fears that we'd never travel internationally again or have a sit-down meal in our dining room. Would I ever eat a cardamom bun in Sweden? Soak in Iceland? I loved the heck out of our tiny Oliver, but man what had we done?! Friends would swoop in and reassure us that this was just a season, a blip in the big picture of it all. They promised we'd likely not even remember walking around the house in circles singing made-up songs while eating freezer burritos at odd hours of the day (or night). And it's true.
Oliver is turning two next month, and those all-encompassing baby days feel like a different time, a different Us. In many ways, dare I say it, Toddlerhood actually feels a bit harder. Lately Oliver has become extremely opinionated about what he will and will not wear -- and he enforces these opinions with fervor. Don't get near the kid with a button-down shirt. This week at least. He's obsessed with his rain boots and if it were up to him, he'd keep them on at all times, especially during meals. He insists on ketchup with everything (I created a damn monster), has learned the word "trash" and insists on throwing found items away on his own that really, truly are not trash. I came to pick him up from daycare the other day and he was randomly wearing a bike helmet -- his teacher mentioned he'd had it on most of the day and really, really didn't want to take it off. The kid has FEELINGS. I love that about him, and wouldn't want it any other way. But, man it's also exhausting.
Cheesy Quinoa Cauliflower Bake
I just finished washing out Oliver's lunchbox and laying it out to dry for the weekend. My favorite time of day is (finally) here: the quiet of the evening when I can actually talk to Sam about our day or sit and reflect on my own thoughts after the inevitable dance party or band practice that precedes the bedtime routine lately. Before becoming pregnant for the second time, I'd have had a glass of wine with the back door propped open right about now -- these days though, I have sparkling water or occasionally take a sip from one of Sam's hard ciders. Except now the back door's closed and we even turned on the heat for the first time yesterday. The racing to water the lawn and clean the grill have been replaced by cozier dinners at home and longer baths in the evening. You blink and it's the first day of fall.
Stuffed Shells with Fennel and Radicchio
I'd heard from many friends that buying a house wasn't for the faint of heart. But I always shrugged it off, figuring I probably kept better files or was more organized and, really, how hard could it be? Well, I've started (and stopped) writing this post a good fifteen times which may indicate something. BUT! First thing's first: we bought a house! I think! I'm pretty sure! We're still waiting for some tax transcripts to come through and barring any hiccough with that, we'll be moving out of our beloved craftsman in a few weeks and down the block to a great, brick Tudor house that we wanted the second we laid eyes on it. The only problem: it seemed everyone else in Seattle had also laid eyes on it, and wanted it equally as much. I'm not really sure why the homeowner chose us in the end. Our offer actually wasn't the highest, but apparently there were some issues with a few of them. We wrote a letter introducing ourselves and describing why we'd be the best candidates and why we were so drawn to the house; we have a really wonderful broker who pulled out all the stops, and after sifting through 10 offers and spending a number of hours deliberating, they ended up going with ours. We were at a friend's book event at the time when Sam showed me the text from our broker and I kind of just collapsed into his arms. We were both in ecstatic denial (wait, is this real?! Did we just buy a house?) and celebrated by getting chicken salad and potato salad from the neighborhood grocery store and eating it, dazed, on our living room floor. Potato salad never tasted so good.
Smoky Butternut Squash and Three Bean Chili
If your house is anything like ours, last week wasn't our most inspired in terms of cooking. We're all suffering from the post-election blues -- the sole upside being Oliver's decision to sleep-in until 7 am for the first time in many, many months; I think he's trying to tell us that pulling the covers over our heads and hibernating for awhile is ok. It's half-convincing. For much of the week, instead of cooking, there'd been takeout pizza and canned soup before, at week's end, I decided it was time to pour a glass of wine and get back into the kitchen. I was craving something hearty and comforting that we could eat for a few days. Something that wouldn't remind me too much of Thanksgiving because, frankly, I can't quite gather the steam to start planning for that yet. It was time for a big bowl of chili.
To Talk Porridge
Porridge is not the sexiest of breakfasts, it's true. It doesn't have a stylish name like strata or shakshuka, and it doesn't have perfectly domed tops like your favorite fruity muffin. It doesn't crumble into delightful bits like a good scone nor does it fall into buttery shards like a well-made croissant. But when you wake up and it's 17 degrees outside (as it has been, give or take a few, for the last week), there's nothing that satisfies like a bowl of porridge or oatmeal. It's warm and hearty and can be made sweet or savory with any number of toppings. The problem? Over the years, it's gotten a bad rap as gluey or gummy or just downright boring or dutiful -- and it's because not everyone knows the secrets to making a great pot of warm morning cereal. So let's talk porridge (also: my cookbook comes out this month! So let's take a peek inside, shall we?)
Jacqui
i really enjoyed this post, megan. your desk is so clean! i share a tiny apartment with my fiance, so my writing space involves a computer, a couch (there is no room for a proper desk and chair), and a baseball game blaring in the background. it gets frustrating, and sometimes i have to lock myself in the bedroom to get anything done. the kitchen is definitely more of a relaxing space for me.
Anna
I love hearing about your work space and work habits. Its so interesting to learn about what other people do. I'm settling into a new place and looking for a job, so things are kind of sporadic and I don't have a solid routine yet. Cookies always help, though I'm not sure if they help with focus or distraction!
Maddie
The light coming through your window is so inviting! More than anything, I think, a desk with personal touches and a well-situated window make work seem welcoming.
I always used to clean my desk at college before I could get down to the business of writing, and I still find it's the best way to eliminate distractions and prepare myself to focus. It got me through four years of academic papers, so there must be something to it! :)
Janet
Love your office space. :)
I really cannot cook and chat, either. I wish I could, but alas. Eh, some things aren't meant to be. But cookies are. They sound great!
PS: Glad to see you using those chocolate chips!!
Denise | Chez Danisse
I'm always intrigued by process, all types. I recall touring the Blistex factory (a former client) and Hamburger University (McDs--another former client) and finding it all so interesting. I love seeing the way other people cook in their kitchens (don't worry, I won't stop by for a chat...) and the way they tend their gardens. Thanks for sharing bits of Franzen's creative process and your own. Good fun!
Andrea
I'm in agreement with you. You know how sometimes, new friends learn you like to cook, and they go "oh, we should cook together sometime!!!" Um... No? Or when my mom wants to cook with me. I'm a little controlling in the kitchen, you know? I don't know if I want people I like to see that side of me. The only thing I let my boyfriend do in the kitchen is wash lettuce for salad (and dishes).
MomGordon
That desk looks tidier than when I last saw it! This bodes well for the rest of the house :)
Dana
The Corrections is on my all-time favorite book list - glad to know we have that in common! :) We just put a new desk in our study and I aspire to have it looking as clean and lovely as yours. Love that light. I always thought I would be the mom who would bake cookies with my kids but in truth, I am not. I have gotten so accustomed to cooking and baking while they are sleeping that it is hard for me to do it with them. Love those cookies!
shannalee
this post completely fascinates me, partly because I work from home and partly because your desk is soooo pretty! I feel like I spend a lot of time these days thinking about being productive rather than being productive, trying to find a rhythm rather than finding it. Maybe that's how beginnings go. But this was more fuel for thought.
ps - Now I want to read Franzen.
megang
Yes, Shannalee. I think it takes a good, long while to get into a groove when you're working from home. You'll find it. It's that weird balance where you kind of feel like maybe you should be working all the time b/c your computer's there and you could check email and you could... got to find a way to have normal downtime, too. I struggle with that. And yes, read Franzen. I think you'll like him.
Adrianna from A Cozy Kitchen
A few years ago The Guardian published this slideshow of all of these authors' offices and it was really fascinating to see how everyone works. It varied from cluttered desks, to totally bare, to authors needing a specific, special chair.
I also think Frazen's routine goes to show how even he battles with productivity and procrastination.
Your space looks so peaceful. I love the plate of lemons for that splash of brightness!
Anne
Oh, your desk is inspiring! I work best like Franzen -- few distractions, no internet, occasionally no windows. But all that is surprisingly hard to manage in our well connected, well lit world. Every day has to have its challenges, I guess.
Kelsey/TheNaptimeChef
awww, that is SOO nice of you! I was just doing my daily drive-by of ASS and was so honored to find this. I LOVE your desk by the way, and you are right, our cookbook collections are veryyyy similar!
Dana
I'm looking forward to a more permanent writing space, as my current one is on the bed. Not the most comfy. The new house seems like it's going to provide a quiet little nook that will do the trick.
Cheers to getting most of your work done at night!
El
Love the idea of moving into a barren space to write. Brilliant! The biggest distraction is baking and these cookies...yum!
megang
Thanks, everyone, for sharing your thoughts on your spaces, working, and inspiration. Fun to compare notes. And Kelsey, this may be the first time I noticed that my blog's acronymn is ASS. Not sure how I feel about that one :)
Happy Wednesday...
Kim C.
I just moved from Chicago to New York, and I'm finding the transition from big work space to small a little daunting. Your post was inspiring because it reminded me that size shouldn't be the only thing that matters -- it's also about how you fill it! Plus, I love Franzen and chocolate. :)
Evan
What a great way to spend a Monday. munching on coffee filled chocolate cookies.. I think I need these right about now..
A Canadian Foodie
I have a similar coffee mug. Love your little office. I need natural daylight when I work. It is a must. And the cookies? Well, double chocolate? Y- UH-UM!
:)
Valerie
G.
love the light and the view from your desk! so, so lovely!
Suzanne T-H
I find that working together & chatting while cooking can be great fun. There are some folks who just click with me and sense what needs doing. I love cooking with them. Other folks can drive me nuts, so they can hopefully be happy with a glass of wine or a cup of coffee while simply visiting.
Adriana from Baking Powders
So true! when I left home to live alone, my work organization/schedule changed so much! i hear you about the kitchen not team up... i like to work alone, clean while things are in the oven and take the whole process as pretty much a ritual... these cookies want to be made today for a mid-afternoon snack!
Danielle
That's such a sweet-looking workspace. My desk never looks as neat as that unless I'm going away on vacation! ;)
Angharad
Hello! New to your blog and really enjoying it.
I live with someone and it really impacts my space! ha. Things are a lot more rough around the edges with two. Interesting to think about.
christine
Hi Megan. I love this blog. I am a photographer, I love taking pictures. The only problem is the time I have to edit and layout photos, that's where I get stuck in front of the computer. The kitchen is the only place that gives me peace mind. I guess for foodies like us, the kitchen is our holy ground. lol..If you wont mind I'd love to guide Foodista readers to your post. Just add the foodista widget to the end of this post so it will appear in the Foodista pages and it's all set, Thanks!
Ashlae
My god, those look delicious. Espresso + chocolate will be in my near future.
Melody Hyatt
I made your cookies yesterday for my friend and I and they are my new favorite! My friend was very impressed. Thank you very much.
megang
Great, Melody~ I'm so happy to hear that! Happy New Year.