Step Outside and Open to the Sun
Last month I missed the opportunity to thank all of you, my dear readers, for going on this journey. Shared Plates is one year old, and it feels almost as unreal as when my daughter turned one. Writing for you all has felt like such an important commitment, to you and to myself. It’s been nothing but surprising and I look forward to it every month. 609 people opened my newsletter last month and it even had a disclaimer that there were no recipes. WOW! Just wow. Thank you from the tips of my long clumsy fingers to the bottom of my rarely empty stomach. It has been a true joy and the show will go on!
May. The name alone is sweet and inviting. A favorite month for so many. Just look outside and you’ll quickly be reminded as to why. The sun actually feels warm on your face. The grass is green, flowers are in bloom and life is active in a way that doesn’t take as much effort as it does in the gray winter months. May tends to be a month where I find myself overcommitting – too many books selected to read this summer, too many travel plans I’d love to take but know I won’t be able to pull off, too many day time drinks accepted and imbibed. No harm, no foul. I just use it as motivation to make the most of the warm months ahead.
In looking at the photo memories that pop up daily on my phone, a feature I truly love, I was reminded that May has been one hell of a month in years past. May 11th carrying great memories in todays photo album, as I sit and write this mailer.
May 11th 2017 – an electrically vibrant aquamarine photo of Aaron and I on the beach in Jost van Dyke BVI. We were at the Soggy Dollar bar drinking those day drinks and not worrying about a care in the world. We grabbed bbq chicken on our way to the ferry. It was being cooked on a makeshift grill that was in fact an old tire rim, creative. We bartered for a giant conch shell that sits on a bookshelf in our home. It was a great day.
May 11th 2018- I was in a tight white dress surrounded by my sisters from birth and my sisters by luck - The Bates. We were at Lagniappe House for the welcome party for our wedding. A wine bar and patio that has inspired Aaron and I from the day we first walked into it, before we were even dating. One day we’ll own something similar, mark my words. We married May 12th on the beach in Miami. There’s a beach theme in our lives, if given the choice and the opportunity.
May 11th 2019 – a selfie of me with my tongue out. We’ll title this “opening a women focused co-working space, while your husband opens a restaurant next to Wrigley field.” Mighty accomplishments on the resumes and mighty detriments to good sleep and free time. Where’s that beach when you need it?
May 11th 2020- At home on Lill Ave in Chicago wearing a tiny little baby girl in a sling wrap while enjoying a pre 2nd anniversary dinner. Homecooked of course as it was the second month of a pandemic.
May 11th 2021- A very curly-haired Aaron holding up a huge crawfish in New Orleans. Humidity be damned, we got to enjoy time with family and finally introduce our then 1 year old baby girl to her Thebault-side.
May 11th 2022 (taken shortly after writing this) – A cherub faced, mostly naked two year old, holding a well licked rubber spatula and a face covered in chocolate batter. Real life in its truest form.
Wow life moves fast. That photo from Jost van Dyke feels like last year. To the kids in that picture, I would say – You can’t control the weather, but you can certainly find the sun if you look for it, and you should always look for the sun.
This year we’ll be exploring our new Colorado home with a weekend trip to Beaver Creek. It’s off season - my favorite season in any resort town. You can step back and look at the place for the magical spectacle that it is. There’s a lot to learn about hospitality from a bustling resort town and even more to learn from the rest it takes in the off season. It should be the norm for restaurants and businesses to take a rest period during the slower months. Sustainability practices – something we could all benefit very highly from.
Since May tends to be a month of celebration, with graduations, weddings, showers and more - I thought it would be a perfect time to share a simple but delicious brunch menu that works for a crowd or a small family that loves leftovers. A few weeks ago, I got to do one of my all-time favorite things, and the reason this newsletter exists. I cooked for a group of people that I love dearly. It was in celebration of my younger sister Meghan. Her baby girl is coming this month (I actually just cried typing that) and we showered her with love and necessities. I jumped at the opportunity to cook the brunch. I live for moments like this. An occasion in honor of someone I adore, 25 people, at a gorgeous home. Count me in and here’s your menu!
Since I have real in person experience with this menu, I will tell you – the Baked French Toast was an incredible hit. I made it up and was nearly certain it wasn’t going to be what I hoped, but luck was on my overconfident side. It was a decadent delight. If you make anything, go for that and the spritz. Always the spritz. Cheers!
MayList Playlist for all your sunny brunch time needs
The Menu :