let’s face it, i’ve got dogs on the brain lately. i want one. a cute one like this, who drives. forget that co-pilot stuff.

*photo courtesy of reflect /refract.

this week, i’ve got another amazing sfgirlbybay reader giveaway! this time, this lovely screen print from artist ryan kapp, generously donated by suzanne shade of the beholder, the wonderful online art gallery. the print, entitled chicago in fall is 23″ x 23″ and screen printed on archival paper. you can read about ryan and see more of his work here, at the beholder.

for your chance to win this lovely print, simply comment below sharing with us what your favorite work of art or artist is from the beholder. comment by next wednesday, march 17th and be sure to include a way to contact you. thanks so much to the beholder!

i love these kitchen prints, and tea towels from etsy shop, the house of bouton. designed by portland-based designer cassie bouton, these kitchen accessories are happy, bright and add a great big smile while you’re cooking up a storm. and cassie’s used no solvents or spirits in her hand printed flour sack towels and prints. for more from cassie visit the house of bouton.

As much as I’m looking forward to spring – spring vegetables (artichokes and fava beans are my favorites), spring fruits (tangy rhubarb gets me every time and the end of spring brings cherries to California), and an easing of the constant damp of San Francisco winters – I can’t help but keep looking back at the highlights of winter eating. Stews and braises and, of course, cauliflower. I love cauliflower. I only recently learned that many people do not think eating raw cauliflower is much of a treat – I was shocked! It’s so crunchy and biting and flavorful, who can resist? Well, for those for whom straight-up raw cauliflower florets are not the best of treats I worked on roasting them – to soften the flavor and the texture – and added a bit of sugar and spice to keep things interesting.

These roasted spicy cauliflower florets work as a side dish, sure, but also as a little appetizer (you can serve them passed, with toothpicks) along with drinks – they have just enough going to to stand up to the meanest of cocktails. I’ve tested them several times now – hey, it’s been a long winter!

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Each week, the Friday Food Files are deliciously brought to you by Molly Watson. For more on Molly and her delicious recipes, you can visit her in one of many wonderful places:
Writer: mollywatsonwrites.com
Blogger: thedinnerfiles.com
Recipe Wizard: localfoods.about.com
Radio Girl: eatthatradio.wordpress.com
tweeter: twitter.com/mollywatson

teacher: mediabistro.com/courses/cache/instr404.as

[ Photos courtesy of Molly Watson and muffet. ]

well, since i’m moving, and kind of going for a whole new look, it’s come time to pass along some of my vintage treasures. you must understand, it is not easy for me to part with some of these belongings. many have fond memories behind them, but i feel good about passing them along to good homes, like yours. so without further ado, i bring you sfgirlbybay’s new vintage etsy shop, le petite flea.

i’ll be adding more of my vintage finds to le petite flea, from trips to london and italy, and just across the bridge at the alameda flea market, as i go through my stash of collectibles and loosen my grip on the past. time to move on. time to purge and find new, old stuff! but you know what they say, one gal’s trash is another’s treasure. i hope you find something you like at le petite flea.

Clockwise from top left: Cotton 8 x 8 Print $25 — lolasroom.etsy.com, Handwoven Kahdi Hammam Towel £19 — toast.co.uk, Wooden Painted Birdhouse Decoration £1.99 — cloth-ears.co.uk, Fiducia Magnetic Vases/Candlestick Holder $180 — Louise Campbell at huset-shop.com, Lucky Mug £8 — something-shop.com, Prize Ribbon Card $5 — Pie Bird Press at curiosityshoppeonline.com, 1970s Thomas Germany Cityscape Vase £30 — wooden donkey, Panther Rehabilitated Dinner Plate $60 — sarahcihat.com.

[thanks so much to stephanie from n.e.e.t. -- be sure to visit the magazine and the n.e.e.t. blog. check back every other week, for more great finds from n.e.e.t.]

today on unexpected guests we’re headed all the way to Germany, specifically, we’re dropping in on cologne-based graphic designer jasna janekovic. jasna has a sweet little home that she decorates with lots of love, and plenty of charm. she’s also incredibly creative, and multi-talented, with a wonderful line of accessories she sells in her dawanda shop. for more from jasna, follow her on flickr. for now, let’s take a hop over to visit to jasna’s home and studio in germany.

What city/neighborhood do you live in?
I live in Cologne in a part of the city where a lot of young families are living. I love the big park at the end of my street and the organic supermarket close to my home.

What is your idea of a perfect day in your city?
A perfect day is a sunny summer day with a light breeze (very rare in Cologne). The trees in my garden are whispering and rustling. And I listen to the birds of heaven. I am sewing a dress or a patchwork pillow after my morning meditation.

Then I ride my bike to the farmers market to buy some flowers, vegetable and raspberries. Back at home I cook a macrobiotic meal and read a sewing book in my garden or in the park. I order some new fabrics at some internet shops and paint new ideas in my sketchbook. I smell a summer lilac flower, while I m thinking about new projects. In the afternoon some women are coming over and I m giving a sewing lesson. We are sewing a big bag and having fun.

What don’t you leave home without?
I don’t leave home without my big patchwork bag (not made by me) and in wintertime without my hippie coat with brown fake fur. This coat is like a mother bear in the deep forest sleeping in a den.

What are a few of your favorite local shops?
My favorite local shop is a thrift store. Love the atmosphere there (it’s very tidy) and the smell of old things. Most of the things in my home are from there. I always find some beautiful kitchen stuff there. Lillyed für dich is one of a few shops in Cologne that sells products from House Doctor and other danish labels.

What’s on your wish list?
At first fabrics, fabrics and fabrics (Liberty fabrics!). I am always thinking about fabrics, pattern and colours. And I spend the most of my time looking for new fabrics in Internet shops. I am a Graphic Designer and my future plans are to design patterns for a fabric collections. I’m looking for a vintage school map at flea markets (for my future balcony) and for one of those wonderful botanical flower maps, Moroccan lamps, Afghanistan jewelry (I love ethnic jewelry), vintage suitcases, a funny, colourful cabinet from india, and enamel dishes.

What’s your favorite bargain find or product?
i have found a black tapiovaara chair at a building lot it was full of bird shit. i took it home and washed it in my garden. love this chair.

What is your biggest interior design nightmare?
I don’t like big flat screen TVs (I don’t have a TV) and big piles of CDs and DVDs. To much dark colours and cold decorations and built in kitchen with wall unit.

Who is your favorite artist? And why?
At the moment I like Rie Elli Larsen because it’s wonderful how she plays with patterns, colours and texture. and Anna Maria Horner — I love her Little Folks and Good Folks fabric collection. the Music artist I like Iron and Wine at the moment — so relaxed and down to earth.

Where do you find inspiration?
I find inspiration everywhere: magazines, blogs, flickr, shops, nature, people, my dreams, flea markets, thrift stores, vintage children books.

Do you collect anything?
vintage buttons, fabrics and ribbon. but I don’t just collect them, I really use them.

What’s your favorite feature in your home?
My apartment is only 32 qm small but it looks much bigger. In spring I will have a balcony. I m sure it will be my favourite place in summertime. Cant wait to look for some furniture for my balcony. I will decorate it like a room with pictures at the wall and piles of pillows and a lot of candles. I love the Goethe poems at my walls.

Who would you like to sit down to drinks with?
I would like to sit with Buddha, Ramana Maharshi, Amma, Mooji or other enlightened people.

What is your most treasured belonging?
Nothing in my home was expensive, everything is from thrift stores, flea markets or Ikea (the furniture, but I have painted it ivory white, so it looks NOT Ikea like). I like every thing but especially things that are really old, like a wooden box with woodworm holes (for my ribbons at my workspace). I love baskets in every sizes and forms, and a Jesus picture from 1925 I found at the flea market some time ago. My mom is crocheting a granny squares blanket for me. I m sure it will be my treasured belonging in future when it will be finished.

What’s souvenir did you bring back from your last trip?
My last trip was in Croatia, my hometown, and I brought back some fabric, ribbon  and a cute vintage children’s book.

What is your greatest indulgence?
organic (vegan) and macrobiotic cooked food.

What is your idea of living hell?
working the whole day at a job you hate, living in a dark apartment on a loud street, having no energy and time for being creative.

okay, let’s just say, i have serious trash pickers envy. just take a green-eyed gander at what elissa from the blog vintage green picked up along the curbside!! that is some sweet chair find, people. elissa is an architect in long island working hard to fix up a bungalow in the burbs. if she keeps finding trashy treasures like this, then she must be well on her way. i’m with you elissa – a self-confessed trash picker all the way. follow elissa’s thrifting adventures at vintage green.

Over 50 people have composed a love letter addressed to a complete stranger. It may be no harder to do this than it is to express love for an intimate other, or to oneself.  a project developed by refarm spectacle, on the night of March 13th, these strangers will hand deliver love letters in a clandestine manner to 50 people, chosen randomly, a revealing experiment for both writers and recipients. Each letter includes a blank postcard for response. It’s ambiguous, hopeful and bitter. And totally fascinating. You can follow the event at refarm spectacle.

congratulations are in order to linsday brackeen of the blog by the same name! lindsay’s won the angela’s garden adorable gardening ensemble giveaway- a waist apron, sunhat, gardening gloves and tote. thanks so much to everyone for entering! makes me want to get out in the garden as soon as spring really shows up here in san francisco. i feel it in the air. thanks so much to angela’s garden for the generous giveaway!