Bailey & Alex’s Backyard Wedding!

OurLocaltopia was lucky enough to make lunch for Alex and Bailey’s wedding this weekend, which was set amidst fruit trees, garden boxes and succulents  in the garden of their vintage Craftsman bungalow in Old Town Orange.

Inspiration in Simple Ingredients, for a Simple Sunday Meal

Prep your flour in this fashion, so the eggs and spinach can be placed in the hole.

The ingredients are now ready to be combined.

The resulting dough ball! Be sure to keep it well floured while kneading.

Rolling the dough through the pasta machine

This is what the dough looks like after being run through the pasta maker several times.

Noodles have been cut into thick, flat strips.

The boiled noodles are now ready for sauce!

Noodles, ricotta, tomato sauce and seasonings. All the components are ready to come together!

Voila! A colorful, delicious meal is served!

This past week, amid the buildup to the 4th of July holiday, family gatherings and time spent with friends, Our Localtopia was at work putting a video together featuring fresh local figs paired with homemade ricotta.  We gathered in my kitchen to film and make ricotta cheese; creamy, warm and decadent.  It had been a while since I had made homemade ricotta, and our video shoot reminded me how just a few simple ingredients, thoughtfully prepared, truly come together to make a great dish.  A dish that is at once completely homey, and at once truly sophisticated.  Pure ingredients allowed to shine in their own radiant light — creating harmony on a dinner plate.