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bell & basket

cooking. baking. home.

The Country Clawfoot Bathroom

07.20.21

When we first bought our house, the clawfoot bathtub in the upstairs bathroom, sitting on top of blue laminate floors, sold me. I could just imagine the tranquility of a good long soak, the crisp air blowing in through the open window, the sound of the Roe Jan River lulling me into a state of total bliss.

  • Before
  • After

Three years later, I’m here. It took an incredible amount of work and I’m trying to enjoy it for the next few weeks before we list our house for sale. And I love the design of the room – because it’s totally mine. This bathroom took very little compromise in terms of negotiating features or design ideas. Everything from the floor tile to the fixtures, I chose. And I’m so glad Colin let me have “my bathroom.”

Let’s start with the floors! The tile is my absolute favorite feature in this room – art itself. We got the ceramic from Floor and Decor and they were easy to lay and they feel silky smooth under foot. I knew that the colorful pattern would look amazing with while walls, chrome hardware and wood/natural accents. I also really love the depth the beadboard walls and shaker peg rail/shelf lend the room. It’s so incredibly convenient and home-y to be able to hang my bath towel wherever I damn please.

If you’ve been following along the Instagram journey, you know this vintage sink has been a serious process. I bought this sink before we even closed on the house, from a plumber’s wife in the Bronx for $80. Little did I know that you should NEVER buy an antique/vintage sink without a drain. When I say never, I mean, never, because modern sinks have standard sized drains now. Way back when, they did not, which means finding a drain to fit this sink was nearly impossible. 

It took digging through multiple antique stores in upstate New York (thank you Zaborski Emporium in Kingston) to find a drain that kind of fit. When our plumber came to install it, the drain was fine but he needed a custom washer to hold the drain in place. Well, we called a few companies and found a factory in China who could fabricate it for $100.  We ordered express shipping and begged the plumber to come out one more time, and it finally worked. 

The best part though, after all of that, was installing the finishing touches – adding the pink linen roman shade, the magazine/toilet paper holder, vintage art, antique glass bottles and lush plants to make the bathroom feel like home. I’m so glad to call it mine, even if only for a little longer. 

A few of my favorite bathroom things: 

  • The most attractive toilet brush
  • Magazine and toilet paper holder 
  • Gooseneck bathtub faucet with sprayer
  • Signature Blinds Classic Roman Shade in Himalayan Salt
  • Fizzing Formula Bath Seltzer in Sleep 
  • Under the Light of the Moon bath candle with a crystal in it (from one of my fav vintage stores – Damnaged Vintage)

Filed Under: Home Tagged With: Bathroom, Bathtub, clawfoot, DIY

Carnitas Style Slow Roasted Pork Butt

05.08.21

It’s been a long and tiresome year. I’ve been thinking about my “comeback” recipe after what feels like forever – trying to think up the just right recipe that reestablishes who I am, what I do, and why I love sharing myself and my recipes here on Bell and Basket. 

But my perfectionism has caused a level of debilitating paralysis. I can blame it on a year filled with grief, loss and loneliness but on top of that, I had a kid and became a mother (and it brought me SO much joy, but this just isn’t the post for that). So this hasn’t just been time away to think about the work I’d like to do here but a monumental transition in my life on top of a year filled with so much unpredictable change. 

My husband was laid off. We moved to our house upstate. My career was changing underneath my feet and there was nothing I could do to stop it. I’ve said yes to everything because I’ve felt like I couldn’t say no. And now, I’m exhausted.

So humor me for a moment. It’s a warm early summer day with a crisp breeze. One of those days where you say, “we’re only going to get a few of these.” A day where the oven is on, the windows are open and the cross draft is blissful. 

I yell, “come eat!” and friends make their way up to the picnic table to make their own tacos. Beautiful pulled pork, chopped white onions, lots of cilantro, guac, lime and charred around the edges corn tortillas. Kids run around and cold seltzers flow.

This carnitas style pork butt recipe is for that day. It’s super tasty, satisfying and feeds a crowd. In my current reality I can make it between Zoom calls and it lasts all week long. My husband loves it. My kid shovels it. It even freezes well. 

And although the cooking time is long and grueling it is very worth the multitude of meals it makes. Pulled pork sandwiches, tacos, burrito bowls. Throw it on top of polenta, instant ramen, or greens. I hope you make this to alleviate some of that every day cooking fatigue and when we can gather again, I hope you’ll come over for a kick ass taco party. 

The Recipe: Carnitas Style Slow Roasted Pork Butt

This recipe is for an 8lb, bone in pork butt. If your pork butt is anywhere between 6 and 8 pounds, I’d stick to the measurements below to pack lots of flavor. If you have a smaller than 6lb cut of meat, you can halve this recipe. 

Cook time: 8-10 hrs low and slow at 250 degrees

Prep time: 30 min

Serves 8-10 people

  • 7-8 lb bone in pork butt 
  • 2 large yellow onions, diced
  • 12 cloves of garlic, minced 
  • 2 tbsp salt 
  • 2 tbsp cumin
  • 1 tbsp coarse ground black pepper 
  • 1 tbsp smoked paprika 
  • 1 cup of orange juice (I’ve also used the juice of a lemon, a few tablespoons of brown sugar and enough water to make a cup of liquid in a pinch)

Preheat your oven to 250 degrees Fahrenheit. 

Start by washing your pork butt and patting it dry with paper towels. Set aside on a cutting board, fat cap face up. 

Dice your onions and place in the bottom of the roasting pan. Make sure your roasting pan is at least 2 inches deep as there will be some yummy pork fat and juices that collect while the meat roasts. 

Chop your garlic and set in a small bowl. Add spices to the bowl and give it a good mix.

Stab 1 inch slits into the fat cap with a paring knife. Roll up your sleeves and massage the garlic and spice mixture into your pork butt. Get it really good and coated, top, bottom and sides. 

Place the pork butt on top of the onions in the roasting pan. Slowly pour the orange juice all over the pork. 

Cover the meat in foil and roast in the oven for 1 hour per pound – so in this case 8-10 hours.

After 8 hours, the pork should be tender enough to pull apart with two forks. If it’s not, put it in for another hour and check it. If still no luck, let it go an hour longer (every cut of meat is different and every oven is different). For the last 20 minutes, cook uncovered and crank the heat up to 375 degrees so the pork gets crispy. 

Let it cool for a half hour or so and pull all of the pork off the bone and toss to coat with the juices and cooked down onions. Discard the bone. 

When reheating, get a pan nice and hot so the pork crisps up around the edges. Throw a taco party, make pulled pork sandwiches or enjoy this any way you like.

Filed Under: Cooking, Recipe Tagged With: carnitas, cooking, pork butt, savory, slow roast

Triple Chocolate Celebratory Cookies

04.23.20

Portraits by Rikki Will

Why is this cookie a celebratory cookie? Because it’s the first cookie I made after having A BABY! Rafa has brought so much joy into our lives and these past four months have been amazingly sweet – and hard. But these cookies made those late night feedings and postpartum crying sessions a little bit easier.

Thanks to our friend Rikki Will for taking these beautiful family photos right around Rafa’s two months. We laughed, Rafa cried, we baked cookies and it was mostly fun. Check her out if you need beautiful photos/portraits taken and are in the Brooklyn/Manhattan area.

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Filed Under: Baking Tagged With: baking, chocolate, cookies

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About me

Welcome, I’m Michelle. Bell and Basket is a space where I share my stories and inspiration around all things cooking, baking and home. In the kitchen, I’m inspired by the seasons of New York’s Hudson Valley and my hope is that you’ll leave wanting to create something beautiful and/or delicious. Whether you’re brand new or you’ve been here before, I’m thrilled to have you. Read more about me here…

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About me

Welcome, I’m Michelle. Bell and Basket is a space where I share my stories and inspiration around all things cooking, baking and home. In the kitchen, I’m inspired by the seasons of New York’s Hudson Valley and my hope is that you’ll leave wanting to create something beautiful and/or delicious. Whether you’re brand new or you’ve been here before, I’m thrilled to have you. Read more about me here…

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