Gentle Resolutions
More seaweed, freshly squeezed orange juice, singing, Vermont...
Happy solstice from Vermont, where our house is a snow globe, and the snow is sparkling white, airy, and abundant. Outside, our dog, Remy, half-Bernese, is in her bliss, bounding through the freezing fluff. Inside, the wood stove glows and flickers, the coffee is hot and milky, and the toast is slathered with butter and jam. Almost Christmas.
Today, for my 150th post, I’d like to share my more/less list — my third consecutive year sharing this list on The Dish, a tradition I adopted from illustrator Julia Rothman. The concept is simple: a list of what you’re seeking more and less of in the new year. I pin it to my wall, and glance at it often as a gentle reminder of how I want to live. This year, I implemented another list, all focused on food. But don’t worry — you won’t find any toxic diet-culture resolutions here! Staying true to my philosophy around food, this list is expansive, not restrictive, more, not less. Think: more chocolate cake! And so on.
I’ve begun to loosely plan out The Dish for the new year, and I already know you can expect lots of menus, ingredient love letters, sweet somethings, and drawings, as well as some collaborations with other creators and new personal projects. The focus will be on food, and sharing the joy I find in the kitchen, with glimpses of my life and travels and whatnot here and there.
With that:
Previous More/Less Lists (2023, 2024)
2025 More/Less List
More! (Eating Edition)
Thank you for being here, and happy holidays! I’ll be back with a bit more writing before the year closes.
x Phoebe
I can get behind the MORE Swedish meatballs! I visited Stockholm in June and ate Swedish meatballs + accompaniments at every restaurant we dined at (for dinner). Pure bliss, so many variations, too! While I make many different meatballs in my cooking repertoire, I haven’t attempted the Swedish meatball - I’m scared I’d never make a recipe as good as I’ve eaten.
Okay, I'm so charmed by your more/less lists and your adorable handwriting. I can definitely get behind more flour tortillas and more swedish meatballs. Also more reading before bed and more wool socks. I need to buy some more which is fun because I actually love shopping for socks.
I also connected with your title and the idea of gentle resolutions. We've had a very stressful series of years recently so I felt like I needed my resolutions to be gentle too. I wrote about them here: https://notjustmyown.substack.com/p/gentle-and-realistic-new-years-resolutions?r=1ezccm