Swedish Home with vintage finds

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Have a peep at the fabulous home of Swedish interior designer Marie Olsson Nylander. She and her husband bought this shabby 1970's villa, and have their house with stories, coziness and wonderful eccentic objects. I love how each room is filled with salvaged pieces of furniture that add a special mood to the house.

All images via Design Shimmer

Modern Minimalistic meets the Handmade

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The Miller house designed by iconic architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, epitomizes the international Modernist aesthetic—with an open and flowing layout, flat roof and stone and glass walls. The house is considered to be one of the finest expressions of American modernism. In 2000, the Miller House became a National Historic Landmark. 

But despite all these incredible features, my favorite bits about the house are the bright textiles and objects from around the globe. These accents bring the interiors to life. They also remind me of similar houses in Delhi built in the 1950’s and 1960’s in local brick and concrete. These houses had the requisite Spartan spaces of demanded by fashionable modern architecture. However, Indians being Indians cannot live without colours. So, the owners softened the starkness with traditional Indian textiles, tribal rugs and wooden screens. In the process, they shaped a residential typology that was a favorite of educated intellectual Indians in that era.  

   

The House is owned by Indianapolis Museum of Art and is open to visitors. All images courtesy of IMA.

Easiest party snack ever!

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So this is a very impulsive post, I was not planning to write about this at all. Last night we had some friends over for an impromptu board-games night. It was all spur of the moment and although they were coming post-dinner, I wanted to rustle up some nibbles, to go with the wine. 

I rushed home from work in a blind panic (the kind when you know you have half an hour to clean the living room and the kitchen and make snacks!). 

Invented in such panicked circumstances, this is not a very sophisticated recipe. Nevertheless, it is delicious and I will wholly recommend it as a party snack. It would also make a great starter for an Indian meal, because the filling is an old Punjabi recipe very similar to aloo saag. I have just added one English twist - strong cheddar! 

Anyway, moving on to the recipe, you would need; 

For the filling:

1 tablespoon mild olive oil

1 large red onion, chopped roughly

2 medium tomatoes, chopped

2 fat cloves garlic, chopped

1 cm piece of ginger cut in strips

2 large potatoes, boiled and mashed (I microwaved them for 5 minutes)

2 handfuls chopped spinach

Salt and red pepper to taste

½ teaspoon garam masala (if you don’t have this you can add oregano)

100 gms cheddar, roughly chopped into small cubes

Shop bought puff pastry sheet

Method:

1. Heat the oil in a pan and lightly fry the ginger and garlic for one minute to release their flavor,

2. Add the chopped onion and sauté until it turns pink and transparent,

3. Now add the tomatoes, mashed potatoes, salt, red pepper and garam masala,

4. Once the tomatoes soften, add the spinach and cheese, mix well and take the pan off the heat.

5. Cut the puff pastry sheet into twelve 8 cm squares and line a shallow muffin pan.

6. Prick the pastry shells with a fork and spoon some filling into each, you can fold them or leave them open as I have done.

7. Bake at 200ºC for around 20 minutes or until golden brown. 

I did not bother to brush with egg mix, who has the time and besides they look good enough as it is. Also, I prefer mixing in the cheese because it tends to burn when sprinkled on top. 

Serving tip: Mint salsa goes very well with this snack.