Heart Eyes, Vol. 247: The Shell Seekers and a Deli Cottage Cheese Bowl
Friends! Hello. Happy Friday. Apologies for the disappearing act—among other things, I’ll happily point the finger at the raging flu bug that recently took me out, just a few weeks post-Covid. This is a newsletter about lovely things, not about complaining, but in this case I can honestly say: do not recommend!
But I’m better now and I’m poking my head in to say hello just as I’m headed out the door for an adventure—an overnight flight to Dublin and a week hiking the Dingle Way on the southwest Irish coast. (Question: Why are the words “Dingle Way” so funny to me? Is anybody else giggling right now?) I aim to be back here in two weeks, with plenty to talk about and leisurely summer stretching out ahead of me.
In the meantime, I hope you’re soaking up all the light of these long, long days. I think you’re doing great.
What to Read: The Shell Seekers, by Rosamund Pilcher
I was annoyed to find myself sick twice in the span of a month, but I did have one consolation: a big, juicy novel I couldn’t put down. Have you ever read The Shell Seekers, by Rosamund Pilcher?
This book is a bit of a modern classic and I have, over the years, heard it referred to as both “people having romantical problems during the War” and “an 80s mom novel,” both of which are accurate descriptions that might help triangulate what kind of book it is and whether it’s for you. But really: It probably is for you, as long as you enjoy books that one might describe as “delicious” and “sweeping yet cozy” and “a perfect summer read”—which is to say, engrossing and well-written, leisurely, and not all that taxing.
Practically, The Shell Seekers tells the story of an older woman as she reckons with her life, the life and work of her famous painter father, and the desires of her grown children, all of which makes for a good and satisfying read. But I would argue that the pleasures of this book are mostly about the vibes: a Bohemian upbringing in London, Cornwall during the War, retirement in the Cotswolds, falling in love in Ibiza, several wartime affairs, the careless wearing of perfect vintage clothing, chicly cozy kitchens, lush gardens (cared for by a handsome man with an air of mystery, naturally), painstaking descriptions of food and drink, the pleasures of found family…doesn’t that sound like fun? It is lush and luxurious reading and I enjoyed it immensely. Maybe you would, too.
What to Eat: Deli Cottage Cheese Bowl
This dish comes to me from what I consider the very best place: not a written source at all, but from my friends Greg and Lindsay, who served it to me as an easy lunch one spring day a couple years ago, and in doing so blew my mind just a tiny bit. It turns out that cool, tangy cottage cheese topped with the lunchy, salad-y treats of your choice makes for a lunch worth looking forward to—who knew?
You can, of course, put anything you want in your bowl, but what Greg and Linds fed me was this: a base of cottage cheese, some halved cherry tomatoes, a bit of sliced avocado, and some roughly chopped deli ham, all liberally sprinkled with everything-bagel seasoning. These days I typically swap out the ham for black-pepper or honey turkey (the sweet note is so nice!) and add sliced cucumber for freshness and crunch. I’ve also experimented with other seasonings when I have them—usually za’atar or the addictive umami salt from my local spice shop.
No matter the variation, it’s one of my favorite summer lunches, a flexible, no-cook riot of flavors and textures that’s easy to throw together and sticks with me all afternoon. You might like it, too.
Blockbuster Review: The Science of Sleep (2006)
The handmade aesthetic of this movie was then and is now so cool and inventive, but good heavens is the rest of it sad.