April 🐣🐇💌
Finding ramps, moving houses, cool & crisp recipes, vibey playlists, and porch sippers
Happy May 1st and happy first day in our new house! What a wild past month it has been. From starting the month with no plans to move to ending the month with spending our last night in a home that has brought so much good.
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When we moved in here I was just getting my footing in the world of food & bev after making a few career pivots. It was a weird, scary time but turns out this place (re: kitchen) was exactly what I needed. Since living here my career has grown in beautiful ways and introduced me to so many new people. The bright sunny kitchen allowed me to flourish and hone my recipe development + content creation skills. While the plant laden office was the perfect backdrop for creative calls and podcast recordings alike.
It’s been a beautiful place to create and while it is sad to leave, I’m excited for all of the creativity that will be born out of our new home. My mind is already churning!
This coming month I have lots of new projects that I am pumped about. You’ll start seeing WIPs on IG soon enough. Other than that, I’m going to try to make my way to Ayoh’s sandwich pop up in Ohio (never thought I’d type that sentence) and check out a vintage + antique extravaganza in the hopes of finding a few key furniture items.
I hope you have the best month <3
I was lucky enough to chat with 4 really cool founders this month!
Kristin Olszewski of Nomadica — Such a lovely conversation about the world of wine and the barriers to entry that Nomadica had to face in order to reinvent the canned wine category
Matthew Jung of GoodOnya — I was thrilled to have my favorite hydration brand back on the pod to talk about their recent rebrand and future trajectory
Bernadette Gerrity, Vice President at Cafe Aroma — Having a legacy brand on is always an honor especially when it comes to a coffee brand with such a rich history. We chatted about the long history of coffee and where it’s growing towards with the next generation of coffee enthusiasts
Ali Elliott of Farmer Foodie — If being dairy free for a few years taught me anything it’s that cashews are truly a powerhouse. Listening to Ali explain their environmental impact and versatility in the kitchen inspired me to use them more in my day-to-day cooking!
Spotify | Apple Music | Substack
April’s recipe projects were bright, crunchy, and crispy! Which in my opinion is exactly what the body needs as it starts to get warm outside. We’re not quite in the territory of wanting to pull out the blender to make a frozen drink at 4pm everyday.
The farmer’s market started back which really gave me a jolt of inspiration. Tbh cool weather veg was starting to bore me. My first market back was a success because I scored ramps even after I got there an hour past opening. I turned them into ramp oil, ramp butter, and used them to give some added flair to a few dishes. More on ramps on Tuesday!
A whole lot of recipes for you —
Watch: The newest season of Hacks came out this past month and my life feels complete again. So well casted. I’m curious to see where the plot progresses this season!
Read: Ali Elliott’s guest entry about Earth Day! I loved hearing her experience in the agriculture industry and how that led her to starting Farmer Foodie. Alivia’s article about her favorite home items came at just the right time.
Listen: My love for The Marías was reignited this month. Turns out their music is the perfect background soundtrack when working from home. Very chill and vibey.
Cookbook: I haven’t cooked from it yet buuuut I scooped Hailee Catalano’s first cookbook, By Heart. The recipes look absolutely fabulous and I can’t wait to dig in.
Purchase: New furniture for the house + a return to an early favorite, Mizuba matcha
PR shoutout: Thanks to my friends at Fly by Jing for the zhong sauce restock, Wynk & Figlia for some porch sippers, and Preme for the samples!
Thanks for supporting this publication, it truly means the world to me! This month 21 new friends subscribed and readership is steadily increasing. Please like, share, and comment when you feel pulled to do so. 🌞
Talk soon!
xx,
Lauren (Hodgen)
Dear Citrus Diaries Host | @ citrusdiaries.studio
Citrus Diaries Studio | Creative Director
If you’re interested in working together, drop me a line: hello@citrusdiaries.com 🍊