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March 26, 2025

Julia Child’s Butter Braised Carrots

Julia Child’s Butter-Braised Carrots – A Simple, Classic Side Dish That Melts in Your Mouth. Find the recipe on Shutterbean.com

Julia Child’s Butter Braised Carrots

A late-night Reddit rabbit hole got me reading about other people’s experiences maturing into food tastes. Were there things you didn’t eat as a child that you enjoy now as an adult?

Survey says a LOT of people like beets now. Maybe because they were forced to eat them as kids? I had the opposite experience. Root vegetables were shunned in my household because THEY CONTAINED CARBS AND SUGAR AND THAT IS THE DEVIL (if you’re trying to lose weight).

My mom would have made me eat beets and carrots if she’d been given the OK to make them for dinner. But out of all the root vegetables, carrots somehow got a pass. Cooking them? Roasting them? Heating them up? Totally off-limits. They were only allowed raw, as a potato chip replacement.

I can still hear my mom’s ghost shouting from my childhood kitchen: “GO EAT SOME CARROTS!”

Julia Child’s Butter-Braised Carrots – A Simple, Classic Side Dish That Melts in Your Mouth. Find the recipe on Shutterbean.com

My algorithm switched into root vegetable mode, and forty-five-year-old me (with my readers on!) watched a young man make Julia Child’s Butter-Braised Carrots on TikTok. And I was like, “You know what? Hell, yeah.” (My child will cringe at that reference.)

I made the carrots two days later and…

THEY DID NOT DISAPPOINT.

The best part? No fuss. Just simple ingredients you can set and forget: butter, water, salt, a little bit of sugar, and pepper. WOW. One of the greatest ways to use up that bag of long-forgotten carrots. (See also: carrot coconut soup)

Julia Child’s Butter-Braised Carrots – A Simple, Classic Side Dish That Melts in Your Mouth. Find the recipe on Shutterbean.com

Don’t let anyone tell you they aren’t good for you. Also, maybe put them on your brunch menu for Easter?  My Mom would have loved them. 

I had ours with Sol Food Chicken and a salad the other night(see above!).

CONTINUE READING

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March 24, 2025

Intentions for the Week

 

Intentions for the Week Workbook by Tracy Benjamin now on sale!

Intentions for the Week- Week 13 in 2025

Hi hiiiiii! Welcome to week 13!  How was your weekend? 

Did you have any time to yourself? (I did)

Did you get to rest?  (I tried!) 

Did you do meal prep? (I did)

Do you know what’s for dinner tonight? (not sure yet!)

We spent a large chunk of our weekend doing baseball things! Cooper got to play a baseball game at Oracle Park with his high school team (he pitched and they won!).  I also did meal prep this weekend and a ton of yard work. I am excited for this new season. All my hard work after all of these years is finally paying off. 

Here’s what I meal prepped this week: 

Shutterbean Meal Prep - inside Tracy Benjamin's fridge

Here’s a list of that Meal Prep: 

Shutterbean Meal Prep - inside Tracy Benjamin's fridge

Meal prepped this week:

Quick announcement! 

Are you working on a Currently Workbook this year?

We made it through Winter!  

Do you need help staying on track with your workbook? I’M HERE TO HELP! 

Let’s CONNECT! Join me this Saturday, March 29th, from 12-1ish PM PST for a special Handwriting Club Show & Tell—a special ZOOM hangout for paid subscribers. 

We’ll be gathering to:

  • Share and work on our Spring Bucket List/Bingo – Set intentions for the new season.
  • Review and complete our March pages – A final reflection before we work on April!
  • Wrap up our Winter Bucket List/Bingo – Winter is officially done, so let’s take some time to celebrate what we accomplished.

More information can be found here!

Here are my Intentions for the Week: 

 

CONTINUE READING

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March 23, 2025

My Everyday Life Week 12

Here’s what this past week looked like- My Everyday Life Week 12

Big day for Cooper!! His high school baseball team got to play at Oracle Park this weekend.

(he’s #9)

My Everyday Life Week 12 of 2025- Tracy Benjamin of Shutterbean.com

He started out in right field and then got to pitch!

My Everyday Life Week 12 of 2025- Tracy Benjamin of Shutterbean.com

I am so happy for him! 

My Everyday Life Week 12 of 2025- Tracy Benjamin of Shutterbean.com

CONTINUE READING

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March 21, 2025

I LOVE LISTS

I love lists - tracy benjamin of shutterbean/the handwriting club. Hobonichi cousin

I LOVE LISTS 

  1. I learned all about India’s stepwells this week. 
  2. Parchment paper vs. aluminum foil. 
  3. I share the same love for a few of these TJs freezer staples.
  4. Things everyone had in the 80s. 
  5. I’d like to go to Yosemite one day. Hear that, universe?
  6. Let’s look at some interesting pictures. 
  7. Paper is art!! 
  8. Maybe I’ll make a bag charm. 
  9. I will miss you, salad bars! 
  10. I bet this house would be nice in the rain. 
  11. Is it time to let go of Instagram?
  12. Looking at old photos makes me happier. That’s why I take so many. 
  13. Why did they stop putting toys in cereal boxes? 
  14. What happens when you shoot a gun in space? 
  15. Cities in the U.S. that have the most green space. 
  16. How to buy asparagus. 
  17. That reminds me… I made an asparagus pizza once.
  18. Do you recline your seat on an airplane?
  19. Get your life organized with my meal prep/planning pack! 
  20. It’s never too late to start an Intentions for the Week Planner. 

 

 

I shared my Spring Bucket List on Substack this week! 

self check in- tracy benjamin

Self-Check-In 💌—a weekly accountability group (now on Substack!) where we check in, reflect, and support each other. Spend your Sunday mornings with me and our group, setting intentions and staying on track with your goals. $40/month 

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March 17, 2025

Intentions for the Week

 

Intentions for the Week Workbook by Tracy Benjamin now on sale!

Intentions for the Week- Week 12 in 2025

Hi hiiiiii! Welcome to week 12!  We survived another week. Yay us. How was your weekend? It rained a lot here so that meant less outdoor time for me. Womp womp. 

Did you have any time to yourself? (I did)

Did you get to rest?  (I tried!) 

Did you do meal prep? (I didn’t)

Do you know what’s for dinner tonight? (not sure yet!)

Here are my Intentions for the Week: 

 

CONTINUE READING

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March 16, 2025

My Everyday Life Week 11

Here’s what this past week looked like- My Everyday Life Week 11

Hi! Reminder to commune with the trees! 

My Everyday Life Week 11 of 2025- Tracy Benjamin of Shutterbean.com

I sat here.

My Everyday Life Week 11 of 2025- Tracy Benjamin of Shutterbean.com

And worked in my planner.

My Everyday Life Week 11 of 2025- Tracy Benjamin of Shutterbean.com

Soaked in the light.

CONTINUE READING

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March 14, 2025

I LOVE LISTS

Your Senses are the Gateway to the Present Moment- I love lists// Tracy Benjamin of Shutterbean.com

I LOVE LISTS

  1. My Mom experienced this on her street. 
  2. Airbnb expectations vs. reality. 
  3. The new high-speed trains in France look cool.
  4. Street photography in San Francisco. 
  5. Time travel: NYC in the 1940s. 
  6. How do two-way mirrors work?
  7. What are the best hydrating foods? 
  8. How cute are these stained glass cacti??
  9. Imagine meditating here. 
  10. Bob Dylan explains why music is getting worse. 
  11. We live in a world where pizza-flavored ramen exists. 
  12. What are the Trader Joe’s Hall of Fame items?
  13. Hot dogs have replaced the seafood tower.
  14. A case for only buying blueberries frozen. 
  15. I want to participate in a roasted potato taste test. 
  16. A mid-century modern home with Japanese influences. 
  17. I love hearing how people use their wealth for good. 
  18. Things that used to be banned for women. 
  19. Did you see my latest organizing post??
  20. Weekend reading: What I Ate in One Year