Hi friends! I hope you all had a fantastic Labor Day weekend! Though I have work up to my ears right now, finishing up the seemingly endless last-minute details on the cookbook, B and I took some time off this weekend to spend with good friends – both in and out of the city. We took the train out to Long Island one day, and our friends took us out to Fire Island on their boat for a leisurely picnic and a day on the beach. It was seriously about as close to heaven as I could image. White sand, aquamarine water, and hardly any crowds. There is seriously nothing like the feeling of bare toes in the sand, breeze in my hair, and the sounds of crashing waves to relax me instantly. I am so grateful to have been given this unexpected gift of a day at the beach. What a perfect end to the summer!

But now...it's crunch time. The final PDF of the book has to be shipped to the printer on Sept. 22 – less than 3 weeks from today! Last night I met with Signe to look over the final edits for the food photos and I am beyond excited for you to see. Seriously, she knocked it out of the park! Katie is laying out the book this week, and it is amazing to see her take rough ideas I had and not only bring them to life, but take them above and beyond anything I could have hoped. (If you can't tell, I'm kind of giddy about it all!) My editor Lauren and I have been going back and forth, editing and re-editing the recipes, trying to keep language and measurements consistent, and talking endlessly about matters like: how to write lemon zest (grated? freshly grated? in teaspoons or as 'zest of 1 lemon'?) and whether or not to put ounce measurements as well as cup measurements on mixed greens and vegetables. Yes, I know that seems like total minutiae, but in the world of cookbooks, these are actually important decisions. And thank goodness I have Lauren to keep me on my toes!! She's a God-send.

Cabbage-Computer

(L) Lots of chopping and measuring these days; (R) meeting with Katie to discuss designs last week!

So I have a few bits of good news...the first is too early to fully discuss, but let me just give you a teaser: I have a publisher interested! Which could mean the chance to sell books in actual bookstores next year...stay tuned for more on this...!

And two, we have a brand new online Yellow Table Store. (Thank you to my wonderful husband Brandon for setting this up!) Which means, you can now pre-order copies of the cookbook if you missed out on Kickstarter. I've had so many requests for people wanting to order it, so we decided to print another 1000 copies to pre-sell before the November release. Books will be shipped out in mid- to late-November, so you will have them in time for the holidays. The books will be sold exclusively through our online store, and there's a limited number, so click here to order your copy!

NP-Anna

Thanks, friends, for your amazing support. Hard to believe that I started this journey nearly one year ago to the day, and that so many of you have walked with me every step of the way. I really wish we could all get together for one big party when the book comes out so I could give each one of you a huge hug! Seriously, I am beyond grateful to have had the chance to fulfill a dream, and to watch a community form in the process.

xo, Anna

P.S. If you want to make the asparagus ricotta and tomato basil mozzarella naan pizzas pictured in the post, click here and here for the recipes.

(Photo credits: Naan pizzas by Signe Birck; shots of me in the kitchen by Nate Poekert.)