You have arrived at "turkey feathers:: home craft & everyday adventures"...my little crafty corner of the blogasphere, hatched on a whim in the spring of 2005. If I could, I'd invite you to join me in my Oregon farmhouse kitchen for tea & cakes, girl talk, and some lovely hand-stitching. For the sake of simplicity, and for the benefit of other inquiring minds--if you ask a question in the comment section, I will reply there, so please check back later. (Private emails will be answered directly.) Thanks for visiting!
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blog content & images copyright 2005-2013 by Vicki Haninger
My it does seem that this year went by fast, and that we were just packing up all this and here we are again. Our kitchen is bustling with activity. The Christmas decorating and baking has begun. The girls and I are making and mixing and wrapping up a storm. I've shared some of our favorite seasonal recipes on the blog already; here's a quick list if you want to check them out again.
You can also click on the category Someone's In the Kitchen for a bunch more cooking and baking info (and inspiration) as well. And speaking of inspiration...look who's back with another wonderful dish perfect for the holiday season. You are going to LOVE this! And I just discovered their blog: Savoring The Past with all the recipes, and baking and cooking videos. I'm dying to try this recipe for puff pastry. Here's the website for 18th century supplies.
My youngest daughter came up with this tiny domed Thanksgiving vignette for the buffet table. I swooned when I saw it and had to show you. So you could swoon too. Let's lift the lid and take a closer look shall we?
I am particularly partial to that adorable little "Chocolate Peanut Butter Torte". This cake was inspired by a real one at a favorite restaurant downtown. Ginger whipped this one up in the dollhouse bakery kitchen.
Meanwhile, back in the full-size kitchen, her sister was baking something special for her birthday. Yes, that is a chocolate horse, painstakingly cut-out by hand. What? How is this possible, I ask. It's perfect.
So much like another "chocolate" horse we know. Ginger is quite the horse wrangler. These two are a team.
Like two peas in a pod. Happy Birthday Gingerbread girl!
Thanksgiving is early this year and nearly upon us. We've been busy gathering things for the table, cleaning house, and making lists. Tomorrow I will venture out to shop for some last minute items. It's been raining for days on end here. The wind is whipping up and bringing all the leaves down. I feel like a captive watching from the kitchen window as lawn chairs go sailing past. And other four-legged visitors!
I started watching these cooking videos from Jas. Townsend & Son about six months ago and love them. These fine folks have been producing this awesome video series for a few years and this is the first one of the 3rd season, featuring a standing paste pie crust made from an 18th century recipe, authentically prepared and baked. Watch and be amazed!
And my favorite for making gingerbread.
The series can also be found on YouTube HERE. Enjoy!
Well, that's all I've got time for friends. Wishing each and every one of you a most wonderful Thanksgiving!
Sometimes the best days are the days when nothing much happens, allowing us time to just notice, what is. There's been a nip in the air this past week, but nothing too dramatic, so I was caught by surprise when I saw this little hint of fall foliage today. And just the one red leaf. Hanging there, quivering in the wind and waving as I passed by. Catching my eye. A small harbinger of autumn, which apparently may be arriving sooner than we think. It's hard to know. The weather just keeps us guessing. It was mostly misty and mild with a warm day thrown in once in awhile to remind us it was summer. Which is good for the gardener, but not the garden. I can only hope my tomatoes follow suit and turn this same bright shade of RED. And quick.
I won't hold my breath though. I know better! Alas, there's no ripe-red harvest to crow about here, but I can live vicariously through the gardening success of Monty Don if I have to. And you can too! He shows us how it's done step by step. This particular show is focused on tomatoes and onions from garden to table. Since the weather zones in the UK are similar here in the northwest, I was particularly interested in just how he managed to produce all these gorgeous tomatoes in such a short growing season. If you are also wondering, and have twenty-five minutes to spare, check it out, you just might learn a few things. I know I did!
And if you liked that romp through the garden, you might also enjoy this episode about herbs. After I watched this I wanted to completely redo all my herb beds and plant little hedges around them. It seems I am growing quite fond of hedges. Quite fond. This video also shows you how to make fresh pesto with basil. Monty makes it with his children, outside in the garden. Lovely to watch.
Here's the recipe I always use:
BASIL PESTO
Makes about 1-1/2 cups; enough to freeze or refridgerate until ready to use. Do all the prep work before you place the following ingredients into a food processor:
1 whole garlic; crush cloves, peel and coarsely chop
1 cup of pine nuts; lightly pan roasted with 1 T. olive oil and the garlic. Set aside to cool.
2 big bunches fresh basil; rinse, pat dry, remove stems and flowers. You should have about 8 cups of fresh leaves.
3/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
*Add 1 cup grated parmesan; if you plan to use pesto fresh. Leave out the cheese if you freeze it and add it to the thawed pesto later.
To prepare: Put the basil leaves into the food processor bowl and coarse chop. Add the pine nuts and garlic. With the processor running, drizzle the olive oil slowly into the feed shoot until you have the consistency desired. That's it!
To store: Keep in fridge and use within a week. For longer storage, I like to make little individual packets. Spoon the mixture into ziploc snack bags (about 2 T. in each one). Then gently squeeze out the air, close the seal and smooth the pesto out evenly and flat so it fills all the corners. Place the bags on a cookie sheet and freeze until firm. Then store them all in a plastic freezer containor or a large freezer bag. It will keep for a year or longer.
To use: Remove pesto from the bag while it is still frozen so it all comes out in one nice clean piece. No mess, no waste. You can also just break off a piece if you only need a small amount for flavoring vegetables; say mashed potatoes, for instance. (You will not believe how good that is! )
*Combine the thawed pesto with pasta and any hard fresh grated cheeses, like asiago, parmesan, and romano.
Try this too: Add a teaspoon of pesto to a basic oil and vinegar salad dressing to give it extra zing. Mixed with cream cheese or goat cheese it makes a wonderful spread on crackers and bread; easy to throw together when company calls. August is a big month for birthdays around here; daughters, granddaughters, friends and family, and we have one more. Not to be forgotten...Happy Birthday dear brother! (Click on the cupcake for the original post and the source of the pattern.)
The deck reconstruction continues. Only one broken window so far. (sigh) Nothing is ever easy. The crew arrived bright and early this morning to get a jump on the heat. It's been slowly heating up here, finally a little summer weather. All or nothing so it seems. Weather forecasters say it may reach up to 106 degrees tomorrow. Might even have to get out some bed-sheets again like last time. Lord, let's hope not.
Unrelated: I've been watching this awesome Victorian garden and kitchen series that ran on the BBC during the 1980's. The episodes were released in the UK on DVD in 2006. Had never seen it before, I'm not even sure it ran in the U.S. Every detail is utterly fascinating. I've honestly been staying up late every night for a week now watching these. I can't stop! The "old ways" of doing things are so interesting. Life moves at a much slower pace. Makes me truly appreciate all our modern conveniences even though cooking on a wood stove seems appealing. In this setting anyway. And on cooler days.
The authentic Victorian "wall-garden" is another focus and is transformed during the course of the series. They discovered those high brick walls originally created for aesthetics, created a micro-climate which extended the growing seasons. Good to know!
Well, another Christmas has come and gone and I can confidently say that we did our best to make some happy and lasting memories. Everyone had a fine time. We missed our little love, Lily, curled up under the tree though. It was quite sad to not see her there. Or napping in the wrapping. As she loved to do. And, I didn't mention this before but Marshy, our dear little hampster pal died two months ago of "old age", which is not very long in people years. What's funny is, last Christmas, when both pets were still with us, the Mister and I went to a vintage mall in the next town to poke around and we found these two adorable ornaments. Both handmade, and old. I immediately thought of Lily, when I saw the white kitty on a cloud. On closer inspection, I realized she was made out of a painted walnut and a chestnut! We brought them home, wrapped them up and gave them to the girls to remember their pets by. Little did we know then that they would lose both pets this year, and how special these little ornaments would become. To all of us.
There was also baking!
All this and more...
. . .went into decorated cookie boxes tied up with peppermint bows for special friends and family.
These are some of the candies the girls made for their dad. They counted 96 candies when all was said and done. Enough to last 'til his birthday in April. But I wouldn't count on it. They are really GOOD!
There was a lot of crafting and paper rustling going on behind closed doors these past weeks. These two colorful gifts were for my granddaughters from their Aunties. Grace knitted sweet little hats for both her neices; Ginger made the cute flower hair clips. Not only are they wearable, but make pretty package toppers too.
Hello friends, have you had a good week? It seemed to whiz by, didn't it? Whoosh. And here we are on the threshold of the BIG day. We have been zipping around the house getting everything ready for Christmas. Mostly just checking off all the little details that add up to running a smooth ship. Right now, the girls are busy in the kitchen whipping up some goodies for their dad. As I've blogged before, he has a sweet tooth. He's one of those rare and lucky people who can eat whatever he wants and never gains an ounce. So we indulge him. However. He is very particular about what sweets he will eat. So every year, the girls go all out and buy only the very best organic ingredients just to please him. They make assorted chocolates, truffles, nut clusters, bon bons, and peanut butter cups. These are lovingly and carefully packed into cello candy bags with cute handwritten labels, then hidden inside empty ice cream containors in the freezer until they are ready to spring their surprise. The candies usually last until spring and are very much enjoyed and appreciated throughout the gray winter months. A side benefit is, Pops always shares his candy with us!
Today, the sun is shining! Just look how bright my kitchen is. Very strange for this time of year. But I'll take winter sunshine over freezing rain anytime. Ginger, my youngest daughter, is modeling an apron I made a while ago. I forgot all about it until she pulled it out and slipped it on. "Oh, it's perfect for candy making", I say. "The dark color will surely hide any chocolate splatters, right?" (She giggles.) It's made from this pattern, with the addition of a purchased lace collar and with button tabs instead of ties at the sides. She likes the big pockets.
But back to the subject of candy. This darling book just arrived. The timing could not have been better! After I reviewed the Christmas Cookie Book, a blog reader (thanks deb h), mentioned The Holiday Candy Book by the same author. Wasting no time, I found a used copy on-line and snapped it up for a song. It's a little time worn but that just adds to the charm. How cute is this cover? I love it. The end papers are just as sweet too. (No pun intended.) The very first chapter in the book is titled: Candy is Fun. Golly, what's not to love here?To paraphrase; "There is no holiday that is not enhanced by candy and if it isn't a holiday, candy will make it one." This is definitely the case at our house.
Before I slip away with my new book, I want to thank everyone who took the time to stop by and enter the My Memories Give-Away. My finished photo albums arrived yesterday and I couldn't be more pleased with how they turned out. Even better than I expected! So. Without further ado, I believe it's time to announce a winner. Are you ready? OK. Reaching into the bonnet, we have a name. The My Memories digital scrap-booking software goes to Lena! Congratulations Sweetie! (I'll be sending you an email with a coupon code to download the software ASAP.) I know you are going to LOVE it.
And to everyone else, thank you for stopping in here and sharing your thoughts and stories when I know you must have lots to do. I enjoy hearing from you all out there and sincerely hope your holidays are merry & bright and full of good cheer where ever you are. Now it's time for me to get back to the cookie baking and merry making. I'll be back soon with more fun and games. Until then . . .
It's not yet officially winter, but it seems to have arrived early here. It's 26 degrees right now and has barely reached above freezing for days now. The natural world outside my window is a misty sugar-sprinkled wonderland. The field behind my house white with frost. Just looking out there makes me want to wrap a shawl around my shivering shoulders. But that's not all that's chillin' round here. Nope. We've got our eye on pie.
But anything will do really, just to have the oven on. The aroma of apples and cinnamon makes it all the nicer.
The girls and I have been busy with lots of things--and not just pie. All our various little enterprises keep us bustling about. Bustling about is ideal when it's cold outside. And also if you plan to eat pie. Often. As we do.
As for our little patty pies here, we just used a plain old apple pie recipe and tossed in a handful of fresh cranberries to lend a festive flair. No top crust here, the pastry will be folded over the filling and left open in the middle. Makes an easy little pie for breakfast on Christmas morning. Or anytime! Like now.
Leaves are drifting down, and those much anticipated fall colors are slowly starting to appear, along with the wild rosehips that emerge bright red and orange from unexpected places, punctuating these gray, foggy, drippy days. Oh how lovely they are!
All along the backroads, I spy them in fields, intermingled with blackberry bramble and tumbledown fences, or climbing up fir trees like this one. Not exactly easy pickings, which is why, until recently, I didn't venture far to do anything with them. But this bush was growing alongside the road to my house. I've passed it by many times on my walks to and fro up the hill and through the woods.
I decided to pick just a few but ended up with helpers, and a basketfull!That part was easy enough. But rosehips have a reputation. For one thing, they are covered with fine prickly hairs that can irritate your skin and make you itch like mad if you aren't careful. I even read somewhere that the hairs are used to make itching powder. Itching powder? That sounds useful. I wore these rubberized garden gloves to pick and wash them and only had a few twitches of imaginary itching.
In case you don't know...rosehips are the fruit of the rose that emerges after the blossoms drop off, much like any other food plant. Wild varieties are said to have the best flavor and are less likely to have been sprayed with poison. (Don't pick and eat any that have been sprayed.) I picked the "dog rose" type with small, tear-drop shaped hips. Rosehips can be used in a variety of ways. I decided to try two methods of preserving them.
Initially, I thought I'd make a jam--but soon realized that was going to require some work because you have to remove the tiny seeds and there's no easy or quick way to do this. There are many more "itchy hairs" inside the pips as well, making the whole affair a rather tedious, worrisome process. After about an hour of fiddling and fretting with only a few to show for all the effort, I just chucked them whole into a saucepot, added lemon juice, some sugar mixed with agar, and boiled them for about 20 minutes until the mixture began to thicken. To strain the jelly, my old-fahioned potato ricer came in handy. This is actually one of my favorite kitchen tools! Quite useful for many things. (There is an updated stainless steel version here.)
As for the remaining hips, they went into the foot dehydrator for a few days. Oh, how easy that was!
After all that, we have exactly *one* gorgeous rosy jar of rosehips jelly, and I'm guarding it with my life! No peanut-butter and jelly sandwiches for you, no sireee. Rather scones and crumpets seem more in order here. And maybe a fancy gingham paper hat!Are these darling or what?
My very first experience making sweet pickle relish turned out to be so easy and delicious, that I have to wonder why I never made it before. After researching a few recipes in my old cookbooks and online, I decided to try a basic relish. If you've never made it, here's a quick rundown, proving how simple it is. First, gather about 4 lbs. of large pickling cucumbers, plus two green and one red bell peppers, and a sweet onion. (Peels are left on cucumbers; core peppers, and peel onion--do a rough chop.) Add all to food processor and pulse-chop fine--but be careful not to turn it into "mush". I did this in two batches. Pour vegetable mixture into a large stainless steel bowl with 1/2 cup of kosher pickling salt ( I use Diamond brand) and cover with boiling water. Let mixture soak for 1 to 2 hours. Later, in a large stainless steel soup pot I added: 2 cups of apple cider vinegar, 5 cups of raw organic sugar, 1 tsp. mustard seeds, 1 T. of cornstarch, and 1 tsp. tumeric for that lovely golden color. This is simmered and stirred until the sugar dissolves completely. Drain cucumber mixture, rinse once and drain again. Add it to the pot and bring back to a boil. Cook down for about an hour. Wash and sterilize six 1/2-pint jars during that time. I just used ordinary jam jars for this in order to process the relish for long-term storage. (Processing time varies according to your altitude--check with your local food extension service for canning specifics.) Small batches will keep just fine in the fridge for several weeks without processing though.
That's it! But I didn't stop there. . .
After the success with the sweet relish, and the discovery of many more dainty cucumbers hanging on the vines--I went on to make 'Bread & Butter' pickles the next day. This was basically the same simple process, with a twist. The sliced cucumbers and onions soak in an icy salt-water bath for two hours, instead of a hot one. A sweet and spicy brine is heated up, made with vinegar, sugar, tumeric, mustard seeds, crushed red pepper flakes, celery seeds, whole allspice berries, whole cloves, and a cinnamon stick. After soaking, the cucumbers and onions are drained, rinsed, and added to the pot. The mixture is brought back to a boil; then hot sterilized jars are packed with a slotted spoon, and the spicy syrup is poured over the top. Jars are sealed and processed as usual, or may be stored in the fridge for up to a few weeks without processing.
