SpiderWomanKnits

reentry

We just returned from a week at the Jersey Shore visiting with our parents who live just one block from each other. What fun! The beach was amazing, Island Beach is such a jewel. I'm still catching up on all that needs to be done upon reentry.

food glorious food

Oh boy. I have been busy, busy doing what needs to be done to begin preserving both our own harvest and the local harvest that surrounds us. In the past month or two I've put up 18 pints of our own sweet pickles, 24 half pints of locally picked raspberry and strawberry jam, frozen 5 gallons of locally picked blueberries, strawberries and raspberries as well as 2 gallons of our own and a neighbor's zucchini so far. It feels so good.

After gobbling up all the fresh berries our bellies could handle from our latest outing to Mad Tom Orchard I made this amazingly simple and delicious raspberry buttermilk cake. Actually, I made two of them because the first one was eaten in 3 minute flat. This is an easy one to make gluten free because the recipe only calls for 1 cup of flour. I used Bob's Red Mill AP Mix for the flour and added a 1/2 tspn of xanthan gum. The recipe is already committed to my memory. It's a keeper.

A few weeks ago we had a very special visit too. Aran and Nadia stopped by the farm. It was such an incredible pleasure and an honor to meet them both and to learn that Nadia is a neighbor. Aran's blog, Cannelle et Vanille, is packed with tempting food photography and the most delicious recipes (many of them gluten free!) I've ever seen. Stop by both of their spaces, you will be inspired.

welcome to the (tomato) jungle

{june 4th 2011}

{june 15th 2011}

{july 17th 2011}

I have my tomatoes and tomatillos planted, separate from my other garden, in an area next to the chicken coop. This spot used to be covered with Bishops Weed, a nice looking but horribly invasive plant. Two years ago we penned our chickens there for a while. They did a fairly good job of turning it into a muddy, greenery free mess. Then, last year, we decided to reclaim the area and did so by planting our vining crops there (cukes, zukes, squash and pumpkins) in black plastic. This year, after taking up the black plastic, I was delighted to find healthy looking, workable soil that was easy to weed since the black plastic kept a lot of what we didn't want from growing.

I hand tilled this area and mounded up the dirt into free form raised bed rows, mulching the paths heavily with straw. After spacing my tomato plants about 2 feet apart I then planted marigold, nasturtium and sunflowers in between each plant based on my whim. Now, I have a very healthy looking (knock on wood), virtually weed free area, if not an out of control tomato jungle. You can tell I am not very good at pruning, pinching or whatever it is you are supposed to do with tomatoes. I'm using this method of support for the first time and I am really, very happy with it.

Here's another view from the other side so that you can see there are still paths in there, albeit narrow ones, to get around. You can't see it in these pictures but I also planted a patch of zinna right up against the coop inside the garden which makes it quite colorful in there and an old elm tree stump (in the bottom right) makes a nice sitting spot.

some vintage and some handmade

I just updated Red Comb Vintage with some goodies!

I was lucky enough to come across a bunch of vintage fabric squares all cut to the same size. I always wonder how the original owner intended to arrange them. Some of these squares made little sense when placed together but some did, so I turned those into doll blankets with a nice, unbleached muslin backing.They are really lightweight which makes them easy for little hands to fold and manipulate during imaginative play.

You can see the blankets and all the other fun vintage I added in the shop. 

 

FO: little honey(comb) hat

Can you believe it?! I still knit! It's rare for me to have time to knit anything other than pilot caps these days, they are keeping me busy. But I managed to sneak in this cutie pie of a quick knit on Sunday. You can find all the details on Ravelry. This was such a fun knit I cast on right away for a mama's size version. Oh, and Simonne wants to show you her shiny shoes ;)

montmorency

We are lucky enough to have a Montmorency Cherry Tree on our property. It's a fairly young tree and this year I got to the cherries before the birds did. I was able to stash away a lovely and very swollen gallon freezer bag full for future use but I used a quart of fresh cherries to cook up this galette. Heaven.

I still haven't found a gluten free pie crust recipe that's a keeper though. Do any of you have any advice, recipes or links for working with gluten free pie crust? I can't bear to go through the rest of the berry and fruit seasons without finding 'the one'. Help!

first bonfire

 

It was just the perfect night for a bonfire and some marshmallow roasting last night. We let the little ones stay up extra late to catch fireflies too. Then, after we put the kids to bed, Greg and I enjoyed the last of the fire while looking up at the stars. Ah, summer.