Posts from the ‘Front Porch Musings’ category

Location, location, location

AKA Attitude and Perspective adjustment!

I use a LOT of paper towels.

In an effort to use less paper towels, I bought flour sack towels (cloth).

About 2 years ago.

I’ve since added more of the flour sack towels and also some “bar” towels.

I’m using less paper towels but I do have to wash (pump water, run washer/dryer) the cloth towels.

I am unsure if the exchange of paper making/landfill space taking is negated by the washing/drying/manufacture of cloth towels.

But I proceed.

And for some time I grumbled about the washing/drying/folding part. Particularly the folding part.

And then!!!

One morning I grabbed the dry cloth towels, dumped them on a clean-ish counter top in front of a window and folded there.

It was an awakening… an ah-ha moment.

Folding towels, and looking out my kitchen window … a kind of blissful time, a restful, peaceful time.

And so, it happens that the task of washing/drying/FOLDING towels becomes something/some time to be looked forward to.

I am sure there is a lesson here.

Maybe, just maybe … those tasks, those things in life … those things that we dislike and/or dread … can be made pleasant … by a change in location or a change in attitude or a change in perspective.

Friday morning

That is actually Thursday evening: my first CSA pickup of 2017! Boc Choy, Kale, Arugula, Spinach, Pea shoots, Radishes.

The spinach is an overwintered variety specifically grown for an early spring harvest. The leaves are huge and the note accompanying my box notes that it is sweet, tender and does not cook down as much as “regular” spinach.

This is Friday morning … an early planning session for how to enjoy those gorgeous vegetables. I browsed my new cookbooks: Six Seasons: a new way with vegetables and
Dishing Up the Dirt

Auggie “assisted” by stealing my chair when I got up to refill my coffee.

Bear waited outside, checking frequently to see if I was EVER coming out to go for a walk.

Friday morning.

Sun, snow, banana bread and asiago rolls

It doesn’t look sunny, but it was early. It was clearly going to become sunny and it was warm AND it was my first morning coffee on the front porch.

The next morning we woke to a dusting of snow. I juiced the last of this year’s Meyer Lemons, fed my sourdough starter and enjoyed a snow squally morning.

I’m not sure the chairs enjoyed the snow…

… and the morning coffee routine was much cooler!

The remainder of the week went back and forth between sun and snow … sometimes multiple times during the day!

Today, Sunday, we woke to snow and it has snowed, rained, snowed and now is doing a bit of a wintry mix as I write.

A fragrant brown butter cardamom banana bread (baked as mini-loaves) from Andrea Bemis’ blog: Dishing up the dirt warmed up the morning. (The three loaves with the dried cherries on top have some crystallized ginger bits as a trial addition. Ok but did not add enough to use them again. The recipe as written is wonderful.)

Andrea’s book, also ‘Dishing up the Dirt’ has become a favorite. I’m not a cookbook buyer usually, but the photos and the memoir aspect enticed me to buy this one. I have no regrets. It is a beautiful book with wonderful recipes and I liked it so much that I bought the Kindle version as well so I always have the recipes with me to refer to.

Almost two weeks ago, I saw Mel’s Kitchen Cafe recipe for asiago bubble bread . Mel’s recipe is based on her own french bread roll recipe . I’ve made those rolls and they are very good, but I looked at the King Arthur flour recipe that Mel said inspired her adaptation and decided to make the King Arthur version adapted to use my wild yeast (sourdough) starter and some discard starter.

It worked very well!

Both the rolls and the buns are soft with asiago cheese in them and a crunchy asiago herb top.

Auggie says: “More sun, less snow, please!”