Second and Edgemont: Creating Space for Beauty & Simplicity by Amy Johnson – Page 5

Applesauce

November 5, 2015

I grew up eating a lot of applesauce. There was always a jar in the fridge and I loved a bowlful sprinkled with cinnamon. One of my favorite meals served up at Nan and Pop’s house was pork-chops and applesauce.

I had only experienced store bought sauce until my first farm apprenticeship in my early twenties. Aside from learning how to grow my own food, a whole new world in the kitchen was opened up as I began to experience making many a thing from scratch. Homemade salsa, tomato sauce, fresh baked bread. But I will never forget my first taste of freshly milled applesauce. I was hooked and I have been making it every year since.

The orchard at the farm where I work had a bumper crop of apples this year.
We grow a large variety including Jonagold, Stamen, Cortland, Braeburn and my favorite, an heirloom variety, Cox’s Orange Pippin.

We like to stock up on sauce to eat throughout the winter months but also to give as holiday gifts.

I have been making the same simple recipe over the years but like to try something a little new and different from time to time.

Applesauce

4-6 pounds of a variety of apples (the sweeter variety, the better)
2 tsp vanilla
2 TBS cinnamon

Core apples and chop, leaving the skins on.

Cook apples down in a large soup pot with a little water or apple cider to prevent from burning the bottom of the pot. Simmer until apples are very soft.

Turn apples through a food mill. Stir in vanilla and cinnamon.

:: I recently remembered reading somewhere about adding lemon rind to the apples as they simmered down. I tried it and was pleased with the results.

:: I like to use sweeter apples rather than tart to avoid using sugar. I sometimes add a few over ripe pears for a little extra sweetness.

In the garden

November 2, 2015

Happy November!

My garden is donning it’s autumn wardrobe with it’s palette of deep burgundy, rust, purples and gold.

The hens are finished molting and are ready for the cold winter months with their fluffy down.

I have slowly begun to put the garden to bed as it is still quite mild. Plants are still producing and flowering among the seed heads and fallen leaves and we are still harvesting a few crops.

It was my first attempt at growing peanuts this year. I grew them in a pot and we just recently harvested a small bowlful. Not a huge harvest but a whole lot of squeals as we unearthed those legumes!

Today I picked all of the green cherry tomatoes left on the vines before the first hard frost hits. I plan to pickle them with onions and horseradish (another crop growing in our garden to be harvested soon).

Autumn

November 2, 2015

Hello my friends!

I always think spring is my favorite time of year until autumn rolls around.
I am in awe of it’s beauty this year. The light, the sky, the fiery palette have all been especially spectacular.

Yesterday Chris I declared that Halloween should always fall on a Saturday. It was lovely to have a full day to prepare for our Halloween tradition of hosting friends for soup and cheer after trick or treating.

Pots of steaming hot chicken noodle, curried coconut butternut and vegetable lentil soups were served up along with warm bread, cheeses, caramel popcorn, apple pie and roasted pumpkin seeds.

While the adults sat around the fire sipping on soup, the young folk retreated to a room all of their own to trade candy.

Hibernating

September 30, 2015

As you can tell I have been hibernating these days.
I have been feeling quiet but our days have been abundant and full of all of the wonderful activities and traditions that bring summer to a close and welcome the beginning of autumn.

Chocolate covered mint leaves

August 27, 2015

Last night after dinner while Hannah and I were sitting on the back porch chatting, she began picking and nibbling on mint leaves from a plant growing in a big terracotta pot. As I watched her, I remembered a fun idea I had read about and told her to pick a small bowl full of the largest mint leaves she could find. Looking a bit puzzled she followed orders while I poured chocolate chips into the double boiler to melt.

My chocolate loving girl’s eyes immediately lit up once she realized that we were making after dinner mints!

Chocolate Covered Mint Leaves

20-30 fresh peppermint leaves
a few handfuls of chocolate chips
1/2 teaspoon coconut oil

Wash and dry mint leaves. Heat up chocolate chips and coconut oil into a double boiler and stir until smooth. Turn off heat and with tongs or tweezers dip leaf into chocolate and lay on a sheet of wax paper. Freeze for a few hours. Store in an airtight container in fridge.

Pie on the Porch Party over at Terrain!

August 26, 2015

I’m super honored to be featured over at Terrain today where I talk about a hosting a Pie on the Porch party.

Click here to read all about it.

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall

August 23, 2015

A few years ago my aunt Patty brought this Humpty Dumpty pattern back from a trip to England in hopes that I could knit it for her grand-daughter. One of the B&Bs she stayed in on her trip was owned by a knitter and pattern designer.

When she first presented it to me I was rather intimidated since my typical projects include chunky cabled hats, socks and mittens. This pattern looked like a lot of work with lots of intricate detail, I had never knit anything like it. But I didn’t have the heart to say no and decided I was up for the challenge.

Well that pattern sat ignored month after month until it was announced that my aunt was due for her second grand-daughter. I had no choice but to bite the bullet! I hemmed and hauled my way through numerous craft circles agonizing over the pattern. I’d put it down for a month and then pick it up again until this last month when I was determined to finish it in time for the birth of my cousin’s second baby.

My “just a little bit” goal paid off and I have to admit that I am pretty darn proud of myself for not giving up on Humpty Dumpty. He was completed this past Friday and given to baby Marion, named after my Pop’s mother.

The funny thing is we all think Humpty looks a bit like Pop:)

In the garden

August 22, 2015

Every year I make quite an extensive list of all that I would like to accomplish in the garden. The list includes the introduction of new plants, transplanting, dividing as well as several infrastructure projects. I am relaxed and realistic about my list and know that we will most likely not get to all of it.

This spring I hit the jack pot when my mother’s neighbor (who was moving) opened up his garden for us to dig up and transplant an amazing variety of plants!

I am happy to report that so far many projects have been crossed off this year. Some, we are in the process of and others are planned for the fall. What doesn’t get done will simply move on to next year’s list.

2015 Garden Plan

:: Incorporate more evergreens in to my landscape

I have planted rhododendron, a few different varieties of Laurel along with Leucothoe, Sweet Bay and Holly.

:: Plant more deciduous flowering shrubs

I have planted several varieties of Hydrangea along with Fothergilla, Pieris, Nandina, Deutzia and Callicarpa (Beauty Berry).

:: Remove dead climbing rose around kitchen window and replace with autumn Clematis

I have removed the rose. My aunt Patty has dug up an autumn Clematis from her garden for me.

:: Remove English Ivy on house

A big project that we plan to do this fall.

:: Plant a Liriope hedge in front of rock wall

Check!

:: Plant peanuts, broad beans, purple sprouting broccoli and elderberry

I planted peanuts and elderberry. I have always wanted to grow purple sprouting broccoli but have not had luck in finding starts for sale. Next spring I will be sure to order the seeds to start along with broad beans.

:: Plant more flowering bulbs in fall~ Narcissus, Tulip, Muscari, Allium, Crocus and Galanthus (Snow Drops)

I’ll wait until late fall for sales and deals on bagged bulbs.

:: Prune pear tree

Will do so in late winter.

:: Rebuild back porch

We are almost finished!

:: Build stone wall around the front of house.

This will most likely move on to 2016’s list.

:: Hook up rain barrel

Hooked up!

:: Lay stone path in back garden

This is back breaking work and I have decided to use my “just a little bit” rule with this project. With a pick ax and shovel my goal is to fill 4 buckets with dirt every other day for Chris to haul away. Once the path is dug out we will begin to lay a pile of foraged stone.

:: Build cob oven

Moved to 2016’s list.

:: Rooftop beehive on top of shed

Moved to 2016’s list.

A few snippets

August 17, 2015

1. Most of my houseplants have taken a summer holiday out on the back porch and patio. They are all so happy and content out there that I didn’t have the heart to bring one back in for an empty spot on the credenza that was calling for some green. Out on an adventure with my mama yesterday, I picked up a trailing ivy which fits perfectly there. There’s always room for one more plant.

2.While walking down an alley on my morning walk with Harry yesterday I stumbled across a patch of sunflowers. There was a pair of scissors hanging on a cyclone fence with a little sign that read “Please cut me!” So that’s just what I did.

3. A deck of cards lives on the dining room table these days for impromptu games of Flip(also known as Golf) and Trash. I may be a little addicted.

4.On the same morning walk with Harry, I spotted a hedge of hydrangea in full bloom along the play ground. There were no scissors hanging nor a sign inviting to pick. I did anyway.

5.During these dog days of summer, the pantry is well stocked with bottles of tonic and seltzer.

6. I found that antique hanging soap dish last week at a fair. I have always wanted one but I’ll have to wait for the cool days of autumn for a hot soak. Nothing but cold showers these days.

Window boxes

August 14, 2015

When Chris and I were first looking at houses to buy before we got married there were a few “must haves” in my mind when considering what was important to me in a home. The house needed to have a fireplace. It needed to have a decent size kitchen (large enough for a sitting area). And a backyard of some sort was also very high on the list too. Original woodwork, radiant heat and a corner property in the heart of town were all bonuses when we found our house.

As we settled in my “must have list” began to grow with built ins, a claw foot tub, wainscoting, cedar shakes, a chicken coop, an edible garden and a place to hang window boxes to name a few. Lucky for me my Pop was kind enough to grant many of those wishes including the boxes that live under my kitchen and dining room windows. Maybe it was all of the Beatrix Potter and Eloise Wilkins books from my childhood but I always envisioned my house having window boxes overflowing with geraniums and begonias.

Since my boxes live in very shady conditions I am limited to shade loving plants. This year I planted a variety of begonias along with Tradescantia pallida ‘Purpurea’ and Helichrysum petiolare. I love the ever blooming nature of the begonia mixed in with the deep purple Tradescantia and the grey, trailing Helichrysum. I used straight compost to keep the plants well fed and lush until frost.

Relying on annuals each year for planters, pots and window boxes can be costly. Both begonia and Tradescantia are easy to root in water and I have already begun to start new plants to winter over and supplement into next year’s boxes.

I love how the boxes transform both the outside and inside of my home. They cast beautiful little shadows on my walls indoors and their colorful scenes are so soothing as I wash dishes and sit down to a meal.

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