Here Comes the Season of...well, lots of food

I'm sure there was some hilarious and/or pithy title to come up with but I'd rather talk about food.

American Pagans, as you well know, often celebrate the American holiday Thanksgiving, though it doesn't appear on a standard Wheel of the Year diagram. In fact, many make the pilgrimage to the place of their birth and unto the house of their mothers. Often pretending they aren't Pagan at all, in order to keep the peace and enjoy the feast.

No matter. Hiding the glow of your connection to Earth and the fact that your "name" is now Lady Frostnipples ferch Yarrowroot, you sit at table with people who knew you when and still call you "Bucky".

But the food! Your mom always makes the best mashed poatatoes, just like you like them. And now you are in charge of the chestnut stuffing. What about those popovers? And the fresh cranberry sauce?

Pumpkin pie, Grandma's chocolate cake, Dad's Waldorf salad.

I hope that all of you will indulge in your favorite seasonal treats this week and will have a thought for those who are hungry. Maybe donate to a food pantry in your great-aunt's name--you know, the one who always had too much wine at dinner and slept through the evening.

And if you are hungry, please avail yourself of help that is in your community. Don't be too proud or to shy. Because nutrition is important and there are programs that can help. Even if you have to go to a church basement.

Hard Cider Renaissance!

I wanted to share a recent blog post from my blog Orchards Forever, on the hard cider brewing renaissance.

Hard cider making seems a likely protege to the microbrew revolution. What about you? Do you like hard cider? Have you ever made it? Are you in love with the names of antique apple varieties used to make cider, like Cox Orange Pippin, Gold Rush, William's Pride, Wolf River, Campfield, or Muscat de Bernay? Let's hear your delicious thoughts.

Can It Be Planting Time...Again?

Yeppers, we're having some gorgeous warm weather and I intend to clean out the Italian garden tomorrow and plant some greens to winter over. I've done this for the last few years--there is nothing like picking fresh spinach in late February.

But this is the first year in the Italian garden. That little plot of land is near the back door and easy to access.Spinach, onions, kale, collards maybe.

And today, I was pondering the plot and saw a wee bit of lacey green peeking out from the comfrey in the corner. A carrot! Joy! I resisted the urge to simply wipe it off.

I washed it, shook the water off and ate it.

Sweet, crisp, alive.And I ate it.Bad girl.

Older is Better

I dropped by the local fancy gourmet grocery store yesterday. I didn't want to eat lunch out but wanted to eat something....apple? Sandwich? As I was heading to the deli, I ran across this display and laughed out-loud.

Cheesehenge!

One of the deli folk was walking past and I asked if I could make a pic--he said that was okay.

So, here it is. An aged cheddar, I assume, lovingly constructed as a neolithic monument.

Ah, the power of cheese!

Cider Pressing

Here are some photos from the Heartsong Harvest Festival Weekend at Brushwood Folklore Center at the end of September. The campsite has many wild apple trees, so we get to use an abundance of unsprayed apples, many different varieties, for cider. Unfortunately, this year a late frost killed nearly all the blossoms, so we had to buy apples. Still, it was a big success and the cider was delicious!

The last photo is of me with a wicker man we made for the Mabon ritual that night.

Punkies

It's been a rather lean year for pumpkins, or so I hear. But I went to the store today and got three giant NC pumpkins for $10 and the carving has begun.
But pumpkins are more than smelly scorching porch lights. The seeds! The seeds! I strain them and separate the goo from the fat seeds. I toss them with some salt and ground pepper, and spread them on a baking sheet. They roast at 300 degrees--stirring them about with the spatula every 10 minutes or so.
They keep a long time..if they're not sucked up as they come crispy out of the oven.
Pumpkin flesh makes not only pies but also cheesecake and soupl and even a swift saute with chilis.
Pumpkins and apples are the perfect foods.

In the kitchen

we have two carboys of wine, perking away in the kitchen. One is concord grapes with montrachet yeast and that has a gorgeous merlot color. The other is this odd brew of red currants. Smells good, very active but won't be drinkable for years.
I'd like to try beer making, too, but the thing that calls me is hard cider.
I'll keep you posted