The new year has been rung in, the Christmas decorations are packed away and it is full on winter here in the PNW. I figure you have two choices. You can get depressed and tired of the cold, gray, dreary days on end, or you can embrace them. I spend my time vacillating between these two viewpoints – enjoying cozy evenings by the fireplace and planning my next escape to sunshine and warmth. But we should love where we are. Life is too short not to.
The cold weather makes me want to hibernate at home, read by the fireplace or put on some peaceful music, light a candle and work in my craft room/office. As one reader has commented, “snow means slow.” I like that. So, I have been spending the last couple weeks hunkering down at home, going for walks, then coming back inside to stomp the snow off of my boots and put together a big pot of soup to simmer all afternoon.
Winter food
One of my favorite winter soups is creamy, cheesy potato soup. I found the recipe on a postcard (Western Image) years ago and have made it numerous times. It is hearty soup that sticks to your ribs… and waistline. And if you are going to be home all day anyway, why not make some homemade wheat rolls to go with it? Absolutely nothing goes better with soup than homemade rolls with butter slathered on top (because carbs don’t count in the winter months).
Below is the soup recipe in case you are interested. Instead of using bacon, I like to boil a left-over ham bone and use some of the meat and broth from that. This can simmer for a while which heats up the kitchen nicely for the rolls to rise. I find it easier to bake or boil the potatoes ahead of time and just add the cooked potatoes to the soup. To assemble, make a roux of the butter and flour and gradually add the milk. (I prefer to use a mix of broth and cream.) Then just dump in the rest of the ingredients and heat through. Add a salad and it is the perfect winter meal.
Getting air
In the winter months, it is very easy to hunker down at home, get engrossed in a project and not step out the door the entire day. Who wants to go outside when it is cold and dreary? Besides, it feels like a lot of work to layer on a coat, hat, gloves, heavy socks and lace up boots. But we all need to air out, so I push myself to get outdoors. Once I get out, I am always glad that I made the effort. There is nothing quite as silent and reverent as a fresh layer of snow. Wildlife gently meander through it in search of food, leaving their tracks behind like cookie crumbs.
We have an abundance of these prehistoric looking creatures. It is surprising how big the tracks are that they leave behind. They can also be quite messy in your yard. Normal people clean up after their dog, we clean up after the turkeys.The dear are the beautiful, gentle animals of our area. Unfortunately, they will eat everything in your yard and garden, which is a challenge come spring.The moose are a rare treat to see. This one left tracks right through our front yard.
I hope that you are finding ways to enjoy your winter wherever you are – whether it is basking in the sunshine or hunkering down on a cold night. Every day is a gift to be appreciated.
If you have followed my blog for very long, you know that fall, or more delicately called autumn, is my favorite season. I want to indulge my senses with the textures, aromas, foods and colors that feed my soul during this time of year. One of our favorite fall traditions is going to Green Bluff. Green Bluff is a community of farmers that cooperate and share their efforts to promote sustainable farming. There are approximately 30 member farms that are all owned and operated independently. These are their personal homes, but they open their farms to the public for you-picks and festivities throughout the year. Each has a unique offering of produce, food, gifts and things to do. A couple weeks ago, on a perfect sunny fall day, we jumped in the convertible and drove to Green Bluff to spend a leisurely afternoon.
Below is a map of the farms and produce stands at Green Bluff.
There is an abundance of fresh produce, with apples and pumpkins taking center stage.
First on the list was picking a few apples, just for the experience of it. We have access to my dad’s apple tree too, but you simply have to pick a few apples while you are there. Mr. U was happy because the plums were also ripe, so we got a few of those as well. We don’t typically buy any of their pumpkins, gourds or vegetables because Mr. U grows them in his garden, but it is still delightful to look at them. Of course I HAVE to have the fresh pumpkin doughnuts. I look forward to them all year long. Sorry, I did not get a picture of them because, well… you know. They had to be eaten quickly while they were still warm.
Each farm has its own unique flair.
Towards the end of the afternoon, the sun was getting low, and we were parched. Time for our final destination at Green Bluff… the Big Barn Brewery. It is a delightful little brewery with a low-key, relaxed vibe. They have a large yard where you can pull up a chair and listen to music while you sip their beer that is brewed on site.
Thanks for joining me on a beautiful autumn afternoon. Be sure to take the time to indulge in fall y’all! It is coming to an end all too quickly.
There isn’t anything much better than lounging in the yard in the early evening, sipping a glass of chilled white wine and taking in the aroma of something grilling on the B.B.Q. THAT is summer. It is the perfect option for cooking when you don’t want to heat the house up with the oven or even stove top. It has been exceptionally hot here in our neck of the woods these past couple of weeks – up to 103 degrees yesterday. Even too hot for Mr. U to slave over the B.B.Q. So, I have been trying to come up with some cool meals that don’t require a lot of cooking.
And just for the record, I am not complaining about the heat. I think you can only complain about one extreme weather condition and mine is the cold/gray weather. The main concern with this much heat and no rain are wildfires. Our beautiful tall pine trees get dry and there are a lot of forests full of them in our area. One lightning strike or careless person can cause a lot of damage. Enough said about weather. Back to food.
This week I decided to try making a rice bowl. I know I am waaay behind the eight ball on this one. (Does anyone even use that term, “behind the eight ball” anymore?) But I have never made a rice bowl before. Thank goodness for Google. I looked at a few recipes and then opened my frig. I did not want to make a run to the grocery store, so I decided to use what I had in the frig or garden. I opened a can of black beans, boiled up some brown rice and added some avocado and feta cheese.
I picked some cilantro and green onion chives from the garden. The chives are good on so many different dishes and I use them all of the time.
I added some left-over teriyaki chicken thighs that we had grilled earlier in the week, and it made a delicious, easy, cool meal. The only other thing that would have been a great addition would be some grilled corn, cut off the cob.
I decided to take pictures before I mixed it all together.
I wasn’t sure what to use for a dressing. But my favorite salad dressing that I make with olive oil and peach balsamic vinegar seemed like it would taste good with it. Oh, soooo good. The recipe for this dressing is in one of my previous posts, Living Organically. There are so many uses for this balsamic vinegar. I have not tried drinking it straight from the bottle yet, but… it might be that good. (The heat must be getting to me.)
Do you have any favorite summer dishes that hit the spot in this hot weather? It is time to whip them up and stay cool out there!
What do you give the person who already has everything they need? Pie of course! Both my dad and Mr. U love strawberry rhubarb pie, so I make two every year for Father’s Day. One for each of them. Father’s Day is the perfect time to do this because the rhubarb is ripe. (I really should make two for Mr. U because I eat more than my share of it. Pie is one of my favorite desserts, especially with real whip cream on top.)
I don’t make pie very often for two reasons. One, it is loaded with fat and sugar, so we try not to indulge too frequently. And two, it is a long process to make. From start to finish, it takes me a good three hours. When I make pies, it is an event. Below is my ten-step process for making strawberry rhubarb pie. It just might help explain why it takes me so long.
Step I: Pick a bouquet of fragrant, fresh lilacs and put them in a blue pitcher. Light a candle to set out on the counter. Tell Alexa to play some relaxing piano music. This sets the mood.
Step II: Go outside and pick rhubarb stalks. Clean and chop them up. Go back outside to get more stalks because I did not get enough the first time. Repeat. It always takes more than I expect.
Step III: Wash the store-bought strawberries because we can’t seem to grow more than three damn strawberries.
Step IV: Sing and dance to the music as I wash and slice the fruit. Technically, rhubarb is a vegetable, but who wants to say they put vegetables in their pie? Unless, of course, it is a meat pie.
Step V: Mix up the fruit filling and set aside.
Step VI: Pull out my mom’s pie crust recipe that is typed on a recipe card using an old manual ink ribbon typewriter. The very one that I used to type letters for my dad for his business. (Typing was one of the most useful classes I ever took.)
Step VII: Feel sad and shed a tear because I miss my mom. She taught me how to make homemade pies, cookies and bread. She had two small bread pans that she would give me to make miniature loaves of bread while she made bigger family size loaves and cinnamon rolls.
Step VIII: Cut together the ingredients for the crust. Once it is the perfect consistency (whatever that is), roll it, dust with flour, repeat. And repeat. And repeat. Get uneven edges and hopelessly try to repair them.
Step IX: Pull out my Polish Pottery pie plate that my mom gave me. Shed a few more tears. Layer the bottom crust, fruit and top crust. Forget to dab the fruit with butter, so gently pull the top crust back and do that.
Step X: Place the pies in the oven and sit back to smell them cooking. Until you realize that you forgot to put a drip pan under them and that all of the sweet juice is burning onto the bottom of your oven. Remember to clean oven later.
Now can see why making pies takes me a lot longer than the average person. It is an event, but well worth it when you pull them out of the oven and set them on the cooling rack. Better yet when you pour yourself a hot cup of coffee and take that first delicious bite of warm pie with cool fresh whip cream on top. Ahhh. Yes, well worth the effort.
Cardiac disease, type II diabetes, irritable bowel, inflammatory disease, anxiety and some cancers. What do they all have in common? They are often a result of living in our modern world: food choices, stress and the environment we live in. By the time we are retired, we have lived long enough to expose ourselves to numerous toxins in our food and environment. I know that I have eaten way too many slices of greasy pizza and McDonald’s hamburgers in my lifetime. I don’t know about you, but as I get older, these types of foods do not settle as well with me. I feel sluggish when I eat them. So, I am seeking out healthier, fresher, more organic choices in my everyday life. Not just with my diet, but also my home environment and how I manage stress. We can’t change how we lived in the past, but we can make improvements now. Small changes add up.
At the beginning of 2024, I chose “the upcycled life” as my word(s) of the year (WOTY). I chose it, not just for the traditional sense, but also because the very essence of upcycling is creating something that is of higher quality and a better version than the original one. So, this year I am seeking out ways to create a higher quality of life and a better version of myself. Not only am I trying to eat more organically, but I want to live a healthier, more organic lifestyle.
A more organic diet
It is about eating fresh with less processed, sugary foods. I have come a long way from those years of eating salads with iceberg lettuce and ranch dressing. Matter of fact, I have become the queen of salads. They are not necessarily low calorie, but they are fresh and packed with nutrients. I love poppy seed or ranch dressing, but they are loaded with unhealthy fats and calories. Now I use a simple olive oil dressing that I can throw together quickly. I have modified a few recipes to come up with my own version. I thought I would share it with you since I get asked for the recipe a lot.
Salad Dressing Recipe
2 Tbs. good quality olive oil
1 Tbs. white peach balsamic vinegar
1 tsp. honey
cracked black pepper
You can change this recipe in several ways. A lot of times I will use regular balsamic vinegar and add 1 tsp. Dijon mustard. Or use lemon juice instead of vinegar, which makes a great salad with fish. Try using real maple syrup instead of honey. I like to add fresh fruits, nuts and avocados to my salads, but the options are endless. Experiment and enjoy a healthy and delicious salad!
The Blue Zones
I am not a big believer in fad diets. They are not usually sustainable. The one diet that most physicians recommend and that has withstood the test of time is the Mediterranean diet. It focuses on eating mostly fruits and vegetables, whole grains, beans and healthy fats that come from nuts, seeds, olive oil and fish. The recommended foods in this diet are high in antioxidants and help prevent inflammation and obesity. Bonus that it includes red wine in moderation. Three of the five Blue Zone areas eat similar to the Mediterranean diet.
The Blue Zones, first identified in 2000, are areas in the world that have a much lower incidence of our modern maladies such as heart disease, diabetes, depression and cancer. Consequently, people live healthier and much longer in these areas. The five Blue Zone communities are Sardinia, Italy; Okinawa, Japan; Nicoya, Cost Rica; Icaria, Greece and Loma Linda, California. While diet is a known common denominator among the Blue Zones, there are other characteristics that these areas have in common, such as a strong social network, a sense of purpose, and being physically active throughout their entire lives. There has been a plethora of research into these communities and their secrets to longevity. Their diet and lifestyle are a great example of living a long, heathy, organic life that we can learn from and incorporate into our own lives.
Eating local
Local farmer’s markets are a wonderful way to get fresh off the vine foods and they have the benefit of providing a delightful aesthetic experience. Walking along the rows of colorful vegetables while listening to someone strumming their guitar is a feast for the senses. Of course, the very best option for organic food is to forage from nature or eat from your own garden. It doesn’t get any fresher than that.
Mr. U grows a beautiful garden every year and I get to enjoy going out and picking fresh vegetables and colorful flowers from it. There isn’t anything better than stepping outside in the morning, still in your robe, to pick some bright red raspberries for breakfast. Or stepping out your door to gather a few vine-ripened tomatoes and fresh basil for dinner. I use the abundance of basil in the garden to make homemade pesto.
Mr. U’s greenhouse (he built) and garden. I love the weathered wood and rusty corrugated metal he used to give it a time worn appearance. We have to keep a six-foot fence around the garden to keep the deer out.
I am not a big believer in buying “organic” labeled food for a few reasons. First, Mr. U grew up on a farm, so I understand the significance of pest control. Also, I am not convinced that it isn’t just a marketing tactic for many of the foods that are labeled “organic.” (GMO foods and meat may be an exception.) Lastly, my little brother has a master’s degree in biochemistry, and he runs a lab in California that does research on pesticides and chemicals in our environment and foods. He assures me that the amount of chemicals in our fruits and vegetables is minuscule and that it would take much, much more than that to be harmful to us, even over our lifetime. So, I trust him, (even though he is my little bro that used to wear a colander on his head as a helmet), because he is super smart. I still wash my fruits and vegetables really well.
One of the key factors in healthy eating is portion control. As we all know, here in the good ole USA, we have lost our awareness of what a normal portion is. Oversize portions lead to oversize bodies. Once we get in the habit of eating a larger amount of food, we begin to think that is our normal and do not feel satisfied unless we have that amount. Hum…ask me how I know. So, I am working on portion control and being attune with my body and recognizing when it is full and satisfied.
“Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.”
Michael, Pollan
Stay tuned next week for ideas on how to create a more organic, healthy, and less stressful environment.
Lover of flip flops, waking up without an alarm, fireside chats, street tacos, waves lapping up on shore, creativity, family, the cork and all things garlic.
