The Irrisistible Iris

The other day, my neighbor brought me a large box of irises. She had been working in her garden, performing her annual autumn clean-up and realized that her lovely iris bed was in need of dividing. Thankfully, she'd remembered how much I had admired her beautiful heirloom blue plants that summer, and thus, gave me her abundance to plant and share as I desired.

Pictured on the left is another heirloom variety. These dark purple plants were dug from my grandmother's backyard and sent to live with me when I purchased my first house. They have traveled with me through two moves conveying warm memories of my past.

In a not too distant past, dividing and sharing plants was the sole method of acquiring flowing plants. Women usually ran the household and had to use their small budgets to purchase vegetables and other edible plants in order to feed their families. But even in tough times, people recognized the enjoyment a well tended flower garden can emit. In need of beauty and peace, these crafty pioneers devised a way to spread and share the limited resources. The better your social network, the fuller your garden; just imagine strolling through your yard where every plant has a story - a wedding gift or - a house warming present - something passed down from a favorite aunt.

In today's world we are bless with an abundance of material items, packaged and available 24/7, however, the simple methods of gardening can still be found. Neighbors, family members and gardening clubs are all excellent places to swap and share those favorite perennials. Next year, as my lilies will be in need of dividing, I plan on returning the favor. Plus, the box of irises I received had too many plants for the area I intended to plant. So with gardening tradition in mind, I passed the box on to our newest neighbor who was beyond delighted to receive something to plant in her vacant dirt lot. I also selected a couple choice plants and shared them with ladies from my work.

As you ready our flower beds for winter, check to see if perhaps some of your plants can be divided and shared. I challenge each of you to expand your gardening network this autumn and help keep the practices of old alive amongst today's society.

Picking My Way to Autum

A crispness has hung in the air these last few mornings, announcing the approach of fall and that means it's the beginning of apple season. September is the best time to pick my most favorite of all apple varieties: Honey Crisp. I fell in love with these firm, crunchy yet juicy apples years ago. Their sweet-tart flavor makes them a great choice for turning into caramel apples but my favorite way to enjoy them is sliced with peanut butter or solo allowing their one-of-a-kind flavor to liven my mouth.

So with apples on my mind, my niece and I set out to our local orchard and picked our first round of Honey Crisps. Not only did my four year old enjoy walking about the orchard and seeing where food comes from but by picking the apples ourselves we were able to save money - the one thing about Honey Crisps is that they tend to be more pricey than other apple varieties.

With our two bags full of apples (thankfully Honey Crisps have a long shelf life) I was ready to leave but my niece remembered that we'd picked raspberries the previous year. We'd used the flavorful little berries to make some of the best jam I've ever produced and hoping to replicate the experience we filled our little white bucket with raspberries. I believe that the jam was exceptional because, by picking your own berries, we acquired an array of ripeness. I've leaned that the over-ripe berries have a higher sugar content while the under-ripe have a greater amount of pectin. Both types give flavor and texture to the jam. While a good ripe red berry is desired, don't be afraid to throw a handful of the others types in the bucket.

For apple and raspberry recipes, find links to my favorite cooking websites posted at the bottom of my blog page.

Simple Things

My four year old niece picked me a bouquet of wild grass and sweet clover flowers for my birthday. Besides the touching sentiment, the bouquet possessed a simple charm that showcased the beauty of prairie grasses. Having taken botany in college, I've long appreciated the diversity of the tall grass prairie yet never considered using it to create visual art, but the lines and textures in the bouquet has left me pondering new ideas. In a world where everything is so commercialized and prepackaged, it was nice to still find a simple touch of love.

Coconut Candy

Stuck with a coconut that my four year old niece coerced me into purchasing, I began to dream up delicious ways to use the white flesh.
I began by shredding it from the shell with a microplane fine grater.
Next I placed a thin layer upon a jellyroll pan and toasted it under the broiler.
As it toasted I let my niece grind the almonds
I melted about two cups of marshmallows with two tbsp of butter in a sauce pan.
In my Little Dipper crock pot I chopped six blocks of Ghiradelli dipping and candy-making bars, double chocolate.

When the marshmallow was melted I added about one tsp. of coconut and vanilla extract,
the almonds
and the toasted coconut.
I greased my hands and rolled the mixture into bit sized balls
and allowed my little helper to dip them in the chocolate.
And of course we added a chocolated covered almond to the top of each piece.

Store in an air tight container in the fridge.

Culture Collision - Fajita Fried Rice

Noticing a handful of leftovers in my fridge, I decided to cross food cultures, and in a stroke of culinary inspiration, I created what I'm now calling Fajita Fried Rice.

I started by cooking one cup of Jasmine Rice in a pot. Then in a skillet I heated olive oil and saute about a 1/4 cup of onion.

I took one grilled rib-eye stake and two grilled pork chops which were left overs and sliced them into thin strips and saute in the hot oil. I added coconut milk (only because I didn't have any broth or white wine) to help rehydrate the meat. I seasoned with taco seasoning and garlic.

I placed the meat mixture in a bowl and set aside. Wiped out the skillet and added more oil and onion before adding rice, soy sauce and two eggs (just a basic fried rice).

Then to the fried rice I added about 1 1/2 cup of grilled corn cut from the cob (also left overs) and fresh sliced roma tomatoes. Combine with meat and warm and serve.

I think this is one dish we will be making again - my whole family sure enjoyed it.

Roots

Last weekend I returned to my genesis. I know they say you can never go home but then 'they' must not have grown up in Western Nebraska. Though I've been home many times before, this trip seemed magical from the start. This year's abundant rainfall bathed the canyons and the prairies with varied hues of greens. A spectacular transformation from the traditional tawny tones of late July. The world felt alive and I was honored to be amongst it.

Returning to my roots, I helped my family reap the bountiful rewards of wheat harvest. Well, actually, my participation was limited to documenting the event with my Nikon D90. I’d forgotten how hot and exhausting Western Nebraska’s harvest sun can be.

Through the lens of my camera, my childhood appeared. Sights I’d long forgotten and perhaps never truly appreciated, overwhelmed me with pride and sentiment as I captured frame after frame. I love my camera. It was my Christmas gift from my husband - his attempt to bring me into the digital era. In fact, my Nikon D90 is so wonderful that I returned my Minolta to my mother. Which was like giving up an old friend since my mother had given me the Minolta my freshman year of high school. So many memories. Yet, my Nikon and it’s technology is far superior and I knew it was time for the Minolta to find another owner - one who’d use it and appreciated it.

My past came full circle when I visited my Grandmother. She deemed me responsible enough to pass on some of the family heirlooms. The first being a quilt that my grandfather’s mother had made. As I ran my fingers across the simplistic pattern, I was rooted in family history - to know that my great great grandmother had lived - had touched - had created this beautiful quilt. Then my grandmother gave me my ancestor’s ceramic bowl. Grandma told me how the bowl had come from Pennsylvania to Genoa Nebraska by covered wagon and that when the pioneers where forced to throw items aside to lighten the load - my relative refused to give up her decorative bowl. I guess I come by my stubbornness honestly. As with the quilt, the bowl is simple. A mark on its bottom reads ‘Homer Laughlin’ made in USA and I plan to research deeper into the bowl’s history and the Burkholder’s of Pennsylvania. As for now, I am satisfied with the harmony of my life.

Two Pages a DAY

I am blessed to have several lovely gardens grace my five acre home, however, I've been so busy as of late that much of my beloved gardens have been maintaining themselves. No where is this more evident than the rows of sugar and snow peas that have gone unpicked and hang past their prime from the garden fence. Where did spring go?

Likewise, my writing has fallen upon neglect. Today I vow to write my two pages a day as was recommended by Mark Sarvas in his class: Getting Started; Writing the First Novel. I know that like my peas, even if the two pages seem like they don't fulfil their intended place in my second novel - seeds can always germinate from those unwanted pages. So often I have found that random scene written for fun can later be developed and placed in the most unimaginable spots of my stories. Never never never erase anything you write.

And as for my peas, I will let them sit on the vine until they dry, pick them, shell them and store them in the garage overwinter and they will grow into fine peas again next year.