I have so much I need to say to you (new blog ! new business! new chicks! new ducklings!) – but for now, I give you pictures. The sun is shining, the hummingbirds are humming to the wisteria, & the green in my garden comes in a thousand shades. I’m pretty darn happy.
Like the new blog ? It’s a work in progress- suggestions welcome!
When I was shopping for pantyhose at Fogel two years ago I wasn’t considering how well they’d support a sugar pumpkin. I was worried about shoving my own pie thighs into them and looking fashionable, or at the very least, thinner, tanner, or something. I’m sitting here now, on an island off the Pacific northwest, admiring how well they have accommodated the girth of the sugar pumpkins I trellised in an old wine barrel months ago. Sabina, my ever supportive dog, looks on with two balls shoved into her mouth, unaware of the significance of this moment. I have to pause: my pumpkins are wearing pantyhose, and I am not. (more…)
It’s been stunningly beautiful for as long as my short memory permits. Bright cerulean blue skies every morning, a rustling fall breeze working its way through the evergreens and shaking the leaves off the deciduous trees. I have finally plateaued in my tomato harvest and I’m about to harvest my first jalapenos- and it’s October 5th. Granted they’re all happily snug in a makeshift greenhouse but there are still tomatoes and peppers — in fact so many I am quietly wishing the bunnies would find them. I’ve made pints on end of sauce, crushed tomatoes, ketchup, passata, dried tomatoes, and frozen cherry tomatoes. I wait for these beauties all year long — rarely do I enjoy one out of season because they are so uniformly terrible. When they come we enjoy them lustily and gorge for weeks — and then, suddenly, I’ve had enough. No more tomatoes. We go on hiatus for months, until sometime in the early dark of winter, a can of garden crushed tomatoes is pureed into a creamy tomato soup, into which we’ll plunge sourdough and Irish cheddar grilled sandwiches. It is then that I’ll start the long climb to spring, and long for next year’s far away harvest. (more…)
It’s the eve of an important day in the Lawlor household. One of mundane significance in the scope of the world but one unprecedented in our history as drop out bankers turned city slickers. As many of you know, we leapt into the world of chicken keeping back in April. The chicks were adorable. Then they became awkward teenagers, half peach fuzz, half feathers. Then they started pooping an unbelievable amount and walked with no qualms all over it. And then, before we knew it, they were full grown and offering the gift of their beautiful light, dark brown, and blue eggs. (more…)
In the past 24 hours I’ve made protein and omega 3 packed nut power bars, dehydrated 10 pounds of ripe peaches, prepped cannelini beans for a spread with rosemary, made 2 quarts of green smoothie, repurposed leftover grilled zucchini in a rice paper wrap with a homemade spicy peanut sauce garnished with basil, radishes and carrots from the garden, and made 12 pints of one of my favorite “pickles”, curried yellow squash and zucchini. Last week a friend and I canned 60 pounds of tart yellow plums into one of my favorite honey sweetened jams and compotes. But I don’t want to talk about any of that. We’re trying to eat healthier here at the homestead, so the sourdough baking has been put on pause and mornings are filled with the whir of the Vitamix pureeing its way through a bushel of beet greens, spinach, kale, or carrot tops. I feel great but just can’t get all that excited about green smoothies, despite having all the ingredients fresh from the garden. But I can get excited about bon bons. Specifically, mint ice cream bon bons, dipped in a homemade dark chocolate ‘magic shell’. No kale, no vitamix involved. A little bit of sugar, cream, mint, a chocolate shell, and a lot of guilt. (more…)
We’ve had an incredible Spring rise from the dirt here on Minnow Creek Lane — the wisteria is in full bloom, arching over our stone patio. The jewel pink roses I inherited have begun to blossom, and the blushing peonies have opened their pom pom eyes. We’ve been eating gorgeous greens for over a month now – Bordeaux Spinach, with its red-wine stems, sautéed over toast and topped with a poached egg; Roquette Arugula pureed with walnuts, garlic, and parmesan for a refreshing pesto; French Sorrel gratineed with potatoes, cream and gruyere; baby Valmaine Romaine tossed in a mustard vinaigrette and topped with blackened Coho Salmon; Lacinato Kale stewed with shallots and finished with apple cider butter; baby Rainbow Chards with sesame soy glaze over soba noodles; and countless mixed green salads with garden radishes and a simple vinaigrette. I’m thankful this season for the distraction of an armful of greens and thinnings. Greens are good for the body, but lately, they’ve been feeding my soul. (more…)
We’ve taken a big step here at Minnow Creek Lane. I clean chicken poop now. And chickens poop a lot. Add that to my resume. Sells well on Wall Street.
Living in Manhattan did I ever dream of chickens? I can’t say that I did. Maybe hot wings with bleu cheese dressing. Never the live kind. But here on Orcas, where everyone raises chickens, things are different. We have a stable, begging to be used for something other than Gerry’s second shop, and I don’t fancy myself a horse lady, despite looking quite at home in a pair of riding boots. Chickens seemed like the natural introductory choice for a couple of city slickers. Easy, right? (more…)