I spend a lot of time at my desk lately – between teaching, tutoring, and writing my own dissertation my desk is my anchor. Therefore, I spend a lot of time looking out my window at the goings-on in the world. I don’t see much of the world, per se, but I can see the road, and a couple of our mature apple trees, a bit of the neighbors, that we like, and a bit of those we don’t know, and a bit of the store when it is Fall or Winter and the trees are bare. In this stretch I can sometimes see my child running around outside, Josh tending to the trees, the dog digging up voles, and mostly my passel of chicken-ladies roaming from safety area to safety area.

This last part is definitely one of my favorite distractions – mostly they move in their flock of 15, but a couple of them don’t mind the solo or roaming buddy life and I’ll see them sneak into the bushes by the road (where there’s a ditch and a giant hedge of rose, alder, wild cherry, and in the summer goldenrod, asters, and jewelweed – someday I dream of a sumac stand there). When a big logging truck (or the jerk with the super souped up engine in his primer truck) goes by they burst out of the bushes, if there are a few – scattering everywhere away from the road. Sometimes they all huddle beneath the witch hazel outside my window or the dwarf apple tree farther out (some in the branches, so funny). I love watching the ladies traverse the entire cultivated ‘yard’ (maybe about 2.5 acres) – sometimes we find them in the woods that separate us from the neighbor or the wooded area between the ‘yard’ and what we call the orchard (it’s not a neatly lined up affair, more of a dotting of trees wherever we want them). Since the leaves have fallen, they have had to find new hiding spaces.

Meanwhile, we’ve been steaming up the house with lovely tart batches of Cranberry Jam (flavored with our maple syrup and orange zest), and Apple Butter. We need to take a break for the next two weeks for bread baking but I’ve been hatching up some delicious pasta plans to try and make up the difference (I’m thinking more Ricotta Gnudi, of course, but also Pumpkin Tagliatelle, Beet Gnocchi, Spinach Fettuccini with some quick sauces like our Rock Bottom Pesto, Roasted Garlic and Herb, and Roasted Summer Tomato, Artichoke & Preserved Lemon). We’ve lots of eggs right now so the pasta will be rich and silky (which will leave me with a lot of whites – I’m thinking Berry Swirled Meringues?). So many ideas, so little time.

Until then, may your window watching be relaxing.

Bread has its own agency, apparently so does our proofing refrigerator, and the weather, and the sourdough starter, and the baker. There are probably more I’m neglecting but the reality is that there are many variables and much of the time, they all co-ordinate into one big happy explosion of delicious baked goods. Sometimes, however, something goes haywire (what an interesting idiom, like the Chewbacca defense?) and there is no sense. The bread is still delicious but overproofed and ‘flatter’, the bagels fail (and turn into lovely bialys), the cheese doesn’t curd as fluffy – there are more trials and tribulations in cottage foods than one could possibly plan for (which is why many feel more comfortable with the factory options – uniformity, strategic success, sterility). But know that everything made here, despite their quirks, is made with love and care and the best ingredients possible.

Innovation and adaptation in a troubling situation is what we should all strive for, no? Especially these days. (I do love bagels but I would not kick a lovely bialy out of bed for not being a bagel! Why are there baked goods in my bed? At least they are not eating crackers!) Our little kitchen practice here is a work in progress, we are fine tuning our processes, our ability to organize, and our desire to share it with you.

And we thank you – for your patronage, for your patience, for your advice, and willingness to be flexible when we are challenged. All of these goodies we make are an extension of our own needs and family – we invite you to our home in this fashion. We’d prefer to make some coffee or pour you a fancy drink, wander around the apple trees or sit by the firepit, and visit with you. But this is the world we live in right now – a quick delivery from our home to yours – and we hope that this gets us all through.

Thank you for the connection ~

A couple years ago now we decided to charcuterie a pig liver, wrapping it in linen, tying it, and hanging it from a hook in our ‘dining room’. We were ecstatic to have hanging meat. We ended up being too nervous to try it after we left it for a ridiculous amount of time (somehow we forgot about it) and chucked it, though if I knew then what I know now – I would still try it even if it were still there. With that said, Josh is enamored with the little River Cottage book on Curing & Smoking, I expect our dream of hanging meats will be renewed.

What else is going on around here? It’s Tuesday so there are piles of bread, trays of bagels, jars of ricotta and pesto waiting to go out for delivery. It’s Pretzel Braed week – a sweet and savory braided bread with your name all over it. The chickens have started laying (gorgeous little eggs with deep colored yolks) and the rooster is being re-homed (today). There is apple jelly, apple butter, applesauce, and apple chips waiting to be finished and cider (whew!). And something delightfully sweet and special coming your whey (yes, I did that). A Fall apple Kimchi is bubbling away. I’m fantasizing about pumpkin butter and cranberry sauce, too (y’know, when I get a handle on this half of my chapter I have to write for this semester). And warmy teas are coming your way – the apothecary has been building all Summer and Fall (thank you Justin for the burdock root!) – rosehip, calendula, red clover, raspberry leaf, lemon basil, juniper berry, bee balm, yarrow, goldenrod, cleavers, lavender, thyme, mullein – it’s a good store this year.

Our extended Summer is coming to a close this week (today at 70 degrees, next Tuesday back to 40), which leaves us just a smidge of room to get those windflower corms in the ground in the back orchard, and the handful of alliums and croci bulbs. Duende and I almost had Josh convinced to get us ducks but since we haven’t painted the chicken coop yet or taken care of the strawberry beds, he was less convinced we should add more to our plate at this time. Maybe we can work on him again in the Spring – ha! Though he is dreaming of bees, and I of pumpkins (and floors). D has been making little picnic tables with dishes and providing seedy food for the birds and chipmunks – adorable.

Enjoy yourself – it’s later than you think.