Author: admin

Having something GOOD to say…

 I don’t watch the news much anymore – it’s depressing to say the least. I catch the important facts, and leave the rest alone. I debated starting a newspaper or even just a blog that highligted GOOD NEWS ONLY around the country and perhaps extending to the world!… I’m still tossing that around. But for now.. there’s THIS…

   Mike and Matt heard me chattering on about this very concept and at the same time they’ve been looking at ways to spread Roba Dolce’s philanthropic wings. The Special Olympics is near to their heart, but they want to do more as the company grows.

 Hence, the birth of this blog, click below.  Please take a minute to introduce yourself to it’s content, and feel free to join our mission to spread some joy, reward acts of kindness, volunteerism, thoughtfulness.

  There is so much good news out there that we never hear about… 
 Let’s help Roba Dolce spread the word.
To all my blog buddies – help ME and post about this on YOUR blog!
No pressure 🙂

What’s sprouting this spring at This Old House

Mike has proved himself in his middle age to be quite the gardener. On our previous farm he grew a  plot with our occasional assistance.  Hey, I had the barn to contend with, you know?   Here’s a photo of our garden a few years back –

 Since I am currently unemployed, I’ve decided to take gardening more seriously this year.  We’ve got 43 farmable acres and Mike already has a corn field plan as well as the two smaller garden plots we installed last year right outside the back doors.  I’m also planting blueberry and  raspberry bushes – of which we had a profuse thicket at our previous home. 

The first garden here….

  And so…I am going to teach myself the art of canning (jarring?) because I love eating it and we grow it, so why not make it last?  This winter has been  brutal and it would have been nice to be able to go into the pantry and bring out jars of produce from last summer’s crops.  Our garden was sparce last year, having been thrown together as we were moving in…   However.. yesterday, the man brought home $300 worth of seeds, yup – $300.   Three-Hundred.  Three zero zero.    In seeds.    
   So. …There’ll be alot of this going on in the coming months…
 

And come summer, with a little elbow grease and some new-found knowledge –
This too…..
These photos are from the Durham Fair last year – I drool over this section.

For those of you with experience here – feel free to give me any pointers, recipes, tips or tricks –

Six Week Pickles

  AS IF.. I needed another cookbook.  I am a sucker for a good one – especially if it’s got decent photos to go with the recipes.  Trisha Yearwoods newest is terrific, and I’m  not being paid to say that.  You know how sometimes you’ll buy one that looks great but ultimately there are only two or three recipes you’ll actually use?   This book is chock full of home-spun recipes that aren’t complicated and are very family friendly. There is plenty of her family in there too – including an introduction by Garth.

 Today I  started a batch of Six Week Pickles from Trisha’s book… I’ll let you know how they turn out.  In about six weeks.

I used whole cloves and cinnamon instead of the oils.

The Thomas Lee House

 While we were out reveling in the glorious 60 degree weather today, we passed an old home heralding the year 1660 – that’s 351 years and the house is in remarkable shape.  Right next to it is a little red school house dated in the 1700’s.   I took some pictures and then came home and did a little online research –

The Thomas Lee House, located in East Lyme, CT  is one of the oldest wood frame houses in Connecticut, still in its primitive state. The original circa 1660 dwelling consisted of a timber frame erected on six 2-story wall posts, enclosing a ground floor with the Judgement Hall below and the Chamber above. Shortly after 1700 the house was doubled by adding the West Parlor and West Chamber.  After two hundred years of Lee ownership, the house was sold to a neighboring farmer, who used the building for a chicken coop and to store hay, intending to tear the building down eventually.   The East Lyme Historical Society, with help from the Connecticut Society of Colonial Wars, the Society of Colonial Dames, the Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities,  and several Lee family descendants, was able to purchase the property in 1914.  Today, it continues to be owned and maintained by the East Lyme Historical Society. 

The  old and interior photos is provided from a TL site on the web…the house was closed today and I’m not sure that it’s open to the public. 

 The weather was downright balmy today, I am giddy with spring fever.  And damn it, there’s nothing like spring weather and shedding of the winter layers to smack you with winter weight gain reality. Ah well…

 These are photos of some of my kayaking stomping grounds at the mouth of the Connecticut River…

Osprey nest to the right… there are many along the river and its highways and byways…

Saybrook Light off in the distance…

Ice melts in winter lace form along the waters edge..

Forcing the Issue

    Unrelated to post title… Did you know?… No woman ever shot a man while he was doing the dishes….Just Sayin… in case someone in particular is reading.

   I drove up to our old house today and cut some Forsythia and Quince… I can do that because we still own the place. *heavy sigh*    

Have you ever done this?  Force spring bloomers in a vase?  More beautiful than a spring bouquet you’d buy at the grocery store.

Old-Fashioned Gingerbread with English Cream

This recipe was given to me by my mother’s dear friend, Annette. She found it originally in the 1999 GOURMET magazine.    Absolutely delicious – dense, moist, full of flavor. 

Old-Fashioned Gingerbread with English Cream

(not my image)

2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
a pinch ground cloves
2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter
1 cup unsulfured molasses
1 cup sugar
1 large egg
3/4 cup boiling-hot water
2/3 cup sour cream
1 1/2 Tbls. fresh orange juice
English Cream – see below  (Fresh whipped cream is just as good)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and butter a 10 x 3 in. round or 9 in. square cake pan. Butter bottom of pan and line bottom of pan with wax paper, cut to fit and buttered on top side.

Into a bowl sift together flour, baking soda, spices, and a pinch salt. In a saucepan over low heat, melt butter with molasses.
In a large bowl with an electric mixer beat together sugar and egg until thick and pale. Add butter mixture and beat until just combined. Add flour mixture and beat until just combined. Add water, sour cream, and orange juice and beat 2 additional minutes.

Pour batter into cake pan and bake in middle of oven 1 hour and 10 minutes, or until a tester comes out clean and gingerbread has pulled away from side of pan. Cool gingerbread in pan on a rack and invert onto rack. Will keep in an airtight container at room temperature 3 days. Serve with English cream. Serves 10-12.

English Cream

1 cup whole milk
1/4 cup sugar
2 large egg yolks
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 cup well-chilled heavy cream

Have ready a large bowl of ice and cold water. In a heavy saucepan bring milk to a simmer. In a bowl whisk together sugar and yolks and add hot milk in a stream, whisking. Pour mixture into saucepan and cook over moderate heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until it is thickened and digital thermometer registers 175 degrees. (Do not let boil). Immediately pour custard through a fine sieve into a metal bowl and set bowl in ice water. Stir in vanilla and cool custard completely. Custard may be made 2 days ahead and chilled, covered.
Just before serving, in a clean bowl with an electric mixer beat cream until it holds stiff peaks and fold in custard. Makes about 2 cups.

Pimp My Chicken Coop

  Yesterday after visiting my horse at the barn… SHEDDING BLADE WEATHER, YeeeeeHAAA!!!…. I drove down to the shoreline for a little vintage junk hunting because I have a vision for this chicken coop we’re going to have come spring.  I got nothing.

This is the area where the coop  and yard will go – just in front of the garden shed. For those of you who are new to my blog, that window in the garden shed is from the original Chester house, which is in the background. It’s the family room, mancave and loft area dog leg of This Old House.  So, TOH is actually a restoration of two old homes joined at the….hip?    I loved that window but it’s R value is zilch, so Jeff’ (our restoration expert and good friend) made use of it in the shed.

  Have you seen FancyFarmGirl’s chicken coop ?  It’s my dream coop!!  Heck, it’s my dream COTTAGE…  But since our coop is already under way, I can’t change it now.  HOWEVER…. I can certainly tweek it some… and that I will.  I will not have a “front” room, as she does..hence the ability to really go to town with the vintage decor…

 So this is the junk I’m hunting..

Vintage Egg baskets

Vintage Chicken signs
  Cow art – I have always loved cow art….
 Two old milk cans

And now a question for those of you who have kept chickens… What kind of base did you use in your coops – straw in the nesting boxes, and what on the floor? I have seen several recommendations and people rave about each, depending on what they use – Pine shavings or Sand?  Or something else? 

Still My Valentine

 I will never be accused of being overly romantic.  I’m certainly passionate about a lot of things, and I love my husband and children dearly.  I think they know that.  But when it comes to cards dripping with sentiment and grandiose gestures of  unrequited adoration,  it just ain’t me.

 Right here today is where I’m gonna give it a good shot, though.. because everyone deserves to hear it now and then.  The photo below is from our wedding… I call that day the “Commodores Wedding” because we were all  so very SHINY!..  it was the 80’s, you know.

 That was supposed to be my garter… *sigh*
He’s still a wiseguy

   Dear Mike –

 23 years together!  We’ve gotten a lot accomplished with each others support and we’ve raised two pretty awesome kids…the biggest accomplishment in my book.   The going isn’t always easy and life has certainly thrown us some hardballs. Through those toughest of times you have always, ALWAYS.. been my rock.    While our differences sometimes feel like the Great Divide…  I want you to know I’m glad I didn’t buy a ticket  for any other roller coaster…the occasional lurches are definitely worth this ride.

 Happy Valentines Day with Love –

For all you readers out there… I appreciate every single day the time you take to visit  this little blog. It still amazes me that you pay attention to my ramblings.  I love that we all share ideas, creativity, inspirations, rants, sometimes whine..and wine!  We eat, pray and love together…  life is good.

Images  I took  from the internet below… love found in stolen glances…..
I know, now I’m pushing it..

 If only we could all get this one right…