family – Page 7 – This Old House 2

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So much to cover here! But first, an observation. I love having my own blog, meaning I truly own it, and it can’t disappear someday when Google decides to get rid of blogger. The downside is, it appears many friends who used to stop in regularly either haven’t found the space or are no longer interested in reading it. While it’s never been my goal to accumulate a large number of readers, more a journal for me to keep, I have truly enjoyed getting to know the folks who stop in here. It sort of feels like some good neighbors have moved away and didn’t keep in touch.

So, we’ve been busy around here! And… I haven’t paid much attention to the goings on in Washington, it’s been blissful! Although oddly, it also feels irresponsible, which of course it isn’t.

My daughter K and I were at a horse show for a few days, and she and Miss Leah had a great show! She grabbed her first Blue Ribbon in Western Pleasure with Leah and two 2nd’s. At the risk of embarassing her here, I’m so proud of K for her courage and determination. She shows me every day what it means to tackle and overcome some of the hard things life can throw at you, and these pictures are the proof.

I think they should bring back the Tired Grooms class, just sayin. That morning I was truly running on Dunkin.

The farm this show was held on is beautiful – looks like it goes on for miles.

We spent Sunday and Monday at the cottage, had a cookout with family and the weather was glorious! I got my first paddle in around the cove, even brought my co-pilot.

This little “island” community of approximately 140 cottages sits on a 360-ish acre shorefront farm owned by the same family since the 1600’s. They still farm a portion of that property, and often we are greeted by the cows as we drive down the narrow lane to the waterfront. These cows also have lush fields not visible in the picture, but they often wander down into the marsh to cool off.

Lilacs here on the farm and on island are just about done, Iris are in full bloom and the poppies are gorgeous – I need to plant more of those, they are so cheery, uplifting , a real splash of bold color. My vegetable gardens are planted, too – a tiny one at Stella and two raised beds of a good size in the backyard. My seedlings looked anemic this year, I’m hoping now that they’re in the ground they’ll flourish. The Phlox are gorgeous!

My Spring Chicks are almost as big as the grown girls – notice the mesh that separates them from the adults – soon they’ll be big enough to incorporate into the flock and I can take down this make-shift nursery, which they are indeed outgrowing rapidly.

I mentioned my blog neighbors above, well the best news of all is we’re getting new neighbors right next door. When we bought this old house and farm and resurrected her, we also had the idea in our heads that if the children chose to live in this area once they graduated and started their adult lives, they could have a lot on the farm and build a house for themselves if it worked for them. I’m very very happy to report that both have decided to do just that, and have been saving their hard earned money while living in apartments with their significant others (who we also love.) Yesterday we poured the footings for K’s house foundation – So… once again here on this blog you can follow along on a house build. She’s chosen a charming cape style house that will blend with the old homes in this neighborhood as if it’s been here for 200 years, just like our “Grace”. The upstairs will remain unfinished to keep the mortgage down, until they have a need for the two bedrooms and bath that will eventually go upstairs. The master will be on the first floor. Stay tuned!

Last night we took Mom out for a Birthday celebration Lobster dinner, the food was divine and the laughter around the table priceless. Happy Birthday, Mom – we all love you very much. May we celebrate many more birthdays together, and may the laughter and love continue to flow around the table as easily as it did last night.

Till soon, friends – thank you for stopping by –

When there’s no sun, find some light

New England is still wearing her dingy grey cloak, refusing to take it off in order to properly herald Spring. So what’s a Yankee to do? … head to the garden center to purchase some cheer! Mom joined the Mr. and I on a jaunt across the CT river , where we bought some bright red geraniums which I’ll plant in the big pots down at Stella-by-the-Sea in the coming days.

On the way we stopped for lunch across from the Goodspeed Opera House in East Haddam…

So many charming centuries old homes in this part of town… tulips and flowering trees everywhere!

On to Balleks, a family owned farm/garden center/greenhouse that’s been in the Ballek family since the 1660’s – how’s that for history. Some of the Ballek family in their 90’s still roam the isles helping customers, it’s a lovely thing to see.

They have SO many unique plants inside the large greenhouse and two big old silos that have some tales to tell, I’m sure.

The “pods” below are large – you could put your reading glasses in there.

Meanwhile.. back on the farm – I’ve moved the chicks to the big coop, creating a temporary nursery out there inside the covered enclosed chicken yard, complete with their heat lamp. They got too big for the chick condo on the porch and it was beginning to look like a pig pen out there with shavings and hay and chick food and chick dander littering every surface from ground to ceiling. Bleh. I did scrub the porch once everything was out – we’ll actually be able to sit out there again once it dries.

The new girls in their temporary coop nursery

Which is basically a sectioned off area in the big covered coop “yard” separated with bird mesh and a tarp, wrapped on the outside with a plastic drop cloth to keep the wind off them.

The big girls on the other side of the tarp.

So much work to integrate five little chicks into the fold! But the reward of fresh eggs and a flock of chickens in the yard is well worth the effort.

More rain for tomorrow – I’ll most likely be at my desk catching up on the editorial stuff that earns me a paycheck. I suppose the upside to all the rain and a steady string of grey days is all the inside work I get done when the sun isn’t calling to me.

I hope all is well in your world – may we all have many sunny days ahead.

Birds of a Feather

Allow me to introduce you to purple finch mama and papa bird, and their three little eggs – all sitting about five feet from me on the lantern right outside my office window as I type this post. If I have the species wrong, feel free to correct me. They come back every year, a sure sign that Spring has arrived, regardless of whether the weather concurs.

Meanwhile.. out on the back porch – the chicks look more like chickens now… and will soon be moved out to a sectioned off part of the coop I’ve arranged for them until they are full grown and can be turned out with the rest of the flock. They are quickly growing out of their two-box condo.

This past weekend we also put our first Horse show of the season in the books – It was a cold and mostly wet windy rainy weekend but K and Miss Leah did very well with their trail patterns which are no easy feat to memorize, let alone complete, and although they didn’t place in their other classes, they completed them without major errors and Leah was so well behaved, I just love this good minded mare. Proud of K for learning a new discipline so quickly and enjoying the process and her horse regardless of the placing. That’s what it’s all about.

One of the four days we saw the sun and with it, smiles everywhere…

Yesterday I brought the dogs down to Stella to plant some Zinnia in the tiny cottage garden and put the trash out for pick-up. Grass cutting didn’t happen, too wet. After chores we went for a long walk exploring the “island”. Although the skies were grey, there was plenty of Spring color…

Frasier is always the first of the season to go for a swim.

Meanwhile – back at Winterfell (if you’re a GOT fan but haven’t seen it yet, turn away)…. Holy cow – Season 8 Episode 3 – Winter finally arrived! And what a murky, epic battle – what we could see of it anyway. All my favorites are still standing (Sigh of relief!) and still so many questions – and more to come. All I want to say about that.. is this…

More grey skies for the coming week – not sure we’ve ever seen so many rainy days strung together in a row. The following picture is of our senior boys, Max 1 and Max 2, out grazing in the pasture this morning. Time to go bring them back in.

I hope all is well in your world – and thank you for stopping in …

What’s cookin

Do you have plans for Easter weekend? We’ve been so busy we haven’t given it much thought. Because I’m more of a spiritual soul, this weekend isn’t typically about a religious celebration here at this old house. For me it’s a time to celebrate the renewal that comes with Spring, and spoil my now-adult kids with a basket full of “stuff” – They will still find the big chocolate bunny and a few fluffy marshmallow peeps – and some summer clothing items and a kitchen gadget or two for their apartments, and something fun to remind them they were once my littles.

Speaking of my littles – my littlest – just celebrated his 23rd birthday – how.. did that happen? How time flies…

Me and my guys….

My favorite “peeps” in all the world right here….

For this weekend’s family gathering I’ll cook a meal for whomever in the family doesn’t have other places they need to be. On the menu for sure are a spiral ham, my very popular Martha’s Vineyard Scalloped Potatoes, given that name because we discovered the magnificently rich smokey flavor while at The Atlantic restaurant in Edgartown on Martha’s Vineyard. I asked the chef to please tell me the secret to these most divine scalloped potatoes – and the answer was quick – a little chicken broth, smoked gouda and gruyere cheese, heavy cream. Slice the potatoes super thin. I incorporated all those tips into a basic recipe and it’s been a staple on our Easter dinner table ever since. The rest of my meal for this weekend has yet to be sorted out.

Two recipes I’ve tried in recent weeks were a big hit, so I’ll share them here with you. Now that I’m on a no sugar no dairy diet, not eating some of what I cook for this weekend is going to be a real challenge. I’m not big in the Willpower department, tis just my truth.

French Onion Chicken Meatballs – these sound weird, but trust me…. they are THE BOMB. Give them a go – fun to make, not complicated, and so freak’n delicious. The recipe has been shared on many sites, I’m not sure who the original is to be acknowledged.

**I double the recipe, they’re good enough that you’ll wish you did too. This is also my photo – I served them as a dinner with no extras, they’re hearty enough. Greens of your choice on the side would be perfect. You can of course serve wtih bread, pasta, or tuck them in a roll for a delicious meatball sandwich.

Ingredients

For the Carmelized Onions

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 white onions (about 2 pounds), sliced 1/4″ thick
1/4 dry white wine

For the Meatballs

1/4 cup dried breadcrumbs
1 teaspoon Herbes de Provence
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 egg
1 pound ground chicken
1 tablespoon olive oil

For the Sauce

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup shredded Gruyere cheese
1/2 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley, for garnish (optional)

Instructions

Caramelize the Onions

Melt the butter in a 10-inch skillet over medium heat. Add the sliced onions (the pan will be very full). Cook the onions, stirring them occasionally, for about an hour or until they have turned a light golden-blonde colored. At this point, turn the heat to medium-low and keep cooking them, stirring occasionally, until they are soft and a deep golden brown in color, approximately 30 to 40 minutes longer.
Turn the heat back to medium and pour the wine into the pan with the onions. As it simmers, scrape up any browned bits off the bottom of the pan. Once the wine has cooked away transfer the onions to a clean plate.

Make the Meatballs

In a large bowl, combine the breadcrumbs, herbs, salt, pepper, and egg. Add the ground chicken and, using a wooden spoon or your hands, mix it with the breadcrumb and egg mixture just until combined.
Scoop approximately one ounce of the mixture to form the meatballs. You should be able to make 16 meatballs.
Once the onions are ready and you’ve removed them from the pan, add the olive oil to that same pan. Heat it over medium heat. Place the meatballs in a single layer and cook them until they are browned on all sides. Transfer them to a clean plate.

Make the Sauce

In the same skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk it with the butter until combined. Add about a 1/2 cup of the chicken stock and, whisking continuously, combine it with the butter and flour. As you whisk you should be scraping up any browned bits off the bottom of the pan.
Whisking continuously, add the rest of the chicken stock. Bring the pan to a boil and cook the sauce for about five minutes, or until it starts to thicken. Add the caramelized onions and stir to combine. Lower the heat to maintain a simmer. Add the meatballs to the sauce and continue cooking the sauce until it’s glossy and thickened about five to ten minutes.
At this point, you can sprinkle the cheese over the meatballs and either cover the pan to melt the cheese or stick the pan under the broiler for a couple of minutes. Garnish the meatballs with parsley, if using.

These lemon brownies are so lemony good – a perfect dessert selection for any Easter table. *this is not my photo – again internet grab.

INGREDIENTS

FOR THE LEMON BROWNIES:

1/2 cup salted butter (softened)
3/4 cup sugar
zest of 1/2 lemon
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
3/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder

FOR THE GLAZE:

3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 1/2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
zest of 1/2 lemon

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat the oven to 350. Prepare an 8 x 8 pan by spraying with cooking spray or lining with foil, and set aside.
In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together the butter, sugar, and lemon zest until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition, then add the lemon juice. Add the flour and baking powder, and mix until just combined. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth into an even layer. Bake 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the brownies comes out clean. Let lemon brownies cool for 10-15 minutes.
To make the glaze, whisk together the powdered sugar, lemon juice, and lemon zest, then pour over the brownies, spreading evenly to coat. Let lemon blondies cool completely before slicing and serving.

I hope you have an enjoyable Easter weekend celebrating in the way that has most meaning for you – I’m off to market once I’ve settled on the menu for the coming weekend.

Till soon –