Monday Morning Joy : Troy Moth
Holy Cow. I hope these leave you gasping on this fine Monday morning.
Because they completely take my breath away.
I think the thing I love MOST about art is seeing how other people see the world.
For more, visit HERE.
{via a GREAT new-to-me-blog Art Hound}
Herbacious Elixers
This year I planted an herb garden off the back of my deck. Herbs are beautiful ornamentals because of the variety of leaf shapes and plant architecture. Plus, they’re useful! Over the last two months, my little garden has THRIVED. What began as a few little starts here and there has become a lush, exploding border of greenery.
I’m channeling all my creativity into finding new ways of preserving them so that my winter can be filled with the scents of summer.
Infusing with herbs is a great way to capture their oils. Here are a few infusions I’ve come up with:
Preserved in oil:
Infused oils add a subtle zip to a familiar dish.
What I’m doing:
Olive oil infused with oregano and thyme to use in Med. dishes.
Olive oil infused with basil for late summer caprese salad and winter pizzas.
Marjoram infused walnut oil for a rich, simple vinegrette: all I’ll need to add is a little lemon juice.
Preserved in syrup:
Simple syrup is a secret ingredient in well-stocked kitchens for use in cold drinks, a simple glaze on cakes or a substitute for syrup on pancakes.
What I’m doing:
A one-to-one ratio of sugar and water with each of the following:
Orange mint, peppermint, lavender and thyme
Preserved in alcohol:
Infused alcohols are easy to make and a great DIY way to spice up your evening aperitif.
What I’m doing:
Vodka infused with tangerine sage and pineapple sage.
What are your favorite clever ways to preserve herbs for use in the winter months?
Driving across the West
I’ve been in Seattle for 5 days. Five days filled with green and familiarity.
I showed a friend my blog this morning and as the picture from Monday’s post loaded, my entire body sighed… I am no longer a forest girl. The plains have claimed me completely.
As you read this I will be headed home. Driving east : past fruit stands (where some Washington stone fruits will hitch a ride home with me for my jam pot…), through pass after pass after pass, through the wooded, winding roads of western Montana, HOME.
These annual roadtrips fill me with inspiration : the varieties of landscapes I pass through, the funny observations that start stories spinning in my mind, the different color palates and monuments flying past my window…
There are a few new prints in MY SHOP inspired by these trips back and forth across the west.
A reminder of summer adventures to hang on your wall.
Monday Morning Joy : MUSIC!
These were my three favorite songs that I heard last weekend at the Red Ants Pants Music Festival.
Martha Scanlan * Seeds of the Pine
Side note: the Festival was AH-MAZING! It’s going to be an annual affair : Mark your calendars for late July 2012 and plan your trips to Montana NOW. So worth it.
The setting is amazing — all sky and grass and mountains. The people were incredible — every demographic possible and all so happy to be there. And the music was phenomenal — see above.
Two of my favorite past times : cooking and reading
I love to cook all the time, but there is something especially magical about planning meals in the summer. Maybe it’s the long days that makes it feel like there is time for elaborate preparations. Or the abundance of fresh produce. Or the activities and adventures that make food taste so much better.
Whatever the reason, some of my favorite summer reads also revolve around food. Many of these are well known and if you haven’t read them, check your local library. Others are more obscure but SO wonderful and worth looking through used bookstores for :
The Supper of the Lamb by Robert Farrar Capon (wouldn’t you HAVE to become a food writer if your last name is Capon?!)
ANYTHING written by MFK Fisher
South Wind Through the Kitchen by Elizabeth David
My Life in France by Julia Child
I’m headed to Seattle for the week to visit family and friends (one just moved onto a houseboat!!!!!!!!) and stumbled across this at the library : My Sweet Life in Paris by David Lebovitz . I love reading his blog — full of humor and astute observations on food and culture — so I CAN’T WAIT to settle into my seat on the plane and crack this open.
Vacation, here I come!
Joy as wide as a meadow
Della’s favorite past-time is to chase songbirds.
Her herding instincts have targeted the wrong species and she doesn’t seem to care a whit that they pay no attention to her directional suggestions. She runs full speed back and forth across the hillside, hidden these days by the tall grass. Every so often I’ll get a glimpse of black ears and white face and giant smile spy-hopping through the flowers. She and I came home from an adventure in our favorite meadow today and my fella said her head smelled like flowers. Now she’s passed out in the sun, a smile still on her face.
She is the best reminder in my life to be present and enjoy every moment — even the impossible tasks.
Monday Morning Joy : Katie Vernon
I love illustration that instantly takes me away to an imaginary world. I can’t look at these critters without stories rushing into my head…
See more of her beautiful florals HERE.
A Weekend Full of Music
We’re heading north this weekend for the Red Ants Pants Music Festival and while it is getting easier and easier to find gluten-free food out into the world, when I travel I like to be prepared. I’ve gotten stuck, hungry and cranky, with gas station string cheese and potato chips my only options often enough to know to pack a little emergency kit of goodies.
Whether you’re gluten intolerant or not, I thought I’d share my favorite camping and traveling snacks:
* THESE cookies are a MUST — they’re healthy enough to work as breakfast in a pinch and satisfying for an afternoon treat. And very adaptable : last night I got stuck without oats, so I used flax seed meal, sorghum flour and millet flour instead (in a 1:1:1 ratio) and added a dollop of almond butter. They came out delicious.
* I’m a huge fan of beef jerky when traveling and we have the last bit of homemade venison jerky left in the freezer, so that will be coming along.
* I often forget about hard-boiled eggs when I’m home, but ALWAYS remember them when camping. Make ahead-able, packable, full of energy…perfect.
* Carrots and hummus. It seems like most of the GF energy bars out there are super sweet and when my energy is low, sweets are the last thing I want to eat. Like hard-boiled eggs, hummus is something I rarely eat at home, but LOVE on the road.
So. I’m off to the store to stock up on a few last minute goodies and then off we go.
Do you have any fun plans for the weekend?
Treasure from the strawberry field
Saturday morning I woke early, made myself a cup of coffee and ventured out to a local you-pick farm to gather strawberries. Nestled at the end of the valley, surrounded by the foothills of the Bridger and Gallatin mountains, I filled my baskets.
Picking strawberries is like a treasure hunt — gently folding back lush foliage to find clusters of jewel-red berries nestled in the shadows. And even though my baskets overflowed, there were more and more and more glistening in the sunlight, luring me down the rows. I finally had to pull myself away, collect my bounty and head home. I froze the majority — capturing sunshine for midwinter smoothies.
But almost of their own accord, one batch of berries hopped into a pot to become jam.
It’s more of a compote than a jam — loose, full of chunky berries, and not too sweet.
I have a jar of wooden spoons on the counter next to my stove and each has its own personality — just right for certain jobs. One of the spoons came from my Grandma’s old kitchen when she moved into her current home.
Whenever I use it I think of all I’ve learned from her, of all the deliciousness that has come from her kitchen, and everything I make with it tastes better because of it. I love that it is slightly asymmetrical from stirring and that it’s just the right size and length… just right for tasting strawberry preserves, still warm, straight from the pot.
If you’re interested:
Summer Strawberry Preserves
8 cups strawberries — de-greened, small ones left whole and larger ones quartered
3/4 cup sugar
* Combine in a non-reactive pot, stir gently, cover and let sit for 30 to 120 minutes. This gives the strawberries time to release their juices so there is no need to add any liquid and dilute the berry’s flavor. It gives you time to hang a load of laundry on the line or read a chapter in your fun-summer-reading book or play a game with your dog or child or significant other…
* Turn heat to med-low, uncover and let simmer until thick. I am notorious for forgetting about jam and mine went from about 8 cups to about 3 cups in quite a few hours (like I said, I lost track of time), but it is thick and rich and lovely. You can let yours cook until it is just right for you, but on low heat, expect to let it simmer for at least an hour or two. It is very low maintenance — I think I stirred mine twice.
* Preserve preserves in jars (you’ll want to boil the jars for 10-15 minutes to seal them), or freeze, or eat over vanilla ice cream, or in a tart, or with a spoon. This recipe can be scaled in either direction and, as always, adjusted to suit your tastes.
* * *
This year I got tired of sullying my jewel-like preserves with scrawling labels scribbled on the lids with sharpee, so I made some labels of my own. They’re in the SHOP for you as well!
September is my big preserving month, but I know it’s coming soon for many of you in warmer climates. If you are elbow deep in canning and looking for the perfect labels, look no further.
HELLO!
Welcome to Paper Route Designs and a glimpse into my life, my inspiration and my creative process.
I hope you enjoy.
Contact me :
karin {AT} paperroutedesigns {DOT} com
