Our Spring Harvest

 Our first meal from our garden was our faithful Asparagus, with its tender shoots of many sizes sautéed in olive oil and fresh garlic, sprinkled with parmesan cheese.

 

Our Woodland brought forth the deliciously tender  fiddleheads we have come to look for every spring Fiddleheads  still in the curled state before it is a fern, cleaned, parboiled, and sautéed in olive oil and garlic is also a very tasty morsel.

 

Our Rhubarb is also faithful and abundant once established in a place undisturbed, though there is many things you can make with rhubarb our family's favorite is Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp.

Rhubarb also freezes well for later use.

White Lady Slipper

I have a white slipper all covered with dew, It sleeps in my forest as the pink ones do, It comes every year, I love it so dear, It always seem magical when it appears. By Cindy Somero

Spring Color In S.C.

I was fortunate enough to be in SC. in March/ April and watch spring come alive with their magnificent color. I do believe it is as beautiful as our falls in New England, so I thought I would share some pictures I took.

A Piece Of Heaven's Cove

 

 Here in the cove tucked back in the woods, not far from shore sits our rustic camp over looking a cove only God could be responsible for. We are so blessed with many wildlife visitors utilizing the shallow cove out front, as well as the woodland creatures in our back yard, seeking food and shelter, giving us sights some have only dreamed of.

 Though it is so beautiful, it is also true to life nature, with that there are some bitter sweet lessons we have to endure.    

 

 Most of the time in the early morning our cove is like glass, later becoming rough, some day's more rougher then others depending on the Old Northwest Wind, the nice thing to that is, there is always a breeze at our place, witch helps to keep the mosquito's at bay and our camp stay's cooler in the heat of the summer.

 As evening falls and the sun gives everything a silhouette look, the amazing colors from the sunset fills the sky leaving it's reflection on the water. Then the pond grows calm and inviting once more, fishing is always good in the evening and my children look forward to it.

As I lay in my bed, in the still of the night, a sound comes forth echoing down the pond with mournful wails and screams, it is the Loon, though many find it eerie, I find it mysteriously comforting. I go to sleep listening to the Loons talking to each other, only to be awaken by the scream of the Bald Eagle as he fly's over looking for breakfast, I scurry out to the kitchen for coffee, grab my camera, in hopes of some great photos as well as to watch the pond come alive.

The pond like glass, except for the fish jumping leaving rings of water ripples behind, calling attention to there predators.

The eagle is on his  faithful old  snag over looking the cove, today he has his eaglets with him no doubt teaching them hunting skills.

The cove is quite busy today, over on the big old pine also over looking the pond is a pair of Pileated Wood Peckers chipping on a branch most likely full of ants.

In the cove the Loons are not just a sound this morning, they have made there appearance sharing with us a baby on her back, so proud the parents seem to be. Loons are one of my favorite, the father and mother are so attentive, teaching there babies everything to be able to survive in the wild.

I do believe they as well as many of our other  visitors, utilize the things that we put out every spring, our raft make a fine place to hide under or behind, well even on top as the cormorant has found it a nice place to dry his wings,

 our very long dock has served as a landing pad for the Spotted Plover who nest near by.

Our son's sailboat's tall mast has been a favorite place for the Belted King Fisher to perch and hunt from.

now the kayakers are starting to come by . and soon the fisherman will be over by the weed bed doing some bass fishing.

the children have awaken, with there bight eye's and smiles to meet but another awesome day, in A Piece Of Heaven's Cove.

Fruit Pannu Kakka

                                             

 This is one of my families favorite, I'm making this one with apples but have made it with blue berry sauce also good, Preheat oven to 440/450 Spray a good coat of cooking oil on a 9x13 pan, peel, core and slice 3 cooking apples,

In small pot melt 1/4c. butter then add 1/2c. brown sugar,2TB. water 1 1/2tsp of apple pie spice and 1tsp. vanilla cook over med. heat until sauce becomes thick and apples are tender.













                                                                                  

Pour apple mixture in to your well greased 9x13 and spread it , set a side, In a small bowl beat 6 eggs with wire wisk

In med. bowl add 1c. flour, 1c. milk and a dash of salt mix well

Mix well, pour over the prepared apple mixture in the 9x13 and bake in oven 20-25min.

 Add egg mixture to flour mixture,

With a little maple syrup YUM!!

 

September in NH

September brings us to the first signs of fall, chilly mornings with spotty frost here and there, the foliage has started showing its brilliant color's and my all time favorite the Concord Grape with its robust smell,  blue in color, tells me they are ready to be picked to make in to jelly/jam. This year my daughter and I were blessed to have my sister-in-law and her precious daughters help. There is nothing more fun then making things with others.

the grape vine heavy with Concord  Grapes  

Jo-Lynn filling her basket  

it takes about  4 pounds of grapes to make a batch of jam

Eliza and my daughter pressing the grapes though the berry strainer

even little Sylvia is able to help

this allows only minimal pulp and grape juice to be strained though, leaving behind the seeds and skin , to be discarded if making jelly, to make jam add skins

 we followed the Sure-Jell  cooked recipe on the boxes

after making jam/jelly fill hot  jars 3/4 full screw on covers tight and stand up side down over night to seal  

we like to cut circle out of scrap material,  tying  them on the lids for that simply country look

with some of our home made bread that we have  toasted and our Concord Grape jelly we  just made, makes a delicious breakfast.

A Field Trip To Remember

In the misted of a small New England town tucked away in the forest lies the ruins of Madame Sherri's Castle.

 

Madame Sherri, was born in Paris France her name was Antoinette De Lilas, she was a music hall singer in Paris when she met, fell in love and married Andre Riela a silent film actor, theatrical producer, also a son of an Italian Diplomat in New York City.

 

Andre and Antoinette sailed back to New York City, but after a very cold reception, in 1911 they changed there name to Sherri, then became theatrical costume designers opening a shop in New York City making a good living. In 1924 Andre passed away,

Madame Sherri now in her 50's took a trip to Chesterfield N.H. to visit with a friend Jack Henderson, she liked it there so much she purchased a small farm with some 500 acres of land. Madame then built the most extravagant summer castle like home anyone had ever seen, to host wild lavish party's, bring her friends from New York City, filling the forest with music and laughter. It was said there was scandalous things going on there by some of the town folk, like Madame Sherri driving through town with only her fur coat on.

 Madame Sherri continued to party until she was broke, in the late 50's she moved in to Maple Rest Nursing Home in Brattleboro VT.  On Oct. 18th 1962 the castle burned down leaving only, the stone remains' of a architectural masterpiece.    Madame Sherri died in 1965 at the age of 84 and was laid to rest in Meeting House Mill Cemetery, in Brattleboro VT.

At some point Ann Stokes bought the property and generously donated this land for conservation to the Society For The Preservation Of N.H.  Come and view the ruins of the castle, bring your hiking shoe's there are hiking trails here, some more strenuous than others but worth it for some of the views. As a homeschool family we sure love the freedom of sharing and finding lost history that was not in the text books. This was a field trip a good friend of mine and a fellow homeschooler shared with our lovely daughters. The girls refer to this as the Madame Sherri's Enchanted Forest field trip.