Free Bleach

"It is good to hang white clothes outside on a sunny day
when the temperature is below freezing.
Freezing and sunshine helps to whiten them.
This is not good for colors, however, as they tend to fade."
Esther H. Shank in Mennonite Country Style Recipes & Kitchen Secrets.


From my experience with winter laundry:
1. Get the laundry on the line as soon as possible - winter days are short!
2. There must be a breeze or the laundry may not be dry before dusk and damp start falling.
3. Laundry freezes in less than 5 minutes.
4. The smell of winter sunshine dried sheets is so deeply comforting, brisk, and sweet. . .I gladly brave numb fingers for that scent - it was 24 degrees this morning.

A Warm Lovey

Recently my daughter has been asking for the hot water bottle when she takes her afternoon rest. Hot water bottles and rice bags (fabric bag filled with dry rice, nuked in the microwave) are such a comfort in cold Northern winters - good for tummy aches, sitting-still-jobs, and beds that bodies haven't warmed up yet.

And I love making rice bags and hot water bottle covers - a colorful scrappy project that doesn't have to match anything, like potholders. For the bottle cover, I messed around with the buttonhole function on my new Bernina when I made it last year: a good test run where the results are not on display as they would be in garments.



The frog came empty from someone else's stash and my friend estimates her great grandmother made him in the 60s. It was the work of 5 minutes to fill him with rice and sew shut. I very carefully experimented with microwaving him because of his vintage button eyes, but it works just fine to heat him up.

Dark Days: Winter Salad & Chard Cheese Bake

Dark Days Challenge 09/10, week 7. Start with local organic Swiss chard ("It's so pretty, Mommy! Pink and yellow.").



Steam the chard. Mix together some homemade organic bread, grated local cheddar cheese, local eggs, local milk, and a bit of local organic onion.



Combine. Bake.

Zest and juice part of a (guilty) lemon; tame it with a bit of sugar and olive oil, add some salt. Then dress the leftover local organic roasted sweet potatoes, turnips, and (non-local) garlic. This is winter salad.



Serve to delighted family. They like the taste, and I also like the ease, nutrition, and simplicity.



A note about balanced meals: I am particular about having vegetables, carbs, and protein at meals. Chard Cheese Bake is basically complete: protein from the eggs and cheese, carbs from bread, and vegetables from chard and onion. But I like a bit more for dinner. So root vegetables, which hover between vegetable and carbohydrate, are a good companion for this meal. They are chewy and smoky from being roasted - a nice contrast to the soft, rich egg dish - and adding the extra punch of vegetable and tummy-filler for the children.

Crayon Container for the Second Born

Today I noticed the second born child coloring. . .taking his crayons out of the empty cornstarch container. He was perfectly content, but I felt a pang: should I make him a crayon wrap?

I contented myself by noticing the little wool hand-knit sweater he was wearing. I touched it tentatively at a garage sale in a tony neighborhood last year. The woman selling it started reminiscing: she knitted it for her sons and hoped to pass it on to her grandsons, but they - the sons and their wives - didn't want it. Whaaaat?! I bought it instantly with indignation and pity; she sold it to me for (sit down) a quarter.



I took it home, darned the holes, and washed it. Yes, it is a bit ragged and stretched out, slightly felted from all its washings, but I love to think of the mama knitting it for her little boys, making the stripes and choosing the buttons. Ben loves it and it keeps him toasty this very cold winter.

Colored Pencil Wrap

When I opened the drawer for the 50th time and found colored pencils everywhere, I decided to do something. I had seen these wraps before and this is the kind of project I love: it uses scraps and doesn't have to match anything. I love playing with color and texture in such projects.



The final wrap works fine, but the ties are a bit misplaced and long. Genevieve loves it. Ben loves it too: she runs off to play and he climbs up in the chair, very carefully taking the colored pencils in and out, so quiet I get suspicious and come looking for him. And find him sweetly occupied with something I have made. Now that is a nice feeling.

Good Luck Sauerkraut

Overheard at church this morning:

Mrs. Pennington: David, did you eat any pork and sauerkraut?
David: Not yet. We're having it for dinner today. Some people think it gives you good luck for the new year.
Mrs. Pennington: My brother believed it did. He had to have his pork and sauerkraut every January first. And he had a terrible life.
[pregnant pause]
Mrs. Pennington: Do you believe it gives good luck?
David: I don't know - it just tastes good.



oh yes, yes it does! We ate so hard at dinner today I only remembered to snap photos when we were done. The children come home from church roaring hungry and tired, so I work hard to be sure dinner is ready when we walk in the door.
I roasted the pork yesterday and chunked it. This morning I layered it with locally made sauerkraut, caraway seeds, an apple, an onion and salt. We ate it with hand-mashed potatoes, peas and (shamefaced grin) carrot-n-jello salad. My husband sniffs: "THAT is not a salad." I know: it's a Mennonite throwback to the 50s that has survived in my family cookery because it is such a refreshing counterpoint to the rich, heavy pork and sauerkraut.



Another "good luck" food I've heard of is black eyed peas or Hoppin' John. What do you eat for New Year's Day, good luck or no?

Happy New Year!

Excellent festivities last night; the new year is very satisfactorily rung in. I was so busy having a good time I only snapped a few pictures.

I love New Year's Eve to be a bit crazy and over the top - glitter, yelling, lots of champagne and candles, funky flowers pinned on hats. I dressed the table with wild inspiration (my husband said: "that's interesting." But later he told me I'm fun to hang out with, so I forgive him).



Popping one of the champagne corks.



Preparing the Ethiopian feast, a perfect night for take out.



I've been looking for an occasion to use this recipe for years now. Everything finally clicked: a light, exotic, make-ahead dessert.

Dates with Cardamom (originally from Gourmet, but lots of changes)
I took one pound of dried dates, boiled strong coffee with 10 cardamom pods, 2 tsp. sugar, and 1/2 cinnamon stick. Then I marinated the dates for a few hours; drained the coffee off and boiled it until it was reduced by 1/3. Marinated the dates again. At dessert time, I spooned plain whole-milk yogurt into small dishes, and put a few dates on top. Truly a lovely combination.

No one was taking pictures at this point (2am) so all I have is a picture of the dates in progress.




Today, one more family gathering to take cookies to, and I knew I didn't have enough cookies or patience.



They made play dough cookies.
I made Spicy Sugar Cookies.