Put A Lid On It

The mason jar, to which I am clearly eternally indebted, recently celebrated its 125th anniversary. Those of you in East Central Indiana might want to stop by the Minnetrista Center for their new exhibit, "Can It!", an homage to all things tempered glass-screw band-and-lid related. According to the Center's website: 

"This highly interactive original exhibit not only looks at the historical production of the Ball jar and its influence on Muncie and surrounding communities, it engages visitors in exploring their personal connections with Ball."

And if that weren't enough to tempt you to book the next flight to Indiana, consider that the first 125 exhibit visitors will receive the Anniversary Edition of the Ball Book Guide to Preserving. If you're unable to make the exhibit, consider whipping up a batch of rhubarb jam or pickled asparagus instead as a gesture of gratitude to John Mason's laudable invention. You could also just fill an empty jar with beer, wine, whiskey, or, for the kiddos, apple juice, and hoist it high in thanks! Do any of you can? I'd love to know what goodies you're putting up in your kitchen.

*Image by neuralstudios.net. 

This Slow House

I just read a very thoughtful article about applying the principles of slow foods to home design and decor. The article, which can be found on the design blog designsponge, highlights ways to make conscientious, sustainable choices in a time of economic and environmental uncertainty. Here's an excerpt that really called to me: 

"Much like the slow food movement that promotes using sustainable organic foods that are in season, we need to commit to a 'slow home' ideal. To me, much of the same philosophies in slow food apply to slow home-buy sustainable, efficient products that make as small of an impact on the environment as possible. Like the slow food movement, a slow home can seem expensive and time consuming. But just start small and don't cave to the idea that you have to live off the grid to make a difference. When we buy slower, we buy better. Since no one is rushing to spend money on all new furniture or replace their entire kitchen these days, let's use this time to get to know where the things we own come from."

The author then goes on to suggest shopping for vintage or re-purposed items, buying from an online crafter through sites like Etsy, or learning of local craftspersons in your area making everything from blankets, to ceramics, furniture,and  glass. Where I live, in Asheville, N.C., the ability to support the crafting community is enormous, with biannual craft fairs, ongoing studio strolls, and even the local state university outpost, UNC-Asheville (my alma mater), getting in on the action with an annual ceramics sale by students in the ceramics department. And Asheville isn't that big. Who knows what might exist in larger locales. 

*Small Measure: Make slow purchases. Take your time when opting to bring something new into your home, whether it be an armchair, a drinking glass, a canister, or pillow. See what might already exist in your community. Find ways to repurpose items gathering dust in your basement, spare room, or nearby antique store. Check the local paper for estate sales and auctions (a riot of fun, especially here in the south-I mean, have you ever actually heard an auctioneer do their thing? It boggles the mind.) You could even simply rearrange your furniture if you're anxious for a quick, albeit "slow", fix, which my mom did ALL THE TIME when I was growing up. Whatever you do, just do it thoughtfully. Speed isn't everything. Like the Aesop fable "The Tortoise and the Hare" indicates, "slow and steady wins the race." Ready? Set? Mosey.....

*Image from treehugger.com.

Enjoy the Show

One of my long-time bloggies who recently delurked, Siån (who keeps a pretty fabulous blog herself), posted a link recently I thought I'd share. It's by the Guardian, a UK-based newspaper for those of you unfamiliar with it, and it's full of blessedly cheap and easy things to do this spring.  While some things won't necessarily translate if you're on this side of the pond (are there cuckoos stateside, anyone?), many of them will. 

So, put on some rain boots (or Wellies, as it were), grab a pair of binoculars, and get moving. Hope springs eternal, but springtime delights are decidedly ephemeral! Will you be partaking in any spring-related activities this weekend? 

*Small Measure: The best things in life are free. That's it, plain and simple. Hugs, kisses, a hummingbird's buzz, a wink from a strange old lady-no benjamins necessary. 

*Image by Biltmore.com.

Start Me Up

I've begun sowing seeds like my life depended on it. I'm really hoping to grow most of our own produce this year. 
With finishing up the last book, I got a little behind on starting seeds, but I'm steadily catching up. I absolutely adore the process of sowing seeds. To witness the latent life inside a tiny seed is such an inspiring metaphor to consider.

These shelves (sorry for the quality of the photo-it's a dark corner and it has been raining outside today) will hold everything from culinary & medicinal flowers, to cut flowers, and, of course, many varieties of vegetables. The dangle-y things on the far right are asparagus crowns, which will be put in as soon as it stops raining (they'll take 2 years of uninterrupted growth before harvest, though, so planting them will be a lesson in patience). 
I've been especially interested in heirloom and unusual seed varieties, in order to diversify the selections that we're so often limited to when shopping for produce in large supermarkets, even natural food ones. 
I've got another batch to sow this weekend, and then one more round after that. Otherwise, I've got a good bit of seeds to sow directly in April and then another batch to sow once it warms up a bit more, in mid-May. 

Are you growing anything this year, even if it's just a pot of parsley on a windowsill? Seed starting is pretty popular these days. Check out this article from the New York Times. 

*Small Measure: Grow something! It needn't be grandiose or even abundant. Start small if all you have is a windowsill. I once grew beans and tomatoes inside a 3rd floor apartment from the light provided by a skylight. Growing something yourself obviously shortens the transit necessary for foods to reach the table, but it also presents opportunities for eating foods at their peak of ripeness. Growing foods also forces you to slow down. Healthy growth takes time, patience, and love. 

No More Junk In the Trunk

Heard of Freecycle? It's the absolute best way to gift others with things you no longer want or need, and to keep them from choking up landfills. Case in point: I just today "freecycled" (it becomes a verb when you get onboard!) 1/2 of an old oil drum's worth of kerosene (used by the previous property owners to heat their greenhouses); the worn out  (not to mention torn and somewhat slimy with mold) plastic and shade cloth from said greenhouses; and the plywood and 2'x4''s used to cap the greenhouse ends. At no cost on my end, I might add. Find out if a freecyle exists near you and make your junk available to the world! Do you already Freecycle? Could you see yourself participating in such an endeavor? 

*Small Measure: Freecycle! Your trash is someone else's treasure. You'd be surprised what other folks find value in. 

*Image from Freecycle.org. 

Turn Out Your House Lights, Wherever You Are

I'm supporting this initiative sponsored by WWF (the non-profit formerly known as World Wildlife Fund), of whom I've been a long-time endorser. Here's the statement from their website: 

"This year, Earth Hour has been transformed into the world's first global election, between Earth and global warming. For the first time in history, people of all ages, nationalities, races and backgrounds have the opportunity to use their light switch as their vote-switching off your lights is a vote for Earth, or leaving them on is a vote for global warming. WWF are urging the world to VOTE EARTH and reach the target of 1 billion otes, which will be presented to world leaders at the Global Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, Denmark 2009. This meeting will determine official government policies to take action against global warming, which will replace the Kyoto Protocol. It is the chance for the people of the world to make their voices heard."

It happens tonight, from 8:30-9:30. Make yourself a cup of tea, pour yourself a glass of wine, or, if you run with the underage set, have a plate of cookies with milk, and flick the lights off. Besides, everyone looks good in candlelight. 

*Image by farm4.static.flickr.com.

The Hotness

A few more scenes from last week's photo shoot. Here I am pulling a sweet potato souffle from the oven. It puffed up gloriously and went down the hatch scrumptiously! 
The edges browned just the way I'd hoped they would and, having NOT folded the egg whites in as fastidiously as I had the previous evening when prepping for the shoot, the souffle baked up perfectly. Hot perfection in a bowl, folks. 
Behind the scenes. I've always been intrigued by food photography and food styling and it was a real treat to see what the process of making food pretty for picture-taking involves. 
The strange thing sneaking into the frame at the top left is a blowtorch, used to sizzle up these pumpkin creme brûlées. While I can't share with you the final pictures (have to wait until publication next April), I can assure you that they are grand. You'll be licking the page, without shame or remorse. 

*Small Measure: Use cloth napkins. They're inherently more absorbent than their paper cousins, definitely more attractive, and don't need to be tossed in the garbage at the end of every feeding session. We keep a large range and use them at every meal. Once they become oil-stained, or have one too many enduring marinara streaks to be guest-worthy, I transition them to the kitchen cloth stash, which, in a similar fashion, I use instead of paper towels. Plus, they give you a polished edge, even if you're slurping up pizza in your jammies.