I just counted and realized it has been a 10 month process for us (primarily our chief pickle babe Anne) to:

1. go to pickle school

2. find and develop recipes

3. find and order jars

4. get the initial approval

5. get the facility approval

6. get the recipe approval

7. get the who knows WHAT approval

8. actually MAKE the pickles

 

This is the yard of some friends of mine.  Glorious, yes?  We've had a fine fall around here and now, tucked into sweaters and jackets and knee socks, we're thinking about Thanksgiving and beyond.

 

My friend Annie told me about a restaurant she visited in Oakland that serves 800-1000 of these sandwiches every day.  (Can't imagine that, really.)  We took a look at their recipe and changed it to suit us.

 

Wednesdays will be our new day for this one.

 

Here are our dinners for this coming week. You might enjoy taking dinner home or to your favorite picnic spot or, heck, just to one of our tables. We'll reheat it for you even!

 

Order by noon and we'll have your dinner ready to pick up by 3. We are open until 8 now which makes it easy for you to dawdle if you like.

 

Monday, November 1

Sauerbraten Roast with Noodles and Sauerkraut 12.25

 

Tuesday, November 2

Chicken Croquettes with Mashed Potatoes and Applesauce 11.50

 

Wednesday, November 3

Rosemary and Fig-stuffed Pork Tenderloin 11.25

 

Thursday, November 4

Seared Tilapia with Butternut squash Gratin 14.50

 

Friday, November 5

Chicken and Mushroom Crepes with Wild Rice 11.25

 

* these are gluten free

 

(though it is important to know that

We make a special casserole each week.

 

Order by noon or so. Order a half if you have around 4 folks. If you have a bigger group, or you just like leftovers, order a full-sized one.

 

Then come pick up between 3:00 and 8:00. (Or bring a gang and enjoy your dinner right here. We do have beer and wine by the glass, you know.)

 

Please order by phone (252-1500) or stop in to speak to one of us in person.

 

The casserole for next week is:

 

Julia Child's Beef Bourguignon with Egg Noodles

Full: 56

Half: 28

 

We make Lasagna every Friday. Here is this week's offering.

 

Friday, November 5

Italian Sausage and Pepper Lasagna

Full: 45

Half: 22.50

 

Yup.  Our Thursday night Gourmet Comfort Tunes aka Thursday Night House Concerts are going well.  It really is sweet to come here early, have simple supper, listen to some honest-to-goodness local music, and get home before 9. 

 

Suits me.  How about you?

 

I spent yesterday morning with my Chefs Move to Schools class.  When I arrived they were out in the garden picking chard and digging up sweet potatoes.  They'd been to the Farmer's market and had some local sweet potatoes and butternut squash.

 

We did a comparison tasting of honey, molasses, and sorghum and, when it came to a vote, the honey won. They told me they were "more comfortable" with the honey and so chose it.  (A First-grader said that!)

 

Okay, as I've been hinting, I am going to ride my bike from North Dakota to Maine next summer as a fund-raiser for Be The Match, the group that helped Henry's doctors find a bone marrow donor - which has saved his life.

My primary wish is to get 500 people to register as a donor, but this is also a fund-raiser for this foundation, which gives money to families when they need it. We're going to have a donor registration drive here before too long but you can read all about the ride and the requirements for being a donor on the Be The Match website.

October 30, 2010

 

Brrr!!!!

 

I wore my winter parka last night and I’m sitting here shivering in the office right now. We have a party going on in the Garden Room and while THEY are all toasty and happily taking pictures of each other and enjoying the camaraderie, I’m FREEZING!

 

The sacrifices I make!

 

Actually, I’m thrilled to have these folks here. I love chilly weather and I was happy to watch a football game in the cold air, happy to be snug in my parka with my dorky hat – that was keeping my head warm.

 

I’m invigorated by this weather. I go home each day and blow the leaves off the deck. The next day I come home and there’s a whole new collection. Rather than feeling like Sisyphus, I am enjoying the routine, the repetition, the satisfaction. Silly, perhaps. Tye, my pup, follows me around, shaking her head at her dumb mom.

 

Yesterday when I got home Tye was in her usual spot, head poking through the logs of the porch railing. But yesterday, rather than squealing with delight at seeing me, she was quaking with excitement because there were 12 chickens tauntingly scratching around – right underneath the porch! MOM! MOM! MOM! Let me out! Let me get those things for you!!!

 

 

Did I tell you about Tye grabbing, shaking and killing a chicken right before a brunch earlier this summer? It was dramatic and horrifying and very quick.

 

And there was no way I was letting her off the porch yesterday. Visions of feathers and dead chickens flew through my mind and, try as she would, Tye did not convince me to let her go. I got out the blower, tried to calmly ignore her pleas, and swept off the collected leaves. After that I went inside and, caught up by a spurt of energy, I vacuumed my entire house. I cleaned the kitchen. Emptied the garbage. Checked my e-mails. And then realized Tye had been suspiciously absent from these chores.

 

Normally she pads around with me as I clean up each room. Normally she sighs, settles in, waiting for my frenzy to subside.

 

But yesterday, as I realized she was AWOL I whistled. Much to my relief she came right away – from inside the house. Uh oh, I thought, I’ve left the gate open. But no, once I followed I found the source of her attention.

 

Way in the back of the house, just on the other side of the fence, the flock of chickens posed, tantalizingly close, but safely ensconced in the trees. They clucked, paraded, muttered.

 

Poor girl. I stowed the vacuum cleaner, tucked her into the car, and gave her a little drive to let her settle down. And last night, curled in her bed, she whimpered in her sleep. Maybe she was flying after those pesky birds.

 

I DO miss Vermont at this time of year but our colors have been quite spectacular this year.  My camera is full of color.  My yard, my drives, even the garden here at work are loaded with brightness.  And it has lasted and lasted and LASTED!