All Things Nice . . .

 

 

 

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I like old fashioned food, salt risn' bread

A batch of cookies in a covered crock,

Sweet cakes with currants in and caraway

Cabbage and carrots and a piece of hock

Simmered to bring the hidden flavor out,

A bit of pork smothered in sauerkraut.

I like an apple pie baked to a turn

Flavored with nutmeg and a pinch of clove

Brown crusted bread sweet as a hazel nut

Baked slowly in a big old fashioned stove,

'Er buckwheat pancakes sizzling from the pan

Enough to warm the heart of any man.

Johnny cake . . . gingerbread and chili sauce

Fried potatoes done to a golden brown,

And jelly roll whose crumbling sides drip jam

(My mother was the best cook in the town)

Oh yes -- I had forgotten pumpkin pie

Thinking of Maw's, I could sit down and cry.

I might as well give up, for what's the use

Loving these things I never could reduce.

~Edna Jaques, Old Fashioned Food

Roses in December, 1944

I have started a blanket in autumn colors.  I sent away to the UK for the right yarn. It arrived yesterday. Stylecraft. It is the yarn I always used when I lived there. They ship to Canada, and it was very reasonable. I was quite pleasantly surprised. The cats now leave me alone when I crochet. At first, they are interested but then when I give them a firm no, they go off and leave me to do what I am doing.

Nutmeg has taken a dislike to seeing me writing with a pen. As soon as I get out a pen and paper, he tries to bat the pen out of my hand and quite aggressively. I know he is just playing, but I am finding it quite annoying!

At least I am not on my own and lonesome. 

I had determined earlier this year that every now and then I was going to purchase a special dish/container etc. to use as a photo prop.  I finally bought one. I fell in love with this pie baker/holder. I love dishes with words on them. This one also came with a pie server with words stamped on it which say "Piece & Love."  Now all I have to do is bake pies that fit into it. I baked a pie yesterday, but alas it didn't fit. 

I should have taken a photograph yesterday before the wind started blowing all the leaves from the trees. The colors across the way were just brilliant. Scarlets and oranges.  When you go to the end of my street and look down towards the North Mountain both sides of the road are lined with stunning autumn colors.  It is like a tunnel of scarlet, orange, and yellow.  Simply beautiful.

When I was a child and living across the road there were no houses here, or very few along the road. This was an incredibly rural area, just on the edge of the town of Middleton proper. We could not catch the bus to school, but the kids across the road could. It somehow didn't seem fair, especially on a cold and windy day that was pouring of rain. Staying home was never an option. It was a long walk to school most days, but in the pouring rain it was even longer.

We are expecting a lot of rain here today according to the forecast, but the temperatures are quite mild.

 

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There probably won't be a lot of leaf left between the wind and the rain when all is said and done. That's this time of year. The beauty is stunning while it lasts, but it disappears seemingly overnight at times.

This next week I am going to get a few pumpkins to carve for Halloween.  Dan won't be able to come over and decorate this year as he is working now and doesn't finish until six. Then by the time he gets home, showered, has his dinner etc. he is too pooped to pop.  I can't say that I blame him. I'll be handing out the treats all on my own this year.

When my children were growing up my husband always had to work on Halloween. That is what it is like when your husband is in law enforcement. There are certain times when they just have to work. I would have to shut the house down and then take out the children.  It was very rare when he would be around to do that. 

When we lived in New Brunswick, we had Halloween parties at our home as we lived in a very rural area. We did bobbing for apples and all the usual things. The children always loved the game where you strung donuts up and they had to eat them with their hands behind their backs.  So much fun with all the food and gaiety!  There was a young man in the area who always did a haunted house every year in this old house he had inherited.  The kids always loved to visit that.  

It was all good old fashioned innocent fun.

 

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When we were children we were not allowed to eat our Halloween goodies until they were inspected.  We would each pick an area on the living room carpet and empty out our bags.  We took great delight in separating everything into little piles.  The bag smelled like apples and gum and molasses taffy, a bit of popcorn. Back in those days people would pop corn and put it into little decorated paper bags, stapled shut. You got apples of course. (Never our favorite, haha. Apples were every day treats not Halloween treats! I know . . .  how ungrateful.) 

There we would be on the carpet surrounded with little piles of boxes of chiclets gum, Taffy bats, wax paper wrapped molasses taffy, suckers, the occasional chocolate bar, and the creme de la creme of Halloween treats, bags of potato chips. Not many of those were given out. Not like today.  Today it is all chocolate and potato chips. I don't think I have seen molasses taffy in years.

We were allowed to have one or two treats on the night. That's all.  We never felt deprived however. It was just how things were.

 

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There is a field of pumpkins not far from my sister's place. We remarked on it one day when we were driving past.  It seems just a few days before the field was filled with large green leaves with the odd glimpse of orange peeking through and then overnight the leaves were brown and wilting and then all of a sudden it seemed the pumpkins were laying in the field with no leaves at all. They must spray them with something to make it easier to harvest the pumpkins without any vegetation interfering.

 

There is a friend of mine on Facebook. When the fields of the surrounding farms are all harvested, he gleans the fields. He walks the fields picking up what is left behind. He brings it home, bags it up and takes it to the local food banks.  It is such a kind thing to do and such a wonderful service to his fellow beings. He's done onions, carrots, broccoli, potatoes, etc.  As you can see lots of good veg gets left in the fields to rot.  He has permission to do it. Some of the leavings are a bit unusually shaped, (witness the carrot above,) but they are all perfectly nutritious and edible.  It is kind people like him who make a difference in the world.  They make our world a better place.

 

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I am sitting here thinking about what I want to cook today.  I have some apples that need using up. I might make some apple butter.  I found a good recipe for a batch that bakes in the oven.  It sounds good. I love apple butter. Mostly I like to enjoy it with pork, but it is also very good in cakes and such. A spice cake with some apple butter spread in between the layers is very nice indeed.

I have been invited to a Birthday celebration today at the Oak and Barrell, but I won't be going.  I think it is a bit too soon to gather together like that for things such as this.  I am not feeling it. Last weekend when my son and his wife came over, the whole family tested first to make sure we were not bringing/entertaining any unwelcome guests.  I don't feel it is worth the risk.

And with that I best get off here and get started on my day. That apple butter isn't going to make itself!

A thought to carry with you . . . 

° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •
•。★★ 。* 。
° 。 ° ˛˚˛ * _Π_____*。*˚
˚ ˛ •˛•˚ */______/~＼。˚ ˚ ˛

˚ ˛ •˛• ˚ ｜ 田田 ｜門 ★

*Some days are better; some days are worse.

Look for the blessing instead of the curse.

Be positive, stay strong, and get enough rest.

You can't do it all, but you can do your best.

•。★★ 。* 。•。★★ 。* 。•。★★ 。* 。 

In The English Kitchen today . . .  Date & Walnut Pie.  This was quite simply fabulous. Simple and easy to make and oh so tasty.

I hope that you have a wonderful day filled with all the things and the people that you love. Whatever you get up to, don't forget! 

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And I do too!