Who goes out on Halloween?

Two rolls of duct tape and some caution tape and we're off to Creepfest.

I was not going to squeeze back into my duct tape dress for an outside spooky garden party. So I put on my favorite Pocket Lady costume loaded with pockets full of toys for spooky girls and boys.

This boy's blade was extremely heavy...

This boy made me smile...

These were spooky...

These were bad to the bones...

Frida in the forest was fantastic...

This fairy in the garden was magical...

I just love this growling little literary leopard...

And finally this commando was really the most scary boy of all...

Apron Adventures - Plum Galette

fresh from the orchard and ready for a delicious Plum Galette

pate brisee

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
8 ounces chilled unsalted butter (2 sticks; frozen then cut into cubes)
1/2 cup water

In the bowl of processor fitted with the metal blade, pulse flour and salt.

Add the butter; pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal; about 15 seconds.

With machine running add water in a slow steady stream; process until dough just holds together.

Turn out onto lightly floured surface; roll in rectangle shape 1/8 inch thick.


Fold and transfer to parchment paper lined baking sheet.

Plum Galette filling

1/2 cup nuts

2-3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch

1/4 teaspoon salt

Chop in bowl of processor until nuts fine bits.

Pour over dough leaving a 1 inch edge.

Slice plums and arrange over nut mixture.

Fold over edges and lightly brush dough with egg wash (1 egg, lightly beaten).

Chill 30 minutes in refrigerator.

Bake 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 400 degrees; bake 30 minutes more or when plums are soft.

Cool to room temperature.

Heat plum, red-currant, apricot, or grape jam until melted and drizzle over the plum slices.

ENJOY!

April Tigers and Dirty Jobs

The joys of throwing a birthday party for a 5 year old who wishes for a Tigers and Dirty Jobs theme.

I absolutely adore throwing big parties. One of my favorite celebrations I love going nuts with is our kids birthdays. Everything from decorations, fun party games to food don't go without some insanity with the details.

The best 48 strawberry mascarpone filled cupcakes ever! Thanks Giadda!

The kids picked handfuls of bright yellow dandelions for table decorations. Pick as many of those as you want to kids!

We have the best big old maple for pinatas. I remember as a kid going to an annual party with my parents. They always had a pinata. I have such fond memories of that party and the pinata was such a highlight. I think it may have influenced me a bit much. We have a pinata at every party we host.

Mike Rowe eat your heart out... we knew you would never make it to the party. Your film crew missed out on one of the best dirty jobs party games ever. Get the Tiger out of the Mud (or Frosted Flakes for those kids who didn't want to get messy) without using your hands!

My husband and son have joined in the party planning craziness with custom fireworks shows. They spent days planning the exact timing and explosive detail for an increadible night cap.

Friends spontaneously brought their instruments for some fireside tunes before the sky lit up to top off an amazing April evening.

For some reason my 5th birthday party sticks in my memory. I wonder if this party will stick in her memory as it will mine.

Happy Birthday my dear, tiger wild at heart, not afraid to get dirty, daughter.

Hold up that hand of five little digits and be proud to be 5.

P.S. thanks to my dear friend Molly for taking many of these photographs. I soooo want your camera!

April Images I Love

April has been a busy month so far. The days have been full of celebrating birthdays in our family, a spring break adventure to Eureka Farm and Villa Tina in Palouse, preparing the gardens for spring planting and playful moments enjoying the small amount of sunshine days.

Through all the moments, my little Sony camera has been along for the ride. Out of the hundreds of images taken, here's some of my favorites.

What's left in the garden soup

Today we woke up to an inch of snow! Enough already! It didn't take long to melt off or prevent us from heading outside to enjoy some sunshine and do some gardening. Boots on, we tromped out into the fresh spring air, to plant a cherry tree, a gooseberry bush, two tree roses and some Merion Blackberries.

Molly and Avril also helped clean up the veggie garden. It was fun to find some colorful, edible treasures left over amongst the winter tattered veggie beds.

Freshly washed beets, carrots, scallions and leeks ready for the soup pot.

Avril singing and stir'n the veggies in the pot.

Saute chopped leeks, scallions in 2 Tablespoons butter and two large circles of Olive Oil.

Add chopped rainbow carrots and four Yukon Gold potatoes.

Some shakes of Salt and Pepper.

Cook until wilted.

Add two boxes chicken broth.

Boil until veggies are tender.

Use stick blender to puree and further cream the soup or leave chunky, your choice.

Delish!

lucky four leaf

Just before dusk, Avril and I went out to find our lucky four leaf and hunt for leprechauns and fairies. We didn't see any magical little people, but did pet some visiting dogs and came across a patch of lucky four leaves. May this luck we found travel from us to you.

seedling smiles

One of our favorite things to do this time of year is start seeds indoors. Years ago, Matt built us a fantastic grow stand. It has four lights and three shelves to hold the flats. Just last weekend we set everything up and got four flats of seeds going. It was only days before we started to see our first sweet little greenies.

It is hard not to want to start everything all at once. But years of having far to many lanky plants that can't go outside yet due to cold weather, have taught me to sequence the seeds we start indoors. We started this month with flowers and plants for pots that take a while to reach bloom size (coleus, geranium, verbascum, salvia, petunia, stock and nicotianna sylvestres). Then next weekend we'll start Cole crops: broccoli, cabbage and brussel sprouts. Next month we'll get the hot crops: peppers, eggplants and tomatoes seeds tucked into little pots.

Aidan started some heart shaped strawberries... they are setting their third leaves now! He is already talking about what he's going to make with his little berries. So cute...

Geranium seeds germinate quite well!

Stock is such a wonderful fragrant flower, can't wait to tuck this little babies into pots and smell their blooms some day!

Busy spring weekend...

Last weekend we enjoyed a busy spring weekend with grandparents. We celebrated grandma Lila's birthday, pruned fruit trees, puttered in the gardens, ate warm scones, and a visited a local garden center.