I have grown increasingly fascinated by Tasha Tudor over the past few months. Most people are very familiar with her artwork of quaint scenes reminiscent of the early Victorian period. As I've explored gardening and the history of many plants (I particularly like heirloom plants even if they can have more problems than modern hybrids because the romance of their stories and the knowledge that someone somewhere liked them enough to take the time to save and pass down the seeds is very appealing to me) I've continued to bump into references of Tasha Tudor and her unbelievable gardening skills.

I checked out from the library Tovah Martin's book titled Tasha Tudor's Garden and devoured it in one day. I hope to add the book to my own collection at some point because the photographs are just beautiful and Tudor's gardening style is very similar to my own: she prefers big, showy and romantic flowers, she likes to stuff her garden full of plants so it looks full and untamed. She favors frilly roses and bright pink peonies, pastel poppies and lots of plants that creep, spread and grow to gargantuan heights. Me too! I like a combination of cottage garden style with the biggest and showiest and prettiest flowers that I can find. My favorites are hydrangeas, hollyhocks, climbers like morning glories and clematis, creeping verbena and so on. My husband prefers a tidier landscaping approach with japanese maples, some well placed begonias and accent stone. So it was nice to find a fairly kindred gardening spirit in the pages of the book about her marvelous garden.

As I read the book it became clear that Tasha Tudor lived a life very much on her own terms. She believed that she had lived before in the 1830s and she wanted to live that same lifestyle again in the 20th century. She had her son build her farmhouse by hand, whittling the wood pegs and piecing the entire thing together with antique tools. The only electricity used in the process was at the mill where the local trees were hewn into boards. The house contains two large hearth fireplaces and a wood cooking stove. It has looms and spinning wheels and pretty much everything that Tudor used on a daily basis was an antique from the period she loved. I believe she had no electricity and her one concession to modernity was the installation of a telephone. She also had quite a menagerie of animals including goats for milk, chickens for meat and eggs and several Corgi dogs that kept her company. She dressed in Victorian style clothing which she made herself from seed to finished product - I don't know any other simple living folks who literally grow their own flax to make into linen.

In many ways Tasha Tudor reminds me of the Nearings, though Tasha didn't have a political/social agenda in her decision to live simply. She just liked it and managed to find a way to support herself and the life she wanted to live. I admire that so much. I've been thinking lately how easy it is to just do the expected, strive for all that modern life has to offer and I wonder if we aren't missing joy at times. Obviously, the real trick to a successful life is to find something that really brings you joy and contentment and figure out how to support yourself doing that very thing. So few of us manage to achieve this nirvana of work and living.

I hope to be able to find the DVD's about Tasha Tudor through library interloan and am now perusing her cookbook and the book about her heirloom crafting. In addition I found a very interesting book, Renewing America's Food Traditions by Gary Nabhan that discusses all sorts of foods that we used to eat but are become "extinct". It seems to fit into this theme of looking to the past to find more fulfillment in today's busy world.

-Jess

A very helpful list from Carla Emery's The Encyclopedia of Country Living that I use as a reference because I have a dog and small children in my household. I am going to link images of the more common plants that can show up in yards and gardens.

Aconite
American False Hellebore
Anemone (wind flower)
Angel's Trumpet
Arrowgrass
Azalea - All parts are dangerous
Baneberry - berries are poisonous
Black Locust - flower is edible
Bleeding Heart - leaves and roots
Bloodroot
Bouncing Bet
Butterfly Weed
Castor Oil Plant - one or two castor beans can be fatal to an adult
Celadine Poppy
Chokecherry - leaves and seeds are poisonous
Christmas Rose - seeds and all plant parts are poisonous
Cockle, Corn or Purple - All parts poisonous
Columbine - All parts of the plant are poisonous
Crocus - autumn bulbs are dangerous
Daffodil - if eaten bulbs can create GI issues
Daphne - eaten berries can cause death
Datura - (Angel's Trumpet)
Daylily - Roots are poisonous
Deadly Nightshade
Death Camas
Desert Rose
Dieffenbachia - burning and irritation of mouth and tongue, can cause swelling
Digitais - (foxglove)
Dutchman's Pipe - all parts poisonous
English Ivy
European Bittersweet
Foxglove - All parts are dangerous
Frangipani - poisonous sap
Garland Flower - poisonous berries
Hemlock - deadly poisonous
Horse Nettle
Hyacinth - eaten bulb creates GI illness, can be fatal
Iris - entire plant is poisonous
Jack in the Pulpit
Jessamine - berries are fatal
Jimson Weed
Larkspur (delphinium) - poisonous seeds and leaves
Larsonia
Laurel - all parts can be fatal
Leafy Spurge
Lily, Flame - all parts are poisonous
Lily, Glory - tubers are poisonous
Lily of the Valley - leaves and flowers affect the heartbeat, stomach and mind
Lobelia - poisonous
Lupine - all parts including seeds are poisonous
Marsh Marigold
Marvel of Peru - all parts poisonous
Matrimony Vine
Mayapple
Meadow Saffron
Mistletoe - berries can be fatal to children and adults
Monkshood- all parts, including roots are poisonous
Morning Glory - all parts poisonous
Mountain Laurel
Narcissus - Bulbs are poisonous
Oleander - leaves and branches are poisonous
Pennyroyal
Poinsetta - even one leaf can be fatal to a child
Poison Ivy
Poison Oak
Pokeweed
Poppy, Horned - roots are poisonous
Poppy, Iceland - all parts poisonous
Poppy, Somniferum - fruit and sap are poisonous
Privet
Rhododendron - all parts can be fatal
Rosary Pea - seeds can be fatal
St. Johnswort
Skunk Cabbage
Snowdrops
Solomon's Seal
Star of Bethlehem
Tobacco
Wisteria
Yew - berries and leaves are fatal

-Jess

It is that time of year again, time for the seed catalogs to arrive in my mailbox and for me to get planning and dreaming. I still have lots of seeds left over from last year due to our mid-year move and not being able to plant a summer garden but I am definitely in need of cool weather seeds like lettuces, arugula, radishes and whatnot.

Here are the catalogs I am anxiously waiting to arrive:

Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds - I purchase most of my seeds from them.

Territorial Seed Company - Great selection, on the expensive side though.

D. Landreth Seed Company - Apparently the oldest seed company in the USA, though under new ownership. Not sure what their seed sources are, so I am reserving judgment until I get the catalog and see what they've got.

Seed Savers Exchange - The old standby.

and

Renee's Garden Seeds - online ordering only, but boy her seeds really germinate well for me and she has a nice selection of hard to find heirloom flowers.

-Jess

1 28-oz can diced tomatoes
2 T. olive oil
1 onion, chopped
3 T. chili powder
2 tsp. ground cumin
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 16-oz. can dark red chili beans
1 16-oz. can black beans
1.5 cups frozen corn
Optional: shredded cheddar cheese, diced avocado

1. Use food processor to quickly pulse tomatoes until coarse.

2. Heat oil in large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat, and cook the onion until soft. Stir in spices and garlic. Cook until fragrant. Stir in tomatoes and beans; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer for about 15 minutes. Stir in the corn, and cook for 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Optional: Top with grated cheddar cheese and/or diced avocado.


-Rach

This is definitely a comfort food for me. It combines my love of egg noodles with creamy filling and a lovely nutty Grueyer topping. It comes compliments of Rachael Ray's 365: No Repeats.

Cream of Mushroom Sauce
1 T extra-virgin olive oil
2 T unsalted butter
12 button mushrooms, chopped
2 T all-purpose flour
1 cup chicken stock or broth
1 cup whole milk or cream
1/8 t freshly grated nutmeg (ground works)
Salt and black pepper to taste

Casserole
2 T extra-virgin olive oil
1 shallot, thinly sliced
2 portobello mushroom caps, halved and thinly sliced
1/2 lb fresh mixed wild mushrooms
1 T fresh thyme leaves, finely chopped (from 4 sprigs)
1/3 cup dry white whine
1 pound extra-wide egg noodles
1-2 T unsalted butter, softened
3/4 lb Gruyere or Emmentaler cheese, shredded
3 T fresh chives

Directions:
Bring a large pot of water to a boil fro the egg noodles.

To make the mushroom sauce, heat a medium sauce pot over medium heat. Add the olive oil and the butter. When the butter melts, add the chopped button mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes, until just tender. Sprinkle in the flour and cook for 1 minute. Whisk in the chicken stock and bring to a bubble, then stir in the whole milk. Reduce the heat to low and gently simmer. Season the sauce with nutmeg, salt and pepper.

To make the casserole, heat a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the 2 T olive oil then the shallots and mushrooms. Cook the mushrooms for about 8 minutes, or until tender. Season with thyme, salt and pepper and deglaze the pan with the wine. Reduce the heat to medium low and let the liquid cook off.

Preheat the broiler to high.

While the mushrooms cook, drop the egg noodles into the boiling water, salt the water, and cook the noodles al dente. Drain the noodles and return them to the hot pot. Add the creamy sauce to the pot and toss the noodles to coat in the sauce.

Lightly coat a casserole dish with the softened butter, then transfer the cream of mushroom noodles ot the dish and top with the mushroom ragout and shredded cheese. Place the casserole under the vroiler and melt and bubble the cheese until brown at the edges. Garnish with the chives.
As you can see, we were fresh out of chives. Who cares? It was still ooey gooey delicious. :o)
Enjoy!

--Rach

Nope, it's not this. :oP

This is my most favorite turkey soup recipe and I didn't have the pleasure of enjoying it until I started dating Brien. This recipe comes to you all courtesy of Nana. (And, YES, I should have posted this BEFORE Thanksgiving, but I only thought about it this evening since it's dinner for the next week. )

Ingredients:
1 turkey carcass
4 quarts water
1 cup butter
1 cup flour
3 onions, chopped
2 large carrots, diced (I just sliced 'em)
2 stalks celery, diced
1 cup long grain rice, uncooked
2 t salt
3/4 t pepper
2 cups half and half

Directions:
Place turkey carcass and water in large dutch oven. Bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer one hour. Remove carcass from broth and pick meat from bones (thank you bunches, Bob, for leaving ours so meat heavy!). Set broth and meat aside. Measure broth. Add water if necessary to equal 3 quarts.

Heat butter in a large dutch oven (I simply use the same one). Add flour and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly for five minutes (I use a whisk to eliminate lumps)--this makes a roux. Stir carrots, onions, and celery into the roux. Cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes, stirring often until they are softened. Add broth, turkey, rice, slat and pepper. Bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes or until rice is tender. Add half and half and cook until thoroughly heated.

Enjoy! :o)

--Rach