baby's first climb (and other spring break highlights)

we took a train from champaign to see chuck in chicago. after a scramble and a near miss, we're saved by a time-zone change! the train was so crowded, they bumped us to business class. we shared the car with 2 amish couples speaking their own version of german and reading racy fiction.



the hotel was beyond our means, and packed with film studies folk. among the trendiest of the academics, they are well dressed and popping open macbooks in any available inch of the hotel.

spending time with chuck is what it's all about.



lego studies were on the agenda, as was the lego store, just two blocks away.





somehow, we got bumped up again (at no extra charge) to a sprawling suite on the eighth floor--



lake view, two bathrooms, a kitchen, full-sized dining room, entry way, dressing room...ridiculous, but fun for a night. i was most impressed with the original, clean lines of the woodwork, the concealed brass hinges on the dressing room door...



original pancake house has the best potato pancakes, and the syrup bottle inspires this little ditty from cosmo:

the contemporary art museum, also a quick walk away,

features family day, kids making art, a telephone game (layered with complex political content), a mind boggling, photographic tapestry plus black and white. we took an unconventional route to millennium park, through the bones of the city, rather than strolling the shopping district. not on purpose, but maybe better, though it took a bit longer, and we were under a time crunch with a train to catch.

we shared mere moments basking in the magnetic pull of the bean before heading back to the hotel and off to the train station.

after a few days at home, we head out to meet friends from canada on a climbing trip in the red river gorge. for most of the kids on the trip, this was their first time climbing outdoors. cosmo had a chance to give it a try. he showed no fear as he scrambled up that cliff face and seemed happy as a clam on the entire hike. it was great to see matt and maceo in action, and to meet up with wendy!

this is the route cosmo climbed. the guides and other climbers called him a natural. though it was hard for me to watch at times, i was thrilled for him. he had a big grin on his face up there!







next we're in berea, visiting family. carl's brother never disappoints when it comes to food. this time, we all had a chance to participate. this is a zarangollo ravioli, with quail egg and salmon roe.



i finally decide to give knitting a try, urged by a friend to not put it off 'til my "autumn years," as i had been planning. it is much more difficult than i expected, it's going to take until my autumn years to gain any mastery over it, and, i think i need some coaching.

a walk to a nearby pub for a st.patty's day celebration with friends caps our spring break.

no excuses

oh, i had hoped to at least post once per month, but alas! two months have passed, with nothing.

moving.

that is all i have to say: we moved.

shortly before we moved, i worked on a draft of a garden update:

June 19, 2011
in just a couple of weeks we we will no longer live in the midst of the best garden in the world. i'm excited about our new place, and exploring a different neighborhood, but leaving this garden is a challenging adjustment for me. i have planted a mostly full garden here, even though i knew we'd be moving in the middle of the season. our landlord says we can still come by to tend and harvest our crops. i hope he means that.

it has been a great year for brassicas so far.

this cabbage is an early jersey wakefield, and has a conical rather than spherical shape. okra barely germinated, even after two plantings. couldn't get a basil seed to germinate to save my life. i have no idea why. sweet corn looks fabulous.

pea harvest has been spectacular, and some cucumbers are ready and waiting to take their place on the fence/trellis. carrots and beets look lovely, as do the onions.

bush beans and edamame everywhere, plus a lot more flowers than i usually plant. since the landlords plan to put the place on the market, i figure the prettier it looks out there, the more likely the garden will be left alone. we've been eating fresh lettuce since late february and still have some coming on. we enjoyed a few radishes before they bolted in the heat, and the garlic has been "scaped."

this year i made a garlic scape pesto, but found it to be a tiny bit too garlicy, even though i sauteed them first.

the tomatoes and ground cherries are off to an optimistic start, in spite of being super tiny when i put them into the ground. i ended up buying two larger plants from the farmer's market, just to be on the safe side. the exciting new thing i am trying this year is sweet potatoes! they are beautiful plants, and i'm curious to see how they do.

of course i have leeks again, and have tried some eggplant, currently under cover, to prevent flea beetle attack. the soil in the lasagna bed i started a year and a half ago is gorgeous--all dark and crumbly, and (unfortunately) full of tomato seed and violets.

in the new place i hope to do a bit of terracing, plant a small fall garden, get some garlic in, and prepare beds for the spring (using the lasagna method). the new neighborhood has plenty of experienced gardeners to consult and commiserate with. i will work on letting go, and moving on.

* * *

by now we have been in our new place for a full month. we've had to say good bye to excellent soil, wonderful neighbors and the croquet court.

but the new place has nice neighbors, too, plus it came with a cheese hanging hook (over the sink!), and nice colors on the walls.

i struggle to keep a couple of small seed beds moist enough to germinate the fall crops i planted. i have been harvesting from our old place, and attempting to keep up with weeds. we're experiencing a bit of a drought, and record high temperatures for days on end. surprisingly, the old garden is doing well with very little attention.

i've harvested tons of green beans, cabbages, beets, carrots, onions, kale, cucumbers, ground cherries, tomatoes, herbs...even flowers! last weekend we had the first of the sweet corn!

it is wonderful. the edamame is nearly ready, and the sweet potatoes are out of control! i am very curious to see what's under all that gorgeous foliage.

we love our new place, and have had a nice summer, in spite of the brutal relocation. cosmo has been busy with soccer camp, swim classes and montessori art camp.

we all rode our bikes in the july 4th parade, with our dear friends ann and alan. it was just what we needed after days of schlepping, and one of the reasons i so love bloomington. 5 people can hop on their bikes and become an official entry in the independence day parade! cosmo loved getting to ride around, in all directions, in the middle of the street downtown.

we are off to colorado to visit carl's parents, and cosmo will start kindergarten (at montessori) by the middle of the month! the summer has flown by, as usual. thanks to they might be giants (here comes science), cosmo's current passion revolves around the periodic table of the elements. our friend diane gave him a poster of it, which he has been studying carefully, and even chose it as a bed time story a few nights ago! he is also into optical illusions, and successfully pulled off his first magic trick (making a coin disappear).

carl and i have been busy canning, and preserving, and teaching others how to as well. through my job at mother hubbard's cupboard, carl has assisted me in 3 canning demonstrations at the farmer's market.

i discovered the best pickled carrots recipe--ever! i was looking for something that would closely mimic the spicy condiment i used to find in taquerias in houston. found it. these are probably the best thing i have ever pickled, and i can't stop eating them. they taste great with tortilla chips.

here's the recipe (it comes from the TexasBBQRub forum):

pickled carrots taqueria-style.

It sounds like a large recipe, and it is. trust me, though, you'll be glad you made the whole thing.

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs large carrots, peeled and sliced into 1/4 inch thick pieces
• 1/2 head of garlic peeled and smashed
• 1/2 large, sweet or yellow onion, roughly 1-inch dice
• 1 1/2 cups white vinegar
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 10 bay leaves, whole
• 1 tablespoon peppercorns (can vary to taste)
• 1 tablespoon Mexican oregano
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 6-8 oz. fresh jalapenos, sliced (and seeded to taste)

Preparation:
Add garlic and peppercorns to oil in a large saucepan, heat to medium heat, and saute until fragrant (just a couple or few minutes or so, depending on your stove). Add in carrots and saute for 2-3 minutes. Carefully add in vinegar, peppercorns, salt, and bay leaves. Bring to a simmer for 5 minutes and then add water and jalapenos and bring to a simmer again for another 10 minutes.

Transfer everything two quart-sized mason jars or other covered container(s) and refrigerate overnight. If you find you need more liquid to cover, boil more water and vinegar (equal amounts of each) to top off.

Keep refrigerated. Store the carrots in the liquid and use a fork or slotted spoon to serve them. You may leave the bay leaves in the liquid to add to the flavor, but do not eat them. Always remove the bay leaves before you eat the carrots. You can soften the carrots more with longer cooking times, but you want to keep them firm and with a bit of crunch, or it's just not right.

hidden treasure

from our friends' house, you walk down past their garden, beyond the fire pit, through some high brush (stop to smell a may apple blossom), and turn right when you get to the clearing.



from there, you head down the hill, through the woods, where you'll find lots of wild edibles, in case you need a snack. sky is an expert forager, and he identified more plants than i can hope to name now.



cosmo and i especially enjoyed the trout lily leaves, and the lemony wood sorrel. in fact, cosmo abandoned his "cheesy crackers" for the tasty leafy greens, and that's saying a lot! at the creek, sky and cosmo turned over rocks to inspect salamanders, water lice, and some strange, gray water worm that only eyes as keen as sky's could spot.



after crossing the creek, we wound around another hill (stop to try on some velcro plant),



past a cow pasture, where (legend has it) one cranky cow hangs out, and she could decide to charge, so we had to be careful. we clung close to the tree line, passed through a wire gate, when suddenly, a small green building appeared--our destination: the children's library in the woods.



the door was unlocked, and we stepped into an utterly charming one room cabin, lined with old children's books. there were a couple of desks, some comfy chairs, and a wood stove. one wall was mostly windows, perfect light for reading. cosmo had selected a few books to donate, from his collection, so we wrote a note to that effect, and left it with our books on the checkout desk. cosmo cruised the shelves, found some familiar titles, and we nestled down to read some dr. suess that we hadn't seen before.



a rain shower made a lovely pattering sound on the tin roof, and we were happy to be sheltered in that magical space. when the rain let up, we checked out a few books, donned the paper rain hats that sky had crafted, and headed back down the trail. checking out books means we will for sure get to come back sometime.



cosmo rode in the back pack, for most of the walk back, but wanted to get down at the creek, and snacked on more sorrel on the hill. he also got to pick up a beautiful turtle in the meadow. by that point, the rain had picked up, and we needed to walk back quickly.



i'm still wondering if it was all just a dream.

one piece of evidence we brought home with us was this single morel specimen. i fried it up almost immediately, and we enjoyed it's wild and meaty flavor as an appetizer to this couscous dish, topped with freshly snipped pea shoots.



i can't share all my secrets, but i can offer this recipe:

Couscous with Raisins and Pine Nuts
from Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything

2 1/4 cups Vegetable Stock, store-bought vegetable broth, or water
1 cinnamon stick
5 cardamom pods (or more)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1/3 cup raisins or minced dried fruit such as apricots or figs, or a combination (currants are nice)
1/3 cup hot water or stock
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter
1/2 cup pine nuts
1 1/2 cups couscous (i like to use the israeli kind, or "fat couscous" as we call it)
Minced fresh parsley or cilantro leaves for garnish (or, barely cooked pea shoots, if ya got 'em)

1. In a small saucepan, warm the 2 1/4 cups stock with the cinnamon, cardamom, salt, and pepper while you prepare the other ingredients. Soak the raisins in the 1/3 cup hot water or stock.

2. Place 1 tablespoon butter in a small skillet and turn the heat to medium. When it melts, add the pine nuts and cook, stirring occasionally, until they brown lightly, about 5 minutes. Set aside.

3. Place 2 tablespoons butter in a medium saucepan and turn the heat to medium-low. When it melts, add the couscous and cook, stirring, until it is coated with butter, about 1 minute. Strain the stock or water and add it all at once. Bring to a boil,then turn the heat down to its minimum. Cover and cook until all the liquid is absorbed, 5 to 8 minutes. Drain the raisins and gently stir them in, along with the pine nuts and remaining butter. Fluff with a fork to break up any lumps. Garnish and serve.