Category: Rural life

Fresh, fabulous figs

Posted in Cooking from the garden, Fresh herbs, Fruit, Pork chops, Rural life, Seasonal food, Southern foodLeave a comment

We waited longer for figs than for a baby. The latter took just under 3 years; the former, more than 25. And this year, booyah!, we have figs. Figs to eat out of hand, figs to freeze for making preserves and figs to cook. Assuming figs grew in Eden (fig leaves, remember?), why would anyone leave,… Continue reading Fresh, fabulous figs

Strawberry pie; pork and cabbage salad

Posted in Desserts, Fruit, Pie, Rural life, Salad, Simple foodsLeave a comment

At the tire store yesterday to get a pickup tire patched, I bought this spring’s first local strawberries. (Hey, in our neck of the woods, it can pay to listen to the old men chatting amongst themselves!) They were perfectly ripe and sweet, he obviously picked them before the drenching rains hit, and I had… Continue reading Strawberry pie; pork and cabbage salad

New year, new me, blah, blah, Brussels sprouts

Posted in Brussels sprouts, healthy cooking, Holiday eating, Olive oil, Roasting vegetables, Rural life, vegetablesLeave a comment

Time to get re-revved. I’ve rejoined the YMCA after 6 years away. I can walk on the treadmill, do weight circuits, take water aerobics, spin and zumba classes, swim laps. If only it weren’t so much easier to lie in the recliner, read novels (ooh, like Barbara Kingsolver’s Flight Behavior) and eat leftover Christmas candy! Christmas around here really… Continue reading New year, new me, blah, blah, Brussels sprouts

Spring is not for sissies, strawberry crisp

Posted in Desserts, Fruit, Rural life, Seasonal food, Simple foods, Spring1 Comment

Somehow we associate baby pastels with springtime, yet when I look outside, I see primary colors: The sky, of course, is Carolina (ick, go NC State!) blue and the baby maple leaves, red before they’re green. The intense yellow of the wild mustard and forage turnips, blanketing Iredell pastures as well as the meadowlark breasts turned to… Continue reading Spring is not for sissies, strawberry crisp

Fiona, split pea soup

Posted in good food, healthy cooking, Rural life, Seasonal food, Soup, vegetables, Weight loss1 Comment

“…I think if you have the expectation that you’re going to be happy throughout your life — more to the point, if you have a need to be comfortable all the time — well, among other things, you have the makings of a classic drug addict or alcoholic.” From Wishful Drinking by Carrie Fisher (Simon… Continue reading Fiona, split pea soup