Reposting a blog from Feb. 16, 2020

I have never reposted a blog, but trying it today...Valentines Day kind of slipped by this year, it was on a Friday, and by Sunday, a niggling thought kept popping up in my head...Cherry pie, I had to make one...Herb would have loved it!

 

What was I thinking?...36º

I have never quite understood the thinking behind Valentines Day...It seems to be more tilted to, the guy is supposed to shower his "special valentine" with flowers, chocolates, mushy cards (that Hallmark is so good at) and candle light dinners for two!..Shouldn't this work both ways?

Maybe our first "VD" set the stage as to how that day would play out for us...Herb had completed his last semester of college, we had moved back to Valley County and into my Mom's empty house (she was working up the Big Salmon River for a fishing guide)...Herb's job with the Forest Service didn't start until June...We were flat broke, I was "with child" and wondering where all the "wedded bliss" had gone!..Luckily Herbs' parents had helped us through that last semester of school and my Mom's freezer and cellar was full and Herb got a job in the potato cellars to tide us over until June...I actually have no recollection of that Valentines Day, but I'm sure if there had been flowers, chocolates, mushy cards and candle light dinners (maybe if the power was out) I would remember...Maybe there was a "hug and a kiss."

I soon figured out that on any special occasion, Herb was happy with a pie, any kind of pie...For VD I  usually made a cherry pie...So last week, I searched the freezer for frozen pie cherries, none were to be found, but I found blueberries, he likes, and raspberries that I like...What possesed me to make two pies, one for each of us, I have no idea...The pies turned out very pretty and tasty, but one slice for dinner and a second slice for breakfast was enough pie!

John to the rescue, he gladly took home the pie that was left and they will tell us that it was delicious, ever if it wasn't...I will make sure and buy frozen cherries next time we are in La Grande...One pie for  two people is more than enough!...Hugs To All...OWAV:)

PS...We live in a beautiful place, our house is warm and cozy, we have way more than enough to eat AND we both got a "Hug and a Kiss," for Valentines Day.

As romantic as we get.

Baking, Cooking continues on Barton Heights...26º possible snow

 When I pressure can meat & chili, quite often I don't have a full canner (in my Mothers' rules that was a nono)...So after some trial and error, i've found that by putting 1/2 cup of dried chickpeas in a pint jar, adding 1/2 tsp of salt, fill jar with boiling water, put on lid and add one or several of these jars to fill the canner...This jar amounts to the same as a can of garbanzo beans from the store, and they taste so much better!..Now I have a few jars to make hummus...When I make hummus I think I need to make Naan to dip in the hummus.

Friday found me in the kitchen, using the small food processor, adding "the garbanzo beans," fresh lemon juice, garlic, cumin and oil, whirling it around and around until I have this lovely smooth, tasty hummus...I set it aside to meld all the flavors, and mix up a small batch of Naan dough, let it rise, then roll/pat it out into discs of dough to fry.

By this time Rusty has joined me in the kitchen to see what all the clattering and banging of pans is all about...It's nice to have 4 hands when frying Naan, two to roll and pat and two to fry and flip...Soon we were sampling warm Naan, dipped in fresh hummus.

Saturday again found me in the kitchen, this time making oatmeal/raisin/craisin/nut cookies...And for dinner, we had leftover Naan, so we made mini pizzas, that were pretty good, but need more practice...I am still trying to make the perfect pizza crust...Enough blathering for today...Hugs To All...OWAV:)

Hummus with a sprinkle of 

paprica 

mini pizza on naan

My latest jigsaw puzzle

This is what I do in 

the evening to relax.

Cold Temp Encourage Baking...yesterday -3º, today 20º

 With minus zero temperatures, for the past two days,  I was looking for a way to warm up my house...What better way than baking...Recently I started a new sourdough "starter" and it was bubbling away on the counter...Looking through recipes, I found Cassie's sourdough biscuits...I've made these a couple of times but haven't come close to the way I remember them, many years ago, when she made them for her husband Bud, along with "ground cherry jam." Yesterday they turned out better, but I need more practice, before they come close...Not sure my "waistline/butt" will be able to handle the extra calories.

Rusty and I enjoyed them, along with clam chowder, it definitely helped to warm us inside and out...As long as I in the baking mood, I found frozen bananas just begging to be used or thrown away...Combine all of this and my house not only warmed up but the  smells that emanated from the kitchen were wonderful. 

This has my taste buds waking up and looking at the clock, it is time to get started on breakfast...What will it be sourdough biscuits smothered in sausage gravy or banana bread alongside scrambled eggs...Hugs To All...OWAV:)

Rusty size sourdough 

biscuits

Mini banana bread

loaves

Wrapping up the canning...22º, 2 to 3 inches of fluffy snow.

 What a week!..We finished up with 50 plus, 1/2 pint jars full of jam/jelly/syrup...Different kinds are huckleberry, raspberry, strawberry, plum, apricot/orange, (kind of like marmalade).That is a lot of jam/jelly for two people...So I have been known to share with other family/friends...It makes a nice gift along with a loaf of bread.

In the pressure canning department, we did beef, pork, turkey/chicken and chili...This is more labor intensive than making jam...We used my moms' pressure canner that my dad bought her in the early thirties (depression years), when they had a young family and lived in Wyoming, in a cabin. (Sorry I got into another story)...We also now have 50 plus jars (pints, pint and a half and quarts) full of meat and chili...Rusty does most of the lifting and carrying...I take care of washing, sterilizing before canning and labeling etc after canning...We both fill jars and babysit the canner while it is under pressure and eat the finished product...We always have a few jars that don't seal, so we had chili one day and beef gravy over biscuits the next.

And also, this past week, we have accumulated over a foot of snow that had to be shoveled and/or plowed...Rusty does all the plowing and most of the shoveling, I manage a token of shoveling!

Why do we do this? I blame my Mom & Dad as they taught, their kids, to work hard and learn to be somewhat self sufficient. Hugs to All...OWAV:)

The cellar shelves are groaning!  

Jelly/Jam

Pickles etc. from

last summer

Meat top shelf

fruit from last summer

A photo blog this morning...24º and snowing.

 Photos' from the past few days, as the storm continues and we keep canning chili and shoveling/plowing snow...

Chili reading to put in the jars.

Beef, Pork and Turkey/Chicken all done

Foot of snow two days ago

it is covered with a few more inches.

 New snow on top, no photos yet today. 

Love and Hugs...OWAV:)

Interrupt Amsterdam for "Jammin"...New snow

Winters work...Summers are busy with the yard, garden, pickling and canning a few pears and peaches...Jam making and pressure cooking is saved for the winter months...Now it is time to clean out the freezer and add to my cellar shelves.

Monday morning I pulled out frozen packages (pre measured) of plums, apricots, raspberries, huckleberries  and strawberries...Delicious jams, jellies and syrup, now live in the cellar...While I was "Jammin" in the kitchen, Rusty was "Cuttin up" in the basement...He found beef, pork, deer, chicken and turkey...It is now cut in small chunks, and some beef/pork was ground for hamburger and sausage for everyday meals...AND the rest of it will go into jars to pressure can.

I loaded the dishwasher this morning with 36 pint jars and will soon be filling them with meat for my cellar shelves...This is a very busy winter week and also includes canned chili...More about that later...Hugs to All...OWAV:)

PS...What do we do with all that jam/jelly, syrup? 

Ice Cream Sundaes

are delicious anytime 

of the year.

Amsterdam, a fun city...33º snowing..

An early morning "Bolt/taxi" took us to the airport for a short flight to Amsterdam...The city of canals (below sea level) unfolded before us!..We Bolted to our hotel where we dropped luggage, before we boarded a bus (right outside our door) to explore the city...Amsterdam is also the city of bicycles, the main mode of transportation,) they have the right of way, so pedestrians beware. 

In comparison to Prague, the city was very quiet and today it was cooler, which was nice after the heat we had endured for a week...Only bad thing was Cienna made sure that our hotel had a pool and it was too cold to use it...Bobi and Ci tried it, but came out like popsicles, not fun.

We found a nice seafood restaurant that day, ordered family style, and dined on clams, oysters, salmon and "bottom fish," along with crusty bread dipped in the sauces...(My mouth is watering.) The highlight of the trip was a boating tour, on one of the many canals...We got a view of how this city was built alongside all of the water ways that drain water away from the city...(I think, I don't understand how this is possible).

All of the buildings are tall, mostly narrow and share a wall with the next building...There is no room to park cars, so they ride bicycles and walk and use the waterways...We kind of ate and drank our way through 3 days before returning to Prague...It was a lovely interlude...Hugs To All...OWAV:)

3 on a bike

most of the boat trip

was sunny and then

light rain.

It is hard to see the 

buildings.

Our tour guide with

buildings in the

background

Fun photo, with buildings.

More art deco.

Another World...17º our last sunny day for awhile.

I'm changing the story line today, since not much to talk about, here on Barton Heights, except the weather and other mundane topics, like taxes, making bread, jam, doing laundry, all the usual stuff.

Instead I will reminisce a bit about our trip to Prague, last summer...The trip was precipitated by my only grandchild, Cienna, flying off to Europe to teach English in foreign lands...She took a month long course that would give her more clout to get a job out of the US...She had already taught  for two years in Oregon...Knowing that if we wanted to see her in the near future, we would have to go to Prague, where she teaches English in a preschool.

After what "seemed" like 24 hours on a plane we soon made ourselves at home in a 2nd floor, two bedroom, kitchen, bathroom "flat" in Prague, our headquarters for the next 3 weeks...It was in the middle of the noisy city and August was unusually hot...But as usual the "Allen's" made lemonade out of lemons...We tried out many new drinks. 😅

We navigated the cobblestone streets and sidewalks (I used trekking poles) with Cienna as our guide, we rode subways, buses, trams and bolt/taxi...We were soon regulars at the small grocery store and deli stores, where we purchased Prague style, cheeses, deli meats, fruit, veggies and breads to make our own breakfasts and lunches...On any given day we might ride a bus, then a tram and the subway to get to another destination to see all of the sights: Castles, churches, bridges, cemeteries, parks, rivers and to shop in malls or vintage stores...Another plane ride took us to Amsterdam for 3 days...to be continued... Hugs To All...OWAV:)

No I didn't buy that hat, 

but I should have.

stairs are treacherous 

there.

We didn't miss a meal.

Deco art in Amsterdam

Mid Week, already...18º Mostly sunny

 How the days, weeks and month has flown by, already the end of January...I had an early tax appointment yesterday...My taxes are fairly simple, so we can go over the basics, then finish them when additional 1099's arrive, in a few days...I was pleasantly surprised to be getting a refund from the feds, and have to pay a small amount to the state!

Pam joined me for the ride to Lostine, (for the tax appointment), and since we were in the vicinity we went for pizza at "Crows Store"...It was delicious and a nice way to finish the day...I got home before dark, fed the "cats," cleaned up the kitchen table of papers, that were leftover from my mad scramble to get tax papers ready, then relaxed before loading the wood stove, worked on my jigsaw puzzle and called it a night.

Today I have walking, acupuncture and of course feeding the cats and loading the stove...My days are pretty routine and I'm still pondering my plan to make jam...Maybe tomorrow...Hugs To All...OWAV:)

More snow in the forecast.

Busy Day...17º

 Looking forward to a FaceTime chat with my friend Pat, who lives in Maryland...Our chat usually turns into an hour long visit, as we catch up on news of families and Wallowa County...Mostly it is just to laugh and reminisce about the good times we've had together and see each other's faces and talk like we are sitting across the table from one another.

After our chat, I have to put food and water out for "Allie," short for alleycat and "Socks," the two feral cats that now live outback...And, Rusty caught another cat, on camera, who has discovered the food...This cat looks old and like he has been through many "cat fights." We don't begrudge him food on these cold winter days. 

Then I will finish putting a packet together for my tax appointment this afternoon...Oh joy!

Doesn't sound like much on paper, but a busy day for me, as Rusty is spending a few days at his volunteer job, so I have to keep the home fires burning...Yes I get to stoke the fire and load the stove, from the stack of wood, that he chopped...I'm hoping their are leftovers in the fridge for easy meals...Hugs To All...OWAV:)

My latest Amaryllis

Cats on Barton Heights...17º 6AM, very dark.

 My posts are kind of random, as I try to catch up on the happenings of the last few months...Yesterdays' post was mostly about making bread and cold weather...Today a new subject--"Cats."

In November when Bobi was here for "Thanksmas," she made her usual dressing/stuffing, a delicious concoction of artisan bread, artichokes, onions, celery, parmesan cheese, sage, turkey and broth. Two large pans of it, were covered and put outside on a high shelf (my winter fridge) for the night...During the night something helped themselves to a good portion of one pan...Rusty determined from tracks in the snow that it was a cat...That made sense because just a few days before, I had seen two strange cats/kittens in our backyard...Since our backyard is bordered by farmland, we have always had feral cats, that keep the rodent population under control...These cats were new and young!

We assume that the young cats had been abandoned, (dumped) somewhere near our place on Barton Heights...They took shelter in a neighboring barn and were surviving...Something had to be done or in a short time we would probably have a couple of batches of kittens in our neighborhood...I sent out emails to neighbors on the chance that they belonged to someone, before contacting the humane society, about their "spay and neuter" program...We got vouchers from them to pay for part of the cost of having the cats "fixed."

Our plan was put into action...We continued feeding the cats, each night, the rest of the one pan of dressing and then, tasty concoctions of dry cat food and leftovers from our fridge, for about two months...We occasionally saw them in our backyard, during the day, but they were very wild...How do you catch two wild/feral cats to get them to the vets office?..I made an appointment with the vet, Rusty set out two live traps, baited with tuna fish and the next morning he transported two very frightened cats to the vets office...And yes they are both females.

Two neutered cats spent the next week in my living room, in a large wire cage (thanks to Debbie), where Rusty and I fed them, talked to them, until the wild look, finally left their eyes and Rusty could actually, very carefully touch, pet and scratch them, just a little bit...

I had no intention of having house cats, so at the appropriate time they were put back outside, where they have a bed and are fed daily, still sleeping part time in the neighboring barn, but as the weather improves, they will learn to fend for themselves, with occasional food from us, we hope!...Hugs to All...OWAV:)

Cowering in the corner

                   

                                                            Not so scared.

Sunny Sunday, very cold...12º

 I love the sunny cold days of winter, but I don't like them lasting so long and especially when there is a little breeze along with the cold...

I don't like to go outside!!.Looking at a little warmer temps this week and maybe snow by the weekend, after all it is winter!

So much for the weather report, not much happening on Barton Heights, just trying to keep warm...I stoke the wood fire, first thing in the morning, when I get up and Rusty keeps it going the rest of the day and fills it full, when he leaves in the evening...Also the oil furnace kicks on when needed.

I'm trying to get myself in the mood to make jam/jelly...I have all the ingredients, just have to get everything up from the basement to start the process...Frozen fruit, jars, new lids, big cooking pot...But first I have to clear off the utility room counters, making a place to assemble everything...I don't think Sunday is a good day to start and tomorrow Connie will be here to clean and and???Maybe Tuesday will be the day!

Over a year ago, I lost my sourdough start, left it in the fridge too long and now i'm wanting to make bread, using the sourdough instead of yeast...So I kept potato water last week, added a few grains of yeast, then a small amount of flour and it is now bubbled up and running all over the kitchen counter...UHH that's an exaggeration...It is bubbling nicely and I will test it today on a batch of buns for our Ruben sandwiches for dinner...Wish me luck!...Hugs To All....OWAV:)

Food from last week!..

Chicken Thai Soup

Taco Salad

January Road Trip...14º Sunny/cold

Our aim was to leave Enterprise by 7:30...That way we arrived in LaGrande in time to shop at Grocery Outlet for an hour before Pams appointment...We have done this for many years and it works well, the store isn't crowded with people and we take out time shopping...The store has had a major "renovation" and Pam kept prodding me along, so she wouldn't be late...It was mind boggling, trying to take in all the new stuff...We love that store.

Lunch for us was again at Asian Fusion, where we ask for extra veggies in our usual Thai dishes and bring half of it home for another meal. 

Next stop is BiMart, then we brave the crowd at Walmart for a few items...A quick stop at Coffman's for bulk pectin (I must get started on making jam from my frozen fruit) and frozen pie cherries, that make delicious pies!..Also on their shelves was blackstrap molasses, priced much lower than "Gramma's." I use it in my bread instead of sugar, so I snagged a couple of jars!..Last item, was thin sliced pastrami for Ruben Sandwiches...I would usually buy this for Herb, as he loved pastrami and cheese for a snack...We vow to make a trip each month, especially in winter, if the roads are good!

It was a good day, scenic trip and wonderful coming home...The first sight of the mountains always takes my breath away!..Hugs To All...OWAV:)

Driving home.

Garden Gleaning and Thanksmas...22º

 It is hard to remember all that has happened in the last four months...We had some nice fall weather late September, so I texted Bobi, "Sunny days in Joseph this coming week, maybe we can spend some time on the deck?" I think it was the next morning, her text said, "Leaving Portland." It was a good visit, harvesting potatoes, carrots, onions, the last of the cherry tomatoes and cucumbers...This is the first year that our garden produced enough cucumbers to make about 2 dozen jars of dills!

I mentioned yesterday that Rusty planted garlic and then we did more cleaning up, picked the grapes, prepped the new raised beds with more compost, leaves, manure and covered them with netting to keep everything in place...Asparagus and strawberries were cut down, fertilized and also covered with chopped leaves and straw...We have an abundance of maple leaves from our trees, Rusty gathers and chops most of them to use and some to save for next spring, when we add another layer to the garden...It makes me sad when I see people burning leaves when they are a great amendment to gardens.

The flower gardens also needed care...A pile of wood chips, from neighboring trees (that had to be cut down) waited to be scattered...Rusty filled the wheelbarrow many times and I spread chips over fallen leaves and put the beds to rest for the coming winter.

Bobi returned in November for our usual Thanksmas, only the 3 of us this year...We just have to be thankful that we can celebrate together.

Cienna is still in Prague, working 2 jobs, playing when she can find the time and money to travel to other cities and countries...She has moved to another apartment, sharing a 5 bedroom house with 4 other girls, cheaper rent and still close to her jobs, either walking or riding a bus...It's not so hard to have her so far away, after we spent time with her in August and now have first hand knowledge of where she is and what she is doing!..Enough for today, love and hugs to all...OWAV:)

last apple pie

carrots bagged

and ready for the fridge

tomatoes ripening

in the basement

Ace waiting for

his morning walk.

Puzzles or Blog or Both?

Looking back, my last blog was in September and we had only been home from Prague for a couple of weeks...Now here it is, closing in on the last of January...Can I get going again with my usual blathering about the happenings on Barton Heights and continue doing puzzles, that I seem to be addicted to, or do I stop doing puzzles and give my brain a rest and get back to writing?

Update since last Sept...We had a wonderful garden and are still eating potatoes, carrots and just finished the last of the onions and of course we have powdered garlic to last until the new crop is harvested in July/August...Rusty planted garlic in late September, 240 bulbs, the most ever!..They are covered with straw and snow but will start poking through the ground in March, just around the corner.

In September, I traveled with my nieces to Boise for a 3day adventure, where we dined out, shopped, caught up on all the family news of the last year and reminisced about times long ago, and saw a wonderful "Patsy Cline" show in an outdoor venue, on a warm summer evening.

Back home Rusty and "I" worked tierlessly the month of October to prepare for the winter and took a much needed break, driving to Burns, OR and a visit with niece Diane and Kim...While there we took advantage of the nearby hot springs, Crystal Crane, continuing a tradition of spending my birthday, soaking away another year.  to be continued

Bobi and Rusty

havesting potatoes..