Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween! What are your plans today? I have to zipped down to the kids' preschool to help with their Halloween party, then we'll head into town for trick-or-treating after dinner. Our teensy-tiny fire department, which is smack-dab in the center of town, opens up each Halloween and creates a big warm-up space for festivity-goers with donuts, hot chocolate and coffee (it's usually cold here on Halloween!).

Halloween has always been my favorite holiday, but not because of the gut and gore of it all. My favorite parts of Halloween have always been seeing all the costumes (and handing out goodies) and the vintage Halloween cartoons on TV. I know - corny! - but I love it. Growing up, I always looked forward to "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" 45 spinning on the record player. So I thought I'd share it with you. Here is the audio, or if you'd like, the Disney film (starring Bing Crosby). Enjoy (and stay safe among the ghouls!).

Homemade Halloween Goodies

First off, I'm hoping anyone affected by Hurricane Sandy is doing well. Best wishes for a safe and speedy recovery.

If you are like me, you probably waited until the last minute to get your Halloween goodies together. Fear not - there is still time to make some treats from scratch!

Popcorn Balls

Candied Apples

Caramel Apples

If you don't have the time to make your own, I'm going to let you in on a new favorite secret of mine: G.H. Cretors popcorn! This stuff is bonkers good, and the best part is that it's Gluten-Free, GMO-Free, Kosher, and made with all-natural ingredients. 

The Chicago Mix is definitely my favorite - it's a mix of cheese and caramel corn. I love the Caramel Nut Crunch, too.

Get a sample pack and try them all out! So good. You can buy on the site, on Amazon or use the store locator for more information. This would be an awesome holiday present (hint hint). Keep tabs on G.H. Cretors on Facebook.

Good luck prepping for Halloween! Are you handing out candy or going the extra mile to make something special? How many trick-or-treaters do you get? (We get two.)

Food Day Favorites

I totally missed posting about World Food Day. And National Food Day. Ugh. But that doesn't mean I wasn't celebrating! Indeed, I was using the five steps of the GROW Method and continue to incorporate those ideas into my culinary pursuits.

Oxfam America GROW campaign has created some awesome Pinterest boards to help me with these efforts (well, not just me,  but everybody, I suppose). I thought I'd share some of my favorite ideas from the Oxfam GROW Method Pinterest page to help you incorporate the GROW Method into your own cooking style.

No-Bake Chocolate Biscuit Cake

Quick Whole Food Lunches

Honey and Soy Glazed Steak with Mango-Chili Salsa

Vegetable Tart

Poached Pears in Puff Pastry (say that three times fast)

Sauteed Kale with Red Onions and Garlic

Brussels Sprouts with Cranberries, Gorgonzola, Pecans, and Balsamic Vinegar

You can check out the rest of the Oxfam GROW Method Pinterest boards here (I highly recommend a follow!). Happy pinning and eating!

How the GROW Method Works

As I've mentioned, the Oxfam America GROW Method is a simple way to help folks like you and me make the global food system more fair. The GROW Method follows five principles to achieve this: Save Food, Support, Cook Smart, Seasonal, and Less.

Just like the above graphic shows, there are easy ways to help promote a fair food system from your own kitchen. Reduce the amount of waste your create, buy from small/independent producers, cut down on water and energy use, buy food that's in season (or better yet... grow your own!), and eat less meat and dairy on occasion to reduce greenhouse gas.

The below publication offers some more ideas from the GROW Method. Take a look, if you'd like.

Open publication - Free publishing

I'll be sharing more tips with you leading up to World Food Day on October 16. Stay tuned!

This post (and my sharing on social media) was inspired by my participation in a compensated program initiated by Women Online/The Mission List to raise awareness about Oxfam America's GROW Method. All commentary and opinions are, of course, my own. 

Oxfam America's GROW Method

I'm a big believer in eating local, buying sustainable products, and supporting small, independent farmers. I can see first-hand how doing so affect my life directly. Often I wonder about how my actions contribute to similar global causes - does this really help keep money in the community? Are my actions reflected in other communities? Does this to anything to help combat global issues like poverty, hunger, and the distribution of resources? Unless you have infinite hours in the day to read lots of reports and research, it's kind of hard to know (and this is coming from someone with a Masters degree in Political Science, aka a research junkie!)

Thankfully, there are organizations like Oxfam America who monitor these issues for me. And it doesn't only monitor, it creates programs to end disparities like hunger, poverty, and injustice. Working with individuals and groups in more than 90 countries, Oxfam saves lives, helps people overcome poverty, and fights for social justice. Oxfam America is one of 17 affiliates in the international confederation of Oxfam.

Oxfam America has created the GROW Method to help average peeps (like you and me) contribute to the mission of making the food system more fair for everyone. The above slideshow has five easy tips for doing this from your own dining table. Save Food, Support, Cook Smart, Seasonal, and Less are the guiding principles for the GROW Method, and Oxfam America have pulled together a whole host of resources to help you in this information. Check out Oxfam's Pinterest boards, or like Oxfam America on Facebook.

I'll be sharing more tips with you leading up to World Food Day on October 16. Stay tuned!

This post (and my sharing on social media) was inspired by my participation in a compensated program initiated by Women Online/The Mission List to raise awareness about Oxfam America's GROW Method. All commentary and opinions are, of course, my own. 

Handmade Holiday Gifts

Once fall hits, I start thinking about what I'll be making my friends and family for the holidays. I love giving gifts that are intentional and filled with love, and handmade gifts fit that bill. Here's what I'm thinking of making my loved ones this holiday season -

Awesome New App for Parents

By today's standards, I had my kids young (at 22 and 23 years old).While being a young mom has lots of benefits, one thing that is particularly hard to navigate is starting a career and making a name for oneself while also juggling motherhood. I realize this is a struggle at any age, and "mommy-guilt" (or "daddy-guilt") creeps in no matter what path one chooses.

I was fortunate enough to make a career shift just over three years ago and begin working for myself. It hasn't always been easy or fruitful, but I think it's been the best decision for my family. In order to make it all work, Edith and Eric go to a preschool/pre-K program three days a week. It has turned out wonderfully for us - the kids love their teachers and I feel they are receiving great educational and social benefits. Despite all of this, I can't help but feel like I'm missing out on all the fun they have! I can't monitor their sniffles or take part in some special milestones. It's a bitter pill.

Now I have an ally in the work/motherhood balance. It's called Karoo and it's a free app from the team that brought us Care.com. Karoo is currently available for iPhone users, with an Android-compatible version out later this year. Karoo allows you to stay abreast of the details of childcare while you are away from your kids - everything from pictures to medical updates to sharing emergency numbers. Caregivers can post videos, pictures, and stories to your Karoo account and share information on how the day went on your child's carelogs. Parents can comment back on the updates and participate in the day, even though work and other obligations keep them away from the kiddos. But just like Care.com, this isn't just for childcare; use Karoo for eldercare and petcare, as well!

The features I like best about Karoo are that everything becomes centralized and I choose who sees what. No more sifting through all my text messages, or my Twitter or Facebook feeds (or emails) to see what's up with my kids. I only have to look one place to find everything I need. The same is true for my kids teachers and our lovely babysitter, Carissa; they only need to look on Karoo to find feeding, nap, or medication schedules or emergency numbers (because that chart on the fridge always gets lost!).

I also really like that I can choose who sees updates about my kids. My parents or Dave can sign-up for a Karoo account (ps - this is a FREE app, and all someone needs to use it is an email account for username verification and a password) and request permission to see updates about the kids. I control what they see (you can always deny access to anyone, at any time. This includes former childcare providers to keep sensitive or private stuff on a need-to-know basis) and can decide if they can see all updates on my Karoo page or just fun stuff like pictures or videos. I can also determine if they can comment or not, which is great. Even though I feel most people are good at heart, there are some crazy folks out there and we need to do whatever is needed to keep our kids safe. Karoo helps me do that by regulating how much information I share about my kids and family and keeps all my Facebook "friends" and Twitter followers from knowing everything about my life.

I definitely recommend Karoo. You can download it for free on the Karoo website or in the Apple iTunes store. If you try it out, let me know how you like it!

Oh, and just a heads-up: This post was inspired by my participation in a compensated program initiated by Women Online/The Mission List. All commentary and opinions are, of course, my own. Thanks for understanding my need for sponsored posts to support my family. I would use Karoo either way, as it is a really outstanding app for working parents, like me! You can learn more about Karoo and Care.com by following them on Twitter.

On Letter-Writing

I recently saw a post on Bittersweet Farm Girl about Joan Crawford and her letter-writing habits. Sometimes things really just speak to you, and this particular blog post was one of them. I've been criticized before for being "too nice" to people in terms of hand-written notes and other small gestures. Is it really such a bad thing to make the people you care about feel special? I'd say no way. Nada. Never.

I guess Joan Crawford felt the same way. Perhaps unmatched in her loyalty to her fans, she took great lengths to reply to as many of the thousands of fan letters she received as she could. She wrote thoughtful responses to her admirers, often continuing a conversation through letters with certain fans for years. She never let a friend's birthday or special date slip by without proper acknowledgement and commemorated special achievements with personal letters and notes of congratulations.

Roy Newquist's Conversations with Joan Crawford documents this dedication to considerate correspondence. In reply to a comment about her "unusual degree of concern and kindness," Ms. Crawford responds:

“I’m sorry that you have to use the word ‘unusual,’” Joan replies. “I don’t see why people can’t demonstrate, as a routine in their lives, their love or concern or respect for each other. It costs so little in time and effort and money to remember someone. I know how grateful I am when someone goes out of the way to pay me a kindness, and if they put some sort of personal stamp on it, so much greater the appreciation.

“I’m sure all of us have suffered the loss of a loved one and felt guilty as hell because we didn’t do more for that person when he or she was still alive. … I’m not religious enough to believe they know how we really felt after they’ve gone; I want to do as much as I can while they’re still here. And there have been quite a few times in my life when I know I didn’t do the things I should have and could have so easily done.
[…] “But about the thank-you notes, or just the best-wishes—they’re no big deal. People deserve to be remembered on special occasions, and appreciate being remembered, so why not do it?”


My sentiments exactly. 

Where do you stand on the matter? Do you still hand-write notes? Or do you have a favorite online source for sending notes? (I love Paperless Post when unable to send a proper note via post.) Please share!

*This excerpt was first posted on Orsons Tumblr.

Corn Cob Jelly

Please excuse the wild children and Cozy Coupe in the background.

File this under "Weird Things To Can" (perhaps along with Tomato Jam). Corn cob jelly sounds so, well, weird, right? How could that possibly taste good?

It does, I promise. In fact, it tastes remarkably like wildflower honey. I've heard others make that claim, but I didn't believe it until I tried it for myself. But kind of like Queen Anne's Lace Jelly, this isn't something I would necessarily want to add to my PB&J's. So after I made it I had to figure out how to use it. Turns out it tastes great on a cheese board, on fried green tomatoes, on hush puppies, and even on top of more corn (in the form of fritters). I'm sure it would be delicious on any other kind of pan-fried offering. I might even get brave and try it in place of honey in different sauce and dressing recipes. If you try to make it, let me know and tell me how you used it!

Oh, and my pal Jillian has a great how-to for freezing corn, in case you were interested (save those cobs, Jillian!).

********************
Corn Cob Jelly
Makes 3 1/2 cups, or 3 1/2 half-pints

12 sweet corn cobs
4 1/2 cups water
3 1/2 cups sugar
1 packet liquid pectin

1. In a large pot, combine water and corn cobs. Cut the corn cobs in half (carefully!) if necessary. Cover and boil for 30 minutes. Allow to cool slightly.

2. Using cheesecloth and/or a fine mesh strainer, pour out the liquid and reserve it. Discard corn cobs (carve yourself a pipe, leave for squirrels and other critters, or simply compost). Rinse out the pot and add the "corn stock" back to it.

3. Place the pot over medium-high heat and add sugar. Bring to a boil and add pectin. Reduce heat to medium and continue to cook until the jelly is at preferred "set" stage (when it sheets off your wooden stirring spoon or congeals as soon as it hits a plate pulled from the freezer).

4. Carefully pour the hot jelly into desired vessel(s) (freezer jars, canning jars, or a dish for the refrigerator). Wipe rim(s) and cover. If you want shelf-stable jelly, process in a hot water-bath canner for time appropriate to your jars (5 minutes for quarter-pints, 7-10 minutes for half-pints, 15-20 minutes for pints). Jelly will last for 3-6 months in the fridge and up to a year in the freezer or pantry (if processed properly). Enjoy!

*Optional step: If you want your jelly to be more yellow, add a few drops of yellow food color to the corn stock before adding sugar and pectin.

Elderberry Cordial

I'm over at From Scratch Club today talking about finding elderberry trees on my property (awesome surprise!) and how to forage for your own elderberries. I also offered up two recipes: One for making an elderberry cordial, and another on an awesome champagne cocktail using your homemade cordial (picture above). Definitely check out the post, if you can!