Spotted Skunks

  Yesterday as I went outside through our back door I noticed a faint murmuring sound in our hot water closet.  I didn't pay too much attention to it and just thought it was the hot water heater making weird noises.  After I was out for awhile I came back to the door and kept hearing the same sound.  I stood and waited.  This was getting a little unnerving to me. 

I called my husband out to see if he heard what I heard, and sure enough, he did.  He pulled up a patio chair and sat down to wait it out.  Well, what we both saw next was really crazy.  Every few seconds we saw through the bottom crack of the door, a furry tail moving back and forth!  We were paralyzed with what to do next.  I suggested for him to call a friend that may know what to do. 

The friend was there in fifteen minutes.  All three of us were sitting there analyzing the situation.  The friend said to quickly open the door and jump back (about 15 feet).  I freaked out and went in the house and waited for something to happen.  When I looked out the window, the two of them were right next to the open door seriously looking down.  The friend motioned for me to come out, and low and behold, there were two spotted skunks all wrapped up together.  We couldn't even tell if there were babies they were so entwined. 

They got the garden hose and tried to wash them out.  No luck.  Then they tried the leaf blower to no avail.
Then they waited, and one of the little critters came walking out with his tail up, and we all moved.  The other one was still in the insulation that wraps the water heater.  They sprayed some garden spray and removed all the insulation.  I never saw the second one leave, but they reassured me he did. 

I feel uneasy about my hens because spotted skunks are in the weasel family and will get my chickens.  I am on "Red Alert" for spotted skunks. 

If you have any experience with these cute and smelly critters they are out this time of year and do Watch Out.  They do spray and suck the blood of chickens! 

My Scottish Fold

 

Everyone that sees our kitty thinks something is wrong with her ears!  She is a very rare cat that was bred in Scotland for the purpose of catching mice and other critters in the barn.  She is very sweet and has her own space outside our door.  She prefers “live catch” over the finest cat food one can buy. 

Some friends gave her to us because they were planning to travel and thought she would be happier at our home.  She is a delight to watch with the chickens.  Our chickens are bigger than she is and they all behave themselves. 

Now that the weather has cooled down, she is more actively engaged in hunting her own prey again.

I would like to hear from any of you readers out there if you know of one of these, or have seen one.

After becoming aware of this breed, you may keep your eyes open in case you happen to locate one.

Be back tomorrow with a “skunk story” 

Good Girls

Hi everyone!  I had to make a trip to town today to get chicken feed and pine shavings for my hens.  This takes me most of the day because I try to do other errands while I am there.  The landscaping on the trip down is so pretty this time of year.  My hens miss me when they don't see me all day, as I go to the coop and talk to them, telling them what "good little girls" they are.  I know, some people think this is "sick" but they obviously don't have any place in their heart for any animals or birds.   However, they really like to come by and get eggs!  

I have made an observation. The days that I hold a few hens and talk sweetly to them, the eggs are bigger the next day.  They really like attention.  They also look up into my face and make sweet sounds.

Certain breeds are much more docile than others which I learned by handling them.  So much for my hens.

When one lives in the country it is really a good thing to have chickens, because so many people come by just to visit and to see the chickens and ask lots of questions.  It is an excellent way to meet new friends.

Glazed Apple Bread Recipe

 Here we are in the middle of fall and the maples are turning color and the air is brisk with apples and pumpkins.  I am giving out my favorite old standby apple bread recipe.  It is good in the morning or evening.
  
                                                                           Glazed Apple Bread

1/2 cup canola oil
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 large egg
2 cups sifted flour
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 tablespoons milk
1/2 cup raisins
2 large apples finely chopped
1/2 cup walnuts chopped

Glaze;

1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon water
2 tablespoons melted butter

Combine oil , sugar, and vanilla.  Cream until light and fluffy.  Add eggs and beat well.  Sift together flour, cinnamon, salt, and baking powder.  Add milk, raisins, and apples and nuts, and dry ingredients to mixture and stir only until flour is dampened.  Bake in well greased loaf pan 9x5 at 350 for 60 minutes.  Cool, remove from pan.  Combine glaze ingredients; mix well and pour over loaf.  Let glaze set before wrapping loaf tightly. 
This is so easy, you can make one for now and one to put in the freezer.  It is nice to have if company drops by for a visit. 

herb garden

I

I found this beautiful way to have a herb garden all year around right in your kitchen, and the aroma will be so fresh and wonderful.  This is easy and practical. 

So go to it readers!   Enjoy!  

A Small World

Last night we were invited to some friends house on a large creek and the sound of the creek was so refreshing and relaxing that it seemed to put one in a different world, at least for a little while.  Dinner was prepared by some friends who were house guests from a mountainous region in Mexico.  The man and his wife are Bible translators for the people that live in the area .  Originally they are from New Zealand.  The dinner was the best chili rellanos and beans and home made salsa we had ever tasted.  There was a special cake like dessert which I couldn't  even attempt to describe! 

We learned a lot about the region and the people, their culture and life.  The men who are working in the

mountains carry on conversations by whistling some tones back and forth to each other.  They seem to be heard for quite a distance.  The elevation where these people are is about 7000 feet.  But it is considered to be a rain forest. 

It was a very enjoyable evening for everyone.  It is indeed a small world.

Bed Bugs and Unfinished Tasks

 

Here we are together again discussing some strange household hints from my old brown cook book from the eighteen hundreds. I find these so interesting that I wanted to talk about them one more day.  If you want to try these, do so at your own risk. I'd love to know if it did the job or if it ruined something.

• To soften boots or shoes:  Kerosene will soften boots or shoes hardened by water, and render them pliable as new. It will also make the tea kettle as bright as new. Saturate a woolen rag and rub with it. It will also remove stains from varnished  furniture.
•  Cure for Hiccough: Sit erect and inflate the lungs fully. Then retaining the breath, bend forward slowly until the chest meets the knees. After slowly rising again to erect position, slowly exhale the breath.  Repeat this process a second time, and the nerves will be found to have received an excess of energy that will enable them to perform their natural functions.
• Lamp wicks: To prevent them from smoking, soak them in vinegar, and dry them thoroughly.
• Bed bugs: To get rid of bed bugs rub varnish all over a wooden bedstead, slats and all. Make sure to get into the crevices and cracks. This will also make your bed look nice.
• Noisy bedstead: To prevent creaking of bedsteads with each movement of a sleeper, remove the slats and wrap the ends of each with old newspapers.

I think this covers the important stuff and hopefully entertained some of you in the blogosphere as well. In my next post we'll move on to something new. In the mean time, Happy Reading!

Household Hints

Today we are looking at old cleaning tips from the 1800's.  Some of these are sort of useful today if one could find the ingredients!  The first one is for cleansing sinks.: To purify greasy sinks and pipes, pour down a pailful of boiling water in which three or four pounds of washing soda have been dissolved.  A disinfectant is prepared in the same way, using copperas.  Copperas is a poison and should not be left about.

To preserve brooms:  Dip them for a minute or two in a kettle of boiling suds once a week and they will last much longer, making them tough and pliable.  A carpet wears much longer swept with a broom cared for in this manner.

To prevent mold:  A small quantity of carbolic acid added to paste, mucilage, and ink, will prevent mold.  An ounce of  the acid to a gallon of white-wash will keep cellers and dairies from the disagreeable odor which often taints milk and meat in such places. 

To ventilate a room:  Place a pitcher of cold water on a table in your room and it will absorb all the gases

with which the room is filled from the respiration of those eating or sleeping in the room.  Very few realize how important such purification is for the health of the family, or indeed, understand or realize that there can be any impurity in the rooms.  The water will be entirely unfit for use. 

If you find these things interesting I will inject a few more in my next post.

Have a good weekend!

Remedies From 1800's

REMEDIES IN THE 1800'S 

I found so many funny and ridiculous things going through my "old brown cookbook" that I have had a difficult time deciding what to write about.  So I hoped that I chose something that would capture your interest. 

For bad breath:  Bad breath from catarrh, foul stomach, or bad teeth, may be temporarily relieved by diluting a little bromo chloralum with eight or ten parts of water, and using it as a gargle, and swallowing a few drops before going out.  A pint of bromo chloralum costs 50 cents, but a small vial will last a long time. 

Pearl tooth powder:  Prepared chalk, half a pound, Powdered myrrh, two ounces, camphor, two drachms, orris root, powdered, two ounces;  moisten the camphor with alcohol and mix well together. 

Sore throat-aching limbs-hurting chest:  Best oil of Lucca; gum camphor.  Pound some gum camphor and fill  a wide mouth pint bottle one third full; fill up with olive oil, and set away until the camphor is absorbed.  Excellent lotion for sore chest, sore throat, and anything that aches. 

Grandmother's cough syrup---Take a half pound of dry hoarhound herbs, one pod of red pepper, four tablespoons of ginger, boil all in three quarts of water, then strain; and add one teaspoonful of good fresh tar and a pound of sugar.  Boil slowly and stir often, until it is reduced to one quart of syrup.  When cool, bottle for use.  Take one or two teaspoonfuls four or six times a day. 

Tomorrow I will have some old "household hints" out of the "old brown book".

How far we have come is amazing!

Old Recipes

Yesterday I promised I would have a couple of recipes out of the "old brown cookbook", so I have chosen a couple that I thought were strange.  The first one is for ROASTED WOODCOCK.

Skin the head and neck of the bird, pluck the feathers, and truss it by bringing the beak of the bird under the wing, and fastening the pinion to the thigh;  twist the legs at the knuckles and press the feet upon the thigh.  Put a piece bread under each bird to catch the drippings, baste with butter, dredge with flour, and roast 15 or 20 minutes with a sharp fire.  When done, cut the bread in diamond shape, each piece large enough to stand one bird upon, place them aslant on your dish and serve with gravy enough to moisten the bread; serve some in the dish and some in the tureen; garnish with slices of lemon.  Roast from twenty to twenty-five minutes. 

Snipe can be served in the same manner, but they require less time to roast.

APPLE PUFF PUDDING

Put half a pound of flour into a basin, sprinkle in a little salt,  stir in gradually a pint of milk; when quite smooth add three eggs; butter a pie dish, pour in the batter; take 3/4 pound of apples, seed and cut in slices, and put it in the batter; place bits of butter over the top; bake three quarters of an hour; when done, sprinkle sugar over the top and serve hot.

Tomorrow, I am going to give some health remedies that were used back then.  Remember, these were in the 1800's era.   If any of you are brave enough to catch or find these wild birds to roast, let me know.

The Old Brown Cookbook

The big old brown cookbook has been in the family for six generations.  I remember my Mother going to where she kept it and looking something up, whether it was a recipe or a "folklore remedy" for some ailment..

When my Father passed away the grown children got the honors to go and empty out the house of anything that meant something to them, or certain pieces of furniture they would want.  Thank God that I remembered the old brown cookbook.  It took me some time to find it, but I did.

The book has household hints, how to get moths out of carpets or how to wash flannels, (I believe they are talking about underwear).  Since this book goes back to the 1800"s, there are things mentioned that I really don't know what they are talking about.  Also remedies for a sore throat, how to remove freckles, or how to dye ones eyebrows.  If one has varmits it tells what to do to get rid of the pests.

Tomorrow I am going to share with you some recipes out of the book.  The next day, some remedies.So hold on to your hat because some of them are really strange. 

The book belonged to my Mother's family generations ago. 

Easy and Elegant Apples

I have picked too many apples.  The old saying that "the eyes are bigger than the stomach" is quite true in my case.  I am going to be making applesauce, spiced apple rings for our Christmas dinner, and I am going to leave enough out to have a lot of baked apples.  And of course I have my favorite way of doing this.

First I preheat the oven to 350.  Core the apples but not all the way to the bottom.  Then peel them only halfway down from the top.  Place in a baking dish.  In a small bowl, stir together the orange zest, 6 tablespoons chopped raisins, 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1/4 cup of unsalted butter, and 1 teaspoon cinnamon.
Divide the mixture evenly for 6 apples, pushing it down into the cavities.  In a small saucepan combine 1/4 cup honey, and 1/2 cup of orange juice or apple cider.Heat just until the honey dissolves.  Pour the honey mixture evenly over the apples and bake, basting often with the juices, until the apples are tender when pierced with a fork,  just about 45 minutes. 

To serve, let cool to room temperature.  Serve with a dollop of cream or vanilla yogurt. 

Nevertheless, if you have found yourself in the same predicament as myself, remember to save a good number of apples just for baking.  These are easy and elegant. 

Apple Picking Day

I awoke this morning more excited than usual because I knew we were going apple picking after all the chores were completed.
I got my 1/2 bushel boxes ready and threw them in the truck, also some heavy duty clippers , just in case I ran across a stubborn apple that wouldn't release.  Off we went to the beautiful apple country. 

The apples were at a level where I could easily attack them and sample a few.  Tart apples are the very best for cooking and pie making.  I was already tingling in my mouth as the anticipation took over my whole body.  The apples are organic so they have a few worm holes here and there but I just cut around them and keep cutting and peeling.  It looks like they are Rome apples and a cross between a golden delicious.  Never the less, they will certainly be enjoyed. 

It was a clear fall day with the colors of Autumn and the aroma of apples.  On the way home our vehicle took on the smell of apple cider. 

A perfect ending to a perfect day!

My Favorite Pie Recipe

Today was kind of a sad day for me because we cut our huge bright orange pumpkins off the vines that God had placed right out my kitchen window so I could sit there and see the beautiful color every morning. But now I can put them (providing I can lift one) anywhere I want to enjoy them. Later on, when I am moving from the fall season into the Christmas season I will start to use my pumpkins in pies and breads.

My favorite pie recipe is called my "spiced pumpkin pie".  Just make or purchase a 9-10 inch pie shell and bake for 15 minutes at 350 until browned.  Remove from oven and let cool.  In a bowl, whisk together 2 cups of pumpkin puree, 1/4 cup maple syrup, 1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar, 1and 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon, 1tsp. ground ginger, 1/2tsp  ground nutmeg, 1/4 tsp. ground cloves, 3 eggs beaten, and 3/4 cup of half and half  until well mixed.

Pour into the prebaked  pie shell and bake about 55-60 minutes.  Serve with heavy whipping cream whipped with 1/2 tsp. of vanilla. 

Changes in the garden bring sweet happiness.

Looking Out a Different Window

In our small community there happens to be one of the oldest adobe houses in the State.  It was before the gold rush era.  One wonders how a structure such as that has withstood the severe winters that can happen here.  It is only one room but has definitely met a need  to someone in the early days .  I look at that window and wonder who has looked out of the window, and at that time the landscape was totally different, so I wonder what they saw!  

It is wonderful that it has been preserved all these years.  When I think of how people lived back then I just become so thankful for the simple things I have each day. 

We can all be thankful for everything we have.  Somewhere, sometime, there was a beginning.

My Favorite Breakfast

A tasty breakfast is fuel for the body to start the day with.











Everyone knows how much I like the early mornings. I love to sit at my window in the kitchen with my fresh cup of coffee. My favorite breakfast to make for guests is baked eggs, bacon on the side, huckleberry coffeecake, my canned pears, and coffee in abundance. When I have my sister and brother in law up for breakfast this is what I like to do.  Of course the table has to be set special  with the fall colors. This is fun for me and special for them. 

After breakfast we take a walk out in the garden to see what is still growing. We have a new crop of winter heirloom peas about 6 inches tall and also purple and green savoy cabbage. The pumpkins have been cut and the largest one is close to 75 lbs.  The colors are so vibrant. 

My sister is afraid of my 25 hens, (they all come running to us when they hear my voice).  It is a little alarming if you are not expecting this. Of course, I love it and talk right to them.  So goes the day.

We have a very relaxing slow day just catching up on the latest family news.

I would like to know what your favorite thing is this time of the year.