The Apartment Farm

Most of the books on this list fall into the category or memoir or narrative, and they’re all hard to put down… some are garden-related, some are cooking-related, some are just about living.

Woodswoman: Living Alone in the Adirondack Wilderness by Anna LaBastille

Stronger Than Dirt: How One Urban Couple Grew a Business, a Family, & a New Way of Life From the Ground Up by Kimberly Schaye & Christopher Losee

A Place in the Country: A Memoir by Laura Shane Cunningham

People with Dirty Hands: The Passion for Gardening by Robin Chotzinoff

Walden & Other Writings by Henry David Thoreau

One Man’s Wilderness: An Alaskan Odyssey by Sam Keith from the journals and photographs or Richard Proenneke

What Happens in My Garden by Louise Beebe Wilder

Dirty Sugar Cookies by Ayun Halliday

The Big Rumpus by Ayun Halliday

Job Hopper by Ayun Halliday

Coming Home to Eat by Gary Paul Nabhan

This Organic Life by Joan Dye Gussow

Cool weather is coming, and I’m more apt to curl up with a good book instead of getting ready for a trip (though trips are hard to resist!). So here are some of my favorite armchair traveling reads:

Hiking Grand Canyon National Park by Ron Adkinson

Lonely Planet Grand Canyon National Park

Lonely Planet Road Trip: Route 66

Route 66: Traveler’s Guide & Roadside Companion by Tom Snyder

Frommer’s Europe From $70 a Day

Trailside Guide: Hiking & Backpacking

The Unsavvy Traveler: Women’s Comic Tales of Catastrophe by Lucie Ocenas, Rosemary Caperton, Anne Matthews & Pam Houston

No Touch Monkey by Ayun Halliday

Tales From a Female Nomad: Living at Large in the World by Rita Goldman Geldman

I love crafting. And I love books. So it’s only natural that I’ve amassed some favorites in this genre as well:

Stitch & Bitch: The Knitter’s Handbook by Debbie Stoller

Stitch & Bitch Nation by Debbie Stoller

Stitch & Bitch Crochet by Debbie Stoller

Sew Easy: The Essential Guide for Getting Started by Linda Lee

Sew Easy by Jane Cumberbatch

Sew Fast Sew Easy: All You Need to Know When You Start to Sew by Elissa K. Meyrich

Get Crafty: Hip Home Ec by Jean Railla

The Complete Soapmaker: Tips, Techniques & Recipes for Luxurious Handmade Soaps by Norma Coney

Melt & Pour Soapmaking by Marie Browning

Budget Living Home Cheap Home: A Room by Room Guide to Great Decorating by the Editors of Budget Living

Ready Made: How to Make [Almost] Everything: A Do-It-Yourself Primer by Shoshana Berger & Grace Hawthorne

The time has come to get out in the fields are reap the rewards of a summer of hard work– it’s harvest time. But if you’re like me, you don’t own a small farm where you can gather apples and pumpkins and the last of the heirloom tomatoes. That’s where “u-pick” farms and orchards come into play. This is a favorite past-time of mine every autumn, though most years I only get to go once. I like to pick a bag of apples for pies and fresh eating, get a gallon of cider and maybe a pumpkin or two. And if I’m lucky enough, I can go to a farm that makes their own cider doughnuts, still warm and sprinkled with cinnamon sugar. Finding a farm within driving distance isn’t two difficult, and two websites make it especially easy to locate exactly what you’re looking for, no matter which state you live in. To find a farm, orchard or pumpkin patch near you, check out www.pickyourown.org or www.pumpkinpatchesandmore.org. Don’t forget your jacket and a picnic lunch when you go!

In my opinion, salad spinners are one of the most useless kitchen gadgets ever invented. A few minutes of swishing greens in a colander over the sink does the trick, not to mention gives you a few minutes of toning your arms. That’s not bad. But are you really trying to get serious about firmer arms and tighter abs? Make bread—the old-fashioned way. Forego the Kitchenaid and you will definitely be feeling it tomorrow. For me, cooking is not only a necessity and a hobby, it’s a stress reliever. Working out is supposed to be a stress reliever. So to me it seems natural to combine the two, by doing things by hand without all of the electric appliances and gadgets we have around today. Don’t get me wrong—I adore my microwave. It reheats all that food I talk about freezing all the time in a matter of minutes when I don’t want to cook. And I can’t speak highly enough of the defrost function. First and foremost I don’t have the space in my kitchen or my budget to go out and get a fancy Kitchenaid mixer with the ice cream bowl attachment, or a bread machine or a rice cooker. And I don’t think I need them. Sure, they save you a little time, but if you want to cook, cook. Besides giving yourself a mini workout and a chance to focus on what you’re doing (a great stress reliever—quit thinking about everything else) another benefit to ditching excess electronics in the kitchen is the environmental impact you’ll save. A lot of appliances carry phantom loads, meaning they’re still consuming energy even though they’re not in use. Appliances with clocks or pre-set timer functions are big culprits. In my kitchen, appliances are at minimum—we have a microwave, toaster, toaster oven (great for meals for two because it consumes a lot less energy than running the main oven), mini coffee maker (it brews into two travel mugs) a blender (which we primarily use for mixed drinks and smoothies, but it also does double duty on soups, purees and the like) and a crockpot. The blender and crockpot are stored in the cupboard until we need them, while the other appliances are out for daily use. We also have a mini food processor and hand mixer that we’ll be getting rid of at our next yard sale. They were gifts and I’ve used them occasionally, but not often enough to warrant them taking up valuable cupboard space. Besides, I prefer mixing my doughs and chopping my onions by hand. We have a manual can opener instead of electric. I use my hands when mixing butter into flour for biscuit dough. I use a spoon instead of a mixer (that just gets clogged up and you have to scrape the sides down anyway) when I make cookies and such. So while I’ve got a bevy of appliances waiting on my beck and call, I also recognize the liberating aspect of doing without (some of) them.

It was exciting to see the first winter squash and pumpkin at the farmer’s market this weekend. Pumpkin is one of my favorite things to eat, and also one of my favorite things to decorate with. Nothing says fall like a big, orange pumpkin. I like large pumpkins and also the small gourd-like pumpkins, arranged in neat vignettes around my apartment. And of course, closer to Halloween I like to turn them into Jack-o-Lanterns. But the trouble with Jack-o-Lanterns in an apartment is the fact that they’re inside—the warm, moist air tends to make them turn a bit too soon (though Vaseline rubbed on the cut parts does help keep them somewhat fresh). So my husband and I have made a tradition of carving our pumpkins on Halloween. We roast the seeds and make spooky rice crispy treats and watch a Halloween movie—usually the Charlie Brown classic. And that’s how we spend our holiday. But I do like the look of Jack-o-Lanterns, so that’s where Funkins come in. If you’re not familiar with them, they’re pretty realistic-looking foam pumpkins that are hollow on the inside and thus, carveable. They’re pretty pricy, but they can be re-used year after year. You can only carve them once, so you’ll want to be choosy about your design, but they definitely solve the rotting-pumpkin-in-an-apartment problem. Along with pumpkins, I also like decorating with dried Indian corn and lots of candles. I also have some folk artsy wooden plaques (one of my favorites is a hanging ghost) and wreathes. I also have plenty of handkerchief ghosts and scarecrows. And I like gourds and mini hay bales. I tend to decorate in a country-chic theme whenever I get the chance. One thing I would love to do (I keep saying I’m going to make it, but then time just gets away from me) is a haunted house diorama—a two story Victorian with a graveyard scene in front, shutters half falling off, the whole thing painted in shades of black and gray. Fall is by far my favorite season; I could day-dream about it all day…  

I’ve been sneezing for a week. Depressing to think about, but another cold and flu season is fast approaching. And a lot of times, the medications are almost as bad as the symptoms you’re trying to alleviate. When ever I take cold pills I feel drowsy and out of sorts. I’d rather have a sore throat and runny nose than walk around in a daze for three days. That’s why I like home remedies. I never feel “not myself” when I drink a tea or eat something that’s good for me. I’m sure nearly everyone remembers having chicken noodle soup when they were sick as a kid. But aside from the comfort factor, there are some actual benefits to be had. Chicken noodle soup as a remedy should have a lot of onions and garlic, which both have antiviral properties. To combat a runny nose and/or cough, adding minced watercress while help alleviate those symptoms. And if you can tolerate spicy foods, adding half of a serano or jalapeno pepper won’t hurt—hot, spicy foods can help open up your airways. Teas are another easy home remedy. Honey ginger tea is simple to make and tasty, and both honey and ginger have antiviral properties. Just steep a tablespoon of fresh, grated ginger in a cup of hot water (if you don’t like swallowing little bits of ginger as you drink your tea, put it into a metal tea ball), and add a teaspoon or two of honey. It will help soothe a sore throat. If you happen to have a lot of phlegm while sick, anise tea might be a better bet as anise can help reduce phlegm in addition to having antiviral components. It’s also simple to prepare—just steep a teaspoon of crushed anise in a cup of hot water (again, you can put it into a metal tea ball). Anise has a flavor similar to licorice. If you like you can also sweeten this tea with honey. Remember to wash or sanitize your hands frequently and don’t share cups or utensils with others. And though it’s impossible to stop completely when you’re under the weather, try to slow down and not work to hard. Getting an hour of extra sleep when you’re not feeling well will help. And if you’re really down with a bad case of the flu take some time to curl up in bed with a good book and a box of Kleenex and let it run its course (most cases of the flu don’t last longer than a week). Walking around with the flu will just prolong it because your body won’t have the energy to fight of the infection. So when you feel a bug coming on, sit down with a good cup of tea and you might just start to feel better.

I did a little preserving this weekend, and I think it turned out pretty good. We got a killer deal on some heirloom beefsteak tomatoes—they had some surface cracking so we got them for a dollar a pound. I bought ten pounds to make salsa and Bolognese sauce with. I know beefsteak tomatoes aren’t typically used in sauces, but since I’m making a meat sauce, I think I can still get the texture I want and besides, I really like their flavor. I made the salsa last night, and it only took me about an hour and a half. I adapted a recipe from Stocking Up III. I decided to freeze what I made, and it was just a small batch, so it ended up going into two small freezer containers. This is the recipe I used: 

Mexican Tomato Salsa (adapted from Stocking Up III)

1 onion, finely chopped

3 stalks of celery, finely chopped

4 mini sweet peppers (or 1 small sweet pepper), diced

1 Serrano pepper, diced 1 garlic clove, diced

4 medium-large tomatoes, diced

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

1 teaspoon honey

½ teaspoon whole coriander

½ teaspoon whole cumin seeds 

Cook onion, celery, sweet and hot peppers, and garlic in olive oil until just translucent, about 5 minutes. Add tomatoes, honey, lime juice, coriander and cumin and simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Take off the heat and let come to room temperature, then package into freezer containers and freeze. Its great served with chips, sopaipillas or chicken.  

I also made a freezer pickle recipe. I’ve never heard of pickles in the freezer, but I thought I would give it a try. I also adapted a recipe from Stocking Up III, according to which these pickles can be stored for a week in the refrigerator or up to three months in the freezer.  

 Freezer Pickles (adapted from Stocking Up III) 

 6-8 medium-large pickling cucumbers

1 red onion, sliced (you can dice it if you want) Handful of fresh baby dill

½ cup vegetable or canola oil

1 ½ cups white vinegar

½ cup honey

½ cup water

2 garlic cloves, crushed and diced 

Whisk together the oil, vinegar, honey, water and garlic and set aside. Slice the very ends off of each cucumber then slice each cucumber lengthwise into thirds. Layer the cucumbers and onions into two quart-sized freezer containers. You should be able to fit three to four of the sliced cucumbers into each container while still leaving and inch and a half to two inches of headspace. Place the dill on top and pour the vinegar mix over the pickles in each container, again leaving about two inches of headspace. Cover and put into the freezer.  

 I haven’t made the Bolognese sauce yet, but I plan to this afternoon. Most of it will go into the freezer for future meals. I also plan on making a big applesauce spice cake for the freezer and maybe some pumpkin spice pancakes. I am also considering making my crumb coffee cake recipe in muffin tins and freezing it to have on hand for breakfasts, though I’m not sure how well it will freeze. But I guess there’s only one way to find out! But all in all, if this ends up being the only preserving I get around to this year, I’m pretty pleased with what I’ve been able to do.  

Ah, Halloween. It’s got to be my favorite holiday, and I love decorating for it. When I was a kid, we used to make tissue paper ghosts to hang in the windows. They’re simple and fun to create, and by using more durable materials, they can be used year after year.

Materials

White handkerchiefs

1 inch foam balls

Black fabric paint

Thin black or white ribbon

Small 6 inch long wooden dowels

Fishing line

Instructions

You can make two versions of these ghosts– some on wooden dowels to place in planters or containers, and some strung on fishing line to hang in windows. For the dowel version, stick a dowel into a foam ball. Cover the ball with the handkerchieft, and secure with a short length of ribbon. Use the fabric paint to create a face on the ghost. For the hanging version, leave the dowel off the foam ball, and once the ghost is assembled, tie the desired length of fishing line to the back of the ghost by the ribbon, and hang in the window.

This is especially a great craft for younger kids, because it’s not messy with glue. They look really good around the house or stuck in planters on a sheltered porch. You can also make giant versions by using flour sack towels and large foam balls.

Well, things are winding down on the garden front. We’ve got about another week or so of cherry tomatoes and harvesting the green onions and then we’ll be finished with the major stuff until next spring. With the hecticness of school and work, the lettuce and herbs I sowed awhile back didn’t survive… I admit to forgetting to water quite a bit… but that can’t be helped now. The strawberry is also done for the season. We’ll have garlic greens as often as we want throughout the fall and winter, and we purchased an establised rosemary plant that seems to be doing well and we’ll try to winter over. The window sure does look different without all the plants. Our local farmer’s market has about another two months left, so I plan on putting up a few things, but not as much as I orginally planned– school is just keeping me too busy. But I would still like to do some refrigerator pickles and hot pepper vinegars. Maybe some salsa to freeze also.