I am a baker at heart. I love making pies for Thanksgiving, Italian cookies for Christmas, cakes for birthdays, and frosted rollout cookies for any event where children are in the house. I loved the days as a teenager when I baked sweets for my brothers and the neighborhood kids, and then, as a mother, when I … Continue reading My Favorite Rollout Butter Cookies
I’ve had a rough yet extraordinary three weeks. My beloved mother died followed three weeks later by the death of my father. I am filled with gratitude for the gifts my parents modeled for me, chief among them, love, compassion, and hospitality. This prayer from The Rabbi’s Manual was read at my Dad’s gravesite by the presiding Catholic priest. It … Continue reading We Will Remember Them
A few years ago, my maker friend, Mary Stone, grew squash vines loaded with pear-shaped gourds in her backyard vegetable garden. An idea was percolating in her head. She wanted to use the gourds to make birdhouses to give as hostess gifts to some friends. Birdhouse, swan, and wide-bottle gourds, collectively known as bottle gourds, are … Continue reading How to Make Gorgeous Birdhouse Gourds
The number one gardening question I’ve been asked lately by Instagram followers is, What cover crops are you growing? The short answer is buckwheat, crimson clover, and a brassica such as daikon radishes or turnips. The buckwheat will die off with the first frost, the brassica will wither away in the winter, and the crimson … Continue reading Putting Your Garden to Bed with a Blanket of Cover Crops
@judyschickens 