Conley-Gibbons-Ballew Clan!

A little preview of a family session with the Conley-Gibbons-Ballew clan. What a fun bunch!

Q is for Quince

Quince is fruit that, before today, I was quite unfamiliar with. I was so excited this morning to come across them at the Farmers Market from Cherry Orchards. It’s appearance resembles something like a cross between a pear and an apple, with a flavor quite similar, though more fragrant and beautiful. Though inedible raw due to high tannin levels and a hard texture, these lovely fruits turn a soft ruby color and develop a divine texture when cooked over time. Often made into jellies or pastes, quince is a popular fruit in Britain but is found quite often in traditional cookbooks.

I made the recipe below this afternoon and I can attest that it is simply delicious. Best served with vanilla ice cream and good friends.

Quince and Almond Crumble

Topping (you will probably have some leftover, which you can keep in the freezer until next time)
• ¾ cup plain flour
• ½ cup almonds with skin
• 3 tbs brown sugar
• Pinch salt
• 4tbs unsalted butter, melted and cooled

Filling
• 1 cup sugar
• ¾ cup water
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 quinces

1. For the topping, place flour, almonds and brown sugar in a food processor and pulse until nuts are finely chopped. Add butter and pulse until just blended. Coarsely crumble in a shallow baking tray and chill for 1 hour.
2. For the filling, place the sugar, water, vanilla seeds and bean, bay leaf and lemon juice into a saucepan and bring to the boil over very low heat. Let the syrup boil for 2 minutes and then start to prepare the quinces.
3. Peel and core the quince, cut into 1cm cubes and place into the hot syrup. Half cover the saucepan with the lid, allowing the steam to escape. Slowly poach the quinces over low heat so that they retain their shape but cook at the same time. Once the quinces are tender, turn off the heat and set aside.
4. Preheat the oven to 350°F and place 4 ramekins on a baking tray. Spoon the quince mixture evenly into the cups. Sprinkle with crumble topping. Bake for 15-20 minutes, rotate tray and bake for another 10 minutes or until topping is golden brown and filling is bubbling. Cool to warm or room temperature and serve with ice cream or custard.Garnish with a sugared vanilla bean if you'd like to be fancy.
   

PHOTO CONTEST: Old School

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Country Living Fair

Keely and I popped up to the Country Living Fair in Columbus last weekend. Full of amazing ideas and drool worthy wares, I enjoyed sampling apple trees and renewing my subscription for $5.

So Ex(cider)ed

pressed from apples into jars comes the sweetest nectar on earth... apple cider. fruit gathered from family farms and lonely trees pressed with love by friends and frozen to savor throughout the year.

Way down yonder in the paw paw patch...

Piper and I went hunting for paw paws and found the most amazing patch. With our bag bursting with ripe fruits, we headed back to the house to process the delicious native treats. I spent a few hours de-seeding the fruits and froze two quarts of pulp. We made paw paw lassies for lunch and have another big pile that are ripening up. Oldboy didn't know what to think of all the strange green fruits, she was quite curious. We're headed down to the Paw Paw Festival for the afternoon to enjoy some atlatl competition and Paw Paw beer.

Meet Oldboy

I couldn't resist sharing a few pictures of my new friend. This is Oldboy.

On Location with Broken Ring

Here's a sneak peek of an on location shoot with Broken Ring. I had so much fun with the band boppin' around Nelsonville -- thanks guys!

Summer by the Sea(ttle)

Piper and I enjoyed a short summer getaway to the Pacific Northwest and visited with friends and family. We did a little bit of the touristy things before heading up the Puget Sound via the Mukilteo Ferry to Whidbey Island to Bellingham for his cousins wedding. Short but sweet, it was nice to get away from the Appalachian Ohio heat.

always room for dessert

Since the time surrounding my actual birthday was such a whirlwind of activities, I decided to delay celebration and threw a dessert picnic for my friends this afternoon. Friends gathered at our house for a bike parade with streamer sticks to the secret picnic location which I had set up ahead of time. I had so much fun planning for this day.

The delicious spread included peach tarts with pecan crust, blueberry tarts with ginger crust, vegan cashew torte with oatmeal lavender crust, lemon curd tartlets, palmiers and mini flourless dark chocolate tortes baked in paper souffle cups. I also made three varieties of soda pop: lemongrass, peach ginger ale and lavender lemon. I am so thankful to have such wonderful friends in my life and relished in the opportunity to treat them all to a special day.

A Fabulous Fourth

A lovely weekend spent floating with friends pondside, lakeside and riverside, drinking cocktails, eating watermelons and sweet corn. Fireworks and potato canons and kickball, too much fun.

wild food

The bounty of a lovely evening hike with a good friend yielded a delicious meal of wild harvested foods. Morel and Dryad Saddle mushrooms, Water leaf and Nettle, and young Fiddle Head Ferns made a delicious saute topped off with ramp pesto over local pasta. Bon appetit!

It takes a village to raise a wigwam

Taking a break from our home construction project, we spent the day helping our friend Sarah raise her wigwam. With wobbly ladders and lots of lashing, we took a platform floor and made a home. Sunshine, good food and many hands made for a productive day in Meigs.

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