Happy Spring 2017

Happy Spring!

I thought that you would enjoy this pretty

little French Victorian trade card.

Front...

...and back!...

Save it and use in your art.

I have had the original in my collection for a while.

Happy Spring my friends!

Garden cleanup, daisies, and SNOW?!

Hello dear friends! This is a little late in coming, but here is the March image from "The Nature Notes of an Edwardian Lady" once more showcasing the beautiful work of Edith Holden.

Her work was so lovely,

but spring must have come much earlier

where she lived...

Last week here it got to the

high 70s and even 80 one day,

so I mulched a large section of my newest garden.

I set out the rest of the bags of mulch and the

wheel barrow by the deck so I could continue working,

but the reality of March here is that the warm weather

didn't last.

It didn't seem fair that on the first official day

of Daylight Savings Time,

we woke up to this...

It has been cold and nasty ever since,

so I made my own garden fun by purchasing this lovely

bouquet in the grocery store.

White daisies...

...with greenish centers...

...for St. Patrick's Day...

On Sunday there wasn't much else to do but cook a nice

dinner, so Miss German Descent Girl here

made an early Corned Beef and Cabbage and invited my

sister-and-brother-in-law over for dinner.

I cook it in Guinness Stout and one of the leftover bottles

sure tasted good.

And I am not even a beer-drinker, per say!!

Signs of Spring at Plum Tree Cottage

Good morning my friends!

Yesterday we had some really pretty weather, being in the high 60s, with today expected to be more of the same. So, while walking around the yard I snapped a few photos of the promise of spring.

The first pretty white blossoms on the Plum Tree.

Yes, this house is named after her!...

One of the Hellebores (Lenten Rose) blooming in our fountain

garden in front of the deck.

She actually has been in bloom for almost a month now,

and will continue to do so until the really hot weather begins

in the summer...

Seen against the Carolina sky is the beginning of

the buds leafing out on one of our Crabapple trees...

And of course, always early are the daffodils

poking through the debris still in the garden

from its winter rest...

I don't imagine that I am looking forward to spring

and time spent in the garden!

Are you seeing any signs of spring where you live?

Harbingers of Spring: Pansies, Violas and Hellebore

Happy Monday!

This weekend we had our first beautiful couple of days. With temperatures in the 60's it was the perfect time to do some yard cleanup. So, on Saturday I cleaned up the herb garden (in which I also grow daylilies and coneflowers, if you follow this blog), and then worked on the little garden that grows along the stone path leading to our deck.

Yesterday we had to go to Lowe's for some stuff that Mr. Perch needed for his current project, so I spent a few minutes in the garden section. It's always fun to see the early arrivals that usually make their way here after mid-February, namely pansies and violas. So who could resist?

It felt great to be out there for about four hours each day, but my muscles and back are singing a different tune!

Pretty purple pansies...

...and whites and yellows...

Sweet yellow and blue violas,

which will self seed and pop up

where you least expect to see them

in the years ahead...

These hellebore have been growing in

our shade garden at the base of our deck

for about six years now.

They actually started to bloom in January,

and will continue to do so until the weather

turns really hot.

They get better every year...

Below is the little area along the path

to the deck.

The daylilies are just beginning to pop

out of the ground,

but until they really grow tall and bloom,

I decided to plant some of the pansies and 

violas between them to give us some color.

This little area doesn't look like much now,

but in the spring and summer it is

quite beautiful.

I won't mulch until I can see what

is really coming in...

Then yesterday I cleaned out one of our

daylily and iris gardens.

It always takes a while because we have quite a few

plants, and I keep markers in the dirt identifying

each one.

When I clean out the gardens, 

I also replace the markers that broke

during the winter

or are getting difficult to read. 

I use cut up pieces of cheap white mini-blinds,

and write on them with pencil.

It is a cheap way to keep track of your plants,

and they usually hold up for two or three years.

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What did you do this weekend?

Frozen

Today our world seemed as though 

all was frozen after a bad winter storm. 

There was not much snow,

but the the ice whispered upon the earth.

Welcome to our yard in winter.

But the cardinals braved the cold...

...and so did my husband!

Stay warm, my friends!

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Today I am linking to 

Wen's Simply Neutrals Tuesday Party

(even though today is Saturday!).

Why don't you pop over there and say hello

to some of my other friends!

You can find Wen's blog here.

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All of the photos in this post were taken with my 

oldie-but-goodie Canon Rebel T1i

practicing for the first time

 taking close-ups with a 

Canon EFS 55-250 mm zoom lens.

Roast Pork and The First Snow

Happy New Year! I hope that you all had a great one.

Though I have lived in The South for more than half of my life, I can't quite get accustomed to eating black-eyed peas to celebrate the New Year. I would much prefer to follow the traditions of my German family and eat pork and sauerkraut, which either my grandmother or mom usually made in the beginning of January. Eating sauerkraut is said to bring blessings and wealth and is eaten along with pork, the pig being said to be a symbol of good luck and well-being. Though I imagine that doctors might argue these fine points, my dad is alive and well at almost 93, so I will maintain this hearty, if not healthy, tradition!

After years of eating lean and healthy pork tenderloin, I yearned for my grandma's slow-roasted pork that was loaded with flavor, melted in your mouth and had that delicious crust on it. I remember her starting it early in the morning in the oven that she had in the basement so that it wouldn't heat up the whole house. There it sat slow roasting until we arrived on the scene mid-afternoon.

Though tenderloin is a lot healthier, I feel that it lacks the flavor that we experienced in the old days. And since this is a meal that I usually only make once each year, a little splurging can't hurt! The recipe that I use is from the the "Make-Ahead Recipes 2010" issue of Cooks Illustrated, which is my favorite cooking magazine.

On New Year's Eve we went to a party given by our neighbors who live across the street, and on Sunday we had the two of them over for a roast pork and sauerkraut dinner. Though the recipe is intended to be a make-ahead version, I can't bear to wait to eat it, so I make it as a roast to be eaten when ready.

Note: I use what we call a fresh (not smoked) pork picnic,

WITH the bone,

rather than a boneless Boston Butt, 

which I have tried but didn't like as well.

I don't bother to tie the meat.

After trimming most of the fat

(the rest is cooked out during the slow-roasting,

and makes wonderful drippings for gravy),

fresh rosemary (still growing in my herb garden),

freshly cracked black pepper, table salt,

fresh sage leaves (NOT still growing in my herb garden!),

 fennel seeds, and garlic,

are mixed together...

...and then rubbed all over the meat,

which is then put in the oven for three hours

at 300 degrees.

During this time you do nothing

except inhale the wonderful aroma

of it cooking,

and quite literally,

this starts in less than 15 minutes!...

After the three hours,

you take out the meat,

add the wedged-up red onions

to the drippings that have already accumulated...

...and roast for another 3 to 3-1/2 hours,

during which time I keep an eye on it and add

a cup or so of water

(or white wine!)

and then it will look like this...

At this point I don't follow the recipe any further.

I make my own gravy (not the apple cider and

apple jelly version).

I also don't set any meat aside for Cubans.

Here is the recipe, which I hope you can enlarge

and print...

If you wish to make the roast and Cubans as specified,

here is the rest of the recipe...

And here is the recipe that I use when I make

most of my gravies.

I could never remember the formula of butter

and flour to drippings,

and this seems to work for me.

From Pinterest, where else!

I do use just a little less flour than specified.

For the pork I use chicken stock or broth,

but this also works well for beef recipes

using beef stock or broth.

Ignore my chicken scratch on the bottom!

By the way, for side dishes I made

a Martha Stewart recipe that I have been

using for years with saurkraut,

white cabbage, and browned mushrooms

in it,

along with mashed potatoes 

and a spinach salad with pears and

Gorgonzola cheese.

Oh, and NY Cheesecake,

another standby from the same issue of

Cooks Illustrated as the pork.

If you're going to cook,

you might as well cook!!

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And a day after eating this nice winter meal,

low and behold,

we got snow! 

It didn't stick, though!

Have you cooked anything delicious lately?

Have a great evening!

The Colors of Autumn: Apple Trees, Fallen Leaves, and The Posted Sign

Good morning friends!

Here are some interesting weird photos that I took last week when we were in the mountains. Of course, I couldn't resist a little photo editing on them for some fun.

This area is known for its apple orchards.

Here are some apple trees 

that were past their harvest, 

and grew in a remote area 

almost at the end of a mountain road.

They were almost spooky.

If you look closely, you will see

a few red apples still hanging

on the branches...

I snapped this photo of fallen leaves at

Jump Off Rock,

which you can read about in my post here...

On the same road that the apple trees were,

I had to love this old posted sign and fence post.

Don't you think it has a unique vibe to it?

I had to trespass a little to get to it,

but Mr. Perch reminded me that it didn't look

like too many cops patrolled this remote area!...

Not all subjects have to be perfect and beautiful, do they?

Have you taken any photos of less-than-perfect-and-beautiful subjects lately?

The Plum Tree Saga

Hello dear friends. 

A few days ago I was admiring the beauty of the blossoms on our plum tree and, knowing that they would soon be gone, I decided to have some fun with iPhone photo apps on one of the photos. Below is the result.

Here is the unedited photograph.

I loved the way the blossoms played against the

beautiful North Carolina sky. 

I framed it using VintaFrame...

For this one I used an app called DistressedFX.

I have had it for awhile, 

but since it is better used

on landscape photography,

I hadn't had a reason to use it.

Not only does it distress your photos with many 

different options,

but it also puts birds in the background

(and you know how much I love birds).

Can you see the birds flying "behind" the tree?

I then framed it with one of the options from 

the VintaFrame app...

For the version below,

I also used DistressedFX, 

but chose a different treatment,

and a different "flock" of birds.

It is a little hit and miss, because you can't 

put the birds where you want them

(unless you know something that I don't!).

I then used Snapseed for the frame. 

I've talked about some of these apps before.

Have you tried these or any others?

I'd love to know!

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Have a wonderful weekend.