I am going to revel in Money & Youth, once my hands are no longer sitcky....

Yesterday one of my gorgeous friends brought me a large bucket of Sage! Sage is one of my allies. The intoxicating scent of Sage puts me into a immediate state of CALM....as does Rosemary and Mugwort. So this is my time of year! :). Last night, when the house was still, I sat down with a glass of wine, blues radio, my string, and began tying the Sage sticks & leaves. The sticks will become brooms for my fabulous sage Kitchen Witches (they come when the Sage is ready, and they are definitely my herb Witches!), and the leaves become bundles. The small, loose leaves I let dry, and later put them in sleep pillows or grind them up for seasoning. I use an abundant amount of bundles, as I am constantly cleansing my thrifting treasures, so tying & drying my own is smart.

Magical, mythical Sage; foremost being known for cleansing and chasing away bad Spirits. It is said to attract money, “where Sage grows in the garden the woman rules”, as well as granting a long life and endless youth.

Sage is a wonderful herb for cooking, I especially enjoy infusing meats & chicken when roasting them in a clay baker :).

Sage is hailed for its’ medicinal qualities, and is very similar to Rosemary, as its’ primary medicinal components are volatile oils, & flavonoids. Often used as an anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial, Sage is my favorite for any ailments of the mouth. Once, my son had to get a tooth pulled. Of course the dentist prescribed antibiotics for the hole....instead, I had him swish with a Sage infusion several times a day. Within a few days the wound had healed. (You will want to watch closely for infections if you decide to do this.... I kept that prescription for back up. Antibiotics are not evil, I just choose to save them for necessary situations :)...)

If you are tying your own Sage, you will revel in the intoxicating smell, and when you are done, you will try to remove the sticky sap-like residue from your hands. These are the wonderful oils I described :)....No fear, there is an easy way to remove this, and it is surely in your kitchen: Olive Oil. Rub a little olive Oil on your fingers, and the residue will ball up and disappear, while your hands get a bonus oil treatment.

Enjoy!

I should have watched Julia do it first...French Crepe...and what I made :)

My son and I love watching cooking shows together. A few days ago we watched "Cooking Mexican", and they were making crepes with some type of yummy caramel sauce over it....mmm.....just delicious.

We decided to make crepes. I pulled out my Julia Child cookbook I recently claimed at an estate sale. Actually, my son went outside to play right when we got started (Nerf gun vs. crepe...the Nerf gun won), so I was on my own.

The first 3 crepes were a bit..creative. The third one looked like it could be a crepe. They were all yummy...with homemade elderberry syrup and joghurt.

Let us watch the expert :)..:



Now, run in the kitchen, get your ingredients, make some yummy crepes :). P.S. We added a little nutmeg & cinnamon to our batter.

Julia Child’s Master Crêpe Recipe

Ingredients:

1 cup flour

2/3 cup cold milk

2/3 cup cold water

3 large eggs

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons melted butter, plus more for brushing on pan

Directions:

1) Mix all ingredients until smooth in a blender or with a whisk. Refrigerate.

2) Heat a non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Brush with melted butter.

3) Pour in 2 to 3 tablespoons of batter into the center of the pan and then tilt the pan in all directions to cover the bottom evenly. Cook about 1 minute, or until browned on the bottom. Turn and cook briefly on the other side.

4) Cool on a rack or plate as you finish making the rest. Serve as desired.


Much love,
Heike

Happy Imbolc - Modern ploughing of the "fields"

If I were already on my "farm", I would be finished feeding and milking the animals, and my children would be out in a pack today, going from door to door with a decorated plough, collecting small tokens & goodwill. Don't refuse them....

:)

Happy Imbolc.

Excerpt from Wicca.com on St. Brigid:
"Another traditional symbol of Imbolc is the plough. In some areas, this is the first day of ploughing in preparation of the first planting of crops. A decorated plough is dragged from door to door, with costumed children following asking for food, drinks, or money. Should they be refused, the household is paid back by having its front garden ploughed up. In other areas, the plough is decorated and then Whiskey, the "water of life" is poured over it. Pieces of cheese and bread are left by the plough and in the newly turned furrows as offerings to the nature spirits. It is considered taboo to cut or pick plants during this time."

I love whiskey.... Instead, I am sitting in front of my computer in Subfarmia, perusing the wonderful seed catalogs (some of these are just beautiful works of art.), and getting ready to plant my trash can potatoes.

Happy ploughing!