Category Archives: Commentary

Mother Nature’s

Posted on December 28, 2014 by AnnieRie

Focusing on those small businesses and trying to sort out the dozens of items on the page I want to create. Today I decided to highlight one of my favorite Howard County family owned businesses.

Mother Nature’s.

For years we have bought things from Claire and Dave. We have taken bird watching hikes locally and in northern VA with Claire. We bought our best bird watching binoculars from them.

If you go there often, you may stumble upon their binocular clearance sale. Half price for these awesome Nikon binoculars.

Right now, it is inventory season and a recent email told us they didn’t want to count it or pay taxes on it, so there were great bargains to be had.

I buy seed from them. Books. Like my bird compilations, and this one.

This one is fun. It teaches you how to attract certain birds. How to make your own suet.

How to make nachos.

Claire runs a Facebook Friday contest. To win prizes from the store. She is convenient to those in Columbia. Just around the corner from the post office, and just across the way from Bon Fresco.

For us, in the winter, attracting lots of birds to our yard is entertaining, and the goodies from Mother Nature’s keeps them healthy and happy. Even when they get into fights at the birdbath.

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Posted in Birds, Commentary, Food, Howard County, Local Businesses, Nature and tagged birds, community, hoco loco, Howard County, Locavore, nature. Bookmark the permalink.

The Luxury of Time

Posted on December 21, 2014 by AnnieRie

Ned Tillman commented on yesterday’s post about taking time. “My wish for everyone is that they make the time to spend more of their life out in the woods, on the rivers or in a meadow.”

It is a great resolution, to spend more time outdoors, just enjoying nature. Not even “doing” things. Just walking or sitting.

For so many years, between commuting and traveling for work, we didn’t always take time to sit and do nothing. Or, to leisurely do things without feeling stressed. Like making cookies.

I spent three days making this year’s cookies. Taking the time to do them right. Slowly. No rush. But I made them simpler, too. Using one basic recipe and making three cookies from it. Thanks to my trusty old Gourmet magazines. These are from 2003.

I made basic butter cookies. Recipe is on Epicurious web site. I also made the almond spice cookies. And, one more. Basic cookie baked like a shortbread and then covered and baked again with a brownie topping.

The ones above were the sugar cookies, made with the basic dough. They almost taste like my mom’s, but since hers used margarine and these use butter, the taste is a bit different, as is the texture.

I did other things in stages, as well. Like wrapping presents. And putting the lights outside. I just finished that task this morning. So what if we are last in the area at putting them up. I did get there eventually.

I know I am lucky to be retired. I know I can hit the stores tomorrow morning for those last two items I wanted to get. After everyone else goes to work. Not competing for parking or standing in lines with those who have the limited time on weekends and at night to get it all done.

Still, I realize that I used to get caught up in the frantic rush to get everything done. Wanting to be finished, and then being totally wiped out by the time the holiday came around. No more, I say. I intend to keep this resolution. To do less than I did before, and to make what I do meaningful. To spend more time with friends and relatives. To spend more time outdoors.

And less time trying to overachieve. A less ambitious garden. Easier meals. Less TV. I’ll see how I do when spring comes.

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Posted in Commentary, Food, Hobbies, miscellaneous, Retirement and tagged commentary, cooking, family, Food, hobbies, holidays, retirement. Bookmark the permalink.

Over the River

Posted on December 19, 2014 by AnnieRie

Yesterday I headed out to combine CSA and Friends and Farms basket pickups with a few Christmas preparation errands. A cold blustery day, but sunny for the most part. After the third time I crossed the Patuxent River, I realized how dominant the branches of the river are in our landscape, and in our travels.

With the leaves down you can see more of the trails along the river. From Rte 32, Broken Land Parkway, Guilford Road, Murray Hill Road. Over and over, I crossed the Patuxent and thought to myself, we really need to get out on those trails along the river and reconnect with this part of our community.

Howard County is bordered on most of its south and west sides by the Patuxent River, and on the north and east sides by the Patapsco River. Both rivers have thousands of acres of parkland and pathways.

I decided for my New Year’s resolution this year to get back out there and hike the parks on the rivers. And, to learn more about those rivers.

If you are still looking for stocking stuffers, or last minute gifts, check out a couple of books that Ned Tillman has written. I already have the first one, The Chesapeake Watershed, and need to get one of his new book, Saving the Places We Love. Ned is a local resident and one of our Howard County bloggers.

You can find his books at Barnes and Noble, and Shoemaker Country in Ellicott City, at the Robinson Nature Center, and at the Howard County Conservancy.

I first met Ned when he was a hike leader for a HoLLIE class. He still leads many hikes in the area. He also teaches one day at the Legacy Leadership Environmental Institute, which is the newer version of the HoLLIE curriculum. Check this out if you are inclined to learn more about our community.

Me? I just think I’ll spend more time out on our rivers. It’s a big part of why I love living here. The Triadelphia Reservoir and the Middle Patuxent Environmental Area are close to home, and good places to start. Maybe I’ll see that eagle that was in our yard the other day, and was down the road again yesterday.

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Posted in Adventures, Commentary, Community, Howard County, Nature, Volunteering, West HoCo and tagged commentary, community, day trips, hoco loco, Howard County, howard county conservancy, nature, volunteering, West HoCo. Bookmark the permalink.

Blurring the Lines

Posted on December 12, 2014 by AnnieRie

Between markets, delivery services, cooperatives, and CSAs. I can’t help but notice as a result of being part of most of those choices that things keep changing. To keep customers. Take for example.

The presence of my CSA cooperative’s items in my Friends and Farms basket.

Yes, that’s an LFFC sticker on my butternut squash in this week’s Friends and Farms basket. Just like the sticker on my carnival squash in my LFFC CSA pick up basket.

And that Bowman Mountain applesauce in my fruit share. Was in the refrigerator at F&F when I got there.

And, yes, Mother Earth mushrooms were in both deliveries. So was LFFC garlic.

Here’s this week’s F&F individual basket. I am also pretty sure the leek was from Lancaster Farm Fresh Coop, too. I do like their use of a mostly organic non-profit Amish cooperative to give us great produce and fruit.

Just like I am thankful that our LFFC CSA share keeps going into the fall. And, hopefully into the winter if we get enough interest.

This was my half share, and my fruit share. Anyone know a killer recipe for rutabagas? The one “weird” item in our share this week.

As for cheese.

Lancaster Farm Fresh continues to give us artisanal cheeses at much more reasonable prices than Roots, Wegmans, and Whole Foods. We generally get 24 ounces for $25. Check out the per pound price of the best cheese at any of those retailers and you will see what a good deal we are getting.

So, where am I going with this post? I see a shift in my CSA. Giving more options. More individual choices. I see a shift in Friends and Farms. Using more and more reasonably priced organic items. And, more flexibility there too.

The old model, one farm CSA isn’t doing as well as those who broaden their sources. Consumers have lots of choices around here. A one farm CSA with limited veggies won’t survive against the cooperatives and regionally sourced food services like F&F.

I also see the value in these current choices. Better pricing. Fresher foods. I like Friends and Farms comment from a recent TV show. Wegmans and Whole Foods quality at Giant and Safeway pricing. We can get really great food around here. Year round.

The trick in all this? Knowing how to use it. Staying home and cooking. What have I done with the above, and what will I do this week with the rest of it?

One of the carrots went into tonight’s dinner. There will be a post tomorrow about that dinner. It was simply an awesome local meal. Spinach and mushrooms went into a salad yesterday taken to a friend’s house for dinner. Same with the garlic, in a potato casserole. Taken to that dinner.

As for LFFC, one of the onions in that potato casserole last night. Red cabbage in a salad tonight. I am making apple bread this weekend to give as Christmas gifts. Same for that jar of applesauce. One of my mom’s favorite treats, it will be in her “stocking” from me.

The lines may be blurred these days from my food suppliers, but I still can make flavorful meals and use these items over a two to three week period. Can’t say the same about grocery store produce, which wilts and slimes in less than a week. Fresh food is amazing. We are very lucky to have the choices we have here in Howard County.

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Posted in Commentary, Community, CSA, Farms, Food, Friends and Farms, Howard County, LFFC, Local Businesses, Locavore, Real Food, Winter Eat Local and tagged commentary, community, cooking, CSA, farms, Food, foodie, Howard County, local businesses, Locavore, real food. Bookmark the permalink.

Giving Tuesdays

Posted on December 2, 2014 by AnnieRie

Today isn’t the only day we consider giving to the community where we live. These One Day “opportunities” may raise awareness, but the need for giving back is year round.

From my little corner of the world, a few suggestions for today, and for the rest of the year.

Howard County Community Action Council has many ways to make a difference. Beyond the Food Bank. There is the One Months Rent program. The Prepare for Success. Many other smaller ways to help.

For those of us who have a community plot at Howard County Conservancy, our “Giving Tuesdays” span six months of the year. May until November.

Even after our giving of fresh produce along with other sources like local farms and other community gardeners has ended, the food bank still collects non perishables, and also non food items like infant care or personal care items. Helping them outside of the holiday giving season is greatly appreciated.

And, of course, in my circle of giving, the non profit (non county-affiliated) Howard County Conservancy has many ways to donate. My current favorite “Critter Champions”.

You can donate to feed the critters for a week or a month. You even get your picture on the turtle tank if you wish.

I mean, who can resist keeping Ranger fed with his daily ration of mice?

Along with the goats, chickens, turtle, snake, and tree fox (did I miss any of the critters?), Ranger gets fed by volunteers who give their time, and donations for the assorted food items necessary to keep them healthy and happy.

One more suggestion that is easy to do. And will benefit a local charity, just a few miles down the road in Baltimore. Check through your closets. Look for unused scarves, gloves, sweaters, mittens, and other clothing. Take them to Boarman’s or Kendall’s. Both sites have St. Vincent de Paul collection bins. Here, your contribution will stay in the area and help those in need.

Lots of ways to help Howard County’s nonprofits. These are just a small sample. Check out The Volunteer Center guide to Holiday Giving on their web page.

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Posted in Commentary, Community, Howard County, Volunteering and tagged commentary, community, hoco loco, Howard County, howard county conservancy, volunteering. Bookmark the permalink.

CSA’d Out

Posted on November 18, 2014 by AnnieRie

I can understand it. Our first year we were overwhelmed at the end of the CSA season. But, we hung in there and learned from it, and drastically changed how we approached the weekly deluge of veggies.

I say this because at our first pick up last Thursday for our fall CSA, we heard that about 5 of our summer CSA members never picked up their last week of veggies, or fruit, or meat, or eggs. The food bank did well, as did our site host’s friends, who benefited from things the food bank doesn’t want. Like all that chicken and meat.

We are down to 30 members, from close to 50 in the summer. Enough to keep us going. Those fortunate enough to join us got new and exciting things, like these.

Watermelon radishes. I roasted mine.

Salanova lettuce. A red multileaf variety. So sweet. So flavorful. Devoured in a lunch mix with some poached chicken breast on top.

Baby Hakurei turnips. Thanks to Elizabeth at Three Beans on a String these will be honey glazed with Larriland apples and served for dinner in a few days.

The whole haul.

Napa cabbage. Will be a slaw soon, with apples. The beets. Already roasted and eaten. The potatoes. Made their way into a potato leek soup today, thanks to Friends and Farms having extra leeks for me to pick up this morning. Sweet peppers. Sliced in salad. Put into a frittata for tonight’s dinner. A couple of them are left.

As for that glorious cheese share.

Biweekly in the fall. That stinky funky six year aged cheddar. The “Lanchego”, which is simply awesome. A Colby. New to us, from this supplier. Creamy and delicate.

I can honestly say I am not CSA’d out. I am really enjoying the variety, and of course, the freshness. You don’t have to rush and eat it all in one week. With food this fresh, in two weeks, I swear it is still better than grocery store produce.

Tomorrow is my husband’s 64th birthday. Stand by to see what I put together to celebrate. Will I still need him? Will I still feed him?

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Posted in Commentary, Community, CSA, Food, Friends and Farms, LFFC, Remember When and tagged commentary, community, cooking, CSA, family, Food, foodie, real food, value of CSA. Bookmark the permalink.

Ethanol Free

Posted on November 17, 2014 by AnnieRie

We finally gave up and had to find an ethanol free gas station. I swear that ethanol is doing us more harm than high fructose corn syrup. Neither one of them is good for us.

The closest place for us to buy it is in Littlestown PA. Full serve. In the rain today we drove up to fill up the gas cans for the snow blower, the lawn mower and the leaf vacuum. So far, in the past year, the string trimmer, snow blower and lawn mower all had carburetor work, because of the E10 gas gumming them up.

Other than the Eastern shore of MD, where the marinas are located, there are few choices near us. Charles Town WV. Front Royal VA. The one above in Littlestown. All on our short list are sources when we go on other trips in those areas.

We were really careful with our small engine equipment, draining when not in use. Using the additives. This has been the year we had major issues, including losing the lawn mower for 10 days while it was fixed. Thankfully, the tractor is diesel powered.

So, on a rainy Monday we drove 40 miles to get gas. Decided to stop on the way back at Baughers in Westminster to get a few items. Like my husbands favorite ice cream. Pumpkin.

The last quart in the case. Perfect for his birthday dinner this week.

As for Littlestown, it is just up Rte. 97 a few miles north of the Mason Dixon Line. On the way to Gettysburg.

Downtown is already decorated for Christmas. It reminds us so much of my husband’s home town in PA.

As for finding ethanol free gas, here is a great website.

And if you aren’t using ethanol free gas in your 2 cycle engines, it’s only a matter of time before it bites you too. Now, back to our regularly scheduled leaf removal.

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Posted in Commentary, Day Trips, Nature, Weather, West HoCo and tagged commentary, day trips, fall foliage, weather, West HoCo. Bookmark the permalink.

Gleaning

Posted on November 13, 2014 by AnnieRie

By definition, gleaning is the act of collecting leftover crops from farmers’ fields after they have been commercially harvested or on fields where it is not economically profitable to harvest.

It’s what we were doing last Tuesday on our food bank gardens. Almost everything is gone. Except for some greens. There was still enough out there to do one more harvest.

I called what we got from the collards, baby collard greens on the label on the bag. We still got a large blue recycling bag full of collards from these long producing plants.

As for the rainbow chard,

you could still find lovely baby chard nestled between the stems of the past harvests.

And, that Russian kale.

Before we pulled the plants out of the ground, we found quite a bit of it to harvest.

Beets and carrots.

What we couldn’t get for the food bank, like bundles of carrot tops, we used to feed the goats at the Conservancy. It seems they love carrot tops. We did get a good harvest of baby beets and beet greens.

Last act before leaving, pulling those immature cabbages, for anyone who wanted to make cabbage soup. Not big enough to use, but yet edible, these little morsels would make a tasty treat.

We have learned much from our food bank harvesting. We know what can be used, and what is just too messed up, or tiny, or “weird” to use. I get it. People in our CSA won’t take strange vegetables that are harder to cook. A handful of cabbage leaves isn’t enough to donate, so they either go to waste, or we find a volunteer willing to use them.

Next year, our plots will be planted with varieties that are easily cooked or processed. Exotic vegetables aren’t the way to go, nor are plants that don’t provide a prolific harvest. A handful of something isn’t useful. We need to be harvesting bags full.

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Posted in Commentary, Food, Gardening, Real Food, Volunteering and tagged commentary, community, Food, gardening, howard county conservancy, real food. Bookmark the permalink.

To Honor Our Dads

Posted on November 11, 2014 by AnnieRie

Both our dads served in World War II.

My dad:

A SeaBee. Construction Battalion. Enlisted at 17. Built airfields all across the South Pacific. Including the one at Okinawa, where my nephew is deployed, and a pilot flying out from those airfields. Truly something special for us, as he was in high school when my dad passed away. He never saw him graduate from Annapolis, or earn his wings.

My FIL. Ten years older than my dad, and a Staff Sergeant in the Army Air Corps.

Their paths may have crossed in the South Pacific. Like on Thanksgiving.

We have my FIL’s service memory album.

My mom probably has most of my dad’s paperwork. But, my MIL and FIL passed away and we have all of it. For most of us in my generation, our families were touched by WWII. So Veterans Day means a lot to us.

We are thankful they returned, met and married our moms, and we were born into this great country. For us, Veterans Day is special. Personal. We will never forget the sacrifices our servicemen made.

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Posted in Commentary, Family, Remember When and tagged commentary, family, holidays. Bookmark the permalink.

Three Years Old

Posted on November 2, 2014 by AnnieRie

My blogaversary is today. Three years ago, I started it to record my retirement journey. I took a few CSA pictures and started posting, inspired by a couple of local bloggers who recorded what they got from their Breezy Willow CSAs. I added my fall CSA bounty into that mix.

Kitchen Scribble and Allura. Kat at Kitchen Scribble still blogs, but Allura is no longer active.

Between howchow, the biggest local food blog, and the hocoblogs pages, I pretty much learned what was interesting to others, to get them to read my blog, and to find topics to keep it going.

And, somewhere between the Old “Dark Days” challenge, where I began that locavore journey in earnest, and today, I turned my focus from unconscious consumer of whatever was on sale or looked good, to a proponent of small businesses/farms/local purveyors and much more. I honestly think I became that advocate because of the blogging. I didn’t start out to write a food blog. More like a “here is what interests me where I live” blog.

What interests me the most these days is my community. Which includes most of Central Maryland. Still a pretty decent place to live. Even when the weather is awful. I haven’t tired of exploring it. Or of writing about it.

Stay tuned for a winter of exploration. Going to places brand new to us, rediscovering some old haunts that we haven’t visited in a long time. Winter isn’t a time for hibernation.

It’s also a time to really enjoy the outdoors. Want to join us for a hike this coming Saturday? A family hike out at the Mt. Pleasant site of the Howard County Conservancy. Groups of different ages, and paces, who will explore the grasslands and woodlands with volunteer naturalists leading the way. Free. 10am, November 8. The long term weather forecast looks good.