tomato soup recipe.

tomato soup recipe

-olive oil
-2 carrots, chopped
-1 small onion, chopped
-2 small cloves of garlic (1 minced, 1 sliced
-1 small pepper (warm to hot to taste)
-crushed red chili pepper flakes
-chicken broth (1 can or 2 chicken bouillon cubes plus 2 cups water)
-6 large ripe tomatoes (or 2 X 14 oz. cans of whole tomatoes, chopped)
-2 -3 stalks of fresh basil, chopped
-sea salt
-freshly ground pepper
-1/2-3/4 c. heavy cream

pour a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in large pot and heat to medium. Add garlic and chopped vegetables, stirring with a wooden spoon now and again until the veg. are tender (around 10 minutes). Keep partially covered during that 10 minutes. And the broth, tomatoes, red chili pepper flakes, salt and pepper and bring to a boil. After begins to boil, turn back down to medium and cover. Test taste to see if you need for salt, pepper and red chili pepper flakes. After about 10 minutes (or a bit before serving, pour in the cream and chopped basil and stir.) Reheat back to warm.

Enjoy with a loaf of fresh or day old bread.

I keep the left overs in a mason jar and they last about a week. I am the only one in my home who really enjoys tomato soup. Even with the extra spice, Matheau will eat it with a grilled cheese, but if given the choice, he isn't going to choose tomato soup. I make this entirely and selfishly for myself and enjoy it for lunch when we typically eat left overs, or easy prep lunches so we can get cleaned up and finish up our school day.

Just in time.

My tannenbaums are finished in time. I was afraid that they were coming off my needles too late, but the cold is back.

today.

Today is cold and filled with hot chocolate and a bit of school, and some time for knitting. (Also paying bills and other redlogic work-but that doesn't sound as fun. :))

a new year.

And I am so ready. I can't remember a year in which I couldn't wait to move on from more then this last one. Maybe it is just my age and my memory is fading about previous ones, but I am so thankful for 2010. Even though the year seemed to fly, I constantly was behind schedule, and well, I could go on, but I will stop. Again, I am glad to know it is January 4 and both our business and personal accounts are reconciled and as accurate as possible.

Alright, on to lighter topics - food. I've seen this caramel corn recipe for awhile now. (Scroll down a bit.) Finally tried it today. It beats my old recipe hands down. Only ingredient I changed was I used pecans instead of peanuts.

Hope you all are having a lovely January 4th!

just photos.

*It was pointed out to me by my dear friend Suzanne, that my hat (the ripley) looked very purple and not very brown, so I am hoping after editing the photo, it looks brown... I love purple, but I don't think red hair looks very good with a purple hat. :)

the end of the fresh eggs.

A few weeks ago, a weasel (or two or three or four) got to all of the hens. None are left. Not a singe one, hence no more fresh eggs.

And since the eggs are gone and I seldom have had the energy to post all the parts of life I really wanted to. Add the home school year back in and blogging has really been moved to the end of my want-to-do list, so, I have decided to officially refrain from posting here. My lavender is still growing out back, so maybe one of these days, it will move back up on my priority list. I may occasionally post at Life on Chestnut Hill, our family blog, and I'll keep posting some photos on flickr.

Thank you for those who have stopped by. I hope you all have a lovely Autumn.

A photo from our last visit to Sweet Rose Farm, the CSA we are apart of.

zinnias, crafting and summer...

We have been picking cucumbers, beans, and a few peas, and lots of zinnias for a job the kids have for tomorrow. I had mad the small patchwork purse for a little friend this past weekend, when I was gathering the cards the kids had made for her, I quickly noticed the special touch Hannah had added to the letters on one of hers. Talia loved our cats when we visited, hence all the cats.

The shawl is my completed Ishbel. Raveled here. I think I would like to make another, maybe this winter... The pattern for the purse was from Patchwork Style. How to make the flower tutorial I found over at Wise Craft.

time just seems to disappear.

Swim lessons are over for the summer. They are always good, but it nice to reclaim our mornings. I can't remember a summer that I have enjoyed as much as I have this one. It started out perfect with our family trip to Kanakuk and since our return home, it has stayed that way. I have so enjoyed my time with all four of kids. I am dreading the thought of Hannah returning to school in less then a month and a bit less flexible schedule as we begin school officially at home.

The kids are with Grandpa and Grandma today. I'm heading to the Farmer's Market to pick up our share from Sweet Rose Farm CSA, and since I am childless for the morning, I may even get a chance for another spinning lesson. :) After that, I'm going to find some blackberries to pick.

*The lavender and veg are from my gardens. The second photo is proof that I still do knit! The butterfly and sunflower also from the gardens.

some of this week.

The flowers are all from my backyard. The kids have had several paid jobs making bouquets for funerals this summer. The last photo has our first week's share from our CSA. We joined really late-but I am really glad we did.

It has been a long week. Swim lessons began, my Mom came to visit (that was a fun day), the house is a mess because of all our coming and going and it just seems like I haven't had much time to fit in some of the good things.

summer is...

-stealing a few extra minutes for sewing.

-cutting flowers for a late breakfast after church.

dress pattern is from Weekend Sewing by Heather Ross. The fabric is also Heather Ross. The garland is similar to all those floating around in blog land and at Farm to Market Cafe.

garlic and Monday's...

I harvested garlic last week from the garden. I had never seen such huge garlic bulbs before. They are drying now. 

Monday's are always a catch up day from the weekend. The weather is a bit cooler here today-finally it feels like June and not mid-July. So this morning we'll be cleaning the little hens house and picking black raspberries. 

Now it's time for a late breakfast.

five senses friday

Thanks for the reminder Abby. It has been awhile, but here goes...

taste: -butter pecan ice cream with homemade sugared black raspberries

-fettuccini alfredo with shrimp

seeing: -the sweet new signs Mat designed hanging up around town

-pulling a lemon sandwich cake  out of my oven this afternoon

hearing: -the dryer running

-"will you iron my beads for me?" (major crafting going on in the heat of the day)

-sneezing (besides for the heat, allergies are back)

touching:- the swimming pool

-Heather Ross horses and sea horse fabric

- lots of weeds in the garden, pulling out mint

smelling: lavender and yarrow

-sweet basil 

-cilantro

Summer is...

Some yumminess.


A green snake. Spotted right next to a perfectly ripe black raspberry. I was brave enough to get close enough to snap a photo, not to grab the berry. I left the raspberry where it was at.


Mat's given Hannah a lesson or two. She is loving it.
*Hannah's headband pattern came from Heather Ross' "Weekend Sewing".

pickin' black raspberries.

In our part of Kansas, besides for the high humidity, it is the season for black raspberries. Unlike "normal" raspberries, black raspberries turn a deep purple when they are ready (the color of a blackberry), however when you pull them off the vine, the core stays attached to the plant, not the berry. (Photo of that maybe tomorrow).  Our plants grow wild, they seem to like to mix with the honeysuckle and poison oak. The honey suckle is lovely, however the poison oak causes us to wear blue jeans, and wash ourselves and clothes as soon as we trek back to the house. The berries are well worth it though. 

This morning after cleaning up, I made a batch of sugared raspberries from "How to Eat Supper" to enjoy later on.

Not black raspberries, but here is some of the lavender blooming in the garden right now. 

some sewing.

Most of my sewing projects get spread out to last days and sometimes weeks. I may cut out a pattern one day (sometimes more) and then cut out the pattern pieces from fabric another, and then store them in a giant zip lock bag until I can get to sewing them together. 

This dress for Alli only took about a week. I had the pattern cut out from before (from one of my Japanese craft books) and so all I had to do was iron the fabric (I had washed that before hand-the fabric was originally for a skirt).  And after looking at in it's bag for several days, I made some time to finish it up.

This morning, no time for sewing, we made our first trip out back to pick black raspberries...

good morning!

Have I mentioned that the summer issue of Small Magazine is online? 

today.

Today... struggling with restlessness, catching chicks, late as usual,  forgot about the scheduled oil change, piano practice a bit easier, surveying damage from the winds and rain, a trip to the pond, scared by a brown snake with a stripe down its body, a bit of sewing, time spent playing in a stream, and finally-almost bedtime.

So, I found a new favorite spot...

Farm to Market Cafe. And the brownies convinced the kids of the same thing. 

If you know me very well, you would know that I go to great lengths to cook with fresh and local products and from scratch so I know what is in what I'm eating. You would also know that I enjoy dessert more then any part of a meal, well except for a really great loaf of bread fresh out of the oven... So, when I find a place that serves fresh and local food and makes dessert? Well, whenever I can fit in a visit to this adorable spot, I will be. 

summer is...

VBS is finished, still catching up all over the place, but echoes,  is doing a "summer is" project. Since I tend to skip from one project to another, one thought to another... (like the rest of my days being Mom), why not try this one for a bit?

slowly.

unpacking, catching up on laundry, making bread, caring for the chicks again... get back to reality after an incredible week. More words and photos to hopefully come soon.