by Krista | Jul 26, 2016 | Winter
Bear and I love campfires. We like sitting around them at home with good friends, visiting and grilling sausages, setting marshmallows aflame as the sun sinks down through the trees and kookaburras cackle overhead. There’s nothing quite like the dance of flames and shower of sparks against the night sky to make everything feel cozy and peaceful.
With such a love for fires, there was only one possible answer when our friends Sue and Vincent invited us to attend the annual Killarney Bonfire Night. A resounding YES!!
We bundled up against the winter chill, grabbed a large flask of “coffee” – aka Sue’s Famous Spiced Wine – and headed out for a night of fires, artistry, and food.
It was marvelously fun! We jostled along merrily with the crowds, delighted to find an open table where we could tuck into dinner while listening to live music and watching the firefighters build a humdinger of a bonfire. The blokes ate steak sandwiches with fried onions, while Sue and I indulged in nachos piled high with all the fixings, and we all shared hot chips and glasses of spiced wine.
Thus fortified against the cold, we wandered off to see what we could see.
The Killarney Bonfire Night features a myriad of 44 gallon drums that have been cut, welded, sliced, and punched to create brilliant works of art that are lit from within by cheerily blazing fires. They perform double duty by keeping all the onlookers toasty warm.
There were flaming rocket ships and glowing insects, homages to trucks and engines, and a marvelous fire-breathing dragon.
We saw tractors and VW Kombis and a drum that looked like a glittering night sky with tiny holes punched through all the sides.
They were all clever and fun, showcasing the passions and skills of their makers.
There was also plenty of people watching and a dazzling fire show of twirling fiery batons.
After looking at everything, Bear and I found a comfortable perch to rest our bones and watch the festivities as we chatted, ate chocolate, and sipped hot mulled wine.
It was truly a fabulous night and we look forward to a repeat performance next year.
Where is your favorite place to sit by the fire? xo
by Krista | Jul 23, 2016 | Winter
One of the things I look forward to most every Abbey Medieval Festival is ambling through the Viking encampment.
I love the Viking food displays, the wonderful Viking tents, and, most of all, my talented and lovely Viking friends.
I’m always intrigued by children’s toys down through history, and this tiny handmade doll is delightful. Perfect for a little Viking girl to carry around.
I like learning how food was made during medieval times, and this beautiful stone grinder is such a clever way to get flour from dried grains of wheat and rye.
One day I’m determined to learn how to play this Viking game. My friend’s children always look like they’re having such fun as they plot moves under the trees.
This is my lovely friend, Karen – she gives the best hugs – showing off the fantastic Viking grill made by her seriously talented husband, Ray. I want one to use at home and can envision it loaded with meats for roasting or sausages for smoking.
This is my friend Zeta’s stall, laden with fresh herbs, spices, and cabbages that she uses to make fermented cabbage.
I love homemade sauerkraut, especially made the way Zeta makes it, with peppercorns and caraway seeds. It smells absolutely marvelous and tastes divine piled high alongside boiled potatoes and sizzling homemade sausages.
jkl
by Krista | Jul 21, 2016 | Winter
My favorite time of day at medieval camps is early morning, especially at Abbey Medieval Festival. The sun casting shadows through the towering trees is sheer magic and never fails to stop me in my tracks and make me so happy to be alive to see such things.
I like getting up before everyone and brewing coffee, trying, yet never succeeding, to be quiet enough in our kitchen tent to keep from waking our friend Sue. Soon she’s up too, cute as a button in her elfin hat, spooning in mounds of freshly ground coffee, getting our cups ready “just so” – decaf for Bear, black for Sue and Vincent, white and one sugar for me – keeping water warm for Adam when he wakes up.
Soon enough the fire is blazing, water boiling, the blissful scent of wood smoke wafting through camp.
It is an exquisite way to start the day.
This year I did three demonstrations: medieval folk medicine, medieval Bedouin food, and medieval cheese-making.
Although I’ve made cheese at home plenty of times, I hadn’t done it over a fire yet, so made sure to practice before the crowds arrived to make sure I had the process down pat.
I hung thick yogurt to drain in cheesecloth and set milk on to heat for a simple fresh cheese just as the sun slipped through the tree branches and turned my cheese-making into a veritable fairyland of light and shadow.
I stirred the milk as it steamed into roiling billows of light, watching for telltale bubbles around the edges before drizzling in homemade cider vinegar, then a bit more. Then the magic happened. Whey separated from curds and I poured it into a cheesecloth-lined basket, letting it drain until nothing but lovely, creamy cheese was left.
I gleefully danced through the smoky sunbeams to Bear – “I made cheese!!!” He laughed and we cheered and I tasted and all was well.
While I’d been making cheese, Sue had made breakfast and we happily noshed on toast and eggs and sausages, topping up our coffees to warm our bones.
After washing up I went for a wander, delighting in the play of light and campfire smoke around the tents of our friends.
Sunlight streamed through the market stall of the Templars where our friend Farina would soon be selling her fragrant packets of spices and ripe oranges for mulled wine.
Sunbeams shimmered through the Viking loom near the camp where my friends Paula and Nikolaj were making breakfast. Paula is an amazing weaver, making gorgeous linen out of the finest of threads.
I love the Viking encampment with its forest atmosphere and the welcoming faces and hugs of so many good friends. I wandered from camp to camp, getting in quick talks between building of fires and stirring of pots as everyone got ready for the first day of Abbey.
With promises of pending visits to make me smile, I headed back to camp.
xo
by Krista | Jul 20, 2016 | Winter
This has been the craziest winter I’ve ever experienced. Last week we were bundled up in every layer we could find, huddled close to the heater, clasping cold fingers around hot drinks. Today I’m barefoot, in a sundress, hair up in a pony tail as I stroll through green grass and turn my face to glorious sunshine.
I’m not complaining one bit.
Today was a rest and potter sort of day. I’m learning to listen to my body when it says, “Whoa, Nelly!” and I’m much the better for it.
So after work this morning I got my journal, a stack of books and magazines, and settled in on the veranda where I could watch birds flitting about, listen to the wind sighing gently through the gum trees, and get my heart quiet and inspired.
It’s such a lovely sitting spot, shady and cool all year round with wonderful views stretching out across the farmyard and out to the treeline of our bush.
We ate simply today, taking time savor delectable things like a perfectly ripe pear, garden fresh greens sauteed with garlic, sultanas, and toasted pine nuts, and, perhaps my favorite, new season mandarins.
There are fruits more exotic than a mandarin orange, but as I sat on a sun-drenched log looking out over green pastures, listening to our lambs chewing grass a few feet away, there was nothing that could’ve pleased me more than my oh-so-fragrant mandarin.
I took a wander around the farm, smiling at the bees buzzing so loudly as they flew from Paulownia blossoms back to their hive, inhaling deeply of the heady poplar sap that fills the air when the sun warms the trees lining our driveway. I called out greetings to our dogs – Luna, Solar, Freja, and Apollo – and chatted with the lambs who followed me on my ramble.
I love days like this, warm, golden days with time to collect armfuls of greens from my gardens, get lost in the latest issue of Victoria magazine, have chats with Bear over cold glasses of homemade orange beer. With so much upheaval in the world, I’m deeply grateful for the peaceful cadence of our life here, a haven where we can grow and heal.
The sun is setting now, and my perch on the veranda has cooled right down. Time to head inside for wine and dinner and the first chapter of a new book.
Where is your favorite sitting place at home? xo
by Krista | Jul 18, 2016 | Winter
Once a month I plan a few days of hibernation to rest and restore.
I let Bear know ahead of time and often he joins in, spending a weekend watching movies, reading books, and taking naps. We plan food that’s easy to reheat, give our animals extra feed and water, and cancel any chores and plans so we can really, truly rest.
We never regret it.
This weekend was that time again, and the weather obliged by clouding over, dripping rain, and making our little world very cozy indeed.
It’s been a lovely few days with very low expectations and much enjoyment.
We’ve slept in, had leisurely meals and favorite snacks, shared cuppas and good chats, watched the rain and the wild ducks that just moved in.
Taking this monthly break never fails to restore us, giving us a chance to think through our days and plans and adjust where necessary, providing time to reconnect and just enjoy each others company without the pressure of projects and deadlines. It does us much good.
We always try to make it special with the food we eat.
This time we had fried chicken and roast beef and this lovely Russian pashka.
Pashka is a pressed cheese pudding made with fresh ricotta and dried fruit. It takes a few days to make, but is worth every bit of the wait.
I start with homemade ricotta that I drain overnight before stirring in heavy cream, softened butter, sour cream, sugar, bush lemon zest, orange flower water, vanilla, and dried fruit. Then I put the whole lot in a colander or mold lined with damp cheesecloth, set a weight on top, and leave it in the fridge to drain a further 2-3 days until it is firm and beautiful.
Although it is full of rich dairy products, pashka is remarkably light thanks to the citrus notes that brighten and lift. My friend Rachel told me she makes hers orange zest, lemon zest, ground almonds, and dried cherries drenched in amaretto. Oh my goodness. Cannot wait to add boozy cherries to my next batch.
What food would you choose for a hibernation weekend? xo
Russian Pashka
Ingredients:
1 ½ cups ricotta cheese
¼ cup butter, softened
¾ cup fine white sugar
2 tsp orange flower water
1 tsp vanilla extract
½ cup heavy whipping cream
¼ cup sour cream or crème fraiche
2 egg yolks
¼ cup raisins or other dried fruit
1 tsp orange or lemon zest
2 lengths of cheesecloth/butter muslin.
Directions:
1. Place ricotta cheese in first length of cheesecloth (butter muslin), tie, and hang to drain overnight.
2. Next day, remove cheese from cloth and place in medim mixing bowl. Add butter, sugar, orange flower water, and vanilla, and beat until smooth. Set aside.
3. In large mixing bowl whip heavy cream until soft peaks form, then stir in cheese mixture, sour cream, and egg yolks and whisk until smooth and fluffy.
4. Stir in dried fruit and zest until smooth.
5. Dampen second length of cheesecloth (butter muslin) and line mold with drain hole or colander with it. Spoon cheese mixture into cheesecloth (butter muslin) and smooth. Fold cheesecloth (butter muslin) over mixture and place mold/colander over shallow dish. Top with an upturned saucer and place 1-2 pound weight on top. Set in refrigerator 2-3 days until well-drained and firm to touch.
6. On day three, open cheesecloth (butter muslin) and carefully turn out pashka onto a serving plate. Garnish with fruit, nuts, or edible flowers and serve cold.
We bundled up against the winter chill, grabbed a large flask of “coffee” – aka Sue’s Famous Spiced Wine – and headed out for a night of fires, artistry, and food.
We saw tractors and VW Kombis and a drum that looked like a glittering night sky with tiny holes punched through all the sides.
They were all clever and fun, showcasing the passions and skills of their makers.
After looking at everything, Bear and I found a comfortable perch to rest our bones and watch the festivities as we chatted, ate chocolate, and sipped hot mulled wine.
It was truly a fabulous night and we look forward to a repeat performance next year.
Where is your favorite place to sit by the fire? xo
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