by Krista | Jun 24, 2015 | Winter
Yesterday I woke to find the sky filled with clouds and the internet down. Unable to do any online work, I took a much-needed break and luxuriated in an entire day off grid.
Donning my trusty gum boots I headed outside and got my dog Luna to hang out with me. We had such a good day together. She trotted alongside as I hauled plants and seedlings, sniffed happily around the garden as I made new beds, dug in a load of goat manure, and planted silverbeet, kale, coriander, carrots, basil mint, feverfew, yarrow, red cabbage, thyme, and Brussels sprouts.
My two favorite additions are a big strawberry bed and a rock garden with flowers. Sometimes you need to plant things for pure happiness and pleasure.
When I wasn’t gardening I was in the kitchen, baking and cooking things, tossing Luna bits to nibble on from her sun-drenched napping spot on the floor. I made sweet potatoes spiced with coriander and sesame, spelt quinoa muffins with raisins, and slow-cooked beef with roasted tomatoes and caramelized onions. It was so nice to cook for pleasure without any pressure or time limits.
I loved having time to read through cookbooks and watch old River Cottage episodes with Bear, to linger over coffees and indulge in vanilla ice cream topped with boozy cranberries. It was just what I needed to recharge after a busy week.
Today I’ve been making medieval remedies and photographing them, getting all the details together to complete my manuscript. I’m so excited to see these recipes I’ve carried in my head be in one collection with pictures and details so anyone can make them or be inspired to experiment on their own to find out what works for them.
Now I’m hunkering in for the evening with my little stash of triple-salted black licorice and nail-biting old school “24” episodes.
What simple things are bringing you pleasure this week? xo
by Krista | Jul 10, 2014 | Winter
Sometimes life likes to play little jokes. Like scheduling hospital operations in the same week I’m supposed to go medieval camping and teach two demonstrations on medieval medicine. Good heavens. Yesterday I didn’t think I’d make it, but today is a new day and a much, much better one. It’s amazing what a whole lot of rest and good sleeps will do for a body.
I took things slow and steady and bit by by everything came together. My gear is all packed, medieval medicines made, notes printed. I think I’m set.
I’m really looking forward to our weekend getaway, cozy winter nights sleeping in our oh-so-warm Bedouin tent, foggy mornings around the campfire, late nights sipping homemade mead and swapping stories before bed.
Last year was my first time teaching medieval medicine and I was so nervous I nearly made myself sick. This year is different. This year I know my material well and the recipes and uses just come to mind naturally. This year I get to relax and enjoy it, delighting children with talk of bone saws and stitching them up with horse hair, meeting people from all over the world, visiting the myriad camps and learning as much as I can.
Mostly I’m excited to spend time with my Bear and our dear friends. It’s lovely to be with comfy folks, isn’t it? With people who love you and tease you and are glad you’re around. It’s the best medicine.
Wishing you a beautiful weekend with people who love you. xo
by Krista | Jun 5, 2014 | Winter
I woke up this morning feeling so much better after a ghastly virus that knocked me flat this week. I’m so thrilled because tomorrow Bear and I leave for History Alive where we will meet up with our medieval group, Blackwolf, for four days of medieval camping, eating, and general jollity. I’m so excited!!
Today was spent bustling about packing garb and foodstuffs, organizing medieval weapons, and gathering herbs, spices and other fun things for my medieval medicine display.
I’ve got my bone saw ready, bandages rolled, and various concoctions bottled and corked. Our animals are all tucked in and cared for, the dishes washed, laundry done.
Now all that’s left is a good night’s sleep before piling in the car at first light and heading off for adventures of a medievalicious kind.
Soon our modern clothes will be folded away, replaced with handmade items of linen and wool that are so comfy I could sleep in them.
I’m looking forward to meals of roasted meats, late nights laughing and talking around the fire, and sleeping outside with fresh, cool air blowing in off the river.
What are you looking forward to most about your weekend? xo
by Krista | May 19, 2014 | Autumn
It’s a busy time of year on our Australian goat farm, but thankfully we’ve had fantastic Autumn weather to work in, so it hasn’t been a hardship at all.
I’ve been gardening, reading about gardening, and talking to Aussie gardeners learning everything I can about how to grow things in this part of the world. Dear friends gave us cuttings from their quince and bush lemon trees, so Bear and I have been planting trees, cuttings of trees, seeds for trees, and innumerable veggies, herbs, and flowers. Phew! It’s heaps of work but so satisfying to see bare patches fill in and the first shoots of winter veg push through the dark brown earth. I’m still battling the dastardly cabbage moth, so if any of you brilliant gardeners out there have advice for me, I’d LOVE to hear it.
We’ve also been spending a lot of time with our goats, keeping a close eye on them since they will start delivering babies within the next couple of weeks. They’ve eaten down their normal paddocks, so we’ve started taking them on feeding walks through the bush for two hours every morning.
Bear and I take turns, an hour each, and we actually look forward to it every day. It’s a wonderful thing to “have” to wander in the bush. I find it really calming and a great start to my morning.
Although it’s late Autumn, I’ve been digging in to Spring Cleaning. It feels fantastic to be getting things tidy and organized, making new usable outdoor spaces that will be brilliant for the fun projects we both love to dig into.
This weekend I got back to making homemade medicines for my medieval medicine demonstrations. It is so fun, especially now that I’m growing nearly everything I need. I made a Sage Thyme treatment for sore throats (very handy this time of year), Lemon Balm oil for bringing deep wounds to the surface so they will heal quickly, and a Fennel eye wash and general tonic.
With all the outside work we’ve been doing, our menu has held a lot of crockpot meals, soup, and homemade bread. Good, nourishing, easy to make things that warm our bones and keep us going as we mend fences, drench goats, build cages, and whatever else comes along. Tonight I’m having Creamy Cauliflower and Parsnip while Bear is noshing on White Bean with Chorizo. Mmm.
My favorite bread is this loaf that looks like an artisan bread but is easy-peasy to make. I mix up the dough in about two minutes before I go to bed, then pop it in the oven when I wake up in the morning. No kneading, no waiting around for rising, just simple, good, and gorgeous bread.
The recipe is based on this one by Le Creuset, but I make it even simpler with just four ingredients and an old cast iron pot.
What interesting projects are you working on these days? xo
Easy Artisan Bread
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups white flour
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt
3/4 teaspoon yeast
1 3/4 cups water
Directions:
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, salt and yeast.
- Add water and mix until incorporated. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and set on counter (or in microwave) overnight.
- Place lidded cast iron pot in cold oven and heat to 450 degrees. Leave for 30 minutes.
- While it heats, scrape dough onto floured surface and shape into a ball. (Don’t knead)
- Carry dough to oven, remove hot pot from the oven and drop in the dough. Cover and bake for 30 minutes.
- After 30 minutes remove the lid and bake 15 minutes more.
- Remove bread from oven and place on a cooling rack to cool.
- Once cut, store in airtight container so it doesn’t dry out.
- NOTE: can be made with gluten-free flour as well, just be prepared for a much wetter dough to begin with.
by Krista | Apr 27, 2014 | Autumn
I woke early this morning and crept out to the kitchen to let Bear have a rare sleep in. I put the kettle on as the sky began to lighten, revealing dark clouds and a beautifully overcast day.
After brewing tea and a cup of raw hot cocoa, I lit a candle and added orange essential oil to my burner and pretty soon the whole kitchen smelled of citrus and vanilla with a hint of chocolate. Mmm.
All that deliciousness put me in full blown domestic mood and pretty soon I was bustling about washing dishes, organizing my pantry (it’s gorgeous!!), and getting chili fixings in the crockpot. Laundry was started and bread dough set to rise and then I got to sit down with my cuppas and rest, luxuriating in the silence of a cloudy day.
I love these sorts of days, days that seem tailor made for contented puttering. No pressure, no deadlines, no rushing about from one commitment to another. It does my heart good.
Soon friends will arrive for lunch and a fun afternoon of medieval projects: wood-working, sewing, and brewing up some healing concoctions from centuries past. I’m looking forward to it. 🙂
What are you looking forward to this weekend? xo
