News From HEALING Creek

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It's almost fall at Healing Creek, and fall is my favorite time. 

 

The light has somehow changed ever so slightly ... not so much that you would notice unless you were looking for it, but it has changed.  The days are slightly shorter and the mountains are not quite so smokey as the days began to cool.

 

I have fall leaves and gourds and pumpkins decorating the house ... with LOTS of candles and a crystal candy dish just waiting to be filled with candy corn ... the kids will LOVE that!

 

I'm already planning the gardens for next year ... ordering tulip bulbs and making plans to put some of the beds "to sleep' for winter ... Gardens here aren't like gardens further north ... I don't have to make huge precautions against the bitter cold because it's just not that bitter cold ... (rolling my eyes) ... whether it's global warming or a natural cycle that is operating outside my memory ... there's no denying that the winters are getting milder and milder.

 

I want to plant some trees this year ... Maybe some pink dogwoods and a couple apple trees ...

 

I will start taking in vegetables and herbs and baking fresh bread to eat with apple butter, that I finally learned to make ... My Mom gave me her recipes almost four years ago so I could try it with some apples from a friend's orchard but I never got around to it that year ... I tried it last year on a small scale, but NOT this year!  In a few weeks, when the local apples start coming in, you should be able to smell the apples and cinnamon all the way to your house!

 

I'll start filling the freezer with vegetables and home-made soups that can be reheated in much smaller portions ...

 

I want to photograph my friends and family as the leaves change ... Might even take the kids to a pumpkin patch for a photo op!

 

I don't know how it is for you but fall with all it's bright colors and cooler days just perks me up.  I think I fall in love with life and all the people who are in my life a little bit more every fall ...

Well, that's the news from HEALING Creek ...

 

You don't have to go so fast, do you?  Have a cup of hot apple cider and a piece of pie!  You know, every dessert is LITE when you split it with a friend?!!!  We can go for a walk along the creek when you are finished ...

 

 

MOM'S APPLE BUTTER

 

14 - Medium Tart Apples, cored and quartered

3 Cups Apple Cider or Apple Juice

2 Cups Sugar

2-1/2 Teaspoons Ground Cinnamon

1/2 Teaspoon Ground Cloves

1/2 Teaspoon Ground Allspice

 

In a 8-10 quart kettle, Combine apples and cider.  Bring to boiling; reduce heat.  Simmer, covered for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Press through a food mill or sieve until you have 8-1/2 cups pulp (if you don't have a food mill or a sieve, you can put it through a colander over a bowl, mashing the apples so that the pulp falls into the bowl).  Return pulp to kettle.

 

Stir in sugar and spices.  Bring to a boil and reduce heat.  Cook, uncovered, over very low heat 1-1/2 hours or until very thick and mixture mounds on a spoon (like thick apple sauce), stirring often.

 

You can keep apple butter in the traditional boiling water canning way, but I like freezing it.  When ready, place kettle in a sink filled with ice water; stir mixture to cool.  Ladle into wide topped freezer containers, leaving a 1/2 inch head space.  Seal, label and freeze for up to 10 months.  Apple Butter will darken slightly when frozen.  Thaw in refrigerator when ready to use!