Food Preservation

Back in early October, my friend Erin and I toured the Corylus collection at the National Clonal Germplasm Repository (NCGR) in Corvallis, Oregon, and basically we were like kids in a candy store. Once again, my friend and neighbor Joseph Postman, a plant pathologist at the facility, welcomed us, provided us with some literature about […]

{ 8 comments }

Hull-Less Pumpkin Seeds

October 18, 2014 · 3 comments

Oh, this poor, neglected blog of mine. I was really truly convinced that when my kids started school in September, I was going to spend at least an hour a day working on stories for this space, but alas, that obviously hasn’t happened. Don’t worry, though, I’m not gone for good. I have a good […]

{ 3 comments }

A very peach-intensive week and a half in mid-August started with 20 pounds from (locally famous) The Peach Place and then there were another 28 pounds from a farm stand on Lingo Lane near Junction City. A few days later, I picked about 25 pounds or so off my in laws’ trees. During peach season, my family […]

{ 6 comments }

Over the winter, I blended up a batch of za’atar (this recipe from 101 Cookbooks) for the first time, and both Henry and I loved it. The bright, lemony flavor of sumac is a perfect match for the earthy, herby flavor of dried thyme. We sprinkled the heck out of everything with it: eggs, buttered […]

{ 27 comments }

Hey, local folks! You’re invited: It’s harvest time. Let’s celebrate! Marys River Food Swap August Meeting 7:00 pm Thursday, August 21, 2014 at the Marys River Grange Hall (24707 Grange Hall Rd. Philomath, OR) Please RSVP to the Facebook Event Page or email camille@waywardspark.com You bring: up to 6 jars of food + an extra […]

{ 0 comments }

Ahhh…It’s blueberry season again. I feel a little guilty, like I’m cheating on my beloved Radke’s Blueberries, but I was getting desperate for fresh fruit that the kids and I headed to Anderson’s Blues on Aboretum Road in North Corvallis. Anderson’s is a pretty huge U-pick place with many different varieties of berries from early […]

{ 3 comments }

So many good things are coming to life this spring. For starters, RHUBARB (!) and the new cookbook, Preserving by the Pint by Marisa McClellan!! The stars must have aligned just right so that I could dive into this recipe collection by starting off with our newly grown stalks of spring rhubarb in Marisa’s mustardy rhubarb […]

{ 75 comments }

Homemade Hazelnut Butter

February 20, 2014 · 7 comments

Hazelnut butter. It’s a thing. A really delicious thing. Hazelnut butter is not peanut butter. I was kind of hoping it would be so that I could phase store-bought peanut butter out of our lives. But no, hazelnut butter seems to have a slightly more savory aspect to it even though it still shows some […]

{ 7 comments }

Henry is back in California this week. He was home for a short while after his last trip south, but now he’s helping his team place hives in the almond orchards just as the bloom begins and the bees go on contract. This kids and I are holding down the fort, and so far, like […]

{ 5 comments }

Maple Syrup Season 2014

January 29, 2014 · 13 comments

We made our own maple syrup from bigleaf maple sap for the first time last winter. You can read more about our experiences and thoughts here and here. Freezing nights and warmer days in the 40s are ideal for maple sap flow. As I understand it, the wider the day/night temperature gradient, the more pressure […]

{ 13 comments }