No sooner had I posted about the changing seasons in my backyard when we finally had the first snow of the season.
My feeling is that if it’s going to be unbearably cold, it might as well snow. So I was thrilled to finally have a snow day. Even at the age of *hummmm*, I can still enjoy an unscheduled snow day.
Not everyone here was happy though.
The chickens were quite put out and protested by spending the day indoors near their panel heaters. Once in a while one of the chickens would mosey up to their exit window to poke his or her head out before trying to get back in. Of course, chickens being chickens, all the other chickens had followed the leader up the ramp to also go and look out the window. All day long there were a series of collisions with one chicken trying desperately to get back into the the warm chicken coop and all the other chickens trying to see what was so interesting outside.
Snow always manages to stoke my cooking instincts as well. I get the urge to bake breads, make cakes and bake cookies. I used the threat of the possible loss of power to roast a chicken and make biscuits early in the day. Then I made more bread–just in case we needed sandwiches, you see.
Many of you who know me know that food is as much an important part of my life as gardening. In my mind they go hand-in-hand. The fresh vegetables, herbs and fruits are an important part of the table. And the garden serves as a beautiful backdrop for our family al fresco family meals in the summertime.
That’s one of the reasons I recently decided to take on writing as the Washington D.C. Fresh Foods Examiner in addition to my writing as the National Gardening Examiner.
In the coming months I’ll be writing not only about fresh food happenings and resources in the D.C. area, but also offering menus, recipes, tips and techniques for making meals as fresh and flavorful as possible.
Ciao!
February 3rd, 2009 at 5:37 pm
I so enjoy the photos and the inspiring gourmet simplicity of your blog!
Happy Snow Day! Nice addition to the ‘changing seasons’ series …
February 3rd, 2009 at 5:49 pm
Good luck with the new writing gig! On snow days, all my energy goes into shoveling, but on cold days I find myself wanting to bake. (Believe me, this is not the usual thing.) Your garden looks beautiful under its blanket of snow, which I’m sure makes a nice change for you.
February 3rd, 2009 at 6:10 pm
Hi Robin, congrats on the new path for your talents. That sounds like a good subject for someone who likes food, growing it, cooking it and eating it! I loved the photo used in Garden Rant of your garden for the White House farmer post by Susan.
Frances
February 3rd, 2009 at 8:23 pm
What a beautiful landscape under the snow. And I am laughing at the thought of your chickens bumping into one another all day. They just aren’t all that bright, are they? (Not yours, specifically, just chickens in general) Have fun with your new freelance job – the only thing better than cooking food, well, cooking and eating, well, cooking and eatin and growing it — is writing about it to entice others! Good luck.
February 4th, 2009 at 8:45 am
Wonderful pictures! And your description of your chickens was hilarious.
Look forward to seeing the menus and recipes!
February 4th, 2009 at 2:24 pm
Robin that is excellent news…and I agree with you, if we are going to have miserably cold weather then we need the snow. Now where did Mother Nature put ours?
Gail
February 5th, 2009 at 9:12 am
Your snow looks very pretty Robin.
February 9th, 2009 at 7:49 am
Robin you inspire with all your different and varied talents and tasks. I love the chicken lore and will enjoy your food blog!
February 17th, 2009 at 1:23 am
what a change from the spring time photo to now..brrr.
February 19th, 2009 at 9:49 pm
I’m enjoying your blog very much. It’s so fun to find others out there that are doing the same as me!
Thanks for the great posts.
March 3rd, 2009 at 5:07 pm
Your description of the chickens brought about a smile and a chuckle. Very cool imagery.
Looking forward to your recipes!
May 4th, 2009 at 8:52 am
I love your writing style. The articles are compelling and fresh and the pictures are just fabulous! Look forwards to reading more similar articles!!