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All Together in the Kitchen

1 Nov

Right before the beginning of the school year, a friend and I got together to cook up eight gallons of chili. The pot was big enough to fit one, maybe both, of my kids — a holdover from Linda’s years in catering.

Just that morning I was trying to get a few kitchen tasks out of the way, while my kids made each other miserable and the floor a mess. I was trying to do seven things at once, which meant that I left my coffee cup in the laundry room, a pot burning on the stove, and when I ran down to the basement I couldn’t remember what I was there to get. I was caught in a web of negative thoughts and miserable.

So imagine my surprise four hours later when I was singing to Old Crow Medicine Show and chopping 10 pounds of carrots, feeling happy and relaxed in Linda’s kitchen. The to-do lists were out of my mind and I was focused on our task at hand. We got a few other things cooked up while our kids played inside and outside. We were trying to get ahead on our meal planning and we froze quarts of chili for weeknight meals. This has to become a monthly ritual, we agreed (secretly hoping we could do it more frequently).

Then, a week later, another friend came to my house (with two kids in tow) and we made granola and some sauces in preparation for Dirt’s Eat Local Challenge. It was just as much fun — kids playing, mamas chatting while we worked, a satisfying stack of prepared food for the week. While Linda and I were cooking, she remembered the tamales of her childhood — one of her favorite holiday foods and made by a kitchen full of family. In my family, we celebrated Shabbat with a special meal every Friday. But my mother never liked cooking, and while we had a full table, the kitchen was often empty but for my mother.

I have been in a kitchen slump all summer — I expected the fresh fruits and veggies of summer would save me from it, but it was company I needed. Adult company, to be precise. Our time together felt more like a holiday, more like a celebration of food, and I went home with a head start on our meals for the month.

Originally published in Dirt Magazine, Nov/Dec 2017

Categories:
Dirt Magazine, Family, Kitchen
Tags:
dirt, family, food, meals

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Who is this Raheli lady?

Raheli is a creative problem solver and fiber-lover in the Hudson Valley. She sews, knits, mends, spins, homesteads and writes, all while trying to get outside a little more often. (She/her) Read More…

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Meanwhile, on Instagram…

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Harvesting mullein and yarrow for tea and salve. I Harvesting mullein and yarrow for tea and salve. I have been looking around our land for mullein for years, and there has been one plant growing along the dirt road for the past two years - not enough that I would harvest from it. And then this year three mullein plants sprouted up in my strawberry bed! So I weeded around them and am harvesting some leaves. Between the mullein, anise hyssop, and mint growing here, I will have a great respiratory tea blend (though I might make a tincture - still some more reading to do since it’s my first year using mullein).
Earlier this week, the Wandering Snail Post wander Earlier this week, the Wandering Snail Post wandered out into the world! 
#wanderingsnailpost
I went out to check on the lamb this morning, and I went out to check on the lamb this morning, and we got to snuggle a bit while his mama ate breakfast. All of my pajamas smell like hay and poop, because this is sort of like how I have started many mornings this week - checki g to see if a lamb had been born overnight, watching Stormy for signs of labor, seeing if Patch would come say Hi (she usually doesn’t). This little boy is too small to get away from me though.
This little lamb was born at 4pm this afternoon! O This little lamb was born at 4pm this afternoon! Our second and last lamb of the season.
Chicken hatching, today at 6 pm. It takes a long t Chicken hatching, today at 6 pm. It takes a long time with lots of rests. This is the last 30 seconds of the progress.
More chicks!! We had a number hatch yesterday, and More chicks!! We had a number hatch yesterday, and this morning I woke up to 4 more 🐣🐣🐣🐣
OMGOMGOMG The chicks are hatching!! Our incubator OMGOMGOMG The chicks are hatching!! Our incubator modifications worked!! And there are more eggs cracking and we can here the chicks cheeping inside their shells!
I found a clutch of eggs this morning when I picke I found a clutch of eggs this morning when I picked up a bale of hay. We don’t celebrate Easter, but I am delighted by my egg hunt jackpot! Happy Easter to those who are celebrating today. 

PS- today is the last day to get a bird track notebook in your Wandering Snail Post package. Order at the link in my bio or got back a few posts to learn more.
A little birdie wandered this way, and decided to A little birdie wandered this way, and decided to join the snail on its journey. Or: I am slipping these bird track notebooks into the packages that I am packing. I will keep making more for all orders through Sunday night - claim your Wandering Snail Post no.1 at the link in my profile. Not sure what I am talking about? Go back a few posts for more info on my latest project.

They are hand stamped with silver ink. I carved this stamp after noticing bird prints in the snow- A map of their terrestrial journey. These 3.5 x 5 inch notebooks are perfect for note taking or doodling or mapping your own journey. They have 32 dot-grid pages, 100% recycled pages, and are made in the USA.

#wanderingsnailpost 
(That fab napkin was hand dyed by @thematerialsdesignco and I love it, so you get to see it in every photo. And that fountain pen belonged to my grandmother).
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