Handmade Pledge, an Update

Looks like more than 11,000 people took the Handmade Pledge. I'm No. 4,423. The idea was to buy handmade for the holidays and to encourage others to buy handmade for me.

I'd say the results this year were mixed. I made more things than I purchased, in terms of handmade.

That includes hot chocolate and marshmallow filled piping bags tied to candy canes and treats for the nieces and nephews and the snow globes we made as a family.


I used antique Mason and Ball jars (that my mother-in-law treasured) for each family to have. If the jars leak or the proportions of glycerin and glitter aren't right, we can try again next year, without ruining the jars.

Plus, now I have a whole year to save jars and find wider-mouthed jars so we can make more detailed scenes. My favorite was the one my youngest nephew made, using old plastic Sesame Street ornaments. I think his looked the coolest.

[Project Notes:To prepare, I painted the lids before we left. When we started the project, I had all the kids choose their figurines, place them how they wanted them, then put the glitter and star cutouts I brought into their jars. I went into a separate room to epoxy the figures to the lid. I put them all together the next morning and the iFarmer handed the finished pieces out at breakfast. We had some leakage, though the one I brought home hasn't leaked a drop. The antique jars may be the most problematic, so I'll probably bring rubber rings to seal them tighter next time, if I do this again.]

I did buy local wines, coffee and jars of preserves and apple butter for gifts. I also used rooftop honey from Chicago for party favors.

And the whole family at The Farm got handmade quilts.

Without revealing too much (I'm late with one Christmas package), I bought handmade jewelry for my sistas in Cali.

In turn, my So. Cal. sis made my whole family fleece blankets. If I could wear mine as a sweater, I'd have it on me all day. We took ours with us on our trip and they were very comforting to have on the road.

My favorite handmade item of the holidays is on our tree. Future Farmboy was concerned that we didn't have a top ornament for the tree, so we improvised just before Christmas.

We cut up a pizza box, formed a star and wrapped it in aluminum foil.

Delightful Treats

On the sweets front during our trip to So. Indiana, there was no beating the Caramel Delite's from the Caramel Corn Cottage in Nashville.

Owners & operators Jim and Angie Rispoli like to share corn history tidbits when they market their corn concoctions.

We got a "Did You Know" card inside our family pack of the puffed corn tossed in a copper kettle filled with homemade caramel. [The URL is misspelled on their bags and cards or online...the link that works is www.carmelcottage.com].

I unfortunately missed the dill pickle popcorn. I would have been all over that. But apparently I can order that online.

We also found some enormous and tasty snickerdoodles at the Hob Nob Corner Restaurant.

Unfortunately the staff -- when we called and dropped in for cookies to scout out the place -- was anything but friendly, so we decided not to take our group there. Too bad too, I remember it being pretty good.

Did Someone Accuse Me of Turning This into a Food Blog?

While the Future Farmkids were swimming with cousins, we took a whirlwind shopping tour of the artist enclave in Nashville, Ind.

[Our supposed free wifi at the dated (real keys, no key cards), but comfortable Brown County Inn was limited to the pool area. And since computers and pools don't mix, I didn't get on the computer at all during the last few days.]

Shopping in Brown County is like going from one celebration of local food makers - artists - farmers - craftsmen - to another. We tasted local wines, Blackberry (very sweet) and Chambourcin (a dry red made from Indiana-grown grapes) were my favorites from Brown County Winery. [The Chambourcin, btw, is currently sold out.]

We also took home a sampling of wines we didn't get a chance to sip: Rhubarb from French Lick Winery; Gewurztraminer from Oliver Vineyards & Winery (I'm pretty sure I've had this before though); and Indiana Red (more Indiana-grown grapes) from Butler Winery.

Before the clock struck midnight on Sunday morning, I tried to find a couple Pale Ales for the iFarmer. He seemed to like the Gnaw Bone Pale Ale (Oaken Barrel Brewery) and the Dragonfly India Pale Ale (Upland Brewing Co.).

We ran out of time and stomach space to try the local farmstead cheeses.

Indeed, we spent a lot of time eating Hoosier food (can you say awesome breaded tenderloin at the Artists Colony restaurant?) and spending time with family. So our agri-touring was fairly minimal. Next time.

After some searching, I found a shop that carried Dillman preserves. I haven't had those in years. They make an awesome seedless black raspberry, but I only found a red raspberry on the shelf. Tastes great on biscuits and sourdough toast.

While I was looking for links, I found their online catalog. Note they make their preserves using pure cane sugar...no high fructose corn syrup.

Anyone Know How to Find Santa's Returns Counter?

Today I got this gem of a question: "Momma. Do you know how to get to the North Pole?"

That was Future Farmgirl asking. If I knew how to get there, she asked me to take back her Jumbo Lounging Elmo she had gotten the day before from Santa.

[I had asked them to round up toys they didn't play with anymore so we could give them to babies.]

Oh well. Santa doesn't always hit the mark.

Home for the Holidays

In a moment of insanity, I took both Future Farmkids to the mall on the day after Christmas. To my surprise, we had a great time. It helped that the mall had indoor play areas and 50 cent rides. I managed to hit some after-Christmas sales and let my kids run off some steam on a cold day.

The best sale yet was on Christmas village figurines. I'm assembling the ingredients to make the snow globes I saw Farmgirl Martha making on her show. I'm only missing the glycerin and distilled water...and a few more jars.

I'm hoping to have this be a craft for the kids this weekend in Brown County. But, if I run out of time tomorrow and don't get the lids painted, we may have to save this for a family activity next year.

We had a great time on Christmas, our first at home ever. We had a chance to visit our neighborhood shops and go to Christmas Eve service at our church, something we've never done (we've been out of town the last 10 years). The place was packed. Even though we were early (for us), we had to squeeze in a pew with an obstructed view of the pageant. Next time, we're getting there even earlier.

Still, I missed being with our families on the big birthday celebration. It was good to be with our nuclear family, but I missed all the kitchen time with my sisters and sisters-in-law and, especially, my mother-in-law, who died in March.

That's probably why we overdid it a bit on our Christmas meal...a glutenous feast of New York Strip with Boursin & Merlot sauce, the biggest king crab legs I've ever had, Brussels sprouts and fully-loaded baked potatoes...Oh...and a tasty strawberry and Champagne cocktail.

We liked it so much we're hosting a cocktail hour in our hotel room later this week to share it with the family.

Our Wind-Driven Holiday Adventure

I'm sorry to say we didn't take many pix this holiday at The Farm. My excuse is that we were too busy socializing and enjoying the company to pick up the camera.

Anyway, we had a lovely visit and, yes, another good meal (or two...the sour cream/buttermilk pancakes and polish sausage and leftover mashed potatoes were pretty good if I do say so myself). Probably not too much new food to report. The Farmgirl fudge was out of this world. And my aunt's date pudding, yum, was exceptional. It's really a good thing that only she and I like it. More for us.

The deviled eggs were noteworthy too. I really think that's because they are homegrown. Indeed, the layers and finding their rhythm and gone from 4 eggs a day to more than 9. I brought home all the ones I could find today.

I also got to bring back some elderberry wine made by a family friend. It wasn't as sweet as the cherry wine, but more fruity than the dry white I tried. [Thanks to Playful Spirit Potter for giving up the elderberry after our kitchen tasting party.]

The wind picked up and temp dropped on the way back to Chicagoland. To avoid the dangerous gusts along I-65 we took the scenic route up Hwy 35 and Hwy 24 through Logansport and Monticello.

We saw lots of places we'd like to check out in season, including Deer Creek Orchard near Galveston. It's hard to tell if it's still active. Their Local Harvest info hasn't been updated since 2001.

The Italianate-style Wolcott House near Monticello (built by the lawyer-founder of Wolcott and designed by a Chicago architect) also looks like it's worth a stop. It was all decked out for the holidays. On the more bizarre side, we will probably check out, at some point, The Great Cats of Indiana sanctuary, which apparently houses rescued tigers, wolves, and other animals that become too much for their owners to handle.

Speaking of fruit, we had a conversation about raspberries, especially black raspberries. That'd be a great crop if we can afford the starters. We'll be looking at seed catalogs this winter.

Farmgirl in the Mountains

Hoosier Outsider has been busy posting photos of adventures in New Mexico.

I'll share a couple here, just to give a flavor. Click to Hoosier Outsider's Flickr site for more.

The VFG is hard to make out...but she's in the cast iron tub. You may be able to make out the smoke from the fire keeping the water warm:



One of my favorite houses ever. You could place it from any vantage point because of that large tree shooting skyward to the right:



I'll talk about the baseball games another day. That's my "godfather" pitching:

Will Money Interests Brown Promise of Green City?

Sustainability enthusiasts will surely be following the latest developments on Chongming Island near Shanghai.

The island is poised to become the first major eco-city, designed to minimize environmental impact of residential and commercial populations.

McClatchy has this story on the city's progress...and sadly, though not surprisingly, a new threat...developers.

Turns out plans for battery-powered buses may be transporting residents to a Disney theme park. It'll be interesting to see if Dongtan will be as low-impact as planned...with solar-powered water taxis and short walks to buses for commuters.

There's more...rooftop gardens, shaded areas, a network of canals and windmills, and houses that are 70 percent more efficient than a typical Chinese household.

Can't you imagine Chicago embracing many of these eco-friendly changes?

At Least They'll Eat Something That Look Likes Peas

It's a start. My Future Farmgirl said tonight that the SnapeaCrips, which look like snow peas, I handed her were the best chips she ever tasted.

They're sort of like a cross between puffed corn and a potato chip, only they're baked.

It's the little things.

The iFarmer says they're addictive too.

Even though I'm happy to have introduced a healthier snack, I'm starting to worry there won't be any left for me.

'Buy Local' a Big Hit at Holiday Party

We had a great time at our tree-trimming party. It's nice to have that tradition back off the ground.

I was busy in the kitchen and enjoying the company of our guests, so I didn't do too much tree decorating. But the kids tried their hand at it...which is why several branches are weighted down by four or more ornaments.

I think it's safe to say that besides the company, the biggest hit of the party was the hot winter wine...the Vin Glogg from Glunz Cellars (Grayslake, Ill). A close second was my hot spiced cider with cinnamon stick stirrers and a pat of butter (and an optional shot of top shelf brandy).

[To those who asked, I make my mulling spice bag (per gallon of cider and cup of brown sugar) with 1 tsp cloves, 2 tsp allspice, citrus rind (I used Clementine since that's what I served), and two 2 inch cinnamon sticks. All wrapped in cheese cloth. Boil it all for 10-15 minutes and plop in a crock pot. I serve it bar style with cinnamon stick stirrers, butter, and brandy.]

Not that I'm saying my guests are lushes, but the local beer went pretty quickly too...all of the Alpha King and Robert the Bruce from Three Floyd's (Munster, Ind.) left the building. The Ebel's Weiss from Two Brothers (Warrenville, Ill.) didn't do as well with this crowd.

Our guests seemed to appreciate all our "local" food selections. They ate up the Little Bloom on the Prairie and Chevre Round goat cheeses from Prairie Fruits Farm (Champaign, Ill.)

Turns out I have a new snack favorite too...the Dilled Cauliflower from Sechlers (St. Joe, Ind.).

And despite concerns from Urban Dweller about the name, The Hair of the Ferret Salsa (Crown Point, Ind.), was a all gone by the end of the evening.

We also had some White Cin from Fox Valley Winery (Oswego, Ill.), a cheese selection from Fair Oaks Farms (Fair Oaks, Ind.), Oberweis Lemonade and Chocolate Milk from Oberweis Dairy (Aurora, Ill.), and Spinach Artichoke Dip from River Valley Kitchens (Burlington, Wis.).

Each guest left with a jar of Chicago Rooftop Honey from Mayor Daley's rooftop garden project. [Old Farm Tale: The farmers tell me that if you eat honey made within 10 miles of where you live, you're less likely to suffer from allergies. Don't know if that's true. But it's another excuse to buy local.]

We didn't have any takers on sledding, though the iFarmer and Future Farmboy headed out early in the morning for a few runs down the hill.

A Little Farm in the City

Thanks to iFarmer and his iPhone, here's a sight...John Deere tractors crossing Harlem Ave., just south of Lake Street in Oak Park:

Can I Grow Christmas Trees on Cornfields?

We have our tree already. Future Farmboy and the iFarmer bought it locally (translation, cheap bigbox store)...though the tree is from Canada.

I think we'll try to switch that around next year...drive to a farm and pick out our own...like our friends do each year, going all the way to Michigan and Wisconsin for fresh trees.

I'd love to have a place like the Heritage Valley Tree Farm in Missouri, a 100-year-old family farm.

Looks like they've been growing Christmas trees there for almost 25 years. I wonder if it's enough to pay the bills or if they need to diversify.

The farm apparently also has a log cabin bed and breakfast. Doesn't look as if kids are welcome. But it's an area I'd like to visit...to enjoy Missouri's wine country and caves. I hear it's surprisingly worth the trip.

Factory Farm v. (Huge) Family Farm

I've been home sick today...initially to take care of my son, then just utterly exhausted. So I didn't think I'd have much to add to VFG until I read this commentary earlier this month from Tom Bechman at Indiana Prairie Farmer.

Apparently there's controversy over expanding hog operations in Grant County. Controversy over hog farming is nothing new. But I appreciate Bechman's criticism of the coverage. He says the news report he saw failed to make the distinction between factory farming and a large family farm.

I can see the concern. The proposal is for an 8,000-head CAFO. Sounds pretty big to me, almost factory like. Then again, I love bacon.

Picture Perfect Memories

We learned recently that one of my dad's friends and mentors Steve Perin is very ill. Sad news indeed. But the good news is the reconnection and all the memories being shared.

Also, it was wonderful to explore Steve's Flickr site: http://www.flickr.com/photos/steveperin/

Loads of memories in these pieces, especially this one of Roberts.

Yes, the same Robert who just passed away in The Mountains. I can feel what it was like to run in and out of that house...and be chased away when I was a little too under foot looking for my second or third breakfast. I used to make the rounds.

The tepee-looking building next door was Witch's house, I think. I don't remember going in there too much when they lived there. Roberts' outdoor kitchen would have been behind the artist from this view.

Looking straight down past Roberts, in the Lower Field, would have been my house. It has since burned down. I was disappointed to see the ruins on my last visit.

God bless you Steve and thanks for sharing your site.

Some Ultra 'Buy Local' Finds

Christmas shopping is slow going this year, but I am having fun shopping for our upcoming holiday party.

I hit the jackpot at Ultra with a bunch of "local" products to add to the munchies. Ultra is owned by a family in NW Indiana, so I'm not surprised they try hard to have local products., including honey and products from New Liberty, Ind. I picked up some Hair of the Ferret salsa, from a Crown Point, Ind., company.

Unfortunately, no Munster-based Three Floyds Beer. We had to stop by Jewel on the way to the St. Nicholaus party on Saturday to pick up a case.

And I was happy to see that Ultra sells Fair Oaks Farms cheese [Warning: if you click on the link, be ready for some mooing]. It's not a small organic dairy, but I like it. I like how they are restoring native grasses and habitats to surround their corn fields. And I like that they use cow waste to produce methane to power more than 90 percent of their property.

I would have liked some cheese from Traders Point Creamery north of Indy, but Whole Foods only sells their yogurt...not exactly an easy holiday finger food.

Cooking (at) School

I never thought I'd get to actually show off my new Bee Haven Maven apron in public. But I got my chance this morning when I was one of five moms at my son's school for parent station day. On those days, parents help with an art project or activity.

As luck would have it, the task was gingerbread cookies. Mrs. C was totally prepared. Each table was set with sprinkles, raisins and dough.

The kids had a great time cutting out their cookies and decorating, then rolling out the dough remnants for more. I had three boys at my station...all were particularly creative with their cookies. Turned out the shooting star cutout was more popular than the gingerbread man.

I'm actually not a fan of gingerbread. But the cookies sure smelled up the school. Future Farmboy seemed pleased. He ended up with enough cookies to share with his sister.

Tomorrow we're off to NW Indiana for an annual German-themed meal in celebration of St. Nicholaus Day: Roladen, red cabbage and wax beans. If I only had the patience to wrap all those thinly cut pieces of beef, ham and mustard around pickles. I'm sure glad my sister-in-law takes the time. I look forward to this every year.

Behind in My Shopping

Good news shoppers, King Corn is available on DVD, just in time for Christmas.

I don't know how I'm going to get all my shopping done. But my guess is that not too many of my relatives would be psyched to get a documentary about corn. Still, it's very good and worth a few bucks to learn a bit more about the food we eat.

I think I'll have more luck knocking off my list at the Handmade Market this weekend...if I can find the time. Otherwise, I'm hitting the Etsy pages.

The Hills Are Alive with the Sound of Sledding

I went e-shopping for sleds as soon as I got home because the sled hill near our house was alive with families when I walked by. And it was after dark.

The old sledding hill is pretty cool, as steep as the one at The Farm. You can probably go just as far too -- except you would cross a soccer field instead of a corn field -- given the right snow pack conditions.

My bet is that Santa will bring the Future Farmkids a couple of sleds. But in the meantime, I'm kicking myself for not borrowing one of the old steel runner sleds from The Farm. Those are lightening fast, especially after Hoosier Outsider restored the runners.

I may need to go try to pick up a couple of cheapie saucers to get us through this snowfall.

Let it Snow

Unfortunately it doesn't look like there's going to be enough snow for a snow day. But my backyard is blanketed.

The iFarmer took a shot of my balcony chair, covered in a fluffy white blanket of powder.

It's too dark for the iPhone to capture the rest of the backyard. The trees are all covered in a snow.

If I listen I can usually hear the trains in the distance. But all that is muted when there's snow. The neighborhood is calm and quiet.

Wine Tasting in the Neighborhood

My aunt had trouble commenting on my wine post last night, but she wanted to let me know that there already is a winery in Grant County: Oak Hill Winery.

Why I haven't had the pleasure of trying this wine, I don't know. I'll be headed to area wine shops directly next time I'm in the area.

I'm eager to try the Bunker Hill red, partly because I like reds and partly because that's where my Grandmother was born...in an old farmhouse.

The wines are made in an 1895 carriage house with grapes and fruits. The winery says it's one of the few wineries north of Indy...um, until you get into Michigan, where there are some great wineries, including one of my favorites, Tabor Hill. In addition to having a charming store and fantastic restaurant, Tabor Hill makes a delightful Gewürztraminer.

Vineyards on the Mississinewa?

I tried my first organic wine today, sulfite free. I wasn't sure about it...you know, change and all. But it was fantastic. Makes me want to seek out more. Since we blew through our lone bottle, I'll have to do that soon.

The wine is "Well Red" by Heartswork Winery...an organic division of Nevada County Wine Guild.

I've been looking for local wines recently, but this is far better than just about any I've tried lately. And it's pretty inexpensive at Trader Joe's.

On our last trip down to The Farm I noticed a vineyard on the way. Seriously, in Central Indiana. How cool would it be to have a winery in Grant County, Ind. There is a James Dean Wine, but I'm fairly certain it uses Cali grapes.

Farmgirl Lisa Sure Knows Her Goat Cheese

Besides unpacking decorations, assembling the Christmas village and hanging the Advent calendar, I've had the pleasure of doing some holiday party menu scouting today.

At the Marion Street Cheese Market, I found a great paprika-coated cheese called Red Dawn from Prairie Fruits Farm. It's a Brie-like cheese made from goat milk...from our favorites...Nubians and La Manchas. Even the iFarmer liked it and he's not a fan of Brie. Red Dawn is mild, but still has an addictive bite followed by a savory paprika shot.

I also bought a chevre round. I haven't tasted it, but it was too cute to pass up. Farmgirl Lisa Cooperband, who launched Prairie Fruits Farm with her husband, decorates these little rounds with herbs and edible flowers.

Prairie Fruits, which has only been in existence since 2003, markets itself as the first farmstead cheese facility in Illinois. I've read about the farm before and have been waiting for a chance to taste the cheese. It definitely gets a Virtual Farmgirl thumbs up.