Jul 18 2024
Slow-cooked apples, warm cinnamon, brown sugar, cider, nutmeg, and cloves transform into a thick, silky spread that tastes unmistakably like autumn. Homemade apple butter is deeper and more concentrated than applesauce. The apples are cooked until completely soft, blended smooth, and then simmered uncovered until much of their moisture evaporates. As the mixture slowly reduces, …
Jul 18 2024
Ripe plums, warm cardamom, a hint of allspice, and fresh lemon cook down into a deeply colored homemade jam that captures the rich fruitiness of late summer and early fall. Plums make especially satisfying jam because their skins contribute beautiful color while the flesh softens into a glossy, spreadable preserve. There is no need to …
Nov 29 2023
A good slow cooker beef chili should be thick, hearty, and packed with flavor—not a watery mixture of ground beef and tomatoes that happens to spend all day in a Crock Pot. Browning the beef first, cooking the onion and garlic, and briefly blooming the spices make a noticeable difference before everything ever reaches the …
Nov 26 2023
Leavenworth, Washington, already feels like the kind of mountain town where you might expect to encounter a reindeer or two. Just outside the Bavarian-style downtown, Leavenworth Reindeer Farm turns that possibility into a real experience, giving visitors an opportunity to learn about reindeer, feed members of the herd, hold shed antlers, and take plenty of …
Nov 08 2023
Ground turkey chili is the kind of weeknight dinner that manages to be hearty without feeling overly heavy. Ground turkey simmers with tomatoes, kidney beans, black beans, bell pepper, onion, garlic, and plenty of chili spices until everything comes together in a thick, savory pot of comfort food. The key to making turkey chili taste …
Oct 11 2023
Halloween is the perfect excuse to pull out the paint, paper, glue, googly eyes, and all those odds and ends hiding in the craft cupboard. You don’t need complicated supplies or expert crafting skills to make something fun, either. Some of the best Halloween decorations begin with ordinary items like paper plates, mason jars, cardboard, …
Oct 09 2023
Every October 31, porches glow with jack-o’-lanterns, costumed children travel from door to door, and ghosts, witches, skeletons, and black cats appear everywhere from front lawns to store windows. Halloween feels unmistakably modern, yet many of its familiar traditions have histories stretching back centuries. There is no single moment when Halloween began. Instead, the holiday …
Sep 02 2023
There is something particularly satisfying about quilting in the fall. The colors outside seem made for a fabric stash—rust, pumpkin orange, mustard yellow, moss green, warm brown, cranberry, and cream—and cooler evenings provide an excellent excuse to spend a few hours at the sewing machine. A fall quilt kit makes the process even easier. Instead …
Sep 01 2023
September may feel like the beginning of the end of the vegetable gardening season, but there is often plenty of growing left to do. As summer heat begins to ease, cool-season vegetables get another chance to thrive. Crops that struggled with heat, bolted quickly, or turned bitter during midsummer can perform beautifully once days become …
Nov 25 2022
Today’s artist spotlight is on the American Modern artist, Charley Harper. He was born on the family farm in Frenchton, West Virginia, on August 4, 1922. Growing up, he not only had the farm to explore, but also the Appalachian hills, where he spent time wandering the land and observing the wildlife. This upbringing suited …
