An early taste of Winter came on the 18th and we stayed inside to watch the grey swirling of large wet snowflakes. Only traces remained by the next morning. In a strong effort to ignore the weather, we've enjoyed the first seasons of two tv series: Dexter and True Blood. Both were based on novels and a thrill to watch. Julian finished playing Wall- ( Read more... )

Early last week after dropping Julian at work, I hiked up Cat Rock Hill, an abandoned ski slope in Weston. At the 312 ft summit there is a narrow but enjoyable view and a geological survey marker to find. The ski lift stopped running in 1978 but there are still some scattered remnants of the old tow rope lift. Ferns in the area are losing their ( Read more... )

Nights are getting colder. Winterberries have turned red and likewise the spotted wintergreen has transitioned from white flowers to red berries. The forest floor is littered with fallen acorns and vermilion leaves. Pear shaped puffballs flourished briefly last weekend and were seen perched in clumps and rows on fallen logs. Tufts of honey ( Read more... )

Today may have been grey and gloomy but inside it was warm and bright with tantalizing smells emanating from the kitchen. Julian concocted another modernized Escoffier recipe, #2550 Filet de Veau Sicilienne, omitting the chicken livers and substituting pork tenderloin for the veal. In our version, the meat was balanced on a layer of matignon ( ( Read more... )

We are deeply saddened that Food Hero and Bristol Restaurateur, Keith Floyd, passed away earlier this week. Floyd was a true gastronome with a poetic grasp of making and enjoying brilliant food. In his memory, we made up a batch of bourdelots, baked apples in pastry, from his book "Floyd on France", though we worried he'd had too much bordeaux to ( Read more... )

Pear shaped puffballs have arrived! Unfortunately, the batch I found yesterday had already puffed. This morning I went to Acton. The sulfur shelf tree on Rt 2 has fruited again - if only it wasn't so close to the road! I collected some black trumpets and a few small slabs of Fistulina hepatica, the beefsteak fungus. This is the first time I have ( Read more... )

We've awoken to a grey Saturday, gloomy with plaintive rumbles of thunder. I'm almost disappointed as I had hoped to go hiking in the Blue Hills or maybe make our first trip to the Fells but honestly a long soaking rain will be good encouragement for our fungal friends. Resigned to a day inside, I've set the bread machine to making a loaf for lunch ( Read more... )

We made a pilgramage up to New Hampshire on Saturday, stopping at the State Liquor store on our way to the barn to take Kitt for a walk on Horse Hill. Recently, randomly mixed drinks have been nicknamed "Northbound" or "95 North" as the last drops are emptied out. We couldn't find any Everclear but are still attempting to make a house version of ( Read more... )

We've pulled cordon Bleu off the shelf and, considering ourselves to have completed the entrees in the Intermediaire section to the best of our ability, have entered into the final section: Superieure, Professional Touches. First on the menu was a mousseline of white fish with wild mushrooms. We poached a forcemeat of fish with a hidden pocket of ( Read more... )

The weather has been excellent so this week has been dedicated to forays and foraging -

Monday afternoon, I set off to explore Littleton's Sarah Doublet Forest. I was a bit concerned as the trail map stated that "Since their recent deaths, Richard Roth, and his family have remodeled and occupied the hilltop cabin" - I remained alert for zombies ( Read more... )