http://www.tallcloverfarm.com Homeward bound on Puget Sound. Putting in a good day on Vashon Island time. Mon, 06 Feb 2012 18:31:55 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.3 http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/5213/spreading-the-chestnut-love http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/5213/spreading-the-chestnut-love#comments Sat, 28 Jan 2012 17:40:36 +0000 Tom http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/?p=5213 #leftcontainerBox { float:left; position: fixed; top: 60%; left: 70px; } #leftcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; clear:both; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; padding-bottom:2px; } #bottomcontainerBox { height: 30px; width:50%; padding-top:1px; } #bottomcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; height: 30px; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; } Autumn’s bounty: a bowlful of chestnuts, a tabletop of squash I have a thing for chestnut trees; let me count the ways. I love the tasty nut and the porcupine casing that protects it. I love the tree’s reaching habit and stately form. I love the way the sawtooth leaves dry to the color of [...]

]]> http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/5213/spreading-the-chestnut-love/feed 17 http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/5346/soups-onham-hominy-and-a-pumpkin-on-the-edge http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/5346/soups-onham-hominy-and-a-pumpkin-on-the-edge#comments Fri, 16 Dec 2011 17:15:48 +0000 Tom http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/?p=5346 #leftcontainerBox { float:left; position: fixed; top: 60%; left: 70px; } #leftcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; clear:both; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; padding-bottom:2px; } #bottomcontainerBox { height: 30px; width:50%; padding-top:1px; } #bottomcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; height: 30px; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; } I’m a leftover kind of guy; let me rephrase that, I like leftovers. Some days, my dinner plate resembles a puupuu platter of  the week’s greatest kitchen hits. And on the very tip-top of my leftover food group pyramid (in addition to pie) resides soup, the pot of homemade goodness that ladles up its best [...]

]]> http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/5346/soups-onham-hominy-and-a-pumpkin-on-the-edge/feed 12 http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/5001/apple-dumpling-recipe-comfort-food-with-a-cap http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/5001/apple-dumpling-recipe-comfort-food-with-a-cap#comments Mon, 10 Oct 2011 16:27:02 +0000 Tom http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/?p=5001 #leftcontainerBox { float:left; position: fixed; top: 60%; left: 70px; } #leftcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; clear:both; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; padding-bottom:2px; } #bottomcontainerBox { height: 30px; width:50%; padding-top:1px; } #bottomcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; height: 30px; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; } Fruity, doughy,  buttery goodness on a plate… When I first moved to Seattle in the early 80s, I may have taken up residence in Pioneer Square, but I ate in Pike Place Market. A quick trip on the free-zone bus would land me at First and Pike, and a mere brioche’s throw from my favorite [...]

]]> http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/5001/apple-dumpling-recipe-comfort-food-with-a-cap/feed 35 http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/4738/plums-in-a-jar-spicy-spirited-keepers http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/4738/plums-in-a-jar-spicy-spirited-keepers#comments Thu, 08 Sep 2011 20:38:23 +0000 Tom http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/?p=4738 #leftcontainerBox { float:left; position: fixed; top: 60%; left: 70px; } #leftcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; clear:both; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; padding-bottom:2px; } #bottomcontainerBox { height: 30px; width:50%; padding-top:1px; } #bottomcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; height: 30px; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; } I’m a man who’s a fan of things to can, a preserve practitioner ready to bottle up summer sweet things at a moment’s notice or as availability allows. So when the folks at the SweetPreservation.com asked me to be a CANbassador, delivering a case of succulent Washington state plums, peaches and nectarines along with the question, [...]

]]> http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/4738/plums-in-a-jar-spicy-spirited-keepers/feed 10 http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/4673/recipe-index-eileen-bakes-up-a-fine-idea http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/4673/recipe-index-eileen-bakes-up-a-fine-idea#comments Thu, 01 Sep 2011 18:58:50 +0000 Tom http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/?p=4673 #leftcontainerBox { float:left; position: fixed; top: 60%; left: 70px; } #leftcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; clear:both; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; padding-bottom:2px; } #bottomcontainerBox { height: 30px; width:50%; padding-top:1px; } #bottomcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; height: 30px; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; } Last month, I asked my favorite baker Eileen of Passions to Pastry about adding a search feature to her blog. I felt my request was a little cheeky, considering Eileen is the busiest woman (and best baker) in the state of Minnesota. Eileen kindly responded that she was doing something even better, adding a recipe [...]

]]> http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/4673/recipe-index-eileen-bakes-up-a-fine-idea/feed 13 http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/4621/preserving-tips-how-to-thicken-jam http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/4621/preserving-tips-how-to-thicken-jam#comments Tue, 30 Aug 2011 18:46:10 +0000 Tom http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/?p=4621 #leftcontainerBox { float:left; position: fixed; top: 60%; left: 70px; } #leftcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; clear:both; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; padding-bottom:2px; } #bottomcontainerBox { height: 30px; width:50%; padding-top:1px; } #bottomcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; height: 30px; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; } Countdown to ecstasy… The goal: Jam that drops from a spoon but stays on a biscuit (at least until I eat it, which is usually less than T minus ten seconds). As a jam maker from way back, I never really embraced commercial pectin. This had more to do with my end results than any [...]

]]> http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/4621/preserving-tips-how-to-thicken-jam/feed 19 http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/4601/apricot-appetizer-easy-pretty-and-berry-tasty http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/4601/apricot-appetizer-easy-pretty-and-berry-tasty#comments Sun, 28 Aug 2011 19:20:18 +0000 Tom http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/?p=4601 #leftcontainerBox { float:left; position: fixed; top: 60%; left: 70px; } #leftcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; clear:both; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; padding-bottom:2px; } #bottomcontainerBox { height: 30px; width:50%; padding-top:1px; } #bottomcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; height: 30px; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; } Freshly anchored: Blackberries in apricot boats Yesterday my dear friend Julie turned 40 (such a young thing), a milestone ushered in by her close friends and husband Matt. Matty as she likes to call him (though we may not)  had planned a surprise birthday party for her at our friend Kurt’s farm, as dreamy a [...]

]]> http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/4601/apricot-appetizer-easy-pretty-and-berry-tasty/feed 16 http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/4337/my-strawberry-cake-is-going-to-the-dogs http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/4337/my-strawberry-cake-is-going-to-the-dogs#comments Fri, 15 Jul 2011 20:24:54 +0000 Tom http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/?p=4337 #leftcontainerBox { float:left; position: fixed; top: 60%; left: 70px; } #leftcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; clear:both; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; padding-bottom:2px; } #bottomcontainerBox { height: 30px; width:50%; padding-top:1px; } #bottomcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; height: 30px; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; } This weekend all roads on the island lead to the Vashon Strawberry Festival as we celebrate 102 years of bringing together friends, family, fried foods and fun. Somewhere in the mix you’ll find a strawberry or two, as islanders also honor the berry that put Vashon on the map, that is before K2 skis and [...]

]]> http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/4337/my-strawberry-cake-is-going-to-the-dogs/feed 22 http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/4305/rhubarb-pickles-chips-off-the-old-stalk http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/4305/rhubarb-pickles-chips-off-the-old-stalk#comments Thu, 07 Jul 2011 17:58:38 +0000 Tom http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/?p=4305 #leftcontainerBox { float:left; position: fixed; top: 60%; left: 70px; } #leftcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; clear:both; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; padding-bottom:2px; } #bottomcontainerBox { height: 30px; width:50%; padding-top:1px; } #bottomcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; height: 30px; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; } Rhubarb pickle chips: easy to make, easy to eat. Last Saturday, the third of July, I was enjoying a salad prepared by my friend Chris. I munched. I chewed. I loved. His fresh homegrown garden greens heralded summer with each bite . Then like a little sparkler tucked away in the mix, a blast of [...]

]]> http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/4305/rhubarb-pickles-chips-off-the-old-stalk/feed 34 http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/3827/heritage-recipe-rhubarb-berry-cake-pudding http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/3827/heritage-recipe-rhubarb-berry-cake-pudding#comments Fri, 03 Jun 2011 16:48:31 +0000 Tom http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/?p=3827 #leftcontainerBox { float:left; position: fixed; top: 60%; left: 70px; } #leftcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; clear:both; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; padding-bottom:2px; } #bottomcontainerBox { height: 30px; width:50%; padding-top:1px; } #bottomcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; height: 30px; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; } Rhubarb berry cake pudding: gluten-free goodness by the spoonful Rhubarb rocks and rules in my garden and kitchen.  As spring’s first crop, the cheeky stalks burst forth like delicious red exclamation points begging to be plucked. I happily oblige. Ready for its water bath Seasonally sublime: Fresh is best I’m always on the lookout for [...]

]]> http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/3827/heritage-recipe-rhubarb-berry-cake-pudding/feed 20 http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/3440/duck-duck-goose-chicken-and-the-egg http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/3440/duck-duck-goose-chicken-and-the-egg#comments Tue, 15 Mar 2011 18:59:13 +0000 Tom http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/?p=3440 #leftcontainerBox { float:left; position: fixed; top: 60%; left: 70px; } #leftcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; clear:both; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; padding-bottom:2px; } #bottomcontainerBox { height: 30px; width:50%; padding-top:1px; } #bottomcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; height: 30px; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; } I love fresh eggs, unfortunately raccoons love fresh chickens. After a four-year assault on my chicken coop, the masked bandits finally found a weakness in my poultry (or rather, paltry) cedar fortress.  Rumor on the street was the crafty ringtails met up with a shady arms dealer and indifferent hardware store owner to secure the [...]

]]> http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/3440/duck-duck-goose-chicken-and-the-egg/feed 30 http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/3186/making-my-mark-on-curing-the-common-cold http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/3186/making-my-mark-on-curing-the-common-cold#comments Fri, 11 Feb 2011 22:32:45 +0000 Tom http://www.tallcloverfarm.com/?p=3186 #leftcontainerBox { float:left; position: fixed; top: 60%; left: 70px; } #leftcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; clear:both; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; padding-bottom:2px; } #bottomcontainerBox { height: 30px; width:50%; padding-top:1px; } #bottomcontainerBox .buttons { float:left; height: 30px; margin:4px 4px 4px 4px; } Like most men, I complain when I’m sick. (Cough, sneeze, whine, repeat.) Fortunately for friends and family alike, Boz and Gracie endure my pithy in-house pronouncements so no one else has to (that is unless you call me or knock on my door, then the next half an hour is all mine). Sequestered to the [...]

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