Homemade Red Pepper Flakes

This summer we grew jalapeno peppers

from starts we bought from friends at the farmers' market.

As we don't use many peppers in our food,

I knew that these were destined for something else.

After reading how to easily make red pepper flakes

on the Old World Gardens blog, 

I decided to give it a go.

The peppers were picked, washed

and the ends were trimmed.

 They were then placed (as is) on a cookie sheet 

lined with parchment paper.

I've read that it's important to line the surface

so that the heat doesn't get imbedded into the pan.

I use parchment for most of my oven-based cooking,

so we always have it around.

The peppers were left in the oven most of the day

(at least 7 hours) at 170 degrees.

This dries them out slowly.

If you have a dehydrator, that would work too.

 The food processor does a great job of pulverizing the peppers.

The jar is kept right next to the stove top.

One of my favorite dishes in which to use these 

is my mom's homemade gravy (tomato sauce).

It was one of the first recipes I shared here on the blog.

You can find that recipe here.

I'm so glad I tried this 

and I will be sure to grow more peppers next summer

so that I can make enough to share!

Garden Friday-Catawba Extension Center Demonstration Garden

Since moving to North Carolina,

I've been taking part in the Advanced Gardener Series.

It's similar to the Master Gardener Series,

but fewer hours are required and it's a bit less hands-on.

The Master Gardener classes are always scheduled during daytime hours,

preventing me from participating,

so I was glad to hear about this alternative.

The Catawba County Extension Center hosts both courses

and this Garden Friday finds us visiting their demonstration garden

in Newton.

The demonstration garden acts a classroom

for those learning about horticulture.  

With raised beds and a greenhouse,

students can participate in a variety of gardening tasks.

Flowers entice pollinators to pay a visit to the garden as well.

The pathways between beds are ample enough

to allow for pedestrians and wheelbarrows.

The location of the garden is ideal,
with full sun bathing it throughout the morning hours.

Several varieties of berries could be found.
Each crop bears a sign to identify what's growing in the beds.

In mid-October, when I toured the garden,

the berries were ready for sampling.

The greenhouse was bursting with tomato plants.

I noticed both yellow and red cherry tomatoes still hanging on the vines.

Elsewhere in the garden,  
peppers just waiting to be picked looked vibrant and healthy.

The asparagus bed looked like it had given its all.
Not to worry, a fresh crop will surely appear in springtime.

A large compost area is tucked into a corner of the garden.

This "wall" of rosemary was just stunning!

The wonderful fragrance always reminds me of my momma,

who loved adding it to all kinds of yummy dishes.

What a beautiful place for newbie gardeners to hone their craft.

It will be fun to visit it again and again

with the changing seasons

and see what transformations take place.

No doubt this garden will have its share of companions.

DVDs,Organized

I love organizing spaces.
It really comforts me to know that 
everything is in its designated place
and that we can find what we need at a moment's notice.
We've been in this house since June,
and it has been a labor of love
to organize our pared down belongings.

We purged almost all of our music CDs and many of our movies.

We just found that they weren't getting that much use

and we donated them to a local thrift store back in Winter Haven.

This is what remains of our collection.

Although we don't often watch movies,

when the weather is gloomy and we just want to hunker down for the afternoon,

it's one of the best ways to spend some family time.

So, it became necessary to get these things organized.

Enter a dreamy enamelware cabinet.

I had been on the lookout for something like this.

I had found some, but they were either too big or too pricey.

This one called my name as soon as I laid eyes on it.

 The top was in beautiful condition,

but the inside needed a little love.

I took some baking soda and went over the shelves with a damp rag.

It did a great job of erasing the rust that lingered there.

I can't tell you how much I have been enjoying this gorgeous relic.

It seemed like the perfect solution for our DVD storage.

At first, the disks were simply housed there,
but I knew I wanted to tidy it up a bit
and make it easier to find things quickly.

 I found these bins on Amazon
and they were the perfect fit.
Four of them fit on the top shelf
and housed most of our movies.

 I created labels for A-L and M-Z as well as
a separate bin for holiday movies and kid-friendly films.

 We have a couple of big box sets that don't fit in those bins,
so they were placed on the bottom shelf.
Also here are blank DVDs, as well as C's music CDs.
The bins were a bit pricier than I expected,
so I only bought one set.
I plan to keep my eye out in case they go on sale,
because they are fairly heavy-duty and really are perfect in this application.

In the two drawers we placed all of our Wii components.
I love having it all out of sight
and yet readily accessible.

The cabinet takes up much less space than the trunk we had there before.
The bonus is that it also now stores all of our movies and music.
In a room where almost all of the furniture is new and modern,
this beauty adds vintage charm.

The streamlined look really appeals to me.
The room is small-ish, so having space around the furniture helps it look bigger.
I'm so glad I was in that thrift store the day I found this cabinet.
I guess I'll have to go back and see what else they've got!

Other organizing posts:
Finally File Storage
Manuals, Organized
Recipes, Organized
Legos, Organized

Going Local-Red Wolf Farm

Over the weekend,

we made a trip to Red Wolf Farm in Maiden,

which is about 15 minutes from our home.

 

Each weekend in October, the 123-acre farm is open to the public

for their fall festival.

The day was gorgeous, with temps in the 70's 

and beautiful blue skies.

Sister was able to join us for the experience.

With Halloween looming,

we knew this would be the perfect place to pick up a pumpkin

for jack-o-lantern carving.

Small pumpkins were only $2, while the larger ones were $4.

There were some unexpected surprises on the property.

Wouldn't this tepee make the best play area for kids?

We started off our adventure by walking the corn maze.

There are two different mazes available,

one for adults and one for kids.

The maze created for kids had shorter crops growing,

so that parents could still see their lil' darlins' while standing on the sidelines.

So clever.

This was the first time any of us had participated in a corn maze,

and we enjoyed it thoroughly.

Big K set out in front to lead the way.

He never hardly ever gets lost.

There were many twists and turns,

but eventually we made it back to civilization,

without the need for a GPS, 

thank you very much!

There was something for every age group.

These lil' farmers had a great time on their John Deere tractors.

Ah, brings back good memories 

of when C was a young whippersnapper.

We took a hayride all around the property.

There was also a petting zoo,

horse rides, and a large bounce house area.

All of the individual activities are included 

in the admission price of only $8.50 per person.

On our way out,

we decided to pick up a few pumpkins.

Funny how I blend right in to my surroundings here, huh?

C and Big K found some just the right size for carving.
The smaller gourds will be used on the front porch.
I'd like to carve holes in them and light them up like luminaries.
We've carved pumpkins since before C was born.
It's one tradition I hope we continue for a long time.

Going Local Series:
Maiden Fall Festival
Grier Truck Museum
Mount Holly Farmers' Market
Davidson Farmers' Market
The Mundy House
Mooresville Farmers' Market
Troutman Farmers' Market
Memory Lane Museum
Hardware Upgrade