Iced In

Day 2 of being iced in. The ice encased branches are beautiful, it reminds me of a fairy-tale. 

Related Post: Waiting For The Storm

I just wish it wasn't so destructive... It's supposed to get to -17. We're worried about the orchard and the chickens. Wish we had a big barn to put them all in. Hopefully the weather doesn't kill the trees. We've lost a couple more big branches this morning as well as the entire top of our cedar tree. 

They plowed our street this morning (something they never do because we live in the country) Ok, to be honest they plowed half of it and not our half. (go figure!) It stops at our neighbor's house.  Which is weird for us because, like I said our street never gets plowed... I don't think I have ever even seen a snow plow before this morning if that tells you anything. I am thinking that the neighbor paid someone to do it so he could get out and work.  He owns his own company. 

Related Post: Butterfly Morn Farm

Mrs. Cottage is working on a hot breakfast. The bacon smells heavenly! What's the weather like where you are?

Related Post: Soup, Soup and More Soup

The table where we have our coffee in warm weather is now decorated with ice.

Down the 150' driveway is pure ice and snow.

Country Snow Storm

Good morning! A snow storm? Ummm, make that an ice storm. We now have an ice skating rink for a yard. We've lost a couple of great big limbs already. Sigh. Looks like we will just be getting ice and no snow... so fun.  

Related Post: Waiting For The Storm

Well on the bright side Mr. Cottage is home from work, but only because there was no way he was able to get down the driveway with over an inch of ice on it. Our driveway is 150' long and very steep. Even if he could get down it, stopping would be... interesting! It would shoot him into the street, over the street, down the ditch and through the cattle fencing from our neighbor. Not fun. The trees are all so heavy with all of the ice on them. I have never seen this before. It sure looks like a fairy world out there.  It looks like some kind of winter magic happened overnight.  

 It is so cold out there.  I have covered the entire run for the chickens and it is a good thing that I did.  It has frozen over the run and really sealed it in.  It is nice and dry in there and surprisingly warm.  Even the wild birds are taking refuge in there with them.  

Related Post: Butterfly Morn Farm

                             
 These are the nesting boxes on their coop.  A little bit of ice?

Related Post: Iced In



A whole lot of ice in the orchard. This is heart breaking to see the buds covered thickly in ice. We are not going to have fruit this year.

Related Post: Soup, Soup and More Soup

Oh, look they are clearing the street.  Too bad they stop and turn around at the neighbor's driveway. :(

On the way to do chores.  A true winter wonderland.

Ice sparkling in the morning sun at the Rosevine Cottage.

Snow covering two inches of ice on the street.  

Beautiful ice covered fence.

Ice and snow-covered dock at the lake.

Soup, Soup And More Soup Roundup

It is a busy night tonight.  Mrs. Cottage and I are busy making a few pots of soup for meals this week just in case the weather person is correct (this time) and we do get a bunch of snow. The house smells so wonderful with the cooking of the vegetables and the earthy smells of herbs and spices. You can click the title of the recipe below to be taken to the recipe.

Tonight we are making: 

Chicken Noodle 

Cream Of Broccoli

Chili

Loaded Baked Potato Soup

Bean Soup

It may sound like overkill, but we tend to lose power if we get more than a couple of inches.  The power is usually off for several days so we wanted to have stuff ready that we could just warm up.  Don't laugh our cold neighbors to the North!  :) 

Last time we had 8" we were little but we had no power for 4 days and Mrs. Cottage cooked us breakfast, lunch and dinner in the fireplace.  Don't laugh!  It was good too.  We had eggs or hot cereal for breakfast, soups and stews for lunch and a hot dinner with a meat and veggies.  She even made us tea and cocoa in the fireplace.  We were kept cozy and satisfied.  

Well, goodnight and keep warm friends! Tomorrow we may be in a winter wonderland.

Butterfly-Morn Farm

Mr. Cottage, Brianna and I are headed over to our friends over at Butterfly-Morn Farm today for a visit. Brrrrrrrrr it is COLD out there. We are under a winter storm advisory and they are saying we could get up to a 10" of snow. This town is not used to that kind of snow so we are a bit concerned.  

Oh, her newborn goats are so precious!  We were able to hold them and it took all of me to not wrap them in my jacket and take them home (just kidding Michell). There is a little pen with a heater and when we walked into the barn they all started sweetly calling to us and trying to climb the pen to get to us.  We went up to them and they were just the smallest sweetest things you have ever seen.  When I picked one up it nuzzled my face and started sucking on my chin.  It is so sweet.

One proud mama! 

Check out and follow Butterfly Morn on Facebook 

and their Local Harvest Page

Waiting For The Storm

Good morning! The sun is shining and the birds are playing in the big pear tree. Flitting back and forth from limb to limb, they look so cute! All plump and puffed up. I can hear the Rooster crowing in the back yard as he watches over the girls. The ice on the pool glitters in the sunshine. It so beautiful... The smell of coffee teases my nose. I love mornings like this.  It is so hard to believe how cold it is getting.  It was just in the upper 50's and now I can see my breath.  They are calling for a chance of snow but from what I see no one believes the reports.  Too many reports of snow that never came to be make the farmer's and ranchers very skeptical.  People still seem to be rushing to the store for the staple items just in case.  This is why it is always good to have some emergency food stored.  I am thankful that we can and preserve our harvests at the Cottage. 

Do you have an emergency plan for food in place?  Do you can?       

Would love to hear from you.  Let's exchange ideas.  We have an orchard so we do lots of canning of the fruit and dehydrating.  We garden as well so we do our best to can, dry or freeze as much as possible.  We just ran out of tomatoes from last years garden but we still have lots of green beans.  We try to get a share of meat as well when we can so that we will have it on hand.  It saves money in the long run. 

Leave us a message in the comments below, we love to hear from you!

Today On Your Birthday Grandma We Remember You

 The house is still...  a piano plays softly on the radio. 

Ice and snow cover the ground outside. 

Lunch is finished and the dishes sit in the dish strainer. 

It's just another day... 

Its just another day, but its not just another day. It's your birthday! 

How do you wish someone a "Happy Birthday" in a place where there is no sadness? Memories slip through my mind... you are in them all. 

Decorating the tree, birthdays, Easter, 4th Of July, Ballet class, Thanksgiving, Choir performances, Church, New Years, Sledding, BBQ's, horse competition two summers ago, Bonfires with friends as you watched over us, swimming in the pool as you sat on the porch to make sure we were ok, gardening, holding baby animals that I brought home, chickens, turkeys, quail, rabbits, a puppy, a cat. Making cookies with you. car rides and musicals. So many good times... and you are there in every one.

Happy Birthday Grandma Cottage. 

Tiramisu

         

We first tasted Tiramisu at lunch with our aunts and our cousin after saying goodbye to grandma cottage. Our Aunt bought us all lunch and a couple of desserts that she ordered at Macaroni Grill and we passed them around so all could enjoy.  It was sweet, but not too sweet. It was creamy and delightful.  I normally like cheese cake but loved this even more than the cheese cake she chose.

We milled over it for awhile, thought about it, was a bit intimidated by it and finally tried it.

 We made this when we were stuck in our cottage with snow and ice falling outside.  It was a winter wonderland all around us but we were warm and cozy in our little house.

This recipe can be eaten after about 3- 4 hours in the fridge but trust me when I say it will be amazing the next day! We used a normal trifle bowl to make it (You can buy one here Trifle Bowl ) and it made it pretty.  I think you could also use a cake pan but not sure what size it would be. Sorry!  You can also use just a simple bowl I am sure if it is all you have.  You just make layers...                         

Ingredients:                                                                              

6 free range egg yolks                                                              

1 1/4 cups Raw Sugar (ground fine)

1 1/4 cups Mascarpone       

1 3/4 cups heavy whipping cream

2 (3 ounce) packages Ladyfingers or 1 recipe see recipe below

1/3-1/2 cup strong coffee                                                           

Topping

 1 teaspoon unsweetened organic cocoa powder (dust)

   

Chill a medium size bowl in refrigerator. Mix egg yolks and sugar in the top of a double boiler. Reduce heat to low and stir for 10 minutes or so, to coddle the eggs.

After 10 minutes of stirring remove the mixture from heat. Let it cool for a bit and then take a beater and whip the yolk/sugar mixture until its thick.

Add the mascarpone to the whipped yolk-sugar mixture.  Blend well.   Take your chilled bowl out of fridge. Whip the whipping cream until the stiff peaks are formed.  Gently fold into yolk-sugar mixture and set aside.   Line the bottom and sides of your serving bowl with the lady fingers lightly dipped in the coffee.

Spoon 1/3 of the cream filling over the lady fingers.  

Now you are going to layer - using lady fingers dipped in coffee and filling.  Keep going till you run out of lady fingers.  Chill from 4 hrs to one day.  

Lady Fingers Recipe

Ingredients:

5 organic free range egg whites and 4 of the egg yolks   
2/3 cup raw organic sugar

1 cap full of Vanilla Extract                                                                     
 ½ Tsp of non- alum baking powder

1 cup of Organic Flour

Directions:

First you will preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Take your eggs and separate the yolk from the white and put in separate bowls.  Place your egg whites in your mixing bowl and mix on high until foamy.  Add two tablespoons of organic raw sugar to the egg whites and then turn your mixer back on and beat until when you lift up the beaters (after you have turned mixer OFF Important! Ha ha) There will be waves like the ocean in the place you lifted them out that don’t settle or fall.  Put this bowl aside. In another bowl put what is left of your sugar, the egg yolks and your vanilla. Set it aside too.

Sift your organic flour and baking powder together into a bowl and set aside.  Take your bowl with the egg yolks in it and fold one half of your egg whites into them.  Fold in the flour mixture and then follow with the remaining stiff peak egg whites.   Take an icing bag with a large tip (the key is they are to be about as wide as a lady’s finger so let that be your guide.  If you don’t have one of these you can use a zipper bag with a icing tip or just snipped off in the corner.  It will be messy but it will work.  It is the same technique we used for the shepherd’s pie recipe for the mashed potato.  Put your silpat or some waxed paper down on your cookie sheet and I still grease that with coconut oil. 

Place in your 350 degree F. oven for just about 5 minutes.  Don’t leave these as you want them golden around the edges and not more than this. Do not burn the lady’s fingers. J

Remove and cool.  These will be soft and tender and will make just enough for one recipe but not more.


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