MOON-SPINNERS

I'm not sure whether it was the gorgeous full moon which kept our bedroom lit all night, or the fact that I'm fixing to write about our trip to Greece over on Miss Becky Goes Abroad, but something got me to thinkin' about Moon-Spinners this morning!

Image from frisbeewind.blogspot.com

The Moon-Spinners was a book by Mary Stewart, that I absolutely adored as a teenager.  I knew that the title was based on some legend that was mentioned in the book, but couldn't remember the details.  When I went in search of them, I discovered a lovely blog called Celtic Memory Yarns that all my fiber-fanatic friends are sure to be drooling over!  Its author, Jo, explained that the Moon-spinners were spirits who gathered the moon as it waned, winding its light onto their distaffs, and then took it down to the edge of the sea and washed it, so that it could be spun again for the new moon.  I just love that image, don't you?

Image from via-51.blogspot.com

The book was veeerry loosely-adapted into a movie, starring Hayley Mills.  I adored that too, as a younger kid (I think I must have seen the movie before I discovered the book), though the book is much better.  Between the two of them, they planted an indelible picture of Greece in my brain, which probably had a lot to do with it later becoming the very first stop on our European adventure.

Anyhoo, thinking about that movie got me to thinking about Hayley Mills and all her other movies that I have loved over the years, such as Pollyanna and the original Parent Trap, and that got me to wondering just how many of those movies are available on Netflix.  'Cause I'm thinking that, one cold, dreary day this winter, my daughter and I really need to snuggle on the sofa with our fuzzy lap robes, and have ourselves a Hayley-Mills-Marathon, starting with The Moon-Spinners!


Oh yeah!  Don't forget to leave your comment here, if you would like a chance to win that wonderful Hill Country Hippy Anniversary Market Basket Give-Away!  Winner will be announced first thing Monday.

A FALL TO-DO LIST

Don't forget to leave your comment on yesterday's post if you wish to be entered into my Anniversary Give-Away!  Winner will be announced Monday morning.

Click on image to enlarge.

TO MARKET, TO MARKET, TO BUY A FAT PIG...

GIVE-AWAY, GIVE-AWAY, JIGGETY JIGG!  Yes indeed my friends, it's time for you to toss your name into the hat for Seasonality's Fourth Anniversary Market Basket Give Away!  Our winner will receive the following:

1) This beautiful market basket which, though not made locally, was purchased from a great little fair trade craft gallery here in Wimberley, called Imagine.  It was handmade in Ghana by Rural Women Co-operatives, which are guided by fair trade practices in support of rural poverty alleviation.  Shaped much like the famous French market baskets, it is just right for carrying to a farmers' market or the grocery store, to get just what you need for the next day or two.

2) A Hippie-Cowgirl zipper pouch to hold your stash of small bills, because everyone knows you gotta have a bunch of those when you go to the farmers' market!

3) An autographed (albeit slightly worn) copy of Eating in Season: Recipes from Boggy Creek Farm, by Carol Ann Sayle.  Carol Ann and her husband Larry were pioneers in the field of urban farming, and Boggy Creek Farm lies right in the heart of Austin, Texas.

4) Last, but not least, he or she will receive that cute little refrigerator magnet pictured above, and I hope it will be a constant reminder of one of the most important steps towards living the good life -- eating well, and with Seasonality!

So what must you do for a chance at winning this delightful prize package?  Simply leave a comment, any time between now and midnight on Sunday, 8/11/11, telling us one thing you have learned, enjoyed, or been inspired to do, by/from this blog.  If you are a new reader, just tell me what or who led you to Seasonality.  And, if you will post a link to this "give-away page" on your  own blog or website, and leave a comment here linking to that, your name will get thrown into the hat a second time (and we will all get the chance to visit some wonderful new blogs).  The winner will be announced Monday morning, 9/ 12.  Good luck!

Update!
If you don't have a website, you can still garner an extra chance by linking to this page on facebook.  Just be sure to come back and leave a comment, showing that you did so.

P.S.  If you are one of those who has trouble leaving comments, you can always email your entry to me at becky.lane(at)vownet(dot)net, or send it to me via facebook.

'TIS THE SEASON: HATCH CHILES

I added the silverware to the picture to give you an idea of their size.

I stumbled across these beauties in our little Brookshire Bros. store last week, and decided it was high time I try these new chiles that have suddenly become so popular, they are throwing festivals in their honor.  I had no clue what to do with them, but bought them anyway.

A couple of days later, when the kids were due to arrive, and I needed something to feed them, I remembered that Homesick Texan had once done an article about funeral food, and the comforting dishes one takes to the gatherings afterwards.  Her contribution had been a casserole involving Hatch chiles, potatoes, onions and cream, all of which I just happened to have on hand!

What's really funny is that, once I read over the recipe, I realized it was nothing more than a basic French gratin -- the exact same thing that my Frenchy-blog-friends are always making!  Remember how I once told you that you need to have a few basic techniques in your arsenal, which you know by heart?  Recipes that are versatile enough to adapt to your own special tweaks, and to whatever ingredients are in season or at hand?  Well, this is one of them -- and a mighty tasty one at that!

HOMESICK TEXAN'S HATCH CHILE POTATO CASSEROLE

Serves 6 - 8

Pre-heat oven to 350 F.  Melt 2 T. butter in a heavy, oven-safe skillet on med-low.  Cook one diced yellow onion and two diced Hatch or Anaheim chiles until onions start to brown a bit, about 15 minutes.  Turn off heat.

In a small bowl, mix together two cloves minced garlic, 1 tsp. cumin, 2 tsp. salt, 1 tsp. pepper and a pinch of cayenne.  Add 2 lbs. peeled and diced russet potatoes to the skillet and mix with the onions and peppers.  Stir in the garlic and spice mixture.  Pour 1 cup heavy cream over the potatoes and cover skillet with foil. 

Bake one hour at 350 F.  After an hour, remove and discard foil, then cut up another 2 T. butter and dot on top of cooked potatoes.  Place skillet under the broiler for two minutes, or until butter has melted and potatoes are starting to brown on top.  Let cool a bit and serve.

THE BEST DANG DAY OF THE YEAR

And what day might this be?

Why, it's the first fuzzy-lap-robe-day of the year!  All summer long, when we've awakened to temps hovering just below 80, my morning tea and oats have been, well, tolerable.  But today?  Today they are going to be tree-men-dous!  This morning it's only 55 F. out, and we slept with all the windows w-i-d-e open! 

Oh happy day!  I just love fuzzy-lap-robe-day, don't you? (Yeah, yeah, I know.  It's only a fluke, and we probably haven't seen the last of those triple digit days, but I can dream, can't I?)

MY SALT LICK TEMPERAMENT TEST: TURNING LEMONS INTO LEMONADE

Well, my kid's new sweeties passed the test with flying colors.  I wasn't about to light up our grill yesterday, and run the risk of adding one more grass fire to the slew that are already trying to turn the Hill Country into one massive inferno, so we took them to Salt Lick instead.  Come to find out, we weren't the only ones who had that notion.

When we checked in with the hostess, and heard we might have a 90 minute wait for a table, I braced myself for the usual reaction.  But, instead of hearing "Hell no!" or "You gotta be kidding," Lexie's beau just grinned and said "There's always the tasting room."  Turns out he's a bit of a wine freak, and Salt Lick Cellars just happens to carry several of his favorite Texas wines.

On our way around to the tasting room, I stopped off to grab what I consider to be the finest beverage in Texas -- some of their fresh-squeezed lemonade. 

Everyone else got their glasses of vino, Austin ordered a beautiful cheese platter, and we wandered out to a picnic table beneath the shade of a huge oak tree.  We moaned and groaned over the yummy cheeses, enjoyed the live music, and the young folks swapped embarassing stories about their parents and siblings.  Then, as it usually happens, in about half the time they had threatened us with, and almost before we were ready for it, our buzzer went off and we headed in to our table.

A couple of hours from first leaving the house, we finally made our way back home, and not once during that time did I here a single complaint about the heat or the wait, nor did anyone pull out their i-phones to relieve their tedium, whilst ignoring their companions.

People who know how to take it slow, enjoy the simple things, and turn lemons into lemonade?  They make me very happy!  What about you?  What have you done to slow down and enjoy life's simple pleasures this week?