sprinklefingers

there was a package waiting for me when i got home yesterday. it contained this:



adorable, isn’t it?

and inside? this:


can’t quite make out the print? it’s a ‘recipe’ for curing your own bacon!

the entire book is jam-packed with amazing ideas for getting your kids involved in the kitchen…it’s all accomplished through a series of ‘projects’ - whether it’s curing your own bacon or making your own salt or creating your own butter or building an ice cream maker or growing tomatoes or hosting your own pancake race - every project is so much fun and so interesting that i’d bet even the pickiest kids would love getting involved. even my husband.

seriously, this book is so much fun that someone should start a blog about it.
speaking of blogs about things, i wonder how lawrence is doing…

i arrived home yesterday only to find a package of books on the front stoop. is there anything more exciting? (uh, don’t answer that. i’ve told you about 93 times that i don’t get out much - therefore the arrival of books truly is exciting.)

inside?

the latest offerings (in the US) from the supergreat hugh fearnly-whittingstall - the brains (& most often the brawn) behind england’s river cottage. now, don’t worry if you have no idea what i’m talking about. river cottage is a place AND a movement AND a way of thinking - all started by UK journalist hugh fearnly-whittingstall. basically, he bought a farm and grew his own food then started telling people about his adventures via his writings and a television series. but it was much more than work to him. today he has grown river cottage into a champion of the local, seasonal, grow-your-own food movement. at the headquarters near Devon you can take cookery & butchery classes, learn to grow vegetables, shop for seasonal produce AND enjoy a delicious local, seasonal meal at the canteen. and this is just a smattering of their offerings. check it out!

anyways, inside my package was river cottage preserves (us version) - and there is literally so much good stuff in there that i almost couldn’t sleep last night. my favorite? a very descriptive method for testing how much pectin is in a specific fruit so that you can make your own pectin ‘broth’ for jam-making. amazing. and incredible. and something i’ve never, ever thought to do before. cannot wait to experiment.

i’ll leave you now with hugh’s column from the guardian - this particular issue discusses muffins. i know you’ll thank me once you see the recipe for the red onion, cheddar and bacon version. you’re welcome.