The Pumpkin Soup Your Mother Warned You About

October 23, 2010 by
Well, as I wrote about here, we harvested a  bounty of beautiful pumpkins from the gardens here at The Gables.  I’ve been pondering on what the heck to do with them — many of you offered helpful suggestions — and yesterday I decided I needed to attempt a pumpkin soup.

As stated before, I had some rather awful experiences with pumpkin soups whilst living in New Zealand a few years ago.  So, with that expressed, fully,  I pulled two small pumpkins from the pumpkin pile yesterday and whipped up the deliciosity (not a real word) that is this soup.

I used the ingredients listed in this recipe for cream of pumpkin soup, however, since I roasted and pureed the pulp of my own, home grown pumpkins, I didn’t have an exact pumpkin amount so I really winged the ingredient ratios as I went along — testing by taste to make sure I was on the right track.  The result truly was scrumptious, earthy, sweet and spicy.
Cream of Pumpkin Soup Ingredients:
1 cup chopped onion
2 tbsp butter
2 cans chicken broth
1 can (15oz) pumpkin puree
1tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground ginger
1/8 tsp ground black pepper
1 cup heavy whipping cream

Directions:
Toss some butter in your sauce pan and saute your chopped onion until it’s relatively soft.  Add chicken broth and pumpkin puree to onions, bring to a boil, cover, reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes.  

Transfer broth mixture to a blender and puree until smooth.

Return mixture to saucepan and add all spices.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.  

Stir in heavy whipping cream and fully heat again (but do not boil) to the temperature you’d like to serve it at.

*As usual, I would greatly encourage you to find a beautiful, organically grown, vine ripened pumpkin at your local market to roast and puree yourself.  I’m not sure how this soup will taste if you use the sad little pumpkin bits that come spiritless and corralled in a tin can…

I served this soup to my smokejumpers with a side of spinach salad last night.  This afternoon, while they were out bird hunting, I consumed the leftovers with a small grilled cheese sandwich and a soy latte — so autumnal.  I have been converted into a pumpkin soup passionista.  Officially.  Watch out!  You will be too.

Happy souping.
xx
Filed Under: recipe, recipes

Oh Those Heavenly Hosts

October 23, 2010 by
A few more Host Necklaces before I take the weekend for myself:
These pieces are so weird, so me, so heavenly, so extraordinary, so organic…I would be quite content to keep every one for myself.
I will be gladly tidying up my interwebular correspondence spaces this weekend as well as canning grape jelly (concord and white).  It’s going to get pretty hot in the kitchen!  OH!  And I have the most incredible pumpkin soup recipe for you — it will feed your soul.

And now I must pull an apple crisp from the oven and feed some firefighters.  Again.

Happy Friday, sweet dreams and be well,
The Plume


:::EDIT:::
I’ll be listing these pieces on Saturday around 1PM – mountain time.


:::EDIT:::
THANK YOU TO THE LADIES WHO CLAIMED THESE PIECES!!!
xx
Filed Under: enamel, New Jewelry

Playing Host

October 22, 2010 by

Lately, whilst out and about hiking and running in the mountains, I’ve been getting down on my hands and knees to get closer looks at mosses and lichens. My favorites are the lichens — those old fuzzy looking growths in fantastic hues that have found hospitable rocks and twigs to grown on. 

One day, I found myself thinking about how many different kinds of hosts can be found in nature and I started to ponder on what I’m a host of in this life. I’m talking about those invisible things that take up space in me. Those things that turn my heart, soul and mind into a host. Those things that feed off my energy or energize me. Those things I live in symbiosis with. Those things that are parasites that attach themselves to me and feed on the brightness of my spirit. 



Those things. 

Those things.


Nature isn’t so lucky, those rocks, those tree limbs, those hillsides that grow the wildflowers and the noxious weeds — they don’t get to choose what they host — they just do.


I, on the other hand, have the right to choose, over and over again, what I allow to take up residence in me. Out with the dark. In with the light. I will host goodness, love, mercy and light. I will shed off those layers of unkindness, anger, hate, abuse and darkness. I shall not play host to anything that is unwelcome. I shall not give space to any of those dark things.  I’ll keep a candle lit in the windows of my soul.  I’ll welcome the good promises in from the cold and I’ll keep the door barred when the bad things come knocking.


And so, with this in mind, I created the host necklace. A textured slab of copper that has been forged, repoussed, pounded (oh how I pounded, annealed, pounded, annealed and then pounded again…) and shaped into a lichen-like form. I’ve enameled (and counter enameled) this piece, fired it multiple times here in my studio kiln and strung it simply on sterling chain. 
You will be its host.

May it always remind you that you choose what you let in, what you keep inside you.
May it always remind you to welcome the light.

It’s in the Etsy shop now.
xx
Plume

Filed Under: enamel, host series, New Jewelry

Catching Blue

October 21, 2010 by
Well, I finished a few things today:
I’ll make these rings available tomorrow morning, 
over in the Etsy shop.

Farley kept me company in the studio all day.  He’s so sweet.  Just the other day, RW and I were discussing how attached he is to us.  He follows us everywhere we go, even if it means he lays down and sleeps at our feet.  When we move, he moves.  I love that dog.  I have a blog post to share with you tomorrow that is mostly about him and how amazing he is.  Anyway, he jumps up on my vintage, green wing back chair I have out in the studio and curls up in the most darling positions you’ve ever seen and he just snoozes while the Goldberg Variations boom in his velvet ears.  Technically, as of late, I’ve been hearing a whole lot of the Whip It soundtrack (which every one here should own….go get it now…it’s so great) and he snoozes to it too — even when Dolly Parton starts singing Jolene to us.  He is one of my best friends.  He really is.  He hears it all, shoulders everything I lay down and still loves me, every single day.  I should have named him Jesus (Oops.  I think that might have been sacrilegious).  How lucky am I to have his companionship?  So lucky.  I can’t believe I’m getting another German Shorthair Pointer in January!  I love these dogs so much.

This morning when I woke up, that beautiful morning light of autumn was pouring into the house.  I walked around with my camera trying to catch the blue wisps of it before the sun rose higher.
My Andy Goldsworthy book arrived by mail today.  I’m going to take it into the bath this evening and relax with it.  Do you know of him?  Does he move you?  He moves me like he’s the strongest thing and I’m a mountain.  
Just up and over.  There I am .  In a new place.

I was going to try to head back out to the studio for an hour or two, to enamel this wall hanging thing I dreamed up last night but I’m feeling ready to turn in for the evening, invite Farley up into bed and read a book until my eyes slide shut.

Sweet dreams to you all,
Plume
xx
Filed Under: New Jewelry, plume gables

ANOTHER Service Announcement:

October 20, 2010 by
Good morning, duckies! 
This is just a quick post to tell you the zen-ness I have reached on the front lines of interwebular correspondence!  I am experiencing a truly glorious inundation in the realms of email and Etsy convos (AND snail mail, actually).  So inundated I am, it’s generally taking me a few days to respond to any one person.  Last week I was torturing myself over this fact, saying things like, “You’re so horrible.  These wonderful people need to have responses as soon as possible.  You’re the most unprofessional person on the face of the planet…yadda yadda snark snark…” 
But then I realized that I do a crummy job of keeping up relationships (and these ARE relationships I hold with you) when I’m tired and pressured for time.  I am an artist.  I am a flake.  I am easily distracted by creative notions.  I’m not predisposed to being professional (though I sure do try).  This said, I want to answer each piece of correspondence fully and with a happy heart — NOT because it’s professional to have a clean inbox or two but because I’m real and you’re real and I want to keep it real with you.
So, with that said, please know that I cherish every note you write to me.  It might take me three or four days or even a full week to get back to you but when I do, I will answer each one of your questions and we will have a really beautiful chitchat about where you are at in your life, thyroids, the weather, gluten free baking recipes, jewelry, the wonderfulness of the seasons, chickens and every other topic there is out there to discuss. 
I can’t keep up!
I’m so glad about that!
I’m so glad to admit that!  This confession makes me clean!
But most of all, I want to take the TIME to be in relationship with you.
So.  Thank you for your patience!
Honestly and noisily,
The Plume
Filed Under: Uncategorized
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