NO, WE ARE NOT TURNING AMISH

No, we are not turning Amish. Just don't let your husband go to an auction by himself. You never know what he'll bring home. I have to say this charming little Amish buggy is a "keeper." No horse, thank you very much. Just a conversation piece.  Tom and I always love going to Holmes County and taking in the buggies and thinking life would be much simpler in a less progressive community. However, I am partial to modern perks like electricity, indoor plumbing, washing machines, and getting in my car and driving to town in a matter of minutes, not hours. I do love the buggy though.

Mickey just walked through the flower bed to inspect the buggy

Check out my books on Amazon - Three Moons Over Sedona, Chasing Joe, and Island Passage

A GOOD DAY IN THE WOODS!!!

Rocky the Squirrel

This morning I had a little greeter outside the bedroom window. This little guy was eating the dogwood berries left on the tree limbs. He gave me a disconcerting look and then a brush of his tail as he scooted down to a lower limb.

Morning coffee. The morning light was fantastic, begging for photographs. Inside the cabin, couldn't resist taking a photo of the ridge pole and beams, the light giving the beams a golden hue.

The morning light was so inspiring inside the cabin

Mickey staking out his winter rocking chair by the fire

Cash in his usual in-the-house pose

Garden Cabin - ready to clean and prep for next guests

Ohhhh the laundry - bedding and towels

The Garden Cabin emptied out this morning, so that means a "clean" to get ready for a new set of guests tomorrow. Stripping off bedding and towels, putting them through wash and dry cycles. Dusting and mopping, putting dishes away. All in day's work during the cabin rental season.

Chicken broth ready for chicken and veggies

Cooler weather means soup on the stove. We decided on making a chicken/rice soup. Dropping the chicken into a stock pot, Tom seasoned with creole seasonings, onion and a couple of hot peppers. We let it cook on the wood stove for about an hour until the chicken could be taken out of the pot and cooled. I sliced peppers, carrots, chopped celery, minced some garlic, then added to the simmering broth while the chicken cooled enough to take the meat off the bone. After this, I added the chicken to the soup, along with some cooked brown rice.

And, a special treat: Shiitake mushrooms harvested from our "plugged" logs.

The soup simmered the rest of the afternoon, adding the Shiitakes to the soup about an hour before we ate dinner.

Tom begins stacking the dried firewood for the winter

Cash and Brutus out for a romp

Don't ya just love fall colors? 

Mickey, too

Also, this is really cool!!! Last weekend Tom bought an old deck chair from the antique mall. Obviously, it had once been on an ocean liner at some point in time. The chair was a dreary weathered gray, but all in all, in good shape structure wise. Tom convinced me that he could have the old deck chair looking beautiful again.

Well...he did...and it is gorgeous. Look how the brass shined up!! Amazing. I'm especially partial to the little brass plate that says 'FIRST CLASS ONLY"

I told Tom that the chair probably fell off  the Titantic when it went down, then floated in the water until it came to shore somewhere, and now it sits in Ohio!! Okay, I might be exaggerating just a tad, but it's a good story anyway, don't ya think?

Just look at how that brass shined up!!

Okay, this sold me the chair: First Class Only

Glass of wine before dinner

A glass of wine before dinner, and then....

Soup and salad - who can beat that combo? 

PIÈCE DE RÉSISTANCE, 

Sherry is the author of Three Moons Over Sedona, Island Passage and Chasing Joe,

 Sherry Hartzler's books can be found on Amazon.com

A CELEBRATION OF FALL

Oops! Rod Serling (Twilght Zone) on TV

Fall is my favorite time of year!! The guest cabins are moving into the final months of the season and there's a chill in the air that begs for SOUP!! 

Two days before my son's wedding, I decided to have a little gathering of a few friends at the house. A little insane what with all the activity of the wedding preparations, but it was a good way to alleviate the stress of worrying about all the final details of the wedding. 

A simple menu: gumbo simmered in a cast iron kettle over an open fire, homemade bread that a friend brought, and a field green salad. For dessert, I made "from scratch" hot fudge and served over vanilla ice cream. I'll save the hot fudge recipe for a later date. I will tell you that the hot fudge recipe is easy and tastes like the the best childhood memory you can possibly think of. (Please excuse the "prep"  at the end of the sentence). :) 

A few years ago, Tom and I had a wonderful Louisiana couple as guests staying in one of our cabins. They had these beautiful Louisiana Cajun accents, a blending of English, heavy on Acadian French and even some Native American influence, I knew beyond a doubt that they could fill me in on what went into making a truly authentic gumbo. Clue: IT'S ALL IN THE ROUX. Of course, some of the ingredients I would have liked to have added, like craw fish meat and a few other things, I did not have on hand, so I kind of took liberty with the ingredients. And while some people might be partial to okra, we are not big fans of this oily pod food, although filled with Vitamin C and antioxidants. Hmm, maybe I should reconsider, huh? Be aware that the following is not a precise recipe, I feel that gumbo is not to be prepared with exact ingredients or measure. I'm sure gumbo originated with a "throw it all in the pot" kind of attitude until it looks really good and has the most enticing aroma that your nose will ever smell. Good and wholesome, to be seasoned by your personal taste buds.  So be creative and fun preparing this dish. 

Gumbo

Make a roux by taking a ¼ cup of oil and 4-5 T flour (I quadruple the measure of oil and flour because this will make a nice big pot of gumbo). Constantly stir this mixture (about 30 minutes) until it turns a dark brown and has a lovely nutty aroma. The roux can be made and stored in the fridge several days before making the gumbo.

Boil one whole chicken in a stock pot, along with seasoning of salt and cracked pepper, or whatever seasonings you prefer) until tender. Remove the chicken from the bone and leave separate.

In a pan, sauté chopped onion, green pepper, celery and a clove of minced garlic in olive oil, and then add to the stock. Let simmer for 20 minutes

Add roux and work into the stock. Then add a can of Cream of Shrimp soup. Let the stock thicken a bit.

Brown Andouille sausage. Add to the stock, along with the deboned chicken meat.

Let this simmer for several hours, letting all the juices and meats and veggies make the most wonderful aroma in your kitchen. About half an hour before serving the gumbo, add a pound of large cooked shrimp and a bit of chopped parsley. I like to do this because the shrimp don’t toughen up in the gumbo before serving.  

Serve your gumbo in a beautiful soup bowl over cooked brown rice

I do not give specific amounts, because I believe seasonings (Tom and I like SPICY, so we add Creole seasonings, jalapeño peppers, etc. to the simmering gumbo) and the amounts of veggies and meats of a personal preference. Just go with the flow and let the gumbo evolve. You will end up with a scrumptious winter dish. I serve the gumbo with warm homemade bread. 

ENJOY!!! Or...as the French say: SAVOURER 

TENTH SEASON OF INN A CABIN

Seems incredible that INN A CABIN is now in its tenth season!! We have had so many wonderful guests over the years and appreciate both the friendships and patronage. Each building on our 50 acres was built by Tom and his vision of making our property a sort of step back in time experience.

The 2015 winter months were rough. We had to keep the cabins closed most of first quarter of the year.

When we returned from a few weeks in Florida in January, this homeless dog  was waiting on our doorstep. He broke our hearts. Mom's sweet Boots (German Shepherd) passed away the summer before, so we thought this little poochie would keep her company. Mom and "Dixie" are now the best of friends!!!

The winter months became the "whining" months. Dragging on and on and on.

This "guy" kept us company. If you've ever seen a Pileated Woodpecker, you know they are enormous and beautiful. His neat little red cap was a joy to see in stark white and brown landscape.

Mickey waiting for spring. Usually the great orange hunter, Mickey spent most of the winter inside looking outside
.

Tom walking Brutus, our chocolate lab

Of course, the deer came in close to the house, looking for food. They are beautiful, but they do love our garden and flower buds in the spring. We mix up a homemade concoction that we spray on our hostas and rhododendrons. The spray stinks like an outhouse for about an hour after application, but it does work!

And then....spring!!!!

Although this photo was taken a year ago, I wanted to include it in this post. Several researchers found on our property a Red Shouldered Hawk nest. Tom and Matt were thrilled to be able to hold the baby hawks while the researchers tagged them and then returned them to the nest about forty feet up from the ground. As you can see, both Matt and Tom are in awe.

Spring means that a select few clay artisans gather at Logan Clay and begin a two week marathon of creating sculptures to be sold at Lilyfest or donated to local charitable events during the summer months. Hocking County is filled with artisans who give much time and effort to both their craft and community. This particular sculpture is MINE!!! Created by my good friend Jenny Beard who is amazing. I have several of her "pieces" in and around my garden. Can't wait to bring this owl home after it's fired in oven at Logan Clay.

My woodland rock garden with a "Jenny piece" toad house sitting on an old log.

Another example of "Jenny creations" My hens that nest outside my front door. I love these clay pieces of art!!!

And my curled lip frog that greets me every spring morning with his big eyes!

Now, I'm getting nostalgic. Tom built this little tree house many years ago for Steph and Eric. The slide coming down from the tree house was Tom's slide from his childhood. In the fall, the kids used wax paper under their bums and slide down at breakneck speed and into a big pile of leaves. What fun!

Best surprise this spring - two baby owls seen from our back porch. This owl stayed on this limb for almost twenty minutes looking at us and "talking." Yes, talking!! I'm sure he was being friendly.

After seeing these "guys" I kept Mickey in at night. Wasn't sure if they "ate" cats, but wasn't taking any chances.

A mama robin decided to build a nest right outside my kitchen window.

Garden Cabin front porch

Garden Cabin Sitting Area

Mill Cabin living room

Mill Cabin dining area in kitchen

Mill Cabin patio

INN A CABIN   To all of you from Tom and Sherry at Inn A Cabin in the Woods! Enjoy the summer and remember this... "Of all the paths you take in life, make sure a few of them are dirt." anonymous