Going and Gone (and a recipe)

I went to the Yellow House today to rip out the last quadrant in the former courtyard garden (aka Secret Garden).  I saved seven plants to bring back to the Rye yard but the rest, roses, shrubs and all, went to the burn pile.  I did leave about six rose plants that are really special in the ground in three of the quadrants, severely cut back.  I figured that come Spring, someone will want them for their own yard (I hope).  If I can remember correctly, I left behind a very prolific Climbing Eden, 2 musk roses - one called Moonlight, the other Bubble Bath, a glorious white Damask with a green button center called Madam Hardy, a rugosa named  Roseraie de l'Hay, and the longest blooming once bloomer of all, a Damask called Ispahan.  All of these are good sized, 5 feet or higher.  The Ispahan gets huge.  If any of you want them, they will be yours.  Spring is the best time to transplant roses, especially ones as huge and mature as these ones where, once the ground thaws.  I will have about forty more from the vegetable garden that will be available, free of course, in the spring as well.  All my roses are hardy, antique or old fashioned, very floriferous, strong smelling, no hybrid teas! Take a look at the yard now!  All the bricks will be removed and used to make a brick patio for the barn apartment next spring and the former secret garden will be relegated to lawn.  I've made peace with it all.

In case you are not familiar with how this used to look:

Early May 

After I finished the dirty deed, I went out to the berry patch and ate about 40 raspberries and then to the fruit tree orchard and helped myself to one of the remaining apples.  I only sprayed once this season back in May so you can see how mottled the apple is but oh my gosh!!!  The apple was incredibly sweet, crisp and so "appley",  just about the best one I have ever eaten.  Really.  I went to pick another (I was ravenous after all the yard work) but it felt strange so I looked on the other side of it and found it packed with hornets so smitten with apple nectar and sugar that they didn't even notice my fingers or the click or nearness of the iPhone.  That was close!

Berry patch - raspberries, blackberries, blueberries

Incredible flavor - (dirty yard work fingers)

Can you see them?

Before leaving the property, I picked an autumn bouquet of Nikko Blue hydrangeas and Mozart Musk roses and snapped a couple pictures of loveliness in the vegetable garden.  On my way home I passed by this gorgeous red tree in Exeter near the Phillips Exeter Academy boat house.

rose hips on White Mountains Rambler Rose

Rugosa Amelie Gravereaux - delicious scent!

Bonus:  Last week I attended a nutrition class at the home of my stepdaughter Brittany.  She invited this delightful nutritionist to talk to us about the food we eat, wellness, and the healing properties of food. It was so enjoyable and informative - I always love to learn and talk about food!  One of the recipes she gave us as a handout was for egg muffins.  These muffins have no flour or grain in them, just eggs, meat, and lots of veggies.  And they can be eaten all week.  I made them last Saturday for house guests we had and I ate the last one on Wednesday.  Cold, right out of the refrigerator they are delicious.  I served them warm of course the morning they were made and then reheated a few the following day along with the steel cut oatmeal and three days in a row after, I ate them straight from the fridge as an afternoon snack.  They have about 100 calories if that matters to you and they are super healthy.  Here's how you make them:

Egg Muffins

1 T coconut oil or clarified butter

1 onion chopped

1 red bell pepper chopped

1/2 lb bacon, sausage or ground turkey (preferably from free range, pastured happy animals)

2 cups spinach, chard, or kale

pinch of cayenne pepper

12 eggs (preferably from cage free happy chickens)

1/2 tsp S and P

350 oven - 12 greased muffin tins

Saute veggies in the oil until soft.  Add meat and cayenne and cook through.  Spoon this mix into equal portions in each muffin tin.  Beat the eggs with S&P and add this to each tin - you can fill them up.  Bake 20 minutes.  Scrumptious!  And so easy.