Giving Thanks

This is the Thanksgiving long weekend in Canada. My vegetable garden has provided in a very sparse way over the summer but it must have felt a harvest celebration coming as it has ended the season quite splendidly.  My big tomato plants did not thrive this year but the vines against the house produced a big bowlful of sweet, tiny cherry tomatoes.

I brought the tomatoes in on Friday because of heavy frosts predicted over the weekend. For the plants on the ground, I have covered them with sheets the past few nights with the hope of prolonging the season a little longer. The temperatures are supposed to be quite mild this week so I'd like to enjoy the garden as long as I can.

Yesterday, we ate our Thanksgiving dinner and I was able to pick sage, parsley and this sweet bouquet of baby swiss chard to use. I also picked some turnips and was absolutely delighted to pull out a gigantic turnip heart! Isn't it magnificent? I couldn't stop smiling and then had to run into the house to show everyone.

We made a traditional dinner of turkey with dressing and gravy along with roasted carrots and turnips, shredded brussel sprouts and mashed potatoes. For Emma's vegetarian main course and a side dish for the rest of us, I made a 'Roasted beet salad with wild rice, goat cheese and chickpeas'. It was so good! You can find the recipe I used here. Did I mention that Emma was home from university for the weekend?!? We were also very happy that she invited one of her friends from residence, a student who lives near Boston, to share Thanksgiving dinner with us.

Emma made one special request when she confirmed she was coming home for the weekend. She asked me to make a pumpkin pie. I was happy to say yes as I love to make pie although I don't make it that often anymore. Was it a success? Um, well. It's possible you heard me yell 'Oh no!' as I pulled it out of the oven. The filling had swollen like a balloon and then returned to its normal level but not before cracking in a million places.

Was I disappointed? Yes. Very. I tried to think about Leonard Cohen's 'Anthem' lyrics as they help me sometimes.

Forget your perfect offering 
There is a crack, a crack in everything 
That's how the light gets in.

But here's the thing. Leonard wasn't singing about pumpkin pie. I considered remaking it but that wasn't an option as the turkey was already in the oven. Finally, I heard a murmur from the garden. What was that? Did someone say they could help me?  I do believe I heard the nasturtiums whisper something about coming to my aid. And they did.

So this Thanksgiving, I am giving thanks for my family, my garden and its harvest, with a particularly warm nod to my nasturtiums who saved the day (or at least the pie). Happy Thanksgiving to all who are celebrating this weekend!

Nasturtium original watercolour on Twinrocker paper

❤  ❤  ❤  ❤  ❤

I did some research on pumpkin pie cracking and apparently it can be due to overbaking and/or cooling it too quickly. I might have done both. One suggestion is to slightly undercook it by five minutes and then to leave it in the oven, turned off, with the door propped open with a wooden spoon and let it cool gradually. I will definitely give that a try next time.  

Giving Thanks

Meeko was telling me that I haven't been focusing on him enough lately. True. I've been working very hard the past few weeks, both on a commissioned painting and preparations for an autumn arts and crafts show.  He has been getting less chin scratches and sofa cuddles from me. Our walks have sometimes been at a faster pace than usual (that part he doesn't really mind). Sometimes they have been later in the day than normal and he has had to work harder and harder to get my attention (sock stealing, sighing, stalking my every move, quiet but heart-wrenching crying beside me).

This is the Thanksgiving weekend in Canada. The weather is absolutely beautiful. It is a time for looking around us and giving thanks. My nephew and his girlfriend are visiting, so I was forced to stop working and pay attention to other things. I did some housecleaning this morning. As I was cleaning the kitchen table, I noticed that the chrysanthemums in the pots on the back porch weren't looking great. I went out and started deadheading them. It was methodical, soothing work and they look beautiful again. As I was looking after them, it hit me that I hadn't worked in the garden since early September. I realized that today was the first day in weeks that I haven't either been working on a painting, my Etsy shop or my show preparations. (You can see some of what I've been up to on my Instagram page.)

Meeko accompanied me outside and I gathered flowers and leaves from the garden and filled several vases. So now, autumn is outside and inside.

Our guests have arrived and Meeko is very happily entertaining them.

This weekend, I am giving thanks for being forced to slow down a little, for the beauty of nature, for my garden and its gifts, for family, friends and my sweet and patient furry boy.

Pumpkin and Maple Leaves

It was a long weekend in Canada for our Thanksgiving holiday.  I worked for almost all of it on my arts and crafts show that I need to make a delivery to on Wednesday. You'd think I would learn. I have participated in this show for 18 years. I have missed part of every Thanksgiving weekend during all those years because of last-minute preparations for the show. No matter what I have prepared, I always think I can add a little more. Trust me, I'm not that much fun to be around on Thanksgiving.

But I am really happy with what I have prepared. I have new cards and new framed prints of my work. I am particularly happy with some small framed prints I did this weekend.  I am not finished. Tomorrow will be a very long day, but I knew I needed to do something today to make me and my family feel a little more like it was Thanksgiving. So I extracted myself from the computer and show preparations at 5:00 p.m. and made a pumpkin pie. It was delicious. We ate it warm with whipped cream. Definitely something to feel thankful for.

Chloé arranged the table for dinner. The 'martini' in the background is cranberry juice with a blackberry floating in it.

My 'Maple Leaves' print had an exciting weekend. It was featured on Etsy's Facebook page on Saturday and was posted on their Twitter feed on Sunday. What a thrill.  A tear-worthy thrill.

I added a Maple Leaves card to my shop this weekend.
It's one of the cards I've created for the arts and crafts show coming up next weekend.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone.

(In the photo at the very top: my pumpkin pie, a pumpkin bought from a local charity drive, cinnamon sticks and a Bookhou tea towel.)