Month: July 2013

food swap first-timer

Amy5 Comments

1 honeycomb brittle swap up close in package 2 honeycomb brittle 3 organic chocolate stout 4 bowling pin pops 5 bidding 6 fudge swap 7 pickled peppers bid sheet pesto swap sign upthe loot

Last month I participated in a community food swap for the first time!  Mary has been diligently working to connect our region with the Food Swap Network (read all about it on their site).  These photos were taken when I joined her at City Market for the Indianapolis Food Swap.  My swap items were riffs on previous recipes made and documented on this blog: Honeycomb Brittle and Porter Candy Apples. I made three types of honeycomb brittle (lavender, toasted almond, black raspberry) and chocolate stout lollipops.  At first I was nervous that no one would want to swap for candy, but as you can see I had nothing to worry about.  I have been enjoying my swap loot ever since, and now because of Mary’s efforts, Northeast Indiana will host its inaugural swap this weekend. I can’t wait to see what swap-chances await; I hope people will swap for cold-pressed black raspberry shrub drink mixes…

at home while away

Amy4 Comments

1 sprinkler small4.5 gavin cookie counter5 allium6 cemetary stones8 ricotta10 old souls9 coffee12 folded map13 to river14 iris close drops15 breakfast16 cherry gelati17 earth photosThese are a few pictures from the whirlwind Eastbound research & family road trip I took with my mom several weeks ago.  Yep, that’s the trip I made the granola for; behold! it was a snack lifesaver after two engine-smoking tows and one hazy and stormy Hudson River migraine.  We reconnected with family, made new friends along the way, and were introduced to new tastes like Scrapple, Water Ice & Custard, Reuben Egg Rolls, and fresh Sheep’s Milk Ricotta.

Little did I know the directions my life would be moving in when I took off in the car that May day.  I did not mean to abandon this blog, but I did mean to enjoy life’s moments as they unfolded.  For one reason or another, taking pictures and posting them in a blog article did not quite fit.

I am away from home again as I write, this time I’m in Chicago for a library conference.  During these two trips I have been struck by the feelings of home I have felt while being away, away from my fairly predictable home base.  These feelings are still difficult for me to articulate, but I am working on it.  I do know that having people in my life to share these moments with, big and small, at home and away, makes all the difference.

So, hello again! and I hope that all of you have experienced those tangible and intangible feelings of home since I’ve been away from the cozywalls blog.  I’ll be back sooner than later this time; I participated in my first-ever community food swap last weekend!