We made it all the way around the compass – spending two months with each cardinal direction theme!  …and my only question is:  where did all the time go?

Looking back at my own PS projects, it seems that my photography played the largest role.  My favorite subjects to photograph are definitely natural objects, as that is where I find my biggest inspiration.

If you click on the mosaic, it will take you to my Flickr page where you can view each photograph individually.  Each row here represents one of the directions/color schemes – green, yellow/white, red/orange, blues.

Looking back at my photos from PS, I just love the memories of where I was and how things were at the time the photo was taken.  The first snow photo was a late snowstorm for my state, in March, and Kris and I got right out on the trails to photograph the beautiful scapes near our home.  The next one with the evergreen trees was taken on the Olympic Peninsula of Washington when we visited in March.  Others are various excursions near and far – some in my backyard (my garden!) and others a bit further afield).

My craft projects for this round of Project Spectrum were not quite as prolific as years past since I am working on some heavy-duty knitting projects right now (sweaters everywhere!) but I still hope to share a few as I finish them.  The inspiration came from PS, so even if they are finished afterward, they will be Project Spectrum knits to me!

I have not given much thought to the next PS, other than the fact that I would like to start it in a different time of year.  Right now I am thinking that summer would be fun to start PS – something different.  Just initial thoughts.  I am just going to be content and let the inspiration come to me.  I hope you enjoyed this past round of PS as much as I did!

The foods of fall and winter are full of aromatic spices – warming the belly and warming the heart!

Here’s some of the recent recipes from my kitchen:

Fig-Smushed Anise Almond Cookies

1/4 c soy milk
2 tablespoons ground flaxseed
1 1/4 c demerara sugar (or turbinado)
2/3 c canola oil
1 t vanilla extract
2 c all-purpose flour
1/2 t anise extract
1 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
1/2 cup finely chopped almonds
12 dried figs (stems removed and cut in half)

Preheat oven to 350.  Lightly grease a cookie sheet.

Place ground flaxseed and milk in a bowl and blend until frothy.

Add the sugar and oil to the mixing bowl and beat until emulsified.  Mix in the vanilla and anise extract.

Add about 1 cup of the flour along with the baking powder and salt.  Mix well, Add the remaining flour.  Fold in chopped almonds.  Use a wooden spoon or your hands, as the mixture will be harder to blend.

Roll the dough into golf ball-sized balls, then flatten them on the cookie sheet to about 2-inch diameter.  Smush the fig gently by firmly into the center, cut side down.

Bake for 12 to 14 minutes.  The fig should be soft and the cookies should be golden brown on the bottom.  Remove from oven and let sit on the sheets for about 5 minutes.  Transfer to cooking rack to cool completely.

Adapted from the amazing Veganomicon: The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook~

I used Sucanat in place of demerara sugar, and it was perfect.  I also quartered the figs, as half of the fig seemed too big for the cookie. The anise was so aromatic – like cloves and licorice – and also quite photogenic, aren’t they?

…and they pair so perfectly with…

Homemade Apple Cider

6 cups fresh apple cider
1/4 cup pure maple syrup (more or less, to taste)
2 cinnamon sticks
6 whole cloves
6 whole allspice berries
6 strips orange peel
6 strips lemon peel

Pour the apple cider and maple syrup into a large stainless steel saucepan. Place the cinnamon sticks, cloves, allspice berries, orange peel and lemon peel in the center of a washed square of cheesecloth; fold up the sides of the cheesecloth to enclose the bundle, then tie it up with a length of kitchen string. Drop the spice bundle into the cider mixture.

Place the saucepan over moderate heat for 5 to 10 minutes, or until the cider is very hot but not boiling.

Remove the cider from the heat. Discard the spice bundle. Ladle the cider into big cups or mugs, adding a fresh cinnamon stick to each serving, if you like.

Adapted from this online recipe – with some changes.  I used my juicer to make the apple juice directly from the apples, instead of using store bought apple cider.

My dad was in West Virginia for work conference and stopped by an orchard on the way home. He called and asked if I wanted any, and I said sure, and just picked two bushels out of the air. Of course, that was without realizing how many TWO bushels actually is – 4 large brown paper bags filled to the brim – between 150-200 apples, I estimate. So, I had to get creative! The apple cider was just one of the recipes I am trying…

…also pulled down the dehydrator for apple rings - just core and peel,  dip the slices in some lemon juice and cinnamon, and set them out to dry over night.  Great for granola, trail mix, and oatmeal fixings!

Last but not least, I made this delicious apple butter – already preserved and canned for enjoyment later on! I was inspired by the recipe in this great book, Preserving the Harvest.   I used my crockpot – and it made the house smell so good   I am planning to try a few other recipes from the book with the remaining bushel.

This is the first year when my two participatory “-alongs” have overlapped.  I tried to keep this separate before, with Project Spectrum ending in September before Socktoberfest began on October 1st, but I decided to try something new this year.  For those of you who are participating in both, it looks like PS is providing some inspiration for Socktoberfest colors and themes, which I love to see!

Project Spectrum’s last theme is about the west – big blue skies, vast expanses of blue water, the shift towards autumn weather in the northern hemisphere – and one of my favorite ways to exercise my PS creativity continues to be through my camera lens…

The leaves are changing and the oranges, reds, and yellows look particularly striking with such a brilliant blue backdrop, don’t they?

As in the first theme this year, I was trying to capture my WEST:  where I am in space and time at the moment and snapping photos looking westward.  It is an interesting way to orient yourself and to just notice the small subtleties and beauties around us.  Try it!

Stopped at the traffic light – heading west – and in awe of the sky overhead.

Passenger seat photography – heading west in the car and snapping in TV mode.

(For comparison, check out how this looks in AV mode – the magic of the camera!)

Only a few more weeks in this round of Project Spectrum – this year has flown right by!  It isn’t too late to play around with the last theme, so feel free to join us!

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So, it seems that all I have to do to get a few hundred comments is put up a contest post   You know, you can comment without a contest too!  Thanks for all the Socktoberfest updates – it seems like we have quite an exciting month ahead, and I look forward to keeping up with you all through your blogs, the Ravelry group, and the Flickr photo page.  Show off those socks!

…and the winner of the lovely blue/green ShiBui sock yarn is…

Hannah of 8Ball Knits!

It’s those pauses in between when “life” happens… the pause between this activity and that one. The pause between the inhale and the exhale. The pause between placing one foot down and picking up the other.

Taking the pauses as they come – realizing them for the true gifts that they are. Not rushing to end the pause. It is in these pauses when calmness and clarity come. In a world where “multitasking” is revered, and countless hours are spent doing too many things at once, it is all the more meaningful to take the time to really explore the stillness.

Even the most menial tasks can be enjoyed when you simply think about what you are doing at the present moment. One of my favorite tasks for “living in the moment” is washing the dishes. The simple act of turning on the faucet, wetting my hands and a cloth, preparing the soap. I think about the science of it and I think about the art of it. I think about how I am grateful for indoor plumbing and for even having a pot to wash. With these thoughts in mind, you can wash a dozen dishes and also invite the stillness into your mind. It’s a lovely exercise – try it!

Mindfulness is so simple, yet so few people in our society do it. I am doing some research right now on mindfulness in yoga practice for my final project for Teacher Training. I hope to have more to share soon – my mindfulness project goes beyond the physical practice of yoga, and into every day life yoga – on and off the mat. My research paper is due next month, so you will probably hear more about it

Walking and hiking is definitely one of the most enjoyable activities, and a very good way to introduce a mindfulness practice into your life.  I especially like to take the hikes during the little pauses in between seasons – those sort of subtle days when there is a fuzzy line between the two… This weekend provided such an opportunity to explore a new trail in one of our favorite areas.  We took the dogs, and we took our time.

Project Spectrum has been a practice of mindfulness from the very beginning – just noticing the things around you.  Even if you feel that you don’t have the time to actually “craft” something in the specific colors this time around, you can still participate in the way of thinking about it.  Thinking about the ripples on the water, thinking about the blue of the sky, thinking about the shifting seasons…  and finally, taking the pause and just relishing in it.

The subtle changing of the seasons brings on a mad dash of figuring out how to stay on top of the marvelous bounty that our little garden provides… We pack a punch in a small space, for sure!

Our yard and our climate seem particularly suited for tomatoes and peppers, and we have had continued success with these plants over the years.  Squash seems to do well for awhile before being attacked by the beetles, and we also have had a decent crop of okra, cucumbers, eggplants, and lots of herbs.  Fortunately, we escaped the tomato blight that caused so much damage… funny thing is that it affected some of our neighbors down the street, but our tomatoes are healthy and abundant (so far).  We plant a number of varieties of tomatoes with pretty much one thing in mind:  making Kris’s amazing salsa recipe.  This year, we had two varieties of heirloom tomatoes, as well as several crops of romas to rely on for the first batch of the salsa.

We spent last weekend in the kitchen, canning three batches of veggies:  the aforementioned salsa, spicy dill pickles (and regular ones too), and some pickled peppers (Habaneros and jalapenos).  As you can see, we like the spicy foods and use these canned goods throughout the winter for all sorts of our favorite recipes like jambalaya, curries, various soups, black bean burgers, etc.  No wasting the veggies here!

Three Christmases ago, I saw an ad in some magazine at the doctor’s office about “Great Gifts for the Man in Your Life” (Real Simple or Martha Stewart Living, I think…)  The #1 gift intrigued me, and I thought that it would be something interesting and unique for the man in my life who likes to spend (nearly) the same amount of time in the kitchen that I do… so, I bought Kris the Cameron Cookware Stainless Steel Stovetop Smoker.  Little did I know, at the time, that this would be one of the best purchases for our culinary exploits!  I also picked up the indoor smoker cookbook, Smokin’, which has a total of TWO vegetable recipes, but it does have a lot of good ideas… The smoker is traditionally thought of for meats, but we have enjoyed so many smoked vegetables over the years. Who said vegans can’t be smokin’ too?

All that to say, that the smoker is an integral part of the salsa preparation.

All varieties of tomatoes and jalapenos from the garden – loaded into the smoker with hickory wood chips.  It takes about twenty or thirty minutes to get the right flavor.  This step is SO worth it.

For years, we used store-bought chipotles, but once we got the smoker, we made our own!

… Cilantro + Onions + Garlic + mix of spices and vinegar …

I would share a recipe if I had one, but this is all living in Kris’s head.  He has perfected this over the years. We do a whole little taste test each year and discuss whether it needs more or less of certain ingredients.  Perhaps I can get him to write it out one day soon.  This year’s batch seems to be one of the best so far – the tomatoes were not too watery and they had a delicious flavor.

Long winter with summery fresh food!

5 pints of salsa
4 pints pickled peppers
3 qt dill pickles

It was quite a productive and rewarding day.  …and there are already more tomatoes ripening on the vine.  A second batch (maybe even a third) is quite possible.

With fall right around the corner, I am already thinking about more harvesting and more preserves… apple butter?  some more peach jam?  … gosh, I love this season…