I heard something about a polar vortex when I had a headache. I laughed and it hurt. There was frost on the ground and all the kiddie schools were closed; bless your heart, Tennessee. My new cat Gremlin has eyes the color of Devil’s Bay, and she lolls in front of the fires we build, stretched long. I listen to old lascivious records, Pulp & Roland S. Howard. They stir something warm & dark. I vaguely entertain the idea that it might be a bad idea to listen to them before I, half hearted, wonder what people think of me, wonder if people expect me to be so strange when they meet me, wonder if I should work on being more user friendly. Probably. Then again, maybe I’m too old to bother. No sooner do I shrug than my mind wanders down another burrow, thinking about my freshman year in college. How strange that I ever lived that. Lived in a real live dorm room with a Suede poster on the wall, went to bad parties for the sake of parties, smoked opium under the Spanish moss, flunked out. A different life. I blink, draw (a thing I like to do that I’m thoroughly mediocre at), and only drink hot things. If there ever was a time for digging around in rabbit holes wearing two sweaters at once while your cat yawns in excessive luxury, it’s now. I’m taking to my hermit ways, sipping warm buttery cider, and it’s very fine. This, my heart of winter.
It’s time for remembering & planning, reading & writing. Ostensibly. So much has happened in the past year, not the least of which were the wonderful Kinfolk workshops we held here in Tennessee. Here are the photos from the workshop portion of our November workshop, replete with an insane assortment of herbs (I’m an enthusiast) and the buttery bourbon cider cocktails we served. It’s been wild, meeting so many prismatic people. I never imagined such a thing would happen. I really didn’t. I never thought that at every turn I’d meet new friends—and I mean the real kind—even when I was quite certain I was at full friend capacity (I’m what I would call an outgoing introvert and that tends to feel like such a thing). Right now I’m trying to do this thing, this taking it easy thing. I play video games sometimes, a guilty pleasure. Even though I don’t think pleasures should ever be guilty. That one still makes me feel bad. As the goblins say, time is money, friend.
This cocktail is a whiskey spin on a rum drink. And then a spin on that spin, using bourbon infused with figs and rosemary. As some of you know, I don’t go in for the booze, so of course, there’s a virgin variation. But for those of you that imbibe, as I recall infusing bourbon with figs & rosemary and a bit of spice makes for an excellent wintery cocktail base. Spirit free? Just infuse the cider with the rosemary & figs instead and proceed as per usual with a pat of sweet spiced butter and the steaming hot cider. For the full recipe & variation (as well as the source of these dashing enamel mugs which I now use as everything from wine to water glasses at dinners…) visit West Elm’s blog Front & Main. And I just want to say another big thank you to our local partners Camellia Fiber Company for the hand dyed linens & a big helping hand, Yvonne Collection & husband for the always massive helping hand, Niedlov’s for their bountiful bread, and Sophie’s Shoppe for all their treasures & decor… you guys are wonderful! Aaand of course a big thank you to my co-host Hannah (who I couldn’t do any of this stuff without).
As for the infusions, I’ve been on an herbal infusion kick ever since I started preparing for the workshop. We infused everything that day. Salts & sugars, oil & spirits. Everyone was quite brave and jumped right in to the curiosity cabinet of herbs I’d curated. Currently I’m waiting (im)patiently for a greedy shipment of all sorts of herbs—everything from the usual like lavender, peppermint, and lemon balm to the not entirely usual like mugwort, blue vervain, and damiana. What does this mean for you, friends? Tea! Mystical, magical tea. And who knows what else; I’ve been in an alchemical mood lately. Entertaining vague apothecary ideas of candle making, bath salts, and balms. I have too much to do as it is. Not the time for that now. But time for tea, yes. It’s always time for tea, that elegant solution to the universe. Who needs M theory when you have tea?
Curious about those fennel & orange olives (you should be)? The recipe is below. The cider? Again, you can find it here.
Bits:
•A little interview about life & work on Free People’s blog. Interview boring? Well there’s also a recipe for my Pine Butter and Pine Thumbprint Cookies with Chocolate Orange Ganache!
•Grab a copy of Home & Hill magazine, Issue 2… so much goodness in there! Rebekka Seale knitting, photography from Hannah Messinger, and a characteristically rambling interview & southern winter menu from yours truly. You can get it right here at my shop Sweet Gum Co.! If you get Issue 2 you can play “spot the weird books on Beth’s bookshelf”. Fun times. More enticingly? Recipes for Sorghum Meringue Pie, Rosemary & Cheese Biscuit Chicken Cobbler, and a pot likker salad.
•Pick up a January issue of Food & Wine… I have a little recipe & some work in it! Excited. Yeah.
•Where do I want to travel? I told Jennifer Chong.
And a happy new year!
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
- peel of one orange, thinly sliced
- 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano
- 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
- 2 tsp crushed fennel seeds
- 1 cup mixed olives, preferably with pit
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a small pot until is just starts to simmer.
- Remove from heat and stir in garlic, orange peel, and spices. Stir to cool just a bit.
- Add in olives, stir and cover for at the very least an hour and up to indefinitely in the fridge.
An incredible set up! Now, definitely to hunker down and sip a cocktail or two by a fire 😉
Hello,
Wow this all looks so pretty! I am looking at making bitters and syrups at home and would love to know where the little brown bottles come from? I think they’d look amazing with some brown paper labels. I spy Weck which might also be an option and would love an excuse to buy more anyway 🙂
Thanks Beth,
Chloe
Not to reply for Beth, but I couldn’t resist…we found a lot of those in a wild little antique shop in Birmingham, Alabama. I’m not sure where the others came from?
🙂
Bulk Apothecary sometimes has bottles at a good price, but sometimes they only have plastic. The Herb Bar in Austin has both the brown and a gorgeous cobalt blue variation and will ship if you call them, and then there’s also Mountain Rose Herbs.
I’ll add that for any of these places except Bulk Apothecary, it’ll behoove you to buy in bulk – most herbal shops have extremely high shipping rates compared to other online businesses.
Hope this helps!
Thank you so much for these tip offs, i’ll see if they slap horrendous shipping to the UK and if they don’t then they could well be fantastic options. Thanks!
This go around I got my bottles at sks-bottles.com …they have a great selection of amber glass in all different sizes. That’s also where I got my amber flasks for packaging my balsam fur syrup!
Thanks Beth i’m going to check them out now x
Just checking on that link – ska-bottles.com doesn’t return any results for me?
Thanks x
scrap that – it is bottle not bottles, all found 🙂
Evoking and inspiring, Beth.
Thank you, Rikki! You comments always brighten my day.
I just adore how every detail is paid attention – simply beautiful. I am betting a lot of interesting and delicious things were made.
Wish I could be there – it looks amazing!
http://maybetodayistheday1.blogspot.com/
I’m totally speechless… your photos evoke warmth and comfort for any kind of polar vortex…
Hahaha… “any kind of polar vortex”… I like that. I like the idea of a psychological polar vortex. Those can happen any time.. and I think warm drinks is still the remedy!
So lovely to relive this event – I’m so glad I had the chance to attend.
I’m wondering if you’ve seen this Marble & Milkweed tea blending post? https://www.etsy.com/blog/en/2013/make-your-own-custom-tea-blends/
I’m going to try some tea blending this month, I think.
Ah! No, I hadn’t. Thank you so much for linking it…I’m obsessed with her teas—they’re definitely an inspiration—so this is just perfect. Thank you!
Just wrapping myself up in these photos, Beth. I’m in agreement with Margherita – these are enough to keep me warm in this vortex business! I love it. Thanks as always for sharing your thoughts, too – freshman year, what a surreal thought. (I think I’d prefer to believe I didn’t live it!)
I just want to say a) your work is rad and b) I’m glad I lived it because of the stories! But it was, indeed, dumb. lol
never shy in ‘real’ life, your blog renders me mute. so infrequently do i comment!
this time, i have to say thank you.
thank you, thank you.
keep your eye on your inbox tomorrow for a further note. happy new year xo.
Thank you Ariyele, when you do comment it’s always kind beyond words! No doubt we’re kindred spirits.
i’m always surprised by the strange slow movement of winter , it’s the perfect time to take the time, for infusions and plats mijotés (and strange cooking obsession). I sincerely think strange is good, thank you for this warm up, confort recipe!
I agree, strange is good. And I think there’s a point in life where you actually accept that you aren’t going to be absolutely *everyone*’s cup of tea (pun intended). It’s nice to realize that & be happy with it, I’ve found.
🙂
that’s just so right and it’s a kind of freedom .
Your workshops look like such a positive and beautiful experience.
They’re one of my favorite parts of what I do… definitely!
Your photos are so breathtaking. I feel transported to another place, much dreamier than reality, when I look at them lately.
I want to have a cup of hot buttered rosemary-fig bourbon cider right now. One of the most haunting recipes right now. Maybe I should just make it instead of imagining how wonderful it must smell and taste.
the most wonderful and beautiful .. and your way with words is remarkable
xx
Beth, I’m terribly curious about which video games you play!
Top secret: I have played watercraft off and on for almost 10 years! And hava a level 90 undead warlock!!
your blog inspires beauty on so many levels
I L O V E your photographs so much!
I wanted to tell you that I just found your blog via a friend, and it is so beautiful! Your photos are stunning! I can’t wait to dig deeper into your archives!
Beth – will you indulge your alchemical mood and suggest some medicinal herb-infused recipes and balms? I would love to build my own apothecary, but I wouldn’t know where to start! Many thanks for your sage words of wisdom!
That’s a pretty broad category. Could you give me an idea of what you’re looking to accomplish with your infusions? Also, I’m more familiar with herb lore as it relates to spirituality/mental stuff, less so when it comes to medicinal uses for medical problems. I could point you in the right direction for minor aches, cough, sleep, that sort of thing, but little more. But I’d need to know more about what you want out of them! I have a ridiculous herb pantry…so I pretty much have everything on hand. If you find you become enthusiastic about it, I recommend a)growing what you can and b)stocking up (expensive-ish but you only have to do it once…then you just replenish!). I’d tell you what I have in my herb cabinet, but it’s a list a mile long! I’ll say I love to keep florals on hand as well as spices/dried citrus to make palatable some of my more bitter herbs. Here are some loves for many different reasons: Echinacea, Mullein, Comfrey, Peppermint, Lavender, Lemon Balm, Chamomile, Ginger, Cinnamon, Hyssop, Valerian, Dried Orange Peel, Mugwort, Damiana, Witch Hazel, Nettles, Yarrow, Skullcap, and the good old garden herbs like Rosemary, Thyme, & Sage. I probably left something out. I also love to put Calendula (aka marigold flowers) in my teas lately. I’d say if you had the list I just listed, you’d be able to make some pretty nice stuff. Mountainroseherbs.com is currently my favorite source.
And meadowsweet! I love meadowsweet.
This is absolutely beautiful! I can look at these pictures again & again!
I am inspired by your incredibly beautiful photographs as well as your take on life . I’m awestruck that I can ‘stumble’ upon such inspiration via Pinterest / internet blogs. Such connections are meant to be. All the best with your fabulous journey.
You don’t need to be more user friendly! There are a lot of lovely blogs out there, but the mystic edge combined with all the other awesome things you do is what makes yours my favorite. Keep on keepin’ on.
Ps. I am from Oregon and know someone who works at Mountain Rose Herbs. Not well enough to get a discount unfortunately, but was I still excited to see you recommend it in the comments.
I found your blog via howsweeteats and am absolutely inspired by your photography – wow! Wish I could come to a workshop 🙂 Can’t wait to dig in some more. Take care!
I’ve used one of your beautiful photos in my article, and provided a source, of course. http://natureofeurope.com/book-review-the-art-of-herbalism/
The photography in this post really does it all! So beautiful and 100% in my taste!
What a nice article!!!