grace grits and gardening - ramblings from an arkansas farm girl

July Cobbler, an old Ozark recipe

July 8, 2015 By Talya Tate Boerner

Have you heard of a July Cobbler? Until last weekend I hadn’t, but I found this recipe in an old Ozarks Collection Cookbook someone left in our Little Free Library. I LOVE old cookbooks, and I’ve been reading it cover to cover. The cookbook is filled not only with old regional recipes but also snippets about traditions of a “storied region”. And there are sketches throughout, small pencil drawings of barns and farmers and crops growing in fields. This treasure is a great example of one of the many benefits of having a Little Free Library. I never know what will show up next.Continue Reading

another 4th of July

July 6, 2015 By Talya Tate Boerner

We celebrated another 4th of July with good food, family and friends, and a mixture of pleasant, not-too-hot weather. Of course, I must post a few pics for posterity…

We made a trip to the Confederate Cemetery in Fayetteville which is only a few blocks from our house. I was in search of a particular tree (for an article I’m writing elsewhere). The cemetery is beautiful and peaceful and parklike and being there on the 4th of July seemed right—different battles yet integral American history no matter what you think about the Confederate flag.

Saturday in Fayetteville means the Farmer’s Market. Yes, we went. Yes, we conquered by buying local Arkansas peaches and blackberries.

And we bought Pedal Pops which are all natural, low-cal, made with simple ingredients, and sort of perfect for the 4th of July. I got banana-orange-strawberry. John got honeydew-peach. Delicious!

Our Sunday included a trip to the Botanical Garden of the Ozarks. Oh my, what a wonderful place. The botanical garden is only a few minutes from our house and SO EASY! (Parking, admissions, everything.)

Let me just say this about living in Fayetteville—everything is easy, every day’s the 4th of July.

This week I’ll be showing you what I made with those peaches and blackberries—yum! And, I’ll be talking more about my garden (specifically about butterflies), plus Lucy and Annabelle have a post coming up. I may even do my first periscope broadcast. We’ll see. In other words, for once I’m not blogging by the seat of my pants. Crazytown.

Here’s to a great week!

Grace Grits and Gardening

Farm. Food. Garden. Life.

[tweetthis]Another fab #4thofJuly! @BGOzarks @PedalPopsIce #Fayetteville #buylocal[/tweetthis]

Musical Pairing:

Chicago – Saturday in the Park

Vintage Coffee Tin Succulents. My new fav!

July 3, 2015 By Talya Tate Boerner

There’s a saying in the South that if it isn’t nailed down, we southerners will monogram it. I have my own saying. If it isn’t nailed down, I’m gonna plant something in it. My newest obsession is planting succulents in vintage coffee tins. And if you think about it, the tins are already monogrammed with the company’s label/artwork. Love, love, love.

Here’s one of my favorites—Summer Girl Coffee. How perfect is this? Technically I’m a “summer girl” born almost on the 4th of July. And I’m guzzling coffee while you read this.

Look at the history on this can. “Roasted and Packed by the H. D. Lee Mercantile Company”. H. D. Lee Mercantile was founded in 1889 in Salina, Kansas. This was the first company to manufacture overalls and the zipper fly jean. Today the company makes Lee Rider but no coffee to my knowledge.

Here’s my other favorite.

I chose this one mainly for the colors and the little old Aunt Bea looking lady on the front.

I found these two tins at Long Ago Antiques on Huntsville Road in Fayetteville (one of my favorite places to shop for antiques and vintage items). Similar tins are available on Ebay, often in a group of four or five. Prices vary so look around. Tip: look for ones without lids to save a few dollars.

To preserve the value of vintage tins, I prefer not to drill drainage holes in the bottom, so I added a layer of charcoal in the bottom instead. (Buy the charcoal at your local nursery—it’s not lump charcoal used to grill.) Some of the old tins come with holes rusted in the bottom which solves the drainage issue. Succulents don’t need that much water, so I find they survive quite well with charcoal.

Top with pebbles or moss for aesthetic purposes. I think the rock highlights the plant better.