A Trip into Sleepy Hollow: The Great Jack O' Lantern Blaze!

Earlier this month I ventured out to the Historic Hudson Valley Region to experience the Great Jack O' Lantern Blaze for the first time.  This magical fall celebration takes place at Van Cortland Manor every year from October to the beginning of November.

As I approached the property, I was immediately overwhelmed by glowing faces, some smiling, others growling, forming a sea of sparkling lights.  I felt as if I had walked right into the Legend of Sleepy Hollow, looking around for the Headless Horseman who might be galloping by at any moment.  The meandering pathway was lit with lanterns, and carved faces lined stone walls.

The artistic craftsmanship and attention to detail in the displays was stunning.  Walking into a garden of glowing sunflowers, little spotted toadstools, delphiniums, and foxgloves lined the ground.  Tall cornstalks stood proud, while butterflies and blackbirds soared in the trees high above.  There was even a sparkling bee hive, and if you looked really closely you could spot fairies in the trees, and tiny mice in the grass!

As the path wound around the main house, I managed to tear myself away from the magical garden.   I was overwhelmed by a sea of Jack O' Lantern faces on the ground, spooky spiders flashing in front of a giant spiderweb, and 3 Jack in the boxes who took turns popping out of their boxes, somehow seeming like they enjoyed every minute of surprising the audience.

Witches and a graveyard made for an impressive and spooky Halloween display.

And the tunnel of pumpkin love was a fun place to travel through a world of carved, glowing faces!

Down the path monkeys, elephants, and other zoo animals, mingled with prehistoric dinosaurs.  The details were amazing, making it difficult to know where to look first!

A sea of fish and an aquarium display along the river ended at an impressive Chinese dragon, with beautiful blue light contrasting the orange glow and textural details.

Finally, one of my favorite displays of the show were the ornate and delicately carved lace pumpkins.
The shadows and light coming out of these designs were as intricate as stained glass, and the white and tan pumpkins provided a nice stylistic contrast to the grins of the goblins and shrieking Halloween cats. 

A great way to experience the true magic of Halloween and the fall season...I can't wait to see what they have in store next year!

Pizza Sunday! Roasted Veggie and Prosciutto Bacon Pizza

Turn those veggies that you saved from frost, into something delicious and yummy!

This recipe came about as a result of all of the veggies that I rescued about a week ago from the first freeze of the season.  I have red, yellow, green and purple tomatoes residing on my counter, and beans, cucumbers, mini eggplants and peppers in my fridge.  They are on the small side, and I wasn't sure what I would do with them until last night, when I decided to put some of them to good use.  Make your own pizza night!

I had an idea of making a caramelized vegetable pizza with crispy prosciutto, and roasted garlic.  First, I sliced fairy tale eggplants, and spread them on a baking sheet with a few cloves of garlic, and some whole tomatoes.  I drizzled them with olive oil, and added a sprinkle of red pepper flakes, thyme, salt, and pepper and roasted them in the oven until they were golden brown.

Once these were brown, I started to assemble my pizza.  I stretched out fresh dough on an oiled pizza pan, and sprinkled it with olive oil, chopped garlic, and thyme.  I added a layer of crushed tomato, added salt, pepper and freshly grated parmesean.  I had baked a few pieces of prosciutto di parma earlier in the day to make an italian style prosciutto bacon...which was delicious.  I decided that these smokey, crunchy bits would be great with the roasted veggies on the pizza.  When crisped like bacon, they have a  flavor that tastes smokier than regular prosciutto.

I tore some fresh basil leaves, and added the roasted veggies in addition to sliced marinated roman artichokes.  I covered them with another layer of fresh parmesean.

Next, I sliced some fresh mozzerella and layered it on top of the other ingredients.  Finally, I finished the pizza with olive oil, thyme, salt, and pepper, and baked at 450 degrees until golden brown. 

I have found that if I bake the pizza on the lower rack for the first few minutes, the crust becomes nice and crisp, I then transfer the pizza to the top rack for the final few minutes of baking to get the cheese brown and bubbly.

Served along with the pizza, I decided to use a few other harvested garden ingredients to assemble a fresh, colorful salad.

Mixed greens, cucumber, yellow brandywine tomatoes, fennel fronds, chives, and purple carrots sprinkled with gray salt, and a fresh vinaigrette make this the perfect compliment to the smokey and rich veggie prosciutto pizza.

Enjoy.  Mangia!

Recycling the Past, Barnegat NJ...A journey into the fragmentary wonderland of salvaged history

Last night was the first freeze of the season,  prompting me to spend the day today cleaning, raking, seeding, and pulling out droopy tomato plants.  It seemed as if I needed the freeze to officially be ready to accept that the growing season was over.  Looking around at the fallen leaves, and remnants of growth from the warmer months, I remembered that time back in March when my little seedlings emerged residing in my basement, and stubbornly refused to grow any taller.  Now they were taller than I am, yet finished with their seasonal growing cycle.

I have been meaning to share a fun visit from September, which, although it has been only a few short months somehow feels like ages ago.  In the spirit of trying to ignore the now wintry feeling weather, I will remember back to when the weather was still warm and we were clinging to summer for a brief moment in time... 

One of my favorite rituals during the summer is visiting Recycling the Past, in Barnegat, NJ for a mind- blowing journey into the world of architectural salvage.  Located about half an hour from the New Jersey shoreline and Long Beach Island, is a place where you can step back in time, walk among all kinds of historically significant and funky items, relics that have been salvaged from the past. 

Every year, I look forward to my visit, arriving in anticipation of what I might discover this year.

Walking around feels like walking into a bit of a wonderland, as giant stone frogs, gargoyles, iron dragons, towering Romanesque columns, and old ferris wheel parts peek out at you around every corner.   Their inventory is continuously changing due to their dedication to collecting items from buildings which are fated to disappear into the depths of history.  The stories about where items came from are fascinating, as I listen to what the buildings were like, I imagine in a little fragment, a time much different from our own.

Their newest acquisitions were from the Laronda estate in Bryn Mawr, PA.  I had my eye on a fascinating little gargoyle from the building.  When I picked up this little object I had no idea of the history that was attached.  This is one of the reasons why I love this place so much!

I especially like walking through the collection of doors and mantelpieces.  Doors that are twice the size of those found in standard homes today, with beautiful and intricate ornamentation, stacked against old paned parlor doors, school doors, and stained glass windows.  As I imagine the places that these pieces came from, I feel stories everywhere.  If only these fragments of history could talk... 

Along with their collection of doors and windows, they have a great variety of sinks, and tubs!  I particularly liked this farmhouse basin sink.

Each year, mysterious items make an appearance, salvaged from old factories, churches, and homes.  They have a wonderful collection of beautiful tile as well as bricks, slate, and other architectural details to restore historic homes and gardens.  Last year there were bins and bins of turquoise blue glass, rescued from an old turn of the century glass factory.  This year, I was happy to see that some of these glowing, crystal-like jewels were still around.

The gardens are beautiful, paired with the rustic and unique items, they provide me with inspiration to take home to my own garden.

Along with the countless salvaged items, there are also cast iron pieces available for purchase.  Every year, this changes, so it is fun to see what they come up with from year to year.

On my list of items that I have collected over the years, includes a rather intimidating gargoyle that resides in my garden bed, salvaged off of a church in Philadelphia, PA, numerous iron garden stakes and frames, a Chinese painted stool used in rice fields, gorgeous ceramic tiles rescued from elaborate bathrooms, and this year....a flying pig! 

I wonder what I will find next year....