A few days into January and I finally have a moment to reflect on the past year. I didn't finish all the projects I wanted to (Shock!). Nor did I write as much as I intended to (Surprise!). But, I did finish some tasks and started a few more. What lies ahead in 2015? Quite a lot.

As we settled down for some PBS Christmas special last night, I reflected on the winter. A sneak snow storm was dusting the roads outside and it appears that winter has finally arrived, technically and meteorologically. While the apples in Santa Fe are well past their peak, once again we have put some up.

Mark Bittman, you're killing me. I made your Spaghetti and Meatballs with hope in my heart and I made it in 30 minutes! (times 2.5)

I completely understand your argument that mise-en-place is an overly fussy step for home cooks. The only time a home chef needs to have everything ready is for stir-fries where everything comes together rapidly. The preparation of the mise-en-place works well in a restaurant where a cook is moving all the time and has several different dishes going. If a restaurant chef has a moment after something has started, they better get going on the next order. If I prep everything ahead of time that means I'll have small six to ten minute breaks between recipe steps which sounds terribly annoying. I could either do a few six minutes chores and forget to stir the onions or I could prep along the way.

Lanceleaf Coreopsis, aka Coreopsis lanceolata L., is yet another native perennial growing in our yard. Lanceleaf Coreopsis is a member of Asteraceae (the Aster family) and it has been blooming for the past month or so. While this flower is currently a single plant, I'm hoping it will spread via rhizome or seed across our yard.

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Plant Fact Sheet - Lance-Leaf Coreopsis

Coreopsis lanceolata

Yellow Prairie Coneflower & Mexican Hat are two color variations of Ratibida columnifera a native, perennial flower we have scattered across our front, side and back yards. Once I learned to recognize their leaves in the early season (sometimes a native plant can look like a weed to untrained eyes) these yellow and/or red daisy-like flowers started growing around our home. Bees love these tough and colorful coneflowers.

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Have you ever wondered how to make it rain? The folks at Home Grown New Mexico may have figured it out. For the second year in a row the Kitchen Garden and Coop Tour has concluded with a downpour. I can't think of a more fitting end to a tour of permaculture gardens, water catchment systems and chicken coops than a powerful rainstorm.

When you think of Sonoma, CA what comes to mind? Maybe green vineyards or rolling golden hills, but probably not craft beer and hard cider. On a recent vacation in Northern California I tasted quite a few beverages made with barley and apples instead of grapes. Sonoma County has built a reputation on wine, but a revival of hand-crafted beer and cider has grown from historic hop vines and apple orchards.

Why do banks give up these incredible buildings? The answer is probably very boring and financially sensible, but LOOK at this building and tell me do you prefer an ATM?

Anyway ... on our recent (and too short) northern CA vacation we made a trip to the Petaluma Seed Bank. If you enjoy seed catalogs, you will love this place. We browsed for quite a while and made small withdrawal (i.e. we bought some seeds).

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