This morning’s harvest. Our six 4-foot squares (definitely not filled to capacity ala Mel Bartholomew’s methodology) are keeping us in fresh vegetables. Add to that the pots of herbs on the screened porch and we have freezer stashes of freshly simmered marinara sauce and zucchini chocolate chip bread to enjoy in the chilly months.
When you begin knitting and, even after years of experience, there is a dread of dropped stitches unraveling your hard work. After a decade of projects (145 complete or in-progress currently listed on my Ravelry page) I am finally comfortable picking up dropped stockinette stitches or correcting a mistake in knit-n-purl ribbing. However, the intricate subtleties of stitch structure still elude me and, if the mistake occurs in a well-loved cable project or (heaven forbid) on lace work, I frog back. So you can imagine my trepidation when the August theme for Knit Camp was: Streeking.
Not familiar with that word? Neither was I. The primary definition of this transitive verb is to stretch or to extend, coming from 12th century Middle English, chiefly Scotland. As a modern day knitting technique, steeking is a multi-step process that involves preparing, cutting, and finishing the streeked item. And yes, I did say “cutting” as in taking a sharp scissors to a perfectly good item and cutting something knit in the round and making it flat. Right?!? And I wanted to do this why?
Having committed to a fun year of Knit Camp with Marie Greene and approximately 1,000 other intrepid knitters, I thought why pay for classes and then skip the work. So I knit the Soundtrack Cowl, a variation on my Soundtrack Sweater, crocheted two steeked columns, added extra back-stitched reinforcement since my HiKoo Sueño is superwash, cut a specifically planned purl column (yikes!), added a decorative binding on each side to seal the raw edges, picked up left and right side stitches to add a Knit 2 – Purl 2 ribbed button band and, finally, added eight remainder buttons. While I am satisfied with the finished project, I am pretty sure streeking will not become my new go-to knitting technique.
I can count on one hand the times I’ve flown in a small 2- or 4-seater plane and I don’t even need my thumb to complete the tally. Last night’s flight, in a Beechcraft Bonanza, made four. On a spectrum of summer evenings, this one was a definite top 10 with good company, cloudless skies and a rare spontaneous experience. Our flight path took us northeast from Rochester to Red Wing, south over the Mississippi River nearly to Winona before heading back west.
Over the years, with countless trips from Hokah to Lonsdale, Vasa to Alden and all the libraries and bookmobile stops in between, I know the blue line highways curve through the rolling hills of our Driftless area. But there is a missing link between knowing there are hills and only seeing our corner of Minnesota as a distant 2-dimensional view from the lightly scratched window of a Delta commercial flight. From 3,000 feet the geological undulations are beyond beautiful.
The evening sky had that early August haze and, while the groves of trees still held their verdant green color, the fields were twinged with late summer yellow, ripe for harvest. It was evident that within weeks the landscape would shift from green to amber to rich fall browns.
I always think of the Zumbro as more of a small stream than a real river but flying over the watershed showed an extensive network of creeks and a main channel that eventually winds its way east. And then, almost to Red Wing, but not quite to Wisconsin, we banked right and so we could follow the mighty Mississippi past Wabasha, over Lake City (the home of waterskiing) and to Alma. The bluffs on each side climb out of the river valley. There was a small smattering of boat traffic, including one barge. With the sun setting over my right shoulder, we made another sweeping right turn before engaging the instrument approach and landing. After parking on the tarmac, we helped spray and wipe the leading edge of the wings and tail to remove the summer bug splats.
Our last single engine flight was in September 1991 when a Swiss cousin took Richard, Dad and me up for a view of the Alps around Luzerne. While the landscape may have been more dramatic that day, this most recent flight was maybe even more memorable as it gave us a different view of our chosen home.
The old wives’ tale declared rhubarb poison after the 4th of July although how a vegetable could or would negatively alter its chemical structure to coincide with a US holiday is a horticultural mystery. In reality and referencing a much more reliable source, the University of Minnesota Agricultural Service, it is best to harvest this vegetable from early spring through the end of June allowing the remainder of the summer growing season to replenish the energy needed to winter over in our harsh northern clime. So while Mom’s rhubarb patch is still tempting me with its verdant leaves, it is best left to rest. Making this my last Rhubarb Crisp of the season.
There are as many rhubarb crisp recipes as there are bakers. This one is tried and true from Mom. The combination of ingredients and ease makes it Richard’s and my favorite summer dessert especially with a dollop of freshly made Crème Fraîche.
Always on the lookout for new rhubarb adventures, there have been summers when I have experimented with rhubarb’s versatility – drinking rhubarb daiquiris or grilling with rhubarb barbeque sauce. May be it is Covid related but for this summer’s baking treats I focused entirely on old favorites: breads, crisps, muffins, and scones.
While my trusted Joy of Cooking, © 1975, only provides seven recipes, Rhubarb Recipes by complied by Jeanne DeMars, © 1991, and Rhubarb Renaissance by Kim Ode published by the Minnesota Historical Society Press, © 2012, as part of Our Northern Plate Series each offer hundreds of baking and cooking options.
Whether you have this wonderful plant growing in your yard or you purchase stalks at your local farmers’ market, explore all the delicious treats rhubarb offers but wait until next summer.
A recent review of my Ravelry project page confirms what I already knew – – I like cables. River Cowl was finished just today and features a subtle cable pattern that draws the eye from top to bottom.
While 1/1 cables usually are not my favorite construction element (I prefer a more robust design), I was intrigued by the subtle shifting of just one stitch either to the front or the back used to create the River Cowl. I discovered pattern designer, Tamara Moot, and I share a love of Dr. Who and River Song (the inspiration of this design) is a favorite character for both of us. Moot shares:
These elegant yet simple cables evoke River Song with the added bonus that the stitch pattern closely resembles the symbol for water or river found in the Southwest desert petroglyphs.
Cables are created by knitting groups of stitches out of order. Stitches held in the back result in a right leaning twisted column and, if held to the front, the twist will lean to the left. The larger the number of stitches shifted, the larger the fold in the resulting fabric.
Each of my three Building Block Shawls (2013-2014) had at least two squares or panels with cables. Churchmouse’s Following Seas Cabled Scarf and Reversible Cable Scarf have been go-to patterns for me. Between these two, I have gifted a combo of seven scarves. All the while knitting a creative collection of cabled cowls, hats, fingerless mitts, two sweaters and even a pair of mystery knit-a-long socks.
My project queue holds an intricate Celtic Cable scarf and a shawl that incorporates a beautiful Irish Saxon Braid border. So many patterns, much yarn, so little time…
When we started harvesting blueberries last month, we doubted we would meet the bountiful 24 cups we picked last summer. But the wonders of the Great Mother never cease to amaze and we have enjoyed 25 cups from our four small bushes. So delicious have been the muffins, ice cream glazes, and pies (two lemon sour cream and one traditional) with plenty simply nibbled that none were frozen. While we may regret our greediness in the depth of winter blues, the fresh berries were just too tempting. Since today’s last picking only yielded enough (0.5 cup) for tomorrow’s Honey Nut Cheerios breakfast, I am repurposing the photo from our first picking.
Vintage travel posters inspire a new exclusive fiber series from frabjous fibers & Wonderland Yarns. Amsterdam was the June limited edition colorway and, while this vibrant multi-colored skein was definitely outside my normal color spectrum, Richard and I so loved our time in Amsterdam and the colors are so reminiscent of the city-scape that it became a must have. The Windmill Shawl features a simple lace design reminiscent of the country’s many windmills to which I added a picot edging.
My Egypt travel kit is already on order from Northfield Yarn. I have wonderful memories from my trip to exotic Cairo with time in Giza and a picnic along the Suez Canal. Although the lush green tones of that skein are not the colors of my memories, then again, I did visit in June.
PS – And just because I’ve always wondered (and you might too), here is the etymology of frabjous: An adjective coined by Lewis Carroll in Through the Looking-Glass meaning splendid or magnificent.
Who knew it could be done, a sweater knit in 4-days? Well, Marie Greene for one. While I did not make an actually four-day finish line, I did complete my version of Soundtrack in less time than allowed for the 2020 knit-along (KAL), July 1-31. The pattern officially dropped on July 1 for the thousands participating in this KAL but as a Knit Camp camper I had 24-hour advance availability. With yarn purchased from my local yarn store (LYS) Northfield Yarn and my swatch meeting gauge in hand, I cast-on on June 30 and completed my second sleeve on July 21. My final progress report with ends woven in and sweater off the blocking squares was posted on July 28. Soundtrack is a top-down sweater with rows of colorwork representing LP record grooves, hence the name. My progress reports incorporated some of my favorite albums in keeping with the KAL theme.
We had planned a July trip to the popular destination of Nissawa. Yes, I know this Minnesota town may not be on your travel go-to list, but we enjoyed time together in August 2018 that included good conversation, shopping and attending Wine & Words. It was while we were at that first author brunch that we named ourselves, The Directors. Plus, a walk in the Grand View gardens is always a beauthiful setting. But Covid-19 foiled our 2020 plans. Initially, we simply thought to forego the large dinner/brunch gatherings but then the event planners managed a major shift from on-site to virtual and so, today, we connected online to hear the six 2020 Wine & Words authors. This year the brunch social hour had the authors video chatting from their kitchens and, appropriately, sharing drink, food, and summer canning recipes.
This summer’s bounty includes a bottling of herbed vinegar. My standard combination of apple cider vinegar as the flavorful base, with peppercorns and freshly harvested thyme from my porch pot. Good for salad dressing and delicious with sliced cucumbers fresh from the garden.
Knit+ Librarian 