The older I get, the more I find myself chasing the little things and slow moments. Give me those quiet mornings out on the porch, and a lifestyle that centers around more natural foods and wholesome supplements. There is just something so grounding about stripping away the noise and getting back to the basics.
That’s exactly why I’ve been so incredibly excited about the garden my hubby and I have been growing over the last few years. Every single season is a beautiful, messy learning process, and this year, the hard work is truly paying off. Take our zucchini, for instance—we had such an absolute abundance of it yesterday that I found myself whipping up four entire loaves of zucchini bread! I did add some leftover mini chocolate chips to one of them, because balance, right?
It turned out so incredibly moist and delicious. Honestly, it is by far my absolute favorite recipe I have tried to date. I originally stumbled across it on Pinterest and made sure to share it over to my favorite recipes board so you can try it out for your own kitchen. My biggest suggestion is to remember how important it is to blot/squeeze the water out of the zucchini. Fresh zucchini from your garden holds even more moisture! I would not recommend putting it in an enclosed container and/or wrapping it in paper towels as it seems to get a little too moist.
Call me an old soul, but there was something so deeply comforting about standing in my kitchen yesterday. With the candles lit, the warm scent of baking bread filling the air, and 90s country music absolutely blaring on the Alexa, everything just felt right. It completely filled my cup for the day.
We also had a really good turnout on our sweet corn this year. Even though those crazy storms took down a few of our stalks the other day, we still managed to put up about 45 bags in the freezer. I always laugh during this process because it makes me feel exactly like a squirrel frantically putting away its nuts for the winter! Hey, those squirrels have it figured out. Absolutely nothing hits better than the taste of delicious, homegrown vegetables or sweet jam in the dead of winter when everything else outside is brown and dead.
If I had all the time in the world, I would love nothing more than to keep expanding into a much bigger garden. I dream of canning and preserving enough of everything we could possibly need to completely make it through to the next harvest. We will get there someday!
To be completely honest, the media scares me more and more by the day. It feels like there is always a new headline about some questionable ingredient hidden away in standard store-bought items or restaurant foods. I’d just vastly prefer to actually know exactly where mine all comes from.
I find myself longing more and more for that beautiful, slow-paced lifestyle. The kind of life where you wake up to a slow morning, grow your own food, get to stay home with the kids while they run wild around the yard, and wrap it all up with a massive, loud family Sunday dinner. You know the way we lived in the 80’s and 90’s!! Oh how I long for those days again!
Until we get there, I’ll keep baking my bread, freezing my corn, and soaking in these beautiful little moments.
Have a great week friends! XO
