This is what I had for breakfast this morning.

Apple Pie with a Crumble Topping.

I’ve been testing and retesting and tweaking the recipes that I’ll be teaching in my Pie Class on October 26. If I do say so myself, this is one is perfect. Or maybe I’d better go have another piece just to make sure…

I’ll put the recipe up on my website after the class. If you can’t wait, do come to make it yourself and take one home. There are a couple of spots left. Register here.

Asking you what the goats should dress up as for Halloween was the most fun contest I’ve ever run! Selecting a winner wasn’t easy.

The goats would make very good musicians. They’ve got the Blues Brothers attitude, and the beards of ZZ Top. Many of you suggested having them go as a superhero and his sidekick. But which one would be Batman and which Robin? Which Watson to the Holmes? I wouldn’t want to incite any more sibling rivalry than what already exists.

Some ideas were so clever. Dress them up as chickens so that they blend in with the flock! I can imagine any number of characters from Star Wars. And how cute would they be as Clydesdales?

I thought that they’d look fetching as hula dancers, although an edible costume that includes flower garlands and grass skirts wouldn’t last long enough for even a five-minute photo shoot.

Finally, I decided that since the idea of wearing a costume is to transform into something that you aren’t, I will be using Rebecca’s idea of making them devils in disguise. I will dress the boys as angels.

Stay tuned.

I love Halloween. Not the bloody, gorey, scary Halloween. I love the funny, charming, clever, sweet Halloween. The pumpkins, the cornstalks, the cheerful ghosts and the little children in oh-so-adorable costumes. I can no longer dress up my sons, but I still have boys around. Last year I bedecked the goats in Halloween ribbons. It was simple and silly (and they stood still long enough in their collars for me to take a photo!)

I’m looking for ideas for this year’s goat costumes, and want to hear from you. As an incentive for you to put on your thinking caps I will send a surprise gift (a little of this and a little of that and in the spirit of the sort of Halloween that I like) for the suggestion that I deem the best. Selecting the winner will be totally arbitrary on my part.  I’m not much of a seamstress, and I probably won’t actually make the costumes, so don’t be limited by practicality. Send me your craziest, funnest, most over-the-top ideas in the  comment section below. I can’t wait to read them!

I’ll select a winner by the end of the week.

On Saturday, October 19, I will be doing a program as part of the Concord Festival of Authors. The event that I’m in will take place at Verrill Farm. It’s a gem of a farmstand, so if you’re thinking about taking a drive out into the country to leaf peek and pumpkin buy, do make it a destination. Come on the 19th, and stay for the program. It’s free, it’s open the public, and I hope to see you there!

Our panel of three writers is titled, From Your Backyard to Kitchen. The two other authors will be talking about their cookbooks. I’m going to be discussing the backyard chicken movement of today, as it compares to what people used to do. I’ll be illustrating my talk with photographs from my vintage photograph books.

It begins at 11 am, and each author is talking for only about ten minutes apiece. But, we’ll be there until 1 pm, the idea being that folks will drop in and chat with us. These sort of programs can be so awkward, as people hesitate to approach the author’s table. So I’ve offered to bring a hen along. People can be shy about saying hello, and sometimes they avoid authors thinking that if they speak to us that they’ll have to buy a book (not true!) but I’ve found that a chicken always attracts a happy crowd.

I don’t know which hen I’ll bring but I do know who I won’t. I won’t bring a molting hen, as people are sure to think that something is wrong with her. Onyx is a mishmash of feathers. Some of growing in and some falling out.

In two weeks she won’t look much better, and the rest of the Gems will be about the same. So, I’ll have to bring one of the young Ladies. Who would you like to meet?

Now that the Ladies are laying, there are cartons of small pullet eggs in the fridge. I also have blueberries in the freezer. Time to bake! Thursday mornings I go to a writing workshop. We need sweets while we work. This week, I brought a blueberry clafoutis.

It’s so easy to make that I was able to get it in the oven before I had my morning coffee. Yes, that easy. Foolproof. It was cooling when I took it in the car with me at 9 am.

Here is the recipe:

Blueberry Clafoutis

1 teaspoon sugar
3 large eggs (I used 4 pullet eggs)
1/3 cup organic turbinado raw cane sugar*
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (real, not imitation!)
1 1/3 cups milk
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen— don’t defrost)

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Spray a 9-inch pie plate or baking dish with non-stick spray (or butter the dish.) Dust the bottom with the 1 teaspoon of sugar.
2. In a blender, puree the eggs, raw cane sugar, vanilla and milk. Note: I’ve used whole milk, lowfat milk, and skim milk combined with 1/3 cup cream. All variations set nicely.
*I specify the turbinado sugar for the subtle flavor. Regular sugar is sweeter and not as nuanced. Also, regular granulated sugar is finer which means you use more of it when measuring in dry cup measurers. You can use regular sugar, but reduce the amount by 2 tablespoons so that the clafoutis doesn’t turn out too sweet.)
3. Add the flour and puree until combined.
4. Put the blueberries into the baking dish and shake the pan to distribute evenly in one layer.
5. Pour the batter into the pie plate.
6. Bake for 35 minutes, or until the clafoutis puffs up and is set in the center. As it cools it collapses, but that doesn’t affect how good the leftovers are!

Makes 8 servings.

Clafoutis lend themselves to so many delicious variations. A classic is cherry. I make a apple version, in which the apples are sauteed in butter and brandy first. That recipe will be in my upcoming The Farmstead Egg Guide & Cookbook, coming in March of 2014.