During December, the house fills with sweets. There are cookie exchanges, neighbors showing goodwill through gifts of goodies, and of course the holiday feasts themselves and the days of irresistible leftovers. But January is the time to clear out the empty calories and get…
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This past June, I had the chance to explore a very old Pennsylvania cookbook. It wasn’t a mass-produced volume, but, rather a personal one, assembled recipe by recipe over a lifetime, starting during the harvest season of 1887. The pages of this leather-bound cookbook…
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Hot cider, slippers, fire crackling in the fireplace, a blanket, and a good book. When you look up “cozy” in the dictionary, this really should be the definition. Hot cider is a Christmastime essential. Whenever I visit my parents for the holidays, I like…
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From December 1 to 24, Weaver’s Orchard will contribute 3% of all retail sales to FREE, a nonprofit that is based in Berks County and is working to end human trafficking and exploitation. We are excited to support them in the important work they…
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Sometimes when we are having some friends over and they have kids in tow, I will slice up an apple while they wait for me to get dinner ready. I am usually astonished at how quickly the apple vanishes, and how soon they ask…
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Apple season at Weaver’s Orchard means the cider press is in full swing! In fact, since apples store so well during the winter months in our cold storage, we have a fresh supply of apples to keep the cider press running every year from…
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Toward the end of 1911, a group of “public spirited women” were anticipating the “gloomy prospect of an expensive winter.” They were managing The Home for Widows and Single Women at the northwest corner of 16th and Haak Streets in Reading, PA. In 1911,…
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At a cooking class in June 2014, I heard Phoebe Canakis of Phoebe’s Pure Food describe fillo shells as “a nice cheat.” This kind of shortcut is a sanity saver when it comes to entertaining. When you’re throwing a big party and have to…
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Fall is a time filled with a lot of parties and get-togethers as we make the most of nice weather and safer roads before we hibernate for the winter. That means it’s a good time to think about hostess gifts. And fall means that…
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My husband often talks about one of my most spectacular kitchen failures. But he speaks of it fondly, and almost dreamily, because sometimes even the messiest kitchen mistakes are still quite edible. Here’s what happened. I was trying to make apple dumplings. It’s a…
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