The Kitchen Window

The Kitchen Window
Antique Milk Bottles with Herbs and Flowers

Welcome!

Welcome to the Frog Hollow Farm blog! I've been blogging since January 2010 and have switched from Blogger to Word Press, but I'm back to Blogger because, for me, it's easier to use. My husband and I live on a little farm in Northwest New Jersey. We have some chickens and a very large vegetable garden with asparagus and raspberries, and rows and rows of sunflowers, snapdragons and zinnias. Traveling, entertaining, gardening, spending time with family, studying Italian, blogging and reading keep us busy and happy. With all of this going on, moving towards a simpler life seems almost impossible but it's definitely a daily goal.

Tuesday, March 24, 2015

Grocery Store Flowers...with a Friend



I really went a little overboard buying flowers at the local market the other day.  

Here are some orange and white tulips and alstroemeria - colors of the Irish flag for our St. Patrick's day party on Saturday.  One of our old milk buckets is the perfect place to show them off in our farm kitchen.  We found the bucket in a little antique shop right outside of Brewster, MA called Captain Freeman's about 15 years ago, and collected a couple every time we visited. 

My little bunny friend is just hangin' out, with a little repair to his right leg.

Ciao, bella! xxoo

Monday, March 23, 2015

Good Morning to the Sunshine and Melting Snow

This past weekend we had a St. Patrick's Day celebration here at Frog Hollow Farm with sisters, brothers, cousins, neices and nephews.  It was a great day, a little crowded inside the house with 24 people but all went well.  We set up all of the food ahead of time:  appetizers (all cold or room temp), hot food on the kitchen table keeping warm, and a dessert and coffee bar in the pantry.  Most everything was homemade by me or my family, but I did cheat with some store-bought desserts and a couple of catered appetizers.  (Costco makes a mean cheesecake by the way!)

Our famous Irish Blessing Cocktails were also on the menu, set up on the old step-back cupboard in the pantry.

Irish Blessing Cocktail
The sun is shining this morning, the sky is blue and the daffodils are coming up along the pond.  

Lovely

Irish Pottery


Have a wonderful day! 

Ciao, Bella!  xxoo

Thursday, March 5, 2015

A Snowy March Morning at Frog Hollow


A beautiful winter morning at Frog Hollow Farm.  I know many people may disagree with me, but this morning's snow was a site to behold.  
I for one will miss these snowy days that force me to slow down, simmer some homemade chicken soup, light a fire and wear cozy socks and sweaters.  




Wednesday, March 4, 2015

Trying out Blogger...and sharing my seasonal dish swap.


Yes, I am still working on my Word Press site…I went back to this original Frog Hollow Farm girl Blogger site and to tell you the truth wasn’t totally impressed….but I do still think that for me, Blogger is easier to use and that means it’s more fun to blog with.

Do you change your dishes from season to season???  I do, and I think that a lot of people do based on the number of blogs I have come across that display beautiful photos of seasonal tablescapes.  For many, the changes occur with the accessories incorporated around simple white dishes, which is probably the way to go….but I am in love with dishes, especially Italian and French pottery (mostly Italian).

Do I need to prove this to you?   We have an old house with an old basement that was remodeled into several office spaces for my husband when he began his business many years ago.   Now that he has moved his business out of our home, one part of this space has become the ‘Dish Room’.  This is where I store all of my seasonal dishes, plates, saucers, mugs, bowls, trays, platters and pitchers.  For the most part they are organized by season, darker browns, oranges, greens for the fall; bright reds and yellows for summer, blue, white and green for winter and lighter turquoise, lemon yellow and white for spring.  Our Christmas dishes include the old Spode Christmas Tree pattern, along with several antique sets of transferware dishes with red, green and cream coloring.  Here are some of the dish room shelves for you to see….

red Polish pottery in the mix

Florentine pitcher, bowls and dishes - used in the Fall

cute crow mug from an weekend market in Piazza Annuziata in Florence

 For the spring I have pulled out some of the Italian dishes with softer colors.  Below are a few photos of  my ‘spring dishes’ and ‘summer dishes’, purchased over the years from Silvia and Maurizio in Florence, Italy.

a mixed set of Florentine dishes

small plates from Maurizio for aperitivi

my very first set of Italian pottery, I add to it every time I am in Florence


 So, here I am back on Blogger.  I'll be taking a look at my front page and see how easy it really is for me to change things.  

Ciao, bella!  xxoo