Through a Washashore's Eyes

It's Been a Thrilling Time

Well who needs to fill the old gas tanks and fight the traffic to experience the joys of Fall and all that nature has to offer us. I love Vermont in Fall and there is nothing like it. The smells of cider doughnuts, the apple orchards, cheese, country stores and the blanket of colorful autumn leaves covering the mountains like brightly colored afghans. I chose to not cross that bridge this season for varies reasons and found beauty all around me here on Old Cape Cod. With tons of kettle pond and trees, how could a person go wrong. But there was much more to be seen as I traveled about. I hope you enjoy my slide show and that you did not forget to change those clocks.

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Harvest Time On Old Cape Cod

   As the leaves begin to turn and do their waltz like dance across our paths and the pumpkins pile high on roadside stands, we known its time to settle in and prepare for those cold morning starts and hearth warming nights. Its time for gathering the harvest and feeding our ghosts and goblins. Time to prepare for those great family feasts where just a scent of something cooking in the oven can awaken memories hidden deep within our minds. Pumpkins and pumpkin pies have always been the gateway to all my favorite fall memories. The pumpkin is surely an extraordinary vegetable because of its great versatlity in various food preparation, as it can be used in soups, as a main course or side dish, and in a variety of cold and hot desserts. It has a sweetish nutty flavor that can be enhanched with spices, cheese or herbs. The pumpkin flesh can be boiled , steamed or baked. I have prepared soup in a pumpkin and look forward to its flavor and presentation every fall. And every year I search for new ways to enhance my evening meals with the flavors of  fall. I am sharing some recipes with you, and hope that your evenings will be warm and your homes filled with the wonderful amoras of  something good cooking.

Baked Stuffed Pumpkin

1/2 lb ground hamburg or pork
1 pkg of goya beef or pork bouillon
1 med onion (chopped)
1 small green pepper (chopped)
2 cloves garlic (minced)
1 stalk celery (chopped)
1 cup cooked rice
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
4 small (1lb) pumpkins, hollowed out

 (or try poultry)

1/2lb ground chicken or turkey
1 pkg of goya chicken bouillon
1/2 c chopped Granny Smith apples
1/4c dried cranberries (1/3c fresh)
1 med onion (chopped)
1 small green pepper (chopped)
2 cloves garlic (minced)
1 stalk celery (chopped)
1 cup cooked rice
1/4 c white wine
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
4 small (1 lb) Pumpkins,hollowed out

When cooking rice add a packet of bouillon to enhance flavor.
Preheat oven 350 degrees.Saute the onions,green peppers,celery, and garlic,then add meat and cook.
Add apple slice and cook about 3 minutes.
Add wine and cook another 2 minutes.
Remove from heat and mix the rest of ingedients together.Spoon into each pumpkin.
Bake pumpkin in a shallow baking dish.Cover with foil and bake for 25 minutes.Remove foil and bake another 10 minutes.
Serve

 Stuffed Butternut Squash

Rice mix:
1 med squash
1/2 lb ground hamburg or ground pork
1 medium onion (chopped)
1 small green pepper (chopped)
2 cloves garlic (minced)
1 stalk celery (chopped)
1 can (8oz) tomato sauce
1/4 C shredded cheese
1 c cooked rice
Grease shallow pan.Cut squash in half and place open side down.Bake 30 minutes at 375 degrees.Saute onions and hamburg,then drain greese.Add tomato sauce,rice,cheese and 1/4 cup of water.Stuff squash and bake 30 minutes more.

If you like spices the try a 1/4 tsp of Italian seasoning or 1/4 tsp Herbs De Provence (a mix of rosemary,thyme,savory,fennel sees.basil,lavender,& majoram) I buy my spices at the Atlantic Spice Company on Route 6 in North Truro. Once you step inside the shop and smell the fragrant spices,you'll be Hooked too.

Stuffing mix:
1 med onion (chopped)
1 small green pepper (chopped)
2 cloves garlic (minced)
1 stalk celery (chopped)
1 box stove top stuffing
1/4 c water
Cook squash as above.
Saute the onions,peppers,garlic and meat in saucepan. Drain off grease.
Prepare stuffing as directed but add the ingredients to saucepan contents.
When stuffing is done,scoop the mix on each squash and bake 30 minutes more.

Pumpkin Cookies

2 1/2c all purpose flour
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp groung nutmeg
a pinch of salt
3/4 c butter (room temp)
1/2 c firnmly packed brown sugar
2 or 3 tbsp finely grated orange zest
1/2 c pumpkin puree
1 egg yolk (beaten)

Mix flour and spices together. In a another bowl cream butter,sugar and zest.
Add this to the flour mix with pumpkin puree and egg yolk.
Mix well to form a soft dough.Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate 30 minutes.
Use cookie cutter or shape into small balls on place on grease cookie sheet.
Place in preheated oven and bake 10 to 15 minutes until golden.
Enjoy

Fried Pumpkin

1 Lb Pumpkin,peeled, seeded and sliced
salt and pepper
2 Tbsp all-pupose flour
1 egg (beaten)
2 Tbsp bread crumbs
oil for frying

Sprinkle the pumpkin with salt and pepper
Dip the pumpkin in flour,then egg, the bread crumbs.
Heat oil in fry pan.
Place pumpkin in hot oil and brown both sides.
Drain on paper towel and serve.

Happy Fall to One and All !!!

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Yarmouth Seaside Festival

Don't miss the Yarmouth Seaside Festival this holiday weekend. I have visited it in the past and have always found something that made the trip a worthwhile visit. Check on line for a schedule of their events.

Enjoy the videos from the Previous Festival

 This year there will be a canoe/kayak race, sand sculpting, a parade, fireworks, crafts and much more. Don't forget to visit the tents across the fairgrounds for a peek at what life was like in colonial times.

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It's Round-Up Time Again at the Cranberry Bogs

It's here again, that magical time  in fall when thoughts of hearty meals and family gatherings fill our hearts and minds with lasting memories. Living here on Cape Cod and loving all this island has to offer I embrace each season with open wonder. I have watched the bogs closely at each season and have marveled at what nature has to offer us. The cranberry was first used by the Native Americans, who discovered the wild berry's versatility as a food, fabric dye and healing agent. Today it is much the same for us.

American whalers and mariners carried cranberries  on their voyages to prevent scurvy. In 1816, Captain Henry Hall, of Dennis, became the first to successfully cultivate cranberries. Contrary to popular belief, cranberries do not grow in water. Instead, they grow on vines in impermeable beds layered with sand, peat, gravel and clay. These beds, commonly known as "bogs," were originally made by glacial deposits.

  Winter.....bogs are flooded from late December through mid-March depending on the weather to protect the buds and vines from winter injury. A layer of sand is appled to the cranberry bog every every few years. This cultural practice is done to stimulate growth, improve drainage and control weeds, insects and fungi.
  Spring ... the vines come out of their dormacy and the growing seasons begins.

  Summer...  pollination is an essential part of cranberry growing,as the cranberry flowers are pollinated by bees.

  Fall November.....    The cranberry harvest takes place once a year from mid September to early

Dry Harvesting involves using walk behind machines to rake the berries off the vines into boxes or bags. These cranberries are used for cooking or baking.
Wet Harvesting ...bogs are flooded and water reels, nicknamed "egg beaters" are used to stir up the water and dislodge the berries from the vines. Wooden or plastic "booms" are used to round up the berries,which are then lifted by a conveyor or pumped into a truck. They are then taken to a receiving station where they are cleaned. More than 85% of the crops are wet harvested. These cranberries are used for juices, sauces, or as ingredients in other processed foods.

The name "Cranberry" derives from the Pilgrim name for the fruit, "Craneberry", so called because the small, pink blossoms that appear in the spring resemble the head and bill of a Sandhill crane.

 Much can be learned about the cranberry online, and also on your drives around New England, check out the bogs.

 Check here for recipes and its history http://www.oceansp ray.com/about/cranberry_history.aspx

Cranberries

By NML

I've watch the fields all season
From tans to greens to rose
As summer sun grows further
I can see the autumn's glow

Its time to flood the bogs out
and see those berries float
we'll harvest all those treasures
as we get our heavy coats

Those berries offer comfort
with their bitterness and sweet
our holidays would be empty
without their tastey treats.

Cranberry Sauce

1c water
1c sugar
1 pkg (12oz) fresh cranberries

Wash and pick over. In saucepan bring water and sugar to a boil and stir to dissolve sugar into water. Add cranberries and return to boil. Reduce heat,simmer for 10 minutes or so until cranberries burst.
If you want at this point you can add opitional ingredients.
A 1/2 cup of nuts or a few strips of orange peel.
If you like raisins you can add 1 cup at this point.
A pint of fresh blueberries can be added for extra sweetness.
Spices such as cinnamon (1/2 tsp), nutmeg (1/4 tsp) or allspice (1/4 tsp) can be added too.
Remove from heat. Cool at room temperature and then refrigerate. The cranberry sauce will thicken as it cools.

There is nothing as good as fresh cranberry sauce.....enjoy and Happy Holidays !!!

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Dog Days of Summer Gone...Don't Give Up the Dogs

The season maybe ending but the grill is still going strong as long as the good weather holds out there's always a reason to grill , and it doesn't have to elaborate to be good. A flavorful grilled juciey hot dog cooked to your choosen perfection can be a symphony with the right accompaniments of your choice. What I miss sometimes down here on the Cape is a good Chili Dog or Coney Island Dog. Sure I can cook one at home on the grill and I have a fairly good recipe that I like for the sauce. But sometimes you just need that quick fix withouth all that preparation. I took the advice of some friends and headed to The Dog House in Dennisport last week and was quite impressed with their flavorful snappy Hot Dogs cooked to order. Their menu offers lots of choices and the prices are not too bad for the wallet. They are located on 189 Lower County Road and the number is 398-7774. (Check them out on this You Tube Video  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BOz7Uh4lxOk ) Their hours are now 11am to 7pm Friday to Saturday.Closed on Tuesday and open every other day 11am to 3pm. But they are seasonally and soon will be closing around Columbus Day. So with that said its time to get out the recipe and get cooking for the cold season ahead.

Coney Island Sauce

1 pound ground hamburg
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 six ounce can tomato sauce
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoon prepared yellow mustard
2 tbsp cider vinegar

2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon celery seed
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin (heaping)
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Saute onions in a skillet, adding hamburg half way through. Add minced garlic when meat is nearly done. Drain off excess grease. 
Add remaining ingredients; stir well to combine. Simmer over low heat 20 minutes.

Serve over hot dogs, Coney Island style!  

If you like portuguese food then try the linguica or chourico dogs on the grill. My favotite brand name is Michael's or Gaspar which can be found at most local supermarkets. Grill then with your favorite additions and you are a cooking legend.

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Seals, Sharks and a Season Ends

It's Labor Day and for many its the Last Hurrah for a short summer of fun. Time to get back to school for many, and a long seemless unending pursuit of higher learning. Time to get busy and get to work and prepare for the new seasons ahead. But its hard to let go of summer. It just ended all too soon and this weekend there are hopes of maybe squeezing in some more fine weather days.

While many want to hit the beach they have found  they can't swim. Yes, the Great White Sharks have been spotted eyeing and enjoying our flavorful fat seals of Cape Cod. And our poor seals have a good population living off the shores .

A trip to Chatham Harbour when the fishing fleets are returning with their boats filled with their catch of the day will most assuredly mean seals looking for a free meal from the fishermen. It is one of the many tourist attractions in Chatham. Going down to the docks and getting a look at the seals and perhaps a fishing vessels or two. The scenery is picturesque and calming. But this time we scramble to our favorite sites for perhaps a view of a Great White.

The camera crews are out and environmental patrol as well as the harbour patrol are all reporting their own data and keeping us safe and aware. Be careful on the road too as you drive around this holiday weekend for there is more dangers on the road than at sea. Enjoy and have fun and be glad you are not a seal.

Check out Channel 5 News Report.. http://www.thebostonchannel.com/video/20758667/index.html

Check out this site for a little shark insight... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHnS8_0da6A

Check out pictures of sharks in Chatham   http://www.thebostonchannel.com/slideshow/news/20813848/detail.html

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Live and Alone....and Always Awesome

I have never missed a concert with Melissa

After Danny had shed his buckets of rain over the coast of Cape Cod, the crowds emerged into the Melody Tent despite the high winds at times. We were there to see our icon deliver her summer rituals of songs that have sustained us through the good and bad times in our lives. And as usual she delivered this time without the back up band but leaving us more in touch with her and more a part of her music.

It was as if it were a party with just us, inside that windy tent Saturday night. I have never missed a concert with Melissa yet, except for when she was going through a tough time with Chemo. It's been five years since her cancer and she looks strong and renewed. She said sometimes " You get a little gift with the diagnosis as it changes your perspective on everything". 

 She honored our late Senator Kennedy with a song that she had written many years ago, " All the Way to Heaven". She sang a song for the storm's namesake  Daniel and spoke of the story behind the lyrics. She had told us of a time when she met Bernie Taupin who had written the song made popular by Elton John. He told her it was about a guy who's brother had returned from war but who  couldn't deal with the stresses of his life after war and so he took off to Spain. I will forever listen to that song now with a deeper and clearer understanding of the lyrics. But that's what Melissa is like. She writes songs with stories and is always willing to share her discoveries along her journey in life. And the best part of going to a Melissa Etheridge'd concert is that it is an interactive concert and you can sing along.

Thanks Melissa for Sharing !!!

Daniel             (written by Bernie Taupin and music by Elton John)

Daniel is travelling tonight on a plane
I can see the red tail lights heading for Spain
Oh and I can see Daniel waving goodbye
God it looks like Daniel, must be the clouds in my eyes They say Spain is pretty though I've never been
Well Daniel says it's the best place that he's ever seen
Oh and he should know, he's been there enough
Lord I miss Daniel, oh I miss him so much Daniel my brother you are older than me
Do you still feel the pain of the scars that won't heal
Your eyes have died but you see more than I
Daniel you're a star in the face of the sky Daniel is travelling tonight on a plane
I can see the red tail lights heading for Spain
Oh and I can see Daniel waving goodbye
God it looks like Daniel, must be the clouds in my eyes
Oh God it looks like Daniel, must be the clouds in my eyes

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AY5_CNHRqqk

And thanks for a song that was so long forgotten in the past.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YL83Z0YTj4g

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A View with a Legend

The Scargo Tower began as a tourist observatory in 1874. Originally made of wood but was it destroyed almost two years later by strong gale force winds. It was rebuilt of wood again and it faced another destruction by fire this time in 1900.  It was rebuilt again of  cobblestone and reopened in 1901. It is located on Scargo Hill which is 160 feet high and the tallest point on Cape Cod and the tower itself stand 30 feet high. It was created by the Tobey family. A plaque placed above the entrance and weather by the years reads,

"This Tower and Hilltop were given to the town of Dennis in 1929 as a memorial to Charles Tobey (1831-1888) and Frances Bassett Tobey (1833-1913) . Loyal sons of the village of Dennis where their  Tobey ancestors settled in 1678."

Inside of the cobblestone tower there is a spiral metal staircase that leads up to the top of the tower where one can catch a view of the Scargo Lake and the Alantic Ocean as well as miles of green Cape Cod landscape. On  your way up the staircase, pay special note to the  graffiti on the inside of the tower from visitors pasts. The tower is open from sunrise to sunset daily and the best part of the viewing is, its free .

Many people have travel here for some great star gazing , sunsets and a proposal or two. Maybe it the legend of the Scargo Lake below which has varies versions. It is believed that a beautiful Indian princess by the name of  Scargo lived along the shores of Dennis. One day she met a young brave from another tribe in the woods and the two fell madly in love. The brave gave the princess a pumpkin that he had carved which he had hallowed out and filled with water and four tiny fishes . He promised to return before the fishes were fully grown. The pricess made a small pond and placed the fishes inside.  One day upon returning to the pond she found that it had dryed. She found three fish dead and wept uncontrollably, so much so that her tears kept the last fish alive. Her grief caused her father great distress and thus he called a meeting with his tribe members and together that built a lake. The rains came and the lake was  filled and the fish survived. As promised the brave returned before the fish matured and they were married. They continued to live along the Scargo Lake were the silver fish and his descentants swim.

Whatever the case legend or not, don't miss a chance to catch a view from the top of the tower. It is said that on a clear day one can see the Pilgrim's Momument in Provincetown or Plymouth in the opposite direction. Bring your camera and enjoy as I have done and will continue to do.

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Bye Bye Bill

We listened to the forecast over the past week and prepare for Bill's arrival. We knew that he would be off the coast but still were concerned about possible wind damage and flooding. Some of us remember Bob and the toll that he took on the Cape in August.

It was eighteen years ago on August 19 but Bob was alot closer to the coast than Bill but still we had to be watchful. Thankfully Bill is gone and most of the tourists and residences carried on with every day life and found areas where they could swim. With summer coming to a fast close we need to enjoy all the good weather we can get. Get out there and enjoy what's out there and have fun.

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Season Ended Too Soon

After a very rainy start to the game playing this girl is wishing that she saw more of the Cape Cod League this year. Alot of the games had to be rescheduled and unfortunately I had to work alot of the days that they played but I did make it out to the fields whenever I could and intended to do so next year.

Congratulations to the Bourne Braves for winning the Championship and Kyle Roller for earning MVP. This was his second season with the Braves and unlike last year they went all the way. And great work to the Cotuit Kettleers, who for a second year in a row made it to the finals. The Orleans Firebirds and Yarmouth Dennis Red Sox tried to keep their games going and despite losing gave us all a great seasons of memories.

Thanks to all the teams for a fun filled season and it was awesome seeing the All Stars Game at Fenway despite the rain. Check their site for some highlights that you might have missed this season (http://capecodbaseball.org)   and lets get ready for next Season.

Thanks Guys !! We will be watching out for you.

Who was your favorite Team and/or Player ?

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