Tranquil Tuesday-Civility

Enjoy a day of turning off your cell phone and take time to shut down the TV and computer. Even if it starts at 6:00 pm. Try to have a Tranquil Tuesday.

I took these photos on the equinox last week. I read somewhere we won't have a harvest moon again until 2029.

This is a book my father gave me a few years ago. It has a history on etiquette and what "rules" applied on the train to keep people peaceful. I think our society needs a great dose of civility. Pick it up. Ask your teenagers to read it.

The Legacy Chase at Shawan Downs

I went out to Shawan Downs early Friday morning to pick up our tickets.

It was a fabulous, foggy morning.

The fences go for miles. 

This is Hunt Country.

Saturday was beautiful and very hot. The Legacy Chase is a steeplechase at Shawan Downs out in Hunt Valley, Maryland. It is a big fund raiser for GBMC.

We relaxed at Founders Hill before heading down to The Meadows to visit other friends who had a great tailgate. This is our third Legacy Chase. It is one of my favorite events of the year. E. is always a great sport and he looks forward to the Classic Catering tent as much as I look forward to the horses and people watching. My sorority sister even came all the way from Wisconsin to join us.

The food is always amazing. We LOVE their crab cakes.

Our great friends Kevin and Carla met us in the tent. Kev was in our wedding.

We did manage to watch a few races up on Founders Hill. Major Price was leading the entire third race (I think) and lost at the very last minute. I was two gins in at this point.

This past Saturday was far too hot for my taste. I was hoping for 65 and chilly. It was over 90 degrees. I think this darling gentleman, John Fetzer, rocked his seersucker shorts. He is no relation to Mom's former boss, John Fetzer. We discussed this at length.

This precious King Charles spaniel named Lilly was such a love bug.

After lunch we headed down to The Meadows to enjoy the company of great friends and more cocktails.

Our friends host this tailgate every year. This one, although hotter than blue blazes, was hands down fantastic. There were bands, beer and wine tastings in the meadow too. We couldn't see much of the horses, but that was okay.

We introduced my AXO sister to bourbon for the first time. How great is this bar? Doubles of bourbon and gin!

We met new friends.

And laughed all afternoon long.

We tried to stay in the shade for a break from the hot sun. 

They even had an assortment of koozies to keep the beer cold.

This gorgeous woman is the mother of 21 year old twins!!!

My Momma's vintage purse.

Thanks to Larry and Alan at Classic Catering for spoiling us every year with tickets. It is the most fun weekend. Big thanks to Scott and Katie for hosting such a fun tailgate. And a special thanks to Petey who came all the way from Wisco to hang out with us for the weekend.

Stuffed Pork Chops

It seems that stuffing is becoming a habit in the Stone Hill Farm kitchen. I realized I had three opened bags of different bread crumbs in the freezer so I'm trying to get creative. We are also addicted to the sausage links we buy from the Waverly Farmer's Market at the Brooms Bloom Dairy booth. We like their sage sausage.  Remove the casing and start to brown the sausage. I didn't add any oil or onions but you could for more flavor. I chopped a half a cup of dried apples, half a cup of celery and a third of a cup of dried cranberries. You could also add fresh thyme and sage but we didn't have any. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Sweat the vegetables but don't over cook them. Then cover the meat mixture with corn bread stuffing. Add a little chicken stock just to moisten it. I'm guessing a third of a cup. Add one egg and cook on the stove until the egg is cooked through. I added a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar for a little more kick at the end.

So much about cooking is a guess. Baking, not so. But cooking, you just sort of get the hang of it after a while. Play around in the kitchen. Have fun. Put things together you  think would taste good. When you go to a restaurant and like the flavor of something ask the waiter to find out what spices are in the dish. If you want to learn to cook, start reading cookbooks. So this isn't really a recipe but a memory dish. My sweet Momma makes the best sausage dressing for Thanksgiving and I've played around with her sausage, celery, corn bread concoction to make it my own. She'd hate the cranberry in the mix, but this bit of tang pairs beautifully with the pork chop.

Use bone-in pork chops. Take a short pairing knife and carefully slit the chop, making a pocket for the stuffing.

Make just a tiny opening so the stuffing stays stuffed. Move the knife carefully all the way to the edges without poking out the sides and create a pouch.

Photo credit to E-Boogie. 
Scope small spoonfuls of stuffing into the pocket and repeat until fully stuffed.

Salt and pepper each side.

Sear the meat on each side for three minutes. This locks in the juices so the pork won't get dried out in the oven.

Cook for 15 minutes. I know this doesn't seem like a long time but because the stuffing was hot and the fact that pork overcooks in an instant you just need fifteen minutes. Don't make me have an Overcooking Intervention Post. My dear friend McCall is living legend to these helpful tricks and has learned her lesson beautifully. Rest the meat on the stove for 5-10 minutes.

This was our Tranquil Tuesday meal. Pretty special for a Tuesday night. Look at the size of that thing? That's an 11 3/4" buffet plate!

This is random, but my thanks for today is to this little blog. I can not believe how much joy I've had writing this thing. So many of you have written me on Facebook, called me, Tweeted your support and I am just tickled that any of you read it at all. I am researching things I've loved for years. I am being more creative in the kitchen and we are saving more money on our food expenses than ever. E. and I are spending more time at home and having healthier meals knowing what we are eating. And I'm using my camera as a way to really look at things closer. So thank you Stone Hill Farm blog. You've been 8 months in the dreaming. And finally, thank you to all the "Good Figs" on my sidebar. You are my favorite bloggers who inspired me to start SHF.

Follow the Yellow Ball

Follow the Yellow Brick Ball

Follow the Yellow Brick Ball

Follow the, follow the, follow the, follow the...

...follow the Yellow Brick Ball.

After doing a little searching it turns out this Yellow Balloon is the brainchild of an architecture firm. It has been travelling around the city to inspire the good people and visitors of Baltimore to sit and think about architecture. Good one on 'ya. Ziger/Snead. Good one on 'ya. (That's Irish slang for...you rock!)

How does architecture affect you? The City? The Environment? These are questions architects at Ziger/Snead have been challenged by for the last 25 years. And looking back, we wonder how have the buildings we've designed impacted the life that happens in and around them? How do those buildings impact the City at large? How will architecture impact the future of the City?

To force others who live, work, and visit Baltimore to think about these questions, an 8-foot, plain yellow balloon, with no imprinting of any sort, will be attached to a building or on a site in a manner which challenges the viewer to question their relationship to the building, the building's relationship to the site, and the site's relationship to the City at large.

Ziger/Snead has engaged local artist, Lee Freeman, to develop and install the exhibition. The yellow balloon might be positioned on the roof, it might be floating in a reflecting pool, it may be wedged between two trees - each site and building will demand an arrangement that responds to the architecture, site, and location in the City - that which forces the greatest mystery and reaction.

The yellow balloon will travel to 25 locations around the City from September 8^th-October 28^th, beginning with an opening reception for the exhibition at the AIA Baltimore gallery and finishing the last two weeks at Ziger/Snead's offices in Mt. Vernon.

We're hoping you will send us your thoughts on the project as well as any pictures you have of the yellow balloon on its adventure. Please email pictures to Katelin Etoh, ketoh@zigersnead.com.

Click here for more photos of the Yellow Balloon 

Thanks to my Uncle Johnny, may he rest in peace, for his inspiration. For without your mentoring, I probably wouldn't have even noticed this balloon high above the MICA Brown Center. He was an architect in New York city and always inspired me to look up. I see something new in Baltimore every time I step outside my office downtown or visit a new neighborhood. I am so thankful we have such an architecturally rich city in which to live. I think interesting buildings and the use of outdoor spaces does make a difference. Chin up good people, chin up. You never know what you will run into on the yellow brick road.

Check out Pigtown Design's shots of the yellow balloon. I'll add more as I keep seeing the balloon pop up.