barn raising: gluten free baking

Welcome

My name is Gwen. My days are spent mothering, crafting, walking in the woods or on the seashore, celebrating and dreaming. I'm inspired by ships and mermaids, pirates and misty seas, aran and celtic knits, mossy forests, swallows, swifts, folktales, farmland and rolling hills, barns and front porches, old houses, warm quilts, family feasts, woolens and snowfalls in the dark of winter.

why barn raising?

Some of my most loved memories as a child involve family traditions and how they celebrated our togetherness. We raised a lot of barns as a family, so to speak, and continue to do so. I want that for my own family as well. I've also thought a lot about the togetherness of our communities given the quick pace of the world today. How are we to raise barns together as a village with the busy schedules of modern life? The answer, for us, begins at home- establishing rhythms and creating traditions that will carry our family through the busiest of times; grounding and connecting us along the way. I hope to share that journey here.

gluten free baking

21 December

Wintering

Our winter days have been oh so full:

- planning, anticipating, preparing and welcoming the arrival of family, celebration, and winter!

- trimming the tree, gathering holly, and decking the halls.

- loving little 2 year old party dresses and shoes!

- making peace as best we can with the urgency out there in the world- lots of rushing happening outside our front door as our suburb quickens it's pace under the pressures of the season.

- enjoying closing the door on it whenever we arrive home, and seeking out the quiet areas in our neighbourhood...there's no one rushing in the woods!

- taking the time for one more mug of tea; one more cup of homemade stock.

- cutting in half the amount of decorations we've brought out, the items on the to do list, and streamlining a certain little one's collection of toys. Simplifying, clearing the space, making room for more magic.

- finding a comfortable balance between introducing the excitement of Father Christmas arriving on Christmas Eve, and the symbolic spirit of Christmas, to a two year-old.

- befriending so many birds this season! The whiskey jacks eat out of our palms in the snowy mountains, and the chickadees, juncos, sparrows, and finches come in droves to our feeder.

- dreaming of a time already so dear to my heart when we will celebrate the holidays in a smaller, quieter community on a little patch of countryside.

- and in the meantime giving thanks for the shelter and peace this lovely, old house provides.

- taking the plunge further into gluten free baking. Gluten free is most definitely a necessary way of life for us now, and one I'm more comfortable with when avoiding the abundance of rice, rice, rice. Whole grain is fine, but I'm welcoming quinoa and sorghum flours as our family baking staples.

- indulging in turkish delight!

- marveling at the sweet world of a two year old in all of her determination, wonder, and incredible love and empathy. Feeling very sure that mothering a little one (through all of her ages) is the best thing I will ever do!

- loving the connections I'm making with all of you on this blog; the emails, the discussions in the comments, the support, and the shared desire to live more meaningful, more simplified lives rich in family connection, foundations and magic. There is a real slow family movement underfoot, and I'm proud to be a part of it with all of you!

I'll be back soon to share our further celebrations of Advent and our honouring of Winter Solstice!

Posted in advent, celebration, everyday magic, family foundations, gluten free baking, simplicity, tradition, waldorf | Permalink | Comments (12)

18 August

cake celebrations

We weren't quite through with Coco's birthday celebration, for what is a celebration without a house filled with family and cake? I will admit right away that I am intimidated with gluten free baking. We've been gluten free for a year now and I still lament the loss of fluffy pastry and whipping up my much missed pound cake without looking at the recipe. And one kind of flour...I do miss that. But in order to celebrate my daughter turning 2, I overcame my apprehensions and started baking.

The idea for this cake was 100% inspired by this cake, right down to the layers of pink inside. It's a beautiful cake (hers), don't you think? And perfect for a little girl on her 2nd birthday. Baking our version of this cake took, ah, a long time. Thankfully, my barn raising family- mother, brother, sister, husband and nephew- were around and kept the birthday girl busy drawing, reading, playing, and otherwise constantly giggling.

One thing I've learned about gluten free baking is that a lot of time is saved by premixing your flour mixture. Things would have come together sooner had I done this the night before. Also, we had to attempt a second, easier frosting after the Swiss Meringue Buttercream spoiled (my timing was off for adding the butter, though that didn't stop my mom, sister and I from dipping our fingers into the bowl for taste after taste- delicious but, sadly, unspreadable).

And then we have the layers of pink- they really look so perfect in the picture. I decided not to use food colouring and opted, rather, to colour the layers with cranberry juice. It takes a lot of cranberry juice to get a lovely shade of pink, I discovered. The result was a graduation of lilac, or if I'm to be honest, grey. But, nevermind. In the end it was healthy, adorable, and delicious.