The autumn season is the time for our harvest festivals in the Northern Hemisphere. You will notice that while some festivals celebrate the first harvest, other celebrate the final harvest.
Many of them also have an aspect of fertility ritual embedded in them, which is to be expected as a fertile harvest portended a fertile population, and vice versa.
While festivals can range from early July to late October (or January to March in the Southern Hemisphere) depending on region, most cultures have traditionally feasted following the harvest and before the winter hibernation. Here are some of the many harvest festivals from around the world.
Bagach - end of the grain harvest/birth of the Virgin (Belarus)
Bénichon - blessing of the harvest (Switzerland)
Bhogali Bihu - celebration of the end of the harvest (India - Assam - celebrated in January/February)
Chuseok - thanking the ancestors for the harvest (Korea)
Dozhinki - celebration of the end of the wheat harvest (Belarus, Poland, and Russia)
Dree Festival (India - Apatani)
Fiesta Nacional de la Vendimia - celebration of the grape harvest (Argentina - celebrated in February)
Gawai Dayak - celebration of the rice harvest (Sarawak, Malaysia and Indonesia)
Guldize - end of the corn harvest (Cornwall)
Homowo/Sesebumo or "To Hoot at Hunger" - Sesebumo is the last festival of the Homowo festival at the end of the corn harvest - (Ghana) and Iriji (Nigeria)
Incwala - first fruits festival (Swaziland)
Kaamatan - end of the rice harvest (Sabah - Malaysia, Borneo)
Lammas/Lughnasadh - beginning of the harvest (Celtic/Pagan - UK)
Maras Taun - end of the rice harvest (Belitung, Indonesia)
Nabanna (Bengal, India and Bangladesh)
Niiname-sai - "celebration of the first taste" (Japan)
Olivagando - olive harvest festival (Italy)
Onam (Malayali, India)
Oseniny - end of the harvest season (Russia and Slavic countries)
Pongal - celebration of the first fruits (Tamil Nadu)
Samhain - Gaelic/Pagan/Wiccan end of harvest celebration
Sukkot - Feast of the Ingathering (Jewish) Today is actually the last day of Sukkot!
Tet Trung Thu - celebrating the farmer spending more time with the family after harvest season (Vietnam)
Any harvest festivals that I've missed out on?
Showing posts with label harvest. Show all posts
Showing posts with label harvest. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 15, 2014
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Renewal
Deep breaths.
This is my absolute favorite time of the year.
Soon it will be Rosh Hashanah, the beginning of the Jewish new year, a time for renewal and the beginning of the harvest season. Summer is coming to an end, along with the oppressive heat, the wilted leaves and the slow, tired days. Soon we will have crisp mornings with our breaths in the air, apples and pomegranates ripening on trees and a season of hard work that feels like abundance. This year, some of the old stuff that has been weighing me down is slowly lifting and I am feeling the lightness.
The new year brings all kinds of changes. I have been very busy planning the new farm. I have been plotting out the yard and making room for all of the ideas I have. Of course, I don't quite have room for everything, but that is probably for the best. Additionally, the fall will bring Hallowe'en, my favorite holiday, which I am very busy planning. Finally, I am starting a new job this month, still at UCLA but working more in the community. I am very excited and looking forward to training my replacement.
More updates to come (and more frequently, I hope!)
This is my absolute favorite time of the year.
Soon it will be Rosh Hashanah, the beginning of the Jewish new year, a time for renewal and the beginning of the harvest season. Summer is coming to an end, along with the oppressive heat, the wilted leaves and the slow, tired days. Soon we will have crisp mornings with our breaths in the air, apples and pomegranates ripening on trees and a season of hard work that feels like abundance. This year, some of the old stuff that has been weighing me down is slowly lifting and I am feeling the lightness.
The new year brings all kinds of changes. I have been very busy planning the new farm. I have been plotting out the yard and making room for all of the ideas I have. Of course, I don't quite have room for everything, but that is probably for the best. Additionally, the fall will bring Hallowe'en, my favorite holiday, which I am very busy planning. Finally, I am starting a new job this month, still at UCLA but working more in the community. I am very excited and looking forward to training my replacement.
More updates to come (and more frequently, I hope!)
Monday, July 11, 2011
Monday morning review
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| Tractors were a huge attraction at the parade. |
It's been a super crazy week. I went to Utah for the 4th of July, saw my first small town parade with cowgirls and Elvi on motorcycles and tractors and cheerleaders on ATVs.
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| Elvi - note cheerleaders on ATVs in the background |
I came home and went into full on wedding mode for my office mate, Mary's wedding as I made her veil and it needed to be delivered by Friday, hence, no posting last week!
This weekend I spent Saturday with one of my famous headaches, which, thankfully, wasn't a migraine. Then Sunday I spent the morning with Ms. Peigi who will be leaving for her new life in Peru this coming Saturday and then I did some farm maintenance, including harvesting six of the most gorgeous tomatoes (and one green one that I accidentally cut off the vine) and two huge zucchini.
I ate two of the little tomatoes for dinner last night with some very stinky cheese but I'm not sure what I'm planning for the remaining 4. I definitely must do something before they go bad. Sometimes I have a tendency to wait for the perfect thing to come along rather than just using what I have for something ordinary. Must get over this, especially since I have about 20 more green tomatoes on the vine right now.This week I am toning down the busy just a bit. I have a hat to knit and then I'm heading up to Napa this weekend for said wedding. I'm definitely going to post a bit more this week though.
Also, if you have any ideas for four of the most gorgeous tomatoes ever, I'd love your suggestions.
Friday, June 24, 2011
Ch Ch Ch Cherry Bomb!!!
This past weekend I got in my car and went driving up Bouquet Canyon, a super fun twisty road headed for Leona Valley where the cherries grow. I went to a U-Pick farm up there.
Here's something I'd like to figure out before spending my money. When the crazy orchard owner is listening to the radio after you've given him your money, after you've picked and weighed 9 pounds of cherries and you hear the announcer say, and I quote,
Clearly I'm a bad, bad blogger. I always forget to take pictures!
The farm encourages you to taste as you go, so by the time I was finished picking my bucket, I was stuffed to the gills with cherries. I also learned a new trick of putting up old CDs in the trees to scare away the birds. Gotta do this with my peaches and pomegranates.
Anyway, I picked 9 pounds of cherries and headed back toward the San Fernando valley for canning and other enjoyment. Yum!
I like to pick and use fruit within 24 hours. I feel like it tastes better that way and I know myself. I get busy. If I make the time to harvest, then I also like to make the time to process within 24 hours. When I harvested my loquats, I would get off the ladder and take them straight to the stove. Same with the apricots and the zucchini. Otherwise, I tend to have rotting fruits and veggies in the fridge which is kind of a pet peeve of the Mr.
So I arrived home and started sorting cherries!
First I pulled out almost all of the Rainiers and made them into a jam with vanilla beans. Unfortunately, this is where the bomb comes in because while they taste superb, they are totally ruined visually as I didn't follow the directions for powdered pectin to the letter. They are also SUPER JELLED which is not my preferred way to have jam. I like it a bit runny. Now I know better, but damn it!!! I'll be giving out some tasty but bubbly-looking and jello-consistency jam.
Then I picked out all of the bing cherries and tried again. This time I made the Bing cherry jam with some kirsch and it just looks like a precious ruby. Absolutely lovely and tasty. Yay! Other than caramelizing my entire stovetop, it was a total success!!!
Finally, I had some Utah Giants, which were not giant at all. Actually, they were quite tiny so perhaps the tree was marked wrong but they were absolutely tasty and quite ripe so I picked a bunch. I had already canned 2 batches of jam so next on my list was some maraschino cherries.
I went out and bought some Luxardo cherry liqueur which was, if nothing else, in a very lovely bottle. I don't drink. I just have absolutely no taste for alcohol whatsoever, but the recipe called for liqueur and who am I to argue? It also calls for cinnamon sticks, nutmeg and because I'm crazy like that, I also added some vanilla bean.
First I used the last of the Rainiers. I know maraschino cherries are supposed to be super red, but I wanted to try this, and so try I did. From some forums I looked at, the cherries are supposed to be much more tasty after a couple of weeks in the juices, so I'm not going to taste them for a couple of days. They have just a hint of redness to them. I like the color. We'll see if I like the taste.
Next, I started the "Utah Giant" dwarf cherries. Again, the forums suggested that if you want really red maraschino cherries, you either have to use a certain kind of cherry or use some red food coloring. I wasn't about to do that, so I just hoped for the best. Well, not quite a bomb, but not really a success either. The simmering in sugar part sucked a bunch of the color from the cherries, so they're not nearly as red as they appear in these photos before the simmering, but I put them up anyway and in a couple of days I'll taste a few to see how they come out. I'll update you as to whether at least the taste was a success or it was a total failure.
I've had such resounding success with all of my marmalades, jams and jellies so far this year. These cherries certainly taught me a little lesson in patience...and using pectin, which I haven't used this year at all...Oh well. What's next in the harvest? Tune in to find out!
Here's something I'd like to figure out before spending my money. When the crazy orchard owner is listening to the radio after you've given him your money, after you've picked and weighed 9 pounds of cherries and you hear the announcer say, and I quote,
"The liberals never learn, even when you teach them something over and over again! It's like McCarthy. We've taught them that he wasn't the evil person that they say he was and yet they still keep referring to McCarthyism as a bad thing...."I wish I had known that beforehand. I really hate giving my money to these people. Anyway, I'll try a new farm next time...
Clearly I'm a bad, bad blogger. I always forget to take pictures!
The farm encourages you to taste as you go, so by the time I was finished picking my bucket, I was stuffed to the gills with cherries. I also learned a new trick of putting up old CDs in the trees to scare away the birds. Gotta do this with my peaches and pomegranates.
 |
| Pretty cherries! |
Anyway, I picked 9 pounds of cherries and headed back toward the San Fernando valley for canning and other enjoyment. Yum!
I like to pick and use fruit within 24 hours. I feel like it tastes better that way and I know myself. I get busy. If I make the time to harvest, then I also like to make the time to process within 24 hours. When I harvested my loquats, I would get off the ladder and take them straight to the stove. Same with the apricots and the zucchini. Otherwise, I tend to have rotting fruits and veggies in the fridge which is kind of a pet peeve of the Mr.
So I arrived home and started sorting cherries!
First I pulled out almost all of the Rainiers and made them into a jam with vanilla beans. Unfortunately, this is where the bomb comes in because while they taste superb, they are totally ruined visually as I didn't follow the directions for powdered pectin to the letter. They are also SUPER JELLED which is not my preferred way to have jam. I like it a bit runny. Now I know better, but damn it!!! I'll be giving out some tasty but bubbly-looking and jello-consistency jam.
Then I picked out all of the bing cherries and tried again. This time I made the Bing cherry jam with some kirsch and it just looks like a precious ruby. Absolutely lovely and tasty. Yay! Other than caramelizing my entire stovetop, it was a total success!!!
 |
| Utah Giants? |
Finally, I had some Utah Giants, which were not giant at all. Actually, they were quite tiny so perhaps the tree was marked wrong but they were absolutely tasty and quite ripe so I picked a bunch. I had already canned 2 batches of jam so next on my list was some maraschino cherries.
I went out and bought some Luxardo cherry liqueur which was, if nothing else, in a very lovely bottle. I don't drink. I just have absolutely no taste for alcohol whatsoever, but the recipe called for liqueur and who am I to argue? It also calls for cinnamon sticks, nutmeg and because I'm crazy like that, I also added some vanilla bean.First I used the last of the Rainiers. I know maraschino cherries are supposed to be super red, but I wanted to try this, and so try I did. From some forums I looked at, the cherries are supposed to be much more tasty after a couple of weeks in the juices, so I'm not going to taste them for a couple of days. They have just a hint of redness to them. I like the color. We'll see if I like the taste.
 |
| Rainiers in syrup |
Next, I started the "Utah Giant" dwarf cherries. Again, the forums suggested that if you want really red maraschino cherries, you either have to use a certain kind of cherry or use some red food coloring. I wasn't about to do that, so I just hoped for the best. Well, not quite a bomb, but not really a success either. The simmering in sugar part sucked a bunch of the color from the cherries, so they're not nearly as red as they appear in these photos before the simmering, but I put them up anyway and in a couple of days I'll taste a few to see how they come out. I'll update you as to whether at least the taste was a success or it was a total failure.
I've had such resounding success with all of my marmalades, jams and jellies so far this year. These cherries certainly taught me a little lesson in patience...and using pectin, which I haven't used this year at all...Oh well. What's next in the harvest? Tune in to find out!
Friday, June 17, 2011
Home cookin' - zucchini bread
Bake zucchini bread!!!As far as I'm concerned, this is the best recipe for zucchini bread ever. It's both simple and not too terribly sweet and you can add and amend as needed. I do not eat nuts, so there will never be nuts in my recipes. Feel free to add them if you want to RUIN everything (ok, maybe that's a little dramatic...). But really, it's the season! Bake a loaf!
Zucchini Bread
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen
Makes 2 loaves
3 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
1 3/4 cups sugar
2 cups grated zucchini
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
3 tsps. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. ginger
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Grease and flour two loaf pans.
In a large bowl or mixer, beat eggs. Mix in oil and sugar, then zucchini and vanilla.
Combine flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
Stir this into the egg mixture. Divide the batter into prepared pans.
Bake loaves for 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Super yummy. I'm bringing a loaf to a meeting tomorrow. Hope it's well received!
Thursday, June 16, 2011
The Carrot Conundrum
In mid March, I planted carrots. Last year when I planted carrots, some bold squirrel came along, dug them all up and ate the hell out of them. This year, the squirrels oddly left them alone so this week I decided it was time to check on my crop of carrots. See if they were ready to be made into some yummy treat like a carrot cake, or just a dinner side. I cleared the dirt off the top of one, just to see what it held and the future looked bright. It was a gorgeous round top of bright orange. I immediately grabbed onto the base of the leaves and gave it a good yank as if I was pulling out a root from the earth, which I thought I was...
Here is what I got.
I laughed out loud!
My beds are a foot tall and the soil is super soft so it's not as if there wasn't room to grow. Not sure what happened here but it was hilarious!
I thought, maybe that one is a mutant. So I pulled out the rest.
They're like a bunch of stubby toes!!! I have no freaking idea what I'm going to do with these. Anyone know a recipe for carrots that are as fat as they are tall? I have a feeling I'm just going to end up eating them raw with a side of ranch tonight...
Ah, the joys of farming!
Here is what I got.
I laughed out loud!
My beds are a foot tall and the soil is super soft so it's not as if there wasn't room to grow. Not sure what happened here but it was hilarious!
I thought, maybe that one is a mutant. So I pulled out the rest.
Ah, the joys of farming!
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Swapping
So, early in April I saw a notice somewhere that GOOD Magazine was having an event in Atwater Village to celebrate the kick-off of GOOD L.A. I also learned that there would be something called a "food swap" at that event and you could bring food to swap with other people. Having recently canned about 80 jars of marmalade from my brother's mini orange orchard, I happened to have some swappable items. I brought 6 jars.
I went home with some home-baked sourdough, some other jam and a few things that I probably snacked on in the car on the way home, but ultimately, I came home inspired.
I also came home with a postcard for an event called Artisanal L.A. at the new Santa Monica Place, and Emily Ho, of the Kitchn and the L.A. Food Swap would be having a workshop. I tend not to travel over the hill during the weekend, but this was worth it, and by the end of the workshop, I had committed to a swap in the SFV (San Fernando Valley, for those of you who are not from 'round here).
This past weekend was the first San Fernando Valley Food Swap, held in my living room and what a HUGE success. We had 20 people signed up and they all showed. We also had a reporter from the Eat Real Festival which is happening in Culver City this July 16-17. Unfortunately, I'll be in the Napa/Santa Rosa area that weekend and am a little bummed that I can't make it.
I hosted it in my home and while I LOVE opening my home to people, these were primarily complete strangers! It worked out beautifully. Everyone was very respectful and it felt kind of old-timey. Two people brought their parents and three people brought their kids. Everyone was super nice and easy going. I never felt like anyone was disappointed with the event.
To swap, people brought homemade maraschino cherries, can breads, cookies, muffins, cake pops, marinades, chocolate covered stuff, salsas and more. Also present were homegrown lemons, rosemary, and pink peppers. Here are some photos of the items!
I still had marmalades from the Great Orange Harvest of 2011 and I had jarred about 24 cans of apricot jam from my sister's tree, not to mention the somewhat-not-as-great Loquat Harvest of 2011, I had already canned more than 120 jars of jam, marmalade and jelly. I had also already given away about 2/3rds of it, but clearly I had more to swap.
As you can see from the photos, people brought samples of their wares. It was quite fun to go around and taste everything before you sign up. The marinade was delish and the Mr. tasted some before he rode off into the noonday sun and said something about "definitely getting one of those...."
Ultimately, it was a real community event, where people who wouldn't necessarily meet, came, interacted, oohed and aahed over each others offerings and went away, if I may say so, pretty happy.
I'm definitely doing it again. I may make some new guidelines for the next swap though. While I love baked goods, and really, who doesn't, I would like to have a more sustainable swap. I'm not sure how to go about it but I think I'd like to encourage people to bring more home grown/pantry or refrigerator stable items like fruit, eggs, honey, herbs, veggies, marinades, rubs, jams (of course), spices, sauces and such.We'll see...
All photos courtesy of Emily Ho and Gregory Han
I went home with some home-baked sourdough, some other jam and a few things that I probably snacked on in the car on the way home, but ultimately, I came home inspired.
I also came home with a postcard for an event called Artisanal L.A. at the new Santa Monica Place, and Emily Ho, of the Kitchn and the L.A. Food Swap would be having a workshop. I tend not to travel over the hill during the weekend, but this was worth it, and by the end of the workshop, I had committed to a swap in the SFV (San Fernando Valley, for those of you who are not from 'round here).
 |
| Made this sign from a scrap of wood in the garage. |
This past weekend was the first San Fernando Valley Food Swap, held in my living room and what a HUGE success. We had 20 people signed up and they all showed. We also had a reporter from the Eat Real Festival which is happening in Culver City this July 16-17. Unfortunately, I'll be in the Napa/Santa Rosa area that weekend and am a little bummed that I can't make it.
I hosted it in my home and while I LOVE opening my home to people, these were primarily complete strangers! It worked out beautifully. Everyone was very respectful and it felt kind of old-timey. Two people brought their parents and three people brought their kids. Everyone was super nice and easy going. I never felt like anyone was disappointed with the event.
To swap, people brought homemade maraschino cherries, can breads, cookies, muffins, cake pops, marinades, chocolate covered stuff, salsas and more. Also present were homegrown lemons, rosemary, and pink peppers. Here are some photos of the items!
I still had marmalades from the Great Orange Harvest of 2011 and I had jarred about 24 cans of apricot jam from my sister's tree, not to mention the somewhat-not-as-great Loquat Harvest of 2011, I had already canned more than 120 jars of jam, marmalade and jelly. I had also already given away about 2/3rds of it, but clearly I had more to swap.
Ultimately, it was a real community event, where people who wouldn't necessarily meet, came, interacted, oohed and aahed over each others offerings and went away, if I may say so, pretty happy.
I'm definitely doing it again. I may make some new guidelines for the next swap though. While I love baked goods, and really, who doesn't, I would like to have a more sustainable swap. I'm not sure how to go about it but I think I'd like to encourage people to bring more home grown/pantry or refrigerator stable items like fruit, eggs, honey, herbs, veggies, marinades, rubs, jams (of course), spices, sauces and such.We'll see...
All photos courtesy of Emily Ho and Gregory Han
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