Your Home, Garden and Travel

There's much to enjoy (and learn) from reviewing garden photos. Here are a few of my favorites from 2011 that I love for the colors. Some photos were taken near while others far away. Click the photos to view in a slideshow lightbox.

Hemaris thysbe (hummingbird moth) visits the liatris ligulistylus in my meadow garden.

Zinnias in my cottage garden.

Fiery colors at Dole® Plantation in Hawaii.

Luxembourg Gardens in Paris, France.

Leopard's Bane in a garden in Paris, France.

Pink prevails in my deer resistant meadow garden in June.

Rich red monarda 'Jacob Cline' in my east garden.

Blue nigella and pink autumn sage in my cottage garden.

Battery Park in New York City.

In a North Carolina public garden.

Bright colors in my meadow garden.

Stipa (grass) and spirea (shrubs) in my front deer resistant  garden.

Ring around my sundial in my cottage garden.

Agastache, flax and salvaia in my deer resistant meadow garden.

Larkspur and rose campion in my cottage garden.

Words and photos by Freda Cameron, Defining Your Home, Garden and Travel. Deer and rabbit resistance varies based upon the animal population and availability of food. All company or product or patented names mentioned are registered trademarks, copyrights, or patents owned by those respective companies or persons.

Cooking is right up there with gardening and travel. The experience alone is rewarding and the result is usually satisfying. There are times when I love to spend hours in the kitchen purely for the creative outlet and enjoyment. I'd love to cook from scratch more often, but with only two in our empty nester household and a desire to remain healthy, I seldom make "big meals" anymore.

My pent up need to cook was released the other day when I decided to make a frittata for dinner, using an early birthday gift from my husband. I tend to use recipes as a loose guide to cooking unless baking a cake where ingredients and measurements must be precise. For most main courses, I add, subtract and substitute ingredients according to whim.

With that flexibility in mind, I embarked on making a frittata with the gift, a Calphalon Unison Slide Nonstick Fritta Pan Set from Williams-Sonoma®. In the past, I've used the stovetop to start a frittata and the oven to finish it. Nothing wrong with that method, but I was never sure if I was undercooking or overcooking the frittata. With the pan set, I can flip the frittata several times to finish the cooking.

A frittata is an egg-based Italian dish that I prefer to make instead of individual omelets and without the fuss of crust or calories of a quiche. Although we like our frittata served hot, it is often served at room temperature.

I have scanned through hundreds of frittata recipes published on the Web and buried in the pages of printed cookbooks in my kitchen for ideas. Once you master the cooking method, you can be creative and use the ingredients that you choose to combine.

Caramelized onions! Oh my, how I love the flavor, so reminiscent of onion tarts in France. With that ingredient on my short list, I started with the Wilted Greens and Gruyère Frittata as the basis for my experiment in mastering the art of flipping a frittata in the pan set without dashing the mixture all over the stovetop.

Thinly sliced yellow onions are required for proper caramelization. I tend to literally cry over this chore, rendering myself too blind to read the recipe while I recover. Using my mandoline makes quick work of onion slicing, producing only a teardrop or two from my eyes while delivering perfectly thin slices. This manual device is worth the investment for anyone who wants to turn out mounds of julienned, cubed or sliced veggies.

V-Blade mandoline produces thin slices of onion in a flash.

Cook onion slices slowly to caramelize. You can make these a day ahead and store in airtight jar in the fridge.

Almost caramelized, not burned. I used the deep pan in the frittata set for prepping the onions and sautéing mushrooms and wilting Swiss chard.

To caramelize onions takes an hour and patience. The slow cooking and light browning makes the onions quite sweet, a perfect compliment for the gruyère cheese. These onions are also wonderful for omelets, quiches, savory tarts and pizzas. The good news is that you can prepare the onions in advance. The onions must be cooled before adding to the whisked eggs in the recipe.

I altered the recipe with sautéed shiitake, oyster and baby bella mushrooms. I simply wiped out the pan to sauté the mushrooms once the onions were finished. The recipe also calls for wilted Swiss chard, and I used the same deep side of the frittata pan. If you want to use meat in this recipe, bacon is a good choice. Brown the bacon ahead of time, cool and crumble for delightful flavor.

The frittata cooking in the deep pan for 7-10 minutes.

After whisking eggs and adding all of the cooled ingredients, the mixture is poured into the deep pan. Using a spatula, you have to gently stir the raw eggs quickly at first before they firmly set. This ensures even cooking. Cook over medium heat for 7-10 minutes.

The preheated and seasoned shallow pan is then placed on top, interlocking the rectangular handles. This is where the fun starts as you must swiftly flip the pans so that the deep pan is then on top and the shallow pan on the bottom. Cook for three minutes longer, then flip the frittata back into the deep side.

Pans are used in unison to flip the frittata. 1. Put shallow pan on top, then flip. Cook 3 minutes. 2. Flip to put deep side back on the bottom.

The frittata is ready!

With a rubber spatula, I gently loosened the edges. The frittata slipped right onto the plate without sticking to the pan.

The frittata was so delicious for dinner! It also refrigerated well and we microwaved individual slices for breakfast and another dinner the follow day. We still didn't finish it! This easily serves six generous slices for a main course or eight slices as a side dish.

I plan to make a frittata for an upcoming brunch to save time and serve more people at one time. Of course, I have a few ideas for other ingredients to use in the next frittata.

As for the flipping—I spilled only a little bit of egg on my first flip of the pans! From now on, I'll have no fear of flipping.


Disclaimer: I assure you that this story is not a paid advertisement, but I am a satisfied customer of Williams-Sonoma® and linked to their site to reference the products that I used to make this recipe. Nothing mentioned has been provided for free.

Words and photos by Freda Cameron, Defining Your Home, Garden and Travel. All company or product or patented names mentioned are registered trademarks, copyrights, or patents owned by those respective companies or persons.

Drifts of snow white blanket the cottage garden in December. On a sunny winter day, the few remaining pollinators buzz among the blossoms. So far undaunted by frost, Sweet Alyssum 'Carpet of Snow' still flourishes.The honey fragrance of the blooms makes it nearly impossible to resist picking a stem to deeply inhale the scent. Braving the cold morning, I snapped a few photos of the alyssum, just before the sun warmed up the garden.

Sweet Alyssum 'Carpet of Snow' (8:00 am, December 3, 2011)

Alyssum with burgundy leaves of loropetalum. (December 3, 2011)

I sow seeds the tiny seeds of Sweet Alyssum (lobularia maritima) from October through March. Known as a cool climate annual, the small investment in seeds was worth the effort here in zone 7b of North Carolina.My cottage garden is a micro-climate more like zone 8a.

The alyssum patches spread remarkably wider in 2011 compared to 2010 and I believe this is due to some self-sowing.  The height is relatively low, less than twelve inches. Beginning in April, the fresh and new alyssum sprouts bloom and they gradually spread over the next few months.

The focus of my mass plantings is an edge of the cottage garden path that is seldom seen until September. The heaviest blooms crank up from September until...we shall see!

During the hottest, scorching months, I grow taller annuals and perennials to shade the south side of alyssum. The blooms take a break on the hottest days, but the foliage is still lush until re-bloom. I've found the annual to be remarkably drought-tolerant and rabbit resistant. Given that the rabbits haven't touched the alyssum, I've sown seeds outside the fence in deer territory. I'm optimistic that the annual will be deer resistant.

I am so enamored by alyssum that I have already sown seeds in a new cottage garden bed that is based upon white with nandina 'Alba', phlox 'David' and a few other favorites.

Alyssum is the perfect plant for hiding the stems and ankles of taller plants. I've given thought to growing this versatile annual in so many spots! It is a wonderful companion for annual dianthus and verbena 'Imagination' as both are still blooming on this December morning.

With the low cost of seeds, the many months of blooms, fragrant scent and food for pollinators, Sweet Alyssum 'Carpet of Snow' has earned a permanent place in my garden.

Annual dianthus, verbena 'Imagination' as companions. (September 2011)

Alyssum and tender perennial/annual salvia 'Victoria'. (August 2011)

Alyssum blooms are fewer and smaller in the heat of July.

In the beginning. The first white blooms of Sweet Alyssum in May 2011. (Lower left hand corner)

Words and photos by Freda Cameron, Defining Your Home, Garden and Travel. Deer and rabbit resistance varies based upon the animal population and availability of food. All company or product or patented names mentioned are registered trademarks, copyrights, or patents owned by those respective companies or persons.

Yellow yarrow (achillea), Purple salvia 'Caradonna' and Nepeta 'Six Hills Giant' Achillea, salvia and nepeta are three easy perennials for a colorful combination. While I'm fond of purple and yellow/gold, there are other colors of achillea and salvia that pair well. The nepeta is just a great all-round companion for many designs. When walking through my garden on this rather warm November day, the basal foliage of all three plants was easily recognizable. Seeing these hardy favorites today was a reminder to spread the word to other gardeners. The yarrow and nepeta are easy to divide and the salvia 'Cardonna' is a self-sowing favorite.  Would you believe—there are still a few remaining blooms on the nepeta in my cottage garden! Deer, rabbits and drought don't faze this plants. Plant all three in the spring in full sun. Well-drained soil is important to keep the plants happy. Achillea 'Moonshine' zones 3-9 Salvia 'Caradonna' zones 4-8 Nepeta 'Six Hills Giant' zones 3-8 Words and photos by Freda Cameron, Defining Your Home, Garden and Travel. Deer and rabbit resistance varies based upon the animal population and availability of food. All company or product or patented names mentioned are registered trademarks, copyrights, or patents owned by those respective companies or persons.

My cousins and their husbands. Blowing Rock, North Carolina. January 2011.

Family dinner at home. March 2011.

Me, Richard meet up with SlowTravel friends in Paris. David, writer & wife Nancy, translator; Shannon, GrapeHops. April 2011.

Writer Kristin & husband Jean-Marc Espinasse at their vineyard, Domaine Rouge-Bleu. Saint-Cecile les Vignes, Provence, France. April 2011.

Happy in home & garden. May 2011.

Exploring Reynolda Gardens, Winston-Salem, NC. June 2011.

Visiting the Duke Lemur Center. July 2011. Richard & I now volunteer to help with the data.

Boys from Carolina (Richard on upright bass). Roost, Fearrington Village, NC. July 2011

North Carolina Coast at Fort Fisher. August 2011.

Wedding of Chris (son) & Nicole. Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. October 16, 2011.

Thanks to all of the gardeners, travelers and other readers
who visit my blog.

Words and photos by Freda Cameron, Defining Your Home, Garden and Travel. All company or product or patented names mentioned are registered trademarks, copyrights, or patents owned by those respective companies or persons.

Nandina domestica 'Alba' November 15 2011

With the arrival of cool autumn days, creamy white berries drop in weighty clusters on nandina domestica 'Alba'. This variant sport may be difficult to locate in nurseries, but should you stumble upon it, it's a great cultivar.

This nandina, as with most plants that come to my garden, had to pass the deer resistant test in order to have a permanent location outside of my cottage garden fence. Unfortunately, deer eat nandinas. Don't let anyone convince you otherwise.

For at least four years, I have grown the 'Alba'  outside my fence. Every winter the deer devoured the foliage. The deer will literally eat nandina down to stems and stubs. It's sad to see, but the shrubs do bounce back. The nandinas sprouted new foliage every spring and were fine in the summer. That said, they were never going to be fully enjoyed or allowed to mature with the yearly winter feast.

Over the last few months, I have moved all of my nandinas (I have one other variety, 'Gulf Steam') to locations inside my cottage garden for more enjoyment. I had to first remove a few other shrubs to make the space.  The changeover has now been completed.

Nandina 'Alba' is a great evergreen shrub for zones 6-9 and can handle sun to part shade. Though it is drought tolerant, the nandina responds well to some pampering.  I can't report on foliage color changes due to the deer dining, but in the summer, the leaves have a wonderful blue-green tint.

I love to underplant shrubs, so I am keep my 'Alba' nandinas trunk-pruned like small trees. Only two of my three nandinas survived the deer destruction.

I transplanted one to a small spot beside a stone fence corner and the gable gate to the cottage garden. The nandina replaced a phlox whose color had changed from purple to salmon pink. It is underplanted with ajuga repans 'Chocolate Chip' that holds up well in summer droughts and doesn't spread as enthusiastically as other varieties. This ajuga has dark leaves and blue blooms in spring. I chose to underplant the nandina with this ajuga (also moved from another part of the garden) because there are blue-blooming geranium 'Brookside' along this same path.

The poor little deer-devoured nandina (now beside the stone corner column) deserved to be protected. November 2011.

Given another chance, the nandina is underplanted with ajuga repans 'Chocolate Chip'. November 2011.

The second nandina replaced a large 'Royal Red' buddleia that was taking up too much space within the confines of the cottage garden. I have an abundance of buddleia in the deer resistant gardens, so I won't miss the shrub that I removed.

This nandina is planted beside the bridge to the stream. I added lots of good soil and compost and smoothed the area. With the large oakleaf hollies backing this area on the outside of the fence, I'm going with a white-flower theme.

An underplanting of seeds includes white snapdragon 'La Bella White' and my favorite sweet alyssum 'Carpet of Snow.' I usually plant snapdragons and alyssum in the spring, so this is a fall sowing experiment.

To the sides of this nandina, I sowed seeds of black peony poppy for spring drama, to be pulled out for summer when a division of phlox paniculata 'David' will bloom along with the alyssum. The snapdragons, phlox and alyssum are fragrant.

As gardeners, we show patience and optimism as we plan and create new garden areas and wait months or years for the results.

The new bed will include fragrant white phlox, sweet alyssum and snapdragons for 2012. November 2011.

Words and photos by Freda Cameron, Defining Your Home, Garden and Travel. Deer and rabbit resistance varies based upon the animal population and availability of food. All company or product or patented names mentioned are registered trademarks, copyrights, or patents owned by those respective companies or persons.

A little rearranging and tweaking of existing plants evolved into a favorite combination. Inspired by lilies combined with monarda, I tucked my oriental 'Starfighter' lily up against my monarda (bee balm) 'Raspberry Wine' to replicate the garden inspiration. The two create a color echo with the raspberry color of the bee balm echoed by the throat of the lily.

In April, I transplanted 'Starfighter' to the new location. It is related to 'Stargazer' and that variety will provide a similar look. Oriental lilies are best moved from mid-September through mid-October, but moving the lily in the spring didn't deter the bloom.

Knowing that there are no guarantees with bloom times, I hoped for at least a week of overlap of the bee balm and the lily bloom.  The bloom times weren't synchronized but, I was not disappointed with the results because there was another plant that worked just as well!

The lily is fronted by the pure white snowballs of 'David' phlox paniculata and purple coneflowers. This was the first bloom season for the phlox, so the blooms were a bit sparse. That said, 'David' kept blooming and blooming as long as I kept deadheading.

'Starfighter' Lily with 'David' Phlox and 'Prairie Splendor' Echinacea. July 2011.

One month prior to the lily blooms. June 2010. Monarda 'Raspberry Wine', Phlox 'David, Echinacea 'Prairie Splendor'. Loropetalum shrub foliage in lower left corner. (The lily blooms where I've placed my name in the photo.)

My photos of the combination are few because we experienced many days around 100° F during the July blooms. Trust me, the phlox and lily are fabulous companions.

There is another bonus by pairing the 'David' phlox and 'Starfighter' lily. Both are very fragrant and can be cut for flower arrangements.

To replicate variations of my combination, here's the scoop:

Oriental 'Starfighter' Lily; zones 4-9; 36-48" high.
Phlox paniculata 'David'; zones 4-8; 36-48" high.
Monarda 'Raspberry Wine'; zones 4-9; 30-36" high.
Echinacea 'Prairie Splendor'; zones 3-8; 24" high.

I grow all four in full sun in the location shown in my photos. I also grow all four perennial in part shade with success. Rabbits will eat the phlox and echinacea. I have to protect the phlox and coneflowers with rabbit repellent. Deer will eat the phlox and lily, so protect accordingly. This combination is inside my fenced cottage garden.

Wide view shows 'Happy Returns' daylilies, loropetalum shrub, liatris 'Kobold', perennial heliotrope.

Words and photos by Freda Cameron, Defining Your Home, Garden and Travel. Deer and rabbit resistance varies based upon the animal population and availability of food. All company or product or patented names mentioned are registered trademarks, copyrights, or patents owned by those respective companies or persons.

Food truck dining is taking the Triangle Area of North Carolina by storm. Foodies make a game of finding new and exciting food trucks. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks and late night options are flexible and fun while the prices are reasonable. The Parlour Ice Cream truck parked behind the Chirba Chirba Dumplings Truck. At MotorCo in Durham. Roving diners search out trucks for simple fare, the unusual or to satisfy sweet cravings. Want a homemade pimento cheese sandwich with a side of tomato soup? Find the Grilled Cheese Bus. Got a thing for caramel? Try a caramel apple cupcake at Daisy Cakes followed by salted butter caramel ice cream from The Parlour! Chirba Chirba Dumplings Truck. The best thing about dining from a food truck? These are LOCALLY owned and operated. In fact, my husband and I were so impressed by the many young adult owners and operators. If these folks were trying to establish a bricks-and-mortar restaurant, the cost and risk would be high. This new trend is an affordable option for breaking into the restaurant business. These friendly entrepreneurs conjure up beverages, pizzas, sliders, ethnic foods and more. Young culinary artists craft their food with a passion for quality. The results are delicious! The long lines that form outside the trucks are proof of popularity of this new food scene. The epicenter of food trucks is Durham, located west of Raleigh and north of Chapel Hill, between Interstates 40 and 85. While it is easy to find these cities on a map, the trucks are always on the move throughout the entire Triangle area. They often show up in smaller towns such as Hillsborough, Carrboro and Pittsboro. To find the names of trucks to follow on Twitter® use the search term “Durham food trucks.” As food trucks are quickly gaining popularity across all of North Carolina, check Twitter for trucks in the cities where you live or visit. The trucks typically “tweet” their location several hours or days ahead of schedule. Most maintain regular stops, but schedules are subject to change as museums, farmer’s markets, local events and private parties invite the popular food trucks to serve their attendees or guests. If you’re lucky, you may find a “food truck rodeo” or “roundup” where multiple trucks gather at the same place. There is camaraderie among the truck owners who cheerfully recommend other favorite food trucks. The trucks sometimes organize their menus around a theme, such as chocolate! Do you want a spicy, sweet chili chocolate crepe? Really. Parlez-vous Crepe did that! Parlez-vous Crepe was in Carrboro during our visit.  A Sampling of Triangle Area Food Trucks on Twitter®: Bluesky Dining @blueskydiningnc Bulkogi @ncbulkogi Chirba Chirba Dumplings @ChirbaChirba Bike Coffee @bikecoffeedrm Daisy Cakes @daisycakesnc Dang Good Dogs @DangGoodDogs Don’s Classic Ices @donsclassicices Farmhand Foods @farmhandfoods Grilled Cheese Bus  @grilldcheesebus   Indian Food Truck @IndianFoodTruck KoKyu BBQ @KoKyuBBQ Locopops @locopops Onlyburger @onlyburger Parlez-vous Crepe @parlezvouscrepe Pie Pushers @piepushers Slippin Sliders @slippinsliders The Parlour Ice Cream @parlourdurham Valentino Truck @valentinotruck Will and Pops @willandpops Not all Food Trucks are trucks. Bike Coffee set up at Motor Co in Durham. They are going to be pedaling a bike! I received no free food, pay or incentives for writing this story. However, I dined well!  Words and photos by Freda Cameron, Defining Your Home, Garden and Travel.  All company or product or patented names mentioned are registered trademarks, copyrights, or patents owned by those respective companies or persons.