Beach Mode

Just a quick post because I'd forgotten how absolutely gorgeous this local beach spot can be. Washington Oaks Gardens State Park is absolutely gorgeous, and we frequently visit there for a peaceful walk through the gardens before letting the kids run wild on the playground.  Directly across A1A, the park has parking for beach access to one of the most beautiful parts of the beach in Flagler County.  

At $5 per car load, you can park, and walk onto the largest beach in the county.  Due to close waters and erosion, no where else in Flagler County can you enjoy such a vast expanse of sand before reaching the water. 

The kids love to run wild and free here, as well as carefully climb over the huge rock mounds, exploring the the holes containing an assortment of snails and crabs.  

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Watermelon Rind Pickles

Pickles are probably one of my favorite foods.  I love them.  I've even been known to keep the jar once all the pickles are gone so that I can drink the juice.  Some people may think that's gross, and that's fine. After all, it means more pickles for me!

When I heard about Watermelon Rind Pickles, I was skeptical.  It just sounded unnatural, but....it's not.  Back in the day it was common.  Nothing went to waste, not even watermelon rinds.

These pickles are have a sweet spice to them due to the allspice, which compliments the watermelon quite nicely according to my taste testing guinea pigs here at home.

   

So, let's get to the recipe.

You will need:

watermelon rinds (I used half a watermelon worth)

2 tablespoons salt

1 cup apple cider vinegar

1 cup water

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 tablespoons pickling spice

1/2 tsp allspice


Peel the green skin off the rinds, and slice into 1" strips.  Mine were apporoximately 3-4 inches long.

Boil rinds until they begin to look translucent and feel slightly tender.  Drain and let cool.

Combine remaining ingredients in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil until sugars have dissolved.

Place cooled rinds into mason jars, and pour the pickling liquid over the rinds, just covering them with the liquid.

Enjoy your pickles after a few hours of refrigeration.  Pickles should last up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator.

Tried it?  Let me know what you think in the comments section!

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Manual Mode

I've been taking as many steps as possible to help myself slow down this summer:

Completely shifting TheWildFolkCo away from social media and turning it into a hobby, rather than a business.

Forcing myself to take the time to sit and pre-read this term's upcoming books.

Taking time for grounding outside every day.  Never heard of grounding?  It's also called Earthing and is based on the premise that our bodies and cells have electrical energy, and just like we ground electrical outlets to avoid the buildup of excess charge, our bodies need to be grounded as well.

I've even gone so far as to trade my smart phone in for a flip phone, and while I'm not sure that's going to last long (more on that in another post), it has been a wonderful detox.

After 5 years of owning a dslr, I've finally found the time to work on learning how to use it in manual mode.  I'll admit, part of me can't get past the whole idea that if auto mode knows what the settings should be, why not just use auto?  It has been challenging, and I still have a long way to go, but I'm getting there.

It also helps that I have the cutest test subjects.

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