Country living

With Joss Stone singing “Big ol’ Game”, we turned onto the small road. That meant – it was only 10 minutes till the end. They put on their shoes as if almost ready to get out, so I locked the door just in case, and we sang together. Another turn and one more and there it was – the alley of those old trees that led to a week of magic.

It was just nine in the evening, but it was dark and you could feel fall coming. We got out of the car, and, although we agreed they would carry their own bags, they just run away, and for a moment I was left alone until I got some help from my friends.

I brought some boiled beans from home and baked them with prosciutto, garlic and herbs. We had fantastic fries with us, and I made big bowl of salad. And that was it: the beginning of country living. I did not want to do anything except eat, talk and drink wine. And we did.

We slept like babies and then the morning came – with sun was brighter than usual and the kids wanted to eat. We ate simple yoghurt, some bread and that was it. Fresh coffee and fresh air was all we needed.

I went to my car and took out the bags – five to be precise – and brought them into house. I unpacked every single thing, imagining what I would serve there and there and there. Lemonade would go there, salad there, creamy polenta in that big bowl, but the orange brown vase would decorate our dinner table every time we sat down. As I unwrapped all of the “HM Home” stuff I had with me, I was ready. Ready for the reason I came here – cook, cook and cook. And I did, starting with pancakes and waffles in the morning, mushrooms after a long walk in the forest, plum jams and cakes, saving the soon-to-end treats from the harvest.

I did what I never do – woke up every morning to jump (screaming like someone was killing me) into water that froze my ass off, but when I got out, I felt the most magical sensation of being alive and free. We went to forest, I picked blueberries and lingonberries for the kids to have at breakfast. We went mushroom picking to enjoy them in the evening. The kids tortured me with wanting to bake, help, mix and match everything I made, and I let them, since they will be our future. We licked every bone of the slow roasted rooster that died in the name of our pleasure, and when I cooked it, I was thankful for such an amazing opportunity to have something like that.

We all did our own things but reunited when it was time to set the table, eat, talk, laugh and clean. After dinner, we would go into the sauna and sweat like there was an extra jar of water within us, and the first thing back to house was to have something to eat. I sneaked out with my camera whenever possible to capture moments that no one usually sees. I made them pose, hold that box with lemonade, gather plums, and pose again with freshly boiled jam jars (that we will eat in winter).

Pictures, recipes and moments inspired by HM Home fall collection, by nature, by people, by wishes and by moments that just happen.

Make:
Ricotta with plums recipe here
Fall-off-the-bone rooster recipe here
Za’ atar beans recipe here
Forest mushroom “grubotto” recipe here
Countryside plum crumble pie recipe here
Overnight waffles with apples recipe here
Sweet and savoury popcorn recipe here
Edamame with soy recipe here
All grilled salad recipe here
Crispy zucchini sticks recipe here
”Cheat” burrata recipe here
”End of the summer” plum lemonade recipe here
Two way plum jam recipe here

Recipe and pictures: Signe Meirane
Camera: Sony Alpha 7s
Tableware, kitchenware, linen and decorations: HM Home