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So far Cassie Bailey has created 115 blog entries.

Gardens in Poughkeepsie

Gardens in Poughkeepsie Are you interested in gardening? Do you enjoy sowing the seeds and watching as things grow? Have you experienced the joys of harvesting fresh flowers and vegetables? Or perhaps you are one of those who can’t keep a plant alive for very long, and would rather just admire someone else’s green thumb by taking a garden tour. Either way, May is a good time to get out there and start your plantings or take a walk through the irises. So let’s take a look at some gardens that were once a part of Poughkeepsie’s landscape, and hopefully this will inspire you to get out there and start your own. Back in the era before refrigerators and ice boxes, the home garden was more than just a thing of beauty to enjoy, it was essential to life. Vegetable gardens would be planted and harvested and then the bounty placed in jars to be saved throughout the winter. We can see in some of our photographs taken by Frank B. Howard, that there were plenty of backyard vegetable gardens within the city in the 1920’s. To have a flower garden or an ornamental garden was certainly a luxury. Some of

Gardens in Poughkeepsie2023-05-19T12:53:14-04:00

What’s Cooking Blog – Entry #29: April Showers….

What’s Cooking Blog – Entry #28: April Showers…. While April showers do bring some edible flowers, foraging takes a little research. Many plants have medicinal properties if prepared correctly but it’s important to verify what parts of the plant can be eaten or served. Be aware that SOME PARTS OF PLANTS ARE POISONOUS if they’re eaten OR touched. If that didn’t totally deter you but you haven’t curated a private garden of Edible Plants yet, choose where to source them carefully. The florist probably isn’t the best place to do your grocery shopping. To keep flowers looking beautiful indoors chemicals are often used to maintain their shelf-life, literally. The vast sea of clover or dandelion you rode past on you last bike ride may be equally disconcerting. The flowers you see along the side of the road may be exposed to car exhaust, high volumes of pedestrian traffic and yes, some of those greens wear byproducts from [wo]man’s best friend. Woof! If you’re not quite ready to experiment with Cooking (Flowers), you might want to try using an alternate Flour. To lightly dust the surface, flour can be made from teff, buckwheat, sorghum, whole and ancient grains. Other naturally gluten-free, non-wheat

What’s Cooking Blog – Entry #29: April Showers….2023-05-18T11:46:08-04:00

J. Schrauth’s Sons: Poughkeepsie’s Ice Cream Makers

Schrauth’s Sons: Poughkeepsie’s Ice Cream Makers “I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream!” It is getting to be that time of year where we are eager for that delicious cold snack: ice cream! In these modern times we have many options to choose from when it comes to deciding where and how to get our ice cream. At the grocery store the frozen section has everything from store brands to the trusted favorites like Friendly’s and Ben & Jerry’s. If you are a true local, then you know that Stewarts has some of the best ice cream around. We can even make our own ice cream at home with a little bit of salt, ice, cream, sugar, and flavoring. For almost a century, Poughkeepsie had its own ice cream manufacturer with an amazing shop for all of your confectionary needs. The company began as a humble bakery owned and operated by Jacob Schrauth, who at the age of 20, came over from Germany and worked his way up as a baker’s apprentice in New York City, before eventually operating a bakery of his own here in 1866. By the late 1890’s, both of Jacob’s sons had entered into

J. Schrauth’s Sons: Poughkeepsie’s Ice Cream Makers2023-05-05T09:58:38-04:00

What’s Cooking Blog – Entry #28: Money Smart Eats

What’s Cooking Blog – Entry #28: Money Smart Eats One morning we unanimously agreed our coffee was too strong. Since that day, I’ve cut back to grinding almost half the beans for the same amount of water, resulting in a more palatable cup. A silver lining to this solution is that it indirectly saves money, too. The week following our small change happened to coincide with Money Smart Week. In lieu of National Financial Literacy Month, New York State sent the public library assorted materials suggesting a few ways residents might save money. Tangentially, and/or maybe because of this coincidence, I couldn’t stop thinking about how much we spend on groceries. Aware of continuously rising prices (for everything!) I was determined to try to cut our meal expense and prep time while also sustaining the quality of food we eat. As I looked for insight into smarter spending habits, Googling ‘how much X-number of people should spend on groceries per month’, bargain shopping and budgeting, I’m pretty sure I chose this month’s cookbook for its title. Don’t judge, it’s never too late to learn how to start saving money.  Title of Cookbook: Five-Ingredient Dinners: 100+ Fast, Flavorful Meals. Author of

What’s Cooking Blog – Entry #28: Money Smart Eats2023-05-01T16:39:43-04:00

Percival Lloyd

Percival Lloyd If you haven't had a chance to attend one of our Academy Street Walking Tours, your first chance for the season will be May 20 (be sure to check your Rotunda newsletter and sign up when registration begins, as spots fill up quickly). The tour takes patrons on a journey down this historic and architecturally significant street, where we discuss some of the interesting characters that once called it home. Since we can not cover every house on the street in one brief walking tour, we thought we would mention one of the beautiful homes that we don’t see on the tour in this week’s blog post. Designed in 1900 by Percival Lloyd, 151 Academy Street is not as old as some of the others, but it certainly has character. Lloyd was born here in Poughkeepsie on January 28, 1872 and studied at the Riverview Military Academy. He began his career around 1891 by working as a draftsman in the firm of one of the city’s finest architects, Arnout Cannon, Jr. He was no doubt inspired by the works that Cannon had created during the course of his career, and it didn’t take long before Lloyd was made a

Percival Lloyd2023-03-31T13:28:10-04:00

Ellen C. Roosevelt: An Early Legend of Tennis

Ellen C. Roosevelt: An Early Legend of Tennis It’s Women’s History Month, so we thought we would spotlight a local lady who inspired young women to get out and play tennis in the 19th century. Even if you don’t know anything about tennis, you’ve probably heard of some of the big names of female players today, like Venus and Serena Williams, or Billie Jean King. These women are powerhouses on the court, but they have the benefit of wearing modern day shoes and light attire. Now, if you were hitting the tennis ball around in 1890, you played on grass, your shoes had a bit more of a heel, and you wore things like a corset and a long skirt. Ellen C. Roosevelt not only accomplished this feat, but she won her share of championships. Ellen was born into wealth in 1868 as the daughter of John and Ellen Roosevelt. Ellen and her older sister Grace learned how to play tennis in the 1870s after their father had a tennis court built on their family’s estate. They lived in Rosedale, a beautiful mansion located on the border of Hyde Park and the Town of Poughkeepsie on the North Road. Both of

Ellen C. Roosevelt: An Early Legend of Tennis2023-03-17T10:33:14-04:00

What’s Cooking Blog – Entry #27: Sowing the Seeds

What’s Cooking Blog – Entry #27: Sowing the Seeds In 2021 four libraries in the Mid-Hudson Library System (MHLS) piloted a grant-funded service called “The Library of Local.” The service focused on gardening, foraging, and making resources available such as seeds, curated books, and programming offered by local experts. It has been recognized as an invaluable asset by providing knowledge to augment the communities’ ability to increase their own food security. Despite the pandemic, the service has blossomed and is now being offered by 15 member libraries. If this piques your curiosity, try searching the keyword “tools” in the online catalog then narrow those results by format to “equipment.” Poughkeepsie Public Library District (PPLD) is hoping to plant roots with a similar program. At this time, our new Seed Sowing Center offers kits with five packets of vegetables, annual flowers, herbs or a mixed grab bag. Read about the burgeoning service available in PPLD’s Library of Things. Keep in mind not all programs are organized the same way. This free service is a work in progress with creative ways for its evolution already in conversation. Imagine the possibilities… Title of Cookbook: Indoor Kitchen Gardening: Turn Your Home into a Year-Round

What’s Cooking Blog – Entry #27: Sowing the Seeds2023-03-15T11:41:04-04:00

The Stove: Center of the Home

The Stove: Center of the Home If you enjoy cooking or baking, then you understand the importance of having a good stove. We live in a time of modern conveniences and technologies that help make our cooking experiences easier. We have so many gadgets to choose from: crockpots, air-fryers, toaster ovens, electric and gas stoves, induction stoves, various forms of outdoor grills and (for lazy folks) microwaves. These devices are designed to cook our food faster, or with little effort so that we can enjoy our meals and carry on with the rest of our day. Now imagine living in the 19th century. Whether you were a housewife, a servant, or a cook in a restaurant, making the daily meals would not just keep you busy, it would take up much of your day. Prior to 1790, households relied mostly on open hearths or large indoor fireplaces, with bake ovens cut into the brickwork alongside. Smoke in the household was a common annoyance until the invention of the kitchen range by Sir Benjamin Thompson. Thompson discovered that by adding a choke to the chimney, the smoke would exit the chimney faster while the heat lingered longer, thus changing the chimney design.

The Stove: Center of the Home2023-03-03T12:47:48-05:00
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