tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-69505653223435550642024-03-14T10:06:45.048-04:00Blue Viola FarmFarming is in my dna....my dad grew up on a farm, and his folks farmed through the industrial revolution. My mom grew up in the suburbs but her folks lived in a very self-sufficient way and she taught me the joys of cooking from scratch. I love exploring the old ways and discovered, in the process, eating gourmet foods on a shoestring and reclaiming my family's health...and my own...in the process. This is suburban homesteading at its finest.freemotionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10129588842227646172noreply@blogger.comBlogger149125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950565322343555064.post-81738703170586270382014-07-21T11:49:00.000-04:002014-07-21T11:49:33.081-04:00Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Home made ice cream is so delicious! And it can be made in such a way that it is suitable for breakfast, although I enjoy it as a high-energy snack mid-morning or mid-afternoon on a day when I have a lot of heavy work to do.</div>
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Our bodies convert good fats into energy very efficiently, and this recipe is loaded with good fats, in the raw cream from Jersey cows on pasture, egg yolks from hens on pasture, and in the organic coconut oil. Try not to substitute these ingredients if at all humanly possible. Great fats are one of the most critical missing ingredients in today's diets and worth the effort to source them.</div>
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Good fats won't make you fat. Carbs will. So this recipe is heavy on the fats and light on the carbs. Enjoy without guilt or fear.</div>
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Make the ice cream first, then while it is churning, whip up the chocolate topping. This topping will harden on the ice cream and will be reminiscent of the chocolate shell on a dipped cone, something I loved in my days of eating SAD (Standard American Diet) and still think longingly of now and then. No more reminiscing! This is so much better and has the same snap when bitten into.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVScELFedTohfmTObnwXv11mweuDMdqjORKTDJyyAXcB6_HkRTCh0sQe2kNsXGRMDwgxs24HO_SHnjvqc9VbN5w9n1KR6iopSKR5Z7KUDnHF4_Kc0wsharuzNwt9zHRilaeQsgGsw2CDWA/s1600/DSC_0023.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVScELFedTohfmTObnwXv11mweuDMdqjORKTDJyyAXcB6_HkRTCh0sQe2kNsXGRMDwgxs24HO_SHnjvqc9VbN5w9n1KR6iopSKR5Z7KUDnHF4_Kc0wsharuzNwt9zHRilaeQsgGsw2CDWA/s1600/DSC_0023.JPG" height="214" width="320" /></a></div>
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I don't measure anything when I make ice cream. I just go by general amounts and keep in mind the limits of my ice cream churn. I'll try to approximate for you. Remember, taste the batter and adjust before freezing it. The flavors will be more intense in the unfrozen batter, so make the flavor on the strong side so it will be delicious when frozen.</div>
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Since I have my own hens and my girls are on pasture, I don't worry about eating raw eggs. I choose very fresh and very clean eggs for this. If you are using eggs from the store, please look up instructions for a cooked ice cream recipe, which is basically a custard, and prepare this mixture using those instructions. Make it in advance and chill it for a few hours or overnight in the fridge before putting it in the churn. You might try using just the milk and maybe a bit of the cream when cooking the eggs, and reserve some of the cream to add after the custard is chilled so you can have the benefits of the raw cream if it is available to you.</div>
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For the batter, I put a cup of milk (goat's milk from my lovely girls) in the blender with 5 egg yolks. You can use 2-3 whole eggs if you are making a cooked custard. I have plenty of eggs so I use just the yolks, the most nutritious part of the egg. Also add a good dash of salt (Celtic, Real Salt, Himalayan pink salt, etc.), a glug of vanilla extract (one or two teaspoons) and a cup or more of organic peanut butter that is only peanuts and maybe salt. I get unsalted so I can use the good salt. Sweeten it lightly with raw wildflower honey or stevia extract (I use liquid stevia extract) to taste. I used a couple of droppersful of the stevia.</div>
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Whirl it in the blender until well mixed, then add 3-5 cups of heavy cream and just give it a quick burst of blending so as to just mix the cream in and not make it into butter.</div>
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Pour this into your churn of choice and let the freezing begin. <a href="http://www.amazon.com/KitchenAid-KICA0WH-Cream-Maker-Attachment/dp/B0002IES80/ref=sr_1_1?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1405956961&sr=1-1&keywords=kitchenaid+ice+cream+attachment" target="_blank">I use this one and love it!</a></div>
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While it is churning, make the chocolate shell topping. Either use a double boiler or simply put a stainless steel bowl on top of a small sauce pan of boiling water. Add a cup of organic coconut oil, the kind that is unprocessed and still retains all the yummy coconut flavor. Add organic cocoa powder to taste. I put in four very heaping spoonfuls, not a measuring spoon, but rather, the teaspoons from my flatware set. Add a dash of salt and whisk it until no cocoa powder remains visible. Then sweeten it to taste. I always add a bit of honey when sweetening chocolate, as stevia alone won't overcome the bitterness of the cocoa in my opinion. I used a tablespoon or two (I poured it, no measuring!) and then a couple of squirts from the stevia dropper. Add a teaspoon or more of vanilla and a tiny dash of salt and stir well, then taste. I like my chocolate dark, but you can make it any level of dark or sweet that you like best.</div>
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This size batch will make enough for reasonable amounts of chocolate for two 1.5-2 quart batches of ice cream. But who is reasonable with this stuff? So if you want to spoon this on rather generously, make this amount for one batch of ice cream. It also stores well in the fridge right in the stainless steel bowl, ready for tomorrow's batch of mint ice cream, or vanilla, or whatever you fancy.</div>
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Oh, my!</div>
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This was definitely a keeper and will be repeated. As a matter of fact, the hubby just came in with a bag containing 6 jars of peanut butter.....I think that is a hint for me to make more!</div>
freemotionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10129588842227646172noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950565322343555064.post-78403082744959215222014-06-22T22:34:00.000-04:002014-06-22T22:40:47.148-04:00Bonking Convenience<div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span class="userContent" data-ft="{"tn":"K"}">Blood. Everywhere. Everyone had blood on them. But who was wounded? </span><br />
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<span class="userContent" data-ft="{"tn":"K"}">Wait.....it just seems to be on their faces. All of them, even my sweet Nutmeg. Who was injured? Did they kill a coyote? It is a good thing I have a strong heart, because it was pounding. Hard.</span><br />
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<span class="userContent" data-ft="{"tn":"K"}">Then I saw it....a scur on the ground. Charm's scur. A scur is a twisted little bit of horn that grows back after an incomplete dehorning attempt when the goat is a few days old. I don't dehorn, but I have two goats that were purchased "disbudded" and who grew scurs.</span></div>
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<span class="userContent" data-ft="{"tn":"K"}"><span class="text_exposed_show">Apparently, he played a vigorous game of bonk with EVERYONE and knocked off a scur. Like most head/face wounds, it bled...and bled....and bled.</span></span><br />
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<span class="userContent" data-ft="{"tn":"K"}"><span class="text_exposed_show">Silly goats. I hope he knocks the other one off and takes Ginger's long scur with it.</span></span></div>
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This happened exactly two months ago, and the other scur has continued to grow ever since then. Although mostly harmless, scurs can be unsightly, or more importantly, they can become uncomfortable for the goat.</div>
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I admit I am squeamish about taking care of business and removing scurs.</div>
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My two goats with scurs, Ginger and Charm, both have been obliging enough to bonk their scurs off during rough play with their herd mates, letting me off the hook. As Charm conveniently did in April. I let this one go far too long, hoping, hoping, that he would give someone....or someone (Peach!) would give him just one good, solid, well-placed bonk and off that little hornlet would go. Instead, it grew in a circle and started to press on his head just over his eye. He started to look a bit uncomfortable.</div>
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I continued to find excuses to put the job off.</div>
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Finally, I contacted the local goat group forum and asked if I could pay someone to do my dirty work. All I got was lots of advice. Some of it good advice. All of it advice I'd rather pay someone else to carry out. Preferably when I was not at home.</div>
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Finally, I put on my Big Girl Panties and grabbed my very large and muscular husband and we dragged the milking stand out in the yard where we could both work around the goat's head. And possibly be arrested if our neighbors decided we were torturing our goat. By the time we were done, we'd have had some 'splainin' to do.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVf0ScTlCbNCUThyphenhyphengIW22ogAYYbeWUA5CK6aOa90CtALomyhwAWn4uvaaKvdVx-Sw6zjtYIqNaw_7vbr03JWly8awNBhtwuyiulP0MlYD8aT49T3XjskFDBbiKp0BBn3uKcMxqiqy3Vuov/s1600/DSC_0027.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVf0ScTlCbNCUThyphenhyphengIW22ogAYYbeWUA5CK6aOa90CtALomyhwAWn4uvaaKvdVx-Sw6zjtYIqNaw_7vbr03JWly8awNBhtwuyiulP0MlYD8aT49T3XjskFDBbiKp0BBn3uKcMxqiqy3Vuov/s1600/DSC_0027.JPG" height="214" width="320" /></a></div>
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Charm was relieved of his scur.<br />
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After getting him on the milking stand with some grain to entice him, hubby firmly grabbed Charm's face while I positioned the bolt cutters, planning on just trimming a bit off with the hopes that he would then bonk it off or get in caught in a fence and pull it off or other such weiny-whiny cop-out.</div>
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I closed the jaws of the cutters and...Charm gave a violent shake of his silly head and off came the entire scur.</div>
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Well, that was easy.</div>
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My handsome boy in the bloody aftermath. Please bonk the next one off. Please.</div>
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I spritzed it with Blue Kote and tossed some flour on it to slow the bleeding. The above photo was taken about 10 minutes later. So much for the flour.</div>
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He'll survive, and will be much happier if he isn't already. I, on the other hand, will be having a nice glass of liquid courage after the fact, a bit of home made mead from a couple of years ago.</div>
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It's a good thing he's cute!</div>
freemotionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10129588842227646172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950565322343555064.post-90337798912456830852014-02-09T14:01:00.001-05:002014-02-09T14:01:44.395-05:00Fermenting garlic and making airlock fermenting jarsThis past summer I was given a big basket of "scratch and dent" hardneck garlic. It needed to be processed fast, as it wouldn't keep. Hardneck garlic is not the type to keep a long time even in perfect condition, but it sure is easy to peel, and it is easier to grow in my neck of the woods.<br />
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Salting is one way that food was preserved in times past, as was fermenting. My Memere would salt scallions down in the spring, packing many, many chopped green onions into jars with thick layers of salt and storing them in the fridge (probably in the cellar before electricity and refrigeration was available on the farm) until fresh scallions were available the following spring.<br />
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In the days before industrialized food, pickled foods and condiments were fermented. Think sauerkraut. This was a way to have a high vitamin C food that would keep for months and could travel easily on ships, preventing scurvy on long voyages.<br />
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I combined these two methods to preserve my garlic, and it was a huge success. I still have a bit left and it is mid-February. Next year I'll put up more, since I do give some away.<br />
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Minced garlic ready to start fermenting.</div>
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You can buy ready made airlock jars for fermenting, but I just can't seem to look at anything without asking myself if I can make it. So I did. Since drilling the glass lids of my few precious Fido jars didn't seem like a good idea (although I asked around and it can be done, find someone who works with stained glass or maybe someone who repairs and replaces windshields on cars.) I used what I already had on hand from my wine making ventures.<br />
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Oh, and I did make a gallon of garlic wine for cooking, it is still bubbling away. Onion wine is fantastic to cook with, and I can't wait to try this one out.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy-tQ8EleDkeqGOQtQUMT9-_k8Nzvos-ILce4qR7N9HdIW73Zi7E0UrjaElRGSPLKj6_7c84tTWPrjfCevanYmPeNqSyuc_Oy1sTdZqa4O76qZHHCaInQsKANxEhmQt74tpXoEnkEDIaYG/s1600/PICT0086.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy-tQ8EleDkeqGOQtQUMT9-_k8Nzvos-ILce4qR7N9HdIW73Zi7E0UrjaElRGSPLKj6_7c84tTWPrjfCevanYmPeNqSyuc_Oy1sTdZqa4O76qZHHCaInQsKANxEhmQt74tpXoEnkEDIaYG/s1600/PICT0086.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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Drilled Tattler's reusable canning lid, airlock, grommet.</div>
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You can buy <a href="http://www.reusablecanninglids.com/" target="_blank">the plastic canning lids here, BPA-free.</a> The airlock and the grommet are available for about a buck, total, from any beer and wine making supply store. Google it. You might be surprised to find that there is one right down the street from you. The grommet is used to ferment a large batch of wine or beer in a five or six gallon pail with a hole drilled in the lid. The grommet goes in the hole, and the airlock goes in next. You fill the airlock with water to the fill line, and it will allow gasses to escape while keeping air and fruit flies out.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHuZaPVdkKlxgrZa1xazffKGC0OSkeK3zjYn-bQArQF90GJzx_gL0LTHdRt528_X_pnDUtvbODsi5moDZXvRFD956y-hrNPYNVW2qlNwMhhO4-fxE6zsR_vtnVIhQ7zRzLDiBqoRhrBjJW/s1600/PICT0085.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHuZaPVdkKlxgrZa1xazffKGC0OSkeK3zjYn-bQArQF90GJzx_gL0LTHdRt528_X_pnDUtvbODsi5moDZXvRFD956y-hrNPYNVW2qlNwMhhO4-fxE6zsR_vtnVIhQ7zRzLDiBqoRhrBjJW/s1600/PICT0085.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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My first attempts at drilling. Good thing these come in boxes of a dozen!</div>
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What we finally figured out with drilling the holes is that the lid needs to be clamped to a scrap of wood to hold it very still. A small pilot hole helps, too, before using the larger drill bit. The lids still had a tendency to crack, so be prepared for a learning curve.</div>
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Although not pictured here, there is also a red rubber gasket that comes with each lid, also to create a tight seal on the jar.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXnE0aGXAdFG3z_iHEKRSpX0WfHSn6H8xyGpifdbQ7C6KdXgr7C0aqYWapMSgEt4i5Cx9GfvnuA8M3X4f-GvpwdSIaJQEi-abp5rfYHxb8FdDNirXJMG1WI4CxxWU9VDah-fN_IFwaGk7B/s1600/PICT0073.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXnE0aGXAdFG3z_iHEKRSpX0WfHSn6H8xyGpifdbQ7C6KdXgr7C0aqYWapMSgEt4i5Cx9GfvnuA8M3X4f-GvpwdSIaJQEi-abp5rfYHxb8FdDNirXJMG1WI4CxxWU9VDah-fN_IFwaGk7B/s1600/PICT0073.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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Wash the peeled garlic and mince it in the food processor or with a sharp knife.</div>
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Fill the jars. The book is my copy of Nourishing Traditions, which has a recipe for fermented whole garlic. I leave out the whey and just use salt.</div>
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I put a spoonful of salt between each layer of garlic. I didn't measure, but I was generous. Anything I use garlic in will also be salted, so the amount was of no concern. This is salt we made on our woodstove from sea water.</div>
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Each layer was packed in carefully, squishing out any air bubbles. Leave an inch or two...or three...of headspace for expansion.</div>
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The lid and airlock were fitted on tightly, and the jars were labeled.</div>
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Overflow! Notice how the brine moved up into the airlocks.</div>
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Garlic is high in sugars and ferments rather vigorously! I left for a couple of appointments at my office and was back within four hours. I found garlic juice running across my counter and soaking wet....and rather fragrant....labels on my jars. I quickly cleaned it up and put the jars in a loaf pan and let them continue doing what they were obviously so good at doing.</div>
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Re-packed for storage, use, and gifting.</div>
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When the fermenting calmed down in a couple of days (this was during the hot days of summer, so fermentation tends to be faster in our non-climate-controlled house. It would take longer in cooler weather) I transferred the garlic into smaller jars that would be easier to use. </div>
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This project was such a success that it will be repeated next summer and I will attempt to make even more. It is very handy to have ready-to-use garlic in the fridge without spending money on chemical-laden stuff from the store. If you don't grow your own garlic, check in with your local farm stands and farmer's markets and see if you can get some in bulk. You may even get some scratch-and-dent garlic, like I did. This was simply heads of garlic that didn't properly develop the papery covering and thus would not store well at all. It was still perfectly good garlic.</div>
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I did get some "good" heads of the same garlic and planted it in a sunny location near my irises and in front of my grape arbor, so hopefully, come mid-summer, I'll be fermenting my own garlic. If it doesn't do well, I know exactly where to buy the best organic garlic in the area....Eddy Farm in Newington, CT. Get to know your local farmers and support them with at least part of your food dollars. It is so worthwhile!</div>
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And yummy!</div>
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freemotionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10129588842227646172noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950565322343555064.post-65976339026937871142014-01-26T23:16:00.002-05:002014-01-26T23:17:19.685-05:00Where's the beef? Right here!We ordered our beef, an entire cow this time. It was a smallish one, and the price was right, so we got the entire thing. <br />
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A cow is huge. Even a "smallish" one.<br />
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Especially when you ask for the organs, all the bones, the suet (which someone didn't arrive, I'll be on the search for it this week.) Our freezers are packed. We had to buy another one, and we still can't get all the beef inside. Fortunately...and this is the only reason I say this....we are dealing with some Artic weather and it is cold enough in the garage to call it our "walk-in freezer."<br />
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The most valuable and perishable cuts are all safely in the freezers. The steaks, roasts, organs, and the ground beef. The bones are in boxes and a few are in a stock pot, simmering away, on the stove.<br />
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I had to cook supper on the woodstove tonight, and I've never done that before. I've warmed things up and I made a fantastic pizza in it once and have roasted meat inside the stove, but the top is generally not hot enough. Since my gas stove was out of commission temporarily and we were getting hungry, I made up part of our dinner. I put some bacon bits in the cast iron frying pan and let them brown up, and put some cabbage in a covered sauce pan with some broth from the recent roast I cooked and put that on to simmer.<br />
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It took about an hour an a half to come to a simmer and for that dang bacon to brown. But in about two hours, we had something hot and delicious to eat.<br />
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A very simple, and usually quick, supper of bacon and greens, this time it was fresh cabbage.</div>
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The reason my stove was out of commission was that I am canning up 80 lbs of stew beef. I just upgraded my canners to All American and put 19 pints of beef in each, packed in jars while quite cold. It took a LONG time for these canners to start to steam. Especially the one on the right. I'd forgotten to turn the burner on. Sheesh.<br />
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These are some serious canners! The pot behind them is four gallons of simmering beef bone broth, also to be canned, probably tomorrow night.</div>
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I like to can some of our meat so we will have something quick and easy for those rushed nights. You know those nights....home from work late, chores to do, animals to feed, phone calls to return before 9, and it is too hot to spend much time in front of the stove (remember those days? We called that time "summer.") Canned meat is our answer to fast food. I will have 80 lbs of jarred beef and 20 lbs of jarred pork by the time I'm done. That is a year of quick meals, plus a few to share.</div>
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Buying our beef in bulk is a fantastic way to be able to afford very high quality and ethically raised meat. It takes some planning. In fact, I have to start all over now, saving up about $100 each month towards next year's beef. But that $100 per month turns into a value of $300 per month in great beef, or more, depending on the cut.</div>
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Yes, it can be very daunting at first, but when all that glorious meat is packed away in the freezer, that fear and intimidation is quickly replaced by a sense of wealth and security. If you haven't considered this before, consider it now. The farmer who dropped our beef off told me his buddy, who works in the meat department of a local grocery store, told him the better cuts of beef were going up in price this week, by $2 per lb.</div>
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That is what we paid, $2 per lb, hanging weight. For everything from shanks to filet mignon to brisket to T-bone steaks. And because of the drought conditions last summer in the Midwest, the price of beef is going up. Buying in bulk is truly price protection. </div>
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Buying directly from the farmer is the best way to get food that is great for you AND your budget!</div>
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Don't know where to buy? A great resource is <a href="http://www.westonaprice.org/local-chapters/find-local-chapter" target="_blank">your local chapter</a> of the Weston A. Price Foundation. The leader of your local chapter will provide you with a list of farmers who raise animals on pasture, and will offer this information to you, free of charge, and you don't have to be a member! But do consider it, as this organization works hard to fight for the small family farmers who provide great food for us. </div>
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Meanwhile, pass me another medium-rare filet mignon, if you would....and some of that shiitake gravy, thank-you-very-much!</div>
freemotionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10129588842227646172noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950565322343555064.post-89180921783214516462014-01-07T05:11:00.000-05:002014-01-07T05:11:00.036-05:00I finally got my dream sewing machine! <br />
Here it is, my "new" Singer!<br />
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Ain't she a beauty?</div>
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A few years ago I got it into my head that I wanted a sewing machine that was a treadle machine. These are the very old machines, pre-electricity, that were run with a cast iron foot peddle. I love the look and reputation of the Singer brand machines, so this is what I looked for online.</div>
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I answered an ad for a Singer in a treadle base, but by the time I could get to the ladies' house, she'd sold the one in the ad. However, she had a Singer treadle base with a Necchi machine from the 50's that could be worked over to fit in it. The belt to the motor could be removed and the belt to the treadle could run the Necchi.</div>
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I bought it. It wasn't my dream, but it was a start, and I have no patience. Just ask my husband.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9LCLaMz-m1dpARIJ1bkoVCN23yVj5Z-uhUI7fdAV5U3SVcNZTxtCJKCtkfQChVB82RPcEe9KeVF7nY2aB-P4a6P1WWHyFk4FxFe102C3JmOjsfbOuLAh2RBz7JoTfGoA2z5XOSlwKP7rb/s1600/DSC_0035.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9LCLaMz-m1dpARIJ1bkoVCN23yVj5Z-uhUI7fdAV5U3SVcNZTxtCJKCtkfQChVB82RPcEe9KeVF7nY2aB-P4a6P1WWHyFk4FxFe102C3JmOjsfbOuLAh2RBz7JoTfGoA2z5XOSlwKP7rb/s1600/DSC_0035.JPG" height="214" width="320" /></a></div>
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This machine has a motor, but it may have been added later.</div>
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I sewed a lot of projects on this older Necchi, and it is a fine machine. It even has zigzag capabilities, which the old machines don't have. Buttonholes need to be worked by hand, and forget sewing modern stretch materials on the older machines. But that is what my upstairs, electric, gear-driven Singer is for. A machine that can, as I was told by a friend who used to work and teach for Singer and is now in her 80's, sew through plywood. I'll remember that when we build our new buck house next summer.</div>
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It is the serial number that helps one determine the age of the machines. <a href="http://www.singerco.com/support/machine-serial-numbers/single-letter" target="_blank">Mine is from 1918.</a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP23rq763SInOOKl1Rb8GTwOGy8OK2MDVTRK2-NlRLoNN3f3YdcNQ9Mv_TB8ZSPp7qfnVH0aI8YTs89as3NKBOyANVvu9v0c-D_18PoFz02GSbqigfmlbWiDxXfgulJBbbp8jm3CYd2oPv/s1600/DSC_0041.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP23rq763SInOOKl1Rb8GTwOGy8OK2MDVTRK2-NlRLoNN3f3YdcNQ9Mv_TB8ZSPp7qfnVH0aI8YTs89as3NKBOyANVvu9v0c-D_18PoFz02GSbqigfmlbWiDxXfgulJBbbp8jm3CYd2oPv/s1600/DSC_0041.JPG" height="214" width="320" /></a></div>
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Was Singer putting motors on machines in 1918? Gotta do more research.</div>
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See the belt? I'll take that off and put the long, leather treadle belt on instead.</div>
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Isn't this lovely? I need to find out how to clean this. A modern machine would have a plain metal plate here. This one is gorgeous.</div>
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Now I have to open up this machine and clean it well, oil it, dig out the grease and re-pack it, then put it in the treadle base and start working on getting the tension adjusted. Then I'll sew a few cloth napkins from old flannel sheets for our everyday use, and a few dairy rags for next season's milking chores. This will give the machine time to release any oil or grease that I was too sloppy to notice and wipe up, before I start a more important project. I have window treatments planned, can't wait!</div>
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This is how our great-great-great-grandmothers occupied themselves during the long, snowy winters and rested up for the frenzy of spring on the farm. It is truly a satisfying and comforting hobby now, and makes me actually look forward to getting snowed in. Bring on the snow!</div>
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Do you have a creative outlet? Or a craft you'd like to learn?</div>
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freemotionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10129588842227646172noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950565322343555064.post-18930083114380365252014-01-06T05:39:00.000-05:002014-01-06T05:39:00.223-05:00Summer goat therapy<span class="userContent">The girls enjoying some time in the woods last August:</span><br />
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Nutmeg, growing like a weed.</div>
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Plum, Nutmeg's birth mom, and my lovely silken Princess.</div>
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Lily finds the best bits deep in the forest.</div>
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She can run, but she can't hide! Her color makes her the target of the other girls. Poor Lil.</div>
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It doesn't take long for goats to clear all the easily reached good stuff.</div>
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Peach adopted Nutmeg and cares for her like a daughter. She uses a tree to get some fine grape leaves.</div>
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I love the swirl on Nutmeg's side. Very slimming, don't you think?</div>
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Patch of sunlight in a clearing? Nope, its Lily!</div>
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Nutmeg has the kindest expression, all the time. Every other goat here loves her, too.</div>
freemotionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10129588842227646172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950565322343555064.post-45844378037015937132014-01-05T17:30:00.002-05:002014-01-05T17:31:32.231-05:00I'm baaaaaack...Yup, I'm back. It may be sporadic at first, no promises. Technology and I have a rather adversarial relationship. <br />
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We have a new computer and a new camera and I am slowly learning how to use both. To kick off 2014, here is an update on <a href="http://blueviolafarm.blogspot.com/2013/06/sweet-nutmeg.html" target="_blank">sweet Nutmeg, the doeling I kept this past spring.</a><br />
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Nutmeg, just over 8 months old. Still a cutie-pie!</div>
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Stay tuned for some winter projects and also for some backtracking as I find pictures from some of last summer's projects. This computer has a different opinion than I do as to where picture files should end up. As I find some of the images of cool projects, I'll post them. I especially want to find the pictures I took of our wood chip gardening project, which was an outrageous success.</div>
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Meanwhile, gaze at the adorable youngster above. Although she is old enough, officially, I will not breed her this winter. She gets another year to grow up. Unlike some of her previous sisters and cousins, she has a very "baby" look to her still, and has not yet developed the lanky, knobby appearance that a mature dairy doe gets. She is still my little fatty and I just can't resist squeezing her and giving her a big ol' smooch. Yes. On the lips. Her fuzzy little adorable smoochable lips.</div>
freemotionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10129588842227646172noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950565322343555064.post-9777161500633982952013-08-20T07:35:00.001-04:002013-08-20T07:35:18.264-04:00Clever dog<span class="userContent">I caught my old man dog, Gunnar, working on a sewing project yesterday morning. Although I miss having house cats, I don't miss them messing with my stuff, and putting things up high keeps the dogs out of them.....until now.....</span> <br />
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freemotionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10129588842227646172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950565322343555064.post-19935231709774516172013-08-16T05:56:00.000-04:002013-08-16T05:56:00.186-04:00Growing chicksWe've had 4 hens go broody so far this year....that is, they decided it was time to hatch eggs and hunkered down with determination. When this instinct, bred out of most modern hens, kicks in, the hen will stop laying eggs of her own and just work hard at hatching the eggs she is on. Her body temperature goes up, and for about three weeks she will leave the nest only about once a day to eat, drink, and eliminate....and what an eliminate it is! Broody poo is a huge, stinking pile that has been accurately describe as "epic."<br />
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Twenty chicks have been hatched so far, with only one loss in the first day. Two hens hatched six chicks each, and the other two hatched four each. The last hen to hatch was the one that lost a chick. There could have been something wrong with it, or she could have stomped on it. I saw her stomp another chick clumsily and she is a big girl, a Buff Brahma <a href="http://blueviolafarm.blogspot.com/2012/04/moving-chicks-outdoors.html" target="_blank">purchased last year</a> at the local feed store as a week old chick.<br />
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It seems like a different hen went broody about every three weeks or so, so each family of chicks is a different size, from teensy fluffballs to almost full grown. <br />
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This foursome was abandoned by their mother weeks ago. They are very independent.</div>
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Mama is still watching over these six, teaching them to forage and keeping them safe under her wings at night.</div>
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I love, love, love having so many broody hens raising chicks for us. No mess, no fuss, she does all the work, and really teaches them to find their own food. The hen above, with the six, rarely comes in for grain morning and evening. She is finding plenty and teaching her young 'uns how to successfully find their own food. This is the best thing about broody raised chicks!</div>
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I have one more hen hunkered down in a nest box, and tonight I will move her to a safe, isolated spot so she can safely sit on the eggs I'll give her tomorrow, once she's settled in and recovered from her move. Both of these tasks will be done at night, since chickens are night blind, so she won't fuss too much and won't realize until morning that she's been moved. At least it will seem like she doesn't know. She'll accept it, at any rate. She would be more likely to frantically try to get back to her original nest if I moved her in the daylight. And the silly thing is sitting on nothing, trying desperately to hatch....air! I'll give her some real eggs, fertile ones from our flock, and she'll be very content. </div>
freemotionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10129588842227646172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950565322343555064.post-71997746513674358142013-08-14T06:26:00.000-04:002013-08-14T06:26:00.169-04:00Grapes!Remember our <a href="http://blueviolafarm.blogspot.com/2012/05/spring-of-fruit.html" target="_blank">grape arbor project</a> last year? Look what happened in just one year!<br />
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Grapes! Glorious grapes!</div>
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Free grapes! Organic grapes! MY GRAPES!</div>
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Can you tell I'm excited about this project? I can't believe how this one little neglected vine has almost covered this 16x4' arbor in just a year. And is producing many pounds of grapes!</div>
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What will I do with all these grapes? I'm not sure yet. I'll let you know this fall, barring any fungus or insect or bird damage, when I harvest and taste and decide what they will become. Eat with some lovely home made goat Gouda? Make into a grape pie? Seed and freeze for future pies? Make into wine? We will see! Stay tuned, and meanwhile, look around your yard....can you squeeze in an arbor? They can be simple, like ours, or add an architectural and artistic element to a more formal, suburban yard. Add a table and chairs or even a hammock, and you also have an outdoor living space.</div>
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I even hang laundry on the small section that is not yet covered with vines when my lines can't hold all my wash for the week. I took the hubsters undies down for this photo, however.....</div>
freemotionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10129588842227646172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950565322343555064.post-26395492603708906172013-08-10T06:33:00.000-04:002013-08-13T15:28:56.453-04:00Bats in my belfry.....or.....Frogs in my cellar!<br />
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I found the first tiny frog in our unfinished, wet-with-a-sump-pump basement over 11 years ago when we first moved in. It was so beautiful, I thought it was a ceramic frog. I was so enthralled that I'd found this beautiful piece of art, left by a former owner. As I reached out to carefully pick it up, it jumped and stuck to the side of the freezer.<br />
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It was a wet summer and the frogs in the cellar multiplied this year, so I have to be careful where I step and how I pick things up, lest I accidentally squish a little beauty.<br />
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Sometimes they jump and land on my bare feet. It always startles me and I shake them off before I have time to realize that it is not a bug but the little rubbery frog feet. One day I'll have the control, I hope, to take a moment to enjoy the little critter on the top of my foot.<br />
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I know they eat bugs, so the little guys can stay forever, creating a little joy for me whenever I see them. Anyone know what kind of frogs these are?freemotionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10129588842227646172noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950565322343555064.post-84064434069449501372013-08-09T07:46:00.001-04:002013-08-09T07:46:18.616-04:00Healthy Potato ChipsYes, healthy potato chips do exist! You just have to make them! This is a worthwhile project, because these are so delicious, you'll never want old, cold, purchased 'tater chips again.<br />
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Colorful chips made with organic potatoes from Eddy Farm in Newington, CT</div>
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Making potato chips is sinfully easy. Just wash them well and trim off any spots....or peel them, if you prefer. Slice them on a mandolin, or as we do, on the slicing blade on our box-style cheese grater. Watch your fingers! You can save the last chunk that you can't slice and cut it into French fries.<br />
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Put the raw chips in a large bowl and run cold water into it. Stir gently with your hand. Change the water and repeat until the water is clear, then soak them for a couple of hours or more. Stir and change the water periodically if needed, if it is ever cloudy again. <br />
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Then drain in a colander, and pat them dry carefully. I then spread them out on kitchen towels, layering them on top of each other to save space on my counter. The longer you let them dry, the crispier your chips will be.<br />
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Heat some tallow or lard just until it starts to smoke a little, then add a couple of handfuls of the chips, and stir to spread them out in the fat. Don't crowd them too much. Use a splatter guard if you are not using a frying machine. I use my big Dutch oven, but before I had it, I'd use my biggest cast iron frying pan.<br />
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Let them cook for a few minutes, until you see them start to brown lightly. Scoop them out with a skimmer (large flat "spoon" made of wire mesh, or just a big flat metal spoon with holes) or use a couple of slotted spoons to get them out and onto layers of paper towels or crumbled and smoothed brown paper bags, cut open and using the unprinted side. Salt well. Add the next batch to the hot oil and try not to eat all of the ones that are cooling!<br />
freemotionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10129588842227646172noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950565322343555064.post-77201053988633462292013-07-25T10:45:00.001-04:002013-07-25T10:45:42.113-04:00Bacon, Lettuce, and Tomato (and Cucumber) SaladThe last of our bacon was smoked this week (that is a whole other story!) and with the garden coming along nicely, I was craving a BLT sandwich. Problem. We are not eating bread right now, and still only eat anything with wheat only about once a month. I don't want to buy or make bread that won't be used up or that will tempt us.<br />
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So....BLT salad was the solution.<br />
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Then I discovered that we are almost out of good, organic olive oil so I had nothing to make mayo with. Gaah! I wanted my taste of BLT!<br />
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Then I remembered reading about "wilted" salads in some of my very old cookbooks. A dressing would be made with hot fat and tossed with lettuce, wilting it. I would make a version of this using hot bacon grease.<br />
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It was amazing!<br />
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And amazingly simple. For four dinner plates full of salad, I used:<br />
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1 head of leaf lettuce<br />
2 tomatoes<br />
3 medium pickling cukes (optional, but they were so fresh and crispy I couldn't resist)<br />
Bacon, at least 1/4 pound, diced, more if you have it and want it extra bacon-y<br />
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Dressing:<br />
Grease from cooking the bacon, 1/4-1/3 cup<br />
Apple cider vinegar, preferably raw and organic, 1/8-1/4 cup, to taste<br />
Black pepper to taste, maybe 1/4-1/2 tsp<br />
Salt to taste if needed, as the bacon and grease will be salty<br />
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I cooked the bacon bits on low until quite crispy. While that was cooking, I washed and cut the veggies. I use a salad spinner to get the lettuce nice and dry. I also run the tomato slices through the spinner to remove excess liquid....this works like a charm. If you want to almost completely seed your tomatoes, dice them, then run them through the salad spinner, giving it a few good up-and-down shakes while it is spinning. You'll end up with seed-free tomato chunks that are not the least bit watery. If you have chickens, be sure to give them the seedy liquid, and watch them go nuts over it.<br />
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Put the cut and washed salad into a big mixing bowl, much larger than the serving bowl, as you will need to toss it quickly and vigorously once the dressing is made. You also want the veggies to come to room temperature so the bacon fat dressing doesn't congeal on the lettuce.<br />
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When the bacon is cooked, drain the hot grease into a heat proof bowl or Pyrex measuring cup, and add some raw, organic apple cider vinegar and some black pepper and whisk it until well blended. Pour immediately over the salad and toss, toss, toss. Add salt if your bacon grease was not salty enough.<br />
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The recipe I used came from an older version of <u>Joy of Cooking</u> and called for 2 Tbsp bacon grease and 1/4 cup vinegar, but I didn't measure and I also used far more dressing than that for a head of lettuce. I probably reversed the proportions with twice the grease to vinegar ratio. This just goes to show that this is a very, very forgiving recipe. Use what you have and don't worry about it. It is bacon grease. How can you go wrong?<br />
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Mayonnaise is made using about a cup of oil to a tablespoon or two of vinegar along with raw egg, so my dressing was more in line with those proportions, just no egg. Although egg probably would have been wonderful, too, now that I think about it.<br />
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I would not refrigerate leftovers of this type of salad, as the bacon grease will harden in the cold. This is a salad to eat up in one sitting.....and it was so delicious, we had no difficulty eating two large platefuls each! To make it a heartier meal, you can add cheese and cold leftover roasted meat, either in the salad or on the side. We used some leftover pork roast and home made goat Gouda.<br />
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The hubster enthusiastically requested that this recipe be repeated....often! I have to say that I whole heartedly agreed!<br />
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freemotionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10129588842227646172noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950565322343555064.post-31404339567462288122013-06-12T06:31:00.000-04:002013-06-12T06:31:00.235-04:00Hugelkultur raspberry update<br />
Another hugelkultur update! Remember last spring's <a href="http://blueviolafarm.blogspot.com/2012/04/hugelkultur-raspberries.html" target="_blank">raspberry project?</a> Here is what it looked like on May 1 this spring:<br />
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Most of that lush growth is raspberry shoots. The sticks are prunings from the apple trees, strategically placed to keep the hens from digging in the rich hugelkultur soil. Nutmeg is photobombing.</div>
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Since discovering the wonders of woodchips, I decided this would be a perfect mulch for my raspberries and for the apple and pear trees behind the raspberry row. First, though, I needed a small wall to keep the woodchips off the lawn. An inexpensive option is patio blocks. We will see if the frost pushes them all out next winter/spring. If it does, I'll simply redo it some other way. I needed something quick for now.</div>
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The beginning of the wall to hold the woodchips off the lawn.</div>
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Weeding and carefully putting chips around and under the plants.</div>
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I dumped lots of chips on the lawn after putting down several layers of newspaper to kill the grass.</div>
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This entire area will ultimately be covered in woodchips so no mowing will need to be done around the fruit trees and raspberry beds. This should also dramatically reduce the need to weed the raspberries. More chips will likely need to be added, especially the first few years. We will see!</div>
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As the woodchips break down, they will feed the fruit trees and raspberry canes with mineral rich compost. I'm so excited about this project!</div>
freemotionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10129588842227646172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950565322343555064.post-83984913579645429432013-06-11T06:58:00.000-04:002013-06-11T06:58:00.937-04:00Hugelkultur updateRemember the <a href="http://blueviolafarm.blogspot.com/2012/04/getting-ready-for-more-berries.html" target="_blank">berry project</a> from last spring? Here they are on May 1!<br />
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A year later and the currants are flowering!</div>
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One of the two surviving gooseberry plants has a few flowers, too.</div>
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One of the gooseberries has filled out nicely. </div>
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Only 2 of 8 gooseberries survived...but they did arrive from Burgess dead, after all. All the replacement plants they sent were also obviously DOA. They sent more recently, my third shipment, and about half looked completely dead and two of the maybe-alive ones were broken off just above the roots. Order anywhere else. One plant marked as a gooseberry was actually a grape, too. Sheesh! The aggravation and time lost was definitely not worth the perceived savings.</div>
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The currants are doing better, although the biggest one is still smaller than the gooseberries. The bricks in the photos are to keep the hens from digging them up....they are obsessed with any area of disturbed soil. The plan is to eventually woodchip this area, in the spirit of the film, <a href="http://backtoedenfilm.com/" target="_blank">Back to Eden.</a> More on this coming up soon!</div>
freemotionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10129588842227646172noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950565322343555064.post-16291628531059683442013-06-10T05:52:00.000-04:002013-06-10T05:52:00.671-04:00Sweet Nutmeg<br />
I gave in. I kept a doeling this year. How could I not? Look at that sweet face!<br />
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Princess of the Bricks!</div>
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This was Plum's second...her first was a single buckling, born in the wee hours of the night, snuck out without any assistance between my frequent peeks two years ago. Plum didn't have a pattern yet, having only delivered one baby, so I wasn't sure if she'd do the same thing again. She did.</div>
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Nutmeg was a singleton, born between barn checks around 3 AM on an unusually cold night. I always get nervous about deliveries and checked about every hour. I swear Plum checked her watch and knew my pattern, and purposely crossed her legs and looked unconcerned, then quickly shot that baby out the second the door closed behind me. Plummy officially has a pattern now. It is a pattern of easy births, so even though it is in the middle of the night, I can live with it!</div>
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As is usual here, I got her right onto a bottle. Many people have expressed concern about this, thinking it has a note of cruelty to it for both mother and baby. Let me tell you, it is far easier on everyone concerned to keep them apart right from the first moment than to separate them two three months later. There is barely a whimper when the baby is "pulled" from the momma within minutes. The wailing and crying two months later is heart wrenching and can be heard throughout the entire neighborhood.....and it is not just mine!</div>
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Nutmeg comes on well-supervised walks with the dogs while she is less than a week old. At this age, she does not wander far from us and will come immediately when called. All I have to do is call her and start to run, and she is at my side in a blink.</div>
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Since she is a single baby and has no siblings on the farm right now, she spends a lot of time with me while I garden and do spring clean up. Since she is not eating solid food yet, I can take her everywhere on the property without fear of her destroying my plants.</div>
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Nutmeg likes to supervise building projects.</div>
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"Your wall is crooked!" She is a hard task-mistress!</div>
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(Nutmeg is a couple of days old in these pictures, taken a few weeks ago.)</div>
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freemotionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10129588842227646172noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950565322343555064.post-86727777540701541002013-05-02T06:53:00.002-04:002013-05-02T06:53:40.772-04:00Coming soon.....Got a new computer! As soon as my picture files are loaded, I'll be back to posting....I have some great new projects going, updates on old ones (hugelkultur is amazing!), baby goats, and a broody hen so chick pics soon!<br />
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Please stand by.....freemotionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10129588842227646172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950565322343555064.post-77742341404332951832013-01-14T06:46:00.000-05:002013-01-14T06:46:00.557-05:00Economy and the ick factor<br />
My goal is to add something new to my repertoire each year. <a href="http://www.themodernhomestead.us/article/Home.html" target="_blank">Harvey Ussery</a> wrote that it is respectful of our animals to use everything that we can, to not waste any part of their valuable life. OK, that is how I interpreted it for myself, but that is the gist of what he said. The "ick" factor is pretty strong in today's society, and I'm no different.....except I am determined to change. One bite at a time. Shudder.<br />
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Last year we made use of heart and livers by making our sausage 20% organ meats. After the first meal, we forgot it was in there. Organ meats from healthy, pastured animals are amazingly good for us. It was time to put on the big girl pants and learn to eat them.<br />
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This year I added the chicken feet to my broths. That wasn't as bad as I'd anticipated.<br />
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This fall, we bought our very first side of beef. I highly recommend saving up for this. Freezers are cheap to come by, especially if you know an busy real estate agent or realtor. Getting rid of a freezer in the basement is often on the to-do list of their selling clients and can be had for very little cash, or even for free. I also see them listed in local "for sale" ads for bargain prices....or free! They don't cost much to run, and the savings of buying an entire side will more than cover the cost of the freezer and the power to run it. If you live where the winters are cold and it will be full mostly during winter, put it in the garage and it will barely run at all.<br />
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The butcher will ask you how you want it cut up and packaged. Do some online research in advance. Many small farm websites have detailed information. Think about what you usually cook as far as beef goes.....actually, you can get pork this way as well.....and order mostly those types of cuts. It is ok if you eat ground beef most of the time! We like roasts and ground beef, and rarely cook steaks. So I got mostly these cuts, and asked for a few steaks so I could expand my cooking skills. I've always enjoyed steaks at restaurants, not at home. If the steak is not cooked right at a restaurant, you can send it back. Not so at home. But that will change....this year.<br />
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Buyiing an entire side, or even an entire animal, can be economical in more ways if you are adventurous and aren't afraid to rattle a few pots and pans. Most people don't want the bones, fat, organs, and unusual cuts, and these are actually thrown away! When I got my side of beef, the person taking the other half didn't want anything but standard grocery store style cuts. Know what that meant? Yup. I got to have ALL of the other stuff, at NO additional cost to me. That's right. You pay a set fee, called "hanging weight," which means the weight of the side before it is cut and wrapped. How much of that actually ends up in your freezer is up to you.<br />
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We got many, many more pounds of great food for free along with our purchased beef. With the bones from the entire cow, I canned 54 jars of beef broth! You can't buy broth of this quality or nutrient value in any store, no matter how many times you see words like "organic" or "natural" or "free-range" on the label.<br />
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I also rendered all the trim fat into tallow, which is the best fat for deep fat frying. I reserved the best for this, and made some into a batch of very, very premium soap. A bit more will go into the very best moisturizing cream, although with my dietary changes over the past few years and using only goat's milk soap to wash with, I have very little need for skin protection.<br />
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I'll admit that some of the liver.....a beef liver is HUGE....was given away (it was reported to be heavenly by liver lovers) and some will be fed to our dogs....hey, they also need good food! It was FREE.<br />
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The heart is in the freezer...well, half of it is. Half went into our sausage this year. The other half is waiting for the rest of the ingredients needed to make a mincemeat recipe I found in one of my antique cookbooks that looks very promising. I love mincemeat pie, and the spice, fruity recipe will likely hide any ick flavor.<br />
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Something terrible happened with my beef, though. There was a mis-communication and the tail and the kidney suet was tossed in the trash. That turned into something wonderful, though. When you talk to the actual farmer who raised the animals, you are no longer just a number in a ledger. It is not the same as buying meat on foam trays in the grocery store. You develop a relationship.<br />
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So something fantastic came from this goof. The farmer felt bad about this, and promised to give me these items from the next cow. I got the call this week. I will not only get the tail and the suet, but all the usual things that are tossed in the trash....all the bones and trim fat, all the organs, anything else that will be thrown away.<br />
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Meanwhile, I spent some time with the butcher, who works in his own small butcher shop. We are also developing a relationship that will be mutually beneficial. He is setting up a mobile slaughter truck. (Ick, I know, you don't want to think about this. But animals die to feed you and me, and isn't it better that they die with the least amount of stress, fear, and cruelty? Mobile slaughter units are a way for smallholders to deal with this unpleasant task right on the farm....just by writing a check. I think it is a brilliant solution. And far kinder to the animals.)<br />
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Best thing ever.....I had a conversation with the butcher about getting the "trash" from other animals once he is up and running. There are legal ins and outs to this, so not all can do it. For example, if I send a pig to slaughter and don't want the bones and fat, the slaughterhouse can't sell them. If the farmer sends an animal and gets it back all cut and wrapped and then sells it piece by piece, he can sell the bones, fat, organs, etc. But he usually doesn't, as nobody wants them, so they can be purchased for a song, in bulk, if he knows in advance. I've set myself up to be able to do this. Ask and you shall receive.<br />
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Today's story, though, is really about the beef tongue. Ick. Double ick. It LOOKS like a tongue. Nasty.<br />
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So I corned it, like corned beef brisket <a href="http://blueviolafarm.blogspot.com/2011/11/i-took-plunge.html" target="_blank">(recipe here)</a>. Once it was peeled (shudder again) and sliced, it was the most tender corned beef I've ever eaten. It was marvelous on sourdough bread with home made fermented mustard, and later, hubby diced it up and scrambled it with his breakfast eggs. A beef tongue is HUGE, by the way. Several pounds of tender, succulent meat.<br />
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In the brine for 10 days while I try to forget.....</div>
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What will you be creative with this year? Can you find a way to be a bit more brave and honor the animals a little more? </div>
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Or let the dogs do so....they have to eat, too! Nothin' wrong with that!<br />
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The shameless commerce portion of today's post: My next get healthy/stay healthy class starts soon! January 28, 2013, to be exact. All via telephone, and you can sign up, put the phone on speaker mode, and invite as many to listen with you as you can fit in the room. Twelve weeks of great information and some great give-aways, too. <a href="http://www.healthy-lifestyle-coach.com/ecommerce/lifestyle-courses/foundations-of-vibrant-health.html" target="_blank">For details, click here.</a> <br />
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Oh, and you never have to eat any ick if you don't want to, promise....but there will be bacon!</div>
freemotionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10129588842227646172noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950565322343555064.post-10672702489408562342013-01-13T06:45:00.000-05:002013-01-13T06:45:00.604-05:00Three little videosA few videos I took early last month:<br />
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This one is under two minutes and shows a silly little hen that decided to go broody in late November. Silly girl, spring is the time to hatch chicklets! Although it is very dark at times, be patient, she moves into the light a few times. There is a black hen from <a href="http://blueviolafarm.blogspot.com/2012/03/chick-nuggets.html" target="_blank">this spring's incubator hatch, </a>from one of the Icelandic eggs. I got these for their broodiness, and she was so determined to sit on nothing...nope, she had no eggs under her.... that I gave her four eggs to hatch just so she'd survive. Some hens are so determined that they won't get off the nest until the babies hatch. She was one of them. I knew survival of chicks in December was not likely, but wanted to save the hen.<br />
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Sweet baby chicks and sweet mama hen clucking!</div>
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In the background of the hen and chicks video, you can hear Peach loudly complaining about something. Here is a 9 second video to show you what the problem was:</div>
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Determined little bugger, ain't he?</div>
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And finally, about half a minute of what our farmlet was like about a month or two ago, every morning until everyone was too tired to run. I didn't know it yet, but Plum was newly pregnant and the buck sure knew it! Gentle giant Ginger was not, nor was she ready for Charm's advances. Worry not about goat molestation, dear readers. When Ginger finally wanted Charm's attention, she was rather pushy about it. Quite the hussy, actually.</div>
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But not today!</div>
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Jan 28, 2013, is the start date of my next teleclass series, <a href="http://Foundations of Vibrant Health" target="_blank">Foundations of Vibrant Health</a> What does this have to do with reproduction on the farm? Not much! Well, sorta.....reproduction on the farm leads to nutrient-dense food. But you don't need a farm to be healthy. You just need to be armed with information that you won't find elsewhere all in one course! There are some cool give-aways, too! <a href="http://www.healthy-lifestyle-coach.com/ecommerce/lifestyle-courses/foundations-of-vibrant-health.html" target="_blank">Click here for details.</a></div>
freemotionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10129588842227646172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950565322343555064.post-90747393316725369052013-01-12T05:22:00.000-05:002013-01-12T05:22:00.645-05:00Crunchy, salty snackSometimes you just want something crispy and naughty. I did, so I made some chips.<br />
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This was actually a very special moment for me. I hadn't eaten potato chips for almost 20 years, since I became "allergic" to potatoes. Or so I thought. Turns out it was the new chemicals, or the cocktail of chemicals, used on commercial potatoes. I can eat organic taters in moderation, or better yet, home grown tubers.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdRZx6H7i89rWzrQezjG5yonghSBJmm0FNEgPaEDI0sanyt7LddS36dYftgiJpg2hP2p9zY88n3OhzOke3qqe3jN52QEHUw6IEj_hSmqbXD9vpdCh0pc73JASUDqvprkWsXHoVZyllCzG8/s1600/Blog+Dec+9,+2012+misc+015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdRZx6H7i89rWzrQezjG5yonghSBJmm0FNEgPaEDI0sanyt7LddS36dYftgiJpg2hP2p9zY88n3OhzOke3qqe3jN52QEHUw6IEj_hSmqbXD9vpdCh0pc73JASUDqvprkWsXHoVZyllCzG8/s320/Blog+Dec+9,+2012+misc+015.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Just starting to sizzle....</div>
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First I sliced up some small, scrubbed potatoes with their skins on with the slicing blade of my food processor. A mandolin would work as well, as would a sharp knife and a steady hand. I soaked them in cold water for a while and rinsed them well.</div>
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Then I heated up a pint of good lard. Tallow would be even better, but I was out, so Vitamin D pastured lard it was.</div>
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A sprinkle of sea salt and a moment to cool and yowza, this is the only way to eat chips! Best thing is, these are not only good for you, but it is almost impossible to overindulge when you make them yourself. They become a special treat, and are not full of the chemicals and bad fats used in the commercial chip industry. If you haven't done this, you simply must try it! Home made chips bring snacking into the realm of nutrient-dense health food and the flavor is unbeatable.</div>
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Check out my latest course, <a href="http://www.healthy-lifestyle-coach.com/ecommerce/lifestyle-courses/foundations-of-vibrant-health.html" target="_blank">Foundations of Vibrant Health,</a> starting January 28, 2013, via teleconference! </div>
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freemotionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10129588842227646172noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950565322343555064.post-5101659568676557312013-01-11T06:26:00.000-05:002013-01-11T06:26:00.637-05:00Poultry in the freezer<br />
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As we get closer to our goal of raising all of our own animal foods, spring and fall/early winter are very busy times on the farmlet. I've been taking pictures, and will try to catch up over the next few days on what's been going on here.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVhOuhCuoB_HotE8v1Qqv30ipD2Kl6TsQErHTcEEs73kFDubi82kE5wnT8IlrdRLICaGz4oGZrw13x636MXPQTtLA3TviuOt4IUOIrb8H5CMg3g9g3q6qX4afNrWX6EoEslTopVmp_LcC-/s1600/Blog+Dec+9%252C+2012+misc+003.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVhOuhCuoB_HotE8v1Qqv30ipD2Kl6TsQErHTcEEs73kFDubi82kE5wnT8IlrdRLICaGz4oGZrw13x636MXPQTtLA3TviuOt4IUOIrb8H5CMg3g9g3q6qX4afNrWX6EoEslTopVmp_LcC-/s320/Blog+Dec+9%252C+2012+misc+003.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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The Green Mile</div>
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I admit that I lost count, but at least 25 birds made it to freezer camp this year, and there are about <a href="http://blueviolafarm.blogspot.com/2012/08/chicklets-update.html" target="_blank">5 more roosters</a> that are about big enough now to make the trip. It is an unpleasant task, but one that was normal in most families not that many decades ago. There was a time when cruelty in the food industry was not an issue for the most part. Now, sadly, it is rare when an animal used for food has a very happy life and only one bad moment. If that. It is pretty quick, really, if done right. They don't really know what hit them. </div>
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The most insulting part for them is being picked up and carried, and that happens regularly in their lives, for example, when a rooster gets over the fence and into a neighbor's yard and must be retrieved. You should hear the squawking and complaining! Those instances are worse for the rooster or duck than freezer camp day, when we are very careful in how we handle the birds and make it as stress-free as humanly possible.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmRV9TT7ZySBWnNrwOQud9dPZMxaoUy9vrTyTD9yN-SbjBankUggusrpTGi6_vEW-cYFX5GR-CPG2ysIb9ErQeRHH05eK3yqWlVhYIZHsIm4GuIZOcOnBR1xMU_G34ABGIscsTXcwKu7Ms/s1600/Blog+Dec+9%252C+2012+misc+011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmRV9TT7ZySBWnNrwOQud9dPZMxaoUy9vrTyTD9yN-SbjBankUggusrpTGi6_vEW-cYFX5GR-CPG2ysIb9ErQeRHH05eK3yqWlVhYIZHsIm4GuIZOcOnBR1xMU_G34ABGIscsTXcwKu7Ms/s320/Blog+Dec+9%252C+2012+misc+011.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Good tools make things go quickly and smoothly and are worth the investment.</div>
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One thing we did this year that was new was to raise 10 ducks. One thing we learned this year is that you must process ducks at just the right time, as they are shedding feathers, or plucking will be a nightmare task that is just about impossible. We waited until we didn't see them shedding feathers, as we do with chickens, being duck newbies. We got 4 ducks into the freezer that day looking like unshaven drunks. We planned to sell the rest instead of continuing.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdLwMJiMp01LKBYpr7nd0kx5tKz0_3ZFmskIrffP8y4-dzfrX-GhSPUgmv7IU__B1VL95BsTRc7XAM_kFX19_1syJUG3g9IjoJIABSYeBYxFYhsP3rJYs0kmuXsPjBfwOEwM00NB22KzGJ/s1600/Blog+July+2,+2012+garlic+and+ducks+009.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdLwMJiMp01LKBYpr7nd0kx5tKz0_3ZFmskIrffP8y4-dzfrX-GhSPUgmv7IU__B1VL95BsTRc7XAM_kFX19_1syJUG3g9IjoJIABSYeBYxFYhsP3rJYs0kmuXsPjBfwOEwM00NB22KzGJ/s320/Blog+July+2,+2012+garlic+and+ducks+009.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Our ducks in late June.</div>
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Then we cooked that first duck.</div>
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Who cares if there are feathers left on the duck. The fat that runs out and fries the bed of coarsely diced root vegetables that the duck is roasting on top of creates flavors that are unmatched in the culinary world. Then there is the pint of rendered fat left over that can be used to re-create this flavor in future meals of roasted veggies, or to add a lovely flavor to other dishes. The six remaining ducks stayed in their pasture, unsold.</div>
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Meanwhile, my father built this plucker, based on a number of youtube videos. Do a search for "drill plucker" and you'll find many versions. This one was built for just a few dollars, using cheap rubber bungees, a bolt, and a pvc end cap.</div>
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Dick's Plucker</div>
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Good ol' duct tape!</div>
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Be sure not to block the vents of the drill with the tape. I also used a couple of the leftover bungees to secure the drill. You can also bolt the drill to your table if you'd like, if your drill has a hole for doing this.</div>
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This is not the perfect plucker, and you must wear sturdy gloves or get bruised. But is sure was fun to use! Dad and I had a contest, with him using the drill plucker while I was hand plucking. It was pretty close, but my hand plucking was much harder on the hands, so I like using the drill plucker. For the ducks, it would tear the more tender skin of the female ducks, so use caution, and consider using it for areas other than the more delicate underside of the bird. It was fine on the roosters, no tearing of the skin at all.</div>
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There is a splash zone, however, than anyone who wears spectacles will discover rather quickly. Ask me how I know. </div>
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You don't have to raise your own food to be healthy. Lots of details in my current course, <a href="http://www.healthy-lifestyle-coach.com/ecommerce/lifestyle-courses/foundations-of-vibrant-health.html" target="_blank">Foundations of Vibrant Health</a>, starting Jan 28, 2013 via teleconference!<br />
<span id="goog_993773379"></span><span id="goog_993773380"></span><br />freemotionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10129588842227646172noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950565322343555064.post-36207400434573447332012-12-16T06:20:00.000-05:002013-03-04T21:41:40.544-05:00Busy time on the farmletIt is the goats that have been busy.....<br />
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Plum steals Charm's hay...and his heart.</div>
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Charm has been practicing his ballet, particularly.....en pointe. Since he can't lure the gals over to the blocks. Ahem. If you know what I mean. He is a bit on the short side.</div>
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But where there is a will, there is a way. And the gals are plenty willing. Both Peach and Plum did not come back into heat as scheduled, which means they are likely pregnant. Ginger did, and had another "date" with Charm, after he spent 3 weeks in classical ballet training. Ginger is our tallest doe, so there were some logistical problems the first time. I am thinking Charm had it all worked out on the second date.</div>
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Lily finally achieved the minimum age of eight months and was thrilled when we finally, finally, finally opened that gate for her. She made weight (80 lbs, the minimum size for a young doe to enter the breeding pen) at only five months, so we didn't weigh her again. She is considerably bigger than Charm, and they are only days apart in age.</div>
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Ginger's twins, Monique and Jayne, came for a visit for two days, much to Charm's (and Monique and Jayne's!) delight.</div>
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Blue Viola Farm. All goat porn, all the time. Draw the shades, dear neighbors, and keep the tender children inside, unless you want to have an interesting dinnertime conversation!</div>
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But next April and May.....all goat babies, all the time!</div>
freemotionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10129588842227646172noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950565322343555064.post-19577368820429604352012-11-09T07:20:00.000-05:002013-03-04T22:12:46.556-05:00Spicy chai teaChai tea bags were always my favorite "herbal" tea, but they always had a funny perfume-y taste to me. Since homemade everything is always better, I decided to see if I could make my own. This is a recipe that changes with my moods, and you can adjust it to your own tastes, too. Simply add more of the flavors you enjoy the most, and less...or none....of the flavors that you don't like at all. But be open to small amounts of spices that might seem out of place, like black peppercorns, as they can add a nice little zing without really being identifiable.<br />
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Here is how I make it.....this week, anyways. It may be different next week!<br />
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Today's batch had these items in it.</div>
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We like this tea so much that I make it in two gallon batches about every other week. Today I used about 3 cups of fresh ginger, scrubbed but not peeled, and ground in the food processor until it was the texture of coarse sawdust. Slicing as thinly as possible with a sharp knife works, too.</div>
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I added 4 pieces of cinnamon bark, each about 4 inches long, and one nutmeg, cracked with vise grips. Also 4 whole cloves, 4 black peppercorns, and...um....maybe 3-4 tablespoons of allspice berries. With the lid on the pot, I brought the whole thing to a simmer and let it bubble lightly for 30 minutes. Then I simply shut off the heat and let it sit, covered, on the stove, for about 24 hours. This is when the flavors really develop. Spices tend to be anti-microbial, so I don't worry about leaving it out, covered. Remember, too, that it just simmered for a half hour so it is pretty dang sterile at this point. </div>
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Put the cover on while simmering to keep the flavors strong.</div>
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The next day, I carefully pour it into glass bottles with tight fitting lids, running it through a fine mesh tea strainer set on a funnel. I squeeze the moisture out of the last bits of ginger before tossing the spent spices into the trash. The bottles are then stored in the fridge. If you are a very visual person and need to see how this is done, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CMhETEOfVNA" target="_blank">there is a detailed video tutorial here, and it will walk you through all the steps in real time.</a></div>
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To use it, I simply fill my chosen mug or canning jar about 1/4 of the way with this chai concentrate, add a few drops of stevia, and then fill the vessel the rest of the way with boiling water. Then I taste it and adjust....more sweetener, more chai, or both. Every batch of spices is different, so there is no standardizing this recipe. That makes it even more interesting.</div>
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It also makes a wonderfully refreshing iced tea, and if you'd like, you can use it along with a black tea bag to intensify the flavor.</div>
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We drink kombucha flavored with chai and it is wonderful. I put 1 part kombucha, 1 part chai, and 2 parts cold water into a glass, again with a few drops of stevia. This chai concentrate is so antimicrobial that I only add it to my kombucha just as I'm about to drink it so that it doesn't throw off the balance of the good beasties in the 'booch.</div>
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Serve it warm with raw whole milk....<a href="http://blueviolafarm.blogspot.com/2012/01/chai-lattetotal-yum.html" target="_blank">here's how to do it</a>....add some extra cream if you have it....for a quick snack on the sugar handling protocol, if you are using stevia. If not, simply use less chai and you will get away without sweetening it.</div>
freemotionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10129588842227646172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950565322343555064.post-70406972944697030902012-11-06T06:11:00.000-05:002013-03-04T21:46:32.981-05:00Fresh milk starts with..........boy meets girl! Meet Charm, our new buckling. He has a very important job starting in a couple of weeks. He is the envy of boy goats everywhere for landing this great job. I'll let you use your imagination as to exactly what his duties will be.<br />
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More cute than studly at just over 6 months old!</div>
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You may have noticed that his ears, one eye, and his left hind toes are green. This is because, as a registered Oberhasli, he got his ears tatooed just before his arrival here. He has a series of identifying numbers and letters permanently inked into his ears. The green on his eye and toe are from being wiggly during the process. It should wear off, hopefully before he starts his new job. Green is one of my favorite colors, but I don't really want it all over my girls and all over my barn clothes!</div>
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Oberhaslis are a smallish breed of dairy goat, and Charm is young, so we have a ramp so that he can.....er.....get the job done. Even Lily, only a week or so older than Charm, looks to be about twice his weight and significantly taller. I'm not too concerned....where there is a will, there is a way, and all the goats here have already indicated willingness! So....</div>
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Cover your eyes.....</div>
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freemotionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10129588842227646172noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950565322343555064.post-53165741728125845972012-11-05T07:38:00.005-05:002013-03-04T21:45:11.420-05:00Orange alert<br />
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Carefully slice the pumpkin in half from top to bottom with a sharp knife.</div>
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It is time to get those pumpkins into the freezer for winter cooking
projects! Although any pumpkin is usable as food, I far prefer the
small "sugar" pumpkins for this purpose. You can do the same with large
squashes, such as hubbard. I get the leftover pumpkins from a nearby
farm for my pigs and goats on November 1 when the farmstand closes for
two or three weeks to prepare for the next major holiday decorating
season. Although this year they will be selling the rest of the sugar
pumpkins, I took the ones that were developing "spots" and wouldn't make
it until they reopened the farm store.<br />
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Scrub the dirt off the outside of your pumpkin before cutting it in half.</div>
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Grease a pan generously with lard, tallow, duck or goose fat, bacon drippings, or butter. Scoop out the seeds with your fingers, removing the biggest chunks of orange pulp, but don't wash them. The little bits of pulp add a nice flavor. Roast the seeds at 375 F, stirring every few minutes, until they start to brown. Use plenty of your chosen fat, enough to coat the seeds. This will help the salt to cling to them. Enjoy while hot! </div>
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Use the edge of a spoon to scrape the "guts" out.</div>
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Roast at 325 F for about an hour and a half. Use caution taking the pan out of the oven, as the pumpkins will have released some water and it will be very hot.</div>
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When it cools enough to handle, slice it into thin wedges, and peel the skin off with your paring knife.</div>
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Put the pared pumpkin into a bowl and store it in your fridge for processing later if you don't have time to do so right away. I actually prefer to do this, as more water will be released from the slices and can be poured off, making a much thicker puree.</div>
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Puree the slices a few at a time in the food processor, or by hand with a food mill or as our great-great-great grandmothers would, press it through a sieve. I love my food processor!</div>
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Bag it in amounts suitable for recipes. I do 1.5 cups (pie sized) and 1 cup (soups and stews) bags. I put the smaller bags into a gallon ziploc freezer bag.</div>
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I mostly use this puree in soups and stews. A small amount of roasted pumpkin or squash puree will disappear into a chicken soup, for example, but will add such a wonderful flavor that even seasoned cooks that you might serve it to won't be able to guess its source. It is also a great way to sneak one more vegetable into your families' meals, and for many, it is a free source of veggies. </div>
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Most people who decorate their yards or doorsteps with pumpkins simply toss them in the trash later. Let people know that you'd like their pumpkins....there is no shame in not wasting perfectly good food! </div>
freemotionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10129588842227646172noreply@blogger.com4