Harvest

The view out the front door.  All the machinery has pulled in to start the corn harvest around us.

And WHO is THAT in the combine??

Yup!  That's our Boy.  He did an afternoon 4 hour shift and then went out again after dinner and did an evening shift of 4.5 hours (until 12:30 am!!

The animals came out to watch too!

Processing peppers

We're finally get to the last of the harvest...Had bunches of peppers left, mostly Pablanos.  So we roasted on the grill and then chopped them up for homemade Chimichangas and Enchiladas this winter.  I didn't really have enough to do the canning thing, so we just vaccum sealed into small homemade bags to put in the freezer..

Boy did the sealing for me

Danny Dog is waiting to sample...

Blackberries

Remember this post, when I said we were going to have a bumper crop, God willing, of blackberries this year??

 

Yup!

I gave up picking after getting about 3 gallons into the freezer.

 

 

 

 

Purple Cabbage!

This is the first year that I have successfully grown cabbage!  WooHoo!

Both Green Cabbage and Purple Cabbage.

And boy is the purple cabbage....PURPLE

 

 

One of our new crockpot favorites is

 

Smokey Hobo Crockpot:

1 head of Cabbage

1 bag of mini carrots, or about 5 carrots cut into chunks

5 potatoes washed and cut into chunks

1 onion cut into chunks

1 ring of Kielbasa

1 cup water or stock

salt, pepper, spices to taste

 

Layer veggies, salting and peppering on every level.

Cut Kielbasa into 2 inch chunks and place on the top.

Add stock / water down one side of the crockpot.

 

Cook on low for 6 hours or high for about 3 hours.

(Or until the veggies are tender and the smell is making your family hungry!)

 

We eat it with a little ketchup on top after serving.

 

Serves about 6 (our our family twice!)

 

By the way, if you use purple cabbage...it will turn the broth and any potatoes that it is sitting against purple!!

Dinner last night

We had butternut squash from the WallaceHomestead Garden.  It was delish!

My dear cousin was...um...intrigued by how I was preparing it.  I don't take the time to try to cut it in half and clean it out and all that nonsense.  The shell is too hard anyway.  I just toss 'em in the oven at 350* then go out to chore.  45 minutes later, I come in to hear them steaming and whistling at me.  It makes a bit of a pocket between the skin and the meat, so I'm able to just peel it. (Carefully--it's hot--no joke!)

Then toss the pieces in a cassarole dish, add salt, pepper and bake for another 20 minutes-ish (while the rest of dinner is cooking-pork chops and sour cream "all-rotten" potatoes, and homemade bread-in the background)

Zucchini Spread

Everyone I know is currently overrun with zucchini!  This is the first year I have had this "problem"  I have always lamented that "for once" I would like to be the one with WAAAAY too much zucchini...rather than having to go buy some.  Well, God answered my plea and we have zucchini everywhere!  I grew both green zucchini and the golden variety.  So in searching for fun ways to eat the stuff (we love it grilled, but after a week, we need to try something new) I've found some outstanding recipes.  Of course, I usually take recipes as a guideline...so my variations are somewhat different.

3 pounds zucchini, cut into a 1/2 inch cubes
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoon butter
5 garlic cloves, gently smashed
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
4-5 turns of a pepper grinder

Place a large, heavy skillet over medium heat. Add olive oil and butter and allow them to melt together. Roughly chop the smashed garlic and add it to the pan. Add the zucchini cubes. Cook for 15-20 minutes, until the zucchini has begun to soften. Strip the thyme leaves off their stems and add them to the skillet

.
Reduce the heat and continue to cook, stirring often. The goal is to melt the zucchini into a spreadable paste. The goal is to cook the liquid out of the zucchini and intensify the flavors without reducing it to total mush. If at any point, the zucchini starts to brown, add a splash of water (or white wine if you happen to have an open bottle-I don't know how it happened...I didn't have any wine to add) and reduce the heat a bit more.

Total cooking time should be right around an hour. Three pounds of zucchini typically yields around two cups of spread.

Once cooked, the spread will last up to one week in the fridge. Serve on toasted baguette rounds or crackers.

More beans....and it is HOT!

We are still harvesting beans and zucchini and anxiously awaiting tomatoes and peppers.  I am disappointed with the amount of cucumbers we've gotten this year.  Usually by this time we have had cucumber and tomato salad about 47 times....only twice this year....Sheryl:  The secret to the salad is to premake it and leave it in the fridge for about an hour (at least)...and sssshhhhh the secret sauce is.....italian dressing from the packet made up instead of from a bottle.  :)

It is supposed to be 98* today...with I think 150% humidity.  I don't mind heat it's the "stupidity" I don't like!!  But we need a few heat days so the tomatoes will start changing color. So....

The juvey chickens are doing well as are the young turkeys.  I let them free range yesterday and they came back to their coop last night.  We haven't had any more raccoon killings since the dogs have taken their posts.  I think it may be time for the cats to live near the house....I keep hearing mice in the house, and we've caught 2 in the past two days.  I have seen Tommy carrying a mouse so I know they are doing their job out in the barn.  Timmy (formerly Molly) is very shy and that's perfect for a barn cat.  Tommy is shy in the morning...but then in the evening, he'll come up to the gate to wait for us to come out and do chores.  He will climb up on the wood pile and get up onto my shoulder (I'm the only one not allergic, so I'm the one they climb on.)

Funny thing is that now Drake (the older male duck) is now following us around when it is chore time.  If you were afraid of ducks, this might freak you out as their way of communicating is hissing.  So he is always bobbing his head and hissing at me.  But this is not because of meanness....he wants dog food.  He will eat the "fowl" food....but yumm....if he can have some kibble....his life is complete!  So I made the mistake of feeding him some as I took food to the working dogs...and now every evening when we are getting everyone put to bed....he follows me everywhere...and I give in and give him a few morsels...pretty much guaranteeing that he will be back tomorrow!

So I get to go pick up my kid from camp in about 2 hours!  Woo Hoo!  And then we have a day of running around town doing errands (not his favorite thing to do....but I'll get to hear everything about camp!)

Fun with Beets

OK...before you go running away...stay with me here!

It's time to expand our horizons.  Time to quite turning up our noses at things we wouldn't even consider as kids.

So tonight I needed to try the beets we bought at the farmer's market today.  The farmer and wife we got them from was telling us that you can use the greens in salads just like lettuce.  I read online that Aussies & Kiwis both put sliced beets on their hamburgers like tomatoes or lettuce.  I also read on a recipe site that you can cook the greens like kale or spinach.

Well, I've been eating spinach from a can like I was popeye lately, so...we had raw beet greens and sliced beets on our hamburgers.  Also, sliced beets.  Then I cut up the greens and stems.  I cooked one slice of bacon in my pan, added diced red onion (also from the market) and about 2 Tbsp of water and then the greens.  Put a lid on it to wilt and steam the greens.  Gave it some salt and pepper and stirred it around....

Ta-da!

To be honest...sliced beets are still not my favorite....HOWEVER....I am loving the cooked greens!! And the raw greens are good too!

From left to right: Hamburgers, Yellow & Green Zucchini (garden), lettuce (garden) Beet greens & onions (market), sliced beets (market).  Our supper was 85% local!  WOOHOO!

Beans...beans...beans!

Yeah!  Last year my beans were a dismal failure and I think we ate green beans out of the garden only once,  and then I bought a bushel of beans from an Amish farm market to can.

So far...
4 pounds today
7.5 pounds yesterday
4 in the first harvest

I think I should start a "bean ticker counter" and see how much we get out!  The beans doing really well are the "contenders".  The Kentucky wonder beans...not one bean yet!  Beautiful plants.  Also, the Brittle Wax are doing better than...umm...now I can't think of the name.  I put them on the row markers so I would know what beans were the best.  I've planted another few rows of contenders to extend the season, too.

We also got some yellow zucchini and green zucchini out yesterday, a few cucumbers and another acorn squash.  Oh, and found a nest of guinea eggs in the middle of the squash patch.  Man picked a few of my pepperocinis.  He's been doing some lacto-fermented pickles.  I've asked him to write a "guest post" as he is really excited about this and it is becoming a neat hobby.  He talks about it at the farmer's market and everyone is anxious to try it once he is done talking...in fact some of the other vendors have been trying to get him to set up a table....well see.  I picked up from another farmer 26 pounds of cucmbers yesterday...keep tuned on that! (I don't normally care for sourish pickles...at all....and I LIKE these!!)  He also pickled some of my green beans yesterday!

Today was the farmer's market day, we love the farmer's market we go to.  Everyone is so friendly and shares "secrets".  The jelly lady gave me some great ideas to try and even told me where to find the recipes.  Today I bought a bunch of beets...I am growing beets but they aren't big enough yet...and frankly, I don't really know what to do with them once they are ready...so the farmers selling the beets told me the best way to process them and where to find good recipes. Same with the guy with the rhubarb.  (I bought a plant last week, but I can't pull stalks off of it until next year...so I bought 8 big stalks today.

 Hopefully more posts, pictures and recipes coming up.  Oh, and we are thinking of something cool for the chickens...I'll update on that if it works out.  And if I does...will I have a story to tell and pictures to share...so much so that I may actually get more than just the beloved 3 readers I currently have

First Big Harvest

Today we had our first big harvest out of the garden...Green beans...with a few wax beans for fun.  Also we picked the first set of cucumbers.  I have a few acorn squash that are close to being ready to pick! 

We got about 4 pounds of beans and 2 pounds of cucumbers.  I snapped and blanched the beans and packaged them to freeze, except a pound for dinner.  Two of the cucumbers were cut up for cucumber/tomato salad for dinner.

We went to the farmer's market this morning and despite the downpour (that weather.com said was going to stop at 9am--it didn't) we had a great time.  I talked to a lady selling jelly and have some great new ideas and recipes!  And...I know there are a million jars of jelly in this house...but I bought 2 more.  We also purchased a rhubarb plant so I can use it for jelly next year, more pickling cucumbers for Man's lacto-fermentation process, early tomatoes (in tonight's salad) red onions, and yellow squash (grilled for dinner), OH, and homemade horseradish!!  Very yummy on my hamburger!!

Came home from the farmer's market and went back to bed.  I am still really wiped out a lot of the time.  The spirit is willing and all that!  I have been wanting to write blog posts and actually plan them out in my mind, but the time it takes to get them down....well, let's just say, I finally understand the appeal of the limited characters on facebook!

Canning Scoreboard

Below is the list of the jars on my shelf.....(I didn't put quantities)

• Jelly / Jam
• Sunshine (Peach/Pear)
• Blackberry
• Black Raspberry
• Queen Anne Lace (aka Weed Jelly)
• Cherry
• Blueberry
• Elderberry
• Concord Grape
• Peach / Cantaloupe Conserve
• Peach
• Strawberry
• Red Raspberry
• 
  Veggies
• Corn
• Creamed Corn
• GreenBeans
• Fruits
• Diced Tomatoes
• Quartered Tomatoes
• Peaches
• Pears
• Tart Cherries
• Others
• Spiced Pears Pear Chutney
• Peach Salsa
• Tomato Salsa
• Tomato / Tomatillo Salsa
• Pickled Peppers (Pepperochinis)
• Bottled Tomato / Garlic / Basil

Frozen

• Corn on the Cob
• Corn (not on the cob)
• Blueberries
• Peppers

Dehydrated

• Corn (Have I mentioned how much corn I got?  Look here)
• Blueberries
• Elderberries
• Peppers

Other Harvest

• Homegrown Popcorn

It's been a busy summer....and I still have two pear trees that need harvested and processed and also 2 bushels of apples to do.  And possibly a few more tomatoes.  And I need to dig up the potato harvest.  Oh, and I picked up Golden Raspberries at a U Pick...well, actually Boy picked, so that will be jelly soon.

Oh, I was asked if I am selling the jellies....yes, I suppose so...The local market for a half pint is $3.50.  Let me know....

Black Raspberry Jelly Tutorial

So...I've been told I need to do a tutorial on here...so here is it.  My favorite jelly is black raspberry, but it is labor intensive.

First pick the berries fresh from a local farm (but not so local that you don't get lost for at least an hour.)

Fill your helper up with fresh berries (notice the blue lips)

Assemble your supplies....

Premeasure your sugar according to your pectin because when it comes time to use it, you have to move fast.

Now, if you are like me, you rather not have the hard little seeds (thus jelly not jam)  This is the labor intensive part.  First mash up the berries with a potato masher and warm on the stove to release the juice. 

Call your mom to make sure you are doing it right.

"Hi Mom!  Thanks for the cheerleading!!"

Put the crushed berries into cheesecloth about 1 cup at a time and squeeze out the juice into a bowl.  Empty the seeds and pulp into another bowl...Repeat...

Repeat...Repeat....Repeat....

Use gloves unless you are planning on painting your fingernails later to cover up the black stain. Seriously, ask me how I know.....I KNOW!

Seeds & pulp on left, juice on the right.

Good job...take a break.

We took our break at the Alum Creek Beach.

More on that in another post!!

Back to work...

Stir the package of pectin into the measured juice...

And a pat of butter to keep it from foaming over.

Get your canner boiling as it takes awhile. Also boil water, and turn off before putting in your rings and lids.

After your juice and pectin comes to a rolling boil (cannot be stirred down), dump in ALL of your measured sugar.  Stir constantly and bring back to a rolling boil. 

Once it starts to boil and cannot be stirred down start timing.  You want it to boil for exactly 1 minute.

Ladle into warm glass jelly jars. 

We prefer the 8 oz size, but you could use 16 oz.

Work quickly, it sets up quick.

Pardon the mess all around.

The pepsi bottle is actually for the rabbits.

(Frozen water keeps em cool on hot days.)

Load your jars into the canner.

Process for 5-10 minutes

(as stated on your pectin recipe-for us it was 5 minutes after it came back up to a boil).

Unload your jars onto a dishcloth.  Make sure they are not touching each other. 

Enjoy the *PING* and the seal sets. 

The quart basket on the right will make two batches or about 17 jars of jelly.

Then have "quality control" check the taste and consistancy!

YUM!  Enjoy!

First Crop

We harvested our first crop today!  Radishes...and man are they hot! 

Anyone want a peanut butter and radish sandwich??

Coming up with 2010's plan..

Well I'm working on my overly ambitious plan for the homestead for the coming year.  I'm sure I won't be able to do half of the list, but it's better to shoot for the stars, eh?

January will start 4H.  And enters in our Just.One.More. bird.  Boy has to have one that is less than a year old, and also have a certified form from a hatchery, etc of health and purebreed standard.  I've found someone locally that breeds JAVA birds.  These birds are endangered, and were one single flock away from extinction.  They are from the 1800's and are the basis of at least 3 of the big breeds of today.  I think I will get a Java for Boy to use in 4H.  There is a part of me that wants 6  (That would bring the flock up to 60-a round number!!) that way we can breed them as well and get on the list to be a provider and help bring this heritage breed back.  This is still something we are thinking and considering.  And we will add a guinea to the flock in the spring...only for tick control.  They are not cute and noisy so they are not my favorite choice, but they will decimate the tick population and that is very necessary.  About March-April, we'll add 25-40 broiler chickens that will NOT have names to grow for "Freezer Camp".  It only takes about 9 weeks to get them to butcher size.  I have a friend (actually two) that enjoy processing the birds, so I'll have one or both of them teach me how and give them some meat in exchange for the help!

The next critter to join the homestead is likely to be meat rabbits.  We are not quite ready to butcher rabbits and chickens for food, but likely by the end of summer we will.  But we need to get the starts to our herd.  Plus we can use the droppings all winter in the garden. 

Man has already had the 1/2 acre garden plot plowed up.  The chickens run on it most day pulling up the grubs.  This is GOOD.  We have moles that are tearing up the yard and garden plot.  If there are no grubs for them to eat they will go away.  The tiller man will be back in April for the spring plowing so we can get the garden going nice and early. 

Deciding on the gardens has been a challenge but fun!  I think we will add a few apple trees, and a replacement peach tree.  We have one apple and a pear.  There is a nice area already trellis for grapes that we need to add.  There is a great asparagus bed already.  I think I'd like to add some other trees also.  A good line of maples along the back property line to be used in the future to sap for syrup.  A stand of firewood timber...as we are having to buy the wood we are using to heat the house.  And another walnut or two to go with the one we have.  These are investments in the future as it will be 3-7 years before we see the fruit from them.

I need to get the strawvberries and raspberries from the house is W'ville if I am able to replant.  There is a spot on the back of the pump house that looks as though it would make a great cold frame with just a few pieces of glass (I need to find someone throwing out a set of old shower doors!!)  Eventually, I'd also like to add a greenhouse leanto on the south side of the house (Same side as the pumphouse and orchard).  The side door from the kitchen would open into it and the one living room window as well.  That would add needed heat to the house in the winter.  And even further down the road, that will be replaced with an addition onto the house that will be our bedroom, because as we get older, going up the stairs may not be as easy as it is now.

Also this spring, I will add 2 bee hives along the side pasture line between the orchard fence and the south pasture.  This will help both with the orchard and the garden.  Then also adding honey and beeswax to the homestead.  Also in the spring (Feb/Mar) timeframe, I have debated about goats.  I haven't yet come to a decision on them yet.  I know by summer, I would like to add a jersey cow.  Jersey's are great for milk and they have the highest percentage of milk fat, so it's great for butter, cheese and icecream.  So I'd like to find a heifer or cow that will calf in the late spring so it will be fresh with milk.  Then the calf will be raised for freezer beef.  (Names already chosen for these critters: Mama will be Butter, Baby will be Hamburger.)  Back to the goats though. I'm not crazy about goat's milk, but I do like goat cheese.  Some of the best soap is made from goats milk, and it is the best replacement milk for man and beast.  Downsides is that it is difficult to keep them in the pasture and out of trouble.  And you need at least 2 as they are herd animals.

Man has been opposed to pigs (as I am a bit as well) but the more I read on them, the more I think they have a place on the homestead....so that may be a fall addition...that's not yet on the radar to be decided.

Then the summer will be consumed with the garden and canning.  Building a tree house.  weeding the garden, canning......the fair for 4H. Getting the grazing pastures under control, Haying. Long about August, I will be thinking of getting a few more chicks to replace the layers that have slowed down in the egg production.  That way they will be grown, feathered, and in the hen house before the cold, and will not have to live in the house or cellar.  Summer will also be for converting the pump house to the "cold cellar".  It has been used for storage in the past and already has labeled shelves for all that is canned.  There are also netted shelves for potato storage, etc. The potato storage racks are falling apart so they need torn out and replaced. August will also start the harvest of not only the gardens, but also starting the firewood piles.

So, this is what is going through my head currently.  There are other "non-homestead" plans as well such as a No-Buy January.  Using grocery game and coupons to start stocking up the pantry as cheaply as possible.  Finally getting the house in W'ville empty of the 'stuff' we have left there. Faithbooking, scrapbooking.  Getting the homeschool room finally finished. Address the "scrap barn" situation.

Happy November...getting caught up.

For some reason, I can't get onto the blog at home, so I've done some tweeking to see if taking off the Feedjit and Followers will help!  Not that I don't love seeing where everyone is coming from and the happy faces of my followers, but I figure you might actually like to have new stuff to read.

This may be a long post...It's been a busy month already.  Now you know, I don't have my camera with me because I actually remembered the "tail."  So pictures soon!

First I have a huge SHOUT out to my wonderful friends Myra & Kerry who came and rescued me from the land of the boxes.  Myra came over quite a few times to help get the Boy's room in order and bless Kerry for her optimism that we could get the homeschool/scrapbook/office put together.  Yeah, delusional.  Myra did a great job on Boy's room, and her 3 precious girls ran around the house looking so cute in PINK!  Meanwhile, her two boys (two of my Boy's favorite people) ran around outside with mine and did all kinds of BOY stuff.   This was at the beginning of the week (2nd/3rd-I can't remember), then she and the kids came back on the 6th along with Kerry and her two girls.  (see the cute pics below-dragon & cat) came over to help me finish up getting ready for the farm warming, Boy birthday party. 

It was a beautiful week so the kids all got to play out in the yard.  Plus, Boy's birthday gift from us was to move his swingset over from the other house.  It arrived on the 4th.  FUN!  Also on the 4th, I tried to go pick up two of our newest editions to the farm.  An Aracuana Rooster and hen.  A lady about 18 miles away needed to find a new home for them.  Unfortunately, I got hopelessly lost.  As much as I'd like to think I am a country girl....there were no street lights, no street signs...just numbers, and I decided that the GPS wouldn't be needed.  Sadly, not only did I get lost, but when I finally found a road number I knew, I went north instead of south and didn't realize I was going the wrong way until I ended up at the town limits of a town about 30 miles away!! 

For Boy's actual birthday, he got his swingset, and his Daddy got him just what he wanted...a Lego Harvester!!!  It's our farm boy!  Then he spent the day with Mom going to 7 different stores to get the stuff for the farm party.  He chose to have his birthday cake at the party, but got to pick what he wanted for dinner.  King Crab Legs, Mashed Potatoes, and Brussel Sprouts.  The kid had good (but expensive) taste!!

On the 6th, everyone came over to help, like I already mentioned and then at sundown, the Boy and I set off (with the GPS this time) back out to get our Rooster.  This time we found them.  BooCoo, the Rooster, is beautiful, and Dora, his little hen friend looks alot like Arica (just without the clipped beak)  Pictures will be inserted here soon...check back!

THEN,  The day of the farm party....Mom and Dad came early to help.  They are so wonderful!  I am going to miss them so much when they leave for Florida later this week!  Boy and Man were off doing a delivery for Man's business to a farm about 2 hours away.  Mom and I cooked and cooked.  (Oh, and I have to tell you the story about the coney sauce!!)  I joked with Man before he left that if our customer had any stray chickens to bring em on home.  He called and put our customer on the phone...how many chickens did I want??  What?!?  So I ended up with 2 more Aracauna hens  (Brownie, and I can't remember what Boy named the other) and 2 White-laced Wyandotts.  (Named Wyan and Dotts)  They are all so pretty!  OK, I may be a bit (a bit??) weird that I think chickens are pretty, but I do.  Our rooster is gorgeous, but right now is hen-pecked, as is the other new birds.  The comets are not being very nice.  The goal for this week is to get the broken down chicken house and yard put together so they will have more room and thus ending the pecking.

I spent a bit of time in the chicken house today and it will be a challenge.  Man helped by clearing a bunch of the thorn branches and started pulling out the Burdock Burrs.  They are AWFUL!!  Our dogs have much shorter fur due to the burrs.  Kristl used to HATE being combed and ran from the scissors.  Now she rolls over and just waits.  I guess they rather have them pulled out than be stuck in the house.  The dogs are loving being farm dogs.  Now if they actually would help and herd instead of just running around barking. :) 

Well, this post is really long and I have still lots more to add...but I better close for now.  Coming soon...coney story, the party, the W'ville house update and pictures.

The weekend of endless Green beans!

So on Friday, the BOY and I drove up to Galion to someone's place that was selling bushels of beans. I went with the intention of getting 1 maybe two bushels to can/freeze. When we got there the man told me that they were going to pull up the beans and if I just wanted to bag up the bushes and take them home I could have everything on them. So, thinking this was a good idea, this is what we did. We couldn't see out the back windows of the Versa on the way home as we had 7 trash bags full of bean plants.

After spending the rest of the day on Saturday pulling of about 70% of the beans from the bushes, we ended up with this....














About 55 pounds of green beans (17 gallons). Then they all needed to be snapped / cleaned and the ones that were a bit "long in the tooth" we are shelling for "shelly beans". Like a bean that you use for chili and such, just it cooks in about 20 minutes instead of two hours.

Here the BOY is helping snap the beans.














We gave all the bushes to the girls to play with and eat the beans. They really had fun with it for a few hours and the coop looked like a jungle!



Here's the BOY petting Raindrop.













Now still after snapping and shelling 3 hours Saturday night and 2 hours on Sunday afternoon....this is the amount left to do....so what do you think I'll be doing today??