Spring chores completed

Thanks to the great February weather we were able to complete a few chores.


The goats are warm and happy and have a great place to get out of the rain.
The loft of the goat barn is used for storage
and a safe haven for hens to set on their eggs.

Rear side of the goat barn with the new metal siding
Home-made by Brenda & Donald



Shed added to corn crib to store the Grain Grinder

The beginnings of an antler chandelier





The grain grinder also needed to be put out of the rain. So a shed was built onto the corn crib to store the Grain Grinder where we just shovel the corn on the cob into the grinder from the crib to be ground into feed.  We add distillers grain, soybean meal, gluten, oats, dry molasses and minerals to the corn on the cob and grind all together to make a delicious and nutritious grain for all the animals.






The imaginarium now has lights, radio, electric drills and a fan for the summer heat. No excuse Brenda to get to work and create.

A Dozen a Day

Eggs, Eggs and more Eggs.

What to do with all these eggs  the chickens are beginning to lay
this time of year. Besides giving them away or selling to the local feed store
or feeding them to the dogs, or hatching them in the incubator for chicks,
I'd thought I'd try to cook up a dozen-a-day.

I'd start the day with Swedish pancakes or thin pancakes or crepes.
The batter calls for 5 eggs. That leaves 7 eggs.

Lunch could be egg salad or better yet make a cream pie with a meringue topping.
That would use another 4 eggs.  That leaves only 3 eggs.

For supper, cook a savory tart/quiche/frittata.
That would use at least another 4 eggs, so it is easier that I thought to cook up
a dozen-a-day.

Swedish pancakes with lingonberries

Recipe for the thin pancakes (tunnpannkakor)


5 eggs, 2 cups milk, 1 cup flour, dash salt, melted butter added to batter and
more melted butter to fry the pancakes in.

Beat eggs, add milk and flour and salt and beat until smooth. Beat in 3 T. butter.
Fry in butter on medium high heat. Fry one side then turn over very carefully to fry
the other side. Serve with any fresh fruit or maple syrup.
They can also be filled with a savory meat & vegetable filling for a lunch or supper dish.
This batter yields 5 large pancakes (9-10 inch depending on size of skillet)

New Arrivals

The animals know that Spring is here even though the calendar says February.

Yesterday, baby chicks hatched  (I've never seen them hatched this early)
and baby goats born and my farm truck returned home painted.
The baby chicks where hatched in the loft of the goat barn
and somehow the mama hen got them down on the ground. (those amazing animals)
The baby billy has such long legs he reminds me of a foal with those long legs wobbling
trying to stand and walk for the first time.
And my farm truck is running smooth after sitting for many months.
Just another day on the farm.

She's keeping her chicks hidden and warm.



 black babies from a blond mama





My Baby ford farm truck



Arrowheads

My oldest antique which I found are the arrowheads.

I was planting lettuce down on the green river bottom land
when I saw a pink arrowhead.
I'm growing food where the Indians were camping and hunting.

Indian arrowheads found on our land
where the green river flows

I did a little reading and learned that Kentucky was an Indian hunting ground.
It was not permanently occupied by any tribes.
Kentucky land was considered sacred and the Indians lived elsewhere and
called this land  "The Great Meadows".
Tribes that crossed from Ohio to Tennesse and over to Virginia were the
Shawnee, Cherokee, Osage and Yuchi.
My arrowheads could be a minimum of 300 years old to thousands of years old.

Granola

Granola the breakfast cereal, not the urban dictionary definition,  is back.
The store version tends to be high caloric due to the oils in it, high cost, too sweet and
I think, tends to taste a touch rancid, because it is not fresh. I make my own to improve the
flavor, ingredients, decrease the amount of fat and sugar and increase nutrients, fiber
and freshness.

Granola ingredients

Basic Recipe for Granola

3 cups oats
1/4 cup maple syrup or honey
2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup applesauce
1 cup nuts (I used 1/2 cup each of sunflower seeds and almonds)

add more of what you like to make it lavish and colorful

dried fruit (add after baking) I used a mix of dried fruit from King Arthur Flour
coconut shredded
cinnamon
ginger
other varieties of nuts or seeds

Mix all (except for the dried fruit)
place parchment paper on cookie sheet and spread out the granola mix
Bake at 250 F
Turn the granola every 15 minutes to ensure even baking.
Bake until all oats are slightly brown about 75 minutes.
Cool and then add dried fruit to the mix
Store in jars.




Add milk or yogurt to granola

a tasty way to add lots of
fiber, protein and nutrition
to your body

 

Marlene

Marlene is a 13 year old whitetail deer.

She is a Pet, of her choosing. She was not bottled fed, she is just naturally curious and friendly
and likes to be rubbed. She and her daughter are the only deer that are pets, all the other whitetails are wild.
Marlene is a good mother, raising her own fawns and allowing other fawns from other does
to drink her milk. Most does have two fawns, Marlene has triplets.
We did not breed her this last fall, because of her advanced age.
Deer in the wild live to ~5 years old.

What is special about the whitetails besides their beauty, is their quietness.
No barking, meowing, crowing, chirping, whinnying, quacking, mooing or a bahhhh.
The whitetails are graceful athletes with no gluttony as seen in the other animals.
And best of all is watching those buck antlers grow and anticipating the size
of the awesome antlers.

Our Marlene

s

Savory Pie is a Quiche

Foraging in the garden and hen house this morning, I found eggs (the chickens know that spring is near)
winter greens, leeks and thyme. All perfect for baking a pie this evening.



Foraged ingredients for the pie

 For the dough

1-2 cups flour depending on size of pan
Butter
salt
a few drops of cold water

Basic mix for the filling

3-4 eggs
cream or milk
Salt and pepper to taste

Filling

winter greens blanched and sauteed in butter
leeks sauteed in butter
wild turkey breast, cooked and shredded
Parmesan cheese, grated
fresh thyme, chopped


Make pie dough and allow to rest in refrigerator for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 F.
Beat eggs with cream and season with salt and pepper. Grease pie pan and roll out dough
with dusted flour on counter. Cover pie pan with dough and trim the edges. Arrange meat
and grated cheese and veggies on pie and top with cream/egg mix and sprinkle with herbs.
Bake until golden brown ~30 minutes, depending on size of pan.
Serve warm or cold.


other fillings

any kind of cheese or cream cheese, fried bacon bits, nuts, roasted peppers, seeds,
spinach, grilled veggies, salsa or any appropriate leftovers.

a savory pie is good for breakfast, lunch or supper or
served as a snack or dressed up for quests

Fresh Fruit Tart

Strawberry Fields Forever

With two cases of fresh strawberries gotten from the Amish Produce Stand,
for $1.25 a quart, I've been busy in the kitchen creating strawberry chiffon pie,
strawberry preserves and syrup, strawberry tarts and freezing the remaining berries
for spring time strawberry rhubarb pies.


Tart, (not the slang word) is an open-face single-crust pie, in that the fruit is not cooked
and is not as sweet as a pie.  The tart can be dressed up or down from a simple savory
quiche to a fancy sweet pastry filled with creme patissiere.

Fruit tarts must be assembled just before serving, for perfection of texture and fresh fruit flavor.
This tart consists of a pastry shell, pastry cream, fresh fruit and glazed with strawberry jam.




Strawberry tarts are delicious

Happy valentine day to you'll



Spring chores in January

                                          
 Its been 60 degrees here in Kentucky for most of January.

                               you'll know what the saying is:     make hay when the sun is shining
                                                                                 take advantage of a good opportunity
                                                                                 when in Sweden, learn how to speak Swedish
                                        

We've been:

• Siding the goat barn
• Building a shed extension on the corn crib
• Bringing electric (I should say Solar) power via poles to the Imaginarium
• Fenced a holding pen for the sale barn roosters
• Started a few trays of lettuce seeds

This is what I enjoy about farming;  everyday is different and there is always something to do
and gratification is close at hand.



Goat barn
front red siding needs to be put up
and the side needs to be painted red





the shed extension of the corn crib
is almost finished except for the roofing



the electric poles to the imaginarium



hoping the seeds I just planted in trays
will be lettuce/salad  in 6 weeks!!!!!

Pizza

Homemade Pizza

I use King Arthur perfect pizza flour blend for the crust.
The crust recipe is on the package.
Use about 1 1/4 cup of the perfect pizza flour blend for a thin crust to cover the 15 inch pizza stone.
Can use a cookie sheet instead of pizza stone.
The best tomato sauce in Red Gold crushed tomatoes. Crushed tomatoes has the best
consistency for the sauce.
Saute chopped garlic, onions, peppers, mushrooms and Italian seasonings in olive oil.
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
Roll out the crust to cover the pizza stone and bake for 6-8 minutes.
Take out of oven and layer with mozzarella cheese, sauteed veggies,
grated Parmesan cheese and meat. Bake for another 10 minutes until
the crust starts to brown and the toppings are bubbly.

Pizza is good with just about any toppings. Go foraging in the garden.
Use greens, wild mushrooms, fresh herbs and even edible flower petals.