The SB has done it again... solved a problem that seriously needed solving. And I was too in the middle of trying to plow through to step back and see that there might be another way. He is a big picture guy. Mostly, that is probably a good thing.
Without further ado.... Do you live in a place where there are paw paws? We are, we even have a small grove in the backyard. This is helpful as it tells you when the wild paw paws are ripe so that you can go and collect them. The only problem with having a lot of paw paws is that you have to separate the seed from the flesh and skin. It is super duper tedious as there is a LOT of seed in a paw paw. A couple weeks ago, we were drowning in paw paws. Something seriously needed to be done with them or all the collecting work would be down the tubes. In the old style, the processing of the paw paws we had would have taken HOURS and resulted in cramped hands and grouching. But the SB did a little experimentation. Here is the process that saves your sanity.
1. Peel the fruit with a veggie peeler or older fruits by hand
2. Cut the fruit/seed into large ice cube sized chunks
3. Put them in the food processor with the plastic dough blade (not the sharp one)
4. Process briefly until the flesh is saucy and the seeds are seperate
5. Run it all through some mesh or just pick the seeds out by hand.
This is not entirely without some tedium, but it is MILLIONS of times better than the other options I have tried.
We froze about 10-12 cups of paw paw mash. We'll be using it in breads and ice cream. Yum.
You can thank the SB.
Showing posts with label eat local. Show all posts
Showing posts with label eat local. Show all posts
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Saturday, September 17, 2011
Serves me right
Last night I was having one of those days. One of those days where I don't really feel like cooking anything. One of those days where it really seems like WAY too much trouble to turn on the stove. It would be so much easier to get in the car and drive to our neighborhood bar and get some nachos. And beer. And we wouldn't have to do the dishes or anything. And we could see one of our favorite bar tenders. We would probably end up with beer to take home and stay out too late and not get anything done. But really, the cooking was just not speaking to me. Despite having lots of fabu things around to cook.
So I started hemming and hawing. Then the SB mentioned lentils. I love lentils. Especially in the cool weather. I was inspired..... we had eggplant from the garden. We had smoked sausages from Edward's. We had garden peppers, garlic, parsley and onions and a bit of home made chicken stock. And some cooked fingerling potatoes. And that was sort of all she wrote with a squeeze of lemon on top. The onions were a pain in the butt because all that are left of this year's haul are the tiny ones. But we did it. We made a super yummy fall dinner and thawed some rolls from the freezer and added butter and it was delish. So much better than anything you could pay for and in large part homegrown.
So I started hemming and hawing. Then the SB mentioned lentils. I love lentils. Especially in the cool weather. I was inspired..... we had eggplant from the garden. We had smoked sausages from Edward's. We had garden peppers, garlic, parsley and onions and a bit of home made chicken stock. And some cooked fingerling potatoes. And that was sort of all she wrote with a squeeze of lemon on top. The onions were a pain in the butt because all that are left of this year's haul are the tiny ones. But we did it. We made a super yummy fall dinner and thawed some rolls from the freezer and added butter and it was delish. So much better than anything you could pay for and in large part homegrown.
Monday, January 11, 2010
Pride Goeth Before the Fall
So our planned meat preservation experiment was on track and ready. We had made a list and checked it, did some errands, and checked it again. Salt, yup. Sugar, two kinds. Fresh thyme, lots. Bay, juniper berries, fresh nutmeg. Right on. Plastic bags, uh huh. Lots of storage space, done. Clean counter tops, recipe book, note taking equipment. All there.
The only problem was that our hog jowls were sliced and not whole. DAMMIT. But we went on anyway and figured we would just be flavoring the jowls and not trying to air dry the bastards.
Needless to say I have requested whole jowls from my pig farming friend. Along with some pork belly. We remain undaunted. The SB fried up some jowl samples last night and was so excited he had to bring them upstairs with him when he came to wake me up and tell me how yummy they were. We chatted some about what the other 8.75 pounds of them might be good in and he trundled off to his basement lair to dream of hog jowl flavored pasta, etc. Some of this is most definitely going back in the freezer.
In other projects this weekend, I was working on another sun dress for a small friend (one really has to get through the winter some how and this is my chosen method for this year apparently.... cheaper than ordering seeds and plants from every catalog that arrives in the mail box....) The fabric has an embroidered pattern on it. I realized that one of the front side bodice pieces didn't have embroidery on it. After I stitched it into the bodice. So in a rare showing of concern for this sort of thing, I ripped the piece out and re-cut it. Backwards. CRAP. Then had to re-cut it AGAIN. Then I put the whole thing together realizing that I should have put the zipper in the back panel before I sewed it to the front. I didn't have to tear it apart, but it was considerably more tricky while it was attached. This is why you really should make multiples of any given pattern. It takes the first 2 or 3 to work out all the kinks. We'll see if there are any more sun dresses of this nature to be seen before the spring sets in. I am actually planning winter coats for some of the little ones. Though I find it significantly less exciting to sew wool in summer than I do to sew linen in winter....
Because I don't want to blow all the suspense of my new year's resolutions in one go, I decided to do a little blogging with each one as the subject arises.... And on the sewing scene, I have decided to sew some things for myself. They are simple but I know the pattern will require some alterations because my figure is, um, let's call it non standard. Anywhoo.... I want to make a few things that actually go together. No really. Things that MATCH. Here is the pattern I have selected.... Probably something linen-y for summer. It should be fun. Then I hope to work up to things a little more complicated. So you see, the real reason for the sun dresses, besides getting me through the winter by planning wardrobes for small children, is revving up the sewing skills for a bigger project.... you notice I say this like I planned it this way? HA!
So. There is resolution number 1. Now you gotta hold my feet to the fire.
The only problem was that our hog jowls were sliced and not whole. DAMMIT. But we went on anyway and figured we would just be flavoring the jowls and not trying to air dry the bastards.
Needless to say I have requested whole jowls from my pig farming friend. Along with some pork belly. We remain undaunted. The SB fried up some jowl samples last night and was so excited he had to bring them upstairs with him when he came to wake me up and tell me how yummy they were. We chatted some about what the other 8.75 pounds of them might be good in and he trundled off to his basement lair to dream of hog jowl flavored pasta, etc. Some of this is most definitely going back in the freezer.
In other projects this weekend, I was working on another sun dress for a small friend (one really has to get through the winter some how and this is my chosen method for this year apparently.... cheaper than ordering seeds and plants from every catalog that arrives in the mail box....) The fabric has an embroidered pattern on it. I realized that one of the front side bodice pieces didn't have embroidery on it. After I stitched it into the bodice. So in a rare showing of concern for this sort of thing, I ripped the piece out and re-cut it. Backwards. CRAP. Then had to re-cut it AGAIN. Then I put the whole thing together realizing that I should have put the zipper in the back panel before I sewed it to the front. I didn't have to tear it apart, but it was considerably more tricky while it was attached. This is why you really should make multiples of any given pattern. It takes the first 2 or 3 to work out all the kinks. We'll see if there are any more sun dresses of this nature to be seen before the spring sets in. I am actually planning winter coats for some of the little ones. Though I find it significantly less exciting to sew wool in summer than I do to sew linen in winter....
Because I don't want to blow all the suspense of my new year's resolutions in one go, I decided to do a little blogging with each one as the subject arises.... And on the sewing scene, I have decided to sew some things for myself. They are simple but I know the pattern will require some alterations because my figure is, um, let's call it non standard. Anywhoo.... I want to make a few things that actually go together. No really. Things that MATCH. Here is the pattern I have selected.... Probably something linen-y for summer. It should be fun. Then I hope to work up to things a little more complicated. So you see, the real reason for the sun dresses, besides getting me through the winter by planning wardrobes for small children, is revving up the sewing skills for a bigger project.... you notice I say this like I planned it this way? HA!
So. There is resolution number 1. Now you gotta hold my feet to the fire.
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Superfast
We got home late-ish last night after a couple drinks at our local watering hole. The SB hadn't eaten much so while he went out to put the ducks up, I whipped up a delicious snack. Which was pretty much ready by the time he got back into the house.
A couple days ago I made some leek confit (from Bon Appetite October 2008) for a leek tart, but hadn't gotten to the tart yet. I had made several batches as I had lots of leeks from the garden that needed to get out of the kitchen. Basically, 4 leeks in 1/4 cup of butter with a couple tablespoons of water and a bit of salt and you cook it for 20-25 minutes on the stove top.
So I took some of this, added some of the smoked salmon my Dad brought back from his fishing trip to Alaska and a dollop of the cream from the top of the milk jar and brought that to a simmer and then tossed in the pasta and warmed it up. I added a little fresh black pepper. Nice to have some good stuff on hand for a midnight snack!
A couple days ago I made some leek confit (from Bon Appetite October 2008) for a leek tart, but hadn't gotten to the tart yet. I had made several batches as I had lots of leeks from the garden that needed to get out of the kitchen. Basically, 4 leeks in 1/4 cup of butter with a couple tablespoons of water and a bit of salt and you cook it for 20-25 minutes on the stove top.
So I took some of this, added some of the smoked salmon my Dad brought back from his fishing trip to Alaska and a dollop of the cream from the top of the milk jar and brought that to a simmer and then tossed in the pasta and warmed it up. I added a little fresh black pepper. Nice to have some good stuff on hand for a midnight snack!
Monday, December 21, 2009
Restless
The U was closed today. The roads a total mess. I stayed home and did business from here. The SB and I lit out to our local neighborhood bar for lunch and tried to shop at our local vegetable store, but they were closed. I had the grand idea of asking them for their wilted and unsellable greens for the ducks.
The ducks are getting restless. They have been in for days now, and the two small spots of grass that were showing through the snow just outside their cage thanks to the SB's shoveling, have been reduced to mud patties. They are going to be in need of some greens before they get scurvy or something. I think I read that you can give them alfalfa pellets for some variety. But I will have to do some research... I would hate to screw that up and have their gizzards impacted or something. Yeesh.
They seem unmoved by the cold and continue to stand in their water bowls with ice chunks floating around their feet.
I started a recipe from Cooks Illustrated - cajun beans and rice. Of course, I didn't have much of the specific ingredients (small red beans, sub black) or andouille sausage (sub italian) but I am using the method and it smells pretty good. Though I reduced the liquid by several cups. It didn't look like it was going to fit in the dutch oven otherwise, and I am glad I did. It is about right with 7 cups of liquid instead of 9 (!). They simmer for a long time but it was super easy to put together.
The cat is slowly driving me insane. He hasn't been out in days. He is cranky. I am cranky. But I am not currently as cranky as I will be as I walk to the mall before the crack of dawn to catch a trolly to the university. City still isn't running all the buses tomorrow. Bastards.
The ducks are getting restless. They have been in for days now, and the two small spots of grass that were showing through the snow just outside their cage thanks to the SB's shoveling, have been reduced to mud patties. They are going to be in need of some greens before they get scurvy or something. I think I read that you can give them alfalfa pellets for some variety. But I will have to do some research... I would hate to screw that up and have their gizzards impacted or something. Yeesh.
They seem unmoved by the cold and continue to stand in their water bowls with ice chunks floating around their feet.
I started a recipe from Cooks Illustrated - cajun beans and rice. Of course, I didn't have much of the specific ingredients (small red beans, sub black) or andouille sausage (sub italian) but I am using the method and it smells pretty good. Though I reduced the liquid by several cups. It didn't look like it was going to fit in the dutch oven otherwise, and I am glad I did. It is about right with 7 cups of liquid instead of 9 (!). They simmer for a long time but it was super easy to put together.
The cat is slowly driving me insane. He hasn't been out in days. He is cranky. I am cranky. But I am not currently as cranky as I will be as I walk to the mall before the crack of dawn to catch a trolly to the university. City still isn't running all the buses tomorrow. Bastards.
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Busy Week
It was a busy week here at the Future Urban Farm (FUF). The week started with the SB leaving on Sunday. At about 11PM. After about 5 hours of almost ready to leave. He is back in the big city :(. I rearranged my babysitting schedule to go to CLAW on Tuesday night, so I did my regular Tuesday sit on Monday, did CLAW and my bosses going away party on Tuesday and more babysitting on Wed. Also on Wed I found out that my car needs a new clutch which will be running me in the $800 range. Glad I didn't give up any of my sitting jobs this week. But, had I been a real adult, I would have been saving up for this so that it wasn't a huge outlay. Apparently I still have a lot of growing up to do.
Then Thursday my friend P. came and picked me up at work and we went to my milk farm where we watched ducks and chickens and goats and cows roam around. The milk lady had called me earlier in the day to say that she was running a little short on cow milk but had some goat if I wanted to try that. Initially I was leery. Which is dumb since I am planning a goat for the FUF so I said yes. We took the milk home and then went to The Local to catch up on gossip etc. Have I mentioned that I LOVE my milk? I mean I LOVE it. I love going to the farm and I love drinking it and I love that I can lay eyes on my cows. *heart* I also love goat milk, which is like fluffy whole cow milk. I don't know how to describe it differently than that. Mine has NO goat mustiness and it tastes almost like the milk has been gently but thoroughly frothed. Like really really good cappuccino foam, not the stiff foam you sometimes get, but the stuff that is done right. But cold. I may stick with a half cow half goat share.
Friday I pulled up my basil plants in expectation of frost. While out in the garden I noticed that my raspberry plants are blooming. Whaaaaa? Anywhoo. I bet last night's frost took care of that nonsense.
Saturday at the market I bought apples. And eggs. And panicked that next week is the last week of the market. What is a girl to do? I really cannot fathom eating store bought eggs ever again. Really. I also ran into someone I knew from back in the day. She is settled on a farm in Crozet with rare breed sheep that she raises and she dyes and weaves the wool. Dyes with natural dyes - she so rocks. When I got home I remembered that making a dye from walnuts was on my list of things to do. I have bushels of walnuts. Currently about two dozen walnuts are soaking inside a cloth bag in some cold water in a bucket on the back porch. I am considering that the bag is not yet dyed a sign that it isn't ready.... I think they have to soak for a week or two. And really, I probably should boil them, though I am afraid they are going to smell really bad. And with the cold weather, I don't really want to open the house.
Also, I am considering a workshop in mushroom growing. The SB thought that it might be a good move for the FUF to have some potential cash crops.
And here is an end of season recipe. Last week at the market one of the farmers was selling eggplant and peppers cheap. I bought a bunch and made ratatouille with lamb. It started with two small onions and a few cloves of garlic chopped up and sauted with a pound of ground lamb. When that was sort of cooked I added 2 mild and 2 hot peppers chopped up and about 6 cups of cubed eggplant. Then I cut around all the spots on the last of my tomatoes and threw them in as well. I added some bay and coriander and cumin. I added some white wine to keep the moisture up so that the eggplant would cook properly. I let it simmer until everything was really soft then I stuck it in the fridge for a couple of days for the flavors to meld. I ate some of it for breakfast this AM with cous cous and fresh yogurt on top. Yummy.
*Updated*
So I was avoiding the cold and perusing the internet and found this website with this recipe. So of course I had to try it. And people, I followed the instructions. Also, since I had to get the pasta maker out anyway, I went ahead and made some pasta. Which I haven't done in YEARS. Whenever I do it I wonder why I don't do it more often, as it doesn't take that long and the results are fantastic. I think I am going to saute some cabbage and onion in butter and dump that over this pasta with lots of salt and pepper... Real comfort food. Excellent with roast pork and almost as fine on its own. This comes from the old country.... Eastern Europe where my mothers family is from. Below are some photos I got before my camera ran out of batteries.
Cracker Dough
Pasta dough
The first crackers
The pasta drying on dishtowels
Then Thursday my friend P. came and picked me up at work and we went to my milk farm where we watched ducks and chickens and goats and cows roam around. The milk lady had called me earlier in the day to say that she was running a little short on cow milk but had some goat if I wanted to try that. Initially I was leery. Which is dumb since I am planning a goat for the FUF so I said yes. We took the milk home and then went to The Local to catch up on gossip etc. Have I mentioned that I LOVE my milk? I mean I LOVE it. I love going to the farm and I love drinking it and I love that I can lay eyes on my cows. *heart* I also love goat milk, which is like fluffy whole cow milk. I don't know how to describe it differently than that. Mine has NO goat mustiness and it tastes almost like the milk has been gently but thoroughly frothed. Like really really good cappuccino foam, not the stiff foam you sometimes get, but the stuff that is done right. But cold. I may stick with a half cow half goat share.
Friday I pulled up my basil plants in expectation of frost. While out in the garden I noticed that my raspberry plants are blooming. Whaaaaa? Anywhoo. I bet last night's frost took care of that nonsense.
Saturday at the market I bought apples. And eggs. And panicked that next week is the last week of the market. What is a girl to do? I really cannot fathom eating store bought eggs ever again. Really. I also ran into someone I knew from back in the day. She is settled on a farm in Crozet with rare breed sheep that she raises and she dyes and weaves the wool. Dyes with natural dyes - she so rocks. When I got home I remembered that making a dye from walnuts was on my list of things to do. I have bushels of walnuts. Currently about two dozen walnuts are soaking inside a cloth bag in some cold water in a bucket on the back porch. I am considering that the bag is not yet dyed a sign that it isn't ready.... I think they have to soak for a week or two. And really, I probably should boil them, though I am afraid they are going to smell really bad. And with the cold weather, I don't really want to open the house.
Also, I am considering a workshop in mushroom growing. The SB thought that it might be a good move for the FUF to have some potential cash crops.
And here is an end of season recipe. Last week at the market one of the farmers was selling eggplant and peppers cheap. I bought a bunch and made ratatouille with lamb. It started with two small onions and a few cloves of garlic chopped up and sauted with a pound of ground lamb. When that was sort of cooked I added 2 mild and 2 hot peppers chopped up and about 6 cups of cubed eggplant. Then I cut around all the spots on the last of my tomatoes and threw them in as well. I added some bay and coriander and cumin. I added some white wine to keep the moisture up so that the eggplant would cook properly. I let it simmer until everything was really soft then I stuck it in the fridge for a couple of days for the flavors to meld. I ate some of it for breakfast this AM with cous cous and fresh yogurt on top. Yummy.
*Updated*
So I was avoiding the cold and perusing the internet and found this website with this recipe. So of course I had to try it. And people, I followed the instructions. Also, since I had to get the pasta maker out anyway, I went ahead and made some pasta. Which I haven't done in YEARS. Whenever I do it I wonder why I don't do it more often, as it doesn't take that long and the results are fantastic. I think I am going to saute some cabbage and onion in butter and dump that over this pasta with lots of salt and pepper... Real comfort food. Excellent with roast pork and almost as fine on its own. This comes from the old country.... Eastern Europe where my mothers family is from. Below are some photos I got before my camera ran out of batteries.
Cracker Dough
Pasta dough
The first crackers
The pasta drying on dishtowels
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Rain
Finally we are getting a little more rain. It has been sporadic at best. Tons, then none for about 2.5 months and then 5 inches then 2.5 weeks then a little. What happened to the Virginia summers that included the 4:15 afternoon downpour that you could set your watch by?
It is chilly and fall-ish and lovely. I am looking forward to a weekend of winter type cooking. Maybe pot roast or bolognese and definitely bread. And with lots of chard in the garden, chard/sausage/pasta yummers.
I have already started scouring the SESE catalog and picking out what I want for next year's garden. So far, on first pass, I have found about $480 worth of seeds and starts. That should keep me busy through March/April. I must admit, mania does make this activity less cost effective. Hopefully on second pass I can make some exclusions. Especially considering the pile of seed packets that I have left over from this past year. Or I can put an addition on the house. In other needs for the garden, I have to get some floating row covers. That is so that I can keep my greens longer. Though with this weather, it seems like we will be having major frost before half of the stuff really even gets started. My bad. I started late on this. Who thinks "It's time to plant fall carrots!" on the 4th of July. Really.
Ok, now I have to come clean. I bilked the system. And I almost feel bad about it. I managed to get the LAST share of a cow herd in North Garden. While many well intentioned people were trying to make the world better for everyone, I was looking out only for me. And I got the. last. share. I can't wait to meet my sliver of cow.
I was emailing with the very nice dairy lady. I confessed my desire for a dairy goat in my future and she was very encouraging. She is a lobbyist for small farmers and is committed to helping people get dairy animals and promoting these small herd things. Anyway, it was nice to get encouragement. I thought that if I can't get the city council to change the city code to allow goats, I'll buy some of those holiday strap on antlers for dogs and disguise my goat as a deer. We have plenty of deer in town and no one has outlawed them. Downright discriminatory. And in this day and age!
It is chilly and fall-ish and lovely. I am looking forward to a weekend of winter type cooking. Maybe pot roast or bolognese and definitely bread. And with lots of chard in the garden, chard/sausage/pasta yummers.
I have already started scouring the SESE catalog and picking out what I want for next year's garden. So far, on first pass, I have found about $480 worth of seeds and starts. That should keep me busy through March/April. I must admit, mania does make this activity less cost effective. Hopefully on second pass I can make some exclusions. Especially considering the pile of seed packets that I have left over from this past year. Or I can put an addition on the house. In other needs for the garden, I have to get some floating row covers. That is so that I can keep my greens longer. Though with this weather, it seems like we will be having major frost before half of the stuff really even gets started. My bad. I started late on this. Who thinks "It's time to plant fall carrots!" on the 4th of July. Really.
Ok, now I have to come clean. I bilked the system. And I almost feel bad about it. I managed to get the LAST share of a cow herd in North Garden. While many well intentioned people were trying to make the world better for everyone, I was looking out only for me. And I got the. last. share. I can't wait to meet my sliver of cow.
I was emailing with the very nice dairy lady. I confessed my desire for a dairy goat in my future and she was very encouraging. She is a lobbyist for small farmers and is committed to helping people get dairy animals and promoting these small herd things. Anyway, it was nice to get encouragement. I thought that if I can't get the city council to change the city code to allow goats, I'll buy some of those holiday strap on antlers for dogs and disguise my goat as a deer. We have plenty of deer in town and no one has outlawed them. Downright discriminatory. And in this day and age!
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Transitions
Wasn't it only a few days ago that my market bags were overflowing with peaches and tomatoes? Now, when I cast my eye about the kitchen, I see winter squash, apples and sweet potatoes. My garden is pumping out chard and the ever present tomatillos. And raspberries (STILL!) though I thought they would be gone a few weeks ago. I bought peaches a week ago at the market. They were icky. I guess they had been in cold storage since earlier in the summer and they have the most revolting texture. I resolved not to buy more, but the Vintage Virginia Apples folks had some. I sampled them and they were not the kind of peach you might choose in high peach season, but they are DEFINITELY the kind of peach you choose in September when the other options are holdovers from June. It just makes me appreciate all the more the role of diversity. Produce for different purposes... peaches for spring, summer and fall- apples for eating, sauce making, cider and winter storage - tomatoes that are all ripe at the same time for canning or periodically for fresh eating. It's all there, we just have to dig deep and sort through it all.
My spider has suddenly disappeared in the night. I don't know what that means. The web and everything. Gone. No visible egg case. Interesting.
I visited the bees today. Considerably more comings and goings today in the late afternoon than in the past several months. Wondering if the addition of sugar water to the scenario has gotten the queen back into top form. Though it takes 21 days for he bees to emerge. It seems a little early. I guess that ultimately it doesn't matter why. I will go out tomorrow and check the syrup situation and hope that they are packing enough away to stay with us through the winter. I was going to say that my fingers were crossed, but since everything crossable is already crossed for a particular local (who shall remain nameless) in her own particular transition, I guess I will just double count some of those crossings for the bees. Good luck.
My spider has suddenly disappeared in the night. I don't know what that means. The web and everything. Gone. No visible egg case. Interesting.
I visited the bees today. Considerably more comings and goings today in the late afternoon than in the past several months. Wondering if the addition of sugar water to the scenario has gotten the queen back into top form. Though it takes 21 days for he bees to emerge. It seems a little early. I guess that ultimately it doesn't matter why. I will go out tomorrow and check the syrup situation and hope that they are packing enough away to stay with us through the winter. I was going to say that my fingers were crossed, but since everything crossable is already crossed for a particular local (who shall remain nameless) in her own particular transition, I guess I will just double count some of those crossings for the bees. Good luck.
Monday, May 26, 2008
Garden Tour
A few weeks ago, one of my neighbors stopped by to meet the bees. After the 45 seconds it took to get the gist of them (flying in and out, in and out, in and out) I asked if I could tour her garden . We trudged through the wilderness that separates our back yards and she said something that struck home with me... I can't remember exactly, so this is a paraphrase.... You won't invite people into your house if it is messy, but it doesn't matter what state the garden is in, a real gardener will always give a tour.
And I love to give a tour. Here are a few of the not so high lights of the garden.
Some of my favorite weeds in the driveway
My potato field with the auxiliary potatoes in pots experiment...
Some of the delicious lettuce I have been harvesting
Garden smooches from the SB found in one of my flower pots... He really is adorable....
In other news, I visited the bees today. There are a LOT of them out there now. And they are all working REALLY hard. There is lots of brood and they are making honey and wax and doing all the stuff they are supposed to be. Good for them. I have stopped feeding them, though I don't suppose it would hurt if I continued. It is interesting to look into the hive and you can see the "real" honey they have collected is dark amber and the sugar water they got from me is essentially clear. And you can see bits of pollen in there and brood and all sorts of interesting stuff. Did I mention there are a LOT of bees in there? I didn't take the whole hive apart, but I was surprised at how many of the little darlings were in there. They cover the frames that they are working on completely. There is still quite a bit of wax making to happen, so I hate to stop feeding, but I also don't want to get stuck with a bunch of sugar water as my first bit of "honey" - I am hoping they eat it over the long winter. You know, junk food for eating while you watch movies to pass the time. Maybe I'll sign them up for Netflicks.
The rest of the day has been spent in the garden - I planted sugar baby watermelons and some delicata and butternut squash. I also did some watering and some tall plant management (bracing stuff while it is still small so it doesn't fall over and smush everything later), and some re-potting of teeny lavender plants.
I visited with the LB and picked up some dresses to alter. Visited a friend's cat who is very lonely without his little boy (really, I have never met a cat that got lonely, but this one clearly is), and went to the grocery store, made tea and yogurt, and tried to figure out where all the effing pantry moths are coming from.
And a recipe to work on....
Home made magic bread toasted with a little of Everona Dairy's baby swiss with a couple of fried eggs on top and some local hothouse tomatoes. It was almost perfect, but I cooked the eggs too long. I was shooting for runny yolks but missed the mark.
And I love to give a tour. Here are a few of the not so high lights of the garden.
Some of my favorite weeds in the driveway
My potato field with the auxiliary potatoes in pots experiment...
Some of the delicious lettuce I have been harvesting
Garden smooches from the SB found in one of my flower pots... He really is adorable....
In other news, I visited the bees today. There are a LOT of them out there now. And they are all working REALLY hard. There is lots of brood and they are making honey and wax and doing all the stuff they are supposed to be. Good for them. I have stopped feeding them, though I don't suppose it would hurt if I continued. It is interesting to look into the hive and you can see the "real" honey they have collected is dark amber and the sugar water they got from me is essentially clear. And you can see bits of pollen in there and brood and all sorts of interesting stuff. Did I mention there are a LOT of bees in there? I didn't take the whole hive apart, but I was surprised at how many of the little darlings were in there. They cover the frames that they are working on completely. There is still quite a bit of wax making to happen, so I hate to stop feeding, but I also don't want to get stuck with a bunch of sugar water as my first bit of "honey" - I am hoping they eat it over the long winter. You know, junk food for eating while you watch movies to pass the time. Maybe I'll sign them up for Netflicks.
The rest of the day has been spent in the garden - I planted sugar baby watermelons and some delicata and butternut squash. I also did some watering and some tall plant management (bracing stuff while it is still small so it doesn't fall over and smush everything later), and some re-potting of teeny lavender plants.
I visited with the LB and picked up some dresses to alter. Visited a friend's cat who is very lonely without his little boy (really, I have never met a cat that got lonely, but this one clearly is), and went to the grocery store, made tea and yogurt, and tried to figure out where all the effing pantry moths are coming from.
And a recipe to work on....
Home made magic bread toasted with a little of Everona Dairy's baby swiss with a couple of fried eggs on top and some local hothouse tomatoes. It was almost perfect, but I cooked the eggs too long. I was shooting for runny yolks but missed the mark.
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Loooong Weekend
Yes, I have been out of touch for quite a while. First it was a visit from the SB and ensuing (mostly) delightful chaos. Work has been very busy with events, comings and goings and to-ing and fro-ing. All together, it adds up to being super busy.
While the SB was home, we planned out our future garden shed which may include a cistern for water collection under the floor, a shaded area for summering over plants, a place for the mower - hal a freakin' luja! - a sleeping loft, potting bench and running water. Ultimately, it will link to the chicken run and a separate chicken house where we can store straw and chicken feed and any other associated chicken necessities. It is VERY exciting, but means that our chicken house is probably put off somewhat into the future. This is disappointing, but I think there are chickens coming to others in the collective soonish. So I will content myself with that and try to be patient.
The LB and I have been e-chatting about some local flour and how we might get us some. We are scheming and plotting, plotting and scheming. I am excited about Magic Bread made with locally milled wheat. Is that not the coolest? In the search, I came across a place in Roanoke that makes animal feed. So potentially, we could order chicken feed milled locally. If we buy it by the ton, they will "custom blend" it for us.... This opportunity cries out for some kind of excellent chicken feed blend name, but my brain has not yet been able to hit on it.
Other than that, there is little to report. The SB worked his butt off in the garden during his stay so the yard is lovely. But the mower is broken. The old economic stimulus check will be supplying a new mower. And I dread going to buy one at Sears on Memorial Day weekend. And once I get through fighting the crowds, shelling out bucks, wrestling the thing home and (god willing) getting it assembled, my reward is the ability to mow the grass. Woo hoo. I think I might sleep in tomorrow.
While the SB was home, we planned out our future garden shed which may include a cistern for water collection under the floor, a shaded area for summering over plants, a place for the mower - hal a freakin' luja! - a sleeping loft, potting bench and running water. Ultimately, it will link to the chicken run and a separate chicken house where we can store straw and chicken feed and any other associated chicken necessities. It is VERY exciting, but means that our chicken house is probably put off somewhat into the future. This is disappointing, but I think there are chickens coming to others in the collective soonish. So I will content myself with that and try to be patient.
The LB and I have been e-chatting about some local flour and how we might get us some. We are scheming and plotting, plotting and scheming. I am excited about Magic Bread made with locally milled wheat. Is that not the coolest? In the search, I came across a place in Roanoke that makes animal feed. So potentially, we could order chicken feed milled locally. If we buy it by the ton, they will "custom blend" it for us.... This opportunity cries out for some kind of excellent chicken feed blend name, but my brain has not yet been able to hit on it.
Other than that, there is little to report. The SB worked his butt off in the garden during his stay so the yard is lovely. But the mower is broken. The old economic stimulus check will be supplying a new mower. And I dread going to buy one at Sears on Memorial Day weekend. And once I get through fighting the crowds, shelling out bucks, wrestling the thing home and (god willing) getting it assembled, my reward is the ability to mow the grass. Woo hoo. I think I might sleep in tomorrow.
Sunday, March 23, 2008
Diggin' in the dirt
I spent yesterday in the garden an in pursuit of garden. First thing in the morning, I added peat moss and aluminum sulfate (soil acidifier)to the blueberry bed and dug that up. I had a lot of digging to do yesterday, so I wanted to spread it out as much as possible. So I went for coffee and then to Southern States for fencing and a couple other necessities. Which I didn't realize were necessities until I got there. But I bought a half pound of onion sets, and some copper and sulfur to spray on the fruit trees. Then I went to the local butcher and got a local chicken and some local cheese at the over priced store next door. I also stopped by the place where the CSA drops off milk and eggs and I am considering a milk share.
All this local food stuff tanks to the lb, who talked me into reading Animal Vegetable Miracle. We were discussing it in the posh wine shop where she works. She said she thought I would like it. I said, I don't need another project. I think she described it then as something like absurdly inspirational. Though probably more eloquently. She said it will make you want to make your own cheese. So I picked it up last week. My list of projects is growing. Rhubarb? I don't have any rhubarb.... And yes, I want to check into the cheese thing. And I want to go to the farmers market, though it isn't open yet and I want my seeds to get their little roots in gear and start growing. And the thought of being overwhelmed by squash in July sounds almost romantic right now. I need a heat source, I need a greenhouse I need for my seedling heat mats to last for more than a year.
Happy Easter. The violets are blooming and they are calling for a chance of snow tonight.
All this local food stuff tanks to the lb, who talked me into reading Animal Vegetable Miracle. We were discussing it in the posh wine shop where she works. She said she thought I would like it. I said, I don't need another project. I think she described it then as something like absurdly inspirational. Though probably more eloquently. She said it will make you want to make your own cheese. So I picked it up last week. My list of projects is growing. Rhubarb? I don't have any rhubarb.... And yes, I want to check into the cheese thing. And I want to go to the farmers market, though it isn't open yet and I want my seeds to get their little roots in gear and start growing. And the thought of being overwhelmed by squash in July sounds almost romantic right now. I need a heat source, I need a greenhouse I need for my seedling heat mats to last for more than a year.
Happy Easter. The violets are blooming and they are calling for a chance of snow tonight.
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