Haybaling: A Family Affair

On the way down to the bottoms

A view of the cows through the trees

This is why I love the farm.

Yes, that's the tractor I got married on

Putting on gloves

We had over 170 bales

I had fewer bales than Daniel did on his side, so I took a few moments to photograph Mom.

Dad stacking.

Dad being goofy.

For the second half of the field, Dad and Daniel had me drive the tractor.

My view on the way up the hill.

The tractor I drove up the hill. It didn't like the steep hill, heavy load and gravel.

Moving cows from one pasture to another.

Last weekend I went home to the farm. I was unaware, but Dad cut hay last week. Friday night when I got home, he asked if I would help. Ended up, Mom drove for awhile while my brother Daniel, me, and Dad loaded bales. Then I drove the second tractor, and helped Dad load the bales into the barnloft. Typically this ordeal includes more than  four people but we were a little shorthanded this weekend.

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A couple recipes to share

I've started making big dinners twice a week, so the Hubs and I both have leftovers to eat for lunch and dinner throughout the week. I make one on Sunday night, and then one about midweek, or whenever I've gotten tired of the first dinner. I need variety, and if I eat the same thing for lunch and dinner for more than 2 days in a row I get bored with it and tend to eat out at lunch. Eating out costs more (about $10 per lunch rather than $2 or less if I eat leftovers), and it's also not as good on my waistline. Basically, eating out is a lose-lose situation.
Since reading Michael Pollan's Food Rules book, I did self-impose a rule that if I could only eat out for one meal a day, a maximum of twice a week. So if I get coffee on the way to work on Monday, I have to eat leftovers for lunch and dinner that day, and I only have one more meal to "spend". I try to keep one meal for lunch with coworkers toward the end of the week, when I need a break from my desk.

The lunches I made for this week are Jenny's (my favorite engineer coworker) enchilada casserole (not to be confused with my mother-in-law's casserole, which I'll post some other time), and deer roast. 

Jenny's Enchilada Casserole (tweaked a little)
9x9 glass baking dish, greased (I use a Pampered Chef Spritzer that I fill with EVOO) (Jenny uses a pie pan)
Oven set to 350 degrees

About 6-10 tortillas, depending on the number of layers desired. I use corn because the Hubs and I like the texture of corn tortillas better, but flour would work, too.
About 1 lb of hamburger, browned, drained of grease and seasoned with taco seasoning (see note) and 1 can of Rotel
Half a large onion, diced. I use yellow or red onions
Several peppers, diced. I had several banana, anaheim and marconi peppers that were ripe from the garden. If I didn't have fresh from the garden peppers, I probably would omit them. (I don't think Jenny uses peppers)
1 can of refried beans
1 jar of salsa verde (Jenny uses enchilada sauce)
8 oz package of shredded cheddar cheese

After draining and seasoning the ground beef, stir in the onions and peppers and cook until tender, a few minutes.
Cut two tortillas in half and use to edge the bottom of the baking dish. Use a full tortilla to line the middle bottom of the dish.
Spread about half the can of refried beans on the tortillas.
Spread about half the meat/onion/pepper mixture over the beans.
Sprinkle about half the cheese.
Repeat the layers, except spread the salsa on top of the meat, and then sprinkle the top with cheese.

Bake for about 20 minutes, or until cheese is melted.

Note:
I don't typically buy taco seasoning in a packet. I use, to taste, salt, pepper, cumin, garlic powder, chili powder (sparingly) and red pepper flakes (sparingly).

I ate this with avocado slices. I'm sure the Hubs had a side of sour cream as well.

Deer Roast
This recipe is a lot simpler, because it all gets thrown in the crockpot and cooked overnight. Which means I wake up starving at 4 am because the house smells so good!

1 deer roast. The one I used tonight was at least 2 pounds if not more
half an onion, diced (the other half of the onion was used in the enchilada casserole)
About half a dozen large mushrooms, cut in half and then in bite-sized chunks. The mushrooms at Dillon's this time were about 3" in diameter
4 Yukon Gold potatoes (fresh from the Farmer's market last weekend!), cut into bite-sized chunks
1 clove of elephant garlic, minced
Water
Salt and pepper

We have a rather large Crockpot, similar to this one. The crock part comes out and goes into the fridge once it cools. Anywho...

Put the thawed deer roast in the bottom of the crockpot. Put the onions, mushrooms, potatoes and garlic on top. Season with salt and pepper, and then put about 1-2 inches of water in. I've discovered the kitchen sink sprayer comes in handy for putting water in the crockpot. I don't have to hunt down the largest measuring cup, I just bring the crockpot within reach of the sprayer!

I cook the roast overnight, on the 10 hour setting. I think by the time the Hubs gets home (it's been cooking for about 4 hours), he is able to stir it and break up the roast a little. He might even re-start the cook timer.

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Garden Report 09.20.2010

 

Round two of swallowtail butterfly caterpillars. There were 7 at last count, yesterday. 

 

 

Fall crop of lettuces starting to emerge. Peas in the background.

 

This is what happens when you don't catch all the dill seeds... it reseeds itself (woot woot!) I love the smell of dill as much as basil and mint. 

 

My loving husband, the Hubs, snorkeling in Lake Stockton.  I'm really proud of him; he can swim longer (laps in the pool) than I can run.

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Honey Don't Think

by Grant Lee Buffalo. The number one song on my playlist. I can listen to it, alone, on repeat and never get tired of it.




I don't really have a garden report. There's been so much rain the last week. Some of the lettuce and spinach are coming up. The herbs have been replenished due to the rain. The peppers are setting on more. But pretty much everything else that's a vegetable annual has been pulled up and composted.

Anyway, if Grant Lee Buffalo made a music video of this song, I can't find it. They also went by the name Grant Lee Phillips for a while. Check them out!

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Garden Report 08.15.10

Turns out, the butterfly caterpillars really like the parsnip greens. So much so that there are 15 of the little guys in the parsnip patch, and that's just what I could see without moving the tops around.

 

I have four butternut squash set on.

 

The Quadrato D'Asti Rosso plants are loaded with peppers. The only variety that didn't get blossom end rot this year. 

 

Some mysterious insect eggs on the cucumber plant. I did some research and these are squash bug eggs. I don't want these! http://ipm.illinois.edu/ifvn/volume13/images/squash_bugs.jpg

Lastly, we finally got enough rain to fill up the rain barrel. I completely emptied it on Friday evening. It's a good sign to see water overflowing the top of the rain barrel!

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Canning tomatoes

Many people, when I tell them I can tomatoes (and other veggies) freak out about botulism, and about how long it takes to can. I decided to photograph each step of canning tomatoes to show just how easy it is.
Here's the canning guide I use: http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/publications/uga/uga_can_tom.pdf

The recipe I did today was on page 6, "Tomatoes- Crushed". I made tomatoes the same way last year, and also canned "Tomato Juice" found on page 7 last year. This year, I don't have quite as many tomatoes, but still had too many to eat myself (The Hubs is not a tomato fan). Last year, I made a note in the margin that 8 pounds of tomatoes, precoring, produced 8 pints. This year I had about 5 pounds, and ended up with 5 pints. So it's a good rule of thumb to assume you need a pound per pint.

First things first, start with fresh, ripe, homegrown tomatoes. If you wouldn't eat the blemish that's on the tomato now, you won't want to eat it in 6 months when it's made the whole jar taste funny. Below is a mixture of Thessaloniki, Amish Paste and Cour di Bue tomatoes, all grown from Baker Creek seed. Whatever you do, DO NOT use tomatoes from the store. They are never ripened on the vine and are white in the middle. If you don't have enough tomatoes to can from your garden, go to a farmer's market to get extras.

Next, start water to boiling in your water bath canner pot. It will take forever to start boiling because of the amount of water, so start it first. I use the water bath to sterilize the empty jars too. Since there's just two of us, I use pint jars. Wide mouth pint jars are easier to clean, so if you can find those, use them! Make sure the rims of the jars don't have cracks or chips or they won't seal.

 

Some handy tools to have include "jar tongs" and a funnel made specifically for canning. 

 

Start water to boiling in a smaller pan. When it boils, add tomatoes a few at a time. This makes it easier to peel the tomatoes. Also, LEAVE THE CORES IN, otherwise you will end up with tomato juice in this pan, and that's not what you want. I think this step stops the tomatoes from ripening any further, a kind of blanching.

 

When the skins have split, use a ladle to put the tomatoes in a bowl of ice and cold water. This cools them down so they are easier to handle. The skins will fall off the tomatoes now. Discard the skins into your compost bucket, and cut the core out, also into the compost bucket. Quarter the tomatoes and put them in a separate bowl.

 

After you have boiled, cooled, peeled and cored all the tomatoes, put about 1 pound into a stock pot and bring to a boil. You want to mash up this first pound pretty well so it makes a juice. I use a potato masher. Be careful that you don't splatter the tomatoes on yourself, as they are HOT! After the first pound has come to a boil, add the remainder of the quartered tomatoes. Bring to a boil, and boil for five minutes. 

 

While you're waiting for the tomatoes to come to a boil, get your lids ready. Put them in a small sauce pan with enough water to cover, and bring to a boil. 

 

By now, if you're lucky, your water bath canner is boiling. Keep the lid on and it will come to a boil faster. 

 

The actual canning step I wasn't able to photograph because I was working so fast. You'll take a sterilized jar out of the water bath canner and use a ladle to fill it to the bottom of the threads with tomatoes. Then add 1 Tbsp of lemon juice and 1/2 tsp of salt. Wipe the rim with a dishcloth. Then put a sterilized lid on, and tighten down a ring. THE JAR AND THE LID ARE HOT. USE A (DRY) DISHTOWEL OR POTHOLDER to hold the jar while you're tightening the ring down. Put the full jar back in the water bath canner. Get a new sterilized jar out, and repeat the process until you've used all the tomatoes. 

Process in the boiling water canner for 35 minutes for pints. When done, put the jars on a dishtowel on the counter to cool. It's not unusual to have a white powdery substance on the outside of the jars; this is due to chemicals in city water and it will wipe off easily with a dry towel. 

Now, you have to wait for the lids to "pop" or seal. All of mine, except one, sealed while in the water bath. The last one sealed within five minutes of being out of the canner. If you can't tell by looking if the lid is sealed, push down gently on the center of the lid. If it moves, it hasn't sealed yet. If you have a jar that doesn't seal, put it in the fridge and use in within a couple days. Once they are cool, write the year and the contents on the lid. For these tomatoes, I'll write "stewed tomatoes 2010".

 

The number of tomatoes you have will dictate how long the canning process takes. This took a little over an hour. That may seem like a long time, but think of the delicious, homegrown, pesticide free, hormone free (because I used heirloom seeds) tomato juice I'll have for chili and stew this winter. You know you're jealous!

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Garden Photos 08.04.10

 

Butternut Squash

 

Acorn Squash

 

Okra

 

Butterfly Caterpillar. I'm glad he took part in the photo shoot this morning at 7:30 because when I went to look for him again this evening he was gone. Hopefully he was hiding under a leaf, and hopefully he didn't get eaten by a bird... According to this website, it's a black swallowtail caterpillar: http://www.whatsthatbug.com/category/caterpillars-and-pupa/butterflies/

Mom: I'm looking for your help in identifying this plant. It's a volunteer plant that I thought was squash when it first came up, but it grew vertical instead of viney, and is not at all like squash. 

The beautiful sunflowers, which are doing their job of attracting birds and bees and butterflies to the garden.

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