Just another Day on the Farm

Winter Food Challange Meal #4

Posted on December 29, 2010 by Just another day on the farm

If you have not gone over to see the amazing meals on the first Dark Days Meal Write ups, I would highly recommend it, the ladies and gents have come up with a wide range of temping dishes

To say that this time of the year is busy is a understatement. So as they say, on with the show..

Our 4th Dark Days Meal

The offical Zero Mile Food for this week is Chicken

We normally have a few homegrown clutches of chicks born each summer, but this bird was a bought from Frey’s as a day old and was raised on our farm and processed by myself, (the only reason I made a note on this is that if sent to a processing plant, you can’t ever truly be sure that you are getting “your” carefully raised birds back)

Celeriac Coleslaw, This little beauty is one of the last local Celeriac I have left and this are pick your own apples from Pine Hill Orchards just up the road, they have an amazing amount of different kinds of apples, grapes, Rasberries, and fresh local apple blossom honey. I am also thrilled that they offer really! cheap windfall apples that can be got for next to nothing for the critters.

Dice up the Celeriac and Honeycrisp Apples, with a little locally grown wild forage filburts (still waiting for my tree’s own to get big enough to produce) with a little apple Cider an homemade mayo with a pinch of salt, a bit of honey and tons of dried dill..

Fried Cabbage with Onion, with a drizzle of local maple syrup.

Extra’s, Beet Pickles, Dill Pickles, High Bush Cranberries Jelly

Dessert, Canned Peaches with local cream

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A winter Bonfire

Posted on December 29, 2010 by Just another day on the farm

We put our outdoor firepit to good use over the holidays..

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Happy Holidays

Posted on December 29, 2010 by Just another day on the farm

Wishing Everyone a belated happy holidays and a happy new year!

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Fresh Water Please

Posted on December 23, 2010 by Just another day on the farm

We trained the sheep this winter to come to the fence by the house for their fresh water twice daily, and its working well, I really like only having to haul the water across the peaple yard instead of all the way to the barn, still hauling water for Girl and Miss Piggy in the barn but it still makes a huge difference as the sheep need about 200 plus pds of water hauled daily for them, they do eat snow as well but I love being able to call them (training to come), get to watch them all come up the trail (good time to just watch each sheep move and watch them) and while they are in getting their drinks its a great time to check condition on everyone.

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Weigh In Week 45/10

Posted on December 23, 2010 by Just another day on the farm

Up way to early this morning and am tired but have a very busy day planned but who does not right about now, I am a bit pouty this morning as my scale says I have gained a pound this week.. and my question is WHYYYYYYYYY So I am down 42 pds for the year so far.

My Goals for the past week

STOP having Chocolate every day! -Ok so I only didn’t eat chocolate 3 out of the 7 days but I lowered the amount of chocolate by like 90 percent.
Need to eat more salads/fresh veggies -O YA, check out some the wonderful meals, I have been eating and they are being served on salad size plates so all look huge but are in fact good portions.
Work out 3x a week -Done and an extra to boot, my cardo is good!
Weights 3x a week -Done and added in a daily extra five min upper body workout with my weight bands
Keep working on the handmade Xmas Gifts- Yes, Two more scarf’s done and the body scrubs all made.
Walks 2x this week, weather allowing- Yes, took two good long 2km walks..

Which is the reason for the WHYYYYYYYY LOL!

I am in fact very pleased with my week and I am going to stay in that postive zone..as I feel really good with lots of energy.

Goals for the coming week

Start drinking my red tea daily again
Sleep at least seven hours a night
Workout-Cardo 2x plus 2 walks
Weights- 3x -focus on core/legs
Dress up for outings
Blog Daily

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Just a few of the meals over the past week..

Posted on December 23, 2010 by Just another day on the farm

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Recycle and Reuse..

Posted on December 21, 2010 by Just another day on the farm

So I am a very firm believer in Composting, most of the extra’s that my kitchen or house produces goes back to the critters on the farm, anything that can’t go to the critters goes into the compost piles, we have the compost piles for use in gardens and then a compost pile for things that can be composted but that you would not want on in or on your gardens.

We love our farm sales and I can honestly say that 99 percent of our home is filled with recycled items, I don’t have any issue with good quality second hand goods, I am a active and proud member of our Free Cycle programs within an hour of my farm, and I love our county’s twice yearly program of “find a treasure” at the curb program, where folks can put out their goodies for folks to bring home at will.

I got a yogurt maker in a box of kitchen wear for a dollar, so I guess it cost me about 5 cents, maybe, and when I plugged it in, I was pleased to see that it worked, but then realized that the lid was cracked, Being me, just covered it with a big thick towel and used it anyway but then about six months later it took a fall and the lid cracked in half.. sigh.. so now left with a working bottom but no top, now I keep my house on the cool side to say the least (I don’t have heat for about six months of the year even turned on, just extra blankets and layers)

Having said that, in winter it can be difficult to get my breads to rise like I woud like, I don’t have wood stove in my kitchen like a few lucky folks I know and I do a few trick’s that work well, like warming my flour before making my bread so that the very cold flour will not slow down the yeast as mixed in (thank’s for that great tip momma) and also I have been known to fill a large glass jar with boiling water and then setting it in the oven with the bread bowl as it will keep the oven warmer then the oven light alone.

I often like to make bread and then put part of it in the fridge to keep till the next day, and it needs a good amount of heat to re-rise, and I thought one day, why not turn on the bottom of the yogurt maker and put a bowl in and cover with towel! Wow, what a treat that is, its just warm enough to raise the bread beautifully and yet never warm enough to cause a issue.. its perfect.. Here is dough just out of the fridge being prepped again for use later.

So if you have trouble getting your bread to rise for whatever reason, I would highly recommed keeping an eye out for a yogurt maker, I did find one just like I have at Walmart with a new cost of ten dollars, but I would recommend watching at yard sales or Value Village etc, and I am sure you can find it for less.

Its always a fun idea to figure out how to get the most BANG for the buck out of things, Multi-tasking is a good thing indeed.

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A Once in a Life Time Event..

Posted on December 21, 2010 by Just another day on the farm

A full Lunar Eclipse on the Solstice, the last one was in 1638. I would love to tell you that I got some amazing photo but the cloud cover meant that I got nothing!

So I am going to share the wonderful photo I got the day before of the moon on the farm.

I heard this song on CBC yesterday when they did a program in regards to how special this moment would be for the pagan community across Canada, and I am going to share it here. So here is me sending out a warm hello and hugs to my friends that choose to walk this path. Happy Solstice and Blessings Be!

ARTIST: Dar Williams
TITLE: The Christians and the Pagans

Amber called her uncle, said “We’re up here for the holiday
Jane and I were having Solstice, now we need a place to stay”
And her Christ-loving uncle watched his wife hang Mary on a tree
He watched his son hang candy canes all made with red dye number three
He told his niece, “It’s Christmas eve, I know our life is not your style”
She said, “Christmas is like Solstice, and we miss you and it’s been awhile”

So the Christians and the Pagans sat together at the table
Finding faith and common ground the best that they were able
And just before the meal was served, hands were held and prayers were said
Sending hope for peace on earth to all their gods and goddesses

The food was great, the tree plugged in, the meal had gone without a hitch
Till Timmy turned to Amber and said, “Is it true that you’re a witch?”
His mom jumped up and said, “The pies are burning,” and she hit the kitchen
And it was Jane who spoke, she said, “It’s true, your cousin’s not a Christian”
“But we love trees, we love the snow, the friends we have, the world we share
And you find magic from your God, and we find magic everywhere”

So the Christians and the Pagans sat together at the table
Finding faith and common ground the best that they were able
And where does magic come from, I think magic’s in the learning
Cause now when Christians sit with Pagans only pumpkin pies are burning

When Amber tried to do the dishes, her aunt said, “Really, no, don’t bother”
Amber’s uncle saw how Amber looked like Tim and like her father
He thought about his brother, how they hadn’t spoken in a year
He thought he’d call him up and say, “It’s Christmas and your daughter’s here”
He thought of fathers, sons and brothers, saw his own son tug his sleeve saying
“Can I be a Pagan?” Dad said, “We’ll discuss it when they leave”

So the Christians and the Pagans sat together at the table
Finding faith and common ground the best that they were able
Lighting trees in darkness, learning new ways from the old, and
Making sense of history and drawing warmth out of the cold

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Winter Challange Meal 3

Posted on December 20, 2010 by Just another day on the farm

Dark Days Meal 3

Main Course
Roast-Goat with horseradish
Oven Roasted Veggies -Potato’s/Onion and Carrots
Fresh Cherry tomato

The offical Zero miles food this week is Goat and the runner up is Spruce tips.

Dessert Apple/Pear Butter and Spruce-Rosemary Shortbread Cookie

Goat Roast, raised on the farm, we like to raise one or two altered boys for the freezer camp, it was roasted with garlic/onion and sprinkled with Garlic Salt, Pepper and Hot Curry Mix and slow roasted for four hours, topped with homemade horseradish

Veggies where all peeled, diced and covered with olive oil and again with a good sprinkle of Garlic Salt, Pepper and Regular Curry spice mix. The fresh cherry tomato was from my own plants in the house.

The desserts were homemade apple/pear butter with cinnamon, ginger and all-spice, the cookies have a link to their own write up including the recipe.

Posted in 100 mile diet, food, Food Production and Recipes, Winter Eating Challange | Leave a comment

Spruce and Rosemary Shortbread Cookies Recipe

Posted on December 20, 2010 by Just another day on the farm

A basic Shortbread Cookie Recipe is a time honored traditon at this time of the year, it is made up normally of butter, Sugar, Flour and Vanilla. Some folks like to use half Flour and half Corn Starch for a even smoother cookie.

But I have made own version here, its tweeked farm gal style. Because I want this cookie to be a DDC Cookie, I have tweeked it even more then normal

If you are using sugar, take your spruce tips and Rosemary and 1 tbsp of sugar and grind together in your coffee grinder.

1 cup of butter (St. Albert)
2 cup of flour
1/2 cup of local honey (normally I would use sugar)
1/3 cup of dried Spruce tips mixed with fresh Rosemary-Ground

Beat Butter, then add honey, beat again, then add half the flour and the ground spruce tips and rosemary, beat, slowly add the rest of the flour till ball forms, this will be a very soft dough, if required use just enough flour to create a log shape of the dough, shape it so that it will cut into loonie size cookies and wrap in wax paper and chill at least an hour. Two is better..

Once Chilled, slice into half inch cicles or half moons and bake for 12 to 14 min at 350. You want them just lightly browned on the edges and then move them to a rack to cool.

Now someone has had the thought of what do these taste like? and the answer is it depends on each person’s taste buds up to a point but if you don’t tell folks what it is, they will think its a citrus and rosemary cookie, the tips will add a lovely “lemony” taste that is as lip smacking good as it is hard to quite put your finger on. The honey made the cookies melt more then normal, so be aware that if you use sugar that they will be a stiffer cookie then shown above.

Please remember to only pick and use Pine, Spruce tips from tree’s that you know are not sprayed or to close to the road in regards to the exhust fumes and give them a wash before you use them.