Independence Days

Community and Independence Days – Week 16

Posted on August 31, 2009 by Anisa

PreservesSo this week was very productive as well.  My friend, Julie, came over and I showed her how to can (with my limited experience this year).  We made a batch of pickled beets (which smelled amazing!) and a batch of cucumber dills, all in two and a half hours while our kids played.  Oh – and we made lunch and all sat down together to eat it as well.  We were both amazed at how much we got done when doing it together, and how we weren’t even exhausted!  Wow!  I wish we had a community! 

Heirloom Romas, the mail & Health Kick hybrids under neath a Black Krim, two Cherokee Purples and three Lemon BoysWe talked about how long ago, women didn’t have the option to send kiddos off to preschool or day care – but they didn’t need that option… they had friends and family close by to help them.  And getting those chores done was fun and easy (or at least easier) with someone else there.  And the kids were entertained and had extra eyes and hands to watch them.  *sigh*  I want community!  Hippie commune, here I come!  😉  Ok, maybe not, but it wouldn’t be all bad.

So this week’s accomplishments:

Plant Something –  none

Harvest Something–  picked 180+ pounds of peaches on Saturday with our friends, plus a box of tomatoes.

Preserve Something –  It’s the ‘P’ week.  Monday I made pickles, pepper jelly pesto and pickled peppers, and Sunday we of course processed peaches… froze most, but plan to can/jam more this week.  Also froze those Roma tomatoes… I wanted to make a sauce and/or can them, but they were ready on Friday, and I didn’t have time before we left for Palisade.  So they were simply frozen instead. 

Waste Not – nothing to add this week.

Want Not/Prep & Storage – made some gifts for Christmas time

Build Community Food Systems – Signed up for a composting class in September, made pickled beets with my friend Julie,  bartered a melon for some jalapenos.

Eat the Food – Fire & Ice Salsa!Fire & Ice Salsa

3 cups chopped watermelon
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
2 tablespoons lime juice (about 1 lime)
1 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon chopped green onion
1-2 tablespoons chopped jalapeno pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt

After chopping, drain excess juice from watermelon in a colander.  Combine melon in a large bowl with green pepper, lime juice, cilantro, green onion, jalapeno and garlic salt; mix well.  Refridgerate 3 hours. Serve with corn or potato chips, or, like Rick, add it with shredded roasted chicken, avacado, and extra onions to warmed corn tortillas for Fire & Ice Chicken Tacos!  Thanks Mom, for the recipe!

Categories: Canning and Food Preservation, Community, Food, Independence Days, Recipes | 4 Comments

Independence Days – Week 15

Posted on August 24, 2009 by Anisa

Freezer 8-22Wow – I can’t believe I’ve been documenting this stuff for 15 weeks already!  This week was particularly productive.  The picture is of our freezer as it’s slowly filling.  I can’t wait to show you what we have next week… we should have pickles, pesto, potatoes, peaches, peppers and more to show you.  But this week….

Plant Something –  none.

Harvest Something– zucchini, yellow tomatoes, Sun Gold cherry tomatoes, Sweet 100’s, carrots, eggs, Romas, Cherokee purple tomatoes… 

Preserve Something –  Chopped and froze beans, carrots and musk melon; dehydrated celery (for soups & such)  I hope this works well… I’m new!

Waste Not – Figured out a way to get the chickens in the compost!  This is great because they get extra snacks, and they scratch around in there and poop, so it helps with the making of the black gold! 

Want Not/Prep & Storage – We’ve started really taking advantage of this awesome book I got: The Encyclopedia of Country Living.  Rick also cleaned up a free grill we got from a friend.

Build Community Food Systems – Setting up a cheese making class for ?September.  Farmers market usual, of course. 

H2O MelonEat the Food – the most fun to eat this week has been the watermelon!  We got red and yellow melons from the far this week!  Delish!  So your recipe….

Ratatouille
1 small chopped onion
2-3 cloves garlic to taste
1 TBS olive oil
1 large eggplant, peeled, sweated and then cubed
1 medium zucchini, sliced
1 cup chopped tomatoes, or 1 cup cherry tomatoes
1 medium green bell pepper, chopped
3 TBS dry white wine
3 TBS (or to taste) fresh snipped basil
black pepper

Heat oil in large skillet and saute onions and garlic until tender.  Add veggies and white wine.  Season with pepper to taste (should be salty enough from sweating the eggplant.  If not, add salt to taste).  Bring to boiling, cover, reduce heat and simmer for about ten minutes, until veggies are tender.  Uncover and cook 5 minutes more, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid is gone.  Stir in basil and serve.  YUM!

Categories: Canning and Food Preservation, Food, Independence Days, Recipes | 2 Comments

Independence Days – Weeks 13 & 14

Posted on August 16, 2009 by Anisa

Plant Something–  nothing this week…. we need to get ready for more late crop greens!

Harvest Something – zucchini, yellow tomatoes, Sun Gold cherry tomatoes, mint, cucumbers. 

Preserve Something –  cukes into pickles, jalepenos (from the Carlson’s), froze some corn.

Waste Not – Compost, recycling, etc.  No big steps done in this category. 

Want Not/Prep & Storage – We got a bunch of books from Rick’s aunt for the boys this weekend that their cousins have outgrown, and a few hand me down outfits for Emmett (thanks Wendi & Amy!). 

Build Community Food Systems – We’re planning a trip to Palisade to pick peaches next week and have gotten some family/friends to chip in for some of the peachy goodness.  Farmers market usual, of course. 

Eat the Food – Grilled corn on the cob, zucchini, potatoes, onions, MUSK MELON, tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, and more.  We love SUMMER!  Here’s this week’s recipe:

Crispy Smashed Potatoes: Place several new potatoes in a saucepan and cover with water.  Boil until softened, about 15 minutes; let cool until easy to handle. 
Preheat oven to 475.  Oil a rimmed baking sheet or baking stone with olive oil.  Place potatoes on sheet and smash slightly with the palm of your hand (so the insides smush out a bit, but so each potato is mostly intact).  Drizzle potatoes with more olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. 
Bake for 20 minutes until crispy.

Categories: Food, Independence Days, Recipes | Leave a comment

Independence Days – Week 12

Posted on August 2, 2009 by Anisa

Plant Something –  Another round of turnips… to make up for the lost crop (see below). 

Harvest Something – Our first few (eight total) cherry tomatoes this week!  Hooray!  And cucumbers for making pickles!  Yum!

Preserve Something –  Rick sliced and froze 24 pounds of yellow squash this week.  I also made a jar of jam and a jar of pickled veggies! 

Waste Not – Unfortunately, we had a big FAIL in this category this week.  The turnips matured during my early postpartum weeks with Emmett, and neither Rick or I found the time to get out there and harvest them.  Rick picked them all this weekend, and they are all pretty bitter and some are quite woody.  Such a loss too, since the ones we did harvest earlier were so sweet and good. 

Preparation and Storage – We put up 13 jars of pickles… I can’t wait until mid-September when we can open a jar to see how they turned out!

Build Community Food Systems – I was able to take that pickle/jams class, and I’m happy to say our jam was delish!  I learned a lot, and just in time since our cukes are coming on strong!  We also shared some veggies when we were invited to dinner.  Our host made a chef’s salad, and we brought red onion, fennel and a couple of cucumbers to share. 

Eat the Food – um… my post is late, so the recipe will have to be an IOU this week.  But we have been enjoying all the farm veggies, and our own zucchini and cucumbers!

Categories: Independence Days | 1 Comment

Independence Days – Weeks 8-11

Posted on July 24, 2009 by Anisa

Genny's chocolate pie with our raspberriesWell it’s time to get caught up on a few things!  I last left this post on E’s birth-day, so while we’ve continued harvesting and eating and what not, I’ve not written it down!

We did get quite a few turnips and raspberries this week.  More raspberries than we’ve ever gotten, in fact.  There are still a few more ripening up, but I’ve been enjoying what we’ve gotten so far.

My lettuces and spinach bolted, so we’re going to be pulling those, and the peas (both the snow peas and the snap peas) are about done too.  So for the last few weeks here’s our report card:

Plant Something –  nada (that I can remember)

Harvest Something – Eggs, including the first mini-eggs from the pullets, turnips… lots of them!, our first zucchini, peas, radishes (a handful), raspberries…

Preserve Something –  green beans, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, potatoes, garlic, turnips, onions…

Waste Not– recycling, composting, and another big batch of  turnip greens this time.  Also, I packed up maternity clothes to return to my friend who lent them to me (I’m putting this in because instead of being wasteful and buying all new clothes for a few months use, I borrowed).  We’ve also been eating lots of meals made by friends, and the leftover have been great for lunches.

Preparation and Storage – Rick scrubbed out the “new” freezer.  We are solidifying plans for a buffalo (or at least half), as well as mulling over the idea of another pork this fall.

Build Community Food Systems – still spreading the word about the Englewood Farmers Market, Rick worked at the CSA, we shared extra zucchini that was going to go to waste, and we got to try some chicken from a co-op (thanks Genny).

Eat the Food – Since the zucchini are coming on, here’s a recipe from the Great Food Fast cookbook (also on www.marthastewart.com) that uses up a fair amount of summer’s favorite squash.  I’m not a big fan of curry, but this was pretty tasty.  It can be served warm or cold.

Curried Zucchini Soup

1 TBS olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
Coarse Salt
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tsp curry powder
1.5 lbs zucchini (about 3 medium) sliced 1 inch thick
1 baking potato, peeled and cut into 1 inch pieces
1/3 cup sliced almonds (for garnish)

Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat.  Add onion and 1 TBS salt and cook about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally until onions are soft.  Add garlic and curry powder and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant – about 1 minute.

Add zucchini and potato, and 4 cups of water.  Bring to a boil, and simmer 10-15 minutes until vegetables are soft.  Working in batches, puree soup in blender until smooth (don’t be tempted to skip this, it does affect the flavor of this soup).  Serve warm, or refrigerate until cool.  Top with sliced almonds.

Note that I paraphrased the instructions, since I didn’t want to write it word for word.  But it’s pretty basic.  🙂  Enjoy!

Rick also thought that it’d be smart to make a large batch of this soup and freeze it for the winter when you have no zucchini.  He’s a pretty smart fella, I think.

Categories: Chickens, Food, Garden, Independence Days, Recipes | 1 Comment

Independence Days – Week 7

Posted on June 26, 2009 by Anisa

Henry & DaddySummer arrived this week, and not just on the calendar.  It finally got hot.

We had a couple days without rain, and I was lamenting this, because I really love the rain, and because I don’t want it to be really hot when I am in labor at home with no a/c!

On Tuesday, I headed to the farm to do my weekly work on the CSA.  I’m glad I did because we got produce for the first time this year!  We got peas, red leaf lettuce, purple kohlrabi, turnips, garlic and a zucchini.

We actually got bonus veggies too, since the guy I car pool to the farm with is on vacation in Alaska with his family, he said we could eat anything from their share that wouldn’t keep.  So I will refrain from eating his garlic (though it will be hard), and we’ll see if the turnips and kohlrabi make it (though I’m taking the tops).  😉

Here are the facts for week seven:

SprinklerPlant Something –  nothing new went into the ground this week.

Harvest Something – Eggs and our first peas! Besides that, does hoeing billions of weeds count as harvesting?!?!

Preserve Something – Froze two containers of the below soup.

Reduce Waste– or, as I’ve recently seen it called: “Waste Not” – I’m excited to put something other than my ‘usual’ list of recycling, etc. in this category this week.  Instead of tossing the tops of the kohlrabi to the chickens as I normally would, I made a soup with them and a left over ham bone that would have otherwise gone to waste!

Preparation and Storage – nada.

Build Community Food Systems – still spreading the word about the Englewood Farmers Market, working on the CSA.  Discussed splitting a buffalo with another CSA member as well.

Eat the Food – We’ve been enjoying the CSA goodies and snacking on peas here and there.  I’ll have to think up a recipe to share….

Categories: Chickens, Food, Garden, Independence Days | 3 Comments

Independence Days – Week 6

Posted on June 19, 2009 by Anisa

Short and sweet today…

Plant Something – I planted a lot of mellons on the farm this week.  Otherwise, I didn’t plant anything here in our garden.   

Harvest Something – Spinach, lettuce, a radish, eggs

Preserve Something –  Strawberries are on the docket today.  I bought a bunch, and if I don’t eat them all first, I’ll try to make some jam.  🙂

Reduce Waste – The usual… chickens, compost, recycling, etc. 

Preparation and Storage – This week I signed up for a veggie canning/jam making class in July.  I’m actually going to get to go for sure (not just on the waiting list), so I’m very excited about that!

Build Community Food Systems – still spreading the word about the Englewood Farmers Market.  Otherwise, nil. 

Eat the Food – The stuff we harvested, plus pork as usual.  We also used some more of the anchos left in the freezer.  Here’s a quick recipe for green chile mayo, tasty on burgers:

In a food processor, put 1 cup of mayonnaise, 4 (or so) garlic cloves, 2 roasted, peeled and chopped ancho chiles, and a tablespoon of lime juice.  Process until smooth.  Taste, and add more of anything you think it might need.  Yum!

Also, a side note, my ‘Independence Days – Week 4’ post was generating a lot of spam for some reason, so I took it down.  If you want the recipe I had posted (a pasta sauce), just send me a note!

Categories: Food, Garden, Independence Days, Recipes | 1 Comment

Independence Days – Week 5

Posted on June 12, 2009 by Anisa

These last few weeks I’ve been a bit distracted, and not really posting as much as I was.  I’ve missed two Thrifty Thursdays in a row now!  Yikes!  I promise to get back on the wagon next week (but Katie Jean had a great tip this week about paper products). 

I’m officially 36 weeks pregnant (almost 37), and come Tuesday, when I hit that 37 week mark, I could have the baby anytime.  So I have anywhere from one to seven more weeks to be pregnant (but only the high end if I go past my due date).  I had Henry 3 days before I was due with him, so I don’t think it’s likely that I’ll go far over this time, but you never know.  🙂 

In the mean time, I have tried to keep up on the Independence Days post to share with you…

Plant Something – Saturday, Rick planted more spinach, radishes, kale, Swiss chard… I think  that’s all.  🙂  It’s been so cool and rainy, we’re hoping to eek out a little extra time with our spring greens this year! 

Harvest Something – Spinach and radishes and lettuce all ready almost every day now.  It sure is nice to go pick a bowlful of spinach for lunch.

Preserve Something–  This week, I didn’t really do any preserving, but I DID start making kombucha for the first time (fermented green tea).  We’ll see how it goes – it takes two weeks!

Reduce Waste – The usual… chickens, compost, recycling, etc. 

Preparation and Storage – We didn’t do anything really in this category this week either, but I did hear recently that Colorado is now allowing rain water collection, so we are talking about rain barrels and where and when we want to go about doing that! 

Build Community Food Systems – Well this week we finally made it up to the CSA!  We planted a musk melon field and cucumbers.  The pick your own strawberries were ready, but I was pooped at the end of the day, so I didn’t pick any.  Please cross your fingers for me that there will still be plenty of strawberries next week… I really want to make lots of jam and other yummy goodies!!  Also, I do post weekly ads on craigslist and other sites for our city’s farmers market.  I’ve gotten a couple of responses from potential vendors in the last couple of weeks, so that is good! 

Eat the Food – This week was a tight week, so we ate mostly from the freezer.  Lots of pork on these kinds of weeks.  😉  We did BLT’s with our bacon and lettuce from the garden, and spinach a few times as well.  Here’s a recipe we had last night (based on one from Everyday Food magazine), called Ham & Egg Fried Rice. 

For Four:

1/4″ thick by 8″ (or so) cured ham steak, cut into bite size pieces
One bunch of scallions, one shallot, or half an onion finely chopped (the real recipe calls for the scallions, but I always use whatever is handy)
3-4 cloves of garlic, pressed or minced
1-2 inch piece of fresh ginger, finely minced or grated
2 cups cooked rice, rinsed and drained (we use brown)
2 TBS soy sauce
2 TBS rice vinegar
4 eggs
salt & pepper

In a large skillet or wok, heat 1-2 TBS vegetable oil over medium high heat.  Cook ham, onions (or white parts of scallions), garlic, and ginger until ham is nearly cooked through, onions are soft and garlic & ginger are fragrant (you could also add red pepper flakes if you like it spicy) – about 4 minutes.  Add the rice, soy sauce, and rice vinegar (also, if you used them, add the green parts of the scallions).  Season with salt (if needed) and black pepper to taste.  Cook stirring frequently, about five more minutes, until ham is completely cooked.  Put into serving dishes.
Wipe out the skillet with a paper towel and add a little more cooking oil.  Fry the eggs, seasoning with salt and pepper.  Top the rice bowls with the fried eggs and serve. 

This goes great with steamed bok choy or spinach as well.  It’s quick and tasty!

Categories: Food, Garden, Independence Days, Recipes | 2 Comments

Blog at WordPress.com.