Goats, weddings and other fun!

It's been a week! Everyone has been some kind of sick but me, and I'm just arthritic, slow and gimpy =P
Since my sweetie is diabetic, I've been venturing into nut flours and Splenda baking and cooking. Stevia is really bitter tasting to me, I know, weird,  right?  I haven't had any kind of luck using agave syrup in baking, so I'm stumped, for now at least.  I'm having the best luck with almond flour. I've made yummy waffles and snickerdoodles so far, and am looking forward to pumpkin cheesecake!

Then, I've been farmsitting since Thursday, so far an elderly cat has taken sick and wouldn't eat, a buck got his head caught in an electric mesh fence and ruined the thing, the herd of goats my landlady's keeps, utterly destroyed a cattle panel gate while we were trying to roll out a huge round bale of hay, and I was body slammed by a penned goat buck when he tried to push past me to escape. BUT , I'm a stubborn and feisty old bird and I grabbed him under the chin and pushed back! Aside from a bunch of bruises, I won.

The highlight of my weekend has been the wedding of a beloved friend to her best friend and true love, the inclusion of her two young children in the ceremony made them a family. It was beautiful and sweet, though I don't usually tear up at weddings, I sure did at this one!

Then I went up to the barn to check on the animals when I got back from the wedding and found a newly hatched nest of baby chicks and a very protected mama hen! Something about the chirping of baby chicks just turns me to marshmallow inside =) I had to really struggle not to scoop up a soft little fluff ball and snuggle it against my cheek!


Ive been going through all of my junk in storage and that I have cluttering up my house, and am proud of myself for getting so much of it bagged up and ready for the thrift shop. Also, I've been trying to follow the rule of re-cycle, re-use, re-purpose and re-make and separating out clothing and other things to use again. I'm finding the creative re-visioning a lot of fun and it really appeals to my thrifty earth wise side.

So, now it's Sunday evening , it's rainy and cold out and I'm happily puttering around on my laptop and feeling drowzy from the pain meds. for my aching knee.  My pumpkin is carved, my spooky bats are hung in the windows and I'm ready for Halloween.  So, Happy Halloween ...BOO!!!!!

Have yourself a homemade little christmas...

So, This morning I woke up to "Jingle Bells" in my head, and I knew that I'd be in a Christmas-y mood all day =) . I seem to always end up with a big bunch of bills to pay going into the holidays, which leave me strapped for spending greens. So, I decided that I would go through all of my craft good and resources around the farm and start making plans for a natural homemade Christmas. In my front yard I have a huge Ponderosa pine, with gorgeous long needle that will make for elegant swags and garlands. Under the tree, I gathered up a large bag of cones for holiday crafts. I am going to gimp around the farm gathering up other tree's cones, we have plenty of pines and firs! Then I noticed how lovely the wild rose bushes that grow along side the pastures were with their dark twisting branches and red hips. I am going to make lovely door wreaths from the roses. Near by are wild apple trees that I am going to go gather apples from to make apple butter and jellies. I know where there are some oaks and will be collecting acorns for gilding or leaving natural to add to the tree, swags, wreathes, banners and to add to gift toppers! I have a huge bag of rice, so I'll make microwavable/freezable therapy bags and warming inserts for mittens and boots. I have plenty of flour and cornmeal and sugar, with a bit of careful expenditure, I'll be able to make many breads and cookies for gift baskets. I'm also thinking of trying my hand at toffee!  Spiced and sugared peanuts are on the list too. I have a tiny great niece and a feisty great nephew to come up with a bit of fun for. Another nephew and his fiance, my dad, my sis and bro, my ma and pa in law and  a bunch more! So I'll be making a bunch of Gimpy Christmas Fairy  Goodie Baskets, full of all sorts of wild creations. In a weird sort of way, I enjoy having to get creative with the materials at hand, it forces me to look outside the box, to stretch my creative wings and try new things. Sure I'd like pots of money, but I am also happy with the bursts of creativity that I get when I have to really dive into the creative flow.

Of Roosters and Chocolate!

This is my adopted roo, T-Rex, who I saved from the landlady's stew pot. He has turned out to be a friendly and rather intelligent yard companion and will follow me around as I work in the yard and garden His real weakness, tho', is getting into the farm cats cat food. He has scared the poor cat away many times, chasing poor Kiki around the yard and beating his wings loudly. I'm always laughing too hard to snap a pic.  But as I've been out getting what's left of my poor garden  put away for the year, he been a tireless eater of stray bugs and I'm really looking forward to my  chicks and ducklings. I am a city girl turned farmgirl, and I would have never pegged myself as a chicken person, but there it is!

Lately I've been indulging my chocolate addiction and  this recipe if the best of the best for pure chocolate heaven!

Fancy French (Flourless) Chocolate Cake


Ingredients:
7 oz  semisweet chocolate (45-50 % cocoa)
4/5 cup  butter
1 cup  sugar
4 eggs, separated

   1. Preheat oven to 350deg F
   2. Line a 9 in  cake pan with greaseproof or other non-stick paper and grease the tin.
   3. Break the chocolate into small pieces and melt it with butter over hot water.
   4. Beat the egg yolks with half of the sugar.
   5. Fold in the melted butter and chocolate mixture.
   6. Beat egg whites until frothy by using an electric mixer; gradually add the remaining sugar, beating until stiff peaks form.
   7. Fold in the beaten egg whites.
   8. Bake at 350 degrees until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, approximately 40 minutes.
   9. Use a knife to separate the cake from the non-stick paper. Please observe that the cake is quite sticky!


Happy Autumn!

Fall has fell!

Its such a mild autumn morning , the sun hasn't yet appeared over the hills of the Palouse yet and I'm drinking a nice strong cup of coffee and thinking of pumpkins!   So here is an easy recipe for pumpkin spice butter. If you've never had pumpkin butter before, do your self a favor and make some! It tastes just like autumn looks =)




Pumpkin Spice Butter

Ingredients:

    3 1/2 cups pumpkin puree
    2 tsp vanilla extract
    3/4 cup apple cider
    1 cup packed brown sugar
    2-3 cinnamon sticks
    1-2 tsp pumpkin pie spice (to taste)


Directions:

Combine pureed pumpkin, vanilla, apple cider, spices, cinnamon sticks and sugar in a large saucepan; stir well. Bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer for 30 - 40 minutes or until thickened. Stir frequently. Adjust spices to your taste. Remove cinnamon sticks and pour into clean jars and refrigerate. I've never tried water bath canning it before and always just keep it in the fridge.  I usually make a big pot of it and send off jars to friends and family during the holidays. It really is yummy!

Happy Autumn =)

Dirty Politics

Ya know, I'd say get all of the crooks and blowhards out of American politics, but there'd be no one left =P

First Frost and Carrot-Raisin Bread!!!

Well, I think this morning may be the first frost of the autumn, at least the first one that I got off my lazy cupcakes early enough to see  =P

So, since I love all of the little firsts of each year, first frost deserves  this yummy recipe! Try it, you'll find it yummy too! 

 Carrot-Raisin Bread
  
2 cups self-raising flour
1 tsp apple pie spice
1 tbsp margarine

1 egg
1 cup milk
 sugar to taste
1 cup shredded carrots
1/2 cup raisins

   1. In mixing bowl sift together flour and spice. Cut in margarine until crumbly.
   2. Beat together egg, milk and sugar to taste. Add to dry ingredients with the carrot and raisins. Stir slightly.
   3. Turn batter into lightly greased loaf pan. Bake in a 375 oven for about 1 hour, until top springs back when gently pressed.
   4. Cool slightly in pan. Turn out onto wire rack. Cool well and serve with a dab of cream cheese or whipped cream =)

Raise Small-breed Milk Cows

Raise Small-breed Milk Cows

I would NEVER have pegged myself as a cow person, that is until I saw these miniature Jerseys.
And then, of course, I fell immediately tail-over-teakettle in love with the sweet little things. A full sized cow would give me way too much milk, even if I made cheese all the time, since its only my hunny boo and me ( His real name is Andrew ;) )

I've already chosen a name for my future bovine friend, I will name her Juniper Moon =P Because I'm silly and I think its cute.


First I need to talk the hunny boo into it, and then when he's stopped yelling, I'll build a nice cozy cow shed for her and her future calves.

I'm SO looking forward to cheese making !
Yup, I may be crazy ;)

stars and hearts

stars and hearts, a photo by monda loves... on Flickr.

I LOVE these little stars! They would look so sweet in a garland too! I am a hard core Christmas fanatic and collect Christmas ideas every day of the year =P

Kill Your TV, ETC.

Well, I don't know what "Aardvark" means, but I'm all with the other sentiments! Happy Sunday! Be real and for heaven's sake bake something =)

Be Silly, Be Honest, Be Kind

These are the words that I try and live my life by. Contrary to its imagined harm to one's dignity, silliness makes life's Polaroid moments. It frees the spirit and is just plain fun. The honesty part is easily deceptive. We lie to our selves all of the time, and learning to be honest with yourself gives your life a much added layer of richness. And what can I say about kindness?  Kindness never hurts anyone, neither the giver nor the receiver. I'm not always a wonderful person ( Never get between me and my morning tea) but I must admit that I am addicted to kindness, both giving and receiving.  I love the strange mixture of surprise, gratitude and slight embarrassment that a person has when you let them go ahead of you in line at the market, when you hold a door, when you do something so small as to pay for their cup of coffee. If everyone did one small kind act a day, the world would be in much better shape. This I truly believe. When I'm gone I always want to be remembered as a kind soul.

So by way of all three of my aspirations, I am starting my blog with a favorite recipe!  The silly part? Ginger puffs just call to my mind fat ginger haired cherubs. The honest part? These suckers are fattening! And the kindness part? I'm sharing my recipe =P


~ GINGER PUFFS ~
 muffin recipe ~
1/4 cup softened butter
1/2 cup sugar ( I use baking Splenda and it works just fine)
1 egg
2 tsp freshly grated lemon peel ( if you're not a lemon fan, only add 1 tsp)
2 cups of flour
4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp fresh grated nutmeg
1/4 tsp ginger
1 cup milk

Topping recipe
1/2 cup melted butter
3/4 cup sugar
2 tsp ground ginger

In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar. Add the egg and the lemon peel and mix until blended
In a separate bowl sift and combine the flour, baking powder,salt , nutmeg and ginger. Slowly add this to the sugar & butter mixture, alternating with the milk. Make sure that it's all blended but don't over mix.

Fill greased muffin tins 2/3 full ( I like to use my muffin top pan) Bake at 375 for about 15 minutes. While still hot brush the melted butter over the muffin tops and sprinkle lavishly with the ginger & suger.

Enjoy with your favorite drinkable!