Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Semi-bountiful harvest



I want a farm (said in whiney voice). Today, I really want a farm. I have been looking at property on the internet. (start whiney voice again) I don't want to live in the suburbs. I don't like traffic. I hate Mother's Club (good thing my readership is non-existent). I don't want my children to grow up being materialistic, mall-walking, clothes horse, cell phone toting, ......CONSUMERS! Yesterday at the bus stop one of the mom's had on high heels. And she wasn't on her way to work. She always wears better clothes to the bus stop than I own. I was wearing stretched out shorts, a t-shirt with a black spot over the left boob from holding a dutch oven at camp and had really hairy legs. I don't fit in here. I don't want to fit in here. It's the ultimate paradox...am I rebelling against the suburban machine or just lazy. Hmmmmmm. While I ponder that, I will tell you about my semi-bountiful harvest.

Pretend, dear readers, er reader, that this is a homesteading blog. I am blogging about my marvelous journeys into sustainability and self-suffieciency.

Yesterday, we decided to harvest the potatoes. First let me tell you how we got to be potato farmers. It all started when we had a potato that was, shall I say, lacking a certain youth. It was sproutin' out in the pantry. So beings that it was spring and plantin' time, we cut it up and chucked it in the ground. (Evidently, I believe homesteaders talk with an accent.) We unfortunately didn't read up on plantin' taters so didn't know about hilling them and using seed taters and all. After researching and finding out how it was supposed to be done, we decided what the heck, it would be an experiement. So this is what we got.


The tomato is to show you size. Well, good thing we weren't planning on feeding the youngn's with these. However we did cook them (boiled) and served them up with some delicious butter and salt and pepper. That along with Thomas's famous chicken legs, a homegrown mater', green beans and fresh baked blueberry cake. Here's what it looked like. Note: Please don't notice that the chicken leg already has a bite out of it.

Here is a picture of the fresh baked blueberry cake. Actually it is a quick bread.

And in true homestead blog fashion here is the recipe: It came from allrecipes.com. Originally it was doubled and made two loaf pans, but I didn't have enough flour so I halved it. This is the halved recipe:

Blueberry Quick Bread

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cups sugar
1 T baking powder
1/2 t salt
6 T cold butter
3/4 cups chopped walnuts
2 eggs
1 cup cold milk
1 t vanilla extract
1 1/2 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

Directions

In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in walnuts. In a small bowl, beat eggs, milk and vanilla; stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Gently fold in blueberries. Pour into 9-in. X 5 in. X 3 in. loaf pan. Bake at 350 degrees F for 65-75 minutes or until bread tests done. Cool in pan 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack.

Comments:

I didn't have enough flour, so I replaced about 1/4 cup with wheat flour. I liked it. I didn't have any walnuts, so I used chopped almonds. Again, I liked it. I mixed the (fresh) blueberries in with the dry ingredients because I read on the internet that it would keep them all from sinking, and it did. I covered the top with powdered sugar after it was done because it sounded good. It was really good while it was still warm. And it was really good heated up in the microwave. And I bed it would be really good warm and with a little butter. Away temptation!!!

Today I will be canning all the rest of the tomatoes, making spaghetti and tomato sauce and putting up some blackberry jelly if the light doesn't run out. I will be attaching some flowers to the front of the dress Faith made and then we're going to finish appliqueing the quilt we are making for Nana.

ROGL!!! NOT!!! What I really am doing today is reading my e-mail, going to have lunch with Cuban and packing my kid up to go back to college. The part about the dress Faith made is true though. More about that later.

hugs to all.

Sunday, August 16, 2009

Tommy Tomcat


Tommy Tomcat

1996-2009

RIP