Pork Is Now Available!!!

We are sending our pigs to freezer camp, (thank you BHF for that lovely phrase) next week and that means...we have PORK available!

Get your orders in QUICK as it will be going FAST!!!

$3.50 per pound per hanging weight. Sausage and smoked meats extra.

You choose the cuts.

One half of a hog will be approximately 75-100 pounds. It will take up the space of a regular freezer, depending on whether you get the hams cut in quarters or left whole. It will be in one larger box and two smaller boxes. It sounds like a boatload of meat, and it is, but you will go through it really fast. Ours lasted about 3 months.

Call us or email us and get your order in while you can!

What to do with leftover Turkey and Garden Veggies

Per last blog posting comments-- soup is a great idea!!   Soup was made last week after Turkey Day.  I'm still perfecting my stock so that it is not so cloudy and a little more consume 'ish' .  The leftover turkey bones and feet made the stock.  Then the stock was strained and the next day leftover turkey meat was added along with fresh celery, carrots, parsley, thyme from the garden.  No onions left so those were store bought.  I'm at the point where making 14 quarts of stock/soup combination is no sweat and something that I can multi-task around while I clean the kitchen or make something else.  If anyone wants to learn how to can-- I'd be more than happy to teach you.  It's so wonderful to open up a fresh jar of soup or stock.  

Jen (CSA member, friend and chicken/turkey processing helper) finally decided to make chicken stock using chicken feet.  This is the first person who's even agreed to try it.  It's weird and you have to get over the toe-nails.  But I promise I would not steer you wrong on this one.  Her email to me is below.  Finally!!! One convert to making chicken stock with feet!!!  

Used the chicken feet Mike gave me last week to make stock.  It was definitely the most flavorful stock I have ever made.  Usually, not much flavor at all.  I added the left over turkey and vegetables.  Turned out to be a really good dinner.  It must have been good - kids asked for leftovers in lunch.  Thanks so much.  Jen

Still in the GARDEN!!!!

I can't believe we still have stuff growing in the garden.  I mean lots of stuff.  I went out to the garden on Thanksgiving Day hoping I'd find some fresh herbs and a few carrots and I got a huge bounty.

Parsley, Sage, rosemary, thyme, cilantro, dill seeds, tarragon.

Fennel and carrots are below.  We have LOTS of carrots.   All about 4 inches long.

We have celery, kale, swiss chard (it won't stop growing), arugula, pak choi, maybe some random beets, and some asian greens that are about 3 feet tall.  There are smaller kohlrabi and maybe a random leek or spinach or so as well.  Just stuff that decided to take off and grow.

Maybe the frost this weekend will get everything-- so if you want anything, call up and we'll show you where to pick.  Might as well get it now as we may then let the chickens and pigs root through it after.

The carrots are really good.  I just cleaned them with a rough sponge thing and didn't need to peel them-- I don't know why all this stuff decided to really grow and thrive in November-- but it did.

Cheese Making

Today we learned how to make mozzarella cheese.  We went to a friends house and she showed us how to make it.  We made 3 batches.  About 4.5 lbs of cheese.   For mozzarella cheese you need to pull the cheese like taffy and it is hot- about 135 F hot to be exact, hence the gloves I'm wearing.  In the end I molded it into an oval shaped piece of cheese that we cut up and ate fresh.  

We learned that we needed to double the salt in the recipe.  So mozzarella will get perfected with different milks and adding a few herbs and such.  Then maybe on to ricotta cheese?  Not sure, but appears that we may be hooked.  

A Treat for Your Dog

If you are looking for the ultimate gift for your dog this Holiday Season, then consider a smoked lamb bone.  Our dogs devour them and we've had several other dogs taste test them as well.  They are a winner.  

These are grass fed and smoked real lamb bones.  What more can I say?  Your dog will love them.  Limited supply of these bones but they are available for $5/bone.  I know that's more than a bone at the store, but you put this bone next to that store bought bone and I'd like to see which one the dog picks out.  (hmm... I'll have to test that out....)

Call Mike if you want any bones.  

Also, if you ordered a whole lamb, you get the bones as well.  Although we keep forgetting to give everyone their bones-- as the bones are a new thing.  Nothing goes to waste if you do it right!  

Yesterday Mike made Sheppards Pie (or as I call it- Hamburger pie) with venison and lamb.  

Wow-- great flavor.  We are lamb eating machines these days.  Probably because we've now had enough chicken and turkey to last us the year.  But beef is coming soon.

Speaking of beef.  We are bringing 4 steers to the butcher on Jan 11th and we have 2 left that are not spoken for.  So if you were considering ordering 1/4 of a steer or more, please let us know as we've got 3 people that once Mike calls them I'm sure they'll gobble up the last 2.  So place your order now.

We also have 4 of the 5 pigs available when they go to slaughter in January/February.

Eggs are also available over the winter but you'll have to pick up at the farm.  We will likely get a smaller fridge as we don't need to run the big fridge for a few dozen cartons of eggs.

A Toss-up

Turkey on Thanksgiving or rack of lamb and lamb kabobs the day before Thanksgiving?

It was a toss up.  The turkey was great.  It cooked faster than we thought but it was tender and so full of meat that we'll have leftovers all weekend.

Kabobs and rack of lamb the Wed before thanksgiving.  We had to try it out since we just picked up the lamb from the butcher on Monday.  O.M.G -- as my kids now say.

I chopped up sage, parsley and added olive oil, salt and garlic.  Spread it on the kabobs and the rack of lamb.  Mike cooked it perfectly.  140 F
This is the picture of it in the packaging.  Still defrosting-- but cool to see it in the nice vacuum sealed packages.  If you are interested in lamb, we have 3 more lambs and we'll also be making some lamb sausage.  I was never a lamb eater.  I never ordered it, never liked it when I did order it.  I was obviously eating the wrong lamb.....  It's great to eat because the pieces are smaller than beef so you don't over-eat and the flavor is fabulous.  

Morning Photos on the Farm

The chicken eggmobile will be by the barn for the winter as that is the one place where we have a heated waterer.  That means the hens and 8 roosters are roaming the yard as there is no electric fence to keep them in.

When I came out to take pictures they all gathered around.  They have food-- but my voice must mean "special food" to them.  I am the one that usually brings them leftover veggies-- which they love.

And then they started following me up the drive towards the house.  Not many have ventured past the house- but several have been found hanging around the front door.  

The cattle are also in the front pasture again!!!  Yeah!!  I love to watch them!

The lamb is back from the butcher.  I'll snap some pictures as it looks fabulous.  Tonight we had regular lamb sausage and Merguez lamb sausage.  The Merguez sausage is spicy-- but not too spicy and great with a honey mustard.  We'll be getting more of that processed soon as we're going to run out......