Pies and tarts and bars

Work has kept me busy this winter.  I haven't had as much time to sit in front of the computer or to take pictures of what I make.  Things are only going to get busier!  Nothing's new around here, so I'm just going to post what I made today.

Fed sourdough!  Will be ready to use either this evening or tomorrow.

Apple pie.  No sugar.  Pie crust recipe here.

Bacon and mushroom tart with rest of pie crust.  Tart filling has:

one small onion, 1/2 green bell pepper sauteed, few chunks bacon ends and 1 cup sliced mushrooms added in until cooked, 4 eggs, 4 Tbsp sour cream, a dash of A1 Steak Sauce, salt, pepper, thyme, and fresh parsley.  Pre-baked crust for 8-10 min.  Poured in filling, cooked for 20-30 minutes (wasn't paying attention to timer).

Mmmm bacon mushroomy goodness.

Granola bars!  

1 cup applesauce, 1 egg (can leave out), 2 1/2 cups rolled oats, little less than 1/2 cup homemade chunky jam (peach cherry this time), few sunflower seeds and ground flax seed to equal 1/2 cup, 1/2 cup chopped walnuts, dash cinnamon, sprinkle vanilla.  Bake in greased 8x8 for about 20-25 minutes or until set.  Recipe can be greatly modified to suit your ingredients (general rule 1 cup applesauce : 2 1/2 cups rolled oats: 1 egg : 1 cup dried seeds/nuts : 1 cup dried fruit (or 1/2 cup chunky jam)

Rendering lard

When we made the decision not to eat vegetable shortening/canola oil/vegetable oil products, I knew that I had to find an alternative immediately for pie crusts.  I tried butter crusts for a while, but they always seems to misbehave and some had the tendency to stick to the bottom of the pie plate.

But we love pie so much.  I make several at a time and freeze one for a day that we desperately need pie and I don't feel like moving.

(my crust abilities are steadily improving...really...)

The first few times that I used lard, I bought it from the store in the nice box all ready to go.  Then I found out about how that lard was made and decided that it was too processed.  Now I render my own lard.

 All rendered and ready to use!

Using a method similar to here (except I don't bother to grind the lard, just cut it into chunks), I put the lard into my small crock pot and leave it on low for a few hours.  Every now and then I stir it.  When the lard starts to cook down, I spoon out the liquid fat into a container.

Left is cooled down, right is newly poured.

Almost completely rendered lard.

Rendering lard, snacking on anadama bread.

I bought the lard from work at about 1.00 per pound, and three pounds will result in enough lard to fill one and half yogurt containers.  By the way, the best doughnuts we have ever had were fried in lard.

Lard should be used in moderation, but I believe that in combination with a healthy lifestyle and diet, it is a good food that can be enjoyed responsibly.  This article by the Washington Post reflects my opinion.

During the recent cold weather and subsequent snow day from work, I made baked beans, anadama bread, and roasted some of my sunflower seeds with sea salt.

I also started to knit this cabled scarf with handspun wool.  Very easy pattern.  I want to try entrelac knitting soon- my resolution this year is to try new knitting techniques and have more sales!

We are still selling yarn and fiber on ebay, and are now selling some used wood carving tools!  Check us out!

Baking all day

I've been meaning to write here again for some time, but every time that I sit down at the laptop, I remember that the dishes haven't been done, there's knitting in the basket next to me, that laundry is still in a huge pile on the bedroom floor, Jon calls me over to discuss cabin plans again...or I am just too exhausted to fill a blank page before me.  My job at the farmstand is only part time.  That is quite enough for now.  I am only working in the bakery now and survived making hundreds of pies through the end of the year and now am figuring out how to make shelves look full without over-baking.  I still am having a very hard time waking at up 4:45 am and now eat two meals a day because my stomach can't handle being awake so early.  However, this is one of the best jobs that I have ever had and I am so very thankful to be paid to bake all day.  Even if it does mean that when I get home I feel like a blob and go lie on the couch.  And neglect cleaning and making dinner, especially baking again.

Jon is at home for now and very forgiving of my blob-ness.  There are some days that we only eat rice and kolbasa.  Tonight we are eating homemade baked beans and roasted butternut squash and anadama bread, not only because it is delicious, but we can also eat it for days.  I don't mind keeping this job for a while until we can save up or Jon gets a really good job.  I'm hoping that once the days get longer and warmer my energy will increase and I will once again be able to do everything around the house and keep up with my massive garden plans.

I think ahead to the future, a one room cabin, spinning wheel in the corner, bread in the bake oven and the warmth of the hearth.  Goats grazing the lawn, and maybe children playing on the porch.

Oh, and I finished the sweater-thing.

Urban gardening, composting and other ways to upset the neighbors.

To solve the basement flooding problem, bring in an excavator and dig out a massive trench from the basement door to the end of the backyard.  Build retaining walls.

Get some local boards and make raised beds.

Level these beds with scrap wood/stone blocks left from previous projects.  Helps if you know a stone mason.

Throw in some sod clods or roots in the bottom.

 Fill raised beds with the dirt pile left from excavation (this will take several days).  The rest of the dirt for the compost beds will be delivered by truckload in the spring.

Don't forget to plant garlic in the fall!

Add some stone sculpture.

Fencing will happen later on.

Build a compost pile out of a branch you take down.  Line with burlap and cover with a weighted tarp.

Make pretty paths to the doors, but leave the extra stone piled up against the house.

Spread out whatever dirt is left around the back lawn in anticipation of tilling that area in the spring for another garden.  Add sculpture that looks suspiciously like a gravestone.

By now, the neighbors should be standing in their driveways shaking their heads and asking if you have a 'real job'!  Just wait until spring when planting begins.  I can't wait to see the looks on neighbors' faces when I'm out there, barefoot, talking to the plants.

I've been keeping busing working on projects and I am still processing things that I brought out of the garden before we moved.

Herb garden.

 Sugar beets, peeled and chopped into small pieces, to make into sugar beet molasses.  I also have been freezing the pulp to add to baked goods later on.

 Chicken stock.

Haven't even made it halfway through taking the sunflower seeds from their heads yet.  I think we will be set for a while.

I have also been working on Jon's sweater...again.  This time, I am designing the pattern myself (except for the cables).  This is the back.  Handspun wool, of course.

I also have a job at a farmstand.  Some days I work at the register, some days I am left alone in the bakery to make the day's breads, cookies, coffee cakes, doughnuts, and whatever else I think people will want to eat.  I am very happy.

New house, old harvest Yarn and fiber for sale.

We are all moved into a nice two bedroom house in a quiet neighborhood of a large city.  It was a very long process involving lots of sorting, cleaning, moving things, and of course, lots of stress.  Hopefully this situation will be a good one, and so far, it mostly is.

There are lots of new shops and markets to discover.  A middle eastern grocery sells Halal chicken and extremely large bags of rice.

25 lbs of jasmine rice

 I might have to turn this into a tote bag.

There are two Russian grocery stores nearby.  At the smaller store, a very nice Russian lady with limited English has conversations with me about the need for each of us to practice our new languages.  She also helped us find the very best non-expensive kolbasa in the meat case.  I LOVE being able to find affordable Russian food again and hope to be able to discover new recipes while practicing my Russian.  They also have extremely large bags of flour.

How could I pass up 50 lbs of flour?

You can see a theme here.  Now that we have a whole house, why not start buying goods in bulk?  The local doughnut shop sells food-grade buckets.  We have a small chest freezer.  I am very much looking forward to a winter of plenty.

We are taking this opportunity to go out more, explore new shops, take walks...this is already becoming fun.  I don't know how long we can keep up eating 2-3 dozen doughnuts a week, though...

Because we moved again during harvest season, I have had to improvise food storage methods.

Sunflowers and onions hanging.  The sunflowers weren't ready when I cut them, so they are drying near a dehumidifier in the basement.

Carrots, green tomatoes, sugar beets, and rutabaga.

More green tomatoes, and Amish pie pumpkin, and some winter squash.

 Dried and canned goods

More dried goods and spice cabinet

Before and after the move, I have also been saucing apples, dehydrating apples, canning tomato sauce, sorting dried beans, and soon I will start making a molasses-type syrup from the sugar beets.

 I processed 60+ lbs of drops apples

 Glorious apple peeler and slicer.  I don't know what I would do without it.

 Just two batches of unsweetened applesauce.

Kidney and yin-yang dried beans.

The backyard is one giant retaining wall project, but after that is over, Jon and I will be making a small garden space.  I get to really think planting over and practice some French intensive space-saving methods.

I will also be selling yarn, fiber, and knit things on ebay.  Some are made by me, some are from a farm back home.  I am very happy to sell things outside of ebay, too.  I have lots of boxes to go though, but please comment here or send me a message if you're looking for something specific.  I can also knit custom items.  There will be niddy noddies and antique carders listed, too.  My ebay page is located here. *Page is now active and has several items listed.