The Great Tomato Hunt

Posted by Aimee on September 4, 2011 1 Comment

I had more cherry tomatoes in my garden than I knew what to do with, so yesterday I threw them all to the chickens. They just love tomatoes. They looked like my kids in the yard on Easter morning looking for all the hidden eggs. Pay attention here, because for some reason the white chickens always seemed to find the tomatoes.

She's found one.

And now she's being chased for it.

She's frantically looking for somewhere safe to go eat her tomato!

Is there one behind this log?

I didn't name him King Strut for nothing...look at him strutting!

Everyone's looking for a tomato.

I found one!

My barred plymouth rock is still looking for one...

King Strut is too busy looking at the ladies.

And why is Melina so fat? Maybe she's been eating all the tomatoes.

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Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies

Posted by Aimee on September 4, 2011 Leave a Comment

While Hurricane Irene raged outside last Sunday, I was inside so grateful to still have power, yet still worried how my animals, friends and family were faring.

What’s good for a time like that? Chocolate. What’s even better than that? Chocolate and peanut butter together. Luckily I had just received a shipment from the King Arthur Flour Company on Thursday, and inside that shipment were two bags of the mini peanut butter cups that were called for in their Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookie recipe.

chocolate peanut butter cookies

Hands-on time: 10-14 mins., Baking time: 7 to 9 mins. , Total time: 27 to 37 mins.

Original recipe from King Arthur Flour, published 6/27/2011

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1/2 cup (1 1/2 ounces) natural cocoa or Dutch-process cocoa
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup smooth peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg
2 tablespoons water
1 1/2 cups mini peanut butter cups

Directions:

1) Preheat the oven to 375°F. Lightly grease (or line with parchment) two baking sheets.

2) In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt.

3) In another bowl, beat together the sugars, butter, and peanut butter until light and fluffy.

4) Beat in the vanilla, egg, and water.

5) Then stir in the dry ingredients, blending well.

6) Stir in the mini peanut butter cups.

7) Scoop rounded tablespoonfuls of dough onto the prepared baking sheets; a small ice cream scoop works well here. Flatten each cookie to about 1/2″ thick.

Bake the cookies for 7 to 9 minutes, or until they’re set and you can smell chocolate. Remove them from the oven, and cool on a rack.

Yield: about 3 dozen cookies.

Filed Under: Cooking, Desserts | Tagged:

Frosty Morning Moose

Posted by Aimee on September 4, 2011 Leave a Comment

This is supposed to be one of the last really hot weekends of the summer here in Connecticut, so I thought I'd post a photo from this winter. A moose calling on a frosty morning in, of all places, Moose, Wyoming. Amanda and I had gone out early one morning photographing on our never-ending hunt for the frosty buffalo.

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Sleeping Flamingoes

Posted by Aimee on September 4, 2011 Leave a Comment

I love the way these flamingoes at the San Antonio Zoo looked last March with their heads tucked in while they slept. Especially the one playing peek-a-boo.

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Strung Silk Necklace

Posted by Aimee on September 4, 2011 6 Comments

This pretty silk necklace is available at Anthropologie for $149

I saw this great scarf on Pinterest that was available at Anthropologie, but it was $149! I thought I could make something pretty similar to it for a whole lot less than that.

I started by hitting some local thrift shops looking for scarfs, but for some reason there were none to be found today. Then I tried T.J. Maxx, but what they had either wasn’t the right fabric, was too large, or too expensive. I ended up going to a local fabric store that has an amazing assortment of dressmaking fabrics. Since I was going to be buying fabrics rather than using what I found at a thrift store, I’d be able to really pick colors that I liked and worked well together. I started by picking a patterned fabric that I loved, and from there I chose different colored & patterned solids that coordinated or complemented the patterned fabric.

Unfortunately this store has a 1/2 yard minimum on fabrics. I knew I wouldn’t need nearly that much to make just one, so however many necklaces I can make with the extra fabric I’ll stick on my Etsy shop for sale. In the end all of the fabric and 6 spools of serger threads did end up costing me $90, but I think I’ll get at least 4 necklaces out of that. If I were to buy that many at Anthropologie it would have cost me $600, so I keep telling myself I’ve saved $510.
This project does require a serger sewing machine to create those finished edges on the strips of fabric. If you don’t own one and want to try this yourself, perhaps a local store has one you can rent.

I started by serging strips of the fabrics in assorted lengths, tapering down to a point at each end.

I did end up going to purchase this necklace so I could take a closer look at how it was constructed. It will be returned tomorrow. It was interesting to examine though, as what I initially assumed were just strips all in rows was actually a complicated pattern of assembly.

I don’t think I quite duplicated the exact way that it was assembled, but I tried. I created 3 separate sections, putting some twists into the fabric strips sometimes, that I joined together to create 3 strands. These 3 strands were then tied all together and knotted to create the necklace.

Strand One

Strand One and Two

Strand One, Two & Three completed.

Just like the Anthropologie necklace, I didn’t need to use any hardware to create the clasp. I make a double knot on one end, and on the other I inserted a thin strip of finished fabric opposite to the main strands and knotted them together to create the loop to go over the knot on the other end.

And here’s the finished necklace.

Now my friend Cyrena, who not only patiently shopped for the fabric with me today but stayed with me until midnight when I tied the final knot in it, pointed out that the Anthropologie necklace didn’t have the little tails on the knots, but had a more finished appearance to it. Of course we didn’t notice this until it was all done. Upon closer inspection we could see that they had indeed tied them just like I had done, but then tied the strips again to cover up the “tails”. I actually like mine the way it is, but it will be interesting to see what it looks like to try it that way as well.

I think this is a terrific necklace with endless possibilities. You can make it with heavier fabric, thicker strips, add beads, do themed necklaces, like red, white and blue for summer holidays, etc. I’m going to try one with men’s shirt fabric to see what that looks like too. If anybody gives this project a shot let me know. Or, if you just want to buy one, check back in my Etsy shop and I should have a few there soon.

Filed Under: Crafts | Tagged:

Crispy Corn Fritters with Fresh Cilantro

Posted by Aimee on September 3, 2011 Leave a Comment

My oldest daughter has always loved Southern food, which may have contributed to her decision to go to college in Kentucky. I’ve got a trip planned to go down to Lexington to see her at the end of the month, and in typical fashion our plans are all revolving around the new restaurants she wants me to come try with her. There’s Alfafa’s that has the most delicious pancakes I have ever eaten along with cheese grits and country ham. I love to eat at Doodles, (which stole my idea of opening a place in an old garage) and serves “comfort food with a conscience”, serving local organic food whenever possible. They’ve got a terrific assortment of delicious offerings including Pigs and Puffs; four pieces of crisp bacon resting on top of four fluffy New Orlean’s style beignets. Yumm! Eating these inspired me to make my own, and you’ll find that post here.

I think I made fritters for the first time when I was in my teens. I made small donut-hole sized apple fritters. I loved them and they were so much better than the enormous fritters I found in stores around here. With local corn season in full swing here we’ve been eating some really great ears. I thought this recipe for corn fritters would be a good way to highlight this season’s corn. I got the recipe from a great cookbook I have by Williams Sonoma called Breakfast Comforts. The only thing I changed was to add a little more onion and cilantro. Isn’t everything better with more cilantro in it?

Crispy Corn Fritters with Fresh Cilantro

Makes about 24 fritters

Canola oil for deep-frying
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 cup whole milk
2 large eggs, beaten
1 cup fresh (or frozen) corn kernels
3 tablespoons minced yellow onion
3 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro

Pour oil to a depth of at least 3 inches into a large, heavy saucepan, preferably cast iton, and heat over high heat to 350 degrees F on a deep-frying thermometer. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F. Place a wire rack over a rimmed baking sheet and place near the stove.

While the oil is heating, in a bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt.

Make a well in the center of the flour mixture. In a separate bowl, whisk together the milk and eggs and pour into the well in the flour mixture.

Stir just until combined.

Gently fold in the corn, onion, and cilantro.

3. In batches to avoid crowding, add tablespoonfulls of the batter to the hot oil.

Deep-fry the fritters until golden brown, turning once at the halfway point, about 3 minutes.

Using a wire skimmer or a metal slotted spoon, transfer to the rack and keep warm in the oven while you fry the remaining fritters.

Serve at once.

The original recipe called for serving the fritters with maple syrup, but we found barbeque sauce was a really great dipping sauce with them.

Filed Under: Appetizers, Cooking, Miscellaneous | Tagged:

They Hate it When I Leave Them

Posted by Aimee on September 3, 2011 Leave a Comment

When I’ve been away for most of the day, this is the sight that I come home to. Four very lonely, attention-starved goats and a flock of hungry chickens.

I decided to take the twins up to Kent, Connecticut, for a day trip today. Mostly to give us something different to do and to enjoy the beautiful weather on one of the last summer days before school starts. We had planned on doing it earlier in the week, but Hurricane Irene had many of the roads closed we would have needed to travel on until now.

We actually had several missions to accomplish while up there. First and foremost, I got a cow!

Unfortunately it’s not a real cow. I’m still working on that. But it’s a very cool cow that I’d seen the last time we were up there. I was glad she was still waiting for me. She’s now standing by my back door and seems quite content at her new home.

Our second mission while up there was to get the brother to my daughter, Maia’s, beloved stuffed animal that she had gotten last time we were there. Thankfully he, too, was still there waiting for us.

We bought Luigi today (left), who is brother to Ramone (center), and the unicorn's name is Charles.

While we were gone today the carpenter’s got the gutters hung on the goat house and chicken coop and hooked them up to the rain barrels. Now we’ll have fresh rainwater collected for garden watering every time it rains. Between the solar fans, solar lights and rain barrels, this has simply got to be the most eco-friendly chicken coop on the planet.

And King Strut put on a crowing performance for us tonight that had us cringing. Not that we minded the noise, but I know it’s just a matter of time before one neighbor or another complains.

And when I’ve been gone most of the day, the goats all need some concentrated loving time to make up for what they’ve missed during the day. Evan grumpy Melina needs affection.

Grace is a complete affection hog.

And she's pushy when she doesn't get her way!

I stopped at the Agway up in New Milford on the way up to Kent. Since there aren’t any near where I live, whenever I see one in my travels I stop and stock up on supplies. I bought this Omega Ultra Egg supplement for the chickens. I can’t imagine their eggs getting any healthier than they already are quite frankly, but I thought I’d give it a try and see if I notice a difference.

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Blue Ribbon Blogger?

Posted by Aimee on September 2, 2011 Leave a Comment

I’d had a very long, bad day on Wednesday for various reasons — mostly involving two separate people that wasted my entire day by not showing up for scheduled appointments. Couple that with a hurricane and not having internet access for 4-1/2 days and I was one grumpy human being.

Then I got an email on the one remaining device functioning capable of receiving cyber news that I had been selected as a finalist for Country Living’s Blue Ribbon Blogger award. My twins were with me when I read it and even though they didn’t know why I was hooping and hollering, they were as excited as I was! That tiny little email on my iPhone screen made up for all of the bad things that had happened that day.

My sister had told me about the contest a month or two ago and said I should enter. I filled out the entry and sent it in, but it’s been such a busy summer that I really hadn’t given it another thought. I just couldn’t believe that my little blog had been chosen by Country Living! Then, when I finally got my internet back yesterday and discovered that I’d been chosen out of over 700 entries I was truly humbled. Twenty-four people out of over 700 were chosen as finalists in 7 categories, and I am one of 4 finalists in the “Lifestyle” category. Wow. Somebody actually liked my blog. Thank you. Whoever you are. Thank you.

Oh, and if you want to vote for my blog to win, the “People’s Choice” award voting will be going on until September 15th. They say you can vote once a day.

Click the link below to get to the page listing the finalists in seven different categories. If you click the “Vote” button on the upper right of that page it will take you to the voting.

Thanks for your support! I’ll keep you all posted!

Filed Under: Thoughts | Tagged:

Misty Morning

Posted by Aimee on September 2, 2011 Leave a Comment

I took this photo in Iowa when I was there with my oldest daughter visiting her grandma and college hunting. We were out early one morning taking photographs and the sun coming up in this misty field was lovely.

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After the Storm

Posted by Aimee on September 1, 2011 3 Comments

The farm survived the hurricane. They seemed to be glad to be inside when the wind and rain was raging, but were also grateful to get outside when it was all over. The yard was a mess, but they always look at fallen branches like a gift from the gods, so Sunday afternoon was full of gifts for them!

The yard was a mess after the hurricane

Even the goat's porch was covered with leaves and hurricane debris.

The roofs are on the goat house, chicken coop and the old coop and look great. I’m not really loving the way the roof on the silo came out, but I’m going to leave it the way it is for now.

A dark grey metal roof on the goat house.

Dark grey metal roof on the new chicken coop too.

While I hadn't originally planned on re-roofing the old coop, in the end I thought it would help tie it into the new buildings if I re-roofed it and painted it to coordinate with the new buildings.

And I am not loving the roof on the silo, but will live with it the way it is for now.

This is the way a round metal roof should look on a round structure. And how great is this little weekend bachelor pad?

While we somehow didn’t lose power at our house (unlike 70% of the rest of our town), we did have ours turned off yesterday for about 8 hours. They had to shut the power off to the entire neighborhood while they tried to restore some outages. I was getting concerned once it got dark out that the baby chicks would get too cold without their heat lamp on, but luckily the power came back around 9:00 before they caught a chill. The 6-week old chicks are almost completely feathered out now and have taken the 2-week old chicks under their wings and into the fold of the flock.

The 6-week old chicks are looking longingly outside.

And I mean ALL of them are longingly looking outside

You can see how small the babies are compared to the 6-week old chicks.

And apparently Princess Kate really wants to meet the chicks too.

Unfortunately my new Rooster, King Strut, started crowing his head off about two days after we got him. Fortunately for me it has been so noisy in the neighborhood with all of the generators humming (we don’t have one of those), and chain saws buzzing that I didn’t worry too much about it. I’d better figure out what I’m going to do about it pretty quickly though as I’m sure somebody’s about to call animal control. He’s a really nice rooster and all the ladies seem to like him, so I’d like to figure out a way to keep him.

And the goats are fine. Grace is one loudmouthed little girl. If she sees me even across the yard she starts screaming her head off in the hope that I’ll come give her a little loving. Kiki is still the smaller quiet twin sister. I feel like I may never be able to completely wean them from their bottles, which should have been done over a month ago. Every time I try to eliminate the morning and evening tiny “snack” I give them they scream their heads off all day (or night) long. I guess I’ll have to “Ferberize” them like I did my human kids.

Grace the loudmouth.

This is what my usual pictures of the goats look like, since they are almost in constant motion. Here they are running when they see me coming.

You can see Princess Kate plotting here to knock Grace off the ramp

Melina decides to help Princess Kate.

And remember that broody chicken that insisted on sleeping in the goat stall every night for about two weeks? Well, now she’s broody in the dog house.

So things are pretty much the same here on the farm. Nuts. Busy. Fun.

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