Dee

Has anyone read the "Sisterhood Series" by Fern Michaels?  They're old, I think about 2006 or 7 but man are they good.  It's a group of women getting revenge on people who got through the cracks of the legal system.  They are vengeful, very vengeful, but so good I can't put them down.

This morning I cooked up 5 lbs. of sausage for DH to have in the freezer.  I'd gotten it on sale for $2.99 lb.  When I finished, I cooked rice in the grease drippings (after draining the excess fat).  Next, I cut up peppers, celery, onion and carrots.  Two days ago, we had fried chicken and I removed the leftovers from the bones and added it to the mixture.

In the end I had a flavorful and delicious chicken fried rice with food that, if I hadn't used today or tomorrow, would have been thrown out.

I try to never throw food away.  It's amazing what you can cook up with just a little ingenuity.  

It's finally warm enough to start planting my garden here in Northern Iowa.  Today I put in carrots, peas, beets, cucumbers, kholrabi and radishes.  I can hardly wait to get to town to buy tomato, green peppers and cabbage plants, potatoes and onion sets.  

Who else has their gardens in?  It's a good feeling and I'm hoping I can keep up with it.  It's the biggest garden I've put in in years and, of course, I'm hoping to put tons of food up.  I have gobs of squash left in the freezer so I'm not planting them.  

I'm planning ahead.  How about you?

Let's get our hands dirty!

Happy Birthday Darlene.  Each year I think of you on your birthday because it's the same as my DS.  Hope your day has been lovely my old friend. 

Happy, happy birthday Midnightmom!

Hope you still have some scones.  They sound delicious with a cup of tea.  Nothing exciting going on here.  Just living the life and trying to enjoy every minute.  Love you OLD friend!

I went to a pancake breakfast after church this morning.  We were discussing the economy and one lady asked, "Say you had an extra $10,000 in the bank in the bank and for some reason you had to spend it.  What would you buy?"  I was surprised at how many said things like, it could be a nice down payment on a swimming pool.  Another said a cruise.  Another said, I'd take my family to Disneyworld.  Only 1 lady, other than myself, said I'd prepare for the upcoming economic mess that looks like its right around the corner.  This lady really has very little means to buy anything extra and yet she was the only one to see a problem in the future.  

There were 12-15 of us, all women, sitting around this table and I really was SHOCKED.  Not ONE of them said they'd buy a generator, guns, food, etc.  Nope, swimming pools, cruises, Disneyworld.  

Who are these people and where have they been for, even say, just the last 18-24 months?  How can they not see what could very likely be on the way?  We are in a rural community.  Our little town is 250ish people.  I don't know if that makes them pay less attention to things than the city woman, or if it's just the way most people are.

I can think of so many things.  Generator, solar panels, animals, more guns, more food, etc., etc.  I'm looking into water purification.  We have a well with wonderful water, but it takes electricity to pump it.  We have a creek but, of course, everyone around here farms and uses herbicides and pesticides.  If push comes to shove, I want to know how we can use it.  If it could be done and I had $10,000 that's where I'd spend it.

How about you?  $10,000 could buy a lot of things.  What big thing would you by?

I forgot to mention using up mulberries.  I finished the mulberries off this morning with a mulberry/rhubarb pie.  Also, almost have the rhubarb finished.   

I made a raspberry pie last week for the library gals and raspberry jelly bars for bridge yesterday.  I'm getting there!!!  

Now to get busy with the rest of the apples and raspberries.

I've made it in loaf pans too.  Easy to slice and freeze, individually wrapped in plastic wrap and put in a gallon bag.  Then, we warm it up in the microwave and put butter on it.  With a glass of milk, or coffee, on a cold winter's day it makes the perfect treat.  And, as I said previously, I've baked it in a 9x13, frosted it and cut it into individual slices, wrapped in plastic wrap and, again, frozen in a gallon bag.  It's just downright good no matter how you eat it.  As to chocolate chips, the original recipe may have called for them, I don't remember, but it would be too much chocolate for DH.

What did you do?  I'm almost afraid to ask. 

Do you have the book, The Encyclopedia of Country Living.  It's a good book to have at your disposal.  Carla Emery, who has passed away, is the author and there are many editions of it.  It seems no matter what questions I have this book has the answers.

She travelled around speaking everywhere and would stay in private home.  I think she even spent the night with Buttercup once.

How about, Countryside and Small Stock Journal?  It's a marvelous magazine.  Its articles are by homestead type people.  No fancy city slicker articles with glossy photographs.  Helpful hints on so many everyday things: animals, gardening, canning/freezing, fencing, butchering, etc. etc. It comes every other month and I used to wait by the mailbox for it to arrive.  

These are just a couple suggestions on 2 to of the things I would not be w/o.  

What suggestion do some of you have that you swear by?

Keep reading! 

That's right!  We had the air on for 2 days but back to the furnace now.  Hopefully you're right about the warmth coming before long.!

Hope you ladies are right.  Maybe when the weather stays nice for more than a day???  We had 82 last Thursday and 30 this morning with snow when we got up.  Guess that's enough to depress anyone! 

Lovely Darlene.  I'm glad you and Ambergris have ambition.  I've lost mine but am hoping to find it again soon......big sigh!

So many stories I could tell of our time with Willie!

I've used carrot tops for broth, but I would suggest you don't use a whole lot.  They're pretty powerful.

I do the same out of the ordinary.  They also dry up nicely to cut into salads.

They're very easy to make.  I like easy!!!  Be sure you drain your zucchini good.  Let me know what you think.

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Zucchini chocolate cake Dee? Could you share the recipe?

Here you go, Darlene.  Both the cake and brownies are good, fresh and frozen.  When I freeze them for DH and I they're cut into individual pieces, wrapped individually, and stored in a gallon bag.  They stay good for months.

Chocolate Zucchini Cake

2 cups all-purpose flour                         2 cups white sugar

¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder     2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder                   1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon salt                                       1 ½ cups vegetable oil 

4 eggs                                                        3 cups grated zucchini

¾ cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Directions:

Mix flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt together in a medium bowl. Add oil and eggs; mix until just combined. Add zucchini and walnuts until they are evenly distributed; pour cake batter into the prepared pan.  Hint:  Stir your zucchini with a spoon.    It takes forever to clean the beaters otherwise.

Grease a 9x13 pan and bake in preheated 350 oven 50 to 60 minutes. Cool cake completely before frosting with your favorite frosting.

Zucchini Brownies

2 cups flour                         ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 ½ teaspoons soda            1 teaspoon salt

½ cup oil                               1 ½ cups granulated sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla              2 cups shredded zucchini. Hint:  Mix in zucchini into batter with a spoon.  It’s a big mess trying to clean the beaters.

½ cup chopped walnuts    

3-5 tablespoons water.  Mix will be very thick but needs to be moist.  Use 1 tablespoon water.  If it’s not moist keep adding water 1 tablespoon at a time.

Grease 9x13 pan.  Bake in preheated 350 oven.  25-30 minutes until brownies spring back when touched.

Frosting

3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder      ¼ cup unsalted butter melted

2 cups powdered sugar                                       ¼ cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla                                                 Pinch of salt

Oh Becca, wouldn't it be fun to do a book group again!!!  How manyyears has it been?  Count me in and I'll help wherever you'd like.  I agree to anything others choose!

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I have some time this weekend so maybe I'll make a mulberry pie and pumpkin muffins

Oh yum, Becca!!!

I'm working at getting all the above used before the new crops of the season begin producing.  It'll be a awhile before the raspberries and even longer until apples are ready, but the rhubarb will soon be ready.  Well, not that soon since it's not even up yet, but we all know how time flies! 

I can't tell you how many gallons of fruits I've used all winter long but now I'm making them into sauces.  Last week I cooked 12 cups of rhubarb, and we ate it each morning for breakfast.  This morning I cooked up a gallon bag of raspberries.  We'll eat them each morning until they're gone.  Next will be applesauce.  You get the picture. 

I made a raspberry pie for the library girls on Wednesday.  They loved it and it used up more.

I also found more zucchini cake and zucchini chocolate cake in the freezer from last fall.  Had some of the zucchini cake last night with supper.  Still delicious.  I have a couple slices of zucchini chocolate cake thawing for supper tonight.

So, friends be checking out those freezers from last summer.  It's time to get things used up so we can begin refilling.

I forgot to add, I need to use up the carrots I've had the fridge since last fall.  This bag is all I have left and I'm using the peeled for chicken fajitas.  Also, is the chocolate zucchini cake waiting to be eaten.

I can't imagine me ever enjoying it but I'm older than old anymore and can hardly remember up to middle age! 

Littlesister, I don't know if all kids love mud, but we even called our daughter Mud Puddles most of her young years.  She could not resist stomping in them.  Dressed for church or anytime.  If you didn't keep hold of her she was in one. 

Sounds about right Jeepers.   I'm wondering what the guy that rents our pasture for cattle and hay will think when he drives by.  He's in his 30's so I'm hoping he can remember when he was a teenager and the attraction to mud.

Actually, our grandson does do our rototilling.  I don't garden like I used to but love putting a few things out.

This is not typical of my homesteading videos, BUT a fun video of my grandson and his friends on a muddy spring day on the farm.  Boys and mud...what could they find to do???