It's been awhile

Wow I haven't blogged in so long where has the time gone? We have been so busy harvesting and preserving our bounty, and what a bounty we have this year. The growing season started out very slowly this year. The Summer was very mild in Western Washington this year. Only a few day this summer hit the 90's. I didn't think anything would grow. I waited along with everyone else with baited breath and pleaded with the tomatoes to grow. They finally started to grow. I would get one or two tomatoes a day for awhile, and then they came on like gang busters. I also went to the Barn in Portland Oregon to supplement what we were growing. Then in September my DH and I went to a garlic and tomato festival in Richfield WA. Amazing!!! The tomatoes were so awesome that we bought #60 and I canned all the next day. I put away about #300 of food this year. We have been so blessed by Christ. We have our 1/2 of cow and are getting a lamb in about 2 weeks. I also canned #50 of chickens. I guess I could do another #20, but I am getting tired. I have to put our garlics in the ground today. I grew some a couple of years ago and they did well fingers crossed this time. We will be putting in our wood stove this month and then I will feel snug as a bug in a rug. We got our wood stove on craigslist last spring and now we have to install the darn thing. I will keep you posted on the garlics and how they are growing. Earlier this year God but it on our hearts to get back to the basics...ie the simple life. I have been studying peoples lives during the Depression of the 1930's..Boy they ate better than we do now and had far less. I got some depression era cookbooks and have been making amazing meals. On YouTube is Clara she is in her 90's and with the help of her Grandson has a cooking channel. http://www.youtube.com/user/DepressionCooking if you ever have time check out her channel. I ordered her cookbook and her DVD. What great stories and great recipes.http://www.greatdepressioncooking.com/ yes she even has a website. Getting back to what I was typing before. We (Michael and I) have to save save save. So looking back on how people who had less and lived on less, the common thread was that they were happy, and most of them made it through the hard time, they didn't give up, I guess it wasn't in their DNA. The sense of God, Family and Home, were the most important parts to the family structure and that is falling away with Internet and cell phone wii and all of the other crap that has bombarded our lives. Well I will not be trading up on my cell phone, we have become so attached and plugged in that we feel like we can't function without them WRONG! I am so sick of driving somewhere and people are talking on the phone and driving. Cell phone are growing out of our ears like a cancerous sore. Remember when average income families could not afford a cell phone. Now 8 and 9 year old have them. Why? I have not clue....

Soggy Spring

This is one for the history books.. We have had rain, sleet and snow. I have never seen a Spring like this before. I have been planning to start making yogurt this spring, I eat it almost every morning, so I thought why not make it? I have a smoothie during the week. I call it my Fruit Green Smoothie
1/2 cup Greek yogurt
4-5 organic strawberries
1 banana (organic of course)
1/2c uncooked oatmeal
4 t spirulina
1/2t vanilla
14 oz F.F. milk
what ever sweetener you like IE honey stevia whatever tt (to taste)
Blend either in a blender or use an immersion blender. I use the latter and clean up is a breeze. This smoothie gives me lots o energy and keeps me full longer

Simple Food

Well it is that time of year again. Getting our garden beds ready for spring. This year I purpose to grow 4 new vegetables. I haven't decided if it will be peas,carrots,parsnips,kale,celery and butter beans. I know that broccoli will not grow in our soil, why I don't know...We have tried everything to get those suckers to grow. Should we try again? and waste the space that we could grow something that we know will grow....I am NOT gonna let little ol' broccoli defeat me. It is becoming a obsession with me a broccoli. I love garden grown broccoli. OK enough of this obsession. Our goal this year is to grow 100 pounds of food. We live on a 6000 square foot lot with a driveway, house and garage. The front year is totally landscaped with non-edibles so it is just the back and part of the side yard. This will not include the fruit trees, I know that we will get at least 200 pounds of fruit. I am so ready for this challenge. Not only will we be eating this fabulously organic fare, I will also be preserving our food too. In the past we grew a small garden and belonged to a CSA. I love CSA's and think they are awesome, this year I want us to live off of our land and not pay for food off of someone else. I also be looking for beef and lamb meat. We have a wonderful egg farm we go to. God has been so Faithful and Good to us.

What's for Dinner.

Mimi's Sticky Chicken
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon paprika
3/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 whole roasting chicken, about 3 pounds
1 cup chopped onions Combine all spices (first 8 ingredients) in small bowl.
Rinse chicken, inside and out. Drain well.
Rub spice mixture over skin and the inside of chicken.
Place in a resealable plastic bag, seal and refrigerate overnight.
When ready to roast, stuff cavity with onions.
Place chicken breast side down in roasting pan.
Roast uncovered at 250ºF (that's not a typo...it's really 250º! Anything over 225º is safe as long as the chicken reaches an internal temperature of at least 155º, which this does, and more) for about 5 hours. Baste occasionally with pan juices or until pan juices start to caramelize on bottom of pan and chicken is golden brown.
Serves 4.
I am gonna try this recipe I found it on .http://www.cyber-kitchen.com/recipes/Foolproof_Sticky_Chicken.htm. I am in a food rut. This happens to me about 2 times a year. Especially in the winter. I want Spring to come. I am starting to get "lazy" when it come to dinner. I am uninspired and have no motivation. I am hoping that this recipe will get my Culinary Juices Flowing again