going nutty

Well, I've made some progress on our hazelnut harvest. All the nuts have aged and been husked. Now they're just awaiting the day when we crack and eat them (sure to be soon!)

I did find some interesting information on choosing 'good nuts', specifically for planting. Apparently if you put your nuts in a dish of water, the good nuts will sink, the bad ones will float. I tested this theory, and then took all the floating nuts and cracked them open. The results: of about a dozen floaters, 10 were hollow/rotten and 2 were edible nuts. Not a perfect method for  sorting eating nuts, but certainly good if you wanted to enlarge your forest :)

Anyone for clandestine planting practices? *raises hand* gonna put a few hazelnuts, acorns, and chokecherries in good soil this fall, and see if any sprout next year!

my relatively meager hazelnut harvest

on a secondary, but related note, i decided to try (another) something new....  Acorns.
My mother's yard has 3 acorn trees of various ages (none terribly old yet) and two of them are chock full of nuts this year, so i thought it would be a good experiment to try and harvest some of them, see what they taste like.


Interestingly, according to this page, "Over the course of human history it has been estimated that people have eaten more acorns than both wheat and rice combined." and yet today it is such a non-food, perhaps something you might feed to animals... but certainly not to _people_! :)  Heh. Whatever. Here goes for bucking convention again...

I went out with a small container a couple days ago, and collected the nuts that had fallen off the one tree (a burr oak) and both the ones that had fallen, and the ones about to fall (ie brown and fell out in my hands when i tested them for looseness) from the other one (tentatively identified as either a Gary oak, or a burr oak hybrid). 

I then took off the husks from the burr oak (they don't fall off on their own). I did it what i'm thinking is the hard way, peeling it off in bits with my nails. It worked, but was tedious, and scratched up my nails (which would be a bad thing, if i cared much about them!)

Today, i went out with a larger basket, and collected again. the most ripe nuts are the ones that have fallen to the ground, and are the ones to take.

  a slightly blurry picture of my harvest. 

I'm still in the process of peeling the husks, but i've discovered an easier way: 

 

Use a small sharp knife to carefully cut away the husk on one side. 

  The nut should then come out fairly easily by pushing the pointy end towards the cut side, and prying it out with your fingers. 

While going through the nuts (particularly the 2 day old ones) i have found some worms, even though i took all the obviously holed ones out. Thus, here is a bit of an aid for anyone else who might want to pick: 

 This nut almost definitely has a worm in it.  

This nut has a smaller blemish that may or may not have a worm.

Nuts without blemishes like those above may still have scratches on them (the color is different on the outer layer of shell than the inner ones) This seems to be normal, and doesn't indicate a bad nut.

I decided to sort my nuts by blemish status... i now have a 'quarrantine' tray, and a basket for the un-blemished nuts. Every couple of days, i need to check on all the nuts, and remove any bugs, holed nuts, moldy nuts, etc... apparently it will take a couple of weeks indoors for the nuts to be fully ripened, cured, and ready to process. 

 quarantine in the box on the left, good nuts on the right.

As for the 'okay, so what do i do now' step? I'm going to follow the instructions on this page, which seems very informative. 
I plan on shelling, boiling, and freezing for later consumption (i think... i may grind and dry them for flour instead).

For the record, i tasted a couple nuts. they were pretty sweet and not astringent, so they likely have fairly low tannin content. Please note that un-boiled acorns in quantity are toxic, however tasting one or two is unlikely to do you any damage.* Tannic acid is a type of tannin, the same stuff found in grapes, tea, and numerous other sources. It just happens to be rather concentrated in acorns.

*if you have nut sensitivities, be extremely cautious! These nuts can cause the same reactions as more conventional nut choices!

I opened a wormy nut for ya, to show the damage, and an underage worm.

Here's a good nut. See the lovely white meat? And how thin the shell is? No wonder the nuts are only good a few months if unprocessed (ie boiled and either frozen or dried).

On the harvesting front, i've run out of both jars and energy for jams and jellies. However, i still want to do: more applesauce, more crabapple juice, some jelly juice to freeze for use in later fall (i have plans to do crabapple rosehip jelly) as well as can some apple pie filling. We shall see. 

As for brewing, we started some chokecherry mead, some jelly crab mead, and most recently some pear mead. It all looks wonderfully fizzy and active. (yay!) I also have some chokecherry liqueur on the go, which is a wonderful color!

And if anyone is interested in a little barter, just gimmee a shout!

If you're interested in fibre stuff, expect a post about wool and things shortly!

preserving your produce....

Well, i'm in the midst of a canning and preserving craze right now.  It's completely appropriate for the season, fortunately, otherwise i'd look even crazier than normal ;)

So far in the craziness i have put up:
3 batches of apple butter (one of them raspberry crabapple)
2 batches of crabapple juice
2 batches of apple sauce
one batch of blueberry jam
one batch of blueberry syrup


and that's over about the last week

on today's docket is/has been:
rack crabapple mead into carboy
make juices for jelly (crabapple, chokecherry, blueberry, hawthorn)
make jam from said juice
freeze apples for future use
go pick hazelnuts
make and can apple-chokecherry juice
make pear jam

and any spillover that doesn't get done, gets done tomorrow!

and now, for a few pictures of the ongoing insanity:

the crabapple cyser just before being racked (looks a bit nasty, but smells divine!)

chokecherries (sparse this year, but huge!)

cooked berries hanging for jelly making

mmmm crabapples....

crabs hanging for jelly

that's all for now folks. gotta get back and squeeze my jelly bags (yeah, i know... but my patience is short at best)

i'll update with more pics etc again in a day or two!

Cloth menstrual care update

Well, i've spent some time (and a very small amount of money) on getting my 'ducks in a row' and making myself cloth pads. I also threw together some handkerchiefs (mostly for my snot-nosed little darlings. i love cold and flu season) and some cloth 'wipes' for baby butts and other small messes.

i decided to use my serger for as much of the creation process as possible. after looking about online, i decided to use This Pattern for my pads, making them pretty much as described. 

they look like this, in various fabrics.  The middle sections pull out for quicker drying time. there are also optional waterproof pieces that can be put in to reduce leaking.

the layers are:
outer 'envelope: soft flannel top, rough flannel bottom
oval pad and 'winged' pad inserts: 2 layers rough flannel with a layer of terry sandwiched in the middle
(the 'winged' insert is my own idea, because, you know, sometimes a girl needs a little extra protection!)

I also tried This pattern, but only made a couple to try them out. it is designed to be done with a serger and sewing machine, or just a sewing machine. they provide less padding, and no extra protection in the 'wings' however they are all one piece.
 

 lots of handkerchiefs and wipes..

For my materials, i was able to recycle some flannel recieving blankets, and some heavy  rough flannel sheets i'd recieved to use for making cloth diapers. i purchased 3 packages of snaps, and 3 meters of flannel, as i had limited numbers of recieving blankets. i used an old towel for the terrycloth in the pad liners.


this made me  about 8 envelope-style pads with fillers, 4 folding-style pads,  and about 12 panti-liners, plus handkerchiefs and wipes, with LOTS of left over fabric

total cost to me: less than $20 time spent: about 7 evenings, on and off
estimate cost of all new materials: less than $100.
worth it? oh yeah.


if you decide you want to try it out yourself, but don't have access to a serger, here are a couple links for similar sewn pads:
This one is almost identical to the 'envelope' style i made  however the inner pad pattern is different
This one also has a very similar pad  and includes cutting patterns and layered inner pad inserts


This site is a wealth of information with lots of patterns and other good stuff


one cycle later: opinions and thoughts:

well, i like the pads. they are soft and comfortable, if a little bulky (though they don't hold a candle to the disposables of 30 or 40 years ago. thanks for the horror stories, mom!) I think i'll have to find/adapt a pattern for night-time use (a longer design), but otherwise no complaints in the design department.
In practice, using a cold water bucket is slightly icky, but i think definitely keeps staining to a minimum. i had to toss a  drained bucketful of pads in with my washing pretty much once a day, (i threw them in my regular warm wash with darks.... i find a hot wash roughens the nice soft flannel)

I think that if these last even two years, i'll have gotten so used to them i won't want to change back! i'll just have to make more.
thanks for following along, and if anyone has any questions/comments, or (if you're a local) wants some help sewing their own, just shout!

Sausage Rolls from scratch!

Warning: this recipe does NOT contain a pressurized canister of chemical-laden puff pastry.
Instead, you get to learn my moms not-so-secret biscuit recipe, which is very adaptable and chock-full of yumminess!

These sausage Rolls are not as light and flaky as commercial ones, but not little bricks either. the breading tastes just like its origins... a biscuit. The meat is similar to a mild meatloaf.

Basic Biscuits

2 Cups flour (white, whole wheat, or a blend)
4 generous tsp baking powder
2tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp softened or melted margarine/butter
1 C milk

Thoroughly mix margarine into dry ingredients in large bowl. Gradually add in milk *more or less may be needed depending on how the recipe is to be used!  if using for basic biscuits, add milk until mixture is sticky and thick, and all flour is incorporated. Drop by spoons-full  onto a baking sheet.

Bake at 425 F for 15-20 mins

Tasty options:
-add cinnamon, raisins and an extra Tbsp sugar for sweet biscuits
-add garlic powder, diced chives, and 1/2C shredded cheese for savory biscuits



Sausage Rolls
Breading:  make a double batch biscuit mix. add just enough water to hold the flour. turn it out onto a clean, lightly floured surface, and knead the dough until smooth. Divide into three sections

Filling: 
1 Lb hamburger
1 egg
1 medium onion, finely diced
1/4 C rolled oats, coarsely chopped (i used my coffee grinder for about 3 seconds)
1/2 seasoning salt, or other seasoning
6 tsp Parmesan
1 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp pepper

topping: 
1 egg
2tbs milk

my onion is a bit coarse for this recipe, but i didn't realize until it was already mixed in.

instructions:
make up the meat mixture, mixing thoroughly. Make up biscuit mix (don't forget it's a double batch!) using only enough milk to barely hold together the flour! as instructed above, turn out onto counter, knead, and split into three.
roll out one section into a log about 12-14" long. press it flat until it is about 4" wide and evenly flat.

Apply a line of sausage mix to the bread. it should look similar to the picture above.
next, Wet the CLOSE edge of the bread with a bit of water or milk.  Roll the dough from the FAR side towards you, then the wet edge rolls up to make the bread complete. Overlap the edges and press them together until they adhere at least a bit.
Roll the sausage roll over until the spliced edges are on the bottom, Pressing the dough to even up the 'log' shape if necessary.
 Using a  sharp knife or pizza  cutter, slice the 'log' into 6 even sections. brush a little 'topping on each one (i was too lazy to find a brush, so just slopped a bit on using my fingers). place slices on a baking pan. I pressed down on the ends of each piece to flatten them a little and make them less tube-like. Repeat with other 2/3 of mixture and bread (note that the bread vs meat mix may come out uneven. don't worry... i have a solution at the end!)

to bake: in a preheated oven (425F) bake for 20 mins or until biscuit is browned and meat is no longer pink in the middle.
Serve with mustard or ketchup for dipping, or sauces and sides as desired.

if you end up with extra dough: make up into biscuits  and bake with the rolls.
if you end up with extra meat: shape loosely into a loaf or balls, or press into greased muffin tins. top with a bit of ketchup, and bake at 425 with the rolls (if a large loaf, may take more than 20 mins to cook). serve as 'mini meatloaf'

Basic cooking - Shepherd's Pie

I am a huge fan of basic, simple, tasty foods. i don't like using bizarre ingredients or unreasonably complicated techniques. if you said "down home cooking" that's essentially what i strive for.

As a friend recently said: If your great grandmother wouldn't recognize it as food, don't eat it!

This shepherd's pie recipe is an adaptation of the one my mom makes.

Shepherd's Pie

1lb hamburger

2 eggs

1 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp onion powder (or 1/4 C finely diced onion)

1/4 C old fashioned rolled oats (i coarsely chop them using my coffee grinder)

salt and pepper to taste

heat oven to 350F 

mix all above ingredients thoroughly. Grease pie pan (i use a glass pan, and spray it with cooking spray) Press meat mixture into pan evenly.

spread on:

2-3 Tbs catsup or tomato paste (or other sauce of you want to change it up a little!)

Cook in oven for 45-50 mins or until cooked through (will be firm and juices will be clear, not pink) Drain off any oil (if using regular ground beef)

while meat is cooking, prepare potatoes:

4-7 medium potatoes

2tbs diced green onion

2 tbs butter

Peel and coarsely chop potatoes. place in pot. cover with water, bring to boil. cook until potatoes are soft when poked with a fork. drain. (yes, i know this is basic, but i said i'd try to keep this blog beginner friendly!)

mash potatoes with masher, or if lacking one, use a fork. blend in onion bits and butter.

when meat is cooked, spread mashed potato blend on top, sealing it to the pie plate at the edges. sprinkle with paprika if desired.

Return pie to oven for 15 mins OR until potatoes are heated through and begin to brown on top/edges.

 

I suggest serving this with ample steamed veggies, and perhaps this gravy (the one that's part of this recipe)  I recently found it when i was trying the attached recipe, and hubby LOVES it. plus, it's pretty easy, AND naturally low fat! (as a note, i thicken the gravy with a couple of teaspoons corn starch)

this is a wonderful fall/winter/spring dish for when you've been outside burning lots of energy!

Frugal eating: 1chicken + 1 crockpot = 2 meals

Frugal eating is not something I'd say i excel in, however it is definitely something I STRIVE towards. My husband and i (and our kids, of course) don't often eat out, except when traveling. i TRY to make as many meals as possible, though i do fall back on a frozen pizza on occasion. I do like to think i probably cook more than the 'national average'... though that is in part just because i'm actually at home all the time, so have no good excuse ;)

i recently tried something a bit new. i roasted a chicken in my  crockpot. I know, this is NOT a new 'trick'. It is, however, new to me.

Crockpot Roast Chicken
1 smallish roasting chicken
celery
oil/cooking spray
broth or water
spices, as desired

i used a medium crock pot (about 5L, or 1 1/4 gal, approximately)
Defrost chicken at least halfway, if necessary. Stuff cavity with pieces of celery (adds to flavor)
oil inside of crock. place 2-3 pieces of celery on bottom to prevent chicken from sticking. stuff chicken into the crock. add 2-3tbs broth or water. sprinkle spices onto chicken skin (i used garlic powder and pepper)
Cook on low for 8-10 hours. Chicken will be very tender and tasty, though the skin will not be particularly crispy.

serve with potatoes or rice along with at least one vegetable choice.

 later that day, or the next morning:

Chicken stock
Cut all remaining meat from the bones, dicing it, then reserving it in the fridge for later. Dump all remaining bones, skin, celery bits, etc in a stock pot (or any large pot). add water to cover (use at least 1.5L) throw in:
1 bay leaf
1 carrot, coarsely chopped
1 onion, coarsely chopped,
1 tsp rosemary
1/2 tsp thyme
salt and pepper to taste

bring to a boil, then simmer for at least an hour to extract all the chicken-y goodness!
strain to remove all the bits, keeping only the broth.
adjust seasoning as desired

Chicken crock soup
make up any chicken soup using the broth and stock you've reserved. i usually wing it. i would write down a recipe, but frankly, i don't remember exactly what i used. A decent  looking soup recipe is found here. Cook everything but the noodles and chicken for at least 3 hours on high, or 6 on low, before adding the chicken (which just has to reheat) and noodles (which will cook nearly as fast as the package directions!)
just remember: any noodles or other quick cooking items should be added shortly before serving, rather than at the beginning of the cooking time, and if using your broth for a recipe, DO NOT add water as well! Just substitute your broth for the whole fluid of the soup.

and when you're busy pulling apart that chicken, why not save the wishbone and get yourself a little extra luck?

small kids - how do you butt-cover?

this is solely a personal opinion post. my way will not necssarily be right for you, but it's right for me.

when i was first pregnant, my husband and i discussed diapering solutions. i was totally opposed to going with mainstream disposables, so we decided to get cloth diapers. we spent time going to second hand shops and collecting diapers from friends with older kids. then we purchased a few prefolds in various sizes from a local retailer, and got our plastic pants from a local mega-store. i also used paper liners once the baby was started on solids to reduce the scraping necessary to remove feces.

i did some  consulting with previous users, and determined how i was going to care for them. I decided to use a dry pail, and machine wash and dry them. i am not anal about stains, particularly as i lived on a farm with iron-rich water, so whites eventually grayed no matter what. and you know what, while not pristine white, they are a nice 'ivory' tone and don't LOOK stained, with few exceptions.

it worked wonderfully. with only a few extra loads of laundry a week, i was doing my part to reduce my carbon footprint. we hardly used any disposable diapers for baby #1

baby#2 has been a bit different, mostly due to circumstance. we've moved farther from our extended families, and therefore are on the road a lot, visiting. while it is possible to cloth diaper on the road, it requires a fair bit of extra effort, and extra space to pack.

i feel guilty every time i buy a package of disposables, but i think i can justify the use, because it's either that, or put my sanity just that wee bit closer to the edge.

that said, i still LOVE my prefold diapers, plastic pants and snapppis! i use them as much as i can, and will  likely have diapered my 2 children for less than $500 including the disposables and training pants!

i'm always interested in others opinions and such though, so feel free to let me know what you do/did for Your kids!

Free recipe friday - scalloped potato casserole

 - this may or may not be a recurring event, but i thought i'd post a few of my 'black box' recipes (i use a black box for my recipe cards, this is not intended as an obscure reference)
i'm going to try to write the recipes simple enough that even an inexperienced cook can follow them. wish me luck!

please note: recipes i post will NOT be 'diet', 'low-cal', 'lite' or low in sugar or fat. i like sugar and fat. if your health requires a lower calorie or healthier version, i suggest eating  the following recipe with either a large salad or a bowl of vegetable soup.

Scalloped Potato Casserole

this recipe is quick, cheap and convenient. it's for those "i'm not even thinking about supper until 4pm" kind of days where you still need to feed the kids a decent healthy meal.

materials needed:
large casserole dish or medium roasting pan, with lid.
knife, cutting board
oven

ingredients:
 8-12 potatoes, sliced into 1/4" or thinner slices (i use red skinned medium ones, but this is your choice)
1 can ham, diced into 3/4" cubes
1 onion, sliced thinly into rings or strips
1-2 cups frozen or raw vegetables (a package of frozen spinach works, so does 2 cups of mixed vegetables)
1 can sliced mushrooms, drained
pam or oil
1 can condensed milk
1 can condensed mushroom soup
1 cup shredded cheese

process:
preheat oven to 350 degrees F
spray/oil the inside of the pan lightly
layer the ingredients as follows:
1/4 of the potatoes
1/2 the onions and meat
1/4 of the potatoes
all the veggies
1/4 of the potatoes
the remaining onions and meat
the mushrooms
the remaining potatoes

in a seperate bowl, mix the condensed milk and soup mix. Pour this mix over the casserole layers. Sprinkle on the cheeze.
Bake covered for 45 minutes.
uncover, and bake for an additional 15 minutes, or until the casserole is cooked through and the cheese is melted.
let casserole sit for 5 minutes before serving.


Note: an easy way to test this casserole is to poke at one of the potatoes right in the middle on the top with a fork. if it is soft and cooked through, the casserole is likely done. You can also test it by poking a knife right into the center of the casserole. wait one minute, then pull the knife out. if the blade is VERY hot, the casserole is cooked.


Serves: 3-6 (or an average family of four with young children)

i plan on posting a picture after the next time i make this.


in other news, we're currently preparing to visit a local school as 'the Vikings'
wait, what?
yeah.
vikings.

 

hubby the viking 

myself, my husband, our kids, plus a smattering of other family members and friends all do Living History. We recreate the Viking era and use our hobby to educate others.
So what do we do?
Well, at our biggest events, we set up era (that is, viking) tents, work on skills and crafts of the day, and put on combat demonstrations using live steel and even archery!
(please note that we have extensive safety precautions, including blunted weapons and relatively extensive training)


Our next event will be very small, and is just going  to be family members. we're going into a grade school to educate some grade 5's on the Life and Times of the average Viking.
it should be lots of fun!