Fiesta Corn Relish - Let Canning Begin!

Canning season started today which is exciting and a bit daunting at the same time.  Exciting because I love taking veggies (especially ones from our garden) and turning them into jars of lovely things to feed my family all throughout the winter.  Daunting because canning is a bit of work.  I'll be logging quite a few hours in the kitchen over the next two months, but when it's all done, I'll have shelves of good food ready and waiting.

Today I made Fiesta Corn Relish.  This is a new one for me, but what I tasted is delicious!  Kind-of a cross between a true relish and a somewhat vinegary corn salsa.  It'll be great added to tacos or nachos.  I'm sure I'll add it to black beans for a quick salad.  The relish will also be tasty along side some pork or beef.

Just in case any of my fellow Mid-Westerners are experiencing garden envy because you haven't gotten any corn out of your garden yet, don't worry.  We haven't either.  The corn I used today was some I had cut off the cob and frozen last summer.  A very generous friend gave us a TON (not really, but it was close) of fresh corn which we ate and ate.  When we'd eaten our fill, we froze the rest and enjoyed it all winter.  Amazingly, there is still a bit left.  I need to defrost my freezer before I fill it again, so my solution to using up the corn was to can it up.  Actually, not many of the ingredients I worked with today started in our garden, only the jalapeno peppers.  This will change as the season goes on.

Fiesta Corn Relish

makes about 2 pints

5-6 ears fresh corn
1 hot pepper, seeded and finely chopped (leave the seeds in if you like it really hot)
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 1/2 c cider vinegar
3/4 c sugar
1/2 c red onion, chopped
1/2 c sweet red pepper, chopped
1/3 c green onions, chopped
1 t ground cumin
1 t pickling salt
1/2 t ground black pepper
2 T cilantro, chopped

Bring a large pot of water to boil over high heat.  Add corn and cook for 6 minutes.  Drain and cool until you can handle it.  Cut off the kernels until you have 4 cups of corn.  Put the corn into a large pot (not aluminum).

Add hot pepper, garlic, vinegar, sugar, red pepper, red onion, green onion, cumin, salt and pepper to pan with corn.  Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce heat and let it boil gently for 20 minutes.  Stir in cilantro and cook for 2 more minutes.  Take it off the heat.

Ladle the relish into hot jars and process for 15 minutes using standard canning procedures.

Frozen corn can be used as well.  Just make sure to cook it before you add the other ingredients.

I quadrupled this recipe and ended up with 7 pints canned and about 3 more pints in the fridge for eating in the next couple of weeks.  I would have processed the rest in hot water, but I my canning pot only does 7 pints at a time and I ran out of time to process that last 3 pints.  Drat that soccer!  It's OK though because my oldest two sons are gobbling it up with tortilla chips as we speak.

By the way, I found the recipe for Fiesta Corn Relish in The Complete Book of Small-Batch Preserving.  I discovered this book at the library and am loving it so much it's made it's way into my cart at Amazon.  Someday...

Yum!  Yum!  Yum!

Your Shower Costs HOW Much?

First off...If you are my Father, please stop reading this post immediately.  There are lots of other things on this blog for you to read.  Thanks, Dad.

OK, now that he's out of the way, we'll continue.

Have you ever noticed how the older you get the more you remind yourself of your parents?  Maybe it's just me, but I seem to be turning into Dad and Mom a bit more each year.  This isn't necessarily a bad thing, in fact overall, it's probably a great thing in my case.  My folks are quite wonderful people.  But it does take me back a bit to hear words come out of my mouth, usually directed at one of my children, that I know I heard the same words about 25 years or so ago directed at me.

Take showers.  (I hope you do TAKE them, but in this instance, I mean "Think about showers.)  The older the Young'uns have gotten, the more I find myself knocking on doors and yelling sweetly calling, "Time to get out of there!"  I typically walk away from said door muttering something like, "What in the world are they doing in there?" or "We need a timer in the shower."

These are things I know my Dad yelled said sweetly to me umpteen years ago or more.

When the long showerer exits the bathroom, all rosy and clean from their sauna, I commence with the "Why You Don't Need to Take Such Long Showers" Speech.  It's one of my best, if I do say so myself.  I've gotten it down to the point where I can make the speech last for as long as the offender has been in the shower - just to help prove my point.  In the speech, I try to cover all aspects of the evils of long showers - the wasting of water, the wasting of gas to heat the water, the fact that others need the bathroom, the lack of warm water left in the water heater for others, etc.  Up to this point, I've included general statements regarding the cost of long showers and the toll such showers take on the family budget.  I've never been able to back up these references with cold hard facts...

until now.

I've found an online Shower Water Use Calculator!  Oh the joy!  Using this calculator and copies of our current water and power bills here on the Farm, I was able to quickly determine the cost of a certain son's showering habits - about .46 per shower.  (Am I the only one who finds such things fun to figure?)

On the surface, this doesn't seem to bad, but let's multiply this out a bit.  If only one shower is taken by this guy each day, that comes out to $3.23 per week, $13.85 per month and $168.53 per year.  If all of the Young'uns develop the same habits as they get older, we'll be paying almost $2,000.00 each year to wash their bodies.  "Ouch," says the family budget.

The Shower Water Use Calculator is easy to use, does all the math for you, has explanations about the numbers you need to enter and has even done some research on averages for where you live.  Pretty amazing, especially for the math challenged like me.  I share the basic calculator here as a service to other parents who might also give the "Why You Don't Need to Take Such Long Showers" Speech from time to time.  If you'd like to do a bit more figuring, there's a great addition to the Shower Water Use Calculator which will help you figure the energy used by each shower at their website, here.

By Green Calculators

Also, Dad if you've not followed my request and gone ahead and read this post anyway, I'm sorry in advance.  You're probably going get out those old utility bills I know you've still got in your office and figure out how much you spent on showers over the years for three teenage girls.  It's going to hurt.  Just know, our cleanliness contributed greatly to each of us being able to snag such great husbands who took us out of your home and, really, saved you a BUNCH of money every since.  I guess those long showers could be seen as a good investment...

PS- I love you Dad!

Kombucha...It's What's Brewing on the Farm

I'm a home brewer.  Not a home brewer of the traditional home brew type, much to the Big Guy's dismay.  But a home brewer all the same.  We're brewing kombucha here on the Farm.

Komb-whatcha, you ask?  Kombucha.  Here's the dictionary definition:

(kŏm'bōō'chä')
n. A lightly sparkling beverage made by fermenting black or green tea and sugar with a culture of various bacteria and yeasts.

I first read about kombucha in a catalog from the Bulk Herb Store.  For some reason, I found it intriguing.  It sounded like an interesting experiment - taking two regular everyday things like tea and sugar, combine them with some mysterious bacteria and yeasts and get something new, supposedly yummy and maybe even good for us.  Hmmmmm...

Kombucha popped up in my other readings online and in Nourishing Traditions.  It seems lots of folks find the drink helps with any number of ailments from skin problems like acne to cancer.  I was mostly interested in kombucha's probiotic qualities and the claims that it helps give some increased energy (for some reason a bit more energy is always something I'm looking for).

I was game to give kombucha a try, but there was a catch.  You can't just brew some tea, add some sugar, throw in some yeast and, viola, get some kombucha.  You've got to have special bacteria and yeast; you've got to have a SCOBY (Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast) or mother or mushroom as they're also called.  To be honest, I'm not all sure what magical bacteria in a SCOBY, I'm just trusting the system on this one.  So when I "overheard" a conversation between friends on facebook regarding SCOBYs, I butted in.  Isn't facebook great?  It's the one place in the world where it's not impolite to interrupt a conversation.

One of the said friends graciously agreed to share one of her SCOBYs with me.  Every time a batch of kombucha is brewed, a new SCOBY or "baby" is produced.  Isn't that amazing?  Thankfully, this friend has a great blog, Common Sense Homesteading, which had all the directions I needed to get my home brewing experiment going.  She also has helpful explanations about the science of what's happening during the whole process.  If you are interested is how to make kombucha and see some great photos, go here.  She's said it much better than I ever could and, besides, my camera is broken so I've got no photos.

I gathered my materials and off we went a brewing.  Ten days later, we drank our first kombucha and it was pretty good.  The kids aren't big fans, but the Big Guy and I have been drinking some everyday since.

Currently, our fourth batch of kombucha is sitting on our kitchen counter.  Let me say that the mother and baby (the old SCOBY and the newly forming SCOBY) are not the most attractive things to have sitting on your counter.  Think tannish-slimy-pancakey-placenta-like looking thing floating around in a big pot of tea and you'll get a pretty accurate picture.  I could put them up in the cupboard, but I think it's rather fun to watch the fermenting take place.  Besides, it's certainly a conversation starter and most folks don't think we're freaky enough yet. So, it's helpful on the counter.

We drank our first batch straight, no flavoring.  I tried adding a bit of fresh ginger to brew number two (yes, I have read a lot of Seuss over the years).  It was good, but I think I went a bit overboard on it because it was pretty spicy.  Batch three was again plain and was the most bubbly so far.  Very yummy.  The Big Guy has requested I try the ginger again with a bit lighter hand.  So, the plan for what's currently brewing on my counter is to flavor some with ginger and the rest with some frozen blueberries.

Have we noticed any big miraculous changes in our health over the past weeks?  Well, as a matter of fact I have.  Check out this photo the Big Guy took of me last weekend:

How amazing is that?    Seriously, neither of us have noticed any dramatic differences, but I'm not willing to say that it hasn't been helpful either.  Right about the time we started drinking off our first brew, I was told I had severe anemia and started taking iron supplements.  One of the side effects which come with such supplements is, um, how to put this...internal stoppages.  Without telling you more that you really want to know, let's just say such stoppages haven't been a problem.  I'm chalking it up to the kombucha along with my gorgeous new blond hair and amazingly straight white teeth.

Getting Ready to Can - Reusable Canning Lids

OK.  This photo is of a snap pea, not a green bean.  My camera recently broke so there are no bean photos for the moment.  If you squint your eyes a bit, the pea will lengthen and look bean-like.  I promise.

We harvested our first green beans this week!  Oh the joy and deliciousness!  It was pretty much unanimous around the table last night that green beans just picked and steamed with a bit of butter on top is one of the best vegetables of all time.  Yum.

The beans currently ready to be harvested are just a trickle right now.  By the end of this week, it will be an onslaught.  This means I need to start thinking about canning.  I don't actually can plain green beans.  Canning green beans means using a pressure cooker and, to be honest, this device frightens me.  Something about amazing high pressure and boiling water and glass...call me a wimp.  Maybe someday when I'm older and more mature, I'll be able to handle it.  Besides, everyone around here prefers frozen green beans.  So, we'll freeze a bunch.

The beans we do can are pickled first.  Dilly Beans.  Yum. Big Yum.

Dilly Beans might just be a Midwest thing because I'd never heard of them until we moved to Wisconsin, but those little things are tasty and easy to can.  No pressure cooker is required because Dilly Beans are pickled.  Pickling involves vinegar which is an acid and high acid foods like tomatoes and pickled things don't need a pressure cooker.

All of this canning stuff was foreign to me four years ago when my dear friend Jessica took me under her wing and taught me to can.  Her lessons opened a whole new world to me and have allowed me to help feed my family well.  Jessica is a kitchen adventurer, too - she can use a pressure cooker. 

I'm not going to attempt a "How to Can" blog post because the internet is filled with great sites that can teach you all you need to know.  I do plan to post about the things we're canning here on the Farm, including the recipes.  I'd also be more than willing to teach someone how to can if you live in the area or want to fly in for a visit...hint hint hint...to those in the West or South.  Just ask - canning with other folks is great fun!

Back to my thoughts about getting ready to can...I've acquired more jars in the past few months so things are looking good in that regard.  I think I have about 50 quart sized jars and 30 or so pint jars empty and waiting in the basement.  Now my thoughts have moved to lids.

The lids on canning jars are what make the seal.  They are metal and have an inner rim of reddish plastic which heats up and makes the seal on the jar.  Very key in the whole process.  However, the lids are the one thing about canning that has bothered me.  They aren't reusable.  One use and you have to toss them.  This seems to fly in the face of canning where you grow or get fresh food, grab a jar and rim (both reusable), do some work and are rewarded with a useful thing of beauty.  When you get hungry and pop off the top on the work of art, you've got to throw said top away.  It just doesn't seem right.

OK.  The lids are reusable for some things.  I could use them to make some sort of punch art Christmas ornament with a ribbon hanger glued on.  But I don't and I probably won't...ever.  So, then I've got that guilt to live with.

I've found a solution for canning (and undone craft guilt)!  The Tattler Reusable Canning Jar Lid!  Oh my goodness!  Not only are they a dream come true, they've got an awesome name, too.  I mean, come on, The Tattler.  That's a great name.

According to their website, the plastic lids and rubber seals can be used for 20 years.  I took the time to read reviews on several blogs and the Tattlers seem to be the real deal.  They are more expensive than regular lids at the start, but they'll be cheaper in the long run.  Also, regular canning lids have BPA in them.  Something I prefer to avoid, if possible, when feeding my crew.

All in the Tattlers seem to be a good investment.  Besides, I'll get non-crafty guilt monkey off my back, too.

Pizza on the Grill - How to Beat the Kitchen Heat

We love us some pizza here on the Farm.  In fact, I make pizza for dinner once a week.  This is about my personal pizza eating limit.  However, I could probably make it three times a week and everyone else would be happy.

I love making pizza because first off, it makes my family happy and, second, it's just plain yummy.  Throw in that it's a budget friendly meal and you've got a winner in my eyes.  We top pizza with just about anything around here.  Like soup, pizza is a great way to use up all the little bits of meat and veggies sitting around in those little plastic containers in your fridge.

Unfortunately for my family, we haven't been having pizza making weather in the past week or so.  Hot, humid weather doesn't make we want to crank the oven up to 450 degrees for any period of time.  Ugh.

But, much to the joy of the family, we had pizza this week even with the heat and humidity!  I made pizza on the grill!

Oh. My. It was good.  And very. Very. Very. Easy.

I'd seen grilled pizza in magazines for years and wanted to give them a try, but somehow, it just all seemed beyond me.  Apparently, I wanted to try something new more than I wanted to turn on the oven.

You can make pizza on your grill.  Here's how:

-Make your favorite pizza dough (or buy some at the store).
-Cut the dough into balls and roll them into personal sized pizza crusts.  I laid two crusts side by side on a plate, covered that layer with a piece of waxed paper and they repeated the process.  This worked ok.  The dough stuck to the waxed paper sometimes.  Next time, I'll use saran wrap or just lay them on a big greased baking sheet or two.
-Get your toppings together.  You'll need olive oil and salt and pepper for sure, plus whatever you else you want.  Maybe some mozarella cheese, some veggies, some meat or a bit of sauce.  If you use sauce, go easy on it.  Using a heavy hand on the sauce will give you a soggy crust.  If you haven't ever tried pizza without regular sauce, give it a shot.  You'll like it! Also, try to slice your toppings pretty thin so they'll cook fast.
-Head out to the grill.  We have a gas grill.  If you've got a charcoal one, you're on your own for getting that thing ready.  I've never done it in my life.
-Put the grill on high and let it sit for a bit.
-Spray or brush oil on the tops of the crusts.  I used a oil sprayer thing from Pampered Chef.
-Take two crusts and place them on the grill oil side down.
-Let the crusts cook for 1-2 minutes.  They'll start to get a bit bubbly.
-Right before you flip the crusts, put oil on the side that is up.
-Flip the crusts.  Let them cook for another minute or two. 
-Place on your toppings. 
-Let them cook for another 3-4 minutes.  If it looks like your toppings need a bit longer, move the pizza up to the rack above your main grill.
-Slide off your pizza and try to let it cool a bit before you start devouring it.

It's really that easy!  The meal was made even easier because we ate on paper plates outside at the picnic table right by the grill.  Ahhh...no big dishes and no floor to sweep.

Eveyone here gave grilled pizza two big thumbs up!  They were happy to hear me say we'll be putting it on the menu at least once a week this summer.  I'll let you know what sort of topping combos we come up with and I'd love to hear any you might have as well.

The Gals Are Back on Their Game

Marshmallow, the deluded hen, is the one wearing the white feathers.

Did you notice the number over on the Egg Count?  The Gals have laid 306 eggs (Give or take a few...it's hard to keep count some days when 3 different Young'uns keep checking for eggs.  Especially when one of the said Young'uns is 2 years old.)  We've had them since March 19th.  So, that's about 2.8 eggs per day.

We used to get about 3.2 eggs per day.  However, about a month ago, the Gals went on strike for some mysterious reason.  We went from getting at least 3 eggs per day to getting zero - bam - all at once.  After ruling out a curious little neighbor gal and aliens, our working theory for the lack of eggs was molting.  However, now that some time has passed and we don't have a group of partially naked chickens running around, we're pretty sure this wasn't the case.  The interruption in egg production seems to be just that - an interruption because things have been pretty much back to normal for about a week or so. 

The weather around the time the Gals stopped laying was uncharacteristically cool and cloudy.  Hens slow down their laying as the days get shorter and cooler.  Could this be it?  Who knows?

We do have one chicken who has been acting strange ever since the strike began.  Her name is Marshmallow.  She's our biggest Gal and laid eggs the size of bowling balls.  OK, not really bowling balls, but they were HUGE!  Marshmallow is still on strike.  We know because we haven't had any massive eggs since June 15th.  She doesn't venture out of the coop much, but prefers to spend her days sitting on the eggs the other Gals lay.  She's still eating and has bright eyes and comb, so our best guess is that she's "brooding."  A hen who is brooding sits on her eggs in order to keep them warm so they'll hatch.

Ummmm, poor Marshmallow!  We may have to have a little chat about the birds and the bees with her...there are no roosters here on the Farm.

Fourth Verse Might Be the Best

The Star Spangled Banner.  If you've ever gone to a sporting event, you're probably familiar with the song written by Francis Scott Key in 1814.  Hopefully, you've sung it at other times, too. 

Did you know the song has FOUR verses?  We usually just sing the first, which to be sure, is a great verse.  However, I think the fourth verse might just be the best...

Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand

Between their loved home and the war's desolation!

Blest with victory and peace, may the heav'n rescued land

Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation.

Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,

And this be our motto: "In God is our trust."

And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave

O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

Praise the Power who has made and preserved our nation.  Thanks to those freeman who have stood between our homes and the desolation of war.  These are what we should be celebrating as we gather today.

Happy July 4th!