Winner of the Give Away!!

This time we allowed people to enter on both the blog and on the Facebook page.  We counted all the names and kept them in order.  The winner is:

Alene Von Harringa Hewitt

Keep checking back, we will be doing another give away really soon!!!

Count Your Blessings Monday!!!

Here is an opportunity for all of us to give thanks unto the Lord for a blessing in our lives. If you would like to take part great. If not that is OK too. If you would like to share your blessing, just leave it in the comments. If you want to use the picture above and list a blessing on your own site, then leave a URL to your site in the comments. There is no pressure here. I just know that I am incredibly blessed and I would like to share that and give thanks to Him who all blessing come from. This is a way that we can encourage one another. I know that I am often encouraged when someone shares a blessing with me. I think that many times we forget that it is a blessing to be able to breath, to get out of bed, to hold a baby... Share your blessings with us. We can share so many other things.... special gifts, recipes, let's take the time to share how God has blessed us!!

I am grateful for all the warm days in January.  I don't mind snow and cold, but it is nice that we did not have that many days of it in January.  Or there are days like yesterday.  It was in the upper 20's this morning when we woke up, but the sun was shining, the grass was green.  This afternoon we had a short period of snow that was almost blizzard like.   Then out came the sun again and the pictures below show you what it looked liked afterwards.

Everything is confused.  We have daffodils coming up.  I hope the fruit trees don't bud.  

What are YOU thankful for?

Store Give Away!!

This will remain at the top until the Give Away is over.  Scroll down to see new posts.

 
We are having a give away at the store!!  

Here is the give away prizes. You may choose 2 towels from any of the colors shown in this picture and get the chicken timer and the bamboo spoon as well. To enter this give away, you must go to the store (link below) and tell me one item that would be at the top of your wish list. We are going to be doing other give aways so stay tuned. There has to be at least 15 entries before we draw a name. If you enter this one, that will count as an entry toward the next give away. :) You have to enter by either leaving a comment under THIS post or leaving a comment on the store page on Facebook (link below)

Amazing Graze Farm General Store

Store Facebook Page

Latest Sourdough Adventure - Tortilla Chips!!

We LOVE to eat Mexican at our house.  Chips and salsa are among our favorites in the food category.  We have not been eating as many chips as we used to just because we are cutting back some on grains that are not soaked our soured.  On Friday nights Whole Foods makes some really good fresh tortilla chips.  However, the ingredient list is long and not just good old fashioned ingredients.  We have had them several times and I LOVE them.  We don't go to Whole Foods often because it is not close, but I really shouldn't be pigging out on those chips.  :)  I saw on GNOWFGLINS that they make sourdough tortilla chips.  I really wanted to try them.  I figured that homemade would taste just as good as those other ones.  So, I made them.  YUM!!!!!!  I am telling you, these things are WONDERFUL!!!  I hope there are some left when Michael gets home.  :)

First of all you make sourdough crepes.  I made these a few days ago and stored them in the fridge.  

I can see where these would be handy to have on hand for lots of things.  They are really good and VERY easy to make.  Then I cut them in wedges.

 

I fried mine in coconut oil.  I used the kind that does not taste like coconut.  I used my cast iron skillet.  I used an 8" one so I would not have to use much oil.  

 After I browned them and let them crisp up I put them on a piece of paper towel.  I don't always have paper towels, so in that case I would use a non fuzzy towel.  

As soon as I took them out of the oil and put them on the towel, I sprinkled them with Himalayan salt.  I let them cool and put them in a bowl.   

   You have to try these!!!!

She Wants To Herd

We have a fenced area out our back door and the gate to the garden is in this fenced area.  Skye has been running the garden since this summer.  We put up a gate and she went right under it.  She loves to be in the garden.  We will have to fix that before we plant anything this year.  On one side of the fenced area is a gate that goes into the sheep pasture.  The sheep and Skye have been nose to nose almost.  I was afraid the ram would come through the fence a couple of times as Skye was barking at them.  

Yesterday morning I went to put Skye out back.  I opened the door and saw a line of sheep coming in from their pasture and going into the garden.  Some how that gate had come open.  Skye wanted out there in the worst way.  I would not have minded if she herded the sheep back into their pasture, but she would have gone in after them and I am not sure if she would come to me while enjoying chasing sheep.  As soon as I opened the door, the sheep changed direction and started filing out.  I shooed the last 3 out and closed the gate and locked it.  Then I let Skye out.  She instantly went into that crouch you see herding dogs go into.  She went toward the fence and lifted up her one paw like she was ready to go.  I think she has excellent herding instincts.  I wish I knew of someone nearby that trained herd dogs.  She is so smart, just a bit joyous and rambunctious.  

I loved the way the light was on the fern in the window and this lamp on my table.  It screamed to me to take a picture.  :)  The lamp was a gift from friends for my birthday.  There is a fun story behind the purchase. 

Death of a Snowman

This has been the strangest January, weather wise, that I can remember.  We get several days of bitter cold and then it warms up into the mid 50's.  Sometimes those warm days stick around for a bit and other times they are here for a day only.  In my Count Your Blessings Monday post, I showed you a picture of my latest snowman that the Wonderful Neighbors built for me.  He did not last long (and he was a LOT of work).  

Yesterday it got up to around 55°.  Last night the low was 20°.  I have not looked out there this morning to see if there is anything left of the big guy.  

Count Your Blessings Monday!!

Here is an opportunity for all of us to give thanks unto the Lord for a blessing in our lives. If you would like to take part great. If not that is OK too. If you would like to share your blessing, just leave it in the comments. If you want to use the picture above and list a blessing on your own site, then leave a URL to your site in the comments. There is no pressure here. I just know that I am incredibly blessed and I would like to share that and give thanks to Him who all blessing come from. This is a way that we can encourage one another. I know that I am often encouraged when someone shares a blessing with me. I think that many times we forget that it is a blessing to be able to breath, to get out of bed, to hold a baby... Share your blessings with us. We can share so many other things.... special gifts, recipes, let's take the time to share how God has blessed us!!

Today I am thankful for the Wonderful Neighbor children.  They are so faithful to make sure I get snowmen in my yard each year.  They knocked on the door today and showed me their latest creation!!  :)  I love the snowmen and I love those Neighbors!!!

Incessant Drumbeat

I just finished reading this book again.  I believe that it is a book every Christian ought to read every year or so.  

It tells the true story of the Rascher family and all their triumphs and tragedies on the mission field and how God was faithful to carry them through. 

Mexican Crock Pot Recipes

I do not have any pictures for this post.  Sorry.  Just use your imagination.  :)

I had someone ask me for my recipe for Crock Pot Chicken Enchiladas.  Many times when I make this or my Crock Pot Tacos, I get requests for the recipe and it cracks me up.  When our home fellowship meets on Sundays, we normally have a fellowship meal afterwards.  It used to be that every person brought whatever they liked.  Now, whoever is hosting that week provides the main course and we all bring things to compliment that.  One Sunday I did not know what I was going to fix.  I had not been diligent and prepared my food on Saturday.  I like to take something that will stay nicely in a crock pot on warm.  My normal food that I bring is a big salad.  People seem to really enjoy my salads and I like making them.  I may not have had salad fixins' that week, but I was racking my brain trying to come up with something.  I had some hamburger thawed and that is always a good base for something so I started browning it.  We love Mexican and I decided to try an idea.  So here is what I did that morning that everyone loved.  :)

Crock Pot Tacos

1 lb. of hamburger

1 onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

Taco Seasoning (See recipe below)

1 pint salsa

2 cups cheddar cheese or other cheese

1 pint sour cream

3 to 5 tortillas

Brown the hamburger along with the onion and garlic.   Add the taco seasoning and mix well.  I normally do not use the water in the recipe and don't even measure the other ingredients any more.  Put the browned hamburger in the crock pot.  Add, the salsa, cheese and sour cream.  Tear the tortillas into large bite size pieces and put them in the crock pot as well.  Stir it all together until mixed well.  Put it on high for about 30 mins. and then put it on low or warm until ready to serve.  So simple and so tasty!!!  All of the above amounts of each item are totally changeable.  I sometimes put in more or less depending on what I have or how it looks.  :)

Another week, I thought I would try the same thing with Chicken Enchiladas and it worked just as well.  

Crock Pot Chicken Enchiladas

I cook a whole chicken, pick the meat off and add about half the meat or maybe a bit more. 

 20 to 32 oz. of milk

16 oz. (or so) of the broth from the chicken

3 Tbsp. arrowroot powder (can use corn starch if non-GMO)

Taco Seasoning (See recipe below)

1 pint salsa

2 cups cheddar cheese or other cheese

1 pint sour cream

3 to 5 tortillas

I normally cook the chicken with lots of onion and garlic, so I don't add more here.  I put the chicken in the crock pot (remember mine is already cooked) and add the taco seasoning and mix it well.  Again, I do not use the water in this recipe.  In a pan, I add the milk and chicken broth together and start to heat it.  Take out about 1/2 cup of this mixture before it gets hot and add the arrowroot powder in with it and mix well.  Then add that to the milk.  You need to stir this or it will start to stick to the bottom of the pan.  When you notice it starting to thicken turn off the heat and add mixture to the chicken.  It will thicken up much more in the crock pot.  Add, the salsa, cheese and sour cream.  Tear the tortillas into large bite size pieces and put them in the crock pot as well.  Stir it all together until mixed well.  Put it on high for about 30 mins. and then put it on low or warm until ready to serve.  So simple and so tasty!!!  All of the above amounts of each item are totally changeable.  I sometimes put in more or less depending on what I have or how it looks.  :)

 

   

Taco Seasoning

1 Tbls. dried onion 

1 tsp. minced garlic

½ tsp. cumin

½ tsp. oregano

1 tsp. salt

½ tsp. arrowroot powder (optional)

1 tsp chili powder

½ tsp. cayenne

Put all of the above on the ground beef or chicken. Add ¾ to 1 cup of water and let simmer for at least 10 mins.

Coconut Oil & Chocolate Coconut Bark

I get lots of questions about Coconut Oil and the bark that I make.  Hopefully this will help to answer some of them.  The following 2 paragraphs are from Tropical Traditions website.  

Virgin Coconut Oil is a food, and is one of the best cooking oils you can use. It has been a staple cooking oil for thousands of years in tropical climates. As a cooking oil, its chemical structure is kept in tact and therefore is resistant to mutations of fatty acid chains even when used in higher cooking temperatures, unlike most vegetable oils. Research shows that the medium chain fatty acids found in coconut oil boosts the body’s metabolism, raises body temperatures, and helps provide greater energy which can lead to weight loss.

 Virgin Coconut oil is rich in lauric acid, a nutrient that supports the body’s immune system. Lauric acid is also found in human mother’s milk.  Dr. Mary Enig suggests the average adult include about 3.5 tablespoons of coconut oil per day in their diet to take in an equivalent amount of lauric acid that a nursing infant would receive from breast milk.

This is from Dr. Mercola's site. 

The many benefits of coconut oil are finally reaching the mainstream.


Benefits like:
Promoting your heart health
Promoting weight loss when and if you need it
Supporting your immune system health
Supporting a healthy metabolism
Providing you with an immediate energy source
Helping to keep your skin healthy and youthful looking
Supporting the proper functioning of your thyroid gland

I could post a lot more from other sites, but this gives you the gist of it.  You can get coconut that still has the coconut flavor and you can get coconut oil that does not have it.  I have tried several different ways of getting coconut oil into our diet.  Some people eat it right off the spoon.  I could do that with a tiny amount like 1/4 of a tsp. or less.  I have put it in my herbal tea and took it like that for a period of time.  What happens though is the coconut oil floats on top and cools while sealing the heat in the tea below it.  So, you test the drink and it feels cool and you take a big drink and then the hot tea hits your mouth and you get blisters.  I know this from first hand experience.  Some people really enjoy it that way and I am glad for them.  It did not work for me for very long.  Then I heard about this coconut bark.  I tried it and have been in love with it ever since.  It is SO EASY to make and tastes delicious.  So, here is the recipe for the bark.  I normally triple this recipe when I make it.  

 

Chocolate Coconut Almond Bark

3/4 cup coconut oil

1 tsp. vanilla extract, org.

3 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder

3 to 4 Tbsp. Real Maple Syrup (or you can use stevia to taste)

4 heaping Tbsp. of unsweetened coconut (I did big pinches)

Sliced almonds ( This is optional - When I use it I put 3 to 4 big pinches)

You can melt the coconut oil, but I do not. It was soft enough to be stirred. Add the vanilla, cocoa powder and maple syrup with the coconut oil and mix well. You need to make sure that this is truly mixed together well or it will separate on you. The last batch I made was getting firmer before I got the rest of the maple syrup out of the jug.  It was like a thick frosting.  It was the best batch I have made to date.  (I would melt the oil if I was making this as magic shell)

Add in the nuts and coconut. If you melted the coconut oil, you can probably pour this into an 8"X 8" pan. I had to spoon it in and spread it around with a spatula. Line the pan with waxed paper or parchment paper.

Put it in the freezer for at least 10 mins. Get it out and break it into pieces to eat. I break it up into bite size pieces and put in a bowl in my fridge. I use this as my coconut oil that I take before a meal. I grab a piece about 20 mins. before we eat. 

I want to put a banana on a stick and roll it in this and freeze it.  YUM!!!  You can halve this recipe as well. 

Finding My Niche

I am sensing a new era in my life.  I am not sure those are the right words but I am making some changes in my routines and other areas of my life.  I really feel like God is nudging me to move beyond where I have been.  One of those areas I feel the push in is teaching.

I have been teaching things on and off for most of my adult life.  I love to teach and share with others.  Sometimes these go in cycles.  I know there was a time period while we still lived in Florida, that I had people calling me like crazy with herb questions.  Joshua wanted to know if I was a doctor.  :)  And before any of you say it, I did not tell people what to do.  I shared information with them and asked them to do research and make informed decisions. I am NOT a doctor, nor do I play one on television.  I have taught people the basics of good nutrition, whole grains, bread making, cheese making, butter making, soap making, sewing, crocheting, knitting, painting, herbs, food storage and I am sure there are other things as well.  It is not that I am an expert, but people would see or hear of me doing something and want to learn.  They would ask me if I could show them and I was happy to.  That is really how we started our store.  I was teaching people all these skills and then sending them other places when they wanted to buy things.  

I have some things to schedule in my life in the near future....  a tooth extraction and hernia repair surgery are 2 of them.  Once I know where they fall in my schedule, I will be setting up my first class I am going to teach.  I am giving a class on making feta cheese.  I have people interested, but obviously scheduling will play into how many take the class.  I think my first class will be limited to 6 to 8 people.  I am also talking to someone who would like some help with starting in cooking and basic nutrition.  In other words using whole foods.  

I seem to have my own place in the whole foods and traditional cooking arena.  I love the Weston A. Price group and Nourishing Traditions.  I love trying new ways to preserve our foods.  I am also a realist though and know that for me to try and raise and grow as much of our own food as possible, I have to use some methods that they don't "approve" of.  I am also a realist in the fact that not everyone can afford to buy everything organic.  I try to be balanced in my approach and that is what I will teach.  

One of the blogs I read shares pictures of some of their readers "real food kitchens".  You can get some really weird stuff in a real food kitchen.  Here are some pictures from our house.  

Don't you love my backdrop in this first picture?  That was a map that I used when Joshua was young.  There are no names on the states, just numbers.  I would say a number and he would tell me the state, its capital and the nickname.  :)  It serves a purpose here to block a pass through window into a very cold porch.  We have insulation stuffed in the window.  This covers that on the kitchen side.  :)  The chamber pot on the left is the bucket I use for scraps I give to my chickens.  Next to that is my electric yogurt maker.  I use it to make my yogurt mother.  I make the mother out of heated milk so it will last.  I then use the mother along with raw milk that is not heated above 115° to make my raw yogurt.  Next to that in the jar with the little red cap on it is my kombucha scoby or as some call it mushroom.  It is waiting on some more tea to be put in.  The little jar with the amber colored liquid is my super tonic or "gack" as it is called in our house (that is the noise Michael makes when taking any).  :)  It is made from garlic, ginger, horseradish, onion and cayenne peppers in a raw apple cider vinegar base.  I use it in cooking and take it by the spoonful.  I love the taste.   

 Here is my compost bucket.  Our coffee grounds and egg shells make up a lot of our compost.  If it is edible we give it to the chickens, if not it goes in here.  Compost can really be beneficial if you plan on gardening.  I also use a lot of fresh garlic.  The little crock with the cork lid is my garlic cellar. 

Here is my non-electric yogurt maker (Yogotherm).  I make my raw yogurt in this and love it because I can make 1/2 of a gallon at a time.   

The jar on top of the warming oven is my whole grain sourdough starter.  I was told to keep the 2 starters at least 5' apart.  I have a San Francisco sourdough starter on the counter.  I keep a thermometer up by the whole grain one to make sure the temperature stays right for it.  You can also see some of my herbs I dried hanging from the ceiling. 

Here, I am starting to rehydrate some milk kefir grains.   

I cooked down a whole chicken to make my Crock Pot Chicken Enchiladas for Sunday. 

Here is the broth from that. 

Speaking of broth, I have a bunch of broth in my fridge.  This is one area where I am different than the traditional food people.  I will be canning this instead of freezing it.  I don't have the freezer room to keep everything there.  I can pressure can it and put it on my shelf.  It is still better than what I am able to buy in the store.  You can see my homemade butter in the mold on the top left.  Then look right below the broth on the right and you will see a roll of butter from a local dairy that keeps their cows on grass and don't give them a bunch of junk.  I bought that butter through the food co-op I run. I use it as a back up, if I run out of butter.   It will be going in the freezer.  The bowl in the middle with the dark stuff in it is my coconut bark.  This is the best way I have found to get coconut oil into me.  It tastes just like chocolate candy and is totally good for you. 

I also make most of our cheese. 

I make most of our bread.  I am really enjoying all my experimenting with sourdough. 

Here is my cheese cave.  The bucket on the top is a brine I use for some cheeses. 

We are blessed to have milking animals.  Here is some grass fed, Jersey cow milk. 

The cream is so thick that you can mound it up. 

This is a cheese spread I made to take somewhere.  It is my easy ricotta recipe and I have added Italian herbs and spices. 

Here is butter made from grass fed Jersey cream. 

This soft cheese I made with jalapeños and garlic and onion.  It was so good. 

I hope to share more on here about cooking with real food and also about the classes I will be teaching.  I am moving slowly, because I truly want God to lead in this. 

Camera Shy

I have been so thankful that we have Skye.  I still really miss Star and the house seems a bit empty, but then I am reminded by this fuzzy friend that it is not.  She is very relational and loves to come over and get some lovins'.  She will come sit beside me and stare.  I invite her to put her paws on my lap.  When she does, I start to scratch and pet her.  She puts her head against me and enjoys every minute of it as do I.  What is funny is that this is SO out of character for me.  I have always loved dogs, but not on me.  The #1 rule for dogs with me though is DON'T lick me.  :)  

Whenever I get the camera out, Skye gets a little nervous.  I will admit, I have enjoyed "getting her" with the camera in hand.  I do let her come over and smell it and see that it is harmless.  Here she is seeing the camera pointed at her and wondering what is going to happen.  

As the camera starts to focus and make noise while doing that, she goes into the I am totally ready for flight mode. 

Here you can see her mouth starting to come open as she is barking at me. 

Then she took off to be a safe distance away and barked away.  :)  I have too much fun with her.

This has nothing to do with dogs, but I really like how it turned out.  I am hoping this tree will still bloom in the Spring.  See all the buds on it?

Count Your Blessings Monday!!

Here is an opportunity for all of us to give thanks unto the Lord for a blessing in our lives. If you would like to take part great. If not that is OK too. If you would like to share your blessing, just leave it in the comments. If you want to use the picture above and list a blessing on your own site, then leave a URL to your site in the comments. There is no pressure here. I just know that I am incredibly blessed and I would like to share that and give thanks to Him who all blessing come from. This is a way that we can encourage one another. I know that I am often encouraged when someone shares a blessing with me. I think that many times we forget that it is a blessing to be able to breath, to get out of bed, to hold a baby... Share your blessings with us. We can share so many other things.... special gifts, recipes, let's take the time to share how God has blessed us!!

Today, I am thankful for the blessings of a warm house.  It is currently about 17° outside.  This house tends to be colder because it has lots of design flaws.  :)  We are slowly fixing them.  This year through adding a pantry door with plastic on it and putting a door on the laundry area, the house is staying warmer.  Our stove is working great and has been our only source of heat for the last 12 years.

It provides a warm place to sit and read my Bible or knit.  It also saves us on propane.  Saturday, I cooked a chicken so I could make Crock Pot Chicken Enchiladas for Sunday.  I just put the pan with the chicken on this stove and it cooked all day.  As you can see in the picture above, I put my mug of tea on a trivet on the stove and it keeps it warm for me.  

My husband makes sure we have wood to burn and he brings in plenty of wood each day for me to feed the fire.  The Wonderful Neighbor young man has helped Michael on several occasions to cut up wood drug out of our woods.  We have had men from our church go out and cut wood and bring us truck loads, and they even split and stacked them.  During the winter months, Michael reads out loud while I knit.  We are reading Joel Salatin's newest book, Folks, This Ain't Normal.  

One of the things he talks about in the book is how young people today sit around and watch movies or play on their computers or iPhones.  He talks about the rights of passage for young men of another era.  One of those was cutting wood to keep the family home warm.  It was more than just going down and chopping down trees.  You had to know which trees to cut, which wood burned the hottest and the longest, etc.  It was a true skill and one that you normally did with another person so you had times of fellowship.  He talked about the good feeling of riding back on a huge load of firewood.  It was good exercise and they felt like they had contributed to their family and home.  

I never want to take for granted the hard work and dedication it takes for the men of the family to supply their home with enough firewood to keep a fire going.  I am very grateful to the Lord for my husband and his willingness to do this and also for the help from others he receives.  It is so much nicer for him when someone is working side by side with him.  

What are YOU thankful for? 

January's Weather

Our January started out so beautiful and very unusual for Ohio.  We have had lots of sunshine and warm weather.  There has been several days that with long sleeves you could be outside without a coat.  The grass greened up a bit in the sun and the animals were all enjoying it as well.  I got some good pictures of the sheep out grazing and sunning themselves. 

Here are Buttercup and Clover coming out to see what we are up to. 

This farm is over behind us on the next road.  It is a beautiful view that we only have in the winter.

Here one of the steers and Honey are coming out to see what we are up to as well.  We pulled the stock trailer down near the barn and that makes them all suspicious.  Someone either shows up or goes away when we bring the trailer down. 

Honey wanted to see what Michael was feeding to the other two. 

Yes, it was Clover's turn in the trailer.  She is a milk cow, but we can't get her bred.  We have tried AI several times and she spent a long time with a bull.  She was taken off to be processed. 

We are so thankful for a truck to pull our trailer.  God is so good!!

We went from those beautiful sunshiny days to this.  :)  The wind howled all night and is still blowing fiercely today.  It is 16° with a wind chill of -1°. 

Skye begs to go out and then she does not go far and looks back and wants to come in.  :)

I am glad that we have her.  I still miss Star a lot and the house seems empty without her. 

My turnips are starting to grow in my pantry.  :)

Still Life Photo. My cheese is drying and acquiring its rind. The tea kettle is one that Michael bought me before Joshua was born. It has finally rusted on the inside and is not usable for tea water. I think I may plant something in it.

I think this will be a good day to sit by the fire and knit or read.  I have a few more things to get done and then I will head that way.  Stay warm and dry wherever you are!!