nurturing life and good living

the ducks are ranging farther and farther each day. we have a female and 3 males who hover protectively around her all the time. 

 

our lilly of the valley is lovely this year and the scent is pure heaven!

 

lupine plants i started from seed in the milk jug greenhouses. on friday i will start planting all the plants i started from seed.

 the hens are happy, happy, happy -- free ranging all over our 5 acres. i ordered 12 pullets from a sweet amish lady at a farm down the road. they will be ready to pick up on august 1st. it will be fun to gather even more eggs every day.

the potatoes are growing like crazy!!

the male ducks place themselves between me and their sweet female.

every day i thank god for helping me to make the decision to live here on the farm. i feel so blessed to be surrounded by nature and to be nurturing new life. life is good!

growing up

so pleased with how my tomatoes and sweet potato slips are growing . . . up, up, up! and look at those ducks; they are huge!

over the years i've been blessed to work with a wide range of people from different ethnicities, countries and walks of life. it's always interesting to hear about their lives as children, their traditions and how those backgrounds have shaped their lives as adults. i had a happy, blessed childhood. my 5 siblings and i were loved, well-tended and nurtured. we were expected to be polite, respectful and obedient. (some were more obedient than others. smile! ) growing up, we had a huge yard to play in and an equally large responsibility to weed the garden, harvest the vegetables, paint the fence posts, rake the leaves and do the dishes. to this day, i'm transported back to my childhood every time i hang clothes on the line or mix up a batch of pie dough. summer twilight found us playing kick the can or hide and seek. sunday mornings we often joined our numerous farmer family cousins in a rousing chorus of "brighten the corner where you are" front and center in church. life was wholesome and healthy and safe. blessed. and i thank god for every moment of it every day of my life.

grandma johnson's butterscotch pie!!

fred and martha johnson
kopper kettle restaurant
economy, indiana
circa 1950

some of you may be wondering how i came up with the name of my farm -- butterscotch farm!my inspiration came from helping my grandma j cook. she and my grandpa ran a small restaurant called the kopper kettle. it was just a few hundred yards away from the house where i grew up so i spent a great deal of time there. they made pretty much everything from scratch – salisbury steak, ham with raisin sauce, giant tenderloins and old-fashioned ham and beans with cornbread. (think “hey, pa, what’s for dinner?” and you’ll get the picture of this small town country cooking). i pretty much started going to the kettle to hang out with grandma when i was 5 or 6. she let me stir things and taught me how to measure ingredients. eventually i went to work there as a real paying job, washing dishes, waiting tables, peeling potatoes, every odd job that i could do to help them out. they each worked 12 plus hours a day to keep that little gem of a diner going. and believe me, they packed people in after church on sundays.

one of the most popular things on the menu (and my personal favorite) was grandma’s famous homemade pie. she excelled at a flaky crust made with lard; granted it wasn’t healthy for you, but it tasted superb! she made several varieties every day such as lemon meringue, strawberry, black raspberry, apricot, coconut, sugar crème, pecan and peach. but in my opinion the most unique pie she made was butterscotch. to this day, i’ve never tasted a better butterscotch pie well except for my mom's which is darn close to grandma j's! so, as a tribute to my grandma j, here’s the recipe.

ingredients:

1 firmly packed, heaping cup of light brown sugar
2 T butter
2 T flour
2 eggs
2 cups of milk (at least 2%)
1 baked pie shell (store bought is fine, that’s how I make it)
2 T of water
handful of granulated sugar

separate 2 eggs by putting the whites into a medium mixing bowl. place the yolks into a 2 cup glass measuring cup. fill the glass measuring cup up with milk (slightly less than 2 cups) and beat the yolks into the milk with a fork. set aside.

in a medium saucepan or preferably an iron skillet***, melt the 2 T of butter. add the brown sugar and cook on medium/high until the mixture begins to bubble and caramelize. the color will turn to a darker brown. take off the heat and stir in the 2 T of flour. slowly, a little bit at a time, add the milk/egg yolk mixture. immediately put back on the stove and cook on medium until the mixture thickens to a pudding-like consistency. pour into the pre-baked pie crust.

add 2 T of water to the egg whites in the medium mixing bowl. with an electric mixer, beat the egg whites on medium/high until peaks form. add a handful of sugar and beat until well mixed. use a plastic spatula to spoon the meringue onto the top of the pudding in the pie crust. make peaks on top of the pie so it looks nice. bake at 350 degrees until the top of the meringue is a nice golden brown.

let this cool for a bit before cutting so the pudding has a chance to set up. enjoy and please let me know what you think!

*** i've tried making this in a regular saucepan before but the only way to get the true grandma j butterscotch flavor is to make it in an iron skillet.

two farmer chicks

mom in her apron with her fresh-baked pumpkin pie! me with my dirty hoe! two farmer chicks, a hoe and an apron -- oh my!!

we sure are having fun on butterscotch farm!!

eggciting photoshoot!

 

 

some things just beg to be photographed. #1 -- farm fresh brown eggs. #2 my vintage fiestaware.   #1 + #2 + #3 sunshine  =  sublime images. and, your blue mood and boredom are chased right out the window. i've always said that i'm easily bored but i'm also quite easily entertained.

my chickens . . . just a tad bit picky

our hens loooove to snack! now that the earthworms have nestled down deep in the ground and the insects have disappeared, we try to find tasty and entertaining things for the hens to peck and scratch. i keep a flock block in the hen house for happy pecking in the morning while they are waiting in line to lay their eggs. a big scoop of cracked corn has them running after me when i let them out around noon. i had a few pie pumpkins left over from halloween that had partially frozen in the garage. one morning i sliced a pumpkin up and microwaved it for a minute or so to thaw. there was quite a feeding frenzy as the hens pecked and grabbed the tasty warm fruit. a few days later i put more out without microwaving it first. i stood back and waited for the happy hen show to begin. i waited and waited. it seems that the hens prefer their pumpkin slightly cooked thank you very much. lesson learned!

we are still getting 8 to 10 eggs a day from our 10 hens. the debate continues on whether we will get more hens in the spring and if so how many and how/where we will keep them separated from the older hens. i love me a good debate but really what's to be decided? we need at least 12 more layers!!!

sunrise snow

pine tree needles

morning sentinels

frozen clothespins

drippy bough

rosy glow icicle



pink snow

tree line

we got our first snowfall of the season last night, one of those heavy snows that coats every tree and bush and fence post. it was treacherous driving home from work but once i slid back the driveway it was pure delight. the dogs ran and chased and buried their noses in the snow to follow the tracks of a rabbit hustling to get into its den for the night. when i checked on the chickens they were all snuggled together on their perches, heads tucked beneath wings, oblivious to the winter wonderland outside.

i set my alarm to go off early this morning hoping to take some great photos of the snow. as the rosy sun peeked up over the cornfield i was trudging thru the woods, nikon in hand, loving every glorious step and vision. now as i enjoy my coffee and warm up my toes i can hear the melting snow drip, drip, dripping onto the sidewalk outside. and, i feel happy, blessed and grateful that i was alone with nature for just a few minutes today. 

two farmer chicks, a hoe and an apron

this is my mom and me; we are the heart, soul, sweat and tears of butterscotch farm. my maiden name is farmer so we truly are farmer chicks. mom is the mother of 5, a retired elementary school cafeteria manager, fantastic cook and one of the sweetest people i have ever met. she is the apron in our operation, baking almost every day of the week. her specialty is butterscotch pie and it is the inspiration for the name of our farm.stay tuned for more on the pie in an upcoming post. mom loves knitting and keeps our big family stocked with knitted dishcloths. she also enjoys reading and will stay up late into the night to finish a good book. she is most happy when our entire family is gathered here on the farm to enjoy the big meal she has spent days planning and preparing. at 83, she amazes me with her ambition, work ethic and ability to still do it all!

i am the hoe in our operation. it's ok to laugh -- go ahead and let loose with a big belly laugh. you'll understand the hoe part soon! my story is one of hope and longing and a great deal of courage. at 57 i was working a demanding and stressful corporate job as a marketing coordinator. i was unhappy, unfulfilled and convinced that there was a much better life for me. i longed to live simply in the country, harvest my own food from a big garden and raise chickens. visions of homesteading life haunted me at night and sustained me during long corporate work days. i felt trapped and began to realize that i was living someone else's dream and filling the pockets of arrogant corporate greed. and so one day in february 2011 i said enough. i gave two weeks notice at my job, cashed in my 401k and spread my wings.

yes, it was a scary move. and yes i had a moment of panic or two. but overall i felt an overwhelming sense of relief and the knowledge that all was finally right in my world. since my dad passed in may 2010, mom was living alone in the house she and dad built in 1955. the two plus acres included a small pole barn and room for a big garden. i approached mom about raising chickens and she loved the idea. we asked a neighbor to plow up a big garden plot and i picked up a hoe for the first time in over 35 years. i became the hoe of butterscoth farm!

chickens in the garlic

i'm learning that having chickens is a lot like having kids. most of the tasks i perform outside, i end up having to do again and again. why? because the chickens like to dig and poop and make messes! a couple of weeks ago i planted my garlic bed so i can harvest garlic next july. i worked mulched leaves and composted chicken poop into the dirt and then covered it over with 4 inches of mulch and straw. i finished the mulching right at dark on a cool fall evening. i felt energized and fulfilled, anticipating a giant garlic harvest to enjoy and sell. 

the next day as i pulled back the driveway after work i saw all 10 chickens digging furiously in my garlic bed.  grrrrr! there is no herding them out of the garden when they're on a worm binge. the above photo shows the teamwork needed to be effective worm harvesters. one hen digs furiously while the other hovers close by to pounce at the first glimpse of a fat, juicy worm.

when a worm is plucked the other hens come running like banshees to get in on the action. you wouldn't even believe how fast these hens can run!!!! we spoil them with all of our fruit and vegetable peels. so, of course, when we come out the back door they make a beeline toward us to get their goodies. if we're simply headed to the clothes line without any spoils for them, they will peck at our painted toenails, hoping for a tasty treat. and, it really hurts!

my friend vickie does not like chickens. she says they don't have any social boundaries and i do believe she's right.

we continue to get 9 or 10 eggs every day. the joy of gathering eggs has not waned and it is still one of my favorite daily chores.

raindrops keep fallin on my head

early this week i spent a few hours trying to tear down our garden. there were still green and red tomatoes to be harvested as well as parsley, basil and onions.  i tore all the tomato cages away from the plants and stored them behind the barn. the strawberry plants were weeded in preparation for adding straw for the winter mulch. then began the task of clearing out all the other vegetation and pulling the balance of the tall grass that had grown up, well, everywhere. oh my it was hard work. i started out standing and stooping over to pull and then eventually sat right down in the garden to save my back. i made a little progress but knew it would be much easier work if i waited for a little rain. and it has rained every day since!

sitting there in the garden pulling weeds i daydreamed about the garden i will plant next year -- the heritage seeds i want to plant so i can save seed for the next year, the wood poles i want to build for growing sugar snap peas, the new sod i want plowed for pumpkins and gourds. the list goes on and on. but mostly i thought about dreaming and setting goals and reaching. i've learned it's not healthy to become complacent or comfortable with yourself or your life.  when i let myself become stagnant i was unhappy with everyone and everything, but really mostly with myself. with this farming gig i've given myself permission to learn as i go, make mistakes and yes even fail. so let the rain stop so i can get back into the garden where the weeds will now be much easier to pull.

and for your listening pleasure, here's the theme song from the movie butch cassidy and the sundance kid -- love that movie and wasn't robert redford a total hunk??!!

apple butter!!

until this summer it had been years and years since i'd done any canning. i have fond memories of spending a whole day in the kitchen with my mom and my grandma and grandpa farmer putting up tomato juice and mixed vegetables for soup. yes, it was hard work but the sense of satisfaction was worth it. this summer we put up over 130 quarts of food -- pickles, tomatoes, tomato juice, green beans and chili sauce. after all of our garden produce had been put up mom and i still yearned to do more canning so we made apple butter! this was a super easy recipe made from canned applesauce and baked in the oven. here's my sister kathy's recipe!

kathy's homemade apple butter

1 gallon canned applesauce -- we bought a case of 6 gallons from a wholesale food distributor
3 pounds brown sugar
1 5 oz bag of red hots
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon allspice
1 tablespoon ground cloves
1 tablespoon cinnamon

mix all the ingredients together in 2 large cake pans. we used the biggest ones mom had -- around 12 x 15 inches. stir very well. cook in preheated 350 degree oven for 3 hours or so with one pan on the top shelf and the other on the bottom. stir every half hour or so. after 1 1/2 hours switch the pans so the one on the bottom is on the top and vice versa. it will get thicker as it cooks. when done scoop into pint jars, add lids and process for 10 minutes in a hot water bath. we got 5 1/2 pints per recipe. so far we've made 20 pints and still have 2 gallons of applesauce left.

this is a very sweet recipe. the next time we make it, i plan to reduce the amount of sugar a bit. 

all ready for christmas gift-giving!!

streams of light

when you look up into the trees in autumn there is a mesmerizing play of light and shadow. crimson leaves blaze, shadows dance and streams of light filter down to warm your face. if you stand still under the tree with your eyes closed you can envision the experience as a metaphor for your life. there is motion and stillness, light and shadow, confusion and illumination.

and so it has been for me for many, many months. i faced an endless road of unhappiness and chose the brighter path. the choice was scary and exhilarating and laden with regret. but each time the shadows seemed to overtake me, the streams of light came back to show me the way.

at the core of my life change was a fervent belief that the pursuit of money and material possessions was weighing me down. being a faceless, nameless cog in the wheel of corporate greed was disenchanting and demoralizing. i wanted to live simply, peacefully and sustainably.

a year later, here i am -- living with my mom in the house that she and my dad built almost 60 years ago on three wooded acres. i wanted to raise chickens for meat and eggs. and we did it. i wanted to have a large vegetable garden. and we did that too. we've canned, frozen and shared bushels of produce. we're getting 5 dozen eggs a week, enough to share with family and sell to friends. we've named our homestead butterscotch farm and we are happy.

we are two farmer chicks, a hoe and an apron. welcome to our blog . . . sit back and enjoy your visit. the sweet tea is brewing and mom's butterscotch pie is cooling on the rack. we're sure glad you stopped by!