Tonight I blanched, vacu-sealed and froze about two pounds of green beans, two large heads of broccoli and a zucchini that a friend gave me last night.
Now that July is coming to a close and August is setting in, it's time to start really thinking about putting things up for winter. The meat birds have been processed (weighing in at between 5 and 8 pounds). The pig won't be ready until late November. So it's time to think about veggies, soups, dehydrating and canning. I did none of this last year (no freezer), so I'm determines to make the most of it this year.
And in six months, when I pull some of that locally grow, farm fresh goodness out of the freezer, I'm going to smile and think about this evening: the sound of the wind whipping through the windows, creating a wind tunnel in my house; Sadie turning her nose up at a piece of zucchini until she saw me eating it and figured it wasn't poison; the sight of the chickens comin' runnin' when I tossed out the bits and ends that I cut off the vegetable; watering the tomatoes with the water I used for blanching...after the dog decided she was done drinking it (wouldn't eat a green bean, but she'll drink the water I cooked them in, weird dog!); and listening to the crickets and the calmer wind as the sun sets on this day.
Monday, July 23, 2012
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Freezer Chicken
My very small order of meat chicks came in on May 20th. Being new to meat birds, I started small...I only got 6. My friend ordered them for me, so they cost me a grand total of $8.
Knowing that we couldn't name any of them individually (I really didn't want to form any kind of attachment to my future dinner), my family nicknamed them the "McNuggets."
They spent 2 weeks in the brooder, then 2 weeks in a dog crate in the basement, because my house smelled like chickens and good god, I couldn't wait to get them out of my house!
Then I built them a PVC coop that I call the "Hoop Coop" since it looks like a hoop house:
I had to cover the very top with a tarp to keep the rain out and they only used the little house for the first 2 weeks that they were out there, then they got too big to all fit in it. I also didn't realize that they would smell as badly as they do, nor that they would be as disgustingly messy as they are. In 4 1/2 weeks, I've moved the coop a few times, to give them access to fresh grass, as they will COVER that small patch of grass in poo in a VERY short amount of time! They also eat like there's no tomorrow (which in their case is fairly accurate, I guess) and they suck through gallons upon gallons of water a day.
Well, the birds have finally reached their 8 week status (8 1/2 really) and its time to have them processed. A guy I went to high school with, just down the road from me, runs a meat cutting business and processes poultry, as well. The McNuggets have a 7:30 appointment and then, they will fill my freezer.
Say goodbye to the McNuggets!
Knowing that we couldn't name any of them individually (I really didn't want to form any kind of attachment to my future dinner), my family nicknamed them the "McNuggets."
They spent 2 weeks in the brooder, then 2 weeks in a dog crate in the basement, because my house smelled like chickens and good god, I couldn't wait to get them out of my house!
Then I built them a PVC coop that I call the "Hoop Coop" since it looks like a hoop house:
I had to cover the very top with a tarp to keep the rain out and they only used the little house for the first 2 weeks that they were out there, then they got too big to all fit in it. I also didn't realize that they would smell as badly as they do, nor that they would be as disgustingly messy as they are. In 4 1/2 weeks, I've moved the coop a few times, to give them access to fresh grass, as they will COVER that small patch of grass in poo in a VERY short amount of time! They also eat like there's no tomorrow (which in their case is fairly accurate, I guess) and they suck through gallons upon gallons of water a day.
Well, the birds have finally reached their 8 week status (8 1/2 really) and its time to have them processed. A guy I went to high school with, just down the road from me, runs a meat cutting business and processes poultry, as well. The McNuggets have a 7:30 appointment and then, they will fill my freezer.
Say goodbye to the McNuggets!
Monday, July 16, 2012
Vacation, all I ever wanted...
Today is the official first day of my vacation and I haven't done much, save for laundry and rearranging my room. It's too humid outside to do more than melt, even the chickens are panting. The dog goes out for a minute and is back at the door whining for the sweet relief of air conditioning.
I have lost my ambition to more than lay on my bed and snooze. Some time during this vacation I'd like to clean my craft room and do some quilting.
Tomorrow will be different. Tomorrow will be filled with shopping with my mother and aunt (who is visiting from Maryland). Tomorrow I will have the energy to do more than putter around the house in a humidity induced daze!
And Wednesday I will be delivering the meat birds to the meat cutter for processing. Yay!!!!
Saturday, July 14, 2012
The Weird Coming Out in Me
Is it bad that I hear Apu from the Simpsons in my head when I go to pump gas and the little screen on the pump says, "Thank you, come again" when I'm finished?
Saturday, July 7, 2012
Monday, July 2, 2012
Been Slacken...
Its summer and I really have been trying to disconnect. I've been spending as much time outside as I can, because winter in Maine is so long and summer is so short and I need to suck enough sun into this body in the next three months to get me from October to May!
I'll post picts of the finished hoop coop, the nearly done meat birds (2 weeks left) and a garden update, just as soon as I come in from kayaking...so that could be September.
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