Lemon Marmalade?

I had lemons and lots of them, so I decided I'd venture out and make some lemon marmalade.

Look how vibrant and pretty it all looks in the pot, it has to be yummy right?

After canning them I opened a celebratory one for breakfast yesterday, only to find that it's bitter! (Duh, you might say, it's lemons!) I put 5 cups of sugar in, I thought it would be sweeter!

So here's where I learn that you have to make many mistakes in life to figure out what you really enjoy-lemon marmalade is not on that list.
The Farmer's Wife

Happy St. Pattys Day!

Top of the morning to ya!

Yes, I know I'm a couple days behind, but I wanted to share this pic with you.

Tom was very spoiled:
Corned Beef
Cabbage Salad
French Bread
Au Gratin Potatoes
and some Guinness beer... (shhh that's on the down low)

I thought that since Tom was Irish that we'd go all out. And of course I got mini leprechaun hats to boot! I do love making food that he enjoys, he said this dinner was the most delicious he's had (thank heavens!).

Until next time,
The Farmer's Wife

Goats & Kids!

It's true! I'm now a goat owner, but not just of one, but 6!

Tom brought home 2 mama goats a week ago to have as lawn mowers out here on the farm, and they both had their babies a week apart. So now 2 mama goats and 4 kids, whew!

They're so cute. Kids (baby goats) actually hop around and jump sideways, I've never seen anything like it!

This one pictured is our only male and the only multicolor one, the other 3 are girls and white with brown ears.

I feel like we're a real functioning farm now, who knew all I needed were some goats to top it off!

The Farmer's Wife

The New Batch

The mama cat did it again, we're on litter number 3, wait 4? She's preggie again, but we've just let batch 3 out into the farm life.

This is M&M (mini me) he looks the same as Poofycus in batch number 2 (hmm, they're all starting to look alike).

This is one of their first days romping around the farm, and M&M went right for the old engine, he's a natural.

He has the same demeanor as Poofycus in batch number 2, we're pretty lucky. M&M follows me to the chicken coop to help me feed (and keep a close watch on the chickies, I've seen him pounce at the fence a couple times). He helps Ginger finish up the milk, food, and water in her dishes, and even catches me an occasional mousie from the hay stack, I think I'll keep him!

The Farmer's Wife

Recipes Passed Down

My dear grandma-in-law, Winnie (pictured center with my friend Jennie & my mom) passed down an old recipe book.

I love getting recipe books, especially older ones. It's so much fun to find one that looks good and try it out.

As you know, Tom is an avid deer hunter, and currently, I have 3 years worth of 3 deer in my freezer (the 4th on it's way). I'm trying desperately to cook, bake, and grill this venison up. Lo and behold, Winnie's cookbook housed a tried and true recipe, the boys loved it! And, you can't even taste that gamey venison taste. It's Kristi approved!

Here's the recipe:

Venison Teriyaki

2 lbs venison (or any meat) sirloin or round

Marinade:
1 can condensed beef consomme (or beef broth)
1/4 c. chopped onions (this soaks up the gamey taste)
1/3 c. soy sauce
1 clove garlic
2 Tbl. lemon juice
2 Tbl. brown sugar
1 tsp. seasoned salt (Lawrys)

Pour over meat, refrigerate-overnight is best.
Then grill when ready!

Enjoy!

The Farmer's Wife

I Met a Celebrity!

I'm starting a bucket list right now, and my first is crossed off.

#1. Meet the Pioneer Woman

My girlfriend Amee and I had the opportunity to drive to Los Angeles for Ree Drummond's book signing.

I had diarrhea of the mouth, didn't stop talking, and Amee never got a word in edgewise. I don't even remember what I talked to her about. The few choice words I remember coming out of my mouth: Tom, farming, cooking, hero!

She was the nicest person I have ever met, she signed my cookbook too!

Oh my life is complete!

The Farmer's Wife

Old Yeller

We found out the other day that Ginger is actually a pure bred. Weird, I know. But I knew there was something cool about her when I adopted her.

Her breed is a Black Mouth Cur.

I googled it.

I read about her. It's all true.

And, the amazing thing? Old Yeller was a Black Mouth Cur too. Ginger is famous!

To learn more about her breed and see her breed pictures, here's a good link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackmouth_Cur

The Farmer's Wife