The Heat goes on...

which means it's still sunny and hot and I'm still standing and venting that kiln...crazy me...the peas came up but they are not ready to eat yet, the squash beetles won and I pulled out all my squash and zucchini plants in hopes of a fall veggies and I'm busily working on building my wholesale accounts!

In the kitchen I've been using all those beautiful eggplants and making Babba Ghanous. It's really tasty you should try it if you have some fresh eggplant!

Babba Ghanous

I eggplant 2 tbs Tahini 1/4 cup lemon juice 1/2 tsp garlic powder 1/3 cup olive oil salt to taste liquid smoke 2 drops

Pierce eggplant with a fork and microwave for about 4 minutes...cool...cut in half and remove inside of eggplant....puree until smooth and creamy.

Before serving drizzle with olive oil and add olives.

This weeks photo is the bowl I made last week...I started a blue one today...

It's hot!

Everyone is talking about it ~ high humidity and heat! But hey it's July in the south it's suppose to be hot, so what is a girl to do... fire the kiln! ~ to a full glass fuse to make a bowl from what I call a jug wine bottle. Actually I love the color of this glass, it's clear green. The bowl is just free form meaning I break up the bottle and arrange the glass in a somewhat circle and then fire it flat. Bubbles and holes emerge making a one of a kind piece of glass. Kinda organic looking. Then after this cools I slump it or melt it into the shape of a bowl. I have to open the kiln lid and vent it down to around a 1,000 degrees so 1400 plus degrees feels hot and when I walk away ...it's cool...here in the south, here in the heat and humidity...

Pictured is an Assin Bug! I think he's great because he is eating a Japanese beetle. I'm not sure why but I consider most bugs male...

On the farm....I started some collards, mustard spinach greens and kale for the fall garden.

I planted a whole bag of peas very thickly in a small spot. (I read about this in my English garden magazine), when the peas emerge and are about 2 inches high I'll cut them down for a wonderful salad. I'll let you know how this goes as my space is limited so I'm always looking for a dense fast crop that is good!

Anticipation

My daughter is home for the summer and has discovered Carly Simon which means we pulled out some of my old albums and also rescued a few Carly's from the local thrift store and I've been listening to that wonderful song Anticipation....it's making me wait...figs...the most sensual of all fruits... and one of my favorites...I'm going to make this dressing as soon as they are ripe!

Fig Balsamic Dressing ( adapted from my " I Am Grateful" cookbook.)

10 figs, 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar,1 cup olive or salad oil, 1/2 tsp jalapeno pepper~finely chopped~ 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp lemon juice, 1/4 tsp black pepper. Blending all the ingredients until smooth and creamy in the blender.

the right thing to do...

They say life's not easy on the farm and sometimes that is so true. Sunday I called Black Tulip Alpaca Farms because our Raoul, was coughing and needed advice on what to do. ~ Take his temp twice a day and monitor him for 24 hours ~ When Monday's sun came up I got a call from the farm saying they had been thinking about our situation and suggested we trade Raoul out for another alpaca. You see Raoul has been sneezing since he got here and the thought was this might be allergy related and could lead to other health problems. After the family discussion we all felt it best to do this. I've had a sick feeling since this decision but know if he is healthier somewhere else it is the right thing to do, so this morning we made the trade. I cried a little bit over this but know he will get the best of care ~ after all he's going back to his original home. I'll get a report on Raoul this evening and in the meantime am enjoying our little Marley Bean. Henri has been a little upset over this but still went swimming in his pool, and our young alpaca Kudzu is happy with his new friend. I'm also thankful that the owners of the farm go beyond just selling you an animal but are concerned about their welfare no matter where the alpaca lives, and so life goes on....here in the south....here in the heat.....

The garden is growing despite the high temps and we've been eating eggplant 2 - 3 times a week not to mention squash, zucchini, cucumbers and tomatoes. I'm blaming the great productivity of course on the alpaca soil conditioner!

Rachel and I did a cooking demo at the farmer's market this past weekend and you can find our recipes under the market menu section.

It's not to early so I'm looking ahead to the fall garden now....

The Rangers

Last Wed I picked up the 10 White Cornish Cross Chickens I had ordered and I have discovered they didn't read the manual. These birds are most famously know as the big breasted chickens you buy at the grocery and supposedly all they do is eat, sleep and poop and being of small minds are not suppose to want to do anything else. But I tell you this is the second group I've raised this year and they act pretty normal to me.( but then again they are treated the same as my heritage egg layers and owing to the fact that I have space limitations on my small farm this is the best choice for my meat production) I call them the "Rangers" as they are escaping the large chicken confinement several times a day to graze the wooded landscape for greens and insects...I'm enjoying them and can't bring myself to insist on their staying in ( even though I know the hawk may get them) 6 - 8 weeks is a short life and yes I want them happy and healthy...

One of my favorite ways to cook chicken is in the rotisserie with this rub. But you can slow bake in the oven at 325' until done....

This recipe comes from my George Foreman rotisserie manual and I think it's great!

Deli Rotisserie Chicken

1 4 -5 pound chicken, 1 tsp salt, 2 tsps, paprika,1 tsp chili powder, 1 tsp garlic powder,2 tsps black pepper, 1 teaspoon onion powder, 1 tsp dried thyme.

combine all spices in a bowl and mix well. Rub thoroughly over entire chicken, cover and refrigerate for a couple of hours or overnight. I set the rotisserie for 1 1/2 hours and check you know its done when juices run clear.

Menu of the week

I've started something a little new this week, well at least I think I have (we'll see how it goes)and that's helping promote the local farmer's market I participate in. I'm planning to come up with a market menu of the week, along with how much to buy tips and a recipe of the week. I'm devoting a new page to this and will update it every Friday with my ideas...so I've been a little preoccupied this week. However, I've not been so busy that I can't fill the Alpaca Pool with fresh water every day!

June's Garden

Today I've been digging and planting the June garden. This year I'm staggering my plantings a little bit more in the hopes of a longer harvest! I just planted the last eggplant ( I kid you not , the last one I'm planting this year and the last one at the garden center!) another Bonnies Best Tomato, and 3 more pots full of cucumber, squash and zucchini seeds! So far everything I planted in May is doing great and we've had eggplant, tomatoes and hopefully squash this week, the garlic and potatoes have been harvested (I have a large basketful of those blue potatoes) and will soon be braiding the garlic.

The alpacas are dealing with the heat as they have primitive air conditioning - a frozen container in front of a fan and a new kiddies pool - They don't know quite what to think of the pool yet but Henri feels it is his and stands with his 2 front feet in it to cool off.

Jake is the proud rooster father of one adorable chick we've named Crumpet ( we only let one egg incubate-)

And the rabbits are in my air conditioned studio growing long luxurious fiber for me to spin.

Me? I'm about as hot as the jalapeno in the photo after working on the deck garden...

Tonight it's Baked Japanese Eggplant with Herbs, fresh baked bread, tomato mozzarella salad and a glass of wine.

Baked Japanese eggplants w/ herbs ( adapted from The Cuisine of California by D. Rossen Worthington)

4 Japanese eggplants halved

1/2 cup chopped parsley, 1/2 red onion chopped, 2 large cloves garlic minced, 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil,1/3 cup olive oil, 2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper.

preheat oven to 350.

Place eggplants in greased roasting pan and prick top so herbs penetrate.

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix to a smooth paste, spread on eggplants

Bake for 40 - 45 minutes or until tender and lightly browned.