Recipe Of The Week: Green Tomato Chocolate Cake

Green Tomato Chocolate Cake

 

3/4 cup of butter softened

2 cups of sugar

3 eggs

1 teaspoon of mint extract

2 cups of coarsely grated green tomato

1 teaspoon of vanilla

1/2 cup of milk

2 1/2 cups of flour

1/2 cup of cocoa

2 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder

1/2 teaspoon of baking soda

1 teaspoon of salt

1 teaspoon of cinnamon

 

Cream sugar and butter.  Beat in the eggs.  And mint extract, tomatoes, vanilla, and milk.  Combine dry ingredients and stir into the batter.  Pour into a buttered and floured 10 inch tube pan.  Bake at 350 degrees for 50-60 minutes.

A Little Twist To Things

I can tell you that the weather is dry last week has dried out everything on the farm.  When I drove up last week a huge cloud of dust enveloped me as I got out of the van.  Andy has started using the irrigation system...now running the pump around the clock...which he really doesn't like to do.  The good thing is that this summer it has been wet or damp enough that they haven't had to run it much.  The report is that the fall crops like sweet potatoes and winter squash are looking good.  While the summer crops are about to wind down.

Do I see strawberries?

When I talked to Andy lst weekend he was telling me that he thought the eggs might run low this week.  I could tell by the amount of chicken in the egg mobile that we would be running a little short this week.  But Andy and Lizzie saved the day for me.  My grandson called me a few weeks ago and told me that he had an emergency...they were out of strawberry jam.  I was supposed to get some when I went to the farm last weekend...but I forgot.  So I was so glad to find a jar waiting for me instead of eggs this week.   Thank you Andy and Lizzie!

 

More About The Growing Methods

 

Andy has mentioned before that this year they are trying some newer techniques on the farm.  He would rather not but sometimes an old dog needs to learn a few new tricks.  He would prefer to use the tried and true growing methods that generations of Hersberger's have used.  He has finally come to the conclusion that by combining these new ways...we get the best of both worlds in our organic produce that is grown at Cedarmore.  They will continue to use cover crops, lime, compost like they have been doing since starting the farm.  Then they will be fine tuning things by checking the Brix and the plant sap PH and then adding the missing elements.

Recipe Of The Week: Scalloped Potatoes With Cheese and Peppers

Scalloped Potatoes With Cheese and Peppers

 

5 cups of sliced potatoes

2 Tablespoons of flour

1 teaspoon of salt

dash of pepper

1/2 pound of cheese cubed

3/4 cup of milk

1/2 cup of chopped green peppers

1/2 cup of chopped green onions

2 Tablespoons of pimento strips (optional)

 

Coat potatoes with combined flour and seasonings.  Place in 12x8 inch baking dish.  Heat cheese and milk over low heat.  Add green pepper, onion, and pimientos.  Pour over potatoes.  Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes or until potatoes are done.



A Little Time At My Happy Place

Once again I got a chance to go visit my favorite Amish family at Cedarmore...my Happy Place.  I took some of my Amish books from my library to share.  And I had something SPECIAL to leave behind.

 

When I drove down the driveway the three older children (as Lizzie calls to them) were standing in the yard waiting for me.  I wonder how long they had been standing there?  I know why they were there waiting but I will give you the whole run down in just a bit.

 



This is Anna's garden.  She has dill, corn, and green beans.

Andy and I went to see the tomatoes in the greenhouse and look what we say...actually several of them.  This is a Tomato Hornworm.  He is a bad thing. The little white things on its back are the pupae of the Barconid wasp. These wasps are parasitic insects that prey on hornworms. These wasps hunt down our garden pests, inject their eggs into their prey where the eggs hatch into larvae and begin eating the internal organs of the hornworm. After these "maggots" have matured they bore through the skin of the hornworm and proceed to spin a cocoon and attach themselves to the worm. From the cocoons emerge adult Braconid Wasp which will begin hunting for other Tomato Hornworms and Tobacco Hornworms to feast upon.  It is the cycle of life right there in the tomato patch.

 

These are about all the turkeys that have survived the cat and chicken attacks.

golden comets...mean old chickens

The only rooster on the farm.  Isn't he a beauty?  He's a Barred Rock.

So this is the reason for my visit today to the farm.  I promised Anna that I would get her a bunny for her birthday...well, she got it a little early.  Meet Fluffy.  She is about 13 weeks old and is a mini Rex.  Fluffy will be getting a male companion on my next visit.  Anna is going to be raising rabbits to sell to her cousins and all of her friends in the community.   A little bunny business on the side. And the bunny poo can go on Anna's garden. But before I handed her over I made Andy and Lizzie promise that Fluffy wouldn't end up on the dinner table. They promised.

Fall Shares Still Available

Just wanted to let everyone know that we still have fall shares available. So if you don’t have any and still want one please try to get signed up while we have them available. Fall crops are doing very well as far as I can see. We should have a good supply of, potatoes, onions, winter squash, sweet potatoes, garlic, lettuce, broccoli, turnips and cabbages for the fall share. We should also have a fair amount of carrots, radishes, red beets, kale and chard. The fall share runs from the first week of October through the first week in December and are $170 for 10 weeks.

Another Pretty Heavy One

The weather is giving Andy a little bit of trouble.  All the rain that we have been having in the Cincinnati area has not reached Hillsboro.  So the farm is experiencing a little bit of drought.  Not severe by any means.  The good news is that the irrigation system is doing a good job keeping things watered. Andy doesn't seem think the crops and produce will be affected.  The irrigation system is taking care of everything very well.

 

The last batch of cantaloupes is all but over.  They were really good and sweet this year.  Now it is time to get ready for all those earthy fall crops like sweet potatoes and winter squash.  Andy thinks they will be in our boxes in a few weeks.

 

The okra in the boxes is something new that Andy is trying this year. In case you don't get any this week rest assured that you will get some next week...share and share alike.

  

 

And More About Our Growing Methods

 

Last week Andy mentioned that they have start using a P.H. meter and refractometer to check on the growth of the plants and to get a better view of what minerals are still needed. The refractometer tells us how high the brix (sugar content) is in the plants.  Basically  the higher the brix is, the healthier the plant is.  High a high brix there is less chance of plant disease and insect pressure.  Also the produce keeps  better flavor. Although the refractometer tells how high the brix level is, it really does not tell much about the minerals that are lacking.  The P.H. meter tells more about what minerals are still needed.  Andy will be telling us more about this next week.

Recipe Of The Week: Sliced Fried Okra

Sliced Fried Okra

 

1 pound of okra sliced into 1/2 inch slices

1/2 cup of cornmeal

1 teaspoon of salt, divided

`/8teaspoon of pepper

1/2 cup of vegetable oil

1 cup of water

 

Cook okra in the cup of water for about 10 minutes.  Mix the cornmeal, the other 1/2 teaspoon of salt and the pepper.  Toss the okra in the cornmeal mixture until the okra is completely coated.  Heat the oil.  Cook and stir okra in oil until brown.

Everything Is Looking Good

Produce is doing well but they could use a little bit of rain.  The irrigation system is keeping the plants well watered.  With what Andy see now he believes that the fall crops will do just fine.

More About The Growing Methods...

 

As I understand it, all plant minerals are either positively charged cations or negatively charged anions.  To name a few of the important ones:  Potassium, Calcium, and Magnesium are cations, while Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Sulfur, and Boron are anions.  If we have a P.H. of between 6 and 6.4 that means that we have a good balance of the cations and anions and we should have healthy plants.  If the P.H. is low we are low in one or more of the cations. 

 

 Andy is still in the beginning stage of learning all about these things and he in no way thinks that he is an expert.  But he loves to read and research about better organic growing methods.

 

New Beginnings

It's that time of year even for the Amish. The school bell will be ringing and the schoolhouse will be open.  Anna will attend this year for the first time.  She is so excited.  Lizzie on the other hand, hasn't really figured out how she feels about it.

 

Cedar Hill School is a one room schoolhouse in the community with a total of 13 children...first through eighth grade.  Two other children will join Anna in first grade.  She will learn to speak English and will learn reading, writing, arithmetic, and spelling.

This is the view from the teachers desk.  The teacher is the Bishop's daughter.  One day I hope to meet her.

This is the view the student will see everyday while they are doing their lessons.

Recipe Of The Week: Peppers and Onions With Cod

Onions and Peppers With Cod

2 Tablespoons of olive oil
1 green pepper cut into strips
1 onion sliced thin
1 clove of minced garlics
1 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of oregano
1/8 teaspoon of pepper
1 1/2 pounds of cod fillet cut into 6 pieces

Heat oil in large skillet then sauté the pepper, onion, and garlic for four minutes.  Add the seasonings and push the vegetables asides in the skillet and add the cod.  Cover and cook until the fish is opaque and fully cooked.  Spoon the pepper mixture over the fish and serve.