Tuesday, May 23, 2017

Mmmmm. Quiche


My chickens lay these absolutely gorgeous eggs with dark orange yolks and now they're laying up to two dozen (sometimes more!) a day.  So, you can probably guess that I'm always looking for recipes that use eggs.  This is one of my favorites in the summer.

Mix and Match Quiche



I had a handful of asparagus from my garden - not enough for a meal for four.  I had lots and lots of eggs.  I had bacon in the freezer from our pigs butchered last fall.  Finally, I had pie crusts made with lard I had rendered from our pigs in the freezer (I make four pie crusts at a time, roll them in balls, and freeze them).  So quiche was inevitably what was for dinner!  





I love this recipe.  I can't tell you from where it came, but it's completely versatile.  BTW, I think a pound of bacon is waaaay too much meat - and I always add some kind of vegetable.  Other than the egg milk, flour, and mustard, everything else can be switched out.  I've used ham, chicken, and other meats I have on hand in place of the bacon.  I prefer a sharp cheddar to the Swiss cheese.  I've used feta - yum!  Sometimes I'll a different spice or herb other than nutmeg.  Thyme goes well with ham and broccoli.  And any number of veggies can be mixed in - broccoli, spinach, tomatoes, chard, the sky is the limit!      

I'd be interested to hear what you mix and match in your quiche... enjoy!






Monday, May 15, 2017

The Big Bug Hunt 2017



Gardeners Unite!
Help create a warning system to alert you when pests are heading your way.




After weeks of care, having your plants attacked by pests can be disheartening.

The Big Bug Hunt is an international research project using reports from real gardeners like you to track how bugs and pests spread.

We’re creating a prediction system that will send alerts when pests are heading your way, so you can take preventative action.








Tuesday, May 9, 2017

Turkey and Horses


It's busy season here now.  I'm getting the high tunnel ready for planting and lawn mowing has come on with a vengeance!  

This little cutie came home.  She's growing fast!  Look at her little wing feathers!




The hubby finished the horse fence across the road.  What a job!  He worked on it for six days straight in the pouring rain.  It is veeery well appreciated!  It's so nice to get the horses out on fresh grass and not mess with hay anymore.  




I believe the horses think they died and went to horsey heaven.





Tuesday, May 2, 2017

Turkeys and Bees!


This week I picked up more bee packages.  





I drove home with them Saturday.  The weather was kind of rainy when I got home, so we move the bees into our dining room.  We installed the bees into their new homes on Sunday.





I have a zillion pictures of us installing bees and didn't want to fuss with the phone camera, so this is one from previous years.  The one thing we did different is that we took out three frames, then dumped in the bees, then slowly put the frames back into the hive.  That way the bees are down in the hive and not flying all over the place.  

The weather has turned cool, so I'm anxiously watching the hives and waiting to get in and make sure the queen was released from her queen cage!


Do you remember few weeks ago I told you about the turkey eggs that we gave to the high school agriculture program for hatching?  

I got a call yesterday that a peep was coming out of one of the eggs!




That's my peep breaking out of it's egg on the right.  The little bird on the left is from a turkey egg donated by another person.  We were worried that our little poult would get stuck in the egg.  She was given a little help at the end of the school day and this morning, this is what was waiting!





Is that not a face to fall in love with?  She'll come home on Friday and be put under a heat lamp until she grows big enough to join the flock.  

Why do I say "she"?  Because right now I have three jakes and one hen.  So I really, really hope it's a she!