Planting Preparation

James hooked up his tiller and went to work.   The existing garden space had been taken over by weeds and grass, so he tilled up the old space... and more than doubled it.  We might be drowning in produce next summer if we actually plant all this!

He also knocked down a tree.  I prefer the saw method, but I'm not a man.

Finally, the future strawberry bed was tilled up.

If I can get my act together, we'll spread some clover seed.  I understand full well that I am very late in the season to be doing this, but when I'm pregnant, I am forced to recognize my limits.

Until next time, remember, this is not paradise.  It's Purgatory Ranch.

Fall Preserving

James requested apple cider, and since I just happened to have boxes of apples around, I cooked down some apples for cider.

I still have two boxes of apples left.  I think there will be more apple chunks, cider, and leather in our future.

Here's the pulp after straining.

While I was photographing, it just so happens the cider was in the canner.  Just trust me, its pretty pink color and rich apple/cinnamon/cloves smell will be worth the wait.

We've been decorating cookies too.

And since I started the canning around 6 am, the cat thinks she should come in.  Think again, Andromeda, think again.  No pets in my house, and you're a work animal, not a pet.

Since I was brewing, baking, and otherwise humidifying a cool kitchen, the bones from last night's chicken were combined with some apple butter, garlic, carrots, and onion for broth.  I'm trying to work up my courage to attempt pressure canning.

I can't bear to waste the pulp, so last night I ran it through the food mill before straining to separate the peels and seeds.  This will be dehydrated for apple leather.  James loves it too.

It's a good All Hallow's Eve!

Until next time, remember, this is not paradise.  It's Purgatory Ranch.

Last Apple Harvest for the Year

with a few pears and hedge apples thrown in for good measure.

Tomorrow, we're canning apple rings (hopefully), and we even have help!

Until next time, remember, this is not paradise.  It's Purgatory Ranch.

Garlic Planting

I'm a little late, but had a bit of fiasco with my attempt to order new garlic to plant this fall.  The summary: the company wouldn't be shipping my garlic until early November.

So today, after admiring the asparagus for a time (we were delighted to discover an overgrown asparagus bed when we moved in), I cleaned out the weeds, grass, and dead iris foliage to make space for my garlic planting.

We love garlic, and I love that planting it in the fall leaves me one less thing to do in the spring.

Until next time, remember, this is not paradise.  It's Purgatory Ranch.

Pepper Preserving

Too many peppers were shriveling on the counter, so it was time to cut them up for drying and powdering for chili powder.

I don't stick to just chilis or just hot peppers.  Anything's game, since the blend is always different from year to year.

All the peppers are laid out on the trays, and the dehydrator is sitting outside for today as the smell of drying peppers makes my preggo nausea kick in in an awful way.

Getting Back into the Swing of Things

Since moving, there are many activities that have fallen by the wayside.  In the last few weeks, here are a few that I've been working to revive...

Home cooking, involving more than just pasta or rice.  I have a hard time cooking when I'm nauseous, and I'm more nauseous when it's hot, so guess what happened...  No cooking.  In the last few weeks, though, I've made homemade pizza (success), Spanish rice (success for the adults), and enchiladas (another success).  Fortunately, returning to cooking also means James has a greater supply of leftovers from which to choose his lunch.

Making bread.  This morning, I mixed up a batch of "Artisan Bread in 5 minutes a Day."  Tonight, I bake.

Grinding wheat.  I haven't ground wheat since before we moved.

Pathetically, peeling carrots.  I went to the grocery store today and bought another bag of carrots.  Then I came home and peeled the old bag, relieved that carrots survive in the crisper drawer so long despite my neglect.

Next up, some yard work!

Until next time, remember, this is not paradise.  It's Purgatory Ranch.

Apple Raiding

I think, in the relief from the heat, our plants and trees are confused.  Here is a blooming "Delicious"-type apple tree.  It's September!

Last year, I purchased 200 pounds of "juice grade" apples to make applesauce, apple butter, and juice.  We split this with the family at Secondhand Ranch, and decided that 200 pounds was only half of what we needed for a year's worth of apple canning.

This year, at our new house, we've found two nearby families who have productive apple trees but will not be picking any of them!  So far, Q and I have gone twice to fill a bag with apples and walk home.  I estimate we walk about 1/2 mile total each trip, and with 20+ pounds of apples in the bag, this may not be the most efficient method for picking apples for me, at 24 weeks pregnant.  Still, if I drive, I'm not getting exercise.  If I take a wagon, I'm afraid the kids will want to ride on the way home, and I'm certainly not up to 50+ pounds of apples plus 25-60 pounds of children (depending on how many are with me).  Bags it is!

"Pick!  Pick!"  he said and gifted me with these flowers.

Tasting apples for quality!

So far, the family together harvested 20 pounds, Q and I picked up 27 yesterday, and today Q, the Screamer, and I picked up 24.  There are plenty more apples, and we have many more days to harvest.

I'm piling up the rejects so when I return, I don't have to pick through them again.

Bag full of apples

Today I made one batch of applesauce, 4 quarts.  I need a bigger pot!  The canner can hold 7 quarts, but my pot to cook down the apples can only hold about 16 pounds at a time (3/5 of a batch).  When we work at Secondhand Ranch, Myle has propane burners outside and HUGE stockpots to cook down the apples.  We can really get  moving then!

My second problem is my food mill.  It needs to be clamped onto a counter or tabletop.  At our old house, I had to clamp the food mill onto the counter above my dishwasher, which was inconvenient as it required having the washer open.  Here, my counters again are not deep enough to clamp.  My table? It has an angle edge, so the clamp will not stay.  Someday, I will design my own kitchen for canning, and part of it will have deep-lipped counters for just such tools!

Until next time, remember, this is not paradise.  It's Purgatory Ranch.