Monday, September 2, 2013

time flies!



wow! has it been a week since we posted? yep, i think so. it's been a pretty busy week, filled with some mundane daily things, and also some not so mundane things.  i won't bore you with all of the details but we had a town day this week - that always entails a full day in town. then after a town day, you have to re-stock and re-invoice your pantries and preps, process any produce (i like to put mushrooms in paper bags, other produce like romaine lettuce, which i cannot get to grow for the life of me, i like to put in containers and such). so there's 2 busy days right there and that's not counting normal chores or jobs.

this week was also blueberry-picking week at our friend D's blueberry farm. it was an awful week with too much dew in the morning for them to get out at the crack of dawn, or it would rain in the middle of the morning or it would rain in the afternoon. you can't pick the berries if they are wet. jambaloney went out 3 half days to help while i stayed home and took care of chores, watering the gardens, drying seeds, etc. we were both planning on going yesterday and today - but yesterday it rained all day! today is the last day that the cooling trucks will pick up the berries so we both went this morning to help our friend. his whole family gets involved for the week. let me just tell you - blueberry picking is backbreaking, shoulder breaking and wrist breaking! it's also hard on the hips and knees! but our friends have been doing this for years so are kind of used to it - i almost died! we fill bins to 20lbs and i did 4 of them between 9:30 and noon. jambaloney did 10 but that's only because we started late. he usually can get 12-13 a morning. he did 32 bins overall in his 4 mornings out! our friends were happy that we helped and it was nice to be out there with them all. our next dance is on the 14th and none of us can wait for it since our last dance was cancelled!

tomorrow we are having our friend E's son and girlfriend come over to ------- wait for it -------- GET POOP! 2 whole truckbeds of horse poop for our garden! H and J are really great young people and they know that our garden could really use the poop! H and jambaloney will go with the 2 trucks to J's Dad's farm and load up the trucks. i will make steak and chicken fajitas with all the fixins for supper, and we'll hang out and chat - it will be nice.

wednesday we'll spend the day making cabbage rolls for my friend G - he specifically requested them the last time they visited. we'll go to our friend G and C's house with the cabbage rolls and have a nice evening together. i just hope they like the cabbage rolls - i don't make mine like most, so fingers crossed on that.

thursday we plan to move the water heater from our one and only tiny closet in the house to the basement - expect a post from jambaloney about that once he finishes it.

and then friday or saturday we have to find the time to squeeze in at least a few hours to go and help G finish the siding on his house.

so last week was mundane and not so-mundane and it looks like this week will be the same.

wanna see something cool?


teehee! that's my first cayenne pepper - oh the peppers are just loving that greenhouse! i have never grown a cayenne pepper in my life but all of my cayenne plants are filled with peppers colouring. we saved the seeds from this little guy - must have gotten about 60 seeds! jambaloney loves hot and spicy things - me not so much! but i intend to dehydrate some of these to make cayenne powder, chili flakes and pickle some. jambaloney took a tiny bite out of this guy, seemed ok and then started coughing and choking! i tried an even tinier piece and at first it didn't seem so bad but then - blammo - near blew my head off! these are definitely hot peppers!

anyway, i've been doing a lot of research on garlic because my garlic has been doing some really delightful things! i'll get a post up about it in a day or so! hope you all have a good week!

26 comments:

  1. Excellent pepper...take about four, when they arrive, dry 'em, and tuck them into a stew or soup....you'll like the flavor. Sweet. Down here we'd use six or seven depending on their size.

    Waiting on the water heater post.

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    1. dear sweet one - thanks for the tip! i can't wait until these guys are coming in gangbusters to process - woohoo! ya, we're a little more chicken with our hot spices than you are down to the south - bahahahah! the water heater post is a'coming. he has already drawn up all of his plans, gathered all the tools that he will need, and pipes and hose and clamps and whatnot, so thursday morning after breakfast, we just get atter! i think with all of the pre-planning and whatnot it should go pretty good. *fingers crossed*

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  2. Dried pickled peppers are wonderful in stews. I do one with chicken and tomatillas and pickled jalapeno (with some garlic and lime juice) over rice that's wonderful.

    Enjoy the blueberries!

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    1. Brigid - do you mean you pickle the peppers and then dry them? i have never heard of that so whip off a recipe please. we got 20lbs of beautiful fresh berries - some to freeze and some to dehydrate. which is good news...we are almost out of last year's blueberries!

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  3. Glad to see an update. You people up there work hard. I don't just mean you and J, but it seems like your whole community does a lot of physical labor.

    Here people put pig poop on the fields. You drive down the road and the sudden stink is overwhelming. I have often wondered how they live on the edge of those fields. But they get good crops of corn out of this hard, flinty clay so I know it works.

    I keep lots of canned jalapenos, but we can't get any fresh here. Have you ever handled peppers and then absent mindly reached up and rubbed your eye?

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    1. Harry - we have landed into a community of really hard workers and very reliable people! it's a godsend! this community is very tight-knit and most are related. so when i say that the whole family went out to pick for the past week - i mean all of the brothers and sisters, their kids, the moms, the dads, me and jam - these people treat us like family, too! there are tiny women here who work 10hr days for 2 months off-loading crab and lobster while their husbands are out fishing. the majority of these people are made of stone - strong as can be and they love to laugh! we are very fortunate to have found this place!

      ugh Harry - stop making me jealous! can you mail me some of that pig poop???

      that was my first time handling a cayenne pepper...i picked it, sliced it and picked out all of the seeds for drying. jam said - make sure you wash your hands really good. so i did. or so i thought. 10 minutes later, i rubbed my eye and i never thought the pain would stop - arghghgh! whenever i make kimchi i wear rubber gloves because of the hot pepper spices. now i have learned my lesson to wear rubber gloves when dealing with these hot peppers - bahahahah!

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    2. I rubbed my eye after working with jalapeno peppers to make hot pepper jelly. I was blinded for a day in that eye. My eyelid and all around my eye had blisters. I really looked like I was in a fire. Three weeks later, my eye and skin returned to normal after a horrendous healing process.

      I was searching the internet and came upon an interesting story. A guy did not use gloves because he was tough. Well, eventually he was lying on the floor with his penis in a bowl of milk, about to pass out from the pain.

      Another guy chopped peppers and later went to bed with his wife. He was feeling frisky, but said his wife might not allow him near her because of the pain he caused her tender parts with his peppery hands.

      Be careful.

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    3. OUCH - to all 3 stories. i have learned my lesson and will be much more careful from now on. thanks Linda.

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  4. Wow you do stay busy. Blue Berry's ....in fresh baked muffins.....Just picture Homer Simpson drooling and that's me. Love you guys stay safe

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    1. Rob - the busyness with our community is really just during the summer months - over the winter we have a few activities with our community, but being that this is a fishing/berry/apple community - the summer months are when there is a lot of work! also, the summer months are when people need work on their houses and whatnot and we all chip in to get the jobs done. it's a really nice group of people and everyone helps everyone. i wish i could send you some blueberry muffins cuz you know that i would! love back to you guys. stay vigilant buddy!

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  5. My relationship with my wife is much like yours and Jambaloney's relationship. I like spicy foods and my wife not so much. So mostly when we cook, I make it to her liking and occasionally spice my portion up a bit. If it is canning, I sometimes make a couple jars or whatever spiced up just for me. Other than that, I mostly get my spice fix when we go out to eat at a restaurant.

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    1. Ed - that's kind of what i do - i make a dish with a certain amount of spice and then when serving, jam adds a bunch more spice. it's weird that i am not too crazy about hot stuff but i can eat a mouthful of kimchi first thing in the morning and not even blink - i loves me kimchi! smart idea about canning up a few jars of stuff just for yourself! do you like spicy mexican food?

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    2. I do like spicy mexican food but in the spice realm, asian spices are by far my favorite. I love the sweet heat that dissipates rapidly without after taste. This is about the opposite of American spicy which seems to be to douse everything in Tabasco sauce. Yuck!

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    3. Ed - i am like you. i loooove asian spices like lime/chili/hot/sour/sweet/salty combinations. ugh. i hate tabasco sauce - blick! i also love soya, rice wine vinegar and sesame oil to use as a dip for potstickers or korean pancake, etc. hey aren't you supposed to be sending me your wife's lumpia recipe???????

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  7. could Def. go for some warm blueberry muffins dripping with butter.. We love blueberry muffins down here...heck now I have to go make some this week. ...THANKS KYMBER!!!! lol

    PS: My scars are healed and YEP! I DO look 10 years younger..

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    1. Gurlie - i sure do wish i could send you either the blueberries, or the muffins. soory, buddy, sounds like yer makin' muffins this week - bahahahah! hey - don't you guys get good blueberries down there too? our friend D's are just beautiful - he doesn't use anything on them and they are sooo delicious! if you look 10 yrs younger - I HATE YOU - bahahahah! congrats on the scars healing so quickly! xoxo

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  8. My son would love you forever if you fed him blueberries. They won't grow around here for love nor money but he will eat them faster than a good northern farm could grow em.

    Are you sure that's a pepper? Looks like a deformed little parsnip root to me :)

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    1. PioneerP - if i could, i would mail your son a ton of them! we got 20lbs again this year, we have blue hands from all of the sorting of them today...but we are pretty excited because we just finished our 20lbs from last year. and i would have no trouble feeding your son a ton of them because our friend uses no chemicals or anything on these berries - 100% organic and chemical-free. they are deelish!

      listen "mr.-i-got-so-many-pumkins-i-don't-know-what-to-do-with-them" and "my-garden-is-so-sexy" guy, some of us are lowly and humble and just learning - so there! there's no one on this island who has ever grown a cayenne pepper! and it IS a cayenne pepper you! SO THERE!

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  9. Hey Sweet Kymber,

    Yum blueberries!!! Like JUGM indicated blue berry muffins so delicious, or maybe even some blueberry pancakes? Have you dehydrated blueberries before?

    There is never a dull moment or rest time when living on a homestead. I'm working on my pantry/shelving area and went looking for plastic bins for storage.

    I so wish Bulldog Man would eat cabbage rolls, there just so good tasting and good for you. Anything cabbage, he turns his nose up :P except for cole slaw. I don't know what I'm going to do with him, bahahahaha.......
    Take a picture of your cabbage rolls for me, so I dream of at least having one. Please!!!!!

    Now those are some hot peppers those cayenne ones right??
    You don't like hot peppers? How about a little mild pepper?

    Sweet Kymber, I so love this picture of the sun. Is it a little chilly there in the early mornings? Our temperatures are in the low 60's in the early morning hours.

    Enjoy your berries and don't work to hard.
    Sending love and hugs your way.
    Your Friend,
    Sandy

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    1. sweet Sandy - i make blueberry pancakes but i actually prefer to make regular pancakes and then throw a handful of frozen blueberries on top - crazy eh? but the frozen blueberries just add a little crunch or something and they are really, really sweet when they have only just started defrosting. today as we sorted our blueberries, we took the biggest, fattest ones and set them aside. we froze all the rest but those big ones are going in the dehydrator later this afternoon. we love dehydrated blueberries but have never done them before - woohoo!

      i saw that you got some plastic storage bins - congrats! jam found some for $1 with lids and bought 20 of them - we use them for all kinds of stuff, too!

      oh shoot Sandy - i didn't get a pic of the cabbage rolls - so sorry! we spent the whole morning making them and then popped them in the oven and then got ready to go to our friends' house - it was nice to see everyone.

      yep - cayenne peppers are hot but these little babies are blow-your-head-off hot - bahahahah! they are awesome! i like cayenne powder and crushed chilies but these peppers are waaaaay tooo hot for me - jam will love these pickled! i don't mind mild hot peppers and i love all sweet peppers!

      sweet Sandy - jam has a post coming and the pic he took of the sky is for you...he made sure to show me and said "this is for Sandy, do you think that she'll like it"...he's also got a fishing post coming up for you as well!

      these 20lbs of blueberries will keep us in delicious anti-oxidants until berry season next year. it sure is great having a friend with a blueberry farm! sending love and hugs back to you and all of yours! xoxoxo

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  10. Cayenne~I use them in my crock pot pinto beans. I use them crushed in salsa, enchilada sauce, and hot sauce...and the crushed ones we put on pizza.

    I read your table with the cayenne as Forever hot and spicy. Yep. that is the both of you:)

    And doggone it poop~the secret of the farm. We are a poop zone farm as we let it accumulate in piles and rotate where and when we use. Enjoy your horse poo and have fun tossing it too and fro-which is what we do. Never pass up a turd toss...excuse my language but we have turd tosses with horse poo, discus tosses with cowpies, and marble contest with the goat and sheep drops.
    ;)

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    1. Spicey NM friend - i will do a few special salsas for jam and put the cayenne peppers in...i am just dang excited to be able to make my own cayenne powder - something i have never done before!

      bahahahahaha about the table...an idea that i stole from you and am so thankful for - we love that table! if anyone is forever hot and spicey, my gurl - it's YOU!

      ya, poop day got cancelled because it rained all day. the kids won't be going back to the farm until monday so we will make arrangements with them to go sometime next week - we really NEEEEED that poop!

      and it really is the secret of a great garden! we have the seaweed, sawdust, compost and comfrey leaves to amend our soil - but we are really needing the poop! once we get the poop, we are going to cover it with tarps to cook the seeds out. then we will add seaweed and the rest of the stuff and mix it all together. then we will amend all of our beds and tires with it.

      oh another great thing? a friend of ours told us that the county makes mulch out of crab and lobster shells and tree bark - isn't that wicked??!?!!? woohoo - we'll be able to mulch all of our beds with it and keep the weeds down - that's always a win!!!

      oh ya - i can see all of you having turd tosses and laughing your fool heads off - bahahahah! much love to you and the DN crew!

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  11. Got a new/old chinese recipe cookbook and I'm learning some great asian cooking. I did some stirfry rice using the new technique and used jambolney's trick of cooking in seseme oil. It turned out awesome!
    I tried out some kimchee at a korean resturaunt when I was in the Army down in Georgia. Loved the flavor and no problem with the heat while eating it but the next day after PT (physical training) I sweated out those peppers. The heat and redness looked like I got a case of the hives on my skin and only where I had sweat. I'm a little afraid of Asian peppers now!

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    1. jamie - that is awesome that you got the new/old cookbook - i bet there's some great recipes in there! you'll have to post some of the recipes for us! i find that because we are so used to eating kimchi that we don't get the sweats anymore. but when i make my ginger/garlic dressing - we start sweating after 2 bites! the sweating and hives that you had is actually a good thing - it was getting some toxins out of your body. that's why i like to eat fermented food daily - it's really good for getting out toxins!

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    2. kymber I did not know that on the hives. Not sure if I'm ready to take the plunge again as I'm alergic to pain, it hurts me ; )
      The cookbook had the coolest way to do Chinese BBQ in your oven by moving the rack to the top slot of the oven and hanging the meat on S hooks that you can make out of metal hangers or wire. Just set a pan with a little liquid below to catch the dripping and then use it to make a sauce.

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