Making Memories

"You know, you can buy apple cider at Walmart for about $2 a gallon," my dad said as he surveyed the piles and piles of apples waiting to be pressed.

"Yep," I responded, "But what fun would that be?"

At the same time my 13 year old was sulking in a corner because I told him he couldn't lock himself up in my bedroom to watch football. "You’re here on this extra weekend (he spends half his time with his dad and it was a scheduled dad weekend) because we are having a cider pressing party and the whole family is here. We’re doing this together. It’s going to be fun." After a minor meltdown and a little teenage drama he sat next to his grandma, grabbed a knife, and proceeded to take his anger out on the pile of apples. He checked the score periodically on his tablet and it wasn’t long before he got over his frustration and started to have fun.

We've talked about doing this for years. With a small orchard and dozens of trees in the woods we have more than enough apples to make sauce, pies, butter, and cider for a small army! Last year Pops (Mark’s dad, Ed) surprised by making us an apple press but it was a bad year for apples last year so we didn’t get a chance to use it. This year we had a bumper crop. By the time of the pressing party I already had a good supply of dehydrated and frozen apples in storage and a few dozen jars of apple sauce and butter in the cellar. The apples were piling up and I didn’t want them to go to waste. We extended an invite to friends and family and I made a big batch of pulled beef for sandwiches to feed the crew.

Mark took the Kubota out with his crew of pickers and they filled the bucket with apples from the woods - twice! Have you seen how big a tractor bucket is? We guess each bucket was 200+ lbs of apples.

This is in addition to the baskets and boxes I had filled in the previous week. Another team sat at "The Jeni Table" (we call it this because my  sister Jeni made it for me and it’s awesome) and cut apples. Another team worked in the summer kitchen running the cut apples through food processors. After grinding it up, Ed and "the boys" operated the press and from there we quick boiled the juice and bottled it up. We got the system running really smoothly just about the time we were finishing up the last batch😆

It was a little chaotic and a big mess. There was a little blood and more laughing than cursing. All in all, I t was a perfect family gathering and, I hope, the beginning of a new tradition. 20 years from now my boy won’t remember a football game he watched on TV but I’d bet a bucket of apples he’ll remember the days we spend pressing cider at the farm.

Why Buy Your Meat Directly from a Farm?

Do you buy grass fed meat? I keep hearing about Butcher Box and I love the idea that people can get better quality meats at a better price. We get questions all the time about why we charge "so much" for our beef. In truth you can buy beef shares for $2.50 lb for conventional or mixed feed (combination of grass & grain). I was starting to wonder if our prices were too high so I looked into it.  I chose Butcher Box because it was the most comparable quality I could find.  Their basic package is $129 for 8-11 lbs of meat meaning your cost ranges from $16.13 - $11.70 lb. This is a great deal compared to grocery store or co-op prices for similar quality. I can see why my health conscious and eco-minded friends are excited about it. 

But how does it compare it to buying directly from a farm like ours? 

We sell our beef shares at $4.50 lb hanging weight (this is the weight after skull, hide, guts, and hooves have been removed) plus processing. Processing fees will vary depending on which cuts you choose.  It includes $100 per whole animal for onsite slaughter and butcher cutting fees. A butcher we frequently use charges $0.58 lb. Processed items such as ground beef, sausage, smoking, etc costs a little more at $0.75 lb. Combined, your cost will vary but we have seen an average of $6 - $6.50 lb. This includes filet mignon, t-bones, rib eye steaks or rib roasts, cuts that sell for over $20 lb for grass fed and organic!

Farms like ours are where the co-ops, grocery stores, and delivery services buy their meat, sort of. We also use no hormones, no chemicals, and no antibiotics. Ours is also grass-fed and grass-finished. Our animals are also humanely raised, but here is where we find the important difference. Most humanely raised animals end their lives by being loaded onto trailers and being hauled to a processing facility. Even when methods are implemented to make the process as stress-free as possible for the animal - it is what it is. There will always be some level of stress to the animal when it is done this way and, if the meat is to be sold as packages and cuts, it is the only legal option. This affects the quality and flavor of the meat as well as the subtle energy. This is why you won’t see packages of steaks or ground beef from our farm at your local co-op. This part is so very important to us. Our animals are humanely harvested - on site at our farm. They are never loaded onto a trailer or taken away from their home while they are alive. They are born here and they die here and we do everything we can to make that happen swiftly and painlessly - no stress hormones, no fear. 

I once had a teacher challenge any advocate of "humanely raised" meat to watch the slaughter and still argue that it is humane. I can honestly say that I have and I can. 

AIP Keto Toasted Coconut Turmeric Fat Bombs

The more I learn about Keto and AIP diets the more I understand that I personally need to combine them to get the best results. With multiple food allergies and Hashimoto's Thyroiditis, the keto recipes that are within my realm of safe foods are pretty limited, so I've been experimenting with recipes that fit into both AIP and Keto and I've been having good success. My current obsession is anything called a Fat Bomb! If you had told me even a year ago that I would be making delicious food loaded with healthy fats and calling it health food I would never have believed you. But here I am today making all types of fat bombs: chocolate, turmeric, sweet, savory... yummy!

One of my daily staples in this way of eating is Laird Superfood Creamers. I use them in my morning coffee, to flavor shakes, and now in my fat bomb recipes. Get your Laird Superfood Creamers and all of the other ingredients to make this recipe at Thrive Market (and get 25% off your first order and free shipping for orders over $49).

Ingredients:
1 cup Thrive Market Organic Coconut Chips
1/2 cup  Nutiva Coconut Manna
1/4 cup Nutiva Virgin Coconut Oil
2 tbsp Laird Turmeric Superfood Creamer
1/4 tsp Ground Cinnamon
1/8 tsp Ground Black Pepper
a pinch of himalayan pink sea salt (or any sea salt)

Preheat oven to 325 and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Spread the coconut chips and bake 5 minutes. Stir and bake another 3-5 minutes until evenly toasted.

Add the remaining ingredients and mix well. *if the coconut butter and oil are firm you can soften them up and make them easier to work with by gently heating - in a saucepan, a bowl of water, or microwave on low setting for 10 seconds at a time

Line a mini muffin pan with paper muffin cups and divide equally between 8 cups - you can also use an ice cube tray but it can sometimes be difficult to get them out of the tray.

Chill in the fridge or freezer until solid. Store them in the fridge or freezer - they will melt at room temp.

AIP Keto Pumpkin Bars

Recently, my doc suggested I go gluten free. Add this to my list of food allergies and the list of foods I can eat is starting to look pretty sparse. Luckily the Autoimmune Protocol eliminates all of the the things I am trying to avoid so I just need to search AIP recipes for ideas. If you know me at all you know I rarely follow a recipe. What fun would that be? I tried this one last night. It's a modified version of a few others I found on-line. The others had ingredients I didn't have on-hand so I improvised. I put them in the fridge just before bed so they could chill overnight and had one for breakfast. I'll be honest, I didn't have high hopes. They smelled pretty good when they were in the oven but they really didn't look good at all and the texture of the batter as I was spooning it into the pan was not appealing. The final taste and texture was a pleasant surprise! They are super easy and pretty darn delicious. Maybe I'll have another...

AIP Keto Pumpkin Bars

INGREDIENTS (makes 8 bars)

•  1/2 cup coconut oil

•  1/2 cup Sunflower Butter

•  1/4 cup Coconut Flour

•  1 1/2 cups pumpkin puree

•  2 tsp cinnamon

•  1 tbsp Monkfruit Sweetener, Classic (or other keto sweetener)

DIRECTIONS

1On the stove, melt coconut oil and sunflower butter over low - medium heat.

2In food processor, add squash, spices, coconut flour, salt and monk fruit. Pour melted coconut oil and sunflower butter on top and blend for 30 seconds being sure all the big pieces of squash are blended.

3Spoon into a small glass or ceramic baking dish (I used a 6x8 Pyrex).  and use a spatula to smooth it out. Bake for 25 min at 350 degrees. Remove from oven, let cool, then cover and put in fridge until completely chilled.

NUTRITION INFORMATION (according to www.livestrong.com/myplate)

261 CALORIES PER SERVING

Serving Size: 1 bars

 22g Fat

 10g Carbs

 5g Protein

% DV*
Total Fat  22g	33%
Saturated Fat  13g
Cholesterol  0mg	0%
Sodium  174mg	7%
Carbohydrates  10g	5%
Dietary Fiber  5g
Sugars  3g
Protein  5g	3%

Read more: https://www.livestrong.com/recipes/yoga-valley-aip-pumpkin-bars/#ixzz5906GgZC8

5 No-Nighshade / AIP Game-Changers

It's been a while since I've written anything related to no-nightshade but with the Autoimmune Protocol Diet becoming more prevalent I've noticed that suddenly we have a lot more resources to work with.  Ingredients labels are more specific when listing individual spices, Pinterest is full of no nightshade recipes (Autoimmune protocol is like Paleo with the additional elimination of nightshade, nuts, and eggs). Grocery stores are carrying a wider variety of allergy friendly foods and on-line markets are catering to specialty diets.  This is a list of the things that have rocked my world in the last few months by making cooking & eating nightshade-free safe, easy, and inexpensive.

1. Instant Pot:  I had been hearing the buzz about Instant Pots for a while but I figured it was just another kitchen gadget that will, after a few months, end up collecting dust in the pantry. I got an Instant Pot for Christmas and already this thing is my go-to for just about everything.  It now lives on the counter-top where the crock pot used to live. The crock pot is now collecting dust in the basement.  I'm just starting to explore the possibilities but already I've made bone broth multiple times; roasted beef, pork, and a whole chicken, and cooked dried beans both soaked and unsoaked. From what I've read this is just scratching the surface of what this thing can do.  It's a rice cooker, bread baker, & yogurt maker. It can cook fast or slow, steam, saute, and pressure cook. About the only thing it doesn't do is grill. I can live with that.
2. Thrive Market: There are SO MANY online grocery options to choose from. Thrive Market is the one I stuck with. I use it for my specialty items - the things that are hard to find and usually cost more at the co-op or grocery store or the staples that I'm willing to pay a higher price for to have the best quality. You can't get anything fresh or needing refrigeration. I buy my cooking oils, bath products, home cleaners, Epic paleo snack bars, and Laird Superfood Creamers, and occasionally try or buy other things when they are on sale. The prices are legitimately lower than grocery store prices and just about every day there is a sale or freebie. I wait for a sale or freebie on something I want and stock up for additional savings. Your first order is 25% off if you click here and shipping is free for orders over $49. After the 30 day free trial, there is an annual fee of $59, which I more than made up for on my first order. In full disclosure: I will receive a $25 credit if you activate the annual membership but I would recommend it even if I didn't. You can earn credit too, if you love it and tell your friends about it and they sign up using your link! 
3. Laird Superfood Creamers:  Most days I am out the door by 6 a.m. I fill up my coffee cup with my coffee and coconut milk creamer and hit the road. By the time I get to town an hour later I'm definitely ready for another cup but no-one serves Bullet Proof coffee in my town. The closest you'll get is coconut milk (the super processed milk replacement) which really just waters down the coffee. A few months ago Thrive Market had a great sale on Laird Superfood Creamers so, after reading the ingredients and a little bit about the product, I gave it a try. I ordered the regular, cacao, and turmeric. YUM! It is delicious, healthy, and ethically sourced. It's in a powder form and doesn't need refrigeration so I keep a bag in my purse. I use the cacao or turmeric flavor mixed with coconut milk for a night-time treat and the regular for my coffee. Next time I order I'm going to try the instant coffee with creamer. It's less expensive than buying my dark roast at the coffee shop. I'm always looking for ways to save a few bucks.  
4. Epic Bison Bacon Cranberry Bars:  If you know me you know I always carry a little lunchbox with me, full of snacks.  On work days I'm out of the house for 12 - 16 hours. If I'm not prepared I end up spending too much $ on too little nutrition at the most convenient restaurant, market, or gas station.  Most paleo snack bars and jerky contain either nuts or spices that I can't have. Epic Bison Bacon Cranberry Bars have no nightshade spices and are pretty darn tasty. I've also noticed that my hair which, because of a thyroid disorder is normally dry, brittle, and thin, always looks and feels shinier and healthier when I am eating these bars on a regular basis. Bonus!
5. I'm going to start this one with a disclaimer: I am not a fan of MLMs (Multi-Level Marketing). I avoided Isagenix for years despite seeing the results my friends got strictly because it is a MLM.  After frustration at steady weight gain and declining health I finally reached out to a friend, who I trusted would not be pushy or try to sell me anything I didn't want or need and gave it a try.  I had been using meal replacement shakes as a convenience meal for years anyway so why not try a different brand?  The problems with meal replacement shakes for me have always been the same, regardless of the brand:
• They don't taste very good so you end up adding fruit, sunflower butter, and other ingredients to make them taste better which end up adding to the calorie count.
• They fill you up for about an hour. Then you are hungry again and end up eating so you are in essence, adding to your daily calories rather than reducing them.
• They are expensive.

Simply put, I found the Isagenix shakes to be tasty, satisfying, and (if you are on auto-ship) a little less expensive than the other brands I was using. I can have one as a meal and it will sustain me to the next meal, even with my activity level. If you are strict about sugar you should know that there is sugar in them. Maybe that's why they taste better than the others.  There are a few flavors that are safe but you do need to read the ingredients. Berry flavors are off-limits for sure. My favorite is the dairy free chai. Cookies and cream was pretty good too but it's not always available. The chocolate is a little too chocolatey for me but I mixed it with both chai and cookies and cream and that worked pretty well.  As I said, I'm not a fan of the whole MLM thing but I like the product. If you want to give it a try I'll help you sign up or you probably already have a friend who is doing it. Reach out to them. I'm feeling good again. My energy levels are stable, the mental fog has lifted, and I'm steadily dropping pounds without starving myself.

Flying

I remember the first time we let her off her leash. She was 7 months old and had come from a shelter in the city. They had no background information on her so we had no idea how she would behave off-leash but there was only one way to find out. We spent lots of time with her in the house off-leash and outdoors on-leash to see how she behaved. Her attention stayed on us as if asking us what we wanted her to do. She definitely wasn't a wanderer, explorer, or independent spirit and she wasn't skittish or jumpy. She stuck to us like glue so we decided it was safe to try it out.

We brought her out to the middle of the pasture, far from the road and other distractions.  It took her a few seconds to realize she didn't have a leash on and that it was actually OK to run. After a little bit of encouragement she started to run in big looping circles, sort of slow at first, then testing her speed. "I bet she's never run like this before," Mark said, and he was probably right. Even if she had been in a home prior to the shelter what are the chances she had ever had the opportunity to run all-out, completely free? "It must feel like flying to her, to run like that," he said and you could see in her face that he was right.

What Do Farmers Do When They're Sick? The Same Things They Always Do, Just Slower.

This morning I was curled up on the couch with my computer, a can of Coca Cola, and a sleeve of saltine crackers (time-tested family remedies for a sick stomach). Mark had gone out to do a few chores - run hay to the ladies and to fill water tanks. Right around the time I was starting to wonder what was taking him so long I heard him come through the front door. "Babe, can you put on your warm clothes and come out?"

Oh sh-t.

He witnessed my stomach convulsions this morning and would not be asking if it wasn't serious.

"What happened?" I asked as I got up and headed for my Carharts.

"We've got an emergency."

Crap.

An emergency here can mean any number of things. It might mean the hydrant is frozen or that the tractor won't start but he wouldn't be asking for my help today if it was something like that. I went outside to see the Kubota at the bottom of an icy slope, a bale of hay laying down a section of barbed wire fence, a broken wooden fence post, and a crowd of hungry cows trying to get to it.  My first thought was thank goodness he didn't roll the tractor. My second thought was how long before the cows realize that fence is down and they are scattered all over the property?  What now?  Being far from mechanically inclined, my job in situations like these is usually to run and get what he needs and to generally be an extra set of eyes or hands.

For the next 2 hours we worked on getting the Mahindra started (of course today of all days it doesn't want to run) so we could pull the bale off the fence and move the Kubota. He got the Mahindra limping along and dragged the bale with a strap into the pasture where it stalled again. We walked back and forth over lumpy, frozen ground that you can't possibly imagine unless you've been in a frozen pasture before, and with every step I'm whispering under my breath, "Please don't hurt your knee." The last thing we need right now is Mark to be injured and his knee has been giving him a little trouble lately. The cows were in the way the entire time. Did you know I'm afraid of the cows? I can hang out with some of them, feed them treats across the fence, and snuggle up to the sweet ones but I panic at the thought of walking within 10 feet of the bull or the general population crowded around a bale, not to mention trying to jump starting a tractor surrounded by cows frantically trying to get to hay, pushing each other out of the way, and slipping and sliding on the frozen earth as much as we were.

We got it fixed, hauling tools out and fixing it in the middle of the cow yard. We got the bale moved and both tractors out. The cows are fed and the fence is still mostly intact, stretched but intact. That repair will have to wait for spring. The other day I posted on Facebook the statement, "What do farmers do when they are sick? The same things they do every other day, just slower." I wasn't trying to get sympathy or complain, I was just making a comment on reality. This is the reality of being a farmer. Some days you are getting a wet kiss from a calf and others you are trying not to puke as you work because the work has to be done. It's not even that there are good days and bad days. There a days. They are all days. Any day we are here is a good day.