Summer at last!

I haven't written in a while, I apologize! We have finally had some sunshine here in Farm-town. A lot has happened since the last time I wrote. The biggest news is that I have 3 new sheep! Their names are Ramona, Amelia, and Beatrix. They are Corriedales, a mom and 2 babies. The two lambs have black spots on their noses, feet, knees, ears and the tops of their heads! So sweet! I got them so that they would eat grass, poop, and grow nice clean wool!

Here is a picture of them. Ramona, the mother is the big one with the white nose looking right at us. Bea is hiding in the background, and Amelia, as always, is in the front.

I still have a lot to learn about raising sheep. I need to trim Ramonas hoofs soon, but first I need to learn how to flip her over on her rear end. Bruce at Guinea Ridge Farm where I bought them made it look so easy! I still haven't done it successfully. Those 150 lb. creatures can push me around just as easily as I can push them around! They are very gentle animals, and I haven't felt nervous around them at all. They are very friendly and Baaaaa every time they see us. They seem very happy in their new home.

As for the gardens, ours are full of weeds. It's okay, because they are being held at bay more and more with every day of sunshine that we have. It is so nice to finally get out into the gardens. Yesterday we spend the afternoon weeding potatoes and picking potato beetles. Potato beetles are very easy to take care of. We just put some alcohol in an old glass jar, and knock the beetles and plump larvae off the leaves into the alcohol.

Here are some All Blue Potato flowers, I think that they are really beautiful!

The new veggies that we have available are cabbage!! Carrots, bunching onions, peas (FIRST COME FIRST SERVE, SO ORDER YOURS SOON!!), lots and lots of basil and parsley. As always, we have salad greens. The summer squash was looking sad in that mud puddle, but is drying out, and hopefully we will have some ready to harvest soon. Last year we were harvesting squash July 13th. This year we're a little late! Cukes are not too far behind. Tomatoes are starting to blush, but are not quite there yet.

Here is a recipe that I love! This will turn you on to cabbage if you think that you're not a fan. Use purple cabbage, and it makes a beautiful side dish, good for any occasion!

Baked Cabbage with Garlic
The Mediterranean Vegan Kitchen
Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:
1 Small Cabbage – outer leaves removed, cored, and quartered
1 ½ Tbl. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 Cloves Garlic
¼ Cup vegetable broth
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 425F. Lightly oil a deep-sided baking dish.

Fill a medium stockpot or saucepan large enough to hold a 9 inch steaming basket with 1 inch of water. Place the steaming basket in the pot and add the cabbage. Bring to a boil over high heat. Cover tightly, reduce the heat to medium, and steam until softened but not limp, 7 to 10 minutes. Carefully transfer the cabbage to prepared dish; set aside.

In a small saucepan, heat the oil over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Spoon the oil mixture evenly over the cabbage quarters. Add the broth to the dish and season the cabbage with salt and pepper. Cover the dish tightly with a lid or foil. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until the cabbage is tender through the center when pierced with the tip of a sharp knife. Serve hot, with the cooking liquid spooned over each portion. Enjoy!!

Per serving:
101 Calories
5g Protein
6g Fat
1g Saturated Fat
0mg Cholesterol
10g Carbohydrates
5g Dietary Fiber
128mg Sodium

Thanks for reading, and eat well!!