I'm loving this autumn color
If everything had gone according to plan, right now I would be in a massive, fruit- and vegetable-filled frenzy trying to finish up the gigantic cookbook project I started working on last November. Unfortunately plans have a way of changing—especially if you live on a farm—whether we want them to or not.
Back in March, I did such a good job whacking my head on a low ceiling beam in one of our chicken coops that—seven months, three doctors, all sorts of treatments and therapies, and numerous hours spent with an ice pack and this awesome massager later—my neck and shoulder are still screwed up.
And the thing that causes me the most pain just happens to be sitting at the computer (although putting up hay was a close second). This does not mesh well with very tight and very inflexible writing deadlines (or blogging!).
The new building, which is basically a big metal barn, looks out on the Hayfield
So no cookbook. But no massive October frenzy either. It's disappointing, of course, especially since this was a really exciting venture that went beyond just writing a book about making the most of your seasonal bounty. Because of proprietary and legal mumbo jumbo, I can't share any more details about the project; I'm not purposely trying to be secretive.
I've been approached by other editors at some wonderful publishing houses who are interested in my writing and photos, so there might very well be a book of some sort in my future. I figure an even better opportunity will present itself if and when the time is right—and I thank you for all the support you gave me for this one.
In the meantime, I'm looking forward to sharing more of the Less Fuss, More Flavor recipes I created for the cookbook, including one for a ridiculously easy—and ridiculously delicious—homemade pear butter that I will hopefully have up this weekend. Update: the pear butter recipe is up!
With three big sinks and My Favorite View, doing dishes will be a pleasure
We're also back to contemplating our wholesale artisan bread bakery plan (you can see a photo of the whole building and read a little more about the bakery here), which was shelved last year due to a combination of skyrocketing gas prices, skyrocketing wheat prices, and all of my spare time being spent writing the cookbook.
Since we already have the 7-foot wide deck oven and 60-quart mixer installed in the commercial kitchen on the bottom floor of the new building, I know we'll eventually come up with some delicious way to use them. Joe says that if nothing else, every few months we'll simply bake a lot of bread for ourselves and our friends all at once.
Our new bedroom (and the locally made oak stair treads)
As far as my healing and physical therapy are concerned, we finally fixed all the plumbing problems in the new building (thankfully without having to tear into the beautiful bathroom tile), so although it'll be a while yet before we move in—there are still hundreds of feet of baseboard and trim to put up, the 'real' stairs to be installed, 17 windowsills to be built, light fixtures to be mounted, and a bunch of other stuff I'm probably forgetting, all of which are much better accomplished if you aren't already living in the space—the glorious whirlpool tub is fully functional.
Oh, baby
And after spending 9 years without a working bathtub, boy does it feel nice. This is one splurge that was definitely worth every penny.
© FarmgirlFare.com, the soak away your troubles with champagne, candles, and a bathtub built for two (only 6½ years after putting up the shell of the building!) foodie farm blog where this whole neck/shoulder thing has put a big damper on my ability to respond in a timely manner to your comments and e-mail. I love hearing from you, and I thank you for your understanding and patience.
Heading Down the DrivewayI had a great time during my whirlwind trip to St. Louis for the Farm Aid 2009 concert. I arrived home happy, tired, determined to personally become much more involved in the fight against corporate factory farms and support of small family farms, and more grateful than ever to live where (and how) I do.
I also arrived home to find not only all of these adorable faces (that I missed while I was gone!) waiting for me, but also an e-mail from one of our new lamb customers (and a fellow food blogger) telling me how much he is enjoying the custom butchered whole lamb he recently bought from us ('What great flavor and texture!!') as well as a comment on my kitchen garden blog from someone who saw my post about building our low-tech, low cost homemade greenhouse and said, "I never thought I could have a greenhouse without spending thousands of dollars. Your greenhouse gives me hope. Thanks!" Encouraging words like these really mean a lot.
Looking Toward the Front Field
I'll hopefully be sharing my experiences at Farm Aid 2009 soon, but in the meantime, I think Neil Young had it right when he told us during the concert that each of us has the power to change things by voting with our dollars:
"Just buy the right food. Read the labels. [Our food system in this country] is a big complicated mess. Support family farms—they're too small to fail."
I Was So Happy to See Franny, My 2009 Bottle Baby (Whose Story I Haven't Told!)
If you missed the live Farm Aid 2009 concert broadcasts, it's not too late to watch it. DIRECTV's The 101 Network will be re-broadcasting the concert in HD, commercial-free, and surround sound four more times—click here for more info. And the Farm Aid webcast brought to you by EternaGreen will be up for free on the Farm Aid site through this week. After that, it will move to the FarmYard—Farm Aid's members-only area where you can watch this year's concert as well as past shows.
What is Farm Aid? Farm Aid is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to keep family farmers on their land. Over the past 24 years, Farm Aid has raised nearly $36 million dollars to support programs that help farmers thrive, create and strengthen connections between farmers and eaters, take action to change the dominant system of industrial agriculture, and promote food from family farms.
Want to get involved? Find out how you can take action here, become a Farm Aid member here, learn more about the Farm Aid community here, connect to the land and each other at Homegrown.org, or follow Farm Aid on Twitter here. And if you have $5 and 15 seconds to spare, text FARMER to 90999 to donate $5 to farmers through your cell phone. (The charge will show up on your next cell phone bill.)
There is good food to save and no time to waste.
© Copyright 2009 FarmgirlFare.com, the critter loving, homebody foodie farm blog where somebody around here just gobbled up nearly a pound of quick and easy roasted brussels sprouts for dinner. (Fortunately they were the main course.) Recipe coming soon!
