The Garden is Growing!

What a spring this has been! It feels like it was just a few days ago, I took this picture of some of my seed packs. Looking at the date stamp on my photo's, it actually been several weeks!

 

 Once we were able to get the garden ready, I got in there and got it planted. And then it rained. And it rained. And it rained some more! 

No more!!! The sun is finally here and most things are growing! 

Lots of weeds growing too. I am hoping Truckin' Man will help me catch up on those this weekend.

This tiny little growth is Rainbow Swiss Chard.  I plant something new each year that I haven't tried before. This year... Chard! It's growing, so I hope we like it!

Beautiful Lettuce! I am sooo stinkin' excited to have lettuce from my own garden, I can hardly wait. Truth be told, I really could have pinched off a few of these young leaves, but I want them to grow!

 Onions are growing. They aren't looking fabulous, but I am happy with any sign of growth!

 Beans! Yeay!

Even a few pea's are poppin' up!

Squash and Pumpkins are thriving. 

Here is Hazel. She is always at my side in the garden. She is so camera shy, she refuses to take a good photo. She will sit still and stare at me for 20 minutes. Just when I even think of aiming the camera, she moves!

Tex Mex Shredded Chicken

I made a new chicken recipe last week, that I totally fell in love with. Sad part is, I can't share that one yet. With the monsoon season we have been having, I never had enough light to get a decent picture. So, until next time. . . .  But, the other cool part is, I fell in love with chicken thighs in the crock pot. I see enough recipes and watch enough shows, that I know chicken thighs are really popular.  With dark meat not being the healthier choice, and with chicken breasts going on sale so often, I just don't bother with a variety of chicken pieces. BIG mistake on my part.

I am in love with chicken thighs.. L.O.V.E., love! They have so much more flavor, and they are so moist! So, my new recipe was born.  You really can modify this to what chicken you have on hand. I added some chicken breasts to the mix since I have a freezer full. So, use a mixture, or use all thighs. But please, oh please, use at least half dark meat in this!

You could cut out some of the work and use boneless chicken for this, but I wanted all the flavor from cooking this chicken on the bone. You can enjoy this wrapped up in a tortilla, on rice or any other way that sounds good to you!

Tex Mex Shredded Chicken


5 chicken thighs (skinless)
3 chicken breasts (skinless)
24 oz crushed tomatoes
1 cup green bell pepper, chopped
1 cup red bell pepper, chopped
5 garlic cloves, sliced
2 Tbsp Taco Seasoning
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper


Place chicken in crockpot. In bowl, mix tomatoes, green and red bell pepper, and seasonings.  Stir until combined. Pour over chicken, making sure chicken is coated with veggies and seasoning. Cover and cook on low for 7-8 hours.  Remove chicken from crockpot. Remove bones. Shred chicken, and add back to crockpot juices. Cover crockpot, and let chicken simmer in crockpot, on low, for 30-60 minutes.

Enjoy!

Sharing this at:
The Weekend re-Treat
Foodie Friends Friday
Weekend Potluck 
From the Farm 
Strut Your Stuff Saturday 
Clever Chicks Blog Hop
Scrumptious Sundays
Finding the Pretty & Delicious
What'd You Do This Weekend
Wednesday Extravaganza

More Chicks and Less Chickens

We have been working on adding our new chicks in with our 5 hens from last year, and we have had quite the challenge. After weeks of separating, and trial periods, and supervised play times, we found that there were the two hens that were the dominate hens of the flock.  These were the ISA Browns which had more white in their tail feathers. I am curious if the white relates to their personalities or if it was just coincidence?

Thankfully, our friends were able to give the hens a good home, and they are doing fine.
We miss them bunches, but everyone seems to be better off.

Bye, Ladies....

Our friends oldest daughter was going to see if she could get the ladies to do some of the cuteness we had taught them.

We did add a few Cochin Bantams to our flock to make up for some of the chicks we lost earlier. We found a local farmer who hatches some BEAUTIFUL chickens that his children show for 4-H. We will be contacting this farmer if we add any more chickens to our flock next year. 

Between the chick's high activity level, and our less than cooperative weather, it has been hard for me to capture all their cuteness in photo's.

Cochin Bantam

Cochin Bantam

This one, we got from a local feed store, so his breed wasn't known. Just that he was a Bantam.  Through some research, I am pretty sure that "he" is a Rooster, and a Porcelain d'Uccle

One of the hens taking a dust bath on our one day without mud!

Sharing this at:

From the Farm

Team Minnesota - Bake Sale Update

I want to thank everyone who participated in our Bake Sale and Fund Raiser! With the combined efforts that we all put into this, I thought you would enjoy seeing some pictures from the event that we were supporting.

Stacey, and Team Minnesota, traveled to Lake Tahoe, and went on their bike ride this past Sunday. What an inspiring group of bikers! With the combined effort of various teams and events, Team Minnesota has raised almost $225,000 and counting, for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

They had time to relax before the ride and enjoy some of the beauty of Lake Tahoe

Team Minnesota

Ready to Ride!!

Meyer Lemon Coffee Cake

Sometimes, you find a recipe that you just know you have to try! That's what happened when I found Meyer Lemon Coffee Cake. I was craving spring flavors and truth be told, I had never had a Meyer Lemon before. I have read many recipe's calling for them, I see them at the co-op, but I had never actually tried one before. This was the time to finally try them!

The coffee cake was delicious. LOTS of struesel. If you love struesel, then this is a recipe you have to try! I do love the Meyer Lemons. I will be trying them again in my next lemon recipe.

Meyer Lemon Coffee Cake (Source: Bake, Run, Live.  Adapted from: Martha Stewart)


Streusel Topping:
1 3/4 cup flour
3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup butter

Cake:
2 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
3 Tablespoons Meyer lemon zest (you will need 4 to 5 lemons)
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup Greek yogurt

Glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
1 to 2 tablespoons Meyer lemon juice


Struesel Directions:
In medium-sized bowl, combine flour, brown sugar, and salt. Cut in the butter until it resembles small pebbles. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

Cake Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter or grease a 9-inch angel food cake pan, set aside.
Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In large mixing bowl, beat together the butter, sugar, and lemon zest. Beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add in the eggs, one at a time, and then the vanilla. Scrape down the sides of bowl. On low speed, add the flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with the Greek yogurt.

Spoon the batter into the prepared pan.  Sprinkle the chilled streusel evenly over the batter. Bake in preheated oven for 50-55 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center, comes out clean. Remove from the oven and let cool for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, run a knife along all the edges of the pan. Remove the outer ring and let cool completely. To remove cake from bottom of pan, run a knife along the center tube, then gently slide two large wide spatulas between cake and pan. Carefully lift from pan, and let cool on rack.

Glaze Directions
Shortly before serving, whisk together the powdered sugar and the Meyer lemon juice, in a small bowl. Drizzle the glaze over the cooled cake and let it set for 5 minutes before cutting and serving.


Sharing this at:
Thursdays Treasures 
What'd You Do This Weekend?
The Weekend re-Treat 
Foodie Friends Friday 
Weekend Potluck 
From the Farm Blog Hop
Pin Me Linky Party
Scrumptious Sundays 
Finding the Pretty & Delicious
Clever Chicks Blog Hop
In and Out of the Kitchen Link  
Wednesday Extravaganza 
Tuesday's Table

Spring Day

My parents live thirty miles south of us on the the Mississippi River bluffs. 

Even though we live so close, they have so many different sites to enjoy. 

They have put a lot of work into the providing seed and the right habitat's for the birds.  Their work has paid off.

Since establishing their home, they have completed a lot of landscaping and have so many beautiful flowers.

The last two weeks, my mom and I have spent numerous hours walking their property on the great morel search....

Thankfully, all of our steps were rewarded with the great morel finds of 2013.

Maple Syrup Granola

It's time for the monthly Surprise Recipe Swap. This month I got to check out Heather's blog, Bake, Run, Live.  Heather had so many great recipes to choose from, I really had a hard time deciding. So, I picked two!  I'll share the second one, a little later on, if that's ok with Heather.

What I chose for today was Heather's Maple Syrup Granola. The week prior to finding this recipe, we had an Amish man stop in at our office selling fresh Maple Syrup. We only use pure maple syrup, but I have never had syrup that fresh! I knew I wanted to use this syrup on something other than pancakes. At least part of it! So, when I found the Maple Syrup Granola, I new that was the destination for my syrup!

This was my first time making granola without peanut butter, so I was a little hesitant. Sometimes I need that little nudge to try a new recipe. I can really get hung up on a favorite recipe and stick with it forever. I am glad for the nudge on trying this recipe, it is delicious! I used some ingredients that were new to me, and it was a complete success. Coconut Chunks are my new love, and I wish I new that coconut was in that form a long time ago!  This granola was great to snack on, or put on top of yogurt. Some went into a batch of cookies, which was an amazing addition to cookies! I think my favorite way to use this granola was on top of frozen vanilla bean yogurt. YUM!

Maple Granola (Slight adapted from: Bake, Run, Live)


3 c. rolled oats
1 c. dried unsweetened coconut chips
1 c. chopped walnuts
2/3 c. pure maple syrup
1/3 c. coconut oil, melted
1/4 c. light brown sugar, packed
1/2 tsp. sea salt (original recipe called for 1 teaspoon)
3/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
1 c. dried cranberries (or raisins if you prefer!)


Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine all ingredients except the dried cranberries. Mix until everything is well combined. Spread evenly onto baking sheet. Bake for 40 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. After 40 minutes, add cranberries and bake for another 10 minutes.

Remove from oven and let cool. Store in air tight container.




Interested in Secret Recipe Swap? Each month participating bloggers get assigned to another blogger and have to pick and cook a recipe from our partners blog!

Sharing this recipe at:
In and Out of the Kitchen Link Party
Manic Monday
Wednesday Extravaganza 
Foodie Friends Friday
Thursdays Treasures
The Weekend re-Treat 
From the Farm Blog Hop
Pin Me Linky Party
Clever Chicks Blog Hop