Dutch Oven Bread! It Works!

I have a great wheat bread recipe 

which makes 4 loaves in 1 hour and 15 minutes and it is FANTASTIC!  

Anyway, here at the Farrm we are preparedness minded.  What would I do to cook my meals if there was no power? I know it's ridiculous, but the one thing this farmhouse does not have is a wood burning stove.  Weird, huh?  Well, I own a dutch oven, and I have made beef stew in it before, but could I bake bread?  I have a year's supply of wheat, and I know how to bake bread, could I bake it without electricity?
After I asked myself these questions I jumped in with both feet -- I volunteered to teach a class on how to bake bread in a dutch oven.  Only, I had never baked bread in a dutch oven!

But that did not stop me.  I could have asked one of my friends to teach the class, but I learn better by doing it myself, so I took the challenge and here are the results:

First, don't be afraid of the coals.  They are your friends.  Buy the self starting type
and put them in a pile and light 'em up.  In 15-20 minutes they will be grey with ash,
that is when they are ready.

Transfer 14 to the top and leave 10 for underneath.
I'm told that produces a 350 degree dutch oven.
Don't forget to have two boxers in the background to hold down the grass--very necessary.

IronMan had this piece of metal I used but you can build the fire in a B-B-Q or a fire pit or anywhere you don't mind a black burn spot afterwards.  I wanted it convenient to the house because I had the other 3 loaves in the oven and had to hear when the timer went off.

Lodge is a company which sells the ovens.  Purchase one which is already seasoned.

14 coals up, 10 coals under.
It would be handy to have what they call a "chimney', to start coals in.  It keeps them handy and they all burn evenly.  It would also be nice to have a few extra incase you needed them: if it was rainy, windy, or winter you would likely need more heat.

35 minutes later, the three loaves in the oven were done.  The one I shaped for the dutch oven is smaller than these because the height of the dutch oven is shorter.

It took 50 minutes to cook in the dutch oven, but I think it would have cooked more quickly
if I had added more coals.  It was a bit windy.
Notice the stone in the bottom there are actually 4 to raise the pan off the bottom of the oven so the air will circulate.  Also I added about a 1/4 inch of water to the oven to produce a soft crust.
 It worked like a charm!

It turned out just perfect!  First try!

Smaller loaf but just as tasty and light and beautiful.  I think it lasted 15 minutes.
The other loaves were gone the next day.  Did I mention I have 5 teens at home?


Here is a copy of the recipe for 2 loaves with added Dutch oven directions included in bold. Let me know if you have any questions or how yours turns out.
Just remember:  You don't want to be caught trying to learn how to cook without electricity when an emergency is upon you.  Take some time now to master the skills necessary while you aren't under the pressure of foul weather, injury, stress, or disaster.  That way you can offer your family familiar comfort food and your very best prepared and calm self when it is most needed.

Happy Birthday Little Sister!

I have planned many Birthday parties in my time.  As the mother of 6 children, (and a glutton for overworking and stressing about the details) we have celebrated every birthday with a significant party until each of them were at least 12, with the older ones getting a few more parties and my steam running out slightly earlier at the dismay of the younger ones!

But this party, I must say, was one of the best for 2 reasons:

1- It was simple, and

2-  The Birthday girl was so gracious!

A couple weeks before her birthday, she decided she wanted a bike for her birthday so we planned to take a trip to Banner Forest for her party.  Then she told me that the night before her birthday was always so tough because she can never fall asleep because she is always so excited.  That is when I decided to have her party the day before her birthday to save her the sleepless night.  

That part was a surprise!

Her friends arrived while she was at piano lessons.  They decorated with streamers and balloons and made this banner.  They decided how and where to surprise her when she came home.

She WAS surprised!

And so tickled to see all her friends!

Then they took her to the next surprise...

This has been on the fridge for weeks.

Another Birthday wish comes true!
All of her friends pitched in and made the bear a group gift!
Win- win. She got a fun gift she wanted and they only had to contribute 5 bucks!

The Birthday Party Crew!

 Then we had a quick bite to eat and then loaded up the bikes and headed to the forest.

Ready for a trail ride!

Birthday girl.

A little more than half way through our ride we needed some refreshment and found it with these red huckleberries.  Tart and delicious!

The girls enjoyed the pit stop.

Princess enjoyed them the most!

We rode through mud puddles, over stumps and roots
and enjoyed the sights smells and sounds of the forest.

IronMan, Little Sis and Princess riding ahead of me.

When we returned home Anne had this waiting for us:

As many of you know, Anne is a wonderful baker!

Chocolate cake from scratch, caramel, condensed milk,
and whipped cream over hunks of milky way candy bar.  

This is a cake you only have once a year.  But what if you have 8 different  birthdays to celebrate?
Ya just better hope they all don't want this cake or diabetes is definitely in your future.

We had a very enthusiastic if not tone deaf group of singers!

It was a very good Birthday.  Happy baby girl, happy Momma.

Little Sister Finds a Bird

One of Little Sister's birthday wishes was to hold a bird.

She was so thrilled when it was granted by this rather clumsy 

Brown Creeper who smacked into our kitchen window and 

was rendered a bit defenseless for a few minutes.

It panted for a little while, we were a bit worried at that point.

Then Princess went to fetch some water to see if hydration would help.

It drank about 5 drops of water from her fingertip then we placed it in the wisteria.  
About 10 minutes later it had silently flown away!  Good job girls!

Another Simple Summer Experience that would have been missed if they were watching TV or playing computer.  I think it makes all those moments they claim they are "bored" worth it!

KinderGARDENS 2- Garden to Kitchen -Week 13

One of the many joys of living on the Farrm is that there is never a shortage
 of opportunities to teach my children how to work.
Working is a way of life on the Farrm, as it should be. 

 "There is no such thing as a free lunch."-- I've heard said, and I believe it.

This week I am highlighting how we used what was harvested from the garden to make our meals.

Pac Joi.  This is the first variety I have grown that hasn't gone directly to seed!

Bear is busy chopping all the veggies for stir fry. It is a good skill to cultivate.

Yes, we were a little nervous about using the new Cutco French chef's knife,
they are famous for being sharp and notorious for working on fingers as well as veggies!

Carrots, onion, zucchini, broccoli, pac joi, garlic, cabbage, and red pepper (from the store.)

Dinner is beautiful as well as nutritious. 

Bear has decided that he REALLY likes Indian food.
So we gave this a try.  Not quite as good as the Indian restaurant we like, but not bad.

He also cooked rice, another good skill to have. 

Dinner is served!

Lately, Anne has been eating all her meals with chopsticks.
 We are really mixing up the cultures here,
 a French knife cutting up veggies for an Indian dish eaten with Chinese chopsticks
 in an American farmhouse!

 Then a few days later I decided to create this masterpiece...

It started with the very first cucumber, some lettuce,
the first of my 5 tomatoes from this season, and
of course, peppers and Dave's Killer bread from the store. 

The guys were eager to follow suit.  Add a couple
pepperoncinis and some watermelon (also from the store),
and you have a perfect Sunday summer lunch!

What meals do you enjoy making from your garden produce?

KinderGARDENS 2- Waiting for Summer -Week 12

I am sorry that the rest of the United States is suffering in the heat while my tomatoes and I are still shivering in the cold.  We are waiting for summer.  One day of 80 degrees does not a summer make!  We are hard pressed to reach 70!  I guess this is the cost for a gorgeous 4th of July.  Pooh!

So meanwhile the cabbage, cauliflower, lettuce and potatoes are doing well,

But the cucumbers, tomatoes and beans are on standby.  Just sitting there, chillin'.

The cloche Iron Man made me this year is helping, and I'm pretty excited about all the potential it will offer for winter gardening as well.  But right now, I'm just mainly cold. Gardening in a sweatshirt in the middle of July is not my plan.

The kids have kept up the weeding and watering pretty well.  Anne added some red onion starts to her row, and has done some maintenance in the "Chicken Soup Garden".

Bears beans are slowly starting to think about running,

The Princesses barrel is doing well, for those of you dying to know what was planted - she decided on a "Salsa Garden." She has a tomato, pepper, onions, cilantro and some flowers for fun.  She had to replant her pea tunnel, and we still need to get the no climb up, but it may end up working out by the end of summer.

Little Sister's barrel doesn't have a theme -- it's wild just like her!  Some flowers, a pea, more sunflowers, and Surprise!, a volunteer squash of some sort from the compost she added to the bin!  Never a dull moment!

I think we planted daikon radishes here too.  I'm having trouble identifying this tall green.

Laddie has worked a bit on the potatoes, since he's a full-time employee he has a hard time justifying work at home since he gets paid to do this sort of thing now.  Hmmm, I say a swift kick in the butt and no food should set him straight!  Welcome to adulthood I tell him!  He's learning, albeit slowly.  He just needs constant reminders! (I'm reminded of a certain 4 year old I once knew!)

Otherwise, I am enjoying the time I get to spend in the garden and I know that this example is more valuable for teaching my kids than any nagging I could do.  Plus, it brings me joy and satisfaction.  The gardening, not the nagging, ---well, sometimes the nagging.

The clover we threw down for a cover crop is growing like - well, like a weed.  Which I guess it is a weed for most people, but here in my garden it is regarded highly.

Looks like there are tons of squash seeds in my compost!

I'll just let them go and see if we get anything.  If they are funky,
then I'll use them for decoration and then feed them to the chickens this winter.

So that's about it for this week, week 12!  How many weeks is KinderGardens?  I am beginning to wonder if I'm going to have much harvest before it ends!  I am hoping once more for an Indian summer here in the Northwest. We have plenty Indian names here: Wollochet,  Snohomish, Snokomish, Issaquah, Ennumclaw, Chinook, Klickitat and don't forget WallaWalla.  Which reminds me - I have some weeding to do in the salad garden. See ya next week!