Gravy, it is all about the gravy.

I decided to split up my post about biscuits and gravy into two posts because gravy has earned its very own place in my kitchen.

Gravy is easy.

No. Really it is.

Oh, I know those of you unbelievers are shaking your heads now and thinking about just grabbing a jar or packet of gravy from the grocer.

Don't.

Gravy is just a roux base. I know, the term roux is fancy sounding and scary.

So, to start, the gravy I make for chicken fried steak is the same sausage gravy I use for biscuits and gravy. The exact same.

1 lb ground sausage
1  Portabella mushroom
2 T butter
2 T flour
1 cup chicken broth/stock
1 cup milk
2 T sour cream
1 T seasoned salt w pinch of cayenne

Start with a good ground sausage. Pastured pigs make the best sausage. I have used green onion, breakfast, or Italian sausage- they all work. I like the breakfast blend the best though. Fry it up brown. When it is half done, add chopped mushrooms. Brown until cooked and crumbly. Add butter. Once the butter melts add the flour and sprinkle it all over everything. Stir fast. Be ready with the broth. Once all the flour is wet with the grease and butter, add the chicken broth and stir furiously. It will thicken quick, add the milk when it thickens, stir furiously and turn the heat to low/medium. Add the sour cream and seasoning to taste. Turn the heat off entirely once it is as thick as you like.

See? Easy.

When making a chicken gravy, start with melted butter, add flour and stir until all the flour is wet, add 2 cups of broth and stir until it is as thick as you like. Season.

When making Alfredo type sauce: melt butter, add flour and stir until flour is wet, add 2 cups of milk and stir until it is as thick as you like, add 1 cup of cheese of your choice, gently stir off heat until cheese is melted, season. I like Asiago and Parmesan (Not the green can kind though, the real hard grate yourself kind, because I am a cheese snob. The green can stuff technically will work.)

Beef, lamb, chicken drippings, ect- all follow the same equation. Melted fat, add flour, add liquid of  your choice, stir furiously until thick and gravy.

Giving Thanks for Food!

Every meal that we say grace Lil'Bug says, when it is her turn, "I AM THANKFUL FOR OUR FOOD!"
I am too.
The last couple weeks I have taken pictures of a couple beautiful food moments.

This is the very successful attempt at preparing a Shank Boil. I altered the recipe just a bit. I used a Dutch Oven, skipped the parsnips, and instead of cooking on the stove top, used my oven at 350 degrees for 3-4 hours. Good stuff. One of the best beef meals that we've done from our grass fed local side of beef, ironically on of the cheapest cuts and I was so nervous about it I set aside the cut with the tongue, heart, and liver. Sooooooo very good.

This is how we roast pumpkin to make pumpkin puree for pies and soups. Under each half is a tablespoon of salted butter.


Beans and ham. Easy. The beans are actually underneath the onions too. This is the heartiest, simple meal I know of. Usually I also add celery, but we were out. Another local mama adds cabbage. I want to try that in the future. The beans soak overnight, the soup cooks all day until the ham falls apart. Even yummier as leftovers and freezes very well.

One random afternoon Aunt Bee showed up bearing these. Tur-oreo-crispins. A play on turduckens of our heritage. She is so cool. I am thankful that I lent her my kids a cookin' cook book. ;)

I am thankful that we eat as well as we do, for less than most families manage, and that we've been blessed to live the life we do. Food is our fuel, how we maintain our bodies and mind, nourish. We thank God for the abundance we are granted, the generosity of friends and family that have helped stocked our pantry this year after our miserable garden output.

May you and yours also be blessed this Thanksgiving and the Thanksgivings following.

Mead and Lamb Burgers

Some thoughts I am distracting myself with while Hobbit is undergoing x-rays and the vet is discussing surgery.

Last week I had the opportunity to try Mead for the first time (thank you, Cousin David!). Those of you who know me, know that I do not drink alcoholic beverages because I don't like the taste. Well, Mead is yummy! I only had a couple sips, but it was mild and sweet. Something else to consider making once we get the bees established!

We also ordered a whole lamb this year. It was a luxury item, but we had hoped it would fill the gap between running out of pork and beef and getting the new supply. As it happened, the pork came before the lamb. We also wanted to cook with it, see if lamb meat would be versatile enough to justify raising sheep.

So far I made a delicious batch of lamb burgers (though not as tasty as the former Chat Noir, in Des Moines, used to serve). They are supposed to be paired with fresh mozzarella and focaccia buns, but the bread was frozen by mistake and I was so flustered by the thought of eating LAMB BURGERS on Sara Lee white bread yuck buns that I forgot to get out the cheese. The meal was good anyway AND, though she wouldn't eat at dinner time, Lil'Bug announced she was hungry at bedtime and raided the fridge for leftovers. She ate almost all of the leftover meat from dinner. Cool.

I think next time I will try and spicy the recipe up a bit. Chat Noir's were spicy. Of the things I really miss from there, lamb burgers, mufalatos, and their caramel pumpkin pecan cheesecake really top the list.

Art in the Farm House

I mentioned in my last post that I plan to keep home in a different way. Here's my plan.

I plan to choose things to fill my home that are natural, pretty, functional, and handmade when possible. I hope to make some of them myself, learn to use the sewing machine I got for Christmas two years ago. I hope to craft candles from beeswax. I hope Dearest makes furniture.

I looked around my current home today, at the walls. My walls are filled with department store art. Not a single family picture, no "wall of shame", mostly mass produced prints. Lovely, but not welcoming. My own art went to storgae durring staging because they lacked proper framing.

In our new home the walls will be filled slowly with art we make, art from artists we know personally, and photographs of our family that we take, not studio posed, but capturing the spirit of each of us. Welcome home.

Wish Me Luck

In the next of our using all the beef series, I am making a Shank Boil. Wish me much luck.

Easy as Pie

My first from scratch, apples I picked, dough rolled by hand pie.

Good flavour. Things to note: I love hot right out of the oven pie BUT this pie needed to rest for 1 hour for the juices to distribute. 1 hour does not mean 39 minutes.

Pie dough wasn't rolled thin enough or else I should use more apples, about double what I used.

Local mamas: if you'd like to try a piece, we're home all day Friday! I'll be baking more pies. Lots more pies. Call me and come over!

Sunkissed

I have a confession to make. We stopped wearing sunscreen this year. I was worried and nervous as we are all fairly fair skinned BUT I had a gut feeling moving me. Don't get me wrong, I educated that gut feeling and then stepped into it slowly.

Here's the thing: sunscreens have lots of chemicals in them that are not FDA approved. Fine and well since you don't eat the goo right? Wrong. Skin in your body's largest organ and it absorbs those chemicals, many of them KNOWN cancer causing and banned substances. Well, golly gee, sun causes skin cancer too. What's a girl to do?

Vitamin D is a known cancer fighter. Your body makes that when exposed to the sun, real sunlight. So does it make sense to slather on cancer causing agents to block out a cancer preventing vitamin? Right. Moving on.

I burn. I burn bad. When I take a hot bath or get overheated the burn lines from the summer I was 14 reappear. That's why I was nervous.

I read that eating berries helps build up your skin from the inside out.
I read that being hydrated properly will reduce your chance of burning.
I read that adding coconut oil to your diet and beauty regiment would help.
I bought hats.
I favoured shady spots.
I wore appropriate clothing.

It is August. I've gotten rosy a couple times. Yesterday Lil'Bug did not stop to take water breaks and played for 5+ hours in her swimsuit in a fountain. She got a little rosy too. I slathered her with Shea Butter before bed. Today, she has no evidence of tenderness or discomfort. Me either. We went to the Fair without slathering up. We've spent most of our time outside this summer. No burns.

Huh. The experiment continues.

NOT Back To School

Every year there is a Not Back to School gathering on the first day that the public schools are in session. We celebrate that the parks and cultural attractions are now less crowded, at least until field trip season kicks in. We celebrate education, community, and let our kids party all afternoon with their friends.

There was an injured butterfly that the kids took care of and much bug hunting. Lil'Bug has found her tribe!

Ah, Blueberry had a blast too!

Lil'Bug loves the sun!

I took more photos than this but I don't as a rule post pictures of other people's kids on my blog. I did post them to flicker and sent the link to our local group though, they'll only be set to public for a short while.

As a side note:

There was a guy we didn't know who brought his pet python to the park. I asked him some questions for Lil'Bug's benefit and told her all about the time we babysat our friends snake. The guy told me I didn't know what I was talking about when I explained to her what they eat in the wild: "In the wild these snakes eat gerbils. Some people have success feeding a finicky Ball python by giving it a pre-killed gerbil or two......." Hmph. Anyway, he let the kids take turns with the snake and it made for good photos. I didn't let Lil'Bug take a turn because I didn't know the guy and my gut told me there was something off about him.

Peaches for Me

For the first time since planting the peach tree four years ago, we have peaches. There is nothing like a fresh picked, still warm from the sun peach. Even better is sharing it with a little girl who LOVES peaches.

Friday Rain Check

It rained. Usually this is no big deal. Actually, it set up to make our first Friday field trip to the local marsh even marshier. Lil'Bug was very excited. As we loaded up into the truck to head out, Nana and Pawpaw called- their sump pump was malfunctioning and their finished basement was flooded. They needed Dearest to help.

Lil'Bug was fine with missing her field trip to help Nana and Pawpaw BUT the thing that devastated her was that she wasn't actually allowed to help because of the bacteria in the accumulating water. She has always been able to help Daddy at our house with just about everything from tile grouting to oven repair. She was pissed. She moped, she stomped, she pouted. She even put on her rain boots and stomped down to the basement anyway only to be escorted back upstairs and given a box of cookies to keep her occupied. Yes, a whole box. Not my idea, but I helped her eat them.

When all was as stabilized as possible, Dearest took me and Blueberry home and Lil'Bug to a different park for a nature explore. They revisited the poached deer carcass from last month to observe the changes. For almost four hours, they climbed rocks, overturned logs, examined bugs, and then came home exhausted.

I hate that she missed her field trip BUT it is very important to us that we demonstrate for our children the importance of helping family and friends even when it means you miss out on something fun now and then. Goodness knows that friends and family have done the same for us time and time again; for that we are forever thankful.

Garden Update, Spring Progress

Broccoli! These are doing awesome. The strange absence of bugs this year also includes cabbage moths and such so maybe we won't have a huge problem with them this year. I plan on harvesting and freezing these in June and another rotation in the fall. Yum. Also, Lil'Bug says we will find June Bug in the broccoli bed and that will be her birth day- just like we found her in the pumpkin patch 4 years ago, in Narnia, in Heaven. Ah, the creation story of a wee babe.

Yum. Spinach. I will have my first garden fresh spinach salad tomorrow and then use some for lasagnas to freeze for the first week June Bug babe is home.

The other part of my salad mix: lettuce and various greens. So tender are they when fresh and young. Drool....

Strawberriest blossoms. Two different kinds. Lovely with morning dew......or wait...no Lil'Bug do not spray Mama with the hose while I have the camera out here! AGH!

And last....we planted blueberries. Again. We are the gardeners of ever innocent hopefulness. Every blueberry plant we have ever planted has died. This one has blossoms! Ok, to be fair, it came with the the blossom buds, but still!

Diapers and Such

I got my pocket diapers this week and a Moby Wrap on clearance. I have two ring slings, but I wanted another style to play with.

But first, the diapers. This time we are going cloth. Why? Have you ever felt a disposable? Very plastic-y. A contrast to the softness of a wee babe's skin. PLUS- Disposables are really expensive. The off-brands gave Lil'Bug hideous, bloody rashes, so we always had to buy the super expensive kind, even in bulk, it adds up. We are trying to cut costs where we can. The initial investment is offset by the fact that we are not replacing some of the plastic mainstream items and that we kept what we did use (swing, exersaucer, highchair). Also, the initial investment is nothing compared to what we paid in diapers the first 6 months with Lil'Bug. Goodness, could that little baby poop!

Pocket diapers are funny little things. They have an outside, breathable, waterproof cover, fleece inside and then a pocket between the two. In that pocket goes an absorbent insert. Why not just sew the insert in? Well, if left in (called an All In One Diaper) it takes a really long time to dry after washing and only one option for absorbency. So with the removable insert, faster dry times and you can upgrade the stuffer if the babe is a heavy wetter. Very cool.

Aren't they pretty? :) I am excited to use them. The style we got adjusts with the size of the baby, so one batch is all we'll need until potty training- newborn through 35 pounds. At 16$ a piece, that's not so bad! That's why we went with this model over others, the cost savings in sizes. I wanted to buy handmade from a local WAHM, but the size flexibility made this investment doable for us. However, I did buy 12 traditional prefolds with a fleece cover as a back up diapering option from her. There may come a time we need such back ups! LOL. Also, prefolds are really versatile as changing pads, burp clothes, etc.

Seriously????

I just finished ALL the laundry. Washed, dried, and put away. It had been looming as a giant pile of clean clothes in baskets on my bed for a week now, with an ever growing pile of dirty in the laundry room. No more!

And then....I cleaned out my closets. I have about three bags of clothes to go to donation, all mine. Why? Most of those were "work" clothes that I have not worn for over FOUR years! Now I work from home, mostly in jeans and a punk rock t-shirts (ok, sometimes my PJ's too.....), why would I need 11 pairs of teacher pants, 25 dresses, and various other dress jackets? So I pared it down to 5 sweaters, turtlenecks, 3 dress pants, and three nice dresses (two of which are feeding friendly and the other just too cute to get rid of just yet....). I kept my comfy jeans and cargo pants (5), most of my t-shirts (about 10).

It still feels like too much. I think once I pack up for storage the winter clothes I will feel better about quantities. Am I being weird? I know people with huge rooms full of clothes and others who have even less than I do, but really, laundry should have NEVER gotten so out of hand and I think the sheer quantity of clothing was party to blame.

So why was I hanging on to so many items of clothing? Part of it was that little inkling on me that was having a hard time letting go of being in the traditional work world. I still work, but the dress code has changed! Now I will allow myself the freedom to buy more punk rock t-shirts, you know, since they are required at my new job, ;P.

I also packed up the maternity clothes that no longer fit me to go to storage. Last time I just gave them all away and then had nothing to wear this time! (You know, just in case......) Which reminds me, thank you to Saratar and LifeDreamed and my MIL for helping me with that problem! MIL actually bought and had tailored pants for me and my friends graciously lent me LOTS of clothes. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

****edited to add****
Lil'Bug has gone through 3 outfits today, ruined two of mine, filthied 2 towels, and the mess continues as I pause to take note of it. There will be at least three loads of laundry by the end of her joyous rampage. Ah, the virtue of childhood! :)

First Planting!

Princess Lil'Bug in the Garden......

Pulling weeds......

Raking the compost smooth......

Finished bed, planted with spinach, spicy greens mix, and romaine lettuce.

Ah, and all I had to do was enjoy the sunshine!

Funny How Things Change

4 years ago I was planning and registering for Lil'Bugs baby shower. I registered for furniture, swings, portables, pack and plays, bedding, clothes, toys.........

I asked Dearest what he thought we should add and his response: diapers. In fact, he thought we should wipe the registry clean and register for nothing but diapers, millions of diapers. Bah, was my reply.

Last summer we sold all of the baby contraptions but for the one swing and an exersaucer. We gave away the crib (we co-sleep).

We don't really need all that stuff. Most of it got used for extra blankets and toy storage (we got rid of a lot of the extras of those as well....)

But this time I decided to start a registry anyway.... you guessed it, for diapers. Nothing but. Ok, that's not true, there's also a diaper pail, a pail liner, and some bibs. Heh. The difference is this time we registered for cloth diapers. I'm also trying to buy local, so it's a mixed registry. I picked mostly handmade products from a local WAHM, and it's all through an Internet store front run by another local WAHM. I hope it all works out and I don't end up hating cloth. I don't think I will.

It is certainly another step in the changes we have undergone as a family.

I don't think we are having a baby shower this time around either. I am undecided. I mean, we've only registered for diapers! However, Lil'Bug really wants to have a welcome baby party. I'm all for that, even considered having an after baby is born party BUT I feel uncomfortable with the tradition of passing the new baby around for all to hold. Once she's older, fine. I was like that with Lil'Bug too, the only exceptions were family and rarely very close friends. Even if people don't play pass the baby, lots of kids and people all together= germs a plenty and that's not good for new mama and baby. I've always held that the first month of the baby's life is precious family bonding time. So I am conflicted as to what to do. I need to decide soon, right?

Secret Salad

Lil'Bug and I decided to make salad smoothies last week. It caught on. This week I let her pick and add all the goodies.

Carrots
Spinach
Banana
Blueberries (lots of blueberries!)
flax seed
yogurt
Strawberries
+
food processor
=She drank the whole thing and then asked for seconds, "Delicious!" She's not sure why I am taking a picture of her though. I held up a hand mirror. That's why the "face". Too cute.

Microwave-less

We don't have a microwave. A conversation earlier today reminded me of that. I miss microwave popcorn, burnt or no. But that's about it.

I don't miss cleaning chili splatters out. I don't miss the evil buzzing or the flickering lights. I don't miss microwave meals.

I could say we did it for high and mighty reasons like the fact that they use a LOT of electricity even when they are not "on" or that the heating method kills proteins and nutrients in food. But neither were our reasons. I've heard of other reasons too, like the radiation can cause x, y, and z. Still, not why we nixed it.

Ours broke. That's it. We just never replaced it. We intended to at first but soon realized that we were living quite well without it. Sometimes thawing meat required extra planning and I couldn't quickly warm up a cold cup of tea, but those didn't seem like good reasons to buy a new one. Our electric bill has gone down about 3$ a day since then (do the math on that one: $1,095 a year!) . Though, I'm not sure it is the only reason for the decrease, that is a nice thought. So our laziness (in replacing said appliance) saved us some cash. That's cool.

Still, people look at us like we have two heads when I say we don't have a microwave. Eh, two heads are better than one?

Evolved

Today served as a reminder for me as to how far I've come.

10 years ago I thought breastfeeding a 1 year old+ was yucky, co-sleeping was dangerous, and the no vaccine crowd was a danger to our society. I was the one who made nasty comments in public about people who did these things.
10 years ago I preferred boxed food and felt a little sick even thinking about food from someone's garden let alone eating it.
10 years ago there was no way I was changing my name when I got married. Hyphenated maybe.
5 years ago I had a closet full of harsh cleaning chemicals that I used without gloves.
5 years ago I put down my pen and camera and pursued a career instead.
4 years ago I was still pretty sure that food labeled "organic" was a scam and it was the same food as the other but with a higher price.
4 years ago I was warned away from La Leche league when I probably could have used their support more than most.
4 years ago I trusted most advice anyone gave me.
4 years ago I didn't know how to change a diaper.
3 years ago I worked full time with a newborn baby in daycare 9 hours a day 5 days a week.
2 years ago I worked part time with an infant then toddler in daycare.
2 years ago I started to help in our garden and kitchen.

Now I prefer fresh food even over organic produce, even better picked right off the vine in my own back yard.
Now I understand what pesticides and hormones and preservatives in food did to my body.
Now I understand the importance of community and finding support for my choices.
Now I can change a diaper (though I have not in almost 2 years), kiss a boo boo, and change a load of laundry at the same time.
Now I work at home and not when I should be present for my family.
Now I question what we use as cleaning aids in our home and on our bodies. I am working to not have anything in our home that would kill us or our pets or our garden.
Now I seek out my own answers, co-sleep, breastfed a 2.75 year old who weaned herself, I vaccinate but question when it is necessary.
Now I homeschool.
Now I can cook to feed my family and understand the basics of kitchen chemistry and have only a 5% chance of starting a small kitchen fire.
Now I honor the commitment made to my husband and family by taking his name and making it my own.

It did not happen overnight. It did not happen upon the birth of my first daughter. It is still happening now. I am evolving into the mother and wife that I want to be and finding all the best parts of me once left abandoned. I am working towards gentleness for my family and myself.

Yoga 60 and Menu

I did the whole entire yoga routine, all 60 minutes of it. There was only one pose I couldn't do because my crappy folding chair is the wrong height. Whew. I am zonked and a bit sore and a lot thirsty, but I feel warm and comfortable despite all of that. I also played different music and muted the DVD- the instructor on the program's voice annoys me and my thought was that if I eliminated that I might stick it out longer. Yup. I love the soundtrack to The Piano, by composer Michael Nyman. Lovely.

So the question came up again this week about how and what we eat around here, how we have time to make stuff from scratch, ect. So I thought I'd post our menu for this week:

Dinner:
Sunday: Turkey, mashed potatoes, peas
Monday: Class night, so we ate Planet Sub's food
Tuesday: Whole wheat penne pasta with sausage meatballs and shredded parme and garlic bread (supposed to be Green Bean Schezwan, but missing beans)
Wednesday: Turkey, broccoli (w/ butter, pepper, and lemon), yams (steamed)
Thursday: Steak, acorn squash, snow peas
Friday: Fish (Cod, baked) and crispy oven fries w/ Cajun seasoning
Saturday: Chili

Lunch (Dearest either takes leftovers from the night before or a sandwich fruit combo):
Sunday: Soup, spinach salad
Monday: Cheeseburgers and apples
Tuesday: Cheese Noodles (Parmesan Fettuccine w/extra Parmesan and peas), leftover Planet Sub, chicken nuggets
Wednesday: Leftover pasta and meatballs w/fruit and milk
Thursday: Spinach salad with dark meat turkey
Friday: Peanut butter sandwiches and yogurt (leftover yams)
Saturday: Chicken nuggets with leftover oven fries and

Breakfasts are rotating with one or more of these elements:
Oatmeal with added fruit like apples, raisins, dried cranberries, and/or bananas
Scrambled Eggs with bacon or sausage
Cheerios with milk and fruit on the side
Whole wheat toast with peanut butter and/or raspberry jam

Sometimes I have oatmeal and make bacon too. It depends.

Snacks involve fruit and sometimes peanut butter on one slice of bread folded like a taco or yogurt with fruit add ins. If we are on the go, I slice up fruit and/or put a dry mix of raisins and pretzels and whole wheat goldfish together. Fruit this week included:
Strawberries, grapes, apples, tangelos, cantaloupe, bananas and frozen blueberries.

We drink orange juice, whole hormone free (and local) milk, tea, and water. Dearest also drinks cherry cola and coffee.

Every week I plan the meals so we have a variety of meat and vegetables and fruit. My protein counts are about 110 each day. I drink about 3.25 quarts of fluid, mostly water and whole milk. Desserts are for really special occasions and Lil'Bug can have whatever fruit whenever she wants, usually it is an apple.

So what we eat really isn't that different or odd, just planned and mindful. We eat locally raised, hormone free beef and pork, hormone free chicken, and local hormone free milk. (See a pattern?) We have noticed a difference in our health since we've opted out of hormone laden meat, most significant for me is the reduction of fibroids both in my uterus and breast tissue and I no longer have calcium knots in my hand and toes and ear cartilage. Medical studies have shown links to the artificial hormones to these medical conditions and some cancers.

So there's the details of our food week. Tomorrow I shall post a recipe! :)

Making

Making progress:

I am experiencing quite a bit of anxiety over the Wii purchase. Sure, we made the decision for all the right reasons.....BUT.....

I grew up in a house with video games and violence and heartache.

I banished video games from my home because it was easier than looking at the big picture. Until this week I never explored this in my processing. I have always just said to myself, not in my home. I never related that we all had our coping strategies to deal with our childhood violent and unpredictable household.

My banishment of gaming is no less of a control issue. In reality games are a tool and we have worked hard to create a loving, gentle home. So I released that anxiety. I am also a little sad about the memories I explored today for meaning, but a little sad is way better than freaked out anxiety + 20 anger.

Tea time! Move on, clean cup!


Moving on, we made butter today in the food processor. That's how this place said to. Yeah, no. Next time I will use my mixer. The butter got too thick for the processor at one point; once it clabbered it was fine, but the heavy cream goo stage almost killed my new toy. Also, easier to move the bowl to drain the goo if it is in the mixer bowl AND since you have to use the bowl anyway for the end steps, using the mixer will mean less to clean up. Here's the pic:


We played pirates today. We kidnapped baby dolls and fed them chicken noodle (she doesn't say it noonel anymore...wahhhhhhh!) instead of dog hair stew and booger pie (what I told her pirates fed their captives, he he). Lil'Bug insists that she is a nice pirate. This is her ship and sail:


AND....that's pretty much our day. There was a dinner disaster where I had trouble cutting the roast up and splattered meat blood all over everything and then forgot to add water to the enchilada simmering beef mass (supposed to be strips) and so it is definitely not going to be ready for consumption anytime soon, or possibly just not for dinner tonight. Yup, that's just the domestic goddess that I am.

*edited to add: dinner was saved by some creative thinking on Dearest Husband's part plus a casserole dish. It was yummy, but too savory for my pregnant heartburn prone system. Gah. When did that happen? (Um, the prone to heartburn thing, I mean....)