Pastured Eggs

This is why we bother to raise hens, and why we let them out every day to graze.

Egg Nutrients Comparison

Three times the Vitamin E, twice the Vitamin A, ten times the Beta Carotene, three times the Omega 3 fatty acids, half the cholesterol and a third less fat. And coming soon: Samurai chickening!

Here's the rest of the article: Pastured eggs

I thought this was the most ridiculous comment: ...the idea of a happy-go-lucky bird scampering across a field is far from the natural way of life." 

Cool Summer Fun

Ok so I know it's been a long time since I posted. Been a lot going on.We had a good blast of hot weather, which has really ripened up the tomatoes. We've been getting good harvests of them, especially the cherry tomatoes, which have been very prolific.

Rick clowns around with a lovely pair.

And Catherine shows off one next to our volunteer flowers.

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What We're Eating
Nothing could be simpler than these flavor bombs: Just basil leaves, cherry tomatoes, a drizzle of basalmic reduction, and a chunk of Orland Creamery cow's milk feta.

We also did a zucchini fry where I brought over the deep fat fryer and made tempura zucchini. This was our dipping sauce presentation. See, those super giant zucchinis are good for something!

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When it's 105, the only thing to do is spend the afternoon at the creekside. This was at 5 mile, just behind the golf course. A doe (not shown) came down and went swimming with me. Well she was swimming and I was sitting quietly on the bank watching. There were also big tadpoles with legs, and lots of butterflies.

We also helped Karen and Glen with a gig at their golf league. Rick and I cooked up dinner for 100 people! Well really, all we did was put tri-tips on the grill. Everything else was prepared.

Sarah and Nathan come over when they can, although Sarah is still studying like crazy for the bar exam, which she takes next week.

Lots of folks gathered at the farm on Saturday. We sit in the middle room earlier in the day for better shade.

No, it's not you... this photo is terribly out of focus, but I wanted to put it in anyway. Tom and Nancy came up this week. They made an offer on a house up here, and we're hoping it works out for them. They will rent it out until they retire, then move here, yay!

This is what we sent them home with.

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Weather Note
After a blast of triple digit heat, we got some clouds and cooler weather. One night got down into the 50s! That's quite odd for July. Still, it's been a nice break. Normal heat is expected by the weekend.
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What is this strange bird peeking out of the foliage?

I got some of the broccoli planted. It's been hard to keep it going in the shade house because the flats dry out so quickly.

Nathan says "This giant zucchini looks so delicious I want to eat it right now!

Tomato Time

Yes, we're getting the first ripe tomatoes. We picked this one on 6-28.

Rick C's tomatoes came on too, and he made the first salsa of the season.

We're also getting lots of zuchs. These three are from Renee's Seeds, and I like the variety. Besides, the bright yellow ones are easy to spot in the garden!

Isn't this lovely!

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Weather Note
The last couple of weeks have been very nice, with temps in the mid to high 80s. But now it's starting to hot up again, and I expect to start seeing some triple digit days.
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Dean was worried that we didn't have enough produce, so he brought over cucumbers and beets.

Nathan can always rise to the occasion, so he made cucumber and beet pizza. Now if you had asked me if I'd want such a thing, I'd have said No way! Yuck! But... it was unbelievably delicious. He roasted the veggies with spices, and all I can say is ... wow!

We won't get a lot of plums this year, but we do have a few. Next year the trees should do really well.

I got some last minute summer crops and the first of the fall crops started. I have 6 flats in the shade house right now: one with basil and chard, then two of Fiesta broccoli (large headed), two of Apollo broccoli (lots of side shoots), and one flat of chinese cabbage "Soloist," which makes small heads that are just right for a couple of people.

In my backyard, I have everything well mulched. The apple tree has a good amount of fruit, although the lemon is going to have a light year. The butternut squash plant is just loaded with fruit, the delicata has quite a lot, and the pumpkins are just starting to set up. I'm also getting cherry tomatoes, and the rest are almost ready.