Monthly Archives: June 2012

Back And Front …

Posted on June 12, 2012 by | Comments Off on Back And Front …

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Arcade ~ Oak Bluffs ~ Martha’s Vineyard


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Cheeky!

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The squirrel baffle that was so effective on the patio is all but useless now that the feeder is out in the grass. They jump straight up past it without any trouble at all. I think it’s time to switch from this straight version to the really flared one.

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Making Honeysuckle Sorbet

Posted on June 12, 2012 by | Comments Off on Making Honeysuckle Sorbet

This one’s super-special, you guys, and I’m really excited to be sharing this with you. Honeysuckle has long been my absolute favorite flower, thanks to its sultry, heady fragrance. Because it blooms, in my hometown, from late April and into June, it reminds me of walking out on humid nights, adolescent longing, and the sweet promise of the long summer ahead.

It was in high school, a few days after having made wreaths of it to decorate my friends’ doors for May Day, when I first discovered its culinary application. We’d gone to the just-opened paletería, which was offering Honeysuckle paletas.

Friends, it was a revelation.

“How do you do this?” I asked the proprietress. “How do you make a flower a taste!?” I had to have more.

“I pay some neighborhood kids to pick me bucketfuls of blossoms,” she said. “All you do is pour cold water over them, let them sit overnight, and that’s your infusion. Add simple syrup, freeze it, and there you go.”

 Zac and I went out a few days later and picked a bucketful. But because it was the end of the school year, and, thus, exam time, we forgot about it, and the project really didn’t go anywhere.

It wasn’t until a few years ago that we tried it again– this time with the benefit of actually having a kitchen– and it’s been one of our seasonal favorites ever since.

First, you pick as much honeysuckle as you can find. Then, pick off all the blossoms, and place them in a nonreactive container:

 We ended up with 23 grams worth. Although that doesn’t seem like much, the blossoms are so powerfully fragrant that they provide more than enough flavor.

 Next, pour 4 cups of cold water over your blossoms. If you need a weight– such as a plate, or another bowl– to keep them underwater, then add one. Let the blossoms steep overnight.

The next day, strain them. You’ll end up with 4 cups of a delicious-smelling, light amber liquid.

Add 1 cup of simple syrup, and either 1) pour the mixture into your ice cream maker, and, done! or, 2) if you don’t have an ice cream maker, pour the mixture into a glass baking dish, and put the whole thing in the freezer.

Fish it out a hour later and smash up the crystals with a fork– repeat until your sorbet is finely-textured and thoroughly frozen.

Enjoy! I really like it with a little mint, but I bet it would go really well with prosecco, or, as NPR suggests, a thimblefull of Saute-Buissons.

 

Recipe:

1 oz Honeysuckle flowers

4 cups of water

1 cup sugar

1 cup of water

 

After collecting honeysuckle vine, remove the flowers and weigh them. Remember to remove all of the green parts from the base of the flower as well. Place the flowers in 4 cups of water and weigh them down so that they are submerged. Refrigerate the flowers and water for at least 12 hours. After the flowers have been in the water for at least 12 hours, make a simple syrup combining one cup of water with one cup of sugar. Heat this mixture until the sugar is completely dissolved. While the simple syrup is heating, strain out the flowers and pour the infused liquid into a large casserole dish. Pour the simple syrup in once the sugar has dissolved and put the casserole into the freezer. Leave in the freezer for 1 hour and then stir the liquid as crystals begin to form. Continue checking and stirring every hour until the desired consistency has been achieved. The sorbet can then be transferred to a covered container and kept in the freezer until ready to be served.

 

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Caption Contest Winner!

Posted on June 12, 2012 by | Comments Off on Caption Contest Winner!

Wow, the deliberations were intense.  So many great captions... only one winner.  After numerous ballots with sweat and tears, Candi emerged as the winner with her funny caption submitted on Facebook:


Not sure how well Candi knows Boaz, but that sentiment is spot on.  Boaz loves to get in your face.  I was actually backing up when I took that photo to keep him from getting paca snot on the camera.

Candi - you get to choose from our new yarns, fresh out of the dye pots.  We have three different yarns, in several colors each.  These colors are approximate - I'm not good at making my camera get the exact right color.  Good luck picking your favorite skein  ;-)

Shalom - 100% Fine Superwash Merino yarn, 4 oz. ~190 yards:

Top: Cardinal and Third Watch
Bottom: Sprouts, Harvest, Lupine


Shepherd's Keep - 100% Organic Merino yarn, 4 oz. ~280 yards:

Primrose
Evensong

Jacob's Well
Wake Up! (Bright yellow)
Robin's Egg
Thicket (Spruce)



Bounty - 86% Brushed Kid Mohair, 14% Nylon, 4 oz. ~496 yards:

Prairie Rose

Sunrise
Mustard Seed
Deep Valley (shades of olive, brown, rust)

We'll also be offering in the LRB Store, several natural colored cotton yarns for warm weather projects.  Drop on by for a look-see soon...

I'm already looking ahead to Saturday - it's the Third Saturday Spin/Knit In at the LRB!  Hope you can be with us...  And Farm Camp begins on Monday!  Now that's going to be a big time...

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Run, Sarah, run!

Posted on June 12, 2012 by | Comments Off on Run, Sarah, run!

As I mentioned a few posts back, this spring I've started a couch-to-5k running program again.  This marks the third or fourth attempt I've made at this sort of program; in past years when I've tried it, I've gotten through a week or three, and then it gets hot (or I go on vacation, or it rains, or I get lazy, or I get pregnant, or or or...I'm really good at excuses) and I quit.  I'm not sure I've ever made it beyond week three before.  

This year, though, it's different.  I'm not entirely certain what exactly has changed, but I feel MUCH more motivated than I ever have before, and I'm already halfway through the program (!).  And, dare I say, I'm enjoying it. 

To follow the program, I'm using an iPhone app called Ease Into 5k.  I really like the app; basically you put on your music, and a voice cuts in to tell you when to walk and when to run.  (Pause for everyone to quietly sing "The Gambler" to themselves.)  You can also configure it to tell you when you're at the halfway point (which I do, since I run on the rail trail rather than in a loop) and to tell you when the last run segment is coming up.  You can (but don't have to!) post your runs to Twitter and Facebook; for me this is an important feature, partly because I am all about the oversharing (or so some people would tell you) but mostly because I'm not very good at holding myself accountable -- but I have friends who aren't afraid to give me a hard time if they haven't seen an update from me in a while!  The app has other functions, too, including an in-app purchase that allows you to measure your distance and pace and all that, but thus far I've not used any of them.  

Today I started week 5 of the program.  Well...actually, LAST week I started week 5, but I could NOT get through the week 5 day 1 workout.  I thought I was going to die.  Then I took a week off because of Book Expo, weather, and poor planning.  In previous years, that would have been the end of the program right there...but today I went out, and not only did I get through week 5 day 1, I got through it EASILY.  Woohoo!

Jim is a runner (like, he used to run cross country during high school) and in the last year or two he's been bitten by the "barefoot running" craze.  He doesn't actually run barefoot, of course (ow) but he does wear those ugly Five Fingers shoes that are all the rage in a certain segment of the population.  I'm not entirely certain I'm 100% behind the barefoot running philosophy, but I DO know that I hate sneakers, never wear them except when I'm exercising, and feel like I'm just tripping clumsily along while wearing them.  (Yes, it's true: I honestly feel more comfortable in 3" heels than I do in sneakers.)  But I refuse to even consider toe shoes like the Five Fingers.  So partly because of Jim's barefoot running thing and his powers of persuasion, and partly because my sneakers are at least five years old, and partly as a reward for getting through the first half of the program successfully, this weekend I got new running shoes.  They're extremely light, quite comfortable, and have essentially zero padding, unlike my old sneakers, which feel kind of like my feet are clunkily encased in several layers of styrofoam and bubble wrap.  I've only worn them for one run so far, but if nothing else I felt much less klutzy in them.  I will withhold full judgment until I've logged some more time in them, but for now I'm giving them a tentative thumbs (toes?) up.  My gait seems to work well with this sort of shoe; I guess people who stride heavily on their heels can have some trouble with shoes that don't have all the normal sneaker cushioning, but this isn't a problem for me.

To call what I'm doing "running" (or even "jogging") seems like a gross overstatement.  I move pretty glacially; I would estimate that I'm probably running at about a 12 min/mile pace.  I'll worry more about my speed after I get to the point where I can run a half-hour at a time, though!  The workout after next has me running a nine-minute segment; I have never in my entire life run nine minutes at one time, not even back when I was young and thin and had to run (or "run") the mile two or three times per school year.  So we'll see how that goes!

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Garden! Garden!

Posted on June 12, 2012 by | Comments Off on Garden! Garden!
With the baby coming when she did, I wasn't sure what I'd have time for this year, garden-wise. I decided on something practical and easy to care for -- ingredients for homemade tomato sauce.

the makings of a fine sauce garden

sauce garden!

I am not Italian, and I do not have a family recipe, a natural talent, or really even any kind of a knack for sauce-making at all, but let me tell you this! Last summer, I grew many Romas. Many, many Romas. I practiced and practiced making sauce and you know what? We grew to love it so much that when the freezer tomatoes ran out sometime in November, we had a very hard time going back to store bought sauce.

This will not happen this year. Oh no.

Super Marzano tomatoes

I planted four "Super Marzanos,"

Super Marzanos planted

Opalka tomatoes

eight "Opalkas" (which I keep mispronouncing in my head as "alpacas" and having a good private laugh about it),

Opalkas planted

basil and parsley

four flat leaf parsleys, sixteen sweet basils, and four curly leaf parsleys.

herbs

If everything only barely survives, we should have enough to get us through for a while. If it thrives -- well, we'll cross that bridge if and when we come to it...

Not sauce-related are these two little ground cherries, purchased with the sole intention of making jam. Delicious, delicious jam.

ground cherries!

Oh lord, the jam.

In other planting news, I took advantage of a sale at the Kmart garden center and filled some planters.

annuals in terra cotta bowl

annuals and volunteer buddleia in wooden planter

annuals in ladder planter

Can't wait to see it fill in!

Other things around the yard are still going strong too. If these grapes on the ladder arbor don't do that weird rotting thing they did last year, I will be enjoying quite a bit of homemade jelly soon.

grapes

And all three blueberry bushes are starting to ripen here and there. Lefty is alright, and gave me a tasty berry yesterday.

peek-a-boo blue

The middle one is far behind, thanks to early blooms and frost damage. :(

little blue

Righty is the guy to beat!

super blue!

Now if I can get them covered in time before the birds get all the fruit. Same goes for the blackberries, which are plentiful this year and should be ripe within a week.

That's all she wrote for tonight. I am eager to track my plants' progress now that I finally have some goodies in the raised bed. I have to say, it didn't feel natural to have it empty this long. Here's hoping things have a chance to get established before the weather gets too brutal!

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The Paris Flea Market

Posted on June 11, 2012 by | Comments Off on The Paris Flea Market

I’ve been to Paris a few times and have always somehow let myself be talked out of going to the flea markets. My sister Carrie and I went this Sunday and I’m pleased to report that the flea market is even more wonderful than I could even have imagined!

The Clignancourt Flea Market is the grandaddy of all flea markets but it is so established and large that it has become more of an enormous area filled with antique shops than a flea market. As we weren’t in the market for very expensive furniture nor antiques, we opted for the smaller Porte de Vanves market. There must have been one hundred vendors selling everything you can imagine.

(Does anyone know who this is? This vendor had giant stacks of plates bearing this picture).

We spent a couple of hours at the market and left with a bag filled with inexpensive treasures. I will absolute go back to this market if I’m lucky enough to go to Paris again.

Here are a couple of tips for your trip to the market:

  • Wear comfortable shoes.
  • Bring along a large canvas bag to carry your purchases.
  • Bring cash. Most of the vendors do accept credit cards.
  • You can definitely bargain with the vendors but many of them don’t have much English. Start with “Is this the best you can do?” and write down the price you’d like to pay if you need to.
  • If you can’t get the vendor to come down to your price, walk away. You can always come back on your way out of the market but you may find something you like even more at a better price or decide you can live with out it. If you just know you’ll be sorry if you go home without it, swing back buy and pay the asking price.
  • Most items aren’t so unique that you won’t see them a few times. Old keys, vintage striped tea towels, moveable type and baskets of lace exist in abundance. It’s a good idea to walk all the way around the market before buying anything.
  • Carefully examine each piece before handing over your cash. It’s very easy to miss a scratch or chip in your excitement.
  • We didn’t see any public bathrooms around the market but you can always stop for a snack in a nearby cafe if nature calls.
  • Getting a taxi from the hotel to the market wasn’t a problem but we did wait quite a while for one to go by when we were ready to leave. It’s a good idea to get a phone number from your taxi driver if you’re in hurry to get to the airport.

Have you found any treasures at the Paris markets or any other flea markets? I’d love to hear about them.

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Sheep of the Week: Emma

Posted on June 11, 2012 by | Comments Off on Sheep of the Week: Emma

I was out on a morning ramble a few days ago, taking a few photos and wondering, a little idly, about who I’d select to be our Sheep of the Week, when, suddenly:

“Choose me!” said Emma.

Emma is hands-down the nicest and most naturally friendly ewe we have.

Most of the time, if you walk into the pasture as a stranger, a couple of things will happen: 1) the guard animals will come up and make sure you’re not a threat to the flock, 2) a goat or two or five will come up to see if you’ve got any food with you– especially if it’s around feeding time, and, maybe, 3) one of the braver sheep, invariably an ex-bottle-baby, will also come up, looking for food. Although the sheep at Juniper Moon Farm are tamer than many other flocks– we hand feed them, and don’t use dogs to herd them– it’s still a little rare for any of our sheep to come up and start nuzzling your legs.

Except for Emma, who’s just so inexplicably sweet!

She was born as a single lamb in April 2010 to Capri.

All while growing up, she was just as sweet and curious as they come.

We bred her to Solomon this past fall, and she spent the Winter and Spring with the rest of the expectant ewes.

Although she didn’t lamb this season, she kept us wonderful company while we watched over the rest of her cohort. In fact, she was such a sweet, lovey-dovey nuzzler all throughout April that we were sure she was flooded with Oxytocin, and right about to lamb. Nope– Emma’s just that nice of a ewe!

So, if you ever come for a visit to the farm and find yourself in the close company of a sweet, lovely ewe, you can probably bet that it’s Emma, and you can probably bet that you’ve got a friend for life.

NEXT WEEK of SotW: Meet the lamb who’s pictured-but-not in the photo above!

NEXT NEXT WEEK of SotW: Let me know in the comments who you’d like to meet!

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A few more blocks and an ironing board makover

Posted on June 11, 2012 by | Comments Off on A few more blocks and an ironing board makover

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Pressing my blocks properly was really starting to drive me crazy. I haven’t had the new ironing board cover for very long but already it’s degraded beyond useful and since the ironing board isn’t a solid surface it really makes a difference. I’ve been meaning to do an ironing board makeover for at least a year and the wonkiness of the bear claw block was the last straw. I used a combination of Madame Purl’s method and the tutorial from Sew We Quilt. My board is 1/2-inch poplar plywood and it’s covered with two twin cotton quilt battings, each folded in half, and a layer of duck cloth. It’s screwed to the ironing board (old cover removed)  as directed in the Sew We Quilt tutorial. Now that’s a bit better!

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Camp JMF Reminder!

Posted on June 11, 2012 by | Comments Off on Camp JMF Reminder!

If you were thinking of signing up for one of our Camp JMF Workshops, now is the time to act.They have been steadily filling up since we announced them and are being featured in a regional magazine (regional to the farm, that is) in July.

The magazine article will ensure that any spaces left will be filled, so we’re reminding our regular readers who want a spot to act quickly.

We are offering camps this year in Yarn Dyeing, Cheesemaking, Culinary Skills, Poultry Keeping, Gardening from the Pantry, Craft Photography and Shepherding,

Sign up today!

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