Blossom Salad & Farmin' Friday

Did you know you can eat many flower blossoms?? So many beautiful blossoms are ready for picking, and I definitely have all I need for salad this time of year. Summer time salads are so much more fun that the same ol winter green salads. I love bright colors, and this salad just makes me smile. You can take this as an example and create your own! I just used what I picked that day. And, I measured by hand.

Jo's Blossom Salad
Greens:
1 C Spinach
1/2 C Arugula
1/2 C Chard
1/2 C Mixed lettuces
1/4 C Kohlrabi leaves (young thinnings)

Toppings:
Handful of Arugula Blossoms
Handful of Chive Blossoms
2 Strawberries Chopped
1/4 Pear Chopped
Sprinkle of Pumpkin Seeds
Sprinkle of Coconut
Sprinkle of Alfalfa sprouts

Dressing: I just drizzled on Raspberry Vinegar and Grapeseed oil.. anything goes.. simple is best for this so you can experience all the tangy/spicy and sweet flavors. Enjoy!

Newbie Farmin Chronicles:
SO much has happened on our little farm lately, I almost need a blog dedicated to it. To keep this post as short as possible, here is a short sentence recap of the past week:

Recap: Plymouth Rock Chicken "Dinner" disappears/Black Bear on property-firearm gets carried around/Mysterious dead vole every morning (the cat)/Crazy Ptarmigan drives the dogs to lunacy/Sparky the duck fights a chicken/goshawk returns and there is a stick vs predator match/"Dinner" is found/Buff Orp Hen "Betty" is limping/Hens are hiding eggs in the fireweed and shed/Juicy Fathead the rooster is a bad ass

Ah, so, pictures may explain more briefly.... I didn't get a photo of the bear because I ran for the rifle and had the cat in my arm, and I could get a picture of the fresh vole this morning.. but no. (Just to clarify, I don't shoot to kill anything.. unless it threatens me. The sound alone scares them off).

Crazy Ptarmigan

Background: We are amateur chicken keepers. This is our second year (well, mine-not my hubs). We added to our flock this year to prepare for selling eggs in town. Duck eggs, chicken eggs, and next spring-3 different breed hatching eggs. Our adults are free range. Once they left the brooder box, we kept them penned in from age 4 wks-7wks because they were still small (and vunerable). Now, we only keep them penned in at night (they go in the coop on their own) for their safety. In the winter I have to shovel snow so they can walk out. Our young flock is currently penned (still small and it's hawk 'season' here). We'll keep them in a bit longer to grow large enough that they can protect themselves when integrated with our older flock. After giving a few away as gifts, and 5 dying (hawk/weak chicks) over the last year, we have 55 birds total.

No Yoga: Once the birds are old enough, chickens are relatively moderate maintenance. Well, at least in comparison to having one adult flock, a younger flock, a flock of ducks, a barn under construction, a special needs chicken and an injured chicken. I love having so much going on. It really keeps me busy (and outside!) however, it has disturbed my yoga routine (usually early morning before I work online) and I'm feeling stiff and maaybe a little cranky.. nah.. cranky before bed though.

Hmm.. lets start with the most exciting. Yesterday I was picking greens in the garden, on the other side of the fence my adult flock was hanging out eating the thinnings/scraps I stuck through the fencing.

stayed like this forever

  
The roo and the hawk and the woman with the stick: So, my adult rooster is a bad ass. He fought a hawk twice last year, losing many feathers. He looks for his hens when they are missing. When he hears one cackle in distress, you've never seen a fat feathered butt run so fast! He's also gentle with the hens and eats crackers out of my hand. Very cool guy.

Hii-yah!

They were eating and making happy chicken sounds.. and he makes this sound that gives me a bad feeling and I though "why is he warning them/is he mad at me?" and I look over (he is 5 inches away from me) and all the chickens look up, so I look up and holy shiz there is a hawk, head bent, low, eyeing the young chicks near the barn. I yelled "hawk!" haha! to who? The rooster? He's like "duh!" And I ran, handful of spinach (that I found later on the ground), jumped out of the garden, grabbed a stick and waited. I normally have the .22 out for bears. And we had a bear hanging out this past week. What was I thinking? Well, 2nd option is a shovel/rake.. I must have actually put those away, and had to grab a long stick (waiting to be used as a roost bar).

2010-Juicy Himself!

So, I jump into the young chicks pen area and wait. Here it comes.. I hear the rooster-who has already herded the hens into their penned area (which is safe and netted-the young pen area is incomplete). I'm standing there inbetween hot pink and orange incomplete netting, ready to swing. The young chicks see the hawk and run and hide.. the hawk hovers right over the barn, and I see how dang big it is now. She swoops down and guess who turns into Babe Ruth (oh wait-was he a pitcher?).. she is thwarted and flies into a tree across the yard. I wait. For 15 minutes. I knew she was coming back because all of a sudden a chicken cries and herds the ducks (that was funny) and they all run. So she comes even closer this time! And I just kept swinging and after a minute of this showdown (she's like WHAT is that??) flew towards the neighbors. So I ran in and called them to warn. We have wildlife phone chains here. That was pretty exciting. I felt really triumphant.

Found the Lost One: Last bit of excitement was later that night. We found "Dinner" alive and under a tarp (that was covering some lumber). A weeks worth of chicken poo dried to her butt and she had laid an egg under there. After a minute, we got her to drink some water. And after about 20 she bit at a strawberry and chowed on some wet cornmeal. But, she didn't get up. And, after 13 hours, she still has not gotten up. I carried her inside after the first hour though and put her up in a brooder box with everything she needs. She holds her wing out for balance. One wing is missing quite a few primary feathers, all except 2. Her leg might be stiff, as she holds it in one direction-back. I checked her out and see no wounds, feel no broken bones. We'll see what happens.

Crooked Beak: Lastly.. little crooked beak. She is also a Plymouth Rock and has a birth deformity that has worsened. She needs special attention with feed. She does not get picked on, which is great. Very ambitious, she escapes the pen (the only one that knows how) and follows me around the yard for food. She likes to hang out on my arm too-while I'm working. Too funny. What a character. Isn't she cute/pitiful?

Update:  Little Crooked Beak passed away over winter. :(

Dande Lyin'

Current Crop

Are YOU a weed eater? Everything comes a little late in Alaska, and Dandelions are no exception. On my run this morning, I saw brilliant yellow streaked along the roads and in fields. A very welcome contrast to the inhospitable mountains and usually cold, cloudy sky. On a clear day they GLOW! Yellow is one of my favorite colors; and although most people hate the pesky non-native invaders, I think they are beautiful! Free floral landscaping!

Maybe you've heard stories from the Depression Era of Dandelion green salads as a supplemental source of veg. Maybe, you think it's WAY freaky to eat lawn veggies. Maybe it's those pesticide commercials that give 'em a bad name? Maaaybe, you should just try it!

If you've had Arugula or your basic Mustard Green lettuce, you've tasted a bitter/spicy green. Dandelion greens are very similar to Arugula and are best picked young, before the flower stalk has grown. The greens will be much more mild and tender at this stage. If there are stalks, you can also pick the smaller leaves before the bud has bloomed. The larger ones are edible, but not too palatable and certainly not the best way to introduce your taste buds to this wild forage.

Pick the young leaves (Left) not the old leaves (Right)

Pick off the blossom right HERE

Keep the green on to keep the blossom together..

There are so many things you can do with this wild burst of sunshine. The plant is entirely edible, blossoms included. You can dry the leaves or root and make tea. (Roasted Dande root tea is kind of like coffee.. to me). It will be bitter (but not as bitter as say, Golden Seal and is tasty enough with honey). It's a kind of digestive tonic (like ginger root tea). If you are interested in foraging more, check this fun slide show out.  All kinds of landscaping, edible beauties like nasturtiums. I'm hoping to harvest some rose hips soon. I'll post something yummy with those.

Don't you want to be a little bee?

Onto Dandelion Salad!
You can add anything you want to these greens. Try to balance the bitter with something sweet. I went for sweet root veggies, beets and carrots and sweet baby spinach. You could try butter crunch lettuce, a ripe tomato, pear and onion.. and maybe sprinkle in some raisins. Experiment!


Dande Lyin'
1 C Dandelion greens (chopped in half or whole)
1 C Baby spinach
1 Beet shaved thin
1/2 Carrot shaved thin
Handful of Dandelion Blossoms

Mmmm edible sunshine!

Ready to Eat!

Miso Honey Mustard Dressing:
1 Tbs Miso (I use brown rice miso-anything will work)
1 Tbs  Apple Cider Vinegar
1/2-1 tsp honey
1/4 tsp Mustard Powder or 1/4-1/2 tsp Dijon mustard (any kind really)
Any basic vinaigrette would work with this. I just wanted something tangy and sweet.


I'm pretty sure you can take it from here! Place salad in bowl. Stir dressing well, drizzle over salad.. enjoy!

 

Spring Cabbage Slaw

Picnic Anastasia Island

While I was in Florida, I indulged in fresh produce allll day long. Florida Bananas, Watermelon, Cantaloupe, Blueberries, Strawberries, Peaches, Tangerines, Grapefruit, Kale, Squash, etc. etc. Oh my gosh, the list goes on. I ate SO much fruit. It was heaven. I browsed the Farmer's market listening to live music for well over an hour shopping.

This tangerine tree to the left is at my Aunt's house. I even brought some grapefruits from her trees home with me. MMMmm.  Well, now I'm back in Alaska and produce is a little harder to get. Much less LOCAL produce. So, my diet comes back to a lot of root veggies and greens. Which is great, yes. But I do miss the fresh fruits in a bad way. All of our berries are frozen, our bananas are the conventional gassed kind, and watermelon.. basically doesn't exist. We do get a lot of produce from Washington (Full Circle Farms) and California. We can get greens from the neighboring farm (or from our own once they are ready). This area is definitely bountiful in berries during summer. Looking forward to that! It was much easier to keep a raw food diet in Florida though. Now I'm eating sprouted grain tortilla's and eggs again (loaded with raw veggies) when I'm feeling slack. I definitely rely on more dehydrated raw foods here. I definitely feel the difference in my energy. I ate 5 various citrus fruits alone yesterday. Which are $2.77 lb here. So, that was rather indulgent. It's so much more expensive to eat produce here. :(
Last night I made a delicious Red Cabbage Slaw. I generally avoid all sugar not found in fruits/dates etc. But I did use a bit of Agave in this. I found some very interesting (and disheartening) info on Agave and how your body metabolizes it similar to HFCS. Who knows. For now, until I have time to research it more, I'm cutting it out.

Delicious and Beautiful!

Spring Cabbage Slaw
1/2 Red Cabbage sliced into thin shred
1 Carrot Shred
1/8 cup Raisins (soaked)
1 Leaf Kale Shred
1/4 cup Cubed Cucumber

Dressing:
2 Tbs Red Wine Vinegar (or ACV)
1 Drizzle of Olive Oil (or sesame if your feeling like asian slaw)
2 Tbs Onion Chopped
1 Clove Garlic
1/4 Tsp Celery Seed or Salt
3-4 Cranks of Ground Blk Pepper
1/8 Tsp of salt (or more to taste)
1 squirt of Agave Nectar (could use honey)

Process all dressing ingredients until onion is tiny.

Mix all veggies in a bowl, add dressing, stir. Let sit for 10 minutes at least in fridge. Enjoy!

Fresh Greek Veggie Salad & Ginger/Cherry/Almond Chocolate

One of my favorite lunches is a simple, fresh diced veggie salad drizzled with lemon/lime, grapeseed/olive oil. You can really play around with the veggie combos and spices. For valentines, my mother in law sent us a set of different artisan oils and vinegars. One of which is an awesome arbequina, which I've only had in restaurants. I love to invents salad dressings, and this gave me even more ideas. There is an amazing blueberry balsamic in the set, and I just use it alone, too perfect to add anything to! Anyway.. if you love to play around too, you may like this salad (or have already invented it on your own)! The recipe itself is from a moosewood (the cafe not mollie katzen) cookbook... the Cook at Home one I believe. I've made it so many times, I just throw it together now. This might now be the exact recipe, but this is how I make it:

Fresh Greek Veggie Salad
1/2 cucumber (scrape out insides) dice
1 tomato dice
1/2 red onion dice
3-4 cloves garlic crushed (I love garlic- this may be strong)
1/2 red pepper dice
1 full cup diced parsley ( I love parsley.. may be a lot for some)
1 avocado dice
1/2 cup olives (kalamata/black) quartered
Mix together

Dressing:
I drizzle over:
1 tsp of arbequina
1 tsp lemon or lime juice
1 tsp good dried oregano
a couple grinds of sweet long black pepper
a pinch or two of salt

Mix again and Enjoy! You could also add in feta cheese (I believe the original recipe does)

I usually eat this entire thing for lunch. Double if serving for more than 1 person...

Cherry/Almond/Candied Ginger

Oh my... I got to talking about making homemade chocolate yesterday with someone and just had to make some today. Today I made chocolate with dried cherries, almonds, and chunks of homemade candied ginger! Delicious! But a bit rich for me right now (as eating a piece quickly told).
Here's the link for homemade chocolate: http://runhardeatclean.blogspot.com/2011/01/raw-chocolate.html

Spiced Pomegranate Avocado Salad

My first post!

This is a delicious way to enjoy pomegranate arils. The salty/cumin spiciness seems to continually reset your taste buds making the pomegranate flavor more intense than ever. The juice bursting in your mouth is a welcome calm to the medley.

    1/2 pomegranate, seeded
    1/2 avocado, sliced or cubed
    1 tablespoon fresh cilantro, chopped

    Dressing:
    2 to 3 tablespoons grapeseed or olive oil
    2 to 3 tablespoons lime juice
    1/2 to 1 teaspoon cumin, to taste
    1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:

1. In a bowl, place avocado and pomegranate seeds. Sprinkle with chopped cilantro.

2. In separate bowl, whisk all dressing ingredients with fork in bowl or use a food processor.

3. Drizzle dressing over bowl of pomegranate/avocado and enjoy!

I always have leftover dressing.. so perhaps double the salad ingredients.. the dressing keeps well. My husband eats this as a dip with seedy tortillas (like the Food Should Taste Good brand). Delicious!

 RUN:

This morning's run was hot! 32 degrees and I had to take my gloves off after about 1 mile. Even though I decreased layers according to the temp, after the many mornings of -2 to 5,  icy lashes and frozen snot; 32 felt like a sauna in my jacket. My doggy companion must have been heating up too, she stopped, dropped and rolled in the fresh powder!