Baxter teaches you how to make Christmas Crack

Baxter has the process down for making one of our family's favorite Christmas treats: Christmas Crack.  So, I thought he could show you the recipe in case you want to try it too.

1. Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil or wax paper and then cover it with saltines.

2. Put two sticks of butter (1 cup) and a cup of brown sugar, in a small pot and melt.  Let it come to a rolling boil, stirring constantly, then pour it over the saltines.  Spread to cover.

3. Put the cookie sheet in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes. Then remove and let sit for 2 minutes.

4. Sprinkle the top with chocolate chips and wait until they begin to melt.

5. Spread the chocolate around.

6. Put the cookie sheet in the freezer for about an hour to solidify then turn your crack out onto the counter and break it into pieces.  Store in the refrigerator. 

7. Last but not least (Baxter's favorite step) - always lick your spreader!

Enjoy!

Elephant Garlic

I planted my garlic patch about a month ago, as I usually do.  It's the last thing I tend to put in at the end of the season, before allowing myself and the dirt a rest.  Just as my bulbs were beginning to send up green shoots through their mulch, my neighbor Rita sent me over a couple bulbs of Elephant Garlic.  Because it has been so unseasonably warm, I enjoyed the sunshine one afternoon last weekend and set to turning the ground up for a couple more rows of garlic.  It seems strange to be gardening in late November, but this year, it is so.  

After pulling apart the bulbs into cloves and loosening the soil, I dug my holes and dropped in the cloves.  I tucked the soil back in around them and then added a nice blanket of straw for when winter does finally arrive.

And next summer, when the scapes have been harvested and the leaves have turned brown and fallen over, it'll be time to revisit my cloves, grown into full bulbs again.  The magic of time and mother nature will provide my kitchen with flavors and smells to satisfy the senses.

Winter should not be considered as only negation and destruction. It is a secret and inward working of powers, which in spring will burst into visible activity. ~Henry James Slack 

Passing on Traditions

I think a lot of what makes holidays truly special is the passing on of family traditions.  We always have a family gathering with a meal on holidays.  This Thanksgiving, we hosted the meal, as we usually do, and when I looked back through my pictures I noted that this was a year of many traditions being passed from one generation to another.

First, my husband's aunt Robyn showed me how to make her mother's stuffing recipe.  My mother-in-law had showed me this last year as well, but this time I did most of it myself and I took copious notes so I could replicate it again on my own if I needed to.  It's a simple but delicious recipe, and I made it my own by using my homemade bread.  I appreciated being trusted to carry on a memory in the family by taking on this tradition.

Thanksgiving morning I had to stuff the bird and get it cooking on my own.  I got up early so I could get it going in time to be ready for the meal.  As I was working, here came Oliver up with the sun as usual.  He watched while I stuffed the turkey then asked if he could help butter it up.  I sent this picture to my mother-in-law and she predicted that someday Oliver will be the host of the family dinner, since he'll be the only boy who has watched me cook and learned the traditions.

Later in the day, Baxter came in from playing just as I pulled the beaters off the mixer covered in fresh homemade whipped cream.  He said, "Oooooohh, what's that??"  I gave him one to lick and he was in absolute heaven.  I remember doing the same thing as a little girl after my mom made whipped cream.  Another tradition, passed on.

I put my lovely husband in charge of cutting up the cooked turkey.  He called on aunt Robyn again to share her expertise.  "How do I do this?" he asked.  She stood nearby and talked him through it.  Another part of the process given from one generation to the next.

We sat down to our meal at two tables since we were too many in our group for one.  A mix of family and friends, we enjoyed a warm house, good conversation and delicious food.  

Another tradition I have started is bringing my mom to the table with us, whenever we have a special family meal.  Though she's been gone more than two years now, her spirit is ever-present.

After dinner, Bailey had to make her trip out to see the chickens.  This time there were even babies to check in on, which she loved.  I hope that she will maintain her excitement for the farm's riches as she grows older.  What a treasure to share in her giggles of delight at bird chirps and cock-a-doodle-doos.  

Roscoe update

So I've been working with Roscoe, doing some of the exercises the trainer recommended.  He is improving in terms of his general obedience and demeanor.  He listens to us better and behaves inside the house.  Since we've been training he has stopped peeing in the house, trying to eat off the counter, and jumping the fence.  He seems to want to please us more, which is good to see.  

Now, in terms of the chickens...

When I take him in the coop, initially he ignores the birds.  He is interested in smelling everything, tries to sneak some bird food, then wants to leave.  Birds walk all around him; he looks at them nonchalantly, but makes no move to chase.  But then a bird will jump out of somewhere unexpected or will squawk loudly and his attention is peaked.  Something switches on.  What really gets him is if you take him in the henhouse and a bird jumps out of a nesting box, from behind a curtain.  

Here we are practicing sitting calmly in the run.  He was doing great until a bird chirped inside the baby coop.  He could hear her but not see her and he wanted desperately to go inside but I couldn't let him because I had no control if he went in there.  Instead I took him outside until he calmed down.

I'm beginning to come to terms with the fact that Roscoe is most likely going to be a family dog, not a chicken guardian.  The other factor is that he hates, and I mean hates, to be left alone.  If he's not with his people he needs his doggy sisters.  Otherwise he gets nutty and starts running around breaking things.  Josh learned this last week when he took just Roscoe to Michigan and tried to leave him home alone while he ran some errands.  He came back to a house full of broken blinds.  So it's difficult to picture Roscoe sitting out in the yard, alone with the birds all day.  

It is a disappointment not to have Roscoe work out as a chicken protector, but I'm still glad we adopted him.  He is such a loveable and loving dog, good with the boys and patient as can be with our old lady dogs who won't take anything from him.  

As for the birds, I think our new fenced chicken yard will be the answer to our predator issues.  More on this to come!

Cranberry Salsa You Can Enjoy Anytime of Year

So I know we are past Thanksgiving but this is a recipe you could enjoy year round or add to your recipe box for next fall's celebration.  I can't remember where I got the recipe originally but I've been making it for years now and it has become a family favorite.  This cranberry salsa adds a wonderful kick to a turkey sandwich - try it!

It's really simple.  You just throw all the ingredients into a food processor.  

I like to start with just the jalapeno and get it very finely diced.  Next I add the onion and then the celery, cilantro, and about half the cranberries. At the very end, I add the rest of the cranberries and just pulse it quickly so they don't get crushed as much, leaving more texture to the salsa.

ingredients for a double batch

I like to turn mine out into a large tupperware  container and mix in the line juice, salt and pepper to taste.  Then I throw the whole thing in the fridge to cool for a few hours.  The flavors improve as they sit for a few days.  You can also freeze this if you have leftovers and enjoy it throughout the winter!

Final product

Here's my recipe card:



Enjoy!

Cupcake teepees

I made a special dessert for the boys on Thanksgiving this year - cupcake teepees.  I saw this idea on Pinterest and I had to try it myself.  You can read the original at easybaked.net.

First you have to fill the ice cream cones and bake them.  Cover a pan in heavy foil and cut slits to push the cones through.  This will hold them upright while they bake.

Next mix up your cake mix according to the directions on the box.  I did a butter pecan cake.  The original used chocolate.

Fill your cones about 2/3 full.  One thing I wish I had done was take more care in pushing the batter down into the cones.  You might even put your batter into a large ziplock bag, snip off a corner, and fill the cones with that like an icing bag.  You want the batter to fill down into the tip of the cone so that you have a solid base to push your pretzels into.  

After the cones are filled, bake them about 20-25 minutes at 350 degrees.  The original recipe said 15-20 minutes but mine took longer.  Keep an eye on yours starting at 15 minutes.

When they come out and cool, trim the tip off.  You'll have to experiment to see how far down you need to cut to give yourself room to push the three pretzel sticks down into the top.  Stick the pretzels in at varying angles.

The tops of the cones are like tiny chicken ice cream cones :)

Finally, you need to melt some chocolate and get your sprinkles attached.  The recipe called for chocolate melts, but I only had chocolate chips so that's what I used.  I melted them at low heat, with a touch of milk, on the stovetop.  Once it was loose and flowing, I dipped each cone into the chocolate them into a bowl of leaf sprinkles.  

The leftover chocolate made for some yummy chocolate dipped pretzels.

This could be a fun option for a cowboys and Indians birthday party too. 

The boys loved them!

A baby move

On Tuesday Josh was working in the workshop and scared the babies.  I came out a few minutes later to find babies everywhere.  Only about half of the 55 were in the brooder; the rest were all over the floor, on the shelves, under the workbench... two were even hiding in the bag of bedding with just one little face peeking out.  So we decided they had outgrown the brooder, and it was time to move to the coop. 

This is where our coop design with a central coop and two lean-tos comes in handy.  We are able to shut off one side to use for the babies by simply closing a door.  They have their own henhouse, and when they are a little bigger, we can open another door and let them out into their own fully fenced run.  The bigger birds can hear them now and once they're in the run they'll be able to see each other too.  So when they are finally integrated it is a smoother process.

First step was to seal up the ventilation at the top to help keep them warm.  The babies are not quite a month old.  They have lots of feathers but are still susceptible to the chilly temps so we need to provide as much warmth as possible. 

We also tied up the roosting bars to the ceiling to make room for the brooder box.  Waterer and feeder were moved over and hung low for the babes.   

Last step was to collect the chickies into a large container while we moved the brooder box over.  This was a funny task because it was like playing hide and seek with 55 tiny birds.  They are usually so loud, constantly chirping and peeping, but man can they be quiet when they want to!  We thought we had them all then Josh found two more under his workbench.  About an hour after we had completed the move I came back into the workshop to find one lonely little bird shivering on the pile of bedding left behind.  I guess she had been hiding really well and we missed her.  Don't worry she recovered once she was reunited with her sisters.

We took the bottom off the brooder box and moved the shell over into the coop.  The heat lamps were strung up and foam set over the top to keep the warmth in.   

We were ready to move the babies over.  In they went! 

Initially they huddled inside the brooder but when I came back out to check on them they were out exploring in the rest of the henhouse.

With more room to roam, the little ladies were spreading their wings and flying around.  Boy they do grow fast.  We'll be getting more eggs before we know it! 

There is much to be thankful for today and always.