Any day now, for the past week, we’ve been expecting the piglets to be born. The mamas were huge and pregnant, and the first possible due date had already passed. We’ve got them in rotation with the cows right now – the cows eat hay, litter it around, and poo everywhere. When a pack of…
Author: toadstoolsfairyrings
NAVETS A LA BÉCHAMEL: Turnips With Béchamel Sauce
Turnips Béchamel, or turnips in a creamy white sauce. La Cuisine details the choosing of a good turnip: “You must choose turnips that are white and firm, not too large, but heavy (because many are hollow).” This being The Year Of The Enormous Turnip in the garden, I had to skip over the “not too…
Losing and Finding
It already feels like spring – the peaches are blooming, summer seeds are sprouting, the potatoes are planted, and a few days ago the last of our mama goats kidded, and had twins! It’s been so busy, and there is so much to do in this nice weather before the summer…
Creamy Dill and Daikon Salad
I love daikon radishes. They seem to be sweeter than other radish varieties, and they improve the soil where they are grown. The long taproots can grow to be huge, and when they are pulled, they look like little people. Daikons are also very versatile in the kitchen. They are delicious in stir-fry, incorporated into…
The Evolution Of Butter
Butter is something I’m passionate about. I’ve always loved butter. Even when I was trying to be vegan in high school, I liked fake butter. Then, when I returned to the real thing, it was like being reunited with Truth, an experience of tasteful clarity that lightening-bolted Earth Balance off my grocery list for good….
Making Thick, Creamy Yogurt
For years I struggled to make my ideal yogurt – one my children would actually eat. They would down yogurt by the carton, and it always seemed so unprofitable to have so many dairy animals and be buying yogurt, just for the sake of the picky, picky little ones. Their ideal yogurt must be mild,…
Making Butter
Once I was travelling outside of Carcassonne in Southwestern France. I was passing through a small, small town, the kind they have there with the cobbled medieval streets that are made for foot traffic only, and trap foolish American tourists who think every road should be worthy of large vehicles. There was a small market…
Kefir, An Immortal Ally
I have bought and tried out many different milk cultures over the years – piima, viili, fil mjolk, heirloom buttermilk culture, Flora danica….there were more, but those were the ones I remember clearly. While all of these cultures made different and interesting forms of sour milk, there was one problem – they were incredibly…
Imbolc/Candlemas
Imbolc or Candlemas, the ancient celebration of mid-winter, approaches on February 2nd. It marks the middle of the time between the solstice and the equinox, between the time of long darkness and time of the day outlasting the night. Imbolc meant “in the belly,” as the sheep were about to begin their lambing season, and…
LANGUE DE BOEUF EN SAUCE: Beef Tongue in Sauce
We recently culled some beef, and this time we managed to salvage the tongues. Tongue isn’t often eaten any more, although not so long ago it was an economical cut of meat at the grocery store. The first time I tried cooking a beef tongue, I was a little bit horrified at the graphic nature…
10 Tips For Amazing Broth
Broth is one of those amazing ingredients that makes everything taste good. With some broth on hand, you can make soups, sauces, gravies or cook beans, grains and vegetables in it. Everything you add it to will be rich and flavorful. Well-made broth not only tastes good, but also is a powerful healer…
Yarn Along: Crocheted Rag Rug Tutorial
It has been awhile since I’ve had anything other than lace yarn to work with, but now I am jumping over to crocheting a few more rag rugs. There are several reasons for this drastic shift in handwork – 1) Lace requires WAY too much concentration for me right now. It is so sad to…
Toadstools And Fairy Rings 