a march menu

MONDAY

morning snack
honeydew melon
peanut butter on celery with raisins



 lunch:
black beans
mashed sweet potatoes
steamed broccoli
pressed purple cabbage salad w/chevre
*see how-to below 
alfalfa sprouts


afternoon snack:
whole grain crackers and cheddar cheese



TUESDAY

morning snack: 
cherries (picked and frozen in July from Dalrymple Farms)
cucumber slices

lunch
egg rolls with cabbage, grated carrots, sprouts and cream cheese
brown rice
pickles
raw red pepper slices
soft boiled eggs


afternoon snack:
mango and pumpkin seeds



WEDNESDAY

morning snack
sprouted grain bread, toasted with butter
apple slices

lunch
pizza from scratch with Farmer Ground Flour
spinach salad with cucumbers, carrots and sprouts
green peas

afternoon snack
orange slices


THURSDAY
morning snack

homemade waffles
local blueberries (picked and frozen in August from Glenhaven)
our own just-boiled maple syrup!


lunch

pearled barley 
tempeh sauteed in coconut oil
roasted parsnips
sauerkraut *see how-to below



afternoon snack
popcorn with nutritional yeast



FRIDAY

morning snack
oatmeal with goat milk, raisins, and sunflower seeds 
banana 

lunch
roasted beets
roasted cauliflower
butternut squash soup
chapatis
kale chips *see how-to below

pressed cabbage salad

finely chop one head of cabbage, sprinkle with salt and vinegar. (i prefer rice or coconut) find a plate that fits on top of cabbage inside of bowl and put something heavy on it. Let sit overnight or all day. Its best with some fresh herbs like parsley or snipped mint

sauerkraut

 coarsely chop 1-2 heads green cabbage, sprinkle with salt and pound in bowl with the bottom of a jar for awhile, until it seems more smashed and wilted. taste and if its not really salty, add some more salt. put into a jar and pack down tightly, add water to cover the food with a brine, and cover with cloth and rubber band. press cabbage back down each day if it floats up above the liquid. depending on the weather,  it will take about a 1-2 weeks to ferment 

kale chips

rip off of stem into pieces and rinse, splash with braggs or watered down soy sauce, sprinkle with nutritional yeast, put into dehydrator overnight

Spring IS coming....

We made it to March!

here are a few a my favorite things from the last month or so...

apple twigs cut on 2/3 and blooming 5 weeks later

at our lunch table



  


 













our new nature table that is taking shape... 

 
with some of the sticks from the apple tree pruning....
some newly felted items....

daffodil bulbs, wasp nests, pine cones, raw wool, pieces of bark and mossy wood from the forest, and my favorite rock collection.

(see that stem of prickly raspberry in the bowl? everyone has been touching it so carefully, no one has gotten pricked!)

we had a couple of 6-12 inch snowfalls in mid-Febraury

trekking out in the snow...

and after a couple days of trying to slog around the yard with the kids, I knew some paths needed to be made. Sometimes the only time I have to have to do special projects is way after everyone else has gone to bed. So the night of the 14th, after a wonderful Valentines Day fondue party and a nice hot bath, I shoveled snow, and piled it into hills for a few hours (12am-3am) under a nearly full moon. Mister was happy to be outside with me and a sweet little night owl joined me for a bit too!

It was totally worth the lack of sleep, to have the children excited about going outside to explore and play in the snow, not to mention the joy of breathing in the fresh cold night air, and experiencing the stillness that resides in the dark, frozen night.

tool time


The children practiced hammering by shaping grapevine into letters and nailing them into place, hammering holes into the center of bottle caps, and some free-form building too!

tapping in February

We've tapped 8 maple trees so far this year. A quick thaw in late February gave us nearly 10 gallons of sap. After whole day on the wood stove and a lot of sampling, we ended up with about 2 pints of thin maple syrup, which was delicious added a couple spoonful at a time to tea instead of honey. (note the past tense)

collecting in March

A mid-March thaw allowed us to walk farther into the woods than we have before with both little ones. At 22 months, they both need lots of hand holding and occasional pick ups on the trail, which does provide a challenge when also toting back a 3 gallon bucket of sap. So we just take it slow. With the sap flowing steady on Tuesday, the children got to drink lots of it. We stopped for awhile at the second highest tap, just below Old Joe to rest, drink sap, and, as it went, to build a fort. This thaw gave us about 13 gallons, which hopefully will be about a quart of syrup.

 

the woodpeckers apparently also thought this same tree would make a nice home

 the animals in winter

maple kisses

bitty Winkle on a sleeping Fire

hello Georgie

Georgie and Mama Lena are good friends

goats love fruit and veggie peelings, tops, stems and cores

 Schneehopli