Spring & Planting time on the farm with a menu

My gift for Administrative Assistants Day.  I have wonderful bosses.

Another Birthday

 First, a happy 61st birthday to my Blue-eyed Farmer.  I love you bunches, Sweetie.

Farmer with dgs2 (oldest Little)

What I Did This Weekend

Despite snow and below freezing temperatures a few mornings this past week, it is Spring on the Farm.  Farmer started planting corn yesterday (Saturday.)  It was also his birthday.  I gifted him with a card and his favorite meals (tuna sandwiches for lunch and homemade pizza for supper.)  The boys called him and the Big granddaughters all texted him plus he got some cards in the mail.  I also made him chocolate chip cookies for his treat.

We got hay for the cows in the morning.  Then a quick run into town to get some things he needed.  We dropped off a succulent bowl I had gotten for DDiL.  The kids re-homed their big dog and now she can beautify her patio. 

Took the seed up to the field and he was off and going.  I spent the morning cleaning the house & doing laundry.  Made up tuna salad and took him a field lunch.  It was a cool day but sunny.

In the afternoon he sprayed the fields he had planted.  DS2 came out to check/fix pasture fences.  Then Farmer & I went to get more corn seed and he planted until dark.  

New iris is under the far trellis.

I transplanted a iris plant in the new garage flowerbed and prepped the new planter for planting a mandevilla vine when it gets warmer. 

Last week Farmer helped me detangle all the tomato cages and organize that area by the fence.  I also uprighted the compost "bin."  It's something I bought with the idea of making compost without building a bin.  Saturday I finally started a "proper" compost.  I layered sticks in the bottom (which is open to the ground.  It has mesh sides and is open on top); then a layer of "brown or dry."  They suggested leaves but there are few dry leaves around anymore in spring.  I found a bunch of old tomato vines that were brown and dry so I used those.  (Thinking now, I could have gotten some dry straw or hay from the bunk and used that as well.)  Then I layered in some cut grass and the kitchen waste, then a layer of manure/soil.  I watered it all down well and covered it with some cardboard.  I'll give it 2 weeks and stir it with a pitch fork.  And I'll start a new layer.  And hopefully by June, I'll have some new compost to dress the plants.

I bought some moss roses from a local fund-raising plant sale this week. I was going to plant them but it's suppose to get hot Monday and then rain Wed.  I'll plant them Tuesday after work so they won't cook.  And then it's suppose to get cold next Mon-Tues, so I won't be planting my herbs yet.  Not until the 3 Frozen Kings come & go.  https://www.farmersalmanac.com/who-are-the-three-ice-men-11048  

Late afternoon, I went back inside to do more laundry.  I made pizza dough and defrosted the meats, ground beef and some Italian Chicken Sausages.  I had those 2 head of broccoli from the produce sale to use up yet. I decided to blanch them and just put in the freezer.  And then since Farmer warned me he wouldn't be home until at least 8:30, I made a batch of chocolate chip cookies.  It was a bit of a whirlwind of pizza, broccoli and cookies all the while keeping an eye on the clock timing the blanching, and timing the cookies baking and watching for him coming home.

We ate and at 10:30 I was folding the last load from the dryer.  It was a long, busy, but good day.

Today we slept in a little.  I made our weekly blueberry muffins and we listened to church.  I did my devotions with a second cup of coffee, but could not keep my eyes open.  So I gave in and took a 2.5  hour nap!  I guess yesterday wore me out. 

Lunch on Sunday is whatever you can find.  Farmer had more of the tuna salad and I made myself a big salad with greens, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, peppers, cheese and egg.  We've rested and relaxed all afternoon and now he's mowing and I'm blogging.  

MENU

This week is suppose to be up & down temperature-wise.  90 tomorrow, 70s Tuesday, then cooler Wed, back to the 70s Thu & Fri.  Colder on Mon & Tues next week.  We still have not had a thunderstorm which is rather strange.  

I try to make out our menu according to the weather and what we are doing.  And as always trying to Find My Fragments.  

Here's this week's:

Sunday (today): Air Fryer meal or Leftovers

Monday (90day-HOT): Chef Salads (FMF) with ham, cheese, eggs and some leftover biscuits and garlic sticks)

Tuesday: Tacos, refried beans (FMF)

Wednesday (Breakfast Night): Pancakes and sausage, fruit (FMF from the fridge & freezer)

Thursday: Sloppy Joes, buns (FMF), baked beans, chips, for him; Sweet Chili Pineapple (or mango) Chicken with broccoli and rice for me.

Friday: Steaks on the grill, baked potatoes, salad

Saturday:  Going to inventory the pantry and freezers and see what we have too much of or what needs to be used.  Stay tuned for details.   

FMF

I've been trying hard to keep the leftovers and extras used up.  I do not want to waste food or our hard-earned resources.  

I found our walking onions are growing well.  I pulled several and shouldn't have to buy spring onions for a long while.  These never get large bulbs but are still good to use as storage onions.  I have 3-4 garlic cloves left and none in the store looked good, so I'll be on the look-out for new garlic soon.

I used the onion in the tuna as well as some celery that was on it's way out.  Wrapping it in foil really does work.  Keeping celery in plastic does not keep it.  I also found that if your tuna salad doesn't seem thick enough for you, 6-8 crumbled crackers will help thicken it and you don't notice the taste or texture.  They seem to "melt" away.

I also used the onions in the pizza topping and also found the packages of Chicken Italian Sausages I had vacuum-sealed.  I used one on my side of the pizza.  The other one I'll use on my salad or in the Chicken meal.

All that Bag-Sale produce has gone to good use.  I did lose one avocado that was too bad to salvage.  The others I was able to cut out the bad spots.  

I cut up the pineapples and packed those in Farmer's lunches all week.  

The mangos I cut up and used some in Mango Salsa for my fish tacos.  So good.  The recipe originally calls for pineapple but I've used peaches & cucumbers in it as well.  

As you read I blanched the broccoli for the freezer.  The peppers are still good in the fridge and I'll either put the pears in Farmer's lunch this week or make a pie or bread out of them with the apples that no-one is eating.  

I cooked up one of the punts of mushrooms and put those in my eggs on Wednesday evening.  The rest should hold this week and I'll use some in my Sweet Chili Chicken and some I'll brown in butter for my steak on Friday.

There is Romaine lettuce to be cleaned and cut up for Monday's salads along with various "extras" like those peppers, carrots, sugar peas (which could also go in my Sweet Chili Chicken), cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, cheeses.  There is ham in the freezer and shrimp and chicken strips (not necessarily Fragments but something that needs to be used.)

I seem to have an abundance of carrots, so I'll need to find something to do with them.  My mind jumps to carrot cake but heaven knows I don't need that!  Farmer does like roasted carrots so perhaps a sheet-pan meal next week sometime. 

My goal is to clean out my fridge.  So much in it right now, condiments and other not used daily items.  I need to discover what it all is and find a way to use it.

I also need to use up more freezer fruit, so zucchini bread or a cobbler or something; or just more smoothies.

Since I started this post, Farmer has finished mowing and we drove over to check on some elderly neighbors.  She gave me 6 potted hostas that she divided out of her plants and offered me some columbine plants (if I come dig them) and promised to keep any small redbud trees that come up volunteer.  This is the sweet neighbor that gave me the rhubarb plants and is always my "farm wife" mentor.  

We are now home and supper is almost done so I'll close for another week.  If anything post-worthy comes up, you'll see it here.

Stay well,

Kay

In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt. ~Margaret Atwood