campers, campers, everywhere!

 

As you probably know, I LOVE our little 1963 Yellowstone camper named Maizy...the story of how she came to be ours is here.  We laugh every time we read her owners manual that says she
"will sleep 4-8 comfortably."

13 feet long, 6'6" wide and about 6'3" tall...and that's without the cab-over!

courtesy of: Tin Can Tourists

Really...4-8 comfortably? Even 4-6 is a a bit of a stretch (okay, more than a bit)

I'm just saying, in my mind, she's a 2-person camper. Maybe if there were littles to tuck in one of the beds or the crow's nest, but honestly, nope...she's a 2-person gal. We did squeeze my daughter in the crow's nest for one sleepover and my 6'3" son on the larger back bed and it was, um, well, cozy might be the best word.

Maizy

So anyway, as I've been out & about, I've noticed lots of fun vintage campers, and I thought you might like to see them. Clever, classic, retro designs that make me smile..

I passed this shiny little Airstream today...

and saw this vintage lady peeking out of a barn...

a little Casita looks ready for a road trip...

 

while this camper was doing double-duty as a traveling food "truck" at a
favorite farm show.

Lastly, we spied this on the way to school one day..oh-so tiny, but look, it has
an airconditioner!

While reading a blog by MaryJane's Farmgirl Blogger Nicole...aka the Suburban Farm Girl, she wrote a great post about vintage radios (click here to read) and she inspired me. 

She shows snapshots of tabletop vintage radios that no longer work, and how she "hides" a smart speaker behind it...the look of vintage charm that "works"; how clever!

When we bought Maizy, she came with lots of goodies, one was a turquoise Zenith tabletop radio...the fun, colorful plastic version. A little sleuthing and I found out it's a 1961 Art Deco Tabletop Tube Radio. Because it didn't pick up anything more that just static, it has been stored away.

But after reading Nicole's post, I pulled out the radio, dusted it off, and tucked our tiny bluetooth speaker behind it. Soon I was on Pandora searching for the top hits from 1963...

and like magic, it's as if the radio was playing...as Nicole says, instant charm and atmosphere!  

There will only be a short time to enjoy Maizy...soon enough she'll be covered and safely tucked away for winter. In the meantime, she's just perfect for quiet, mother-daughter time.

My mother-in-law always said, these will be the best days of your life.

She was right...

zumpkin reveal!

Remember this? 

So...the questions is,  is it a pumpkin-shaped zucchini,
or a zucchini-skinned pumpkin?

The great reveal...

I'm saying a pumpkin-shaped zucchini...while it's not hollow to carve, it does smell like a pumpkin and those seeds, well they look like pumpkin seeds to me! Yep...saving them to plant next year!

Lately, the days have been ideal...mornings that start off chilly (38 degrees today) then end with brilliant golden shadows and a flurry of dust as farmers harvest corn and soybeans. We had a bonfire Wednesday; roasting hot dogs and enjoying ooey-gooey s'mores...one of my favorite ways to celebrate October.

And so my calendar tells me tomorrow is "I Love Yarn Day", I think it's time to whip up a little something cozy for winter!

Happy Friday; below are a few of my favorite pictures from this week.

cheery blooms...

        smiling goats...

morning shadows...

my favorite farmers' market!

harvest-time...

a forgotten apron that was tucked away...

now washed & pressed, the colors are perfect for Maizy...
she's just inside the camper door alongside a vintage
gingham apron and a new apron made from
glamping fabric. They make me smile! 

harvest is at its peak!

The last couple of weeks have been picture-perfect...sun-shiny days filled with blue skies, just-right daytime temperatures and chilly evenings. Each morning is fresh and crisp with the rising sun, and then each night is aglow with an autumn moon...fall magic.

When October comes to the country, it's a gloriously busy time; harvesting the garden and "putting things up"  (as our grandmothers would say). Canning season is notoriously hot & humid, but not this year...temps in the 50's and 60's made it an easy task. With that done, we can now stack wood, order hay, and make plans for winter.

There is plenty of time to wash quilts, shake rugs, bake bread, light candles, make soup, sweep the porch...all the things that were easy to put off in the humidity of summer are now quickly done without a second thought. It's a happy time!

Today, sharing some snapshots of our harvest days on the farm...happy October!

 

And today's burning question...

I planted zucchini alongside white pumpkins:

this is what I got...

pumpkin body

zucchini skin

Have I created the first ZUMPKIN?

(I'll be cutting into it to see if the inside is pumpkin-like
or zucchini-like, stay tuned!)

canned banana peppers...handed-down, tried & true

The last few days I have been in a tizzy. Webster's Dictionary is spot on when it says a tizzy is: 

"a highly excited and distracted state of mind"

Yep, that about sums it up. 

In a frenzy.

In a panic.

Riddled with guilt.

And why? Because with canning season here and the garden overflowing, I couldn't find my grandmother's recipe for pickled banana peppers...it wasn't in the spot it's "always" in. Anxiousness set in...this was her handwritten recipe, what could I have done with it? The last time I made it was for our County Fair, but I was sure I didn't take it with me to the fairgrounds.

I looked through my cookbooks...had I tucked it away? I looked through kitchen drawers...was it with other loose recipes? I called my mom...she tried to recall it from memory, but wasn't sure, and she didn't have a copy.

Feeling defeated, I decided I had to go through cookbooks again, this time not looking for the recipe card, but looking at cookbooks I had helped write. Once upon a time I was a Cookbook Editor, and surely somewhere in those dozens of books I had written, I had included her recipe. 

I sat on the floor, and began all over again. Finally I pulled my very first cookbook off the shelf, and there it was: Maymie's Canned Peppers. I was thrilled...while I still need to find that heartfelt, original recipe, I at least HAD the recipe. And so today, the canning began!

I'll share it with you, but remember, this is an old recipe...probably 80 years-old if not older. I don't claim to be an expert at perfecting the pickling salt/water/vinegar ratios, I just know that this recipe has been enjoyed for generations and it has worked just fine.

You'll also see she listed just brine ingredients. Today I picked as many peppers as I could, doubled the brine, and had some left over. I can't give you an exact count or weight of peppers...for me, that's the beauty of this old-fashioned recipe.

My grandparents in 1918

Maymie's Canned Peppers

Banana Peppers; hot or sweet

1 cup pickling and canning salt

9 cups water

1 cup distilled white vinegar

1 garlic clove, peeled, per jar

1 Tablespoon Wesson Oil, per jar

Prepare peppers...if leaving whole, cut two slits in each pepper, or you can slice peppers into rings discarding the stems. 

Prepare a boiling water bath and sterilize jars, lids and rings. If you have never done this before, please read the step-by-step instructions shared by the National Center for Home Food Preservation by linking HERE.

To create the brine, combine salt, water, and vinegar in a stockpot; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, stir, and simmer until salt is dissolved. Set aside, but keep to a low simmer.

Add one garlic clove to the bottom of each sterilized jar; then pack peppers tightly into jars. Slowly pour hot brine over peppers leaving 1/2-inch headspace. Add Wesson oil to each jar.

Use a small non-metallic spatula or plastic knife inside the jar between the peppers and the side of the jar to remove air bubbles. Wipe jar rims, apply lids and rings.

Process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes. 

When I first went to look at Mae, my 1950 Hotpoint stove, the lady selling her asked if I canned...I'll be happy to tell her that today Mae and I canned for the first time and tomorrow we'll be canning tomatoes.

If you try them, I hope you enjoy these banana peppers...salty, with a hint of garlic and oil.  I'm oh-so grateful to have jars lining my pantry again! 

happenings on the farm...

I admit it...I am finicky when it comes to the seasons. Going through a store or receiving a catalog and seeing Halloween candy in July or Christmas decorations in August just makes me crazy...I will stop, look, and then roll my eyes.

Times like those always bring to mind the quote by Jeffrey R. Holland:

"Nature has its rhythms and its harmonies.
We would do well to fit ourselves as best we can with those cycles
rather than frantically throwing ourselves against them.
be calm, be patient, be happy with the season you are in."

Well, with that being said, I broke all my own rules a couple of weeks ago. The weather had been so hot and humid and we'd been cleaning out barns and the basement and well, I snapped. I needed Fall, so out came the pumpkin-vanilla candles and pumpkin-scented hand soaps. I just couldn't help it...I was NOT happy with the season I was in!

Ahhh, never underestimate the power of fragrance...sure, it may still be hot & humid outside as harvest and canning season begins, but somehow the scent of pumpkin and vanilla help me remember that soon sweater weather, colorful leaves, and the sound of a crackling fire are all just around the corner. Ahhh... 

And so, for us it's harvest-time, I'll take you on a little walk about the farm for a peek at what's happening in our part of the Midwest...

just-picked radishes and carrots...

sage I'll dry for Thanksgiving stuffing, peppers for canning...

flowers still bursting with cheery blooms... 

tomatoes for sauces and busy bees in pumpkin blooms.

 

                     

 
   

                             And somehow...our daughter turned, gulp, 20! 

             

Thanks to the pandemic, we celebrated in style at home...silly style, including a candy-filled pinata, musical twirling birthday candles, and a family glow-stick selfie!

And lastly, for anyone wondering about Bailey, no worries, she's fitting in just fine!

Who rescued who?

 

oven-roasted tomato sauce recipe...tried & true!

The temperature this morning was 48 degrees...ahhh, absolutely perfect to me. And because we are in the heart of tomato season, and with cooler temperatures predicted, it's a good weekend for canning garden veggies!

Just in case you're thinking the same thing, I'm re-posting the recipe...

SO easy!

SO delicious!

1 - quarter as many tomatoes as will fit a 13"x9" pan.
      (no need to core or peel, just slice off the stem end.)

2 - add garlic to taste

3 - drizzle with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt & pepper; stir to coat tomatoes.

4 - place baking pan into a 400-degree oven for 45 minutes.

5 - Cool tomatoes slightly, spoon into a blender and puree. 

6 - Add 3 T.  Italian seasoning, or fresh herbs to taste 
     (oregano, garlic chives, rosemary, basil, French tarragon); blend to combine.

7 - Add a peeled, quartered onion, and a pinch of sugar; if desired.
     Blend until smooth.

8 - Spoon into freezer containers; freeze.

That's it!

You're done!

I'll also be making canned peppers...will share that recipe with you soon.

4 farmhouse fallacies...(don't you love alliteration?!)

Like so many of you, our days on the farm are full...trimming, mowing, tilling, watering, harvesting, only to fall in bed at night "bone tired" as the saying goes. And the next morning we get up and do it all again. During summertime especially, I am grateful Sunday is set aside as a day of rest...it's much needed.

A couple of weeks ago, while I was working in the garden, it dawned on me that I had some myths to debunk. "Wisdom" that was shared with me that I've found, well, just isn't so wise after all.

1-don't mulch with hay...it's full of seeds and your garden will be full of weeds.

NOT true! We always seem to have some hay at the bottom of our stacks that turns a bit moldy. While definitely not good for the goats, it's perfect for mulching garden plants. I pull apart the flakes and put them around all my plants. Not only does it do a terrific job of keeping the weeds at bay, it does NOT sprout seeds and cause new weeds.

2 - potatoes that have sprouted in your kitchen will not grow in your garden.

Hog Wash...each spring I have potato sprouts that I plant in the garden, and each year we dig up oodles of potatoes. They will grow and they're delicious!

3 - don't plant volunteers that have survived over winter, they won't produce in your garden.

Each spring, before tilling the garden, I stumble upon a volunteer or two...this year it was pumpkins and gourds, tenacious little seeds that survived and then thrived. Won't produce? Look at this photo!

4 - Now, while not a garden myth, this may be one of the most important myths to expose of all.

Pit bull dog breeds are bad.

Now, hear me out...because I was wary of them at one point. Yes...stories in the news do carry powerful influence. 

Several weeks ago we discovered a dog sleeping in our barn. At the sight of us, she would run as fast and as far as she could to get away. And yet, each morning we'd find her back in the hay, curled up. We began looking on lost animal websites and in the paper thinking surely someone had lost their family pet. But in the backs of our minds, we knew...it's happened before; we live in a spot that's just right for dropping off dogs unseen.

Weeks went by as we tried to gain her trust. The running away slowed and in time, she began to trust us, but would still hang her head and flinch at unexpected noises. Slowly, we did gain her trust...and I'm here to tell you, she is the sweetest dog and we've named her Bailey. 

While most likely a mix, she has the main markings of an American Staffordshire Terrier. She is stocky and muscular with wide-set, dark round eyes. People will say, oh she's related to Pit Bulls; however Pit Bull isn't a breed, it's a catch-all for several breeds descended from Bulldogs.

There are a lot of stigmas that surround theses dogs and they face a lot of discrimination. The Bulldog breeds were originally bred as working dogs, while, sadly, in later years because of their strength and muscular build, were bred to fight. They are not inherently aggressive, but gentle, intelligent, and affectionate. All dogs are products of their environment as well as genetics. 

Because we don't know her background, we're still getting to know Bailey...as we would do with any dog breed. But when I see her soaking up the sunshine peacefully alongside the barn cats and watch her snuggle up to each of us for affection, I think a gem has found her way to our home.