Say Cheese

We have just finished up another a batch of feta cheese.

Feta is a traditional Greek cheese. It is a brined, crumbly, curd cheese, commonly produced in blocks, and has a slightly grainy texture. After it has aged (two weeks to a month, if we're patient) in its brine, we usually crumble it onto salads or into scrambled eggs. Sometimes we put it on pizza, or in/on other dishes. Others use it as a table cheese, in pastries, and in baking--spanakopita ("spinach pie") and tyropita ("cheese pie").

The first record of what is probably feta cheese, is from the Byzantine Empire. It was called "fresh" or "recent" cheese (prósphatos), and was described as brined and was associated with Crete. (Andrew Dalby, Siren feasts: A history of food and gastronomy in Greece, Routledge, 1996)

The current name "feta" comes from the Italian word fetta ("slice"), which was introduced into the Greek language in the 1600's.

Whatever it is called in other places, the Greeks claim feta as their own. They also lay claim to being the first cheese makers. Polyphemus,  son of Poseidon and one of the Cyclopes, is said to be the first cheese-maker. Homer describes Polyphemus' bowls and baskets full of cheeses in the Odyssey.

Traditionally, feta is made from sheep's or goat's milk or a mixture of the two. Today it is also commercially made with cow's milk. We, of course, use goat's milk. Here is a link to the basic recipe most like the one we use:


http://fiascofarm.com/dairy/feta.html

We also made ricotta from the whey. This will go into the lasagna planned for dinner next week.


As soon as we set up our cheese cave, we'll try making some Colby or other aged cheeses. What's a cheese cave, you ask? And how do you make one? A description of ours will soon follow--no digging or spelunking involved!

More Efficient Means More Self-Sufficient

We have several improvement projects currently in progress on our place. All these and almost all of the projects planned are to make our micro eco-systems more efficient or to make our work easier or more effective. Our goal is to work smarter, not harder. This will allow us to become a little more self-sufficient in the space and time we have available.

For example, we just finished making some portable fence sections so that we can keep the fowl away from some new crops we intend to plant this week. Most of the time a low visual barrier is sufficient to keep the water fowl out, but the chickens often require a bit more, especially in height. Prior to our getting some Marans chickens, our chickens rarely, if ever flew over our four-foot picket garden fence. The Marans, however, have taught everyone in the coop to fly up to the top of the fence and then to fly down on the other side. Time to either clip some wings or make the fences a little higher, or both. So we made some lightweight fence panels that hopefully will do the job.

A month or so ago, someone left the garden gate unlatched and the geese found their way into the garden and ate every single new transplant--cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli--down to the ground! So we replanted the garden rows. A week or so later, we had a day or two of gusty winds which blew the gate latch apart. The geese helped themselves again to every single new transplant, and some not-so-new plants. So we put a new, better latch on the gate and replanted the garden rows. So far, so good: humans are happy, geese not so much.

We also are putting fence around the patio (again to keep the fowl at bay) and new siding on the fish tanks that will be more aesthetically pleasing than the makeshift siding we have had (the siding keeps the sun off of the tank so that algae doesn't grow). Because the fish tanks and aquaponic grow beds are at the edge of the patio, this siding also will be incorporated into the fence around the patio. While we're at it, we will need to design and build a better solar water heating system for the fish--last winter the water stayed just a little too cool for them. They survived just fine, but they didn't thrive or grow much during the cooler months.

We'll be updating our worm bins from the plastic storage containers we started with years ago, to a single more permanent arrangement. The worms turn our kitchen scraps into compost in a very short time. They also become food for the chickens, ducks and fish (and when we go fishin’ they also make for good bait).

We also have plans to consolidate three compost bins into one larger bin over and around which we will put up wire and wood to house chickens. The idea is to let them turn the compost with their scratching, as they live mostly on the kitchen and garden trimmings we throw in for them. This seems to be a very efficient use of resources--time, space, and waste. We have also designed an automatic chicken waterer that we’ll be putting into service in the next few weeks--we have to do some plumbing first, but it will be worth it when we’re finished. Details will follow.

In addition to these projects we are putting in some raised beds in the front yard to increase our growing space. We're looking forward to the Spring when we'll be able to look out our dining room window over a sea of winter squash vines--green like a lawn, but with edible produce....

As soon as we have finished these projects, we’ll find some more. This is a great hobby. We encourage you to try it. Just as in any other hobby, start small and work up to the bigger projects.

Finding More Space

Last week we spent a few days cleaning out the garage and some corners and edges of the yard.

As far as the garage goes, the plan is to make plenty of room to set up an aquarium for a breeding colony of tilapia. We want to be able to raise our own on a continual and constant basis--more sustainability from home. If possible, we also want to have room to put in a fish tank to hold the rest of the tilapia during the cooler months where it is easier heat the tank, while we grow trout in the outside tanks. The trout need the cold water. We'll see what happens.

As for the yard, we cleared some brush and some wood piles and trimmed some trees so that we can have a little more planting space, or more space for our poultry. Between the new beds in the front yard and the space gained in the backyard, we'll be adding about four hundred square feet of growing beds. We'll also be adding some shelter for the ducks and geese for nest boxes and some pens for keeping them confined when we want or need them to be out from under foot.

Do you have a sunny lawn in your front yard? Why do you have a sunny lawn? You water, weed, fertilize, and mow. Why not put in edible landscape in that sunny spot in your front yard? With a strong hardscape (the structural elements: walkways, fences, planters, trellises, etc.) and the right choices of plants, you can water, weed, fertilize, just as you would with a lawn, but instead of mowing grass, you can harvest fruits and veggies that are good to eat.

Although we have had herbs and dwarf fruit trees in our front yard for several years, we are just now putting in raised beds and trellises for growing garden vegetables. We’ll be posting details along with photos of our experiment as it unfolds.

There are several good books available to show you how. Our current favorite is Yvette Soler’s The Edible Front Yard: The Mow-Less, Grow-More Plan for a Beautiful, Bountiful Garden.

Pizza Dough

We’ve been making pizza every Friday night for about seven years now. Making pizza from scratch is how we really got started with our mini-farm and trying to become more self-sufficient. Read the details here. Several have asked recently about our pizza crust recipe. Thank you for the compliments.

The simple recipe, is nothing special beyond being shared by friends to get us started.We like it because it is easy and fast. We make ours with our counter-top mixer. We used to stir it by hand, but have decided to use the machine to make the job easier and a little less time-consuming.

Basic recipe made right in the mixer bowl:

1 Tbs. Yeast

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. sugar

3 cups of warm water

The salt and sugar help the yeast to get going. If your yeast is less than fresh, you may want to let it bloom, then:

Add 7 1/2 cups of all purpose flour. (See our variations below.)

Mix on low for a few minutes. Increase speed and mix until dough pulls away from the sides.

Transfer to an oiled bowl to rise until doubled. Turn out onto a floured counter and kneed for two or three minutes. Cut into three or four equal pieces depending on the thickness of crust you prefer.

Shape into rounds, place on a floured board and let rise while you are finishing the sauce and chopping and slicing the toppings. This step will allow the dough to relax and will make it easier to roll out.

Roll out each round of dough to desired thickness or diameter. Place on a round or square pan depending on your preference, or on what pans you have. We use a round Pampered Chef baking stone. Top with sauce, cheese and other toppings. At this point, depending on how you like your crust, you can let the dough rise again, or you can bake it right away.

Bake in a 500 degree oven until the cheese is bubbly and the crust is golden, approx. 12-15 minutes. We use a pizza stone on a middle or slightly higher rack. Experiment with cooking times, rack height and pans to get the crust just the way you like it. In our family, some like it thin and crispy, some like it thicker and floppy. We make some of each.

To get a crunchy-tender crust, America’s Test Kitchen recommends letting the dough rest in the fridge for up to three days... yes, days. Even though we make pizza every week, for some reason we haven’t yet remembered to make the dough on Tuesday night. Here is their video. 

Our variations on the basic recipe:

We like to soak our grains before cooking them to maximize nutrition.

These days, we also use whole wheat flour. You can use as much or as little as you like. You will have to adjust the amount of water or the total amount of flour depending on how much whole wheat flour you use. We find that substituting one cup of whole wheat for one cup of AP flour doesn’t usually require any further adjustment.

We also add about a tablespoon of dried summer savory, marjoram, or oregano to the dough to make an herbed crust. We will be trying a rosemary and olive crust soon. We also plan a sourdough crust, and one made with yogurt as the starter. We’ll let you know how those turn out.

Duck, Duck, Goose

Sorry about the corny title, but I couldn't resist.  Back in March we received a pair of Pilgrim Geese and a dozen Khaki Campbell ducks. A couple of months ago some good friends gave us seven Muscovies. We let these foragers roam over most of our quarter acre. We mowed the lawn back in March just before the ducks and geese arrived, and haven't had to mow since--they have done a great job keeping the grass cut! We do trim the edges, just for looks.  In addition to not having to mow our bit of lawn, we also do not have to provide very much extra feed. Finally a use for Bermuda Grass!

 About six weeks ago, one or two ducks began to lay eggs.

Ducks lay their eggs very early in the morning. We would find one or two on the ground each morning as we headed out to do the morning chores. This went on for a couple of weeks. Then, nothing. No duck eggs. We looked in all the usual places we had found eggs before--nothing. We looked in places we hadn't found eggs before--nothing. Someone remarked that this must be how the traditional Easter Egg Hunt began. We were happy that the eggs we were looking for were white rather than brown or some other hard-to-spot color--not that we actually spotted any. We wondered if the ducks had just quit laying, or if some critter had come into the yard and carried of the eggs. In the last couple of days one, just one, egg could be found in one of the usual places each day. What of the others?

Yesterday, we found a clutch of eggs under an antique "Old Blush" rose bush. White eggs are kinda hard to see when they are under a rose bush and there is a khaki colored duck covering them! No wonder we couldn't spot them. There are about 20 eggs in this clutch. We didn't want to disturb the nest so we just counted what we could see.

Mama Duck

We are very pleased that we may have a broody duck to incubate eggs and brood ducklings. The jury is still out, though, because she could still decide to get off of her clutch before they are ready to hatch. But we are hopeful. Typical of the Internet, we found websites that say the Campbells are not very reliable brooders, while other sites tend to claim the opposite. We'll be watching our Mama Duck closely, and if she decides not to sit on her clutch, we'll have the incubator ready to receive the eggs. Hopefully we can get at least a few to hatch this way if we have to.

We know that chickens who are brooded by their mothers tend to make good brooders themselves. We are confident that these ducklings (if Mama Duck will see it through) will be good brooders also, reducing the number of eggs we'll have to incubate and ducklings we'll have to brood ourselves. This will save us time, energy, and feed costs, but mostly it's just fun watching God's creation at work.

Buttercup, our Pilgrim Goose

We're also looking forward to our first clutch of our Muscovy Ducks, who are typically good brooders and tend to lay huge clutches. Probably we'll have to wait until the Spring since our Muscovies are young. We have harvested one of our Muscovy drakes. As noted in an earlier post, the meat is tender and tasty.

We'll also have to wait for Spring to get eggs from our geese, Wesley and Buttercup. More on that when the time comes.

Storing Seeds

What if you don't use all of the seeds in a packet you bought for this year's garden? Should you listen to the advice of the seed companies and toss the extras and buy fresh seeds in the Spring next year? Nope. Seeds will remain viable on average about three years, maybe a little longer if you are careful to store them in ideal conditions.

Conditions a seed needs for germination--moisture and warmth--are the very things that can shorten the life or viability of a seed in storage. Dry and cool conditions will extend a seed's shelf life.

We store most of our seeds in jars with tight-fitting lids to keep moisture away from our stored seeds. Plastic food storage bags will work, too.

The refrigerator is the best place to store seeds. In order to dry out the air in the jar and seed packets, place your seeds in the fridge with their jar or other container open for a few hours (even over night). Remember to put the lid on tightly once the air around the seeds has dried out. Avoid storing your seeds in that really cold spot in your fridge that sometimes freezes.

You could also place a desiccant packet (silica gel; from vitamin or medicine bottles, etc.) or you could make a small packet of powdered milk wrapped in three of four layers of facial tissue. Replace this every six months or so.

When you are ready to plant your stored seeds, take them out of the fridge, but don't open the container until the seeds come to room temperature. This is to avoid condensation which will make your seeds stick together (those little seeds are hard enough to control when dry) and may reduce shelf life if you store them again for next year.

If you are gathering and storing seeds from your own plants, let them air dry on a piece of paper towel or newspaper for about a week before putting them in cold storage.  They will probably stick to the paper, so you may be able to simply roll up the paper towel, fold over the ends, label it, and store it. Keep good records: variety, date, etc.

Even though you are careful to do all the right things to store seeds, some will not germinate the next year. Some varieties (corn, some onions, parsnips, for examples) have notoriously low germination rates. Some seeds may only store well for a year at most (onions). To make up for the lower germination rate over time, plant a few more seeds in each row or hill.

Roasting Summer Heat

We've had some HOT days on the farm the past couple of weeks. High temperatures have been over 100 degrees, but have mostly stayed in the 90's.  Some of our fruit trees and crops got a little wilted and a few leaves were even scorched by the heat even though they had been watered well. For example, our kiwi vines suffered some scorched leaves even though they get the “duck pond” water every morning. Our “duck pond” is a 20 gallon wash tub. Each morning we empty the water that is left from the day before out under one of two kiwi vines growing nearby. The water is yummy for the plants, since our birds “hop in” for a quick swim a couple of times a day leaving behind, well, their “leavin’s.”

A Khaki Campbell a few days old.

Because of the heat, our chickens have slowed down their laying, but our young (Khaki Campbell) ducks have just started laying for us! We’re getting an egg or two per day right now, looking forward to the days just ahead when we’ll be getting a  dozen per week. What do we do with duck eggs? Well, so far we have used them just like chicken eggs, although their taste is just a wee bit stronger. The duck eggs so far have been about the same size as the chicken eggs, but the yoke is bigger and the white is proportionately smaller.

We roasted a Muscovy drake a few nights ago for dinner. On a Muscovy, the meat is all dark meat, tender and tasty. We had heard that it tastes somewhat like beef, a fact confirmed by our children. One of our more finicky eaters exclaimed, “That’s goooood!” Therefore, Muscovy is definitely on the list of keeper livestock. They are a good meat bird, and don’t make any noise to speak of, unlike our Campbells, and like our Campbells, are prolific layers.

In the garden and “potting shed,” we’ve been seeding for the fall crops--broccoli, beets, lettuce, cabbage, chard, peas, etc. Still have some more to do, and should have been finished with this last month.

Because we have had terrible “luck” trying to grow veggies in containers (can’t keep the soil in the pot moist enough, for one thing), we made some “self-watering” containers out of five-gallon buckets to grow some tomatoes and peppers on our patio--maybe with some protection from the cold, we can extend the growing season a little. (Fresh tomatoes at Christmas, anyone?)  The water we’re using in these containers is nutrient-rich water from our aquaponic system.

This drawing is from the book, Urban Farming (pg. 142), which contains some great ideas for growing things in small places.

We’ll report in a month or so on how this container experiment is turning out, and offer some instructions on how to build and use one.