Gardening in July

It is so hard to believe that July is almost over!! Where is the summer going? Sadly, a good part of July was spent indoors, hiding in the air conditioning for us. Through the heat wave, and the drought, I have managed to keep the garden going. There were lots of nights spent running outside to move the garden hose around. Amazingly I have only lost one flower plant due to the weather. Not to bad!!

Last year all the tomato cages I tried, were useless. The tomatoes grew beyond their capabilities. This year, I found old "cattle panels" laying around the farm. I had Truckin' Man stake them into the garden, and they are working perfectly! 

Now, if only the tomatoes would turn red! 

 The Cattle panels are working perfectly as a trellis for the pea's and beans, also!

This is my first year raising pea's! I'm so excited! All the pea's are eaten in the garden though. Maybe one day some will make it in to the table!

Peppers are coming along. Slow, but sure!

This is my third year raising pumpkins. Finally successful! I have pumpkins everywhere! I must have finally found the right variety, or the right location for them.

 All this mass of green is pumpkin vines! They are taking over!

Time to go pick more veggies!!

Frosted Peanut Butter Fingers

I was flipping through a cookbook the other day and found this recipe that used to be one of my favorites to make. Somehow, I had forgotten about it. How does that happen to such a good recipe? Especially one with chocolate and peanut butter?! I was a little disappointed in myself for letting such a thing happen. 

I did of course, get them made, and was so happy. It is such a peanut butter delight! It was the first time for Truckin' Man to try these bars, and let me tell you, he was a fan! The oatmeal layer has a lovely texture, topped with the smooth peanut butter, and finally the chocolate frosting! Yum!

Frosted Peanut Butter Fingers  (Adapted from Taste of Home)

1 c. butter, softened

1 1/2 c. packed brown sugar

1 c. sugar

2 1/2 c. creamy peanut butter, divided **Please see note below

1 egg

1 1/2 t. vanilla extract

2 1/2 c. oats (Quick cooking or regular)*

2 c. all purpose flour

1 t. baking soda

1/2 t. salt

Frosting

3 T. butter, softened

2 c. confectioners' sugar

1/4 c. baking cocoa

1/2 t. vanilla extract

3 to 4 T. milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugars.  Add 1 cup of peanut butter, the egg, and vanilla; mix well.  In separate bowl, combine the oats, flour, baking soda and salt; add to the creamed mixture.  Spread into a greased 15" x 10" baking pan.

Bake at 350 for 13-17 minutes, or until golden brown.  Cool slightly on a wire rack, about 10 minutes. Then spread with the remaining peanut butter. Now, cool completely.

In a mixing bowl, combine the butter, confectioners' sugar, cocoa, vanilla and enough of the milk to get the frosting to the spreadable consistency.  Spoon over the peanut butter layer, then spread. 

*Note: You can use regular or quick cooking oats, but I like the texture better when using regular.

**I have found a note on this recipe stating generic or reduced-fat peanut butter is not recommended for this recipe. I have not tested this, and usually use Jif or Planters Peanut Butter.

Enjoy :)

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The Ladies

 Good Morning! 

 We are FINALLY enjoying farm fresh eggs! Two of the ladies have been laying for the past two weeks. A third lady started laying this weekend!

My mom started raising chickens this year, also. She ended up having more birds than she wanted, so we took five of hers to add to our flock. 

They are Australorp's. They are so pretty, but so timid!!!

We tried adding this Auracana Rooster to our flock, but he did not work out with our free range lifestyle. 

We had to pass him along to some friends.

So, these girls will continue to rule the roost and keep everyone in line!

Have a great week!!

Simple Dinner Rolls

It was challenge week for myself. The challenge? Baking with yeast. I have always been afraid of yeast, unless using it in my bread maker. I thought it was time to step up and give it a shot. I have seen so many yummy breads on my favorite blogs recently, that I really want to be able to try these and not be so panic stricken. I always end up walking away from the recipe, afraid to try them.

I dug through all my cook books and finally decided on a recipe. They turned out amazing!! This is a very forgiving recipe, as I know that I made several mistakes that would have ruined other recipes. The second time I made them (yes, twice in one week) I followed the directions exactly, and they were even better! They are light and fluffy, and fool proof! Truckin' Man loved them even more than I did. We both love our bread's so much, there is a whole new world of baking for us to enjoy with me no longer fearing yeast!

If you are new to baking with yeast, have no fear! Try this and it will help you conquer your fears! The other bonus of this recipe??? No kneading!

Simple Dinner Rolls

1 pkg. yeast

2 T. sugar

1/4 c. lukewarm water

2 eggs, beaten

1/4 c. sugar

1 c. water

1 t. salt

1/4 c. shortening, melted

4 c. flour

Cornmeal

Butter (optional)

Dissolve yeast and 2 tablespoons sugar in the 1/4 cup of lukewarm water.

In large bowl add eggs, 1/4 c. sugar, 1 c. water, salt, melted shortening, and flour. Add yeast mixture. 

Mix until all are combined. (I used the dough hook on my KitchenAid for this step.) 

When everything is well mixed, cover bowl with a towel, and let dough rise until double in size.

Once dough is doubled, shape pieces of dough into rolls or buns. This is a very sticky dough, so I had my work area well floured.

Place rolls onto baking pan dusted with cornmeal.  I spaced them about 2" apart. Cover again with towel, and let rise until double.

Bake at 400 degrees for 7-15 minutes. The baking time will vary depending on the size you make them.  When removing from oven, brush tops immediately with a little bit of butter.

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