Around the Farm

Is it really almost June? The days are passing by so quickly.  

We have been having so much rain that we are running behind on farming and gardening. We will get caught up soon though.

Corn is all in and planted. Soybeans, eh... still working on that one!

Facebook shared a memory with me the other day. May 26, 2016 we picked our first vegetable. Interesting.  

May 26, 2017, we PLANTED our first row of vegetables. Better later than never, right?

The morel season was not a stellar one for us this year. It was a record low number of morels picked between us and my parents. This guy was my big find, but I didn't take him home with me. He was so water logged when I found him, I am surprised he held together long enough for me to get a picture of him. (Yes, the mushroom is a he 😊)

Our beautiful little Black Copper Marans are growing up. We started suspecting one might be a rooster. Notice the bigger comb on the chicken on the right?  But, we've had that happen before and then we end up getting an egg!

But then something else happened. The sun came out, and we could see all the beautiful colored feathers that this boy has. If you know chickens, you know roosters are the more colorful and striking birds. And this boy looks to have some amazing color. I never know for sure until they crow, or lay an egg, but I am not making any bets on eggs coming out of this guy!

I wish the pictures were better of these two, but they are jumpy when I am around. And it's hard to get them to pose for me.

So, tell me, have you planted your garden yet?

Mom's Lemon Bars

Happy May, my friends! I am happy to say the sun is finally shining, and things are looking more and more spring like here in Wisconsin. 

I missed out on last months Fill the Cookie Jar, and absolutely could not miss again. The theme for this month is Mother's Day. So, I was thinking about my mom and what cookie or bar she was famous for. Two came to mind that are what I would say were always "her bars", that my sister and I always looked forward to back in the day, and still do!

  

Mom's Lemon Bar recipe is what I decided to share with you today.  She even had the recipe in our local church cookbook from 1975!  Now, that being said, I have tweaked one aspect of my mom's recipe. I always loved this bar, but in today's world where bigger is better, I just need more filling in the bar! You can certainly make these to my mom's liking, which are completely delicious. But, I find with lemon bars, I just want more, so I keep her crust recipe as is, but I double the filling. 

If you are interested in joining Fill The Cookie Jar group on facebook, fill out the form that can be found at Fill The Cookie Jar. Each month we bake a different theme for the cookie.

We bake, we share and we enjoy our cookies!

Lemon Bars

1/2 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour, divided
4 eggs
2 cups granulated sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup lemon juice
Additional powdered sugar for dusting

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.  Mix together butter, powdered sugar, and 1 cup of all-purpose flour.  Press into 9x13 pan.  Bake for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, in large bowl, mix together eggs and granulated sugar.  Blend well. Add baking powder, 1/4 cup all-purpose flour, and lemon juice.  Mix until completely combined.

When crust is done. Remove from oven. Increase oven temperature to 350 degrees.  Pour filling over baked crust. Bake for 25 minutes, or until set.  Cool completely, lightly dust with powdered sugar.

Store in airtight container for one to two days.

Below are the other #FillTheCookieJar Bakers who baked delicious treats this Month. 

Stop by, say hello and pick up a new recipe or two.

Jumbo Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies by Cookaholic Wife

Mexican Chocolate Bizcochitos by Palatable Pastime

Sea Salt Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookies by Jolene’s Recipe Journal

Healthy Oatmeal Coffee Cookies by This and That

Black Pepper Shortbread by Feeding Big

Almond Orange Cookie by A Day In The Life on The Farm

Galaxy & Nebula Cookies by Amy’s Cooking Adventures

Mom's Lemon Bars by Big Rigs 'N Lil' Cookies

Sharing this recipe at:

Weekend Potluck
Meal Plan Monday

What Grabbed My Attention This Week

There was a time before living here on the farm, when I lived in a small town across the river, in Iowa. That town is Lansing. Lots of great people in that town.

Kristi is one of those people. I haven't seen Kristi in years, but we are still friends on facebook so I see what she is up to. She has a problem with feral cats in her neighborhood, or more specifically on her property.  Rather than just getting mad, or doing worse things, she is doing amazing things and helping these cats.

Kristi started a Gofundme page. I am not asking you to donate, just to check out her bio on what she is doing. I think she's pretty awesome for her efforts.  Spaying and Neutering is something I believe in 100%, and every cat and dog we have fixed. 

So here's a warm fuzzy to start your week. 

One lady, taking the time and love, helping the cat population.

https://www.gofundme.com/cat-ranch-population-control

It's the Morel Time of Year

We had some snow showers over night and this morning, so I thought my plans to go find some morel mushrooms would be cancelled. I don't really know how much snow or when it happened, as it was melted by the time I was up and moving. No, I wasn't sleeping in that late, fortunately it melted that fast! When I saw the picture of my neighbors truck covered in snow, 

I was glad I slept through it all!

I did go to my parents for a visit. As close as they are, they escaped the winter precip. My dad and I went out for a tour of the projects he has been working on, and while out we did check for the tasty little morels. I have honestly never looked for mushrooms while wearing a stocking cap and gloves, but guess what?? We found a few! Definitely not enough for a meal, but I am not one to turn down a taste of these little guys!

Do you hunt morels?  What's your favorite way to prepare them?

Here is a favorite recipe from last year, Morel Asparagus Frittata

And, here is a tasty recipe we need to try from my friend Shabnam at Flavor N' Spice for 

Spiced Cauliflower with Morels and Basmati Rice Pilaf.