Actually Using The Harvest From The Garden

I'm almost too embarrassed to post this! ;-)
We got absolutely NO peaches from our little tree last year thanks to the birds and that was in spite of having bird netting over the whole tree. But, the good news is...I still have peaches in the freezer from 2010's bumper crop! I know, I know, you are only supposed to keep fruit in the freezer for 12 months but, hey, I'm only five months past that and I sure wouldn't want to waste any of our yummy homegrown peaches!

I packed these in a medium syrup in pint canning jars and they have not gotten any freezer burn. It seems to me that the glass protects the fruit better than plastic. I decided I needed to use them up so I made a Peach Cobbler for tonight's desert. You can find the recipe for the cobbler topping using my Baking Mix here.

I have seen several posts recently about making sure that you actually eat the food that you grow and it kind of "guilted" me into trying to use up what I have. Besides, the silly fruit trees are BUDDING OUT already and I'm hoping I will actually get some fruit this year!!

Kieffer Pear



Santa Rosa Plum



Peach



Ornamental Plum

I'm linking up with Heidi for The Country Garden Showcase at My Simple Country Living.

The Versatile Blogger Award

I have recently been awarded The Versatile Blogger Award by several of my fellow bloggers! Thank you SOOO much to Heidi at My Simple Country Living, Clint at The Redeemed Gardener, Lisa Lynn at Little Homestead on the Hill and Sheryl at Cypress Hill Farm. Each of these blogs also received this award and they are all very deserving of it! If you haven't checked them out, I would highly recommend it! :)

Here are the RULES for the Versatile Blogger Award:

1.  Add the award to your blog.
2.  Thanks the blogger who gave it to you.
3.  Mention seven random things about yourself.
4.  List the rules
5.  Award to 15 bloggers.
6.  Inform each of those 15 by leaving a comment on their blog.

Here are seven random things about me:

• I was born and raised a "city girl" and knew NOTHING about gardening or raising animals when we moved to our little place seven years ago!
• I can't sing...just ask the goat! ;-)
• I own at least 10 guns and I'm a pretty good shot.
• I LOVE to bake, but ya'll probably already knew that!
• I am the middle child and have two brothers, one older, one younger.
• I was raised an Air Force brat and moved around quite a bit as a child.
• I am proud member #977 of MaryJane's Farmgirl Sisterhood!

Now, as far as passing this award on to 15 bloggers, I consider every blog I follow as being deserving of this special award and could never pick just 15. So, I award ALL OF YOU the Versatile Blogger Award! Woo-Hoo!! Keep up the good work everyone! :)

Sunday Photo Honey Bee

It has been so warm here that the honey bees are out, this one was busy in the rosemary yesterday afternoon. I'm linking up with Jan at Murrieta 365 for Straight Out Of The Camera Sunday and Your Sunday Best with Nancy at A Rural Journal this week. Stop by to see all the lovely photographs!

Peeper People Update Three

My beautiful Buff Orpington hens will be five months old at the end of this month. Every day, I check for eggs even though I know it's still too soon! This morning, Jerry mentioned that at least one of the hens has a larger and redder comb than the others. I have always heard that a red comb is a sign that a hen is laying! Check out the difference between these two! :)

When I took the chickens their half a pumpkin awhile ago, I took my camera to snap some pictures.
This girl's comb is quite a bit bigger and redder than the others!

This is what most of them still look like.

Just to prove to myself that I hadn't accidentally taken a picture of the rooster, I went back down and got one of him! ;-)

So, I'm hoping that I will find my first egg sometime soon!! I hope, I hope!!

Linking up to the Farmgirl Friday Blog Hop hosted by Heidi at My Simple Country Living and Deb at Deborah Jean's Dandelion House.

Thankful Thursday, #6

Today, I am thankful for...

...our farrier, Robert.

Paco has problems with quarter cracks and we went through several farriers trying to get the problem taken care of. Some of them even made the situation worse!

Robert was highly recommended by a couple of our friends (thanks Sharon!) and he has done an excellent job with Paco's feet!

And as an added bonus...he will trim the donkeys' feet when they need it! :)

Linking up with Nancy at A Rural Journal for the Rural Thursday Blog Hop.

Country Herb Beer Bread

I haven't posted a recipe using my Baking Mix in awhile. The Baking Mix is so versatile, you can use it for everything from Monster Cookies (my new favorite cookie!) to Buttermilk Biscuits to a Cobbler Topping  to Cheesy Biscuit Sticks and don't miss the Onion Caraway Rye Beer Bread recipe! If you do a "search" for Baking Mix at the top of the blog you will find even more recipes! :)

I love making beer breads, they go together very quickly and you can get a wonderful loaf of homemade bread on the table in under an hour! This isn't your standard beer bread with cheese, this one has cornmeal, oregano, thyme and basil in it. If by chance you have any left over, it toasts up nicely and also makes wonderful croutons! I use a light tasting beer when I make this beer bread, I don't want the flavor of the beer to overpower the herbs. You can also use unflavored seltzer water if you don't want to use beer.

Country Herb Beer Bread

3 cups Baking Mix
1/2 cup cornmeal
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
12 ounces beer
1 egg

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Generously grease a 9 x 5 x 3-inch loaf pan.

Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl.

Add beer and egg; beat vigorously. The batter will be "shaggy."

Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pan; cool for 10 minutes on a wire rack. Serve warm.

I'm linking up with The Country Homemaker Hop hosted by Heidi at My Simple Country Living. Check out all the entries for this week! :)

Tuesday's Tails, #12

Who wants treats?!?

"I do, I do!!"

"Me too!!"

"And some scritches too just because I'm so darn cute!"