Fresh Off the Farm | Grabau Farms and Gift Cards

Archive - Fresh Off the Farm RSS Feed

Cream Comes to the Top

December 28, 2013 in Fresh Off the Farm with 5 Comments

glass pitcher, "I love Milk", Land O' Lakes pitcher, milk, Cream,

Notice the line of cream just beneath the top of the upper "I". Above that line is cream, below it is milk.

On the farm, milk is our business, but it is also our beverage.

We use the milk from our cows. It is refrigerated in the milk house as soon as it comes out of the cow. We use about a gallon and a half in a day or two.

As the milk sets in my kitchen refrigerator the cream rises to the top. Before we drink it, I like to skim most of the cream. We drink and cook with the skimmed milk. The cream is used for many purposes. As it sours in makes biscuits, pancakes, breads, cakes or cookies. We sometimes even make ice cream.

I thought you might like to see how the skimming gets done, since it won’t be a common practice in most kitchens.

photo credit:Wenda Grabau
photo credit:Bretta Grabau

Caramel Corn Made in the Oven

December 25, 2013 in Fresh Off the Farm, Smorgasbord with 4 Comments

A quick, rich treat for anytime, including Christmas, is caramel corn. Kids of all ages take to this snack.

I preheat the oven for 250° F. I pop our homegrown popcorn in my popcorn popper. Store-bought popcorn will do. We need 6 quarts of popped popcorn. That is enough to fill up my roaster pan or about 3 poppers full. I put the popcorn in the oven to keep warm while I make the caramel topping.

brown sugar, corn syrup, butter, salt, caramel mixture, caramel corn,

Margarine will work, but...butter is better.

In a heavy saucepan, at low heat, I melt 2 sticks of butter with 2 cups brown sugar, 1 tsp. salt and 1/2 cup corn syrup stirring constantly till it boils. Let it boil for 5 minutes without stirring.

Take off of the burner and add 1 Tsp. vanilla and 1/2 tsp. baking soda. Stir. The mixture will foam.

Remove the popcorn from the oven. Pour the caramel mixture over the popcorn and stir. Cover as much popcorn as possible. Return the popcorn to the oven for 15 minutes. Stir the popcorn. Do this 3 more times and you have a super treat for any holiday.

When the mixture cools the final time, break the kernels apart with a wooden spoon. Store in an air-tight container.

When the weather cools and the leaves start to fall, this recipe beckons.

photo credit: Bretta Grabau
photo credit: Bretta Grabau
photo credit: Bretta Grabau
photo credit: Bretta Grabau
photo credit: Bretta Grabau

How to Scald Milk

December 23, 2013 in Fresh Off the Farm with 2 Comments

The wrinkled-look on the surface of the milk indicates that the scalding has taken place. Remove the pan from heat.

Many yeast breads require scalded milk.

Let me share with you how I do it.

Measure the milk into a sauce pan.

Heat on low heat. I have done this on high heat and it will work. However, the likelihood of my getting distracted is so great that often the milk comes to a boil before I notice the scalding. So the lower heat is recommended.

When the milk is scalded you will notice steam and a scum covering the surface of the milk.

When I scald, I watch the milk closely. If I am not sure scalding has taken place, I blow on the surface of the milk. If it is scalded, I see the ripples of the scum react to the blowing. When scalded, take the milk off of the heat.

For yeast breads, hot milk will kill the yeast. This milk must be cooled from hot to warm. To hasten the cooling I add the butter and other cold ingredients, not egg, though. The butter melts. (An egg would cook into lumps if added before the milk is sufficiently cooled.) If the warmth in the milk is not uncomfortable to your touch, then it is ready to be used with the softened yeast.

Now your milk is ready for your recipe.

photo credit: Wenda Grabau

Swedish Kardamummakrans

December 22, 2013 in Fresh Off the Farm, Smorgasbord with 2 Comments

Scald milk at medium heat. Note the wrinkled texture on the surface of the milk. This is your clue that the milk is scalded.

One of our favorite Christmas breads is Swedish Kardamummakrans, or as we call it, Cardamom Bread.

The spice, cardamom, is a bit costly, but its fresh, mild flavor is a special delight. I know I will use the spice for Thanksgiving and Christmas, so to me the cost is worth it. Besides, the spice keeps from year to year. There have been Christmases when I could not find it on the grocery shelf and I found it helpful to have extra on hand.

Cardamom bread dough, cardamom bread, braiding dough, Christmas bread,

Braid dough loosely to allow for the second rising of the dough.

This recipe calls for 2.5 cups of scalded milk. It is best not to boil it. So a lesser temperature will be helpful.

Add 1.5 sticks of butter, 1 cup of sugar, 1.5 tsp. cardamom and 1/2 tsp. of salt to the milk. Stir mixture and allow it to cool.

Cardamom wreath, Cardamon bread, cardamom bread dough, Christmas bread, Christmas yeast bread,

Join the ends of the braid, making a ring, to form the wreath.

The recipe calls for 1 pkg. of yeast and 1/4-1/2 cup warm water. Mix and let this mixture rest a few minutes to soften.

When the milk mixture cools enough so that you can hold your finger in the milk comfortably, you may add the yeast mixture. Beat 1 egg and add it to the yeast/milk mixture. Mix well.

Add 8 cups of flour. Knead dough until elastic in texture. Let rise until doubled in bulk. Punch down the dough and cut the dough into 3 pieces.

Cardamom bread, iced cardamom bread, Swedish Kardamummakrans, frosted Cardamom bread, Christmas yeast bread,

M-m-m, it is yummy!

Each piece will make a medium sized loaf of bread. Cut each of the 3 pieces of dough into 3 pieces and make them into 3 ropes of about 15-18 inches in length. (You may make larger loaves by making only 2 pieces of dough of 3 ropes each.)

Braid dough being sure to join the ropes together at each end of the braid. Place the braid on a greased baking sheet and secure the two ends of the braid together to form a wreath. Allow the bread to rise again. Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.

Braided Christmas Cardamom Bread garnished with Anise Cookies

Christmas Favorites at our House, Swedish Kardemummakrans and Anise Cookies

When bread is cooled, you may freeze it or frost it.

Icing is made with 1 cup powdered sugar, 1 T. soft butter, 1 tsp. vanilla, and 1-2 T. cream. When the frosting is somewhat hardened, you may decorate the wreath with halved green and red candied cherries.

Have fun and I hope you enjoy this bread as we do.

(For more detail on the process of scalding milk, see “Scalding Milk” on my website.)

photo credit: Wenda Grabau
photo credit: Bretta Grabau
photo credit: Wenda Grabau
photo credit: Wenda Grabau
photo credit: Wenda Grabau

The Burr Oak

November 29, 2013 in Fresh Off the Farm, Smorgasbord with 2 Comments

One of the commonly growing trees typical of our area is the Burr Oak. We have a huge one on the farm next to our house. Its arms sprawl out far in the summer to shade the house.

Family photos attest to the fact that this tree was large even in 1919. It has stood strong and tall over the years withstanding many a storm.

This tree offers not only shade in the heat of summer, it makes a fun place for the grandchildren to play on the swing. The tree also makes a great place for the cats to climb.

It has produced many fertile seeds. Even now, two young oaks are growing up on the farm from its acorns.

The Burr Oak acorn has a characteristic appearance, which makes identifying it rather simple. Notice the the fringe on the acorn cap. This indicates that it is from a Burr Oak. Other oaks do not have the curly edge.

Our God is a great creator. He takes a little acorn and blesses us with large, protective trees like this oak.

photo credit:Wenda Grabau
photo credit:Wenda Grabau
photo credit:Wenda Grabau

Sandwich-making on the Farm

November 25, 2013 in Fresh Off the Farm, Smorgasbord with 2 Comments

We pick bones on the farm. When we butcher chicken, the meaty pieces are frozen while the boney parts of the carcases are pressure cooked. When cooled we pick the meat off of the bones. We freeze the cooked chicken bits for later use.

Making them into sandwiches is a process, I thought you might like to see.

While the chicken bits thaw, we set up the meat grinder.

We grind the meat by hand.

The grinder turns the bits from this . . .

. . .to this.

We add mayonnaise, dill pickle, and celery.

It is yummy!

photo credit:Wenda Grabau
photo credit:Wenda Grabau
photo credit:Wenda Grabau
photo credit:Wenda Grabau
photo credit:Wenda Grabau

Pressuring a Pumpkin

November 22, 2013 in Fresh Off the Farm with 0 Comments

In my desire to have pumpkin available for pies, breads, etc., I priced canned pumpkin at the store. For the price of buying 2 cans and getting 2 or more pies from them, I decided to buy a pumpkin. Costing slightly more than a few cans of prepared canned pumpkin, the investment into a pumpkin was worth the cost.

About a week later, a friend of mine offered me a pumpkin she raised.

With the frost on the yard and the winter chill settling on the the landscape and in the farmhouse, now is the time to heat up the kitchen with a job like preparing the pumpkins.

First, I wash the pumpkins. I cut them for baking and scrape away any strings and seeds. I save the seeds for making a snack later. Scrapings become food for the chickens.

I bake the pumpkin pieces for about 1.5 hours until the flesh is tender.

When it is cool enough to handle, I peel off the outer skin.

I puree the pumpkin with water in the blender.

The puree is heated in a kettle till hot.

It is spooned into canning jars.

Lids are placed on the jars.

Quart jars are cooked at 10 pounds pressure for 80 minutes.

When finished the hot jars are carefully removed from the pressure canner.

canning jars, quart jars, pint jars, canned pumpkin, spiced pumpkin, pumpkin puree, pumpkin puree spiced,

Spiced Pumpkin and Not Spiced Pumpkin

I wash the jars, remove the screw bands, and label the jars.

At about 2 pies per quart, you can see I got a very good deal. The pumpkin should last for quite a while. Thanks to our pressure canner we should enjoy pumpkin pie and other dessert for a few years.

photo credit: Bretta Grabau
photo credit: Wenda Grabau
photo credit: Wenda Grabau
photo credit: Wenda Grabau
photo credit: Wenda Grabau
photo credit: Wenda Grabau
photo credit: Bretta Grabau
photo credit: Bretta Grabau
photo credit: Bretta Grabau
photo credit: Bretta Grabau
photo credit: Wenda Grabau

Corn Picking – A Harvest

November 20, 2013 in Fresh Off the Farm with 2 Comments

The last harvest each year on our farm is corn picking. We have a small herd, so we don’t need as much corn as our neighbors do. However, the effort is just as crucial and time consuming. The challenge we have in the harvest, is that our picker picks one row at a time. Combines which are a newer technology can pick multiple rows in one pass. They also shell corn kernels off of the cob. The corn picker picks the whole cob.

The tractor pulls the picker and a wagon.

The filled wagons are transported back to the farm.

Corn is emptied into an elevator which raises the corn into the hole in the corn crib roof. The the wagon is returned to the field to be filled again.

We fill our corn cribs and keep the ear corn for use over the winter. You will notice that the corn cribs are made with slats that allow air to move freely through the corn pile. With the exposure to the air, mold is not as likely to grow as it would be in a closed building.

Many things can complicate the corn harvests. Weather can make or break the harvest days. With not enough rain, the corn may not develop properly. With too much rain, corn could mold in the field . The tractors have difficulty driving in muddy fields. Equipment breakdown can halt a harvest in many ways.

After we plow, plant, cultivate, pick and store, we thank God for each and every harvest He gives.

photo credit:Wenda Grabau
photo credit:Wenda Grabau
photo credit:Wenda Grabau
photo credit:Wenda Grabau
photo credit:Wenda Grabau
photo credit:Wenda Grabau

Looking Back on Summer

November 15, 2013 in Fresh Off the Farm with 4 Comments

Old-fashioned Day Lily

Although this is not officially winter, we got the first real snow fall this morning. The forecast leads us to expect below freezing temperatures this week with a thaw near the weekend. With the gray and chill in the air, I thought now might be a good time to highlight the sights of the past summer. I hope you enjoy them and let this refresh you.

Among the sights of ongoing work, flowers reach out to cheer us and display God’s handiwork.

Blue Balloon Flower, Balloon flower in bloom, developing balloon flower buds,

Fully-opened Balloon Flowers and Developing Balloons

These blue beauties greet me as I step out onto my front porch.

Zinnias Reflect the Sun's Radience

Zinnias treat me to a splash of color out in the garden.

Mock Orange Beauty Mixed with Sweet Fragrance

The Mock Orange bush is heavily-laden with delicate blossoms.

Old-Fashioned Red Rose, Rose buds, red rose,

A Hardy Red Rose

Though her thorns prick, her beauty still captures one’s heart.

Pink Peony Nods its Fully-Bloomed Head

This floral spectacle comes to a close with our Peony signalling the end as she takes summer’s final bow.

We thank the Lord for what He has done and eagerly await summer’s return when He paints a new canvas of beauty for us to behold.

photo credit:Wenda Grabau
photo credit:Wenda Grabau
photo credit:Bretta Grabau
photo credit:Wenda Grabau
photo credit:Wenda Grabau
photo credit:Wenda Grabau

The Birth of a Card

November 1, 2013 in Cards, Fresh Off the Farm, Smorgasbord with 0 Comments

IDEA needed

I thought that you might like to “walk along side of me” as I work on my next card. It is my hope that you, too, may be inspired to try your hand at this craft or that you might just enjoy watching the process.

The first two items I need are an idea and time.

I look for ideas in old photos I have taken, my new photos, flowers, and endearing photos of kids or pets. Anything that we have on the farm that has been used for years and may be of interest to folks who have memories of such things are fodder for a drawing. I have also chosen to sketch things that are special to my own family members.

wristwatch, black face watch, snail crawling on watch, Snail on watch crystal,,

TIME needed

Ideas I have considered include:

an old tractor
tractor seats mounted on a wall
candle mold and candles
kerosene lamps
Christmas scene
a morning glory
kids wearing hats
a man corn husking

Christmas is coming and I need to create one for my family to send to friends. My husband has given me a suggestion of what to draw. It will not be from a photo and will have to come from my imagination and the real Christmas story of the Bible. I want to do that one very much. Yet I have not figured how I will compose that picture yet. So this one will have to wait till I have a plan.

I took a photo of a tractor this past summer with a card in mind. I am leaning towards that one. I could pick up a sheet of paper and not have to decide much more than copying the photo’s composition. The other ideas interest me a lot, but may need things like colored pencils, a photo shoot, setting up of a suitable still life and lots of thought. So the tractor wins out this time.

Hurray, I have the idea! Now I need the time.

photo credit: One Way Stock via photopin cc

photo credit: greenmarlin via photopin cc