Bountiful Blessings Farm Produce

Today I am heading out with one of my best friends to get a load of cow and chicken manure. This stuff is like black gold for the garden! Chicken manure is the richest animal manure in N-P-K. One has to be a little careful with chicken manure as it is "hot" and needs to be composted before applying it to the soil. Otherwise, it will burn any plants it comes in contact with. Chicken manure for vegetable garden fertilizing will produce excellent soil for  vegetables to grow in. The vegetables will grow bigger, tastier and healthier through the use of chicken manure fertilizer.

Cow manure is probably one of the best soil-builders around; it is great for garden use; and it can be used as a topdressing and for soil improvement, I like to use well-rotted cow manure in the garden. Cow manure fertilizer in all forms are a good addition to the vegetable garden. However the nutrient value does differ greatly. If one obtains manure that has been heaped up and permitted to heat up, a lot of its nitrogen may already have dissipated as ammonia. However, you can still gain organic material in the soil. Much of the valuable digestive enzymes will also have been destroyed by the high temperatures at the heap's core. Again, I prefer manure that has composted as not to burn the plants.

Today is just the first step in the soil building process. Some of the manure I am getting today is older and almost completely composted. I will pile it and allow it to compost more before I apply it to the ground. I will then work it into the soil when the ground is ready. All I have to do today is load it and haul it. I compare this to gold prospecting! The manure being rich in value to my future crop! I'm getting excited!!!

This morning my wife andI were thinking fo something to eat after church. The first thing Kim mentioned was that we have not enjoyed German Chocolate cake in a long time. So, guess what we are making? Yep, our favorite German Chocolate cake. I thought I would share our recipe on the blog. Hope you enjoy it!

German Chocolate Cake

Ingredients:

1 package bakers sweet chocolate

½ cup of boiling water

1 cup of butter or margarine for cake and ½ cup for frosting

3 cups of sugar

4 egg yokes for cake and 3 for frosting

1 teaspoon vanilla for cake and 1 teaspoon for frosting

2 ½ cups of sifted flour

1 teaspoon of baking soda

½ teaspoon of salt

1 cup of butter milk

4 eggs white beaten

1 1/3 baker’s angel coconut flakes

1 cup of chopped pecans

1 cup of evaporated milk

Preparation:

Melt chocolate is boiling water. Cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Add egg yokes 1 at a time beating well after each. Blend in vanilla and cooked chocolate. Shift flour with soda and salt. Add this to chocolate mixture with buttermilk beating well after each addition until smooth. Add beaten egg whites (fold into batter). Pour into (3) 9 inch pans lined with wax paper. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes then cool.

Frosting: Add the evaporated milk, sugar beaten egg yokes, butter and vanilla to sauce pan and cook and stir over medium heat until thickened. Watch it, stir continually, if you don’t it will get lumpy. Add 1 1/3 baker’s angel coconut flakes and 2 cup of chopped pecans. Cool till thick enough to spread. Spread on top of cake. Yummy!

Sunday at Bountiful Blessings Farm Produce is a day for reflection and worship. We try to attend worship service each Sunday, however, during the busy season it is very difficult. When we return to the farm after church, we generally try to cook a large lunch. In the evening we have traditionally either made a homemade pizza or sometimes we just make popcorn. No matter what we eat, we have always valued family and on Sundays we are usually together with family eating great food and enjoying each others company. Here are a few of our favorite recipes:

Sausage & Potato Casserole

Ingredients:
• 1lb bulk sausage
• 1 can cream of mushroom soup
• ¾ cup milk
• ¼ cup chopped Onion
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon pepper
• 3 cups thin sliced potatoes
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Preparation:
In large skillet, cook sausage until no longer pink; drain. In a bowl, combine the soup, milk, onion, salt and pepper.
In an ungreased 12x7x2 inch pan, layer half the potato, soup mixture and sausage. Repeat layers.
Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 1 ½ hours or until potatoes are tender. Uncover and sprinkle with cheese. Return to the oven until the cheese is melted (about 5 minutes)

Swiss Steak

Ingredients:
• 1 inch to 1 ½ inch thick round steak (cut off all fat)
• Flour & salt for the coating
• Margarine
• 1 cup of sugar
• 1 cup flour
• 1 medium diced onion
• 1 15oz jar of tomato puree or sauce

Preparation:
Cut meat into serving pieces. Pound as much flour and salt as you can into the steak. Heat enough margarine in self roasting pan to brown steak pieces. Dip the steak into flour then sugar.
Put into hot margarine and brown until it is dark brown. Add 1 medium diced onion to the pan when you start browning the steaks. Once the steak is dark brown on both sides, add tomato puree or sauce to cover the steak. (You can add water to make the sauce thinner) Heat this until
bubbles form, turn down heat and simmer until meat is tender (folk it). When the meat is tender server on a plate and use the sauce to serve over mashed potatoes.

Twice Baked Potatoes

Ingredients:
• 4 large baking potatoes
• 8 slices bacon
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup milk
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese, divided
• 8 green onions, sliced, divided

Preparation:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Bake potatoes in preheated oven for 1 hour.
3. Meanwhile, place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Drain, crumble and set aside.
4. When potatoes are done allow them to cool for 10 minutes. Slice potatoes in half lengthwise and scoop the flesh into a large bowl; save skins. To the potato flesh add sour cream, milk, butter, salt, pepper, 1/2 cup cheese and 1/2 the green onions. Mix with a hand mixer until well blended and creamy. Spoon the mixture into the potato skins. Top each with remaining cheese, green onions and bacon.
5. Bake for another 15 minutes.

After weeks of preparation for the upcoming planting season, I decided to take a day and relax. The weather here at Bountiful Blessings Farm is cold around 25 degrees. Last night we got about an inch of white fluffy snow. This morning it was blowing across the road and drifting in the driveway, but nothing too serious.

My wife gave me the idea to get the old ice cream maker out and make another batch of ice dream. We have been making ice cream about every Saturday in January. I love ice cream, but generally only eat vanilla. My wife thinks I am nuts not to try other flavors. Nonetheless, for me, vanilla is still number one. Well I got the old machine out and mixed up the batch. The key to making great ice cream is not using chunks of ice that are large. They cause the ice cream to be gritty. However, using small ice cubes works very well. Always use rock salt with the ice. So, the machine was going and when it finished, we decided to make some mint chocolate chip this time. We added green food coloring and the chips after the process was finished. YUMMY! It was very good! I was impressed. Anyhow, for me, I still like the vanilla better! Well its off to eat some more!

Getting Ready

Well it's that time of year at the farm where I look over last year's records and plan for the upcoming season. Actually, I have been planning for weeks, but I am finally mapping out the ground and preparing seed orders. I never realized there is so much work involved with a produce business! One cannot imagine the amount of planning that it takes to get everything in order. So, with my pile of catalogs, records and projections, I am making a master plan for this season's crop. I enjoy looking through the catalogs and seeing what is new, but it is just as exciting to see some of the heirloom varieties that look so inviting and interesting. I think of how it was back in the day and how much more work it took to grow a crop. Nonetheless, when a person bites into a Black Krim tomato or tries their first Moon and Stars watermelon, they get a sense of that old timey pleasure of eating something that folks enjoyed many, many years ago. I am also working on a hotbed and cold frame to extend the season; trying to provide locally grown vegetables earlier in the season. Many people are already asking me when they can get their first tomato! Well, it's still a bit early! Back to the seed order!

Even though the business started in 2011, Bountiful Blessings brings a lot of experience to the table. The Wielert family has been involved in agriculture and horticulture for four generations. Ranging from cattle production, greenhouse operation and vegetable farming over the years, the Wielerts have been described by friends and neighbors as quality growers. Located five miles north of Hinckley, Illinois on McGirr Road, Wielert's Bountiful Blessings Farm Produce is situated on some of Illinois' most bountiful farm land. In the spring of 2011, after being prompted by his father, Jeff Wielert opened Bountiful Blessings Farm Produce to provide locally produced food in the local market. Jeff's parents, Allan and Bette Wielert help him to produce a top quality vegetable crop available on the farm and at other local sites. Their goal is to bring a healthy, delicious product to your table at an affordable price.

In 2012, Bountiful Blessings will be expanding to meet the needs of the local area. With over 10 acres of sweet corn and 10 acres of vegetables and pumpkins, Bountiful Blessings will continue to offer a top quality food product at affordable prices. Be sure to visit the farm or one of their stands this spring!