Hippychick's Gardens

upon today's travel home i pondered

how could i put this heat to work for me? if you can't beat them join them right?

and the first thought that came to mind was bread! bread rises in no time when it's warm out - so i surmised that this would indeed be a perfect day to make bread. i had recently, as early as this morning, been thinking about breaking down in the bread universe which would have lead to a stop to the fancypants grocer to pick up fancypants bread rolls. nope nope nope - i'm not going to do that - that's $4.oo that i could easily save or spend elsewhere on more useful items.

note i have begun to think about money in terms of "dozens of eggs". my question goes something like this - is this $12.oo item actually worth three dozen organically raised eggs from my own home flock?

i then ponder the possibility of my bartering three dozen eggs for that same item. if, in my mind, i say "no way!" would i barter three dozen of my organically raised eggs then i decide not to make the purchase. is this a sign that i am now traveling the proper path to farmdom or is this the way i should have been thinking long ago. either way it's where i am at now. better later than never ah?

this current pondering makes the occasional starbucks coffee a tough purchase to justify. in fact sometimes i close my eyes, order the coffee and pretend it's ok when i know inside that it's not. especially when i am not on the road, especially when i know that i already make my own coffee at home for a fraction of the cost. i think...

"self, it's time to plan better" maybe you ought to keep a small storage of iced coffee at the office so that when the urge hits for a little extra go, i am able to indulge without guilt.

and so i will - bring my own iced coffee storage to the university work place.

back to the bread. i love a good bread roll. on most bread baking days i bake in loaf form. then, and it is always the same, i eat too much bread - just one more slice - ah just one more slice - naw naw that is not going to happen this time. for some unknown reason i have greater portion control when it comes to bread rolls. one roll and i'm a happy camper. i guess to my brain, eating a bread roll is like eating my own personal bread loaf - the synapses trigger a variation that i cannot explain. either way, it works, so today i choose to work in the roll version.

i decided to keep it simple - half wheat- half white with an egg washed toasted sesame seed top. they look yummy don't they? and the heat part - well it took just about 30 minutes for the rise, possibly less. i must admit that i was a slight bit pre-occupied with the prepping of a few more quarts of homegrown mater sauce.

i am feeling very domestic today. there are fresh cleaned clothes on the line, bread in the oven and sauce sealing away in the hot water bath. this is a good day.

so you might be wondering what the future for the bread rolls looks like? it looks like this.

fresh sliced maters and cucumbers
feta and/or fresh mozz and/or fresh farmers cheese
homegrown homemade pesto

or

fresh basil leaves
fresh slice maters
drizzle of olive oil
sprinkle of black peper

or

ab&j - love the almond butter and jelly option

or

butter
fresh rolls are always great with butter
and there you have it!

if you can't beat the heat, use it.

stay tuned for the first use of the solar oven. a bit of time may soon be showing it's face so that i can give the solar oven a proper first go.

the sauce report - 2 full quarts put up and ready for storage - not bad!

total quarts of sauce put up this current season - 9 (so far that is!)

the pullets are moving quickly.  it's great to see so many folk adding these rare and heritage breeds to their flocks or starting new flocks for the very first time.  every baby step towards sustainability counts.  thank you all for making efforts to preserve rare breed chickens. give us a holler if interested. 

i will keep the below blog listing of the various types and numbers available updated daily.  it has been my pleasure to meet so many fine feathered friend loving folk.

cheers!

hippychickenfarmer michelle