Archives for January 2016

The Life of Luther

January 25, 2016 Leave a Comment

Well, he has made it. Luther turns one week old today. And it has been nothing short of a miracle.

Turkeys are not the brightest creatures on the earth! As hatchlings, they are not smart enough to figure out how and where to eat and drink on their own. We use baby chickens – placed in with the turkeys to get them on their way – and so the story of the Life of Luther begins.

Last week I posted about how excited we were to have this little experiment join our family. He had a tough time hatching, but seemed to be doing well. We put him into his brooder (a bird nursery) – along with two baby chickens – cell mates if you will. The chicks were very active – and soon had Luther eating and drinking – Yeah!

Things seemed to going quite well – so you can’t imagine my horror when I came to check on the little guy on Wednesday morning – only to find him lying on his back, spread eagle (or should I say turkey), limp, and lifeless. He had obviously been struggling to right himself and had become exhausted. This had happened away from the brooder heat lamp, and so my little fluffy friend had become quite cold. . . never a good thing in the life of a bird.

I was able to warm him up, get some electrolytes and food into him, and he seemed to recover quite well. But how did he end up on his back?

Thursday morning found him in the same state! Again, I repeated the steps of the previous morning – and checking on him regularly throughout the day, he seemed to be just fine.

Friday morning was a different story. I again came in to find him on his back, and so limp and cold that he was barely alive. I was pretty sure that I would not be able to revive him this time. I picked up his limp little body and could tell that he was more dead than alive. I needed to get him warm asap. I quickly tucked him inside my shirt – next to my skin – while I heated some towels (wash cloths – he is a very tiny bird!) in the microwave. As soon as they were heated, I wrapped him in a warm towel, leaving his feet exposed. They were cold as ice – and so, using a trick from days long past, I placed his little popsicle toes into warm water. After drying them off, I placed him into a warm incubator – and the waiting game began. I was not very hopeful that he would make it.. . . only time would tell.

It was about 30 minutes later that I heard a very faint chirping coming from the incubator. I went in to check on him and found him in a semi-upright position, but very weak. I managed to get some electrolytes into him and made a broth from the electrolyte water and some mash. For the next several hours, I gave him a drop of broth every 15 minutes – and put him back into the warm incubator. It was about 2 hours into this routine when I returned to the incubator to find him up and walking. Although he was a little weak, Luther was making a come back. Within a short time, I was able to return him to the brooder with his cell mates.

I watched him for a few minutes to make sure he was ok – and that is when I discovered how Luther was ending up on his back. It seems that one of the chicks is very rambunctious. Her method of movement is a dead run! In her efforts to get to the feeder she plowed into Luther – who is not yet smart enough to get out of the way of a crazed chick – landing him on his back!. . . The mystery was solved. I moved the feeder closer to the brooder lamp – making it impossible for the little speedster to gain the speed necessary to upend Luther on her way to her next feeding. . . . and now – two days later – all is well.

Luther is eating, chirping, moving around like a good little turkey – and chickzilla seems to be behaving herself. We have more turkeys coming along – should have another hatching in a week or so. Luther will have buddies. But for now, he holds a very special place next to my heart.

Meet Luther

January 21, 2016 Leave a Comment

Martin Luther King day found us thinning out our flocks. It is never a pleasant thing, but the reality is, we eat meat. We also have many, many chickens.

As much as I love my birds, they are only productive for a certain amount of time. We have had hens lay for as long as 4-5 years – but as they age, their laying becomes sporadic. With the amount of money we spend on good, clean, non-gmo and organic feed, we can’t afford to feed dozens of hens that no longer lay more than 1 or two eggs a week. And so, we are required to thin our flocks.

Knowing that Monday was the day that this would take place, and not really looking forward to the day’s events, you can’t imagine my joy to find that this little turkey had hatched!

Of the many turkeys that we have raised over the years, the Broad-Breasted Bronze has been our favorite for meat. They grow quickly and are huge birds! We have had Toms and Hens – even eggs – but never any chicks – because with this breed, by the time the Tom is mature enough to breed, he is too big and unable.

This year, we decided to try cross-breeding. We have a beautiful Spanish Black Tom – named Ferdinand (his mate is Isabella :). We decided to see if we could get a Spanish Black/Broad Breasted Bronze cross…… Meet Luther. We debated on what to call him – but in honor of the day of his birth – well, you get it. He is the first of what we hope will me many just like him. It will be several months before we can tell what the quality of meat will be from this cross, but we are thrilled with his arrival.

Yes, he is adorable. Yes, he will eventually end up on the table. But, the reality is that food doesn’t come from the store.

Food comes from the farm. Someone has raised it, processed it, and delivered it to market. The beauty of living on the homestead is that we know how our food was raised, processed, and handled. Our birds have had a very good, happy lives. They have been fed clean feed, fresh fruits and veggies, and all the fresh air, sunshine, bugs and grubs a bird could want. They are humanely handled, processed, and prepared by people who have known and cared for them.

We are ever grateful for their part in our homestead and the joy, food, and entertainment they provide. We are very careful never to waste or be casual about their contribution. I even render the fat from the birds to be used in cooking. . . . Our happy old birds are very, very fat!!!!

I am fortunate to have a husband and friends with whom I share the joys, challenges, work, and rewards of this kind of life. It is not easy – but never boring. We work hard, laugh hard, eat well and sleep like rocks! Life is good!

Welcome, little Luther – and thank you in advance,

Kathy

Coconut Curry Squash Soup

January 19, 2016 Leave a Comment

There is nothing like a bowl of soup after a long day. A good bowl of soup not only feeds the body, but the soul as well.

Filled with apples, sweet winter squash, coconut milk, cinnamon and curry, this soup is as comforting as a warm blanket.

I love this soup for many reasons, not the least of which is that it is very quick to make. The recipe is for a small batch of soup – but it can easily be doubled – or tripled. . . you will want it again tomorrow! It is a great way to use up that leftover squash you cooked last night.

Although the recipe calls for chicken broth, it could be made with water or vegetable broth as well. Just make sure that whatever you use has a mild flavor. You don’t want to detract from the main players!

[Continue Reading …]

Coconut Curry Squash Soup

January 17, 2016 Leave a Comment

Coconut Curry Squash Soup

This soup works best with a dense, sweet winter squash – such as butternut or sweet meat.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Ingredients

6 cups winter squash cut into 1-inch cubes
1 tablespoon butter or olive oil
1 large apple peeled, cored and diced
1 onion diced
4 cups chicken stock
1 cup canned coconut milk whole fat -not light
ground cinnamon
Curry Powder
Salt and Pepper to Taste

Instructions

In a 3 quart pan, melt the butter.
Add the onion and apple and sauté until the onion and apple begin to become translucent.
Add the cubed squash and the 4 cups of chicken broth.
Bring to a boil and reduce heat to a simmer.
Simmer for 30 minutes, or until the squash is tender.
Using a blender, carefully puree the soup in small batches.
Return to the pan.
Add 1 cup (about ½ can) of the coconut milk. Stir to combine and bring back up to temperature.
Add salt and pepper to taste.
At this point, you can serve as is – or add cinnamon – and or curry powder.
If adding cinnamon, about ½ teaspoon should do.
If adding curry powder, start with ½ teaspoon and add until you reach the desired taste.

Notes

This soup is very adaptable. You can serve it without the spices, or as spicy as you like.

If you have an immersion blender, by all means, use it to puree the soup.

The squash can be cooked ahead of time. Simply saute the apples and onion, add the broth and simmer for 15 minutes or until the apples and onions are very tender. Add the cooked squash and heat through.

If you like texture, reserve some of the squash and apple chunks before pureeing. Add them back in before bringing back to temperature.

It was Perfect

January 12, 2016 Leave a Comment

Our beautiful Christmas tree is coming down.

When shopping for our Christmas tree this year, we found this near perfect 9′ Silver Tip Fir tree. I just had to have it. It was the tree of my dreams!

I had grand visions of how it would be decorated – all of which were breath-taking….the stuff that magazine covers are made of…… and then, our little people arrived – anxious to decorate it and make our tree beautiful.

And that is exactly what they did. With Christmas music filling the air and little eyes filled with excitement, the tree was decorated. Six little hands carefully placed even the most fragile ornaments on every branch within their limited reach. Clusters of beautiful trinkets and mementos of places and times past adorned sturdy limbs…..all within 5 feet of the ground. It was perfect! No magazine covers here. They could never have captured the magic that happens when little hands and loving hearts decorate a Christmas tree. The last ornaments were meticulously hung. Crystal icicles were carefully placed on the tips of the boughs. A few candy canes were suspended from the branches, and then the lights were lit. It was time for celebration; glasses filled with homemade eggnog – wonderful music filling the air – It truly was perfect.

And now, it is coming down.

I can’t remember exactly how I imagined this tree being decorated. I have tried to recall my grand plans and magazine cover ideas….to no avail. All I know is that this was the perfect tree. Beautifully decorated by little hands that I love beyond words…and it and they will be missed. The little decorators have returned to their home up north. The ornaments and icicles have been carefully packed away. The grand specimen of a tree is leaving it’s place of honor.

Until next year, farewell dear Tannenbaum. Thank you.

Kathy

Archives for January 2016

The Life of Luther

Meet Luther

Coconut Curry Squash Soup

Coconut Curry Squash Soup