Be merry

the annual Christmas photo

So, a little blog break...if you hadn't noticed :) We're in the throes of merry-making, and I promise there will be pictures when I return! In the meantime...feel blessed, friends. Merry Christmas!


Christmas past:

Christmas 2005

Christmas 2006

Christmas 2007

I love

hidden tracks on CDs.



3 gems on Track 13 of the "Lipstick on the Mirror" CD by Pop Evil, which I discovered sorta accidentally in the car the other day.

Good songs make me miss being in a band.


2 years ago:

Weekend dog blogging

1 year ago:

The mist

How to Cook : Ham Alfredo

Sometimes the best recipes evolve as a direct result of laziness. I was hungry for carbonara. But the thought of schlepping out to the garage, digging through one of my messy freezers for bacon, defrosting and cooking said bacon...it was more than I had the energy for on a Monday night after work.

I know, I know, cry me a river.

Matt suggested spaghetti and alfredo. That sounded like a better match for my energy level. Well, him cooking would have been the best match for my energy level, but alas he was busy stickering meat.

And as I stood there at the stove whisking the alfredo sauce, inspiration struck. There was leftover ham in the refrigerator! Ham...bacon...they're both smokey, and salty, and come from pigs. I diced it up and threw it in the sauce.

It wasn't carbonara, but it was close enough and it was delicious!

Ham Alfredo

1/4 c. butter
3 T. flour
3 c. milk
1/2 c. grated Parmesan
leftover bits of cooked ham
parsley, to taste

Melt butter in large skillet or saucepan. Whisk in flour. Gradually whisk in milk. Cook and stir until thickened. Add Parmesan; cook and stir until smooth. Add ham bits and parsley; heat through. Serve over your choice of cooked pasta.

If your sauce gets too thick, just whisk in additional milk until the sauce is the consistency you want.


2 years ago:

Wish list

1 year ago:

Random cool pictures

Small Farm Business: Permission Marketing

I wanted to share a post I read recently about marketing called Reaching the People Who Get It. The gist of the article is that it's a waste of your marketing efforts to market to people who just don't "get it". This is the same conclusion Matt & I have reached in the years that we've been doing this farm thing.

In the beginning we thought all we had to do was educate people about our products and why they're so great and better for you than typical grocery store fare, and people would be beating down our door to buy from us.

Obviously, it didn't happen quite that way.

So now we try to target our marketing efforts towards people who already "get it", or at least might have an open mind towards what we're doing. The article calls this permission marketing - "when you market and pursue people who actually want what you are selling to them." But where do we find these kinds of people?

Farmers markets, to a degree. Some people that patronize farmers markets are there because they're interested in buying direct from the farmer, or in local food issues, or food safety or taste issues. Other people that patronize farmers markets are simply there looking for a bargain. After 2 years of doing farmers market, I'm getting better at discerning who's who when someone approaches my booth. I start with my basic rundown. If I sense they're in the former category, I keep on with the more detailed spiel. If I sense they're in the latter category, I don't waste my breath.

There's a local store that carries our meat. It's owned by a Mennonite family, and carries bulk foods and handcrafted furniture. It's been great for us, and I think great for the store as well. But we haven't even tried to sell through the other local grocery store. Earlier this summer that store set up a special organic products section. I noticed last week that it had been taken down. Just not enough people that "get it" shop there.

This winter I'll be giving a local foods class through NIACC Continuing Education. I anticipate that those who sign up for the class will be people who already "get it" - or who at least have an open mind to some new ideas.

Another way we hone our marketing to our target market is by managing our mailing list. Just like unproductive animals on the farm get culled, former customers who have stopped ordering get culled as well.

Marketing to those who get what you're about, rather than trying to educate and convert the masses, will be a better use of your limited time and give you a greater return on that investment!


4 years ago:

2004 Recap

3 years ago:

Jimmy

Winter cows

2 years ago:

Here are some pictures I took of a totally anonymous baby

Our Layer Hens, Part 1

Our Layer Hens, Part 2

Our Layer Hens, Part 3

1 year ago:

Snowy

I hate this time of year

How to Cook : Pumpkin Pie

I mentioned in my last post that Olivia & I made pumpkin pies. We started by taking a couple of small pie pumpkins and cutting some slits in them simply by sticking a knife into each one a few times. Then we put them on a cookie sheet and roasted them in a 325 degree oven for a couple of hours. They're done when you can stick the knife in and feel that the flesh is soft all the way through. Peel the skins off - I love this part! - then let the pumpkins cool. We left ours overnight.

The next morning we cut each one in half and scraped the seeds out. In retrospect I think we wouldn't have had to do that. We could have just put the whole works into the food mill and let it sort out the undesirables. But we did, and then we just cut the pumpkin flesh into chunks and fed them through the food mill.



If you don't have a food mill, then scrape the seeds out and run small pieces through a food processor or blender. If you do it this way you may have to add a bit of water to get a smooth consistency.



Then it was time to make the crust. We're still learning how to make a good pie crust, but these didn't turn out too bad. I've found that making the dough in the food processor works best for me - it keeps me from overworking the dough.

Then simply make the filling, using your pureed pumpkin, pour in the crusts and bake. Easy as...cake. (Ha! Thought I'd say "pie", didn't you?)


Olivia sporting her homebaked pie and her new glasses

Pie Crust
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. salt
2/3 cup cold butter or lard
1/4 cup ice water

Put flour & salt in food processor. Cut butter into chunks. Add 1 chunk at a time to food processor, and pulse a few times after adding each chunk. Add water and pulse until small crumbs form. At that point we gave it the "pinch test". Pinch a little bit of dough together. If it feels too dry and doesn't hold together, add another teaspoon of water, pulse a few times and then test again. Repeat until you have a dough that feels right. It should hold together but not be sticky. It's one of those things you just kind of have to do a few times until you get a feel for it.

Roll dough, on floured board, into a circle about 1" larger than your pie pan. Fold dough in half, lay into pie pan, then unfold and ease loosely into the pie pan. Don't stretch it! Trim the excess dough from around the edge with a serrated knife.

The pie recipe we used is from my grandma's Betty Crocker cookbook circa 1956:

Pumpkin Pie Filling
(for a 9" pie)

1-3/4 c. mashed cooked pumpkin
1/2 t. salt
1-3/4 c. milk
3 eggs
2/3 c. brown sugar
2 T. granulated sugar
1-1/4 t. cinnamon
1/2 t. ginger
1/2 t. nutmeg
1/4 t. cloves

Beat all ingredients together. Pour into pie crust. Bake 45 to 55 minutes at 425 degrees, or until a silver knife inserted 1 inch from the side of the filling comes out clean. The center may still look soft but will set later.


3 years ago:

Tis the season

O Christmas Tree

Lazy, pampered chickens

To tell the truth...

2 years ago:

Tree '06

So much for quiet

Cold

1 year ago:

Daily bread

Loaded, the back story

Daily bread details - Part 1

Daily bread details - Part Deaux

Winter pig chores