Friday, July 29, 2011

Creamy Fruit Salad Recipe

We picked strawberries, raspberries, and the first blueberries this morning.  There weren't enough berries to make a pie or tart.  So, I made this simple fruit salad instead.  It was our dessert after dinner tonight.


The recipe is really simple, equal parts vanilla or plain yogurt and coolwhip and a little bit of instant vanilla pudding.  Mix it all up, the add fruit.  Fold gently.  This is the specific recipe I used tonight.  You can increase or decrease based on how much salad you want.


2 cups vanilla yogurt
2 cups coolwhip, thawed
1/2 of a small packet of instant vanilla pudding mix
Combine all togther in a large bowl

Add 8 cups of fruit
Gently fold.  Enjoy!  Here is our finished product.

Thursday, July 28, 2011

Blue Potatoes and Cherry Pie

We harvested our first green beans for dinner tonight.  I thought it would be fun to let the boys dig up some of the blue potatoes.  One of the plants is starting to die, so harvest is nearing anyway.  This is our first year growing blue potatoes.  We can let you know how they taste after dinner tonight.



Jacob is very excited to show you a blue potato.  They are actually more like a very deep purple.

I am cooking these just like boiled baby red potatoes.  I'll serve them with butter and parsley.






I used up the cherries from our cherry tree today.  They became 7 pints of Cherry Jam using a recipe from my friend Ronda.  Ronda owns an orchard up at Greenbluff.  The remaining cherries became a pie.  Yummy!



We plan to go up to Greenbluff and get some more cherries this weekend.  I'm after the sour "pie cherries".  They are fantastic!  Maybe I'll see you up there.

Saturday, July 23, 2011

Weekly Update - July 23, 2011



Harvest has started on our family farm.



We are picking strawberries and raspberries every 2-3 days.  Jacob insisted on being in every photo.  He loves having his picture taken!

Yesterday we harvested the first head of cabbage.  Sugar snap peas are ready and waiting for a stir-fry tonight.  Jacob is in front of our sugar snap peas climbing up a trellis.
The boys eat carrots straight from the garden "bunny-rabbit-style".  We recently took some freshly dug carrots to a friend's pool party.  Who would have thought that preschool kids would love carrots so much!  Carrots are one of the crops that I am going to experiment with overwintering in low hoops.



We are also entering some vegetables in the Spokane Interstate Fair.  One of the contests is for the largest turnip.  We are hoping to win 1st place with this mammoth!



Lastly, greenhouse construction continues.  Jayme is working on the roof.  We are using many recycled materials in the construction.  The cement block was previously used.  Some of the timber is recycled from an old deck.  All the windows going into the walls are recycled from houses getting a new set of windows.  The roof will be a plastic greenhouse film, coated with uv protectors and an anti-drip material.  It will let in 85% of the sunlight and will help in warming the greenhouse this winter.





The plan for this greenhouse is to be a "cold greenhouse" - unheated except by the sun.  We are hoping to raise a variety of winter vegetables - primarily baby leaf lettuce and greens.  Maybe we'll even sell some.  It promises to be an adventure!