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~Sunflower Girl

Spring Is In The Air!

It has been busy busy around here!  Let me catch you up on what's been going on.

The plant babies we talked about in January have been repotted and are awaiting mid-April so they can go out in the garden.

I have planted cabbage, broccoli, brussel sprouts, cauliflower, swiss chard, peas, beets and radishes directly in the garden.  All are doing well.

Our oldest announced she is getting married!  Now that's been an adventure!

And we got ducklings!  So excited about it too.  Eggs are supposed to be amazing.

What has been going on around your neck of the woods?

Dirt Therapy

It has been a cold winter here in the South.  I'm usually able to keep my winter greens growing in the garden.

Not this year. 

So far we're on our second round of near 0 degree temps. Ugh.

Everything outside in the garden is...shall we say...toast. (Nothing against toast, because quite frankly I love toast all slathered with grass-fed butter and homemade strawberry jam...but I digress).

The herbs will all have to be replaced in the spring.  Toast.
The kale, collards, spinach, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli...toast.

I take solace in planting anew for the spring.  I enjoy sifting through the seed catalogs, looking for that "must have" seed.

I started mine in 8 oz drinking cups this year.  I've tried all the egg carton, egg shell, dirt cube ideas.  They simply require repotting too quickly.  The roots do not have enough soil to hold adequate moisture to grow strong healthy plants.

I labeled all of the cups with the name of the herb, flower or veg seed that would soon call it home.  I filled the cups about 2/3 full with an organic seed starting mix.  At this point, I add warm water.  Enough to allow all the soil ample time to become nice and moist.  I waited 15 minutes, maybe, before moving on to the next step.

Then I planted each seed according to the depth recommended on the package directions.  Covering with soil accordingly.

I misted the top layer of cover soil with a spray bottle filled with warm water and placed all my cups on my little grow stand I concocted. I placed a single sheet of plastic cling-type kitchen wrap over each tray to help hold in the moisture.

In the picture below, you'll see that one tray has the plastic covering removed.  By day 6, the sprouts were above the top of the cup, so I removed it.

Pretty sprout babies...

Check your seed babies daily.  Make sure the soil is evenly moist.  Moist...not soggy. Rotate them so they will grow nice and tall and straight.  My grow stand is in front of my dining room door, with faces South.  I have a grow light above each shelf.  About 6-8 inches from the tops of the cups.

You may prefer a standard seed starting set-up like this or this or even this.  But if not, give my version a whirl and see how it goes!

HONEY AND OTHER SWEETENERS

I really like what Sue has to say about honey and other sweeteners....

HONEY AND OTHER SWEETENERS
by Sue Becker

There are many reasons why refined white sugar is harmful for you.  It tends to promote the growth of disease causing bacteria and is so devoid of nutritional value of its own, it actually robs your body of valuable nutrients to even metabolize it.  It promotes the production of adrenaline, which explains the affect of hyperactivity it causes in many children.  The health of our family has greatly improved with the significant reduction of white sugar in our diets.  Brown sugar has no more nutritional value than white.

We use raw, unpasteurized honey for our baking and sweetening.  Honey is sugar, but is natural and unrefined, and contains a host of nutrients and enzymes that have a multitude of beneficial attributes.  Honey consists of numerous types of sugars, but will not cause the rapid rise and fall of blood sugar levels as does white sugar.

The varieties or flavors of honey are determined by the kind of flowers from which the bees gathered nectar.  We carry six different varieties of honey.

Wild Flower honey is produced from the nectar of what ever flowers are in bloom.  It is a dark honey with a strong flavor.  It is usually less expensive and therefore excellent for use in bread baking or to eat.  Its flavor is usually too strong to substitute for sugar in recipes such as pies or icing.

Gallberry honey comes from the gallberry flower and is common in southern Georgia.  It is a dark, stronger flavored honey also.

Orange Blossom honey comes from the blossom of the orange trees and has a very distinctive flavor.  It is has a medium color and flavor.  I personally enjoy the flavor of Orange Blossom honey, especially for sweetening herbal teas or eating on bread.

Clover honey is perhaps the most popular honey.  It comes, of course, from the nectar of the clover flower.  It is a light, very mild and very sweet honey.  Clover honey, because of its high sucrose content, tends to crystallize more readily than other honeys but this does not harm the nutritional value.  Heat the container of honey in a pot of very warm water to liquefy it again.

Tupelo honey is a very mild, nicely flavored honey.  We enjoy using it for sweetening where we don't especially want to taste a honey flavor, such as in apple or pumpkin pie, or cream cheese icing, real whipping cream, or yogurt.  It comes from the Tupelo flower which grows in the Florida pan-handle and the deep South.  It is higher in a sugar called levulose and lower in sucrose.  Levulose is assimilated more slowly by the body and can therefore be tolerated by diabetics.  Tupelo honey will not crystallize.

Sage honey has all the qualities of Tupelo only a little milder and sweeter.  It comes from the west from the nectar of the blossom of the Sage bush.

Honey has many redeeming nutritional properties and can be stored for a long time without any loss nutritionally.  Crystallization does not affect the nutritional value of the honey and can simply be warmed to melt back down.  To melt back down once crystallized, place the jug of honey in a large pot with enough hot tap water to cover the honey in the jug.  Place on stove on the lowest heat setting.  This will be just hot enough to keep the water warm but should not melt the jug.  Let warm until honey is entirely melted down.  You may also place the jug of honey in a warm place in direct sunlight, such as in a car or in a window.

Sucanat is a sweetener made from freshly squeezed sugar cane juice.  The juice is then dehydrated and powdered.  Nothing is added and only the water is removed.  Sucanat is, of course, sugar but contains many important minerals and vitamins absent completely from refined white sugar. Sucanat makes an excellent brown sugar substitute, especially for streusel type toppings, for which honey doesn't work at all.  It is excellent on oatmeal, adding a rich flavor, and also works really well in cookie recipes.  I still prefer, however, to use honey if it will work in the recipe.  Sucanat has a mild molasses flavor and is not so sweet as white sugar.

Fructose has no more nutritive value than sucrose.  It is assimilated by the body a little more slowly than sucrose but is still a refined sugar, devoid of any other nutrients.

NutraSweet (Aspartame) is a very dangerous sugar substitute.  Aspartame is made from methyl alcohol and two amino acids that occur naturally in food.  Methyl alcohol occurs naturally in cereal grains, but the antidote ethyl alcohol is present also.  In aspartame, methyl alcohol exists alone and is potentially toxic.  Symptoms of methyl alcohol poisoning include seizures, blackouts, headaches, memory loss, blindness, nausea, and gastrointestinal disorders.

Maple syrup is a natural sugar but the heating process used to obtain the proper consistency destroys much of its nutritional value.  It should therefore be used in moderation.

Molasses is a by-product of the refining process of table sugar.  Blackstrap molasses is the only form that contains any substantial amount of nutrients; 1 tablespoon has 14% of the U.S. RDA of calcium and 28% of iron.

Honey Substitution

In recipes such as bread dough with only a small amount of sugar in proportion to flour, I substitute the same amount of honey for the sugar called for.

In recipes where large amounts of sugar are called for in proportion to flour, such as cakes, cookies, brownies, or quick breads I substitute ¼-½ the honey for the sugar called for.

Example: Recipes for Banana or Zucchini Bread usually call for 2 cups of sugar; I use ½ cup honey.

DISCLAIMER: Nothing in this article should be construed as medical advice.  Consult you health care provider for your individual nutritional and medical needs.  The opinions are strictly those of the author and are not necessarily those of any professional group or other individual.

You can visit Bread Beckers  to see  more of Sue's articles or order from their online store.

Baby it's cold outside

Here in the North GA Mountains the weather folks are calling for the lowest temps we've seen in over a decade.  Much of the rest of the country is under ice, snow, and brutal cold.

Here on the farmstead I have to think about the critters and keeping them warm and their water unfrozen.  As tempting as it may be, don't put water in the coop with chickens.   That can lead to frost bite in a hurry.  Do make sure they have unfrozen water outside the coop all day though.  You may have to make a couple of extra trips outside to keep refilling if your temps don't make it above the freezing mark.  Your flock will thank you for the diligence.

As we take care of our pets and livestock...sometimes we neglect ourselves in the winter.  Dehydration is as important to prevent in the cold months as in the hot ones. I tend to forget though.

I mean...who wants to drink a big tall glass of ice water when it feels like 130 below outside?

Not this girl!

What to do?  I KNOW I'm dehydrated...first thing I reached for this AM after waking was the lip balm.  Sure sign I'm past needing to refuel the H2O.

So again I say...what's one to do?

Herbal teas to the rescue. 

Possum Creek Herbs Apple Spice Tea with added ginger

Herbal Tea can be brewed from your favorite fresh or dried herb or blend of herbs. Some classic favorites include mint, lemon balm, lemon verbena, and chamomile.


Herbal Teas are generally caffeine free and depending on what variety you choose, can be very warming or cooling.

Let's stick with warming today...'cause baby it's COLD outside!


Ginger and cinnamon make nice warming additions to herb tea.  Ginger also helps settle upset tummies.

Once you pick your flavor, how do you brew the perfect pot or cup of tea?

So glad you asked.  :)

This is how I do mine:

• Put kettle with pure, filtered water on to boil.
• While water is coming to a boil, rinse your teapot with hot water. Fill the teapot with hot water and let it sit while your kettle with your tea water is coming to a boil. (You can skip this step...but it helps warm your pot.  A warmed pot keeps tea warm longer than a cold pot.  So you decide.)
• When your kettle whistles, boils or does whatever it does to alert you it's ready, turn off the heat. And let it sit there in the kettle for about 3-5 minutes. You want it to cool a bit so the bitter tannins from the tea/herbs are not released into your gloriously beautiful pot of tea.
• Empty the warm water from the tea pot.  Add your loose leaf tea (or tea bags).  1-2 heaping tablespoons of loose tea is to my general taste.  You may like more or less.  If using tea bags, I like 2 bags per 3 cups of water.  Again, you may like more or less. 
• Fill your teapot with the now slightly cooled boiled water from the kettle.  Replace the lid on the teapot and let it steep for 5-10 minutes.  (Rarely can I wait 10 minutes, so in reality, my wait is more like 3-5.  Just being honest.)
• Pour your yummy, warm herb tea through some sort of straining device into your awaiting tea cup, mug or other tea holding vessel.
• Sweeten with a teaspoon of raw honey if you desire.
• Drink up and enjoy!

 It's probably about time for me to go out and check the chickens' water again.

Stay warm...and hydrated.

The Glitter Fairy

Oh how I love Christmas. The tree, the twinkle of the lights, the stockings hung by the fire...

until December 26 and then it is time for it to come down!  There is glitter EVERYWHERE!  I don't believe in fairies, but if I did, I know where they hid out during the holidays.

I decided to do a refrigerator purge and clean too.  Emptied all the left-over containers (made the chickens' day), and wiped it all down with a mixture of 3 parts warm water, 1 part white vinegar and 10 drops of Rosemary Essential Oil.  The rosemary essential oil adds a wonderful clean "piney" aroma in addition to having antibacterial qualities.

If you don't like that pine fresh scent... Lemon Essential Oil would also work great.

Now that the decorations and the tree are down and the floors are vacuumed, I think the hardwood would benefit from a good cleaning too.  But that is for another day. 

Right now it's time for a nice cup of something warm.

Merry Christmas Eve Eve

The weather around here isn't as frightful as it appears to be in other parts of the country.  We have had over an inch of rain, but no major flooding or frozen stuff.  Hope everyone else is safe and warm too.

While we try to eat healthy, whole organic foods as much as we can...we do have an occasional treat.  Today I'm making Haystacks.  Ever had them?  Butterscotch bliss is what they should be called!  Simple simple simple.  Not sure where the recipe originated, but I recall my grandmother making them every year.

It's not precise...but here's the basic idea if you'd like to give them a go:

• 1 bag of melted butterscotch  morsals, stir in:
• 1/2 large bag of chow mein noodles (the crunchy kind)
• 1/2 can low salt roasted peanuts.
• Drop by spoonfuls on parchment paper and let harden.
• Enjoy!