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| Thanks to our nephew J.R.. Hathaway for bring up this high tech cider press. It cut the work by 75% and time too! |
It has been busy this past week. From gathering wild apples, buying apples, cider making for two days and all the canning. The little cabin project has taken a back seat but by Saturday we should be back at it. Decisions, decisions on what to do with what ever. We had discussed having the insulation blown in but after much research and talking to a few that have had it done.....back to the rolled fiberglass. I was looking forward to not doing rolled. It requires long sleeves, face mask, gloves and cover as much skin as possible. Itchy stuff. I plan on wearing the oldest clothes we have and throwing them away when done with the job. The wiring is 99% done so let the electric flow.
The Amish will be here in two weeks to finish boxing in the eaves. Dick has had some old barn wood stored in our barn for quite a few years. Now it will get used. Our grandson thought it would look good on the long wall in the living area that separates the bedroom. I suggested putting it on the end closet wall that will also be seen from the living area. It's all about building this cabin on a budget and sticking to it.
A little food for thought..........I made a goulash/pizza casserole for Sunday's apple pressing. Everyone said it was good, ya never know kindness from truth. My opinion, I really liked it. All I did was make the goulash with ground beef as usual . Then layered it in a casserole dish with mozzarella cheese, grated cheese and pepperoni, topped off with cheese on top, drizzled olive oil over and baked until bubbly and the cheese on top was slightly brown. We even had enough for supper last night which as most leftovers do........taste great the second time around.
We have had a couple hard frosts here in Clara Valley. The dahlias are now laying on the ground all black. Now is the time to dig the tubers, spread them out and let them dry to be stored until planting season in the spring. Another full circle at Cook'n by the Creek. The grass is still growing with a vengeance and requires being mowed twice a week. After the long, hot, dry spell this summer it is making up for the lack of growth. The pastures and fields also need one last brush hogging before winter. I think it helps give the fresh, tender, young growth a better chance to grow in the spring. Plus it looks so nice to see the groomed fields from the house. The last to be trimmed will be the asparagus, when it turns a golden color we will cut it back to a 1/2 inch from the ground and throw the cut tops on the mulch pile. It's not good to leave them just die without cutting them back. It leads to bugs and disease that could ruin the patch. Many say to use salt around the asparagus to keep weeds from growing. It does that but also makes for spindly asparagus to eat. Best to keep the weeds down the old fashioned way......pull them and through them out of the garden. The asparagus spears will be thick and tender this way. That will about wrap up the outdoor work for us. Maybe a little snow shoveling for the winter.
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| We have had a fig tree for 5 years, it was 6 inches tall when we bought it. This year was the first for figs. From August 1 until this week we were enjoying the sweetness. |
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| This is what the inside of the fig looks like. We started out sharing when one was ripe and then it was......oh, I picked it and ate it. Sorry |
