Scenes from the Farm, Our Vegetable Garden, and One BIG Koi

The picture above is the entrance to our vegetable garden. Above that are scenes from the back 5 acres. We love walking from our house through the field into the "Back", as it's fondly referred to, and into the big pasture that has the pond and a small island. It's a great walk for the dogs too. Just last week I caught a glimpse of the very large Koi fish that lives in the pond. It was released there many years ago by my dad and we occasionally glimpse its bright orange color from above on the hill. I also saw baby ducks and their mom. Yo Bear jumped in the water (after the fish, I think) I quickly called him out and snapped some pictures of the Koi. It looked to be 8-12 inches long. Sorry the pictures don't do it justice. WOW!

View from Above: Langley and the Saratoga Passage

We go on a walk just about every evening. Today we got a spectacular view from a private road that overlooks Langley and has quite a water view. The sky was just clearing up as the sun was setting and we got some interesting pictures of the clouds.

Hearty Spinach & Two Lentil Soup

I baked chicken last night and I like to use the leftover bones to make soup the next day. So today I made lentil soup from the chicken stock I cooked up. I am calling it 'two' lentil soup because I love mixing the small pink lentils with the bigger brown ones. With all the good vegetables and protein-packed lentils in this soup, it is incredibly satisfying. I begin by cooking the bones in 2-4 quarts of water for 2 or more hours. Decide how much soup you want leftover and add the amount of water accordingly. I based the ingredient amounts off of using 3 quarts of water. The soup is a perfect balance between watery and thick, if you like it at either end of the spectrum, add more or less water (or beans!).

Strain the bones out of the soup water after a minimum of 2 hours on medium boil. Add these ingredients:

1 1/2 cup brown lentils
1 cup small pink lentils
2 sprigs of thyme
2 bay leaves

Now chop up these ingredients and add them after the lentils have cooked for 15-20 minutes:

5 stalks of celery, chopped
5 carrots, chopped
2 large garlic cloves, put through a garlic press
1 onion chopped

Cook above ingredients until done to your liking, make sure the lentils are fully cooked! It takes about 1 hour to cook after you add the lentils). Now add these ingredients: (The spinach gets added to the soup after you have turned off the heat. By the time you serve the soup and eat it, the spinach will be soft and will also retain its spectacular color)

2 TBS tamari or soy sauce
2-4 cups spinach, chopped

You can serve this soup as the one and only dish or have some crusty bread on the side to dip into the lentils. If you have guests, make a salad too.

The Mermaids

Garlic Herbed Chicken in a Clay Pot & Spinach-Parmesan Salad

This is an easy dinner you can put in the oven a few hours early and then sit back with a good book and relax while the delicious aroma permeates the air. I like to make wild rice and a salad with it. Our spinach in the garden is really coming up and so I made a Parmesan-Spinach salad to pair with the chicken.

Chicken:
3 1/2 to 4 pound whole chicken, washed and patted dry
5 cloves of garlic, put through a garlic press
2 TBS fresh thyme
2 TBS fresh sage
3/4 cup milk, I used almond milk
1 TBS olive oil

Soak the clay pot in water for 5 to 10 minutes before putting it in the oven. After it has soaked pour milk in the bottom of the clay pot, put the whole chicken in the milk then push the diced herbs and garlic (put through a press) under the chicken skin, save some garlic and herbs to sprinkle on the top of the chicken. Pour 1 TBS olive oil over the chicken, cover with clay lid and put in oven. Turn oven on to 375F*, and cook for about 2 hours.
*I do not preheat the oven, as the clay pot should heat up slowly.
* You may also put carrots, potatoes, and other vegetables in with the chicken.
In the last 3-5 minutes of cooking, turn oven on broil and brown the top of the chicken. Keep an eye on the chicken though! It cooks fast on broil.

Chickens on the Farm and the Eagle

We have about 30 chickens and we sell approximately 5 dozen eggs a week. I say we have 'about' 30 chickens because we also have a very friendly eagle in the neighborhood who swoops down to pick up dinner occasionally. Our chickens have free run of about 1/4 acre. This time of the year the chickens are the most productive egg layers. As the days become shorter the chickens lay fewer and fewer eggs, in a natural ebb and flow.
Our chickens are free to roam and eat anything within their large enclosure. We also feed them our food scraps, yard & garden debris, and chicken layer pellets.
We also have a rooster who protects the flock. We went up to the barn to feed the chickens and noticed the rooster was missing all of his beautiful tail feathers! This legs were scratched up and he looked like he had put up a real fight. We believe the eagle or perhaps a smaller falcon tried to pick him up and he got away.
We have Rhode Island Reds, Golden Comets, Black Australop, Ameraucanas, Buff Orpington, Barred Plymouth Rock, & Light Brahma. Here are some pictures of our chickens.

Garden Fresh Quiche with Tuna: Using Spinach and Chard from the Garden (with a wheat & gluten free crust)

We are getting a lot of eggs from our chickens this time of the year. They lay the most eggs during the lightest time of the year. Our garden is also beginning to offer us some beautiful bounty. I planted later than usual this year, as it has been rainy and cold and I have been busy enjoying my little Stella, who is now 4 months old. So here is a recipe that you can enjoy using in season ingredients. It's lots of fun to get the ingredients from your own garden and your own chickens or you can get them at the farmers market. This recipe is for one quiche pie and serves from 2 to 4 people, depending on the portion size. I like to make two pies and have leftovers.

Quiche filling:
2 cups chard, chop small
2 cups spinach, chop small
1/2 cup or 3 carrots chopped small
1 can of tuna
2 TBS mayo
1/2 pound sheep feta, or other high quality feta

Egg Mixture:
4 eggs
1 1/2 cup milk (I used almond milk and it was great!)

Pie Crust:
1/3 stick cold butter, cut into small pieces
1 1/2 cup flour, I use quinoa flakes, a quick cooking cereal, it is wheat and gluten free
pinch of salt
Up to 3 TBS water

Mix butter and quinoa flakes in a blender and then add salt and water as needed. Press crust into a buttered 9-inch pan. I slowly work the crust from the center of the pi dish to the sides and then up the sides.

Stir Fry the carrots, chard, spinach. Herat a pan on medium. Begin with some oliveoil and then add carrots, chopped small. Cook for 5 minutes then add chard and spinach. Cover and turn temperature to low. Cook for 2-4 minutes, just enought o soften the chard and spinach.
Set aside.

Put the Two Together: Preheat oven to 375F
Now you have the crust ready and the ingredients set aside and cut to the right size. Crumble the feta on the crust. Cheese is the first ingredient to go on the pie. It helps make a moisture barrier. Spread the feta evenly over the crust. Put the crust with feta in the preheated 375F oven for 5 minutes to melt cheese and harden the crust a little.










Remove from the oven and place the stir fried carrots, chard and spinach over the feta / cheese. Reserve a small handful of greens to put on the pie right before you place it in the oven.









Mix one can of tuna with 2 TBS mayo. Spread the tuna over the stir fry ingredients on the quiche.










Mix 4 eggs with 1 1/2 cups milk. Pour the egg & milk mixture in the quiche (on top of the greens and tuna. Sprinkle the top of the quiche with the leftover greens to make it look pretty.










Now put it in the preheated oven on 375F. Cook for 35-45 minutes or until the middle and sides of the quiche are firm, not watery. Here's the final product:

Langley at Night

The 'Any Meat ' Burger with Fresh Spinach

I have been making a lot of turkey burgers lately. They are quick and easy. As it becomes lighter later in the evening, until 9:30 PM right now, I like to be outside working in the yard. Then all of a sudden I think, "It is time to eat, and what do I want to make?" This is where the quick and easy comes in. Sometimes I want to just eat and be done. So here it is, the fast and satisfying meal. I just serve the burger- nothing else- it is fulfilling by itself and if you add a lot of shredded romaine or spinach it feels pretty 'green' too. Serves 3

1 pound ground turkey or other ground meat
Enough cheese to cover three burgers
2 cups of shredded Romaine lettuce, or this time of the year, fresh spinach
1 onion cut small
Mayo/Vegannaise
Ketchup
6 pieces of bread, we like the sprouted wheat Ezekiel bread
Garlic powder and salt to taste
Splash of red wine

Cook the diced onion with olive oil in a cast iron pan on medium heat for 5 minutes. Add ground meat, right on top of the onions, flatten burgers to the appropriate size for you, 1 # makes from 2 1/2 to 3 burgers, depending on their size. Cover meat and cook for 5 minutes (or so). At this point you can sprinkle garlic powder and salt on the meat. Flip burgers, add a splash of red wine and cook for another 3-5 minutes. Top with sliced cheese, cover pan until cheese melts.

Meanwhile, toast the bread lightly, put ketchup on one side and mayo on the other. Place the lettuce or spinach on the mayo side, put the burger on top of the lettuce (cheese side up) and pile the onions on the cheese side of the burger. Put the other slice of bread on the meat, cut sandwich in half and place the extra lettuce on the side of your plate. Dinner served

Lots of Joyful Ingredients to Add to Your LIfe

Here are some joyful ingredients to add to your life. If you have any to add, by all means add to this hopefully growing list of fun:

• Pick yourself a fresh bouquet of flowers or buy one
• Walk in nature
• Call a friend you haven't called in a while just to wish them a great day
• Get a professional massage, especially if you never have, yummy!
  
• Meditate for 5 minutes
• Dress up in fun clothes (and do any of the above or below)
  
• Sing a song to your dog or cat
• Paint your nails a color you have never used before
• Hold a puppy while it's sleeping
• Give your dog or cat a massage
• Go to the library and walk through the isles looking for interesting books
• Buy yourself a great mattress
• Push a child on a swing
• Use a swing yourself, see how high you can get
• Learn how to skateboard
• Do handstands in the pool
• Go to the beach and collect things to make into art
• Go to an art store and buy some art supplies to play with
• Finger paint with a child
• Play in a sand box
• Plant a garden (or just a seed or a plant)
• Watch the bees on flowers
• Lie in the grass and take a nap
• Climb a tree
• Take a bath with candles, bath salts, aromatherapy, and a good book
• Hold a baby
• Read a child a book
• Make yourself (&/or family) a yummy meal
• Try some cartwheels in the grass
• Go on a night time walk
• Gaze at the stars
• Draw someone a picture and send it in the mail
• Do some yoga/ stretching
• Dance to some good music (with your friend, dog, cat, or child)
• Make a fairy house under a tree and leave doll clothes and flowers for the fairies
  

Thoughts as Food: Affirmation Soup

There are a lot of recipes here and I thought that perhaps I would create a recipe for your mind, to nourish your body! So here it is . . . the leading edge in eating

Affirmation Soup with Side of Positivity & Joy, serves Everyone

This soup is just delicious! You may enjoy digesting it in front of a mirror. It is important that you add lots of yummy affirmations to the soup and cut them to the right size for you. You may use any of the following and add some of your own!

~I love Myself
~I forgive Myself
~I am Gentle with Myself
~I am Complete
~I am Beautiful
~I nourish my body with healthy food
~I find joy in everything I do
~I have many loving and joyful relationships
~My family and I travel safely with divine guidance and protection
~I trust my emotions to guide me toward my bliss: I do only that which brings me joy
~I find things to appreciate and love everyday
~I purposefully create the kind of day I want
~My body heals itself and returns to a perfect balance
~I am in harmony with my environment and other people
~I allow others to make their own decisions and have their own unique point of view
~I uplift others
~My family communicates clearly and joyfully
~People always bring me love, joy and abundance
~I give and receive love easily and wholeheartedly
~I am successful in all areas of my life
~I get paid well for my work
~I express my creativity
~I use my positive emotions to indicate when I am on the right path for me
~I am in control of my life experience and I can attract whatever I desire to me quickly and easily
~I follow my bliss: I do work I love
~I welcome prosperity into my life
~Money comes quickly and easily to me in a continuous flow
~I notice and appreciate all the abundance around me
~I can change and I am in the process of positive change

~The universe is a safe place, and I am safe and protected at all times

Mix as many ingredients as you want, cook for as long as it takes, and enjoy digesting and assimilating this most enjoyable soup into your experience.

Happy body-mind-spirit cooking

Dreams as a Valid Reality: What would it be like to dream of the day you just had?

Have you ever thought about what it would be like to dream the day you just had?
Your day is this:
You take your daughter swimming at the pool; you visit her great grandpa at the beach and discuss his roof and watch the birds on the beach; you get lunch at a coffee shop and the soup is too spicy for your daughter; you visit a store and your daughter picks out some toys and tells a woman "NO!" and hides (when the woman tells her how cute she is); you visit you land then go home; at home you mow the lawn; your daughter throws a tantrum about a birthday gift for a friend; you work in the garden; friends come over and discuss taking some of your kittens, and you keep thinking how you need to make dinner and you are hungry.

You did all these different things during the day and each event was marked by different emotional reactions, some weak, some strong. Now imagine that this was a dream and you do not remember it all fitting together in an "order", perhaps you do not even remember all of the dream and segments are left out.

Here's your dream: I dreamed that I brought Marina swimming and she was so good and she dived in the pool just like she normally does. And then I was in a coffee shop in Freeland, and I don't remember what I ate but it was really good and I remember that Marina wouldn't eat any of it, I'm not sure why though? I remember seeing Marina's great grandpa and there were birds flying around. I think I was even at the land at some point, and it was sunny and I remember being on the lawnmower. Then I had another dream where a woman told Marina she was cute and Marina got really upset. At some point my friend came over, and I think her husband was there, but I'm not sure, and she held the kittens and talked about taking some home. All I remember is that I was so hungry and I had to make food.

Imagine that you did not remember what had happened the day before you had this "dream". Or the day before that . . . How strange and segmented it would all seem if it was out of the usual context of daily life.
We can remember our dreams on a regular basis and receive great insight and wisdom from them. By intending to remember and write down our dreams every day we will start to notice little and sometimes big correlations between our dreams and our waking state. This increased clarity can blend our conscious waking mind with our greater unconscious sleeping self. A "wide awake", or conscious, dreamer can manifest goals by working through symbolic or very real problems during their dreaming state. We can meet people that help us discover things about our self or others. We can help other people as well. The dreaming state is much more relaxed about our so-called laws of nature.
Our dreaming state is another reality where we can become fully conscious creators and affect our waking life. During our dreaming state we are able to do unusual things: regular "laws" of nature do not apply and we can often travel back in time or forward. We can die, meet new or old aquaintences, see dead relatives, be different people, or even be "outside" observers of our self. What freedom!
Interestingly, our dreaming self seems to remember little of what we do during the day. Perhaps the dreaming self believes that the waking self is a dream . . .

Summer's Coming Quesadillas

These quesadillas are delicious. Summer is right around the corner, at least by the calendar, and the leeks in my garden are close to going to seed. I wanted to use most of them before they go to seed (they taste more tender before) so I came up with this recipe. I cook the corn tortillas with jack cheese on the stove top and in a separate pan I cook the leek and ground turkey. This is great with guacamole and green or red salsa and shredded romaine lettuce. You can keep it simple and quick or add lots of toppings. Here goes!

Turkey-Leek topping:

1 pound of ground turkey
1 leek, use the green and white part, slice thin
2 TBS butter
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp powdered garlic
1/2 tsp mild red pepper
salt to taste

Heat the pan up with butter and add the leek on medium heat. cook for 5 minutes , stirring once or twice. Add the turkey and stir. Then add the spices (garlic, cumin, red pepper salt), stir, cover with a lid and cook until turkey is done, 5-10 minutes.

Meanwhile . . .
Cheese Quesadillas:

5 corn tortillas
1/4 pound jack cheese

We use small corn tortillas, add them to a buttered heated on medium pan. Place grated cheese on each tortilla, cover pan and let cook until the cheese has melted. Place each finished tortilla on a plate and add toppings as you like.

Here's a wonderful and easy guacamole:

2 avocados
1/2 small lime
salt to taste
pinch of cumin
pinch of powdered garlic

Mash avocados in a bowl, add 1/2 squeezed lime juice and spices, stir and serve with quesadillas.

Lively Landscapes: Creativity, Inspiration & Big Rocks

My husband Luc owns the landscape company "Lively Landscapes". He enjoys creating beautiful outdoor spaces that inspire their inhabitants and blend with the natural landscape. Luc offers complete landscape services, which can include use of his excavator and dump truck. Patios, secret nooks within a garden, and winding paths all support the idea of outdoor living. A comfortable, fun, and tailored-to-your-needs yard will open up all sorts of new possibilities for fun and relaxation!
Lively Landscapes Co. creates rock walls, patios, driveways, ditches, large scale digging projects, lite land clearing, trail building, blackberry removal, and more! Luc has a passion for making large scale rock walls and uses his excavator to lift and place the stones. A rock wall can retain a hillside, terrace a steep slope, make a fence, slow or stop erosion, and offer natural beauty to a landscape.
Need landscaping or have a question? Checkout Luc's blog at:
http://www.livelylandscapes.blogspot.com

Call or email Luc (pronounced Luke) at 360-914-6022
livelylandscapes@yahoo.com

Poetry from 3 year old Marina

Marina is 3 years old and I was quite surprised when whe came up with these poems. I read her one of my poems and asked her if she would like to write one too. Yes! Not only did she write one, she wrote three. The natural spontaneity of childhood comes through!

The Music Box

Two Ballerina
They have feet
And they "hi hi hi mama"
And you and me
And a flower
All in a box

And the Ballerinas
Make tea
And say "I have a pink weee-weee"
"And me have a white weee-weee"

And that music
You wind and wind
Hooda doodhda
Hooda




I know You Puppy

I know you puppy
I know you phone
I know you he
I know you who
I know you who-woo



Chicken chicken
You have a music box
Rubber boots
Eat a chicken

My Stella

My Stella

My babe is 4 months old
Stella Bella
Stelly Belly
Stellar Baby

She is chewing
and drooling and
looking looking looking!

Sometimes sleepy
sometimes sleeping
then wide awake
rolling kicking scooting!

her eyes dance
as she watches me
she smiles
and her whole body breathes

Peanut Butter Dark Chocolates

This recipe makes wonderfully satisfying dark chocolate and peanut butter treats. I make them the size of a medium truffle.

14 oz bittersweet chocolate
2 TBS butter
8 oz peanut butter (or enough to use up the chocolate), I prefer the "no stir crunchy"
handful(s) of shredded coconut, unsweetened

Put the peanut butter in the freezer for 30 minutes to one hour, it should feel hard, but soft enough to spoon out. Melt the butter and chocolate in a double boiler pan, or carefully in a pan on low heat. Set aside and let cool, so that it is still soft yet a little thick.
Using a small spoon and your hands, form balls with the peanut butter and place in the chocolate. You can place 4 to 5 in the chocolate at a time. Spoon them out of the chocolate, making sure that the peanut butter is covered. Place on a tray and sprinkle with coconut. When the tray is full place it in the freezer for 20-30 minutes to harden the balls. You may now put them in a container and store in the fridge. Enjoy!

Salsa, Ground Turkey & Leek Stir Fry

Turkey makes wonderful burrito meat, especially when it is paired with leeks, garlic, cumin, red pepper and salsa verde. Here is the recipe I cooked tonight. I served the turkey with shredded romaine lettuce, grated Parmesan and extra sharp white cheese, and salsa verde, and herbed lentil beans, and steamed corn tortillas.

Salsa, Ground Turkey & Leek Stir Fry

You'll need:

1 pound ground turkey
3 TBS butter
1 large leek, use the green part too! Cut into 1/2 inch slices
1/4 cup salsa verde (green salsa)
1 tsp powdered cumin
1 tsp powdered garlic
1 tsp dark red pepper (non-spicy) If you like it spicy add 1/4 tsp spicy red pepper

Heat 2 TBS butter on cast iron pan on medium heat. Add all of the leek, chopped. Cover and cook until the leek is soft. Then add the ground turkey, salsa verde, 1 TBS butter, cumin, garlic, and red pepper. Stir and cover for 5 minutes. Check meat, break it up and mix with other ingredients. Cook another 2-5 minutes if necessary. Serve in burritos, with a salad, or with nachos.

Healthy Tuna - Noodle Casserole

I remember rich and cheesy tuna and noodle casseroles as a child. This is just as good, and it has lots of vegetables, as well as fresh tomatoes and parsley. I like to make this dish when I want to have two dinners made in a row. I make enough to feed a family of 3 to 4 for two big meals. Add a green salad or an easy chard stir fry and it is complete!

You'll want:
2 - 16 oz packages of brown rice (or wheat) penne pasta (I get these from Trader Joe's)
2 - 14 oz cans of cream of mushroom soup, I use Health Valley brand because it is wheat-free and has fewer additives than the other brands in my local grocery store
4 cups of chopped chard and/or kale
3 cloves garlic
3/4 cup grated white sharp cheese
3/4 cup grated yellow jack cheese
3 cans of tuna, drained
1 large tomato chopped
1/4 cup finely chopped parsley (approximation)

The Noodles:
Cook according to directions, strain out water, then return noodles to pan and add 1 TBS olive oil and stir. Fill 2 - 9" pie pans with noodles and pour sauce over the top (see "Sauce" recipe below). There will probably be some extra noodles left over.

The Sauce:
Heat frying pan on medium with 1 TBS butter. When lightly sizzling, add garlic and stir for 10 seconds or so and then add chard and kale (chopped small, one inch squares or so). Turn temperature down slightly then cover for one minute. Add 2 cans of cream of mushroom soup and 3 cans of tuna. Stir and cook for 1 minute. Pour over noodles in two 9 inch pie pans.

The Pie:
Now you have noodles and sauce in pie pans. Sprinkle grated cheeses over pies evenly. Sprinkle chopped parsley and fresh tomatoes.

Now put the pie you want to eat tonight in the oven on broil until cheese is melted to your liking, and serve. You can save the other pie for tomorrow or freeze it. Or surprise a friend with dinner.

Coconut-Almond Butter & Chocolate Squares

This is a nice rich chocolate treat when the need arises. We made it in celebration of Lucy's puppies. A birthday treat for us humans.

8 oz bittersweet chocolate
2 oz semisweet chocolate
2 TBS butter
1/4 cup almond butter
handful of (unsweetened) coconut, small grate

Melt chocolate slowly on low heat with butter. When melted, add almond butter and grated coconut. You can add the amount of coconut to your liking. Pour or scoop onto pan. I like to make it about 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. slice it into squares and serve.

Farm Puppies & Recipe for New Dog Moms

Lucy, our wonderful Labrador mix, had her puppies last night and early this morning. It was an amazing experience to be a dog midwife for a night. I did not get much sleep, but the exhilaration of the birth gave me a lot of energy.
Everything went incredibly smooth and Lucy knew just how to be a mother. She is patient, careful, and responsive. When a puppy cries, she quickly assesses the situation. She licks them continuously to keep them clean and stimulate a bowl movement. She washes each and every one, which is no small feat! There are 12 puppies! 7 females and 5 males. Having 12 puppies for 2 months is like having one child for two years! Lucy is busy. She seems to enjoy her new job and she watches visitors very carefully.
The dad, "Yo Bear" Yohimbe, also a Lab mix, is unusually quiet and is giving Lucy and the pups lots of space. He sniffed vigorously in the air for about a minute above Lucy and the babies during the birth and then quietly lied down in the next room. Today he is very mellow.
For the occasion, I am including some dog food recipes. We are fussing over Lucy to see that she gets lots of good food and plenty of water.

To follow the puppies as they grow or to purchase one ($100) check out our blog at http://www.lucyhaspuppies.blogspot.com/
You can contact me at: esme365@gmail.com

Pregnant and Lactating Mama Dog Tea: Yes, dogs like tea too! Add to your dog's kibble or mix in with meat

3 TBS Raspberry Leaf
1/2 TBS Fennel seed (use with caution, can increase milk supply very quickly)

Place herbs in a tea strainer and pour 1 to 1 1/2 quarts of water over. Seep for 30 minutes to 3 hours. The longer you seep the herbs, the stronger the tea, use accordingly.

Energy Shake for Birthing Mama Dogs: This is excellent for before, during and after the birth (s). Offer every 1 to 2 hours during birth

One egg
1 1/2 cup raspberry leaf tea (warm) or warm water

Mix egg into water/tea, offer to the new mom. She may refuse, just put aside and offer in an hour or so.