Boucher Family Farm
Our small commodity dairy is located in Highgate, Vermont; this is our life on the farm.
Friday, January 27, 2012
Woo Hoo, Got a Label!
Vermont Sunflower Oil has officially got an approved label - still working on the marketing aspect, but really pleased with the colors and artwork (which I did) - (pats self on back).
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Vietnamese Steamed Crepes
| Banh Cuon |
Not a recipe, but a ratio and method found on the internet, noted, and then I lost the site address so I can't credit the author properly. If it is you, I am sorry, but I couldn't find the page in my browsing history, nor in hours of subsequent Googling!
Batter: 1 part Tapioca Starch, 1 part White Rice Flour, 2 parts water. I used 1/4 cup 1/4 cup, 1/2 cup to do a test batch. Whisk together and let set 2 hours on the counter.
The filling: twelve ounces of mushrooms, 2 bunches of spring onions, a handful of cilantro and one pound of ground pork - saute together and keep warm. (Much more filling than necessary for a test.)
Bring 2 cups of water in a large pan to a boil. Add enough batter to form a very thin layer in a smaller pan resting within. Place the cover on. It takes only 2 minutes to steam. The batch yielded 5 crepes.
The wrap is so thin, you can see through it.
I removed the stretchy, sticky, bouncy crepe to a plate lightly spread with sesame oil, filled and rolled it. In retrospect, I should have added the filling to the crepe after steaming for 30 seconds, returned the cover, and rolled it in the pan.
Ready for a spicy sauce of sambal olek, oyster sauce, vinegar, and agave syrup (sweet and sour in balance).
| Rice Noodle Roll |
Monday, January 23, 2012
Monday Menu: Vietnamese Sizzling Crepes
| Banh Xeo |
I've had tacos, tortillas, spring rolls, arepas, and crepes. But not Vietnamese crepes. These are new to me.
I defatted and reduced the sauce created by yesterday's beef rib cook. It needed no adjustments to the seasoning. I strained it, and poured over the pulled meat (about 2 cups).
| Pulled Beef |
| Sizzling Crepe |
You know you are doing it right when the batter sizzles and instantly produces small bubbles (hotter than you think you need for a crepe).
| Vietnamese Crepe - Banh Xeo |
I've never eaten these "for real" before, so I had to go with my own flavors. The rich sweetness and spiciness of the beef was cut by the tart dipping sauce, a mixture of rice vinegar, (wheat-free, soy-free) oyster sauce, chili oil, and agave syrup. Refreshing, light, and we ate it all up.
And then we had popcorn. Because we were still hungry.
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Stuffed Wings in The Free Press
| Stuffed Chicken Wings |
Weekend Cook: Beef Ribs with Potatoes
| Boucher Farm Beef Ribs, Red Bliss Potatoes |
| Beef Ribs |
Coated them in one cup of Sambal Olek, 1/2 cup of turbinado sugar. Placed in a cast-iron pot in a 250f oven for 4 hours (uncovered).
Added 1 cup of stock and 8 medium potatoes. Lid on. After 3 hours potatoes were done. Cooked for another hour, when the meat pulled from the bones.
Cooled stock in refrigerator overnight. Leftover meat will be used in tomorrow's recipe for Banh Xeo (Vietnamese Sizzling Crepe). And what of the leftover potatoes? I haven't decided yet.
Saturday, January 21, 2012
Boucher Farm Rib-eye
| Rare Rib-eye Steak |
| Boucher Farm Rib-eye |
Friday, January 20, 2012
Lake Carmi Perch
| Panfried Perch |
Simply sprinkled with salt, paprika, pepper, and fried on low heat.
Much tastier than salmon from the supermarket this week. Wonderful fish, fresh from Vermont!
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Burger with a Hat
| Burger with Egg, Onion and Tomato |
Sauteed cherry tomatoes, sweet onions, fried egg and four burgers.
Kind of got a salad thing going on with all the greens, plus some garlic pickles.
| Wheatless Burger at Home |
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Yard Bird of Prey
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Life on the Farm 011612: Flu Diary
Ground Zero
Not feeling well, bed at 7pm; stomachache, chills, can’t
sleep.
Go fetch antacids from the cupboard at 11:30pm.
24 hours of good eats rapidly exits body in rudest possible
manner.
Lying still on bathmat near toilet. Don’t think I’m dying, which is a switch from
the usual, considering circumstances.
Colder than I should be, can’t move, exhausted.
Uncomfortable under itchy acrylic blanket, reminds me how
much I hate camping.
Cats go into garage when Dan comes down for morning chores.
Cats come back in.
Oh please, please, let them not bring in any rodents this
morning.
Last time, the male was carrying a live baby mouse in his
mouth. I could see the tail hanging down
his chin, then, he spit it out on the floor so he could keep slapping it if it
went too far astray while he ate his kibbles.
Not this morning, please…
Day 1
Got off the floor around 8 am.
Made it as far as the comfy recliner, sipping Ginger Ale
with a pink bendy straw.
Think flu – or food poisoning – doesn’t matter, it is what
it is.
Asked Dan to turn the Christmas lights on for cheer, and the
fireplace for warmth.
Tuned in to the nearly-real jewelry auction channel. Rest of morning is a blur of while cotton
gloves, brightly colored stones, and “bidder, bidder, sold”.
Slept for an hour.
Asked for ice with seltzer, but there isn’t any. Drank it warm.
No higher thought processes available...
Day 2
Stomach still isn’t right, but feel like I’m participating in
life again.
Can look at pictures of food without becoming nauseous.
Walking makes me dizzy.
Fart attack. It’s
like a heart attack. Only not. Look it up.
Ate the last two olives in the jar.
Day 3
Ate yogurt.
Read, “I think raccoons have started a fight club in my
backyard” on a Facebook wall. Just about
blew milk out my nose. Not drinking
milk.
Walked around some.
Ate white rice.
Day 4
Ate homefries at the diner; stomach making weird gurgling
noises.
Have a headache. Think
it’s the sunshine. Migraine coming?
Possibility of fresh walleye tonight, and wants some fried
crispy, no matter the consequence.
I’m going to have to cook it.
Conserving energy, and coaching inner chef to nut up and
power through the evening.
NO FILLETS ARRIVE
Deadline Day
More yogurt.
Feel like I’ve run a marathon, staying in comfy chair for one
more day.
Thanks for looking in on me.
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Wheatless: Beer Battered Perch
| Fried Perch |
| Beer Batter |
Whisk together: 1 cup All Purpose GF Flour (I used King Arthur), 1 Cup Cornstarch, 1 tsp. Baking Powder, 1 tsp. Sugar, 2 tsp. Hot Paprika, 1 tsp. Garlic Powder, 1 tsp. Onion Powder, 1 tsp. Salt, 11 oz, Beer (Corona*) or Seltzer.
*Coronas do not trigger my gluten allergy.
| Fried Perch |
Oh, and we didn't have any tartar sauce, so I used horseradish cream, which gave me an intense brain "freeze" of pain. I don't know how Dan can eat that stuff.
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Today on The Farm
Today, Dan's brother Denis was skidding out logs from our Poole property, and he blew a hose on the tractor, which we are bringing back to be repaired or replaced in Swanton. Honestly, I wasn't paying that much attention, we made cheese this morning and I ate only a handful of dry cereal for breakfast. Bit tired.
| Skidsteer and Landing |
I didn't get out of the car. Saw bear scratchings on the older trees over twenty years ago and won't go near those woods.
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Drummies and Meatballs
| Pork Meatballs |
I tried stuffing the drummies, but they were too small.
Rolled in breadcrumbs and deep-fried following the boneless wings recipe, these were a bit dry, so I served them with BBQ sauce.
| Baked Pork Meatalls |
Monday, January 9, 2012
Weekend Cook, continued: Boneless Stuffed Chicken Wings
| Boneless Stuffed Wings |
In a food processor fitted with a blade, mince: 8 Cloves of Garlic, then add 1/2 a Medium Onion, then 2 ounces of Portabella mushrooms and 2 1/2 oz. blue cheese plus 1 TB Tapioca Starch (or cornstarch) and 1 Egg White. In that order. Whiz harder items first, then softer ingredients, last.
Add to a bowl containing: 1/2 lb. Ground Pork, 1 Medium Carrot, Grated, 1 TB Sriracha, 1 tsp. Black Pepper Flakes, 1/4 tsp. Salt.
Mix together and microwave a sample. Adjust seasoning and add more starch if it falls apart. Refrigerate 15 min. - 1/2 hour.
Preheat oven to 300f. Open the "cone" of the wing, sprinkle a pinch of salt inside. Stuff and set on a lightly greased cookie sheet. Bake for 18-20 minutes, until the internal temperature is 161f. Paint with BBQ sauce and let cool to the touch (10-15 minutes). The purpose of the sauce is to make the breadcrumbs stick. Blot any excess sauce before rolling in breadcrumbs.
Roll in about a cup of crumbs (gluten-free), covering all surfaces. Set aside. Heat an inch of peanut oil to 375f in a tall-edged saucepan (about 1 litre). The setting is medium-low on my stove.
Much easier if you own a deep-fryer, but my outdoor model is too much trouble to set up and clean for just 12 wings. Turn wings when browned, 3 minutes per side, or longer depending on how cold the wings are.
| Fried Wings |
| Stuffed Boneless Chicken Wings |
Serves 6 - 12, depending on if serving as appetizers or as an entree with rice and sides.
Sunday, January 8, 2012
Process: Bone-out Chicken Wings
| Boneless Wings |
| Chicken Wings |
Separate the drummie and the wing section. The drummies will cook separately, refrigerate them.
With a hand on top of the wing, slide the knife in against the bone, under the skin, and slice away from you, turning the wing over as you get to each edge. There is a tendon to cut. Peel the skin up to the joint.
| Deboning a Chicken Wing |
What you are left with is a conical shape to hold stuffing - a wing ice cream cone, for lack of a better description. On to the recipe!
Weekend Cook: Stuffed Boneless Wings
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Cheesemaking: Almost too cold to make
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