The year 2010 has been turned over for a while now. Before spring work creates a time constraint, it's time for my husband Dan and I to prepare for the farmer's market season (it begins in May).
You'd think everything on the farm would revolve around the dairy - and it does - but for some reason or other, we also swirl around market like a satellite, waxing and waning as we cycle through a seasonal orbit.
At the top of the to-do list: order day-old Broad-breasted Bronze turkeys.
Dan is firmly against having a "bargain assortment" of different sizes and breeds.
>He wants the same birds that we have raised for the last few years. "Easier", he says.
The only delay to completing this task is for him to finally confirm the date he wants them to arrive.
All I want are a few smaller turkeys for our home freezer. I'm tired of breaking down 30 - 40 lb. birds and eating them one quarter at a time. We are only two people, and one leg/thigh combo feeds us very well.
I'm not that fond of turkey, anymore.
I've done the T-bird up roasted, steamed, pan fried, deep fried, breaded, poached, pulled, grilled and smoked; I've made it into sandwiches, spreads, soup, stew, hash, tamales, meatballs, cutlets, potpie, and tetrazzini. We've eaten three whole turkeys since thanksgiving. No more, please!
Note to self: Buy gigantic plastic bags for packaging humongous turkeys.
We've transported the veal, pigs and steers to Brault's Custom Processing in Troy. It's crossed off the list.
There were clear roads for the journey over the mountain, but what an impossibly rough lose-your-lunch rollercoaster ride! I am not looking forward to picking up our commercial packages.
Note to self: Defrost the freezers and divide up last year's unsold meat amongst the family.
New frozen items from the farm in 2010: half pig heads, lard, and hot Italian veal sausage.
Yes, I said "lard" and "pig heads". Lard has been one of the most requested items for several seasons, and the popularity of pig heads defies any logical explanation that I can come up with. I have to give the people what they want.
Note to self: email our clients about the availability of more sausages and give them a "heads up" on the new inventory.
Also, make two separate orders of "straight run" (male and female) Cornish hens after counting back seven weeks from the days we can process them.
I want the meat birds we sell to weigh 6-7 pounds this year, not 8-12 pounds. Like the turkeys, they have been too big to be allowed.
The remaining market chores include repairing, repainting and resurfacing the chalkboards, and sourcing a more durable toothpick dispenser. The cheese-sampling public sprung the spring-loaded one we used in 2009.
Revising all our promotional literature and sales flyers will take more inspiration and time than I have today.
I'll just tack that on to the bottom of the paper.
