Nevadans?

[americanvalkyrie]

Beautiful picture!!! I was wondering how your garden is doing. This is such an amazing year for gardens, isn't it? (If we can afford all the water, that is.)

Any news on Gregory Peck yet? He did stop by and say he needed a rooster, and Russ did tell him about the one that we were going to eat. But he's a single dad of 4 teenage daughters, so he might be a little busy.

 

[aubreynoramarie]

Nope no word yet but I am being patient

Yes those plant have been giving us peppers and 'matoes for a month now and there are still a bazillion little guys on the plants that aren't ready yet AND there are still flowers on them! It's insane, I have no clue what I am going to do with all of those little tomatoes. I'm gonna have to learn to make a sauce or something hahaha

 

[americanvalkyrie]

Dump them right into freezer bags until you decide! That way, not a single one goes to waste. You can thaw them for sauce, salsa, etc. when you have the recipe you want. Same thing with the peppers... they freeze perfectly, no need to blanch. But I recommend cutting the peppers into the shape you're going to use them, before freezing. It's easier to cut when fresh.

 

[SunnyDawn]

Last year the spanish market near me sold pears at 4#/$1. I went kinda crazy and made tons of jam. I made 9 different recipes. Some I totally loved and others I will pass on. I really recommend pear butter. It is sooooooo delish over vanilla ice cream or on pancakes!!! Some of the "hits" were.... Pear Orange Marmalade Pear Butter (smooth and just delicious) Pear Lime Jam (this one is so pretty with flecks of green floating a beautiful light yellow jam...yummy too!) Pear Vanilla Jam (uses vanilla bean) Spiced Caramel Pear Jam (similar to the pear butter but textured differently) and Gingered Pear Jam (called for candied ginger...I used ground, was still delish) I'd be happy to share the recipes. I want the first 2 recipes...autumn cranberry pear and carrot cake.

OMG these sound good! Especially the pear butter. I don't can but right now I wish I did!

I'm getting eggs from Harmony now, she's the duck we hatched on March 17th. She started laying at 5 months and 3 days. Amanda and Lacey are just enjoying themselves. I don't see any signs they are ready to lay eggs yet. Leroy still does not crow and John's enjoying him a lot so when he does start to crow I know we will keep him. Sunny, how are you doing? How's the pea hens?

The Pea chicks are getting huge!!! I cannot believe how fast they are growing. Whe I read that they take 2-3 years to mature I guess I assumed they would grow at a leisurely rate. Not so! Congrats on the eggs and good luck with keeping the owl away. We have some huge ones here too and they make me very nervous.

Sheryl, I would love to help you, and anyone else who wants to start!!!! I am no expert but I do have it down pretty well!

If anyone makes that recipe for pear butter and has some leftovers I would love to buy some!

You're telling me! It's even more difficult to show a picture that you've already uploaded! I wanted to show the bee pick on a Bee thread in another forum and there's simply no obvious way to do it. Arrrgghh!

So glad it is not just me. Since the screen keeps freezing when I try to upload to a post I have been uploading to my albums then right clicking to get the URL from "properties" then copying and pasting the URL. That works but what a pain in the behind it is to do that for every pic. I also still need to be in town for a strong signal so that I can upload to my albums. Once I get it to post on one thread though copying and pasting the pic works just fine. Good news for me when several folks from diff threads wanted pics of the peachicks and the puppies.

I would love it if someone around here had bees. I spent all summer playing matchmaker with the squash and the tomatoes! Next year I'm planting a ton of flowers amongst my veggies! Sheeesh!

OK now I have the song "Matchmaker" stuck in my head. lol

WOW, that is extra super cute!!!! reminds me of this photo i posted on facebook yesterday (NOT my photo) tee hee hee!

Hahaha!!! LOVE that pic!

Okay...here goes.
Spiced Caramel Pear Jam

4 cups chopped peeled and cored pears, about 8 pears 1 package powdered fruit pectin 3 1/2 cups granulated sugar, divided 1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar 1/8 teaspoon ground allspice 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon butter, optional Grind or finely chop the pears; measure 4 cups into a large kettle. In a bowl, combine the fruit pectin with 1/4 cup of the granulated sugar; mix well. Add the pectin mixture to the pears and cook, stirring, over medium-high heat, until the mixture comes to a full rolling boil. Gradually stir in the remaining sugars and spices. Add the butter, if desired, to keep foam to a minimum. Stirring constantly, again bring the mixture to a full rolling boil. Boil for exactly 1 minute longer. Remove from heat and continue stirring for 5 minutes. Skim excess foam from the mixture, if necessary. Fill jars with hot fruit mixture, leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Makes about 6 to 7 half-pint jars. Recipe by Diana Rattray, http://southernfood.about.com/od/jamsjellies/r/r80810h.htm
Pear Orange Marmalade*

1 orange 1½ - 2 cups water 3 cups sugar 3 pounds firm, ripe Bartlett USA Pears, cored, peeled, and sliced 3 tablespoons lemon juice 1/2 tsp real butter, if desired (to reduce foaming) Use a peeler and peel skin off the orange; julienne or make small sticks. Remove and reserve (see option) excess pith (the white part between the orange skin and the fruit) from the orange. Quarter and seed orange; slice fruit very thinly. Combine water and orange peel, orange slices, pears and lemon juice. Simmer until peel is translucent. Add sugar, heat until sugar is dissolved. Boil rapidly, stirring constantly until mixture is 9 degrees above the boiling point of water and is very thick. Skim. Ladle into clean hot half pint canning jars to within ⅛-inch of tops. Makes 4 or 5 half pints Option:Can use pith and seeds in muslin bag to add natural pectin. Remove bag before adding sugar. http://www.usapears.com/sitecore/content/Common/Recipes/Pear%20Orange%20Marmalade.aspx *after making this I changed the recipe directions to treat the orange differently, making the rind/peel softer and less bitter (darn pith). Haven't had a chance to make it yet again...let me know how it turns out! It was decent as is...will hopefully be even better.
Gingered Pear Jam

3 pounds fresh Bartlett USA Pears 1 orange ½ lemon ½ cup diced candied ginger* 1 package (1 ¾ ounces) powdered fruit pectin 5 cups sugar ½ tsp real butter, if desired (to reduce foaming) Core and coarsely dice pears to make 4 cups. Put orange and lemon through food chopper or finely dice (slice thin first, then process). Combine pears, orange, lemon, candied ginger, and fruit pectin. Bring to boil. Add sugar and bring back to full rolling boil. Boil 1 minute. Remove from heat and skim with metal spoon. Cool 5 minutes, skim again. Put in sterilized jars and seal. Process according to manufacturer's directions. Makes approximately 6 half pints http://lasaan.tripod.com/canningrecipes/ginpear.html *Substitute 1/8 tsp. of ground ginger for every 1 tbsp. of candied ginger that is called for in the recipe. There are 8 tbsp in a ½ cup.
Pear Butter

4 pounds ripe USA Pears, preferably Bartletts, peeled, cored, and cut into 1-inch chunks 5 cups apple cider 2 ½ cups light brown sugar 1 ½ teaspoons cinnamon 1 ½ teaspoons grated nutmeg ¼ teaspoon powdered cloves 2 tablespoons vanilla extract (optional) Bring cider to boil over high heat. Cook until reduced to 2 ½ cups, or half. Add pear chunks and cook until fruit is soft and translucent, about 30 minutes. Transfer to a food processor. Puree until mixture is smooth. Wash original pan, or use another. Add fruit puree, brown sugar, and spices, and stir to dissolve. Bring mix to a simmer, stirring frequently to avoid scorching. Cook until very thick, 30 minutes or more. Remove from heat, cool to room temperature. Add vanilla, if using it. (Taste at this point; you may not want to add it.) Makes about 7 half pints. http://superfreshgrowers.com/pears/recipe.html?recipeid=11 (I've seen crockpot versions of this that I want to try)
Pear Lime Jam

4 cups pureed pears, peeled and cored (about 8 pears) 5 cups sugar 2 Tbsp fresh lime juice 1 Tbsp grated lime peel 1 pkg powdered pectin ½ tsp real butter, if desired (to reduce foaming) Peel and core the ripe pears and buzz them in the food processor or blender until smooth. Measure 4 cups puree pour into a heavy kettle (at least a six-quart kettle). Stir in the lime juice, lime zest, and pectin. Cook over high heat until it reaches a rolling boil, then dump the sugar in ALL AT ONCE. Return to a rolling boil and boil hard for one minute. Makes about 7 half pints. http://lasaan.tripod.com/canningrecipes/pear-lime_jam.htm
Pear Vanilla Jam

8 cups chopped Bartlett pears 2 vanilla beans, split and scraped 4 cups sugar 1 packet liquid pectin In a large, heavy-bottomed pot, combine chopped pears, sugar and vanilla beans (and all that bean-y goodness you scraped out). Cook over medium heat until the fruit can easily be smashed with the back of a wooden spoon. Use a potato masher or immersion blender to break the fruit down into a mostly-smooth sauce (remove the vanilla bean solids before blending). Add the pectin and bring to a rolling boil. Let boil for a full five minutes in order to active the pectin, so that the finished product will have a nice jammy consistency. Note: Often you can substitute vanilla extract for the more pricey beans. However, that is not recommended it in this recipe. Splurge a little and get the two beans. They are a vital ingredient in this recipe and you won’t be happy with the outcome should you make a substitution. Makes 7 half pints. Recipe by Marisa McClellan http://www.foodinjars.com/2011/02/pear-vanilla-jam/ Well...hopefully that works! Let me know how you like them.

OK drooling on the keyboard now!

I have been way chatty tonight! I wonder if you can tell that I'm nervous about school starting Monday and that I actually have a ton of stuff to do before then. HA! I'm so good at avoiding stuff I don't wanna do...especially when I HAVE TO do it! I'm stressing and chickens chill me out. I may even have to watch my fish tonight. *sigh* I wish I could be like these ladies...just chillin' and layin' around doin' nuthin'! I'm also in chicken withdrawl. My girls are still livin' the good life in UT until it cools down here a bit more...like maybe OCT and I miss them already! That's 2 whole months w/out them. My chicks are gonna be HUGE. I'm so sad. I hate missing the important things. JOBS! They suck all the fun outta life! Booooo! Hissss! ...... yuck. Sorry. I'll stop ranting now. I do like my job. Honest!

I say this a lot! This work thing really gets in the way of life!

ahem!

hahaha

so Mark had an interesting idea today. We were talking about insulting the coop to muffle some of the morning crowing and realized it may not be an easy thing to do with the rubbermaid shed. He suggested that we invest in a bunch of bales of hay to pile around the coop on three sides all the way up to the roof. Thought it may even help keep it a little warmer in the winter, whaddya think?

That is a great idea! Don't freak out when the mice burrow in for a warm dry home as well though. I would rather have them out at the coop than in the house or garage.

 

[SunnyDawn]

Thanks for all the fruit and veggie pics! Very cool.

OK I'm gonna go and try to figure out how to start that page I need to link on the first post with the member info.

 

[americanvalkyrie]

OMG these sound good! Especially the pear butter. I don't can but right now I wish I did!
If anyone makes that recipe for pear butter and has some leftovers I would love to buy some!

I thought I was ordering 2 25-lb boxes of pears, and they turned out to be 2 50-lb boxes. Half of a box went to one of my clients, and I have another client who will gladly buy the other half. So that only leaves me with 50lbs of pears to make pear butter. I MIGHT have some extra.

Want to just trade for those canning jars you offered me? Thank goodness they're entirely green right now. gives me a week or so to get this other fruit done, all in its time.

BTW does anyone want some white grapes for winemaking or grape jelly? They'll be ready in about a week! An entire back fence full! Actually, you could come get them right now if you don't mind a tiny bit of tartness. I'd keep them for fresh eating, but they have big seeds, and Garden #2 has tons of seedless champagne grapes growing over its fence.

 

[SunnyDawn]

OK I have finished the new member page that will be linked in the opening post of this thread now. I have alerted the mods to please erase the member list from that post and to paste the link in instead. This will enable us to edit the member list as new people find our thread.

Unfortunately with my terribly slow internet I know I have missed some folks lately. It would take me days to go back through the posts to find any names I missed. The last 2 names I added were SilKee and FlamingChicken. Can someone please help me out with the other names I missed? THANK YOU!

Here is a link to the new page https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/nevada-thread-members-and-friends The mods will edit it soon to reflect the link to the new list.

 

[SunnyDawn]

I thought I was ordering 2 25-lb boxes of pears, and they turned out to be 2 50-lb boxes. Half of a box went to one of my clients, and I have another client who will gladly buy the other half. So that only leaves me with 50lbs of pears to make pear butter. I MIGHT have some extra.

Want to just trade for those canning jars you offered me? Thank goodness they're entirely green right now. gives me a week or so to get this other fruit done, all in its time.

Sure! That sounds like a great deal. I noticed the jars got left here. You can get them the next time you're here. Thanks!

 

[Peep_Show]

so Mark had an interesting idea today. We were talking about insulting the coop to muffle some of the morning crowing and realized it may not be an easy thing to do with the rubbermaid shed. He suggested that we invest in a bunch of bales of hay to pile around the coop on three sides all the way up to the roof. Thought it may even help keep it a little warmer in the winter, whaddya think?

I'll ditto Sunny's remarks on this one about the potential for rodents. I found out the hard way years back in the goat barn that just 2 straw bales made a nifty home for about 13 rats. Not much fun when I turned it over....well, maybe for whoever might've seen my reaction.

 

[aubreynoramarie]

That is a great idea! Don't freak out when the mice burrow in for a warm dry home as well though. I would rather have them out at the coop than in the house or garage.

Ill try not to, haha. We are going to pile the bales on the outside of the coop so we dont lose any space on the inside (even though I have somehow managed to keep my chicken count to about 10 birds UNDER the limit! can you believe that?!?!) And if mice wanna hang out in them its fine with me. So long as they arent in the coop and arent in my house. my cats are amazing hunters and like to leave me their spoils