Holy "cow" thats really good!

Ever since I was a little girl I always asked for "The Cow" on my salad. In fact a few waitresses had given me a pretty peculiar look in my childhood. My Grandfather who lived in Ohio was a truck driver and whenever he was passing through Illinois we would meet up with him for lunch at the local truck stop and I would proudly ask for my favorite dressing "The Cow". Imagine my horror when I finally learned to read and found out it was called Western Dressing... Such a boring name for something so delicious. I recently came across a cookbook that had a recipe for homemade dressing so I gave it a try today.Lately I have been trying to limit the amount of processed food we get at the store and make as much as possible as I can at home. I have to say this was exactly like it came right out of the bottle. I think I actually like it better than the original. Of course its still not the healthier alternative and I of course drown my lettuce in it so I can kill the taste of the green stuff but I can at least prounounce all the ingredients. It does use store bought ketchup so you still are getting that corn syrup but at least its not as much as if you bought a whole bottle of the factory stuff. I have yet to make my own catsup as I hear its ALOT of work but maybe if we have a good garden year I might just give it a try.

THE COW DRESSING

1 cup sugar

1 cup oil (I used Vegetable)

1/2 c apple cider vinegar

1 tsp worcestshire sauce

1/2 c catsup

1/2 tsp onion flakes ( I used even less not a huge fan of onions)

1 clove of garlic minced

Salt and pepper to taste

Put all in a blender and blend til creamy

Refrigerate

I had enough to fill a pint jar and then some

Enjoy :)

"She Who Brings Treats"

Around here on our farm the animals refer to me as "That woman who brings us treats" .

An interview with the chickens spokesperson Trouble.

This is what he had to say about the treat lady.

 

Sometimes she is still in her pajamas and other times she has that odd looking thing around her neck ,that she likes to get close to our faces. I'm pretty sure I have heard here tell Spyro the goat not to lick her camera lens so I think its called a "camera". She is really nice to us though so we really don't mind posing for her. Some of us pose more than others like that Bender dude... Man he is so full of himself

Here he is showing off for the ladies. He's the Cocky looking one in the background. I think I heard him talking about his new tattoo over breakfast....

We all like to line up on the fence line to see what she is bringing us.Sometimes she brings us this things called raisins. They are our favorite treats but you really gotta move quick cuz the ladies will knock you down and trample you for those.

Today she brought us these little circle things that taste like cinnamon. Wish we could get that dumb goat to give us some milk.You should hear them carry on in the barn when the Woman walks out that squeaky front door.Swear they haven't eaten in weeks.Have you seen the size of those goaties??? They could stand to skip a few treats if you ask me. That treat woman she is alright, though sometimes all that talking she does to us gets annoying.Oh wait can you scratch that I didn't mean to say that part out loud.OOPS!

An interview with Always the goat about the treat lady.

I have to share my treats with this little annoying goat named Spyro.Life was so good here for the first few days before he showed up.He is rude,STANDS in our food TROUGH!!. Can you BELIEVE it and sometimes he will just "go" in there. You know number TWO!!.He is just so uncivilized.I really need to discuss my living arrangements with the treat woman. I think I need my own stall.It wasn't so bad when we could go outside in the fresh air but being cooped up with this stinky little boy.....OMG!
Santa brought us treats in our stockings and you know what he told me? He said that they were all his and that I had been a BAD goat. Can you believe the nerve of him?I mean I did escape a few times and eat a few strawberry plants but REALLY to tell me that Santa thought I WAS  the one thats bad....HA!! At least I dont go number two in my FOOD bowl!
Well anyway, the treat lady? Oh yes, she is lovely! She gives me hugs and even made me this warm coat I'm wearing right now.She loves that stinky Spyro too but for the life of me I cant understand why..Just look at the pictures... Need I say more...

Here he is trying to peek out of our door to see if the treat woman is coming in or not.He always has to be the first one to greet her and he is always getting in trouble for nibbling on her and hogging ALL the attention.

AND yep here he is with his dirty little feet in our feeder!!!Can you see the look of Horror on my face....I mean come on....DISGUSTING!!!!

Here he is Crying like a baby cuz the treat woman is leaving.I swear he has her wrapped around his stinky little hooves

I do have to give him credit for his perfect pouty face. He has that one down.He Always gets another treat with that face .
I think I am going to request to move in with the chickens or maybe move HIM over to that rowdy coop.They like to go number Two on everything so he will fit right in. Stupid boys......



Thank you Always and Trouble for your contributions to todays blog post...

PICKIN CHICKENS

Baby Buckeye chick

Some people get excited about picking out new furniture,or curtains or shoes. I am excited about Picking out chickens. As I sit here typing in front of the fireplace with snow outside the window and a warm husky dog at my feet my mind is on springtime. I think Spring is my most favorite season as everything is awakening from its winter slumber and new life is abound. The birds are busy making nests and their cheery songs awaken me in the morning.You cant help but feel the same as they do when you get to shed those winter layers and breath in the warm spring air.I am excited as I have been dreaming of having a real farm for many years. By real farm I guess I mean one that has chores other than mowing the lawn or weeding. Like the ones I read about or visit or see in movies.You know where you go out in the morning and gather eggs for breakfast and wake up to roosters crowing.Where you go to bed early because you are exhausted from what the day has brought you.Most people probably think Im crazy but as a society I think we all have gotten to lazy. We expect to get everything easy and not have to work hard for it. I dont know how we have gotten to this point in such a short time as if you talk to someone my Grandmothers age they lived a whole different lifestyle which in my opinion was better than what we are doing today. We are paying the price for it though. Gmo's in our food, chemicals on EVERYTHING we come in contact with including the air we breathe. It makes me sad as we are slowly killing ourselves and this beautiful planet as we are always looking for the easy,cheap and the get rich quick no matter who suffers from it way. For this reason, I am trying to learn from our elders as they worked hard for everything they had. I guess it makes me feel like I actually deserve what is before me because I have worked hard to earn it.Its not just man that is paying the price but animals are too. Did you know that there are MANY livestock breeds that are almost extinct? Me neither! I was a bit shocked when I learned that because we are looking to get rich quick and make life easier that we are only breeding livestock that do that. For example we are raising chickens in factories. They do not see sunlight. They do not get to free range and kick dirt or eat bugs like chickens should. They are put in cages and fed some genetically altered type of feed to make them lay the eggs you buy at the store.When I think of chickens I see Foghorn Leghorn and Miss Prissy  having a conversation about "the boy" or My Great Grandma sweeping chickens off the porch with her broom. Luckily I am not alone in this thinking as there are many people who are trying to save the breeds that once flourished and were considered the backyard chicken that everyone had. So with that being said my goal for our little farm is to raise these breeds that are in danger and to try to do my part to make sure that they survive in a world where most mankind doesnt really care about them.I am doing my homework and trying to learn all I can. There are so many different breeds and their personalities and temperments are all different. I hope to share my experiences and knowledge along the way with everyone here on my blog.

So I am counting down the days til warmer weather and chicken coop building and baby chicks arriving.Maybe I will get lucky and the stork will bring a Foghorn Leghorn and a Miss Prissy to our barnyard too and perhaps I say, I say, they will have a boy who will need cute little glasses. :)

This one is one of my favorite Looney Tunes cartoons enjoy!!! To bad we cant all find a "man" with the rolling pin method lol!

Peppermint Stick Foot Scrub

One of the gifts I am making this year are homemade sugar scrubs. This one so far is my favorite.Smells wonderful and actually works better than any store bought product  I  have tried . Super easy and quick.
This one is just needing a tag and a scoop and it will be done. You can use any container you like. I just happened to find this for a family memeber who collects Precious Moments. Give it a try. Just be careful or let the person know that will be receiving that the scrubs do contain oil and can make your shower/bathtub slippery.

Peanut Butter Dog Biscuits

We have started working on our homemade Christmas presents. I have never tried making cookies for dogs before. These were super easy and the dogs seemed to really like them. We decided to write each dogs name in the dough before they are baked so we can make a nice gift bag for all the furry kids in our family.

Timber keeping an eye on the biscuit baking. Just watch your cooking time as the recipe states 25 to 30 minutes.The first batch got a little over done but the dogs still ate them so they must be pretty good. I wasnt brave enough to try them myself though you could eat them as there is nothing in them thats not edible. Something about the bone shape
 just couldnt do it lol!!     



The recipe can be found here

	Peanut Butter Dog Biscuits
		Description: Cooking Time: Bake 25 to 30 minutes. Ingredients: 2 3/4 cups whole wheat flour 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour 3 tbsp. C&H® Pure Cane Dark Brown Sugar 1 tsp. salt 3 eggs 1 cup peanut butter 1/3 cup vegetable oil 1 cup water Instructions: Preheat oven to 375°F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside. Combine all dry ingredients in mixing bowl. Add eggs and peanut butter, mixing well. Blend in oil and water until dough is smooth. Cover dough and allow to rest for about 20 minutes. Roll dough out onto floured board to 1/2 inch thick and cut into desired shapes. Place on prepared cookie sheet and bake for 25 to 30 minutes, depending on size of dog treat. The biscuits will look light brown in color and will be very hard. Customize your dog biscuits before baking by using a toothpick or the tip of a small paring knife to write their name. Garnish with ribbon. HINT: When measuring peanut butter, line your measuring cup with plastic wrap for easy clean up. Also, wrap your rolling pin in plastic wrap to prevent any peanut oils from being absorbed into the wood of your rolling pin. Serving Size: Makes 18 to 24 biscuits.