It's been lovely here (weird!) but we are expecting snow tonight. Phew, global warming was getting a little too up close and personal for a moment there. In anticipation of the snow, and also b/c I was just on a roll, I picked up all the absent farm animals today and brought them home! Got our two bred alpine does from Olathe, and I was pleasantly surprised when they acutally seemed excited to see me. Delilah and Pom are such sweethearts and are convincing me that goats are fun and easy and way more delightful than cattle. Too bad milk's so much harder to sell than beef. Of course the profit margin might be better, hmmm. Anyway, their baby daddy is a very handsome gentleman named Danny, who has a rich dark brown coat and should make really gorgeous babies. I guess they were both very good sports and came into heat right on schedule. Right on schedule AND 2 days apart which should make kidding season just that much easier! Such good girls. As I do not have a stock trailer, and decided after my adventure two weeks ago that stuffing two goats in the back seat of a small pickup is unplesant, I made a goat box in the back of the F 250 out of pallets and plywood and tarps and screws and bungies. It's pretty ugly, but very sturdy, and the ladies seemed to find it much more comfortable that the tiny Dodge Durango. I also enjoyed not having to dodge bickering goats while driving or smell them peeing all over the upholstery.

I'm also so excited to report that I picked up a new piggie on the way home! She's such a beauty - built like a weight lifter, but just gorgeous in a hog way! She's a Duroc, which is a good pasture breed like the Large Black, but she (and her babies) will grow a little quicker and produce a leaner meat - in other words, more appealing to modern Americans. She's red, and we're working on a good name for her. Her adopted sisters are named PeggySue and SammieJoe, so a double name might be cool, but I'm also liking Ruby. Maybe RubyMae? Ross suggested MaryJane, which I love, but then we all realized that on a farm run by a bunch of young hippies, everyone would assume we were honoring the drug and not the red-headed girlfriend of Peter Parker.

I also picked up our fat little pigmy goat from her (month long) date today. She's so hilarious! When she doesn't want to go somewhere (she's very willful, so that's everywhere that wasn't her idea to go to), she just drops her heft low over her haunches and digs in her little hooves, aka "pegs." It's completely incredible how much traction that critter can get. She can't weight over 100lbs, yet... Cait and I ended up picking her up and carrying her from her boyfriend's pen all the way up the hill to the truck, lifting her into the truck, pushing her into the pen in the truck, lifting her out of the truck, and carrying her all the way to her stall at the ranch! She didn't move a single inch on her own four feet the whole trip. I had the front, and Cait had the back; I kept getting horns in my face, and Cait kept getting farted on b/c we were squeezing her belly - lol! For all her struggling on the ground, Rosie goes pretty limp and seems to genuinely enjoy being carried. I could see her making a mental commitment to never walk anywhere again when there were humans available to chauffeur her bulk around! That is one strange goat, but her kids are going to be freaking adorable! We bred her to a nigerian dwarf buck who's pretty goofy looking :)

Pumpkin Quinoa Cookie recipe that i think would be good w/out stevia

Adapted off of glutenfreegoddess:

1 c quinoa flakes
1 c sorgum flour
1/2 c millet flour
1 T tapioca/potato starch
1 t xanthan gum
1 c sweetener
1 t cinnamon
1/2 t nutmeg
1/4 t ground cloves

1/2 c coconut oil
1 c canned pumpkin
1 T vanilla
1 T maple syrup
1/2 t lemon juice

Evolving GF bread recipe

This is adapted from glutenfreegoddess with six or seven changes/additions. It's pretty dang good!

Whisk together dry ingredients:
2/3 cup sorghum flour
1/3 cup cornmeal
1/2 cup millet flour
1/3 cup corn starch
2/3 cup tapioca starch/flour
1/3 cup ground flax seeds
1/3 cup sunflower seeds
2/3 cup quick oats
2 teaspoons xanthan gum
1 1/2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp kelp granules
2 tsp rosemary

Proof yeast-
1 1/4 cup warm liquid
1 packet yeast
1 tsp maple syrup

Add to wet ingredients:
2 eggs
3 Tbs coconut oil
1 tsp lemon juice

The more I learn, the harder this candida diet gets!

Just read on the comments of a blog: "Sugar free does not mean candida safe; sorbitol, maltitol, etc still feed the candida. Xylitol, however, does not but is extremely expensive. Aspartame and other full synthetic sweeteners are also “candida safe” but should be avoided for other reasons."* There goes my sugar-free syrup (sorbitol) and candy (maltitol)! I suppose it's really good news, because it might explain why I'm still so freaking sensitive to relapses; here I've been feeding my candida unknowingly all this time! *I had to change 7 punctuation marks in the above quote to make it sharable! I wonder if grammar sensitivity is genetic or just a learned behavior? Thank goodness I just have a mild case :)

According to the foods list I got from the specialist I saw yesterday, my sweetener options are: stevia, chicolin chicory extract, vegetable glycerine, and yacon syrup. I couldn't find any of those things at Vitamin Cottage other than stevia, which tastes pretty gross to me. Internet research is telling me that the Herbal Advantage brand has a less-gross version, but I'm guessing that also means a crazy expensive version. I'm also learning that most candida patients do the strict candida diet for only a couple weeks or months and not their entire lives, which makes me a little hopeful and also makes me wonder if that's why there aren't better sugar alternatives out there. I could do fine with nothing sweet for a few weeks or months, but for years? I was raised on way too many delicious baked goods to not feel deeply desperate every time my roommate makes muffins! The search continues, and will surely result in some neat nutritional discoveries!

Right now I'm drinking my hot garlic/ginger/cheyenne water and learned about 2 ingredients which make it even more candidacidal (which definitely should be a real word if it isn't one). I switched out the Tbs of olive oil for coconut oil and added vital mineral blend sea salt instead of kosher salt - double yum! I also started adding delicious kelp granuels to food for more minerals as the candida causes some degree of leaky gut, making mineral deficiencies a common problem with yeasty people. Yeast makes me very grumpy, and the hormonal changes around menstruation increases yeast populations, so I have to wonder if much of PMS for many people is simply those yeast toxins screwing with their neurotransmitters. I just put a book called, "The Second Brain" on my reading list. It explains how the enteric nervous system affects our mood and state of mind. Here's an article from Scientific American on it: http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=gut-second-brain. One really intersting fact which stood out: 95% of the body's seratonin is found in the large intestine!

Which reminds me, I told my mom I would send her my favorite Ted Talk, so here it is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b-iGZPtWXzE. It's the same guy who wrote Born to Run, and it is delightfully entertaining and inspiring! Every time I watch it I get such a kick out of, "Usain Bolt can get his ass kicked by a squirrel," "One thing is remarkable about all women sprinters: they all suck." I now think of my ancestors chasing down antelope when ever a run gets hard. Mom, maybe you should imagine chasing down arboricidal* elk for extra inspriation! *I'm really introducing some gems to the English language today.

Spanish and Protein cookies

More latina locals came today to buy live chickens today! It's such an easy way to sell chickens! Some of them are really sweet, and some of them so obviously think I'm an idiot which is a bit frustrating. I realize that my Spanish sucks, but some Spanish speakers seem far more offended that I'm not fluent than appreciative that I'm trying really hard. I did learn how to tie their feet together better today. I had just been double knotting twine around their ankles, but those sneaky gallinas are really good at wiggling out while your back is turned. These experienced ladies have a technique of tying in between the feet that somehow holds it better.

We started Spanish classes this Monday, which should help with my chicken selling issues. Ex-educator Alli is teaching and is rocking it! She planned a fantastic lesson that was super basic but somehow still really interesting and helpful at my rusty intermediate level. I also got a few children's books in Spanish at the library yesterday. I was considering some teen fiction (crepusculo maybe?), but decided that was way too ambitious and picked a few picture books instead. Right now I'm working my way through "Cuidado con las Mujeres Astutas!," Watch out for Clever Women!, which has full page pictures every other page. With that hilarious title I was surprised to see it was published in 1994, long after the feminist movement taught most people not to openly declare that intelligent women are dangerous.

The first story was about an impovrished viejita who saves all her pennies to buy a special ham. She then welcomes some lost travelers into her home and cooks them dinner (with ham!) from her meager supplies. After dinner, the rascals plot to steal the ham and hide it in their traveling bag thinking she somehow won't notice. But she is clever, and steals it back before the morning, replacing it with a big brick. The scoundrels then hike into the wilderness carrying a brick, and go hungry for days. So there! I'm pretty excited to see what the next chapter has in store :)

I also found a pretty good cookie recipe from dietdessertndogs.com! Considering the ingredients, it's more of a delicious chocolate protein bar recipe:

1+ Tbs olive oil

3 Tbs water

1 tsp vanilla

1/4 c xylitol

1/4 c stevia

1 c almonds

1/4 c hemp prot powder

2+ Tbs cocoa powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 c GF flour

My brain is really tired at the moment from balancing so many farm thoughts all day, so this may not be very well composed! I managed to be really productive but am always surprised at how many things there are to figure out and how complicated every step often turns out to be! It's amazing to think about how entirely different my job is from what most people consider farming. Or maybe most people are still under the mistaken impression that conventional farmers aren't tractor/combine jockies?

Had an awesome cross fit workout tonight! I've been going for almost two months now (other than that two week sinus infection break) and am definitely getting a little better! I'm still amazed by all the women there who are whipping out over a hundred unassisted pullups and push ups in a work out though! I'm using a stretchy band to help with the pullups and am doing the pushups on my knees just so I can complete the workouts. It's somehow amazingly fun and is a great combo of lifting and cardio. Can't recommend it highly enough!

Today we did the "Cindy" workout. There are 20 or so benchmark workouts with women's names that everyone who does crossfit does! The Cindy is 5 pullups, 10 pushups, and 15 squats in a row as many times as you can in 20 minutes. I only got to thirteen even with my stretchy band, but did a little better than last time. The push ups were really killing me, and after the first seven or so sets I was having to take a pretty good break between the first and second 5! The coach cranks up the music and gives you form tips and encouragement. It's just a little bit competitive, but you can't really tell what set everyone else is on after the first few, so there's not too much pressure to go a crazy pace.

Aaaand randomly, here a Mouse Hamlet, a recent present from Cecil:

Lard!

I rendered my first leaf lard last night which was exceptionally satisfying, although I'm not quite sure why! I didn't get it quite right. Although it's almost "snow white" as is desirable, it is not totally odorless, and thus will not be used in all those super fancy pastries I make, alas. I made it specifically for tamales though, so I think it will serve it's purpose admirably. I'd better get cracking on tamales...2.5 quarts of lard worth! Of course, each batch of eight tamales uses 2/3 cup, so all that lard isn't so daunting. That 1/2 quart jar remained separated with the yellow liquid at the bottom even after it set up and the top 3/4 turned white. I have no idea what that means, and will have to consult a lard expert!

Googling "rendering lard recipe" brought me to this very cool website http://www.spain-in-iowa.com/ which I highly recommend! There's lots to explore on it about things like the nutritional science behind sprouting grains and other homesteading-themed stuff. Rendering lard could not have been easier, and I highly recommend trying it! Here's what I did:

- Pour 1/4 inch of water in crock pot (to keep the lard on the bottom from burning before the rest melts), set on low (but not "warm")
- Add defrosted lump of ground leaf lard, chop into smaller and smaller chunks as it warms to help with even melting. I guess you need to chop the lard if it's not ground, which my next batch isn't so I'll try out.
- Keep the lid off so the water cooks off, and wait two hours, stirring and de-clumping occasionally
- Pour into colander lined with cheese cloth and sift out chunks (aka crackle)
- Pour beautiful golden liquid into jars
- Do NOT eat the crackle! Ignore directions which tell you it's delicious and tastes like bacon bits. It tastes like pig ear wax, and will make you gag unless you have four legs and a long, furry tail (maybe I cooked it incorrectly? maybe my palete is too americanized?)

On a side note - leaf lard (aka "kidney lard") is the more desirable type of lard which comes from in amongst the internal organs rather than beneath the skin (aka "fatback"). Wish the fat in the below picture was easier to see! It is beautiful, glistening pure white when it is pulled off the carcass (the back fat is more opaque and yellowish). There's a third kind of lard called the "caul fat" which is a lacy membrane that surrounds the GI tract and is really gorgeous! Apparently it's not good for rendering, but can be used to wrap meat or (I just read) as a "covering for pate." Not sure why you'd want your pate covered in a lacy layer of fat, but I've also never had pate so I'm clearly out of the loop. I have a few bags in the freezer, but i'm not planning on any wrapped meats or covered pates, so maybe I'll just drape cecil's evening meal in fancy fat now and then. It's all about the presentation with these dignified felines afterall.

Evolving pancake recipe

The ladies behind glutenfreegoddess@blogspot.com and http://www.dietdessertndogs.com/ have inspired me by making my gluten + sugar free living so much more tasty! So I thought I'd start sharing the recipies I've adapted on chance someone else can't eat cows' dairy, wheat, or sweeteners, but is NOT vegan! Since there probably are six other humans following my diet out there, and they definitely aren't the humans reading my blog, this is really a recipe index for myself (lots of room for notes and changes)!

Right now I'm working on a PANCAKE recipe off dietdessertndogs, but it was pretty dang bland, so I've been adding to each batch. Here's what I've come up with, though it still needs something...

1/2 c almonds
1/4 c flax seed meal
1 c unsweetened almond/coconut milk
1.5 Tbs xylitol
1 Tbs lemon juice
1 tsp lemon zest
1 small egg
Small dash almond extract
1 tbs vanilla extract
1.5 tsp olive oil

Gind almonds, combine above ingredients. Combine below dry ingredients, then add:
1/3 cup GF flour mix
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt

Cook on lower heat than normal pancakes. Usually I'm a tick above medium, but I ended up giong a tick under because they were browning too fast.

I love that this recipe is really high protein and fiber. Unfortunately, you can taste that it's missing fat and sugar and delicious processed grains. Next time I'm going to try butter rather than olive oil, and more of it! Cows' milk butter doesn't bother me, because (i think) the casein proteins and lactose are in the whey not cream when they're separated? Whatever the reason, thank god! I'm excited to try glutenfreegoddess's pancake recipe but it requires a bunch of flours that I don't have. Having 8-10 different kinds of flours on hand is just a pain in the ass!! I cooked the final pancake in lard rather than oil (first batch, bla), or butter (second batch, better), and it added a nice savory richness to it, but certianly did not cure it of it's blandness. Maybe next week I should attempt a combination mom's awesome buttery pancake recipe with this one and try to make a more nutritious and less glutenous version of mom's without abandoning the deliciousness!

Here's a cute picture of LJ, who supplied the one and only locally raised ingredient in my breakfast. Oh wait there was an egg. Anyway, she was such a cutie! Which makes me think how excited I am to try raising some grains (not wheat! buckwheat, quinoa, amaranth, rice in the wetlands?) next season and how much I want one of Dad's fancy zero carbon greenhouses so I can raise some nut trees!