The Larder Line Up...

Aside from the heatwave of the last few days, things feel different here in the mitten state.  The air is different, the light is different.  The breeze is crisp, and the flowers are sending forth their last hurrah.  The barn swallows have left early, and the sandhill cranes are starting to gather in small groups, then larger groups...eventually flying away for the winter by the hundreds.  Things beg to be picked, and eaten, and preserved.  We are on the cusp of fall folks!

Here at the farm that means hard core canning, freezing, and preserving season.  So here is your yearly update on how well we've stocked the larder so far.  (And this is not an invitation to come running our way to eat jam should the zombie apocalypse hit) (Kelly!!).

The cherry haul was impressive, thanks to our new friends in town, and we put many pounds of sweet and tart pitted cherries in the freezer.  This blueberry season was just "ok," due to long stretches of cool weather mid summer.  Also due to the fact that when we should have been picking, we were wedding prepping.  But we still have a decent haul in the freezer, and put up quite a bit of Blueberry-Cherry Jam...which is delicious!  We also picked/saved raspberries, strawberries, and rhubarb...so we made a decent amount of Raspberry Jam and Strawberry Rhubarb Jam.

Despite a tomato blight (again, weird weather year here in michigan), we still hauled in bushel after bushel.  We canned the beautiful heirlooms, and stewed them down into marinara sauce for the freezer.  We made red salsa, and Joe's famous hot tomatillo salsa! We also have four sheet pans roasting in the oven right now with heirlooms, basil, garlic, olive oil, sea salt and crushed pepper.  Not sure if we'll freeze or can these yet, but god they smell good!!  And, we kicked ass at pickles this year...crispy and delicious!

We had so much chard in the garden (and still do), that we picked a few bushels, sautéed it in a little olive oil, and froze it in muffin tins.  I popped them out and put them in freezer bags, so mid winter we can pull them out for soups, stews, pasta, etc!

Ok, on to fall fruits.  We picked peaches, but we ate so many, and made so many damn peach crisps, that none made it in the freezer ;).  We had a great pear pick at the home of our cherry friends, and a bushel from our friends at Family Circle Centennial Farm, so we just finished the second batch of canned pear sauce.  

The first of the apples are ready at Uncle Scotty's orchard, so we pressed cider last week and put five gallons in the freezer ( and drank a bunch ;).  The rest of his orchard is close behind, and so is our trusty apple tree out back, so from this point on there will always be a roaster going on the counter roasting apple sauce or apple butter.  This is a bumper apple crop year, so let's put up some apple goodness!!

Our new set of chickens, the "teenagers," are in laying overdrive.  When I have a few extra dozen, I either make ice cream or pie crust for the freezer!  My "Never fail" amish pie crust seriously never fails ;).

And speaking of eggs, we have an incubator going in the basement with turkey and peahen eggs baking away!  My bourbon red turkeys have been a delight to raise, but I don't want to eat them until I get a new round of chicks going.  Fingers crossed that we have some hatchlings by the end of the month!

Come on eggies...I want little peacocks with their tails up to pop out!!

(but that's probably not how it works ;)

The best part about all of this is spending sweet time with my handsome husband and beautiful daughter...lovely mornings in orchards, hot afternoons in the kitchen - it's all about being together.  It also draws in friends, new and old, who want to eat beautiful local food.  

Yay Michigan!  Yay local food!

To Have and to Hold...at the Farmstead!

Yesterday morning, as Joe and I had our coffee, he said with a sigh..."God I'm glad there is no to do list for today!"

Because, for most of this summer, there was a to do list.  A long one.  If we weren't working, we were generally farming, gardening, painting...etc.  All in anticipation of Naomi and Tim's wedding!!!!

On August 15th, Joe's sister Naomi wed the wonderful Tim here at the farm.  It was beautiful, perfect, dreamy...it was all that I hoped it would be for the sweet couple.  On to the pictures!

Oh seriously Naomi....couldn't have imagined a more beautiful bride...but wait, let's go back to the beginning...

The dinner plate dahlias arrived in flats, and it was my job to whip up the floral arrangements!  I live for this shit ya'll.

The sunflowers bloomed, the porta potty made pretty, and the tables were set with the help of both families and the campers out back!

Joe made these kick ass chalkboard signs for the end of the road and for parking, and Naomi made the fabric flags for the front fence.  The details were really something folks!

Craig made the chuppa, and the chairs were ready for the pretty guests!

When everything was set, I had time for champagne and a bath.  Trixie had time for a nap in her wedding colored bandana (orange and teal held the day together).

Here comes Coco and Julia, Esther and Toby, and Naomi the Bride!

Music and words filled with love guided us through the ceremony.

Martha fit in a nap during the ceremony.

Who knew that the corn field would be the perfect picture backdrop!

And Oh the dancing courtesy of The Webbs!

... and desserts courtesy of Sweet Heather Anne!

This Couple!!!!

Amazing Wit Wedding beer courtesy of Tim's own Fitger's Brewhouse,

 ...and an amazing food fair courtesy of Chef Todd at Wesleys Catering!

Hostesses with the mostess.

The morning after.

I couldn't get out of my pretty bed, but the clean up crew was on their way for work and brunch!

Everyone wore their wedding favor, out Wit Wedding tee's!

   Hey, this was one of the coolest things that we have ever done.  This is the very reason we bought the farm.  Nothing makes me prouder than providing a beautiful, comfortable place for the people that I love.  So, until the next wedding (Julia?  Steven?  Luke?  You guys better be before Coco!)...xoxo, e.