Bee Hive Maintenance

Today is an exciting day ... Hive maintenance! 

The end of winter marks the time to check hives and prepare them for spring and mass honey production. 

Thanks for your help today Vince!  The Hive Hilton appreciates your expertise. 

Ellendale's first piglets

We are proud to announce the arrival of our first piglet's. Overnight Abby successfully delivered six beautiful Wessex Saddleback piglets. Only the size of a 600ml drink bottle, they are very active and mum is very tired. Looks like we won't be getting many farm jobs done today! 

Pigs may not fly, but they build nests!

Carl (my husband), and I regularly refer to everyday on the farm as a school day. We are continually learning, not only about farming, animal husbandry and cooking, but about ourselves too.

The last 24 hours has actually been a huge learning curve and revelation. When we decided to ethically farm and produce our own meat and veg, we did this for many reasons, one of them being the more questions you ask, the more you find out ... and knowledge thrusts you into a world of decisions. You can no longer plead ignorance and just role with convention. 

Last weekend there was a peaceful demonstration on the steps of H and M in Melbourne about the cruelty of factory farmed pigs. This is something we abhore, which is one reason why we grow our own meat, however this is the first time our pigs have been large enough to breed, and this year we will welcome our first farm born piglets. 

So why am I rabbiting on about factory farming ... Because today I learnt something else - pigs make nests. Yes, I am serious. I came home from my daughters basketball game to see Abby (our pregnant sow) making a nest. She was gathering straw, sticks, leaves and numerous other items from her paddock to make a huge nest. We then gave her extra items and were enthralled, watching her prepare for the birth of her piglets. It was so beautiful, and natural to see her prepare, not unlike any expectant parent. 

Apparently this means that we can expect piglets within 24 hours, which is so overwhelmingly exciting. My point, aside from this amazing piece of news, was how distressing it must be to be a factory pig having piglets, not able to do what is natural. I know many people would frown upon us eating meat altogether, however I know that we are doing the best we can for our family, our animals and our role on the planet. 

Pigs really are amazing characters, and watching her today was truley a special moment. 

Three Eggs

It amazes me that something so small can be turned into so much. In only half an hour of prep time, I took three small free range chicken eggs (these are from first time layers so still very small) and turned them into a jar of mayonnaise and a pavlova. 

The egg yolks went into the mayo, and the whites went into the pav. When I am completely happy with the mayonnaise recipe I will post it along with the pav recipe. 

Simple pleasures ...

Happiness is a great Breakfast

Happiness is a great breakfast ... And I highly recommend Top Paddock (658 Church St, Richmond). 

Not only do they embrace the importance of provenance and seasonality, they clearly care about flavour and food.

My Eggs Benedict with ham hock was amazing. 

Still smiling ... Thanks Top Paddock for a great start to the day! 

Butter and Buttermilk

What do you do when you have extra cream? I did think about making creme brûlée ... But opted for butter instead. So easy and so yummy. And with the buttermilk ... Martha Stewarts buttermilk pancakes. They were light, fluffy and completely delicious. 

You don't need raw milk or cream for this. I used store bought cream and the results were amazing. Try it .. my kids loved being involved, learning where their food comes from and we will be using unadulterated butter instead of some  processed store bought alternative. Even blocks of butter contain cream, water and salt. My butter, is just cream and pink lake salt. Yum!!

Mozzarella - you have to make your own!

I had some raw milk left, because deliveries were very close together over the holiday period, so I made a round of Romano cheese, a batch of natural Yoghurt and then looked for something else ... something more delicious than just a smoothie for the kids .... I made Mozzarella and it is fabulous!

Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's mozzarella, beetroot and balsamic

So simple, so delicious and so heavenly, I must thank Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall for his amazing recipes and for sharing his expertise.

I want to encourage everyone to try to make something yourself ... anything! Yoghurt is easily made from UHT milk if that is what you prefer. You don;t have to be a complete self-sufficient nut - I like to think that if you like good food, then this is the road to take.

What do you get when you cross ...

What do you get when you cross a polish rooster with a Isa brown hen?

After, two weeks, they look like the chicken version of Mr T!!! Let's hope they find their mojo soon and outgrow this awkward phase ...

A few facts about Chicken eggs

Quail eggs

Oscar, my 6 year old son begged us to buy quail so that he could sell the eggs. After 6 months, his dream has finally paid off! 

The only problem is ... He needs to stop eating the profits!!

I may try and find some interesting recipes for him to try. May as well cultivate that mini MasterChef now! 

DIY Alpaca Doona

Our alpaca, Kerry, had his first hair cut yesterday. It was amazing to see him with his cost off! Our lovely big, fat alpaca was reduced to looking like a thin deer or greyhound, but the amount of fleece we got off him was amazing!

With hopes and dreams of making our own king size Doona from his fleece, I was sure this would be a long term project, maybe four shearings would give us enough fleece ... But as you can see, we have ample! 

Now to decide where to start. I'll post pics of the finished product ... As long as it is not a complete disaster!! Wish me and my Janome luck! 

I can't believe I made butter!

I made this butter using the cream off one week old raw milk and it was delicious! It did have a strong almost blue flavour, but my 8 year old could not get enough of it. I know, there is not a lot, but I'm going for quality over quantity. This may become my daughters new job each week. 

Homemade butter is definitely worth a try. Just whip the cream until it separates, then beat some more, drain the butter milk and put aside. Remove the solid clumps of  butter and add a little salt, mixing well to form butter. Enjoy!

Avocado Chips and more!

I have just stumbled across a recipe for Avocado chips. Yep, that's right ... Chips! Simply take an avocado, slice it up, coat it in egg and seasoned breadcrumbs and then fry the slices into chips and serve them with a tangy mayonnaise.

I'll shelve this one away until my crop comes in!

Read the story at: http://www.treehugger.com/easy-vegetarian-recipes/baked-avocado-fries-vegetarian.html

Here are some other interesting recipes with Avocado from fellow bloggers: 

Avocado egg: http://www.lifehacker.com.au/2012/02/bake-an-egg-in-an-avocado-for-a-healthy-breakfast/

Avocado Truffles: http://g0lubka.blogspot.com.au/2010/04/avocado-truffles.html

Avocado Cheesecake: http://wendyinkk.blogspot.com.au/2009/11/avocado-chilled-cheesecake.html

 

Avocado Icypoles - http://www.ruchikrandhap.com/2012/10/october-avocado-coconut-popsicles.html

 

 

My First Cheese

It has been a couple of days but I have finally completed my first hard cheese - Parmesan.

It was actually quite easy and plenty of fun. Of course the proof is in the tasting ... but we will have to wait 10 months for that!

Here are a couple of snaps of my first cheese in the making:

I also made ricotta from the whey ... YUM!!

Pigs and Cheese

We have been so busy on the farm that I have had little time for anything else ... including updating my blog!

We have a new little pig ... Hugo. He will be the Sire of our future piglets and If I do say so myself, he is quite the charmer!

We have moved the girls to a new paddock where they can romp and play and furrow ... did I mention that they are furrowing!!

Last week I made my first cheese, well sort of cheese. It was made from my home-made yoghurt and it was easy and so delicious. I am definitely adding that one to my repertoire - Thanks again Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall.

But today is the really exciting day. Today is the day I make my first hard cheese.

The making of cheese has been grossly delayed in our home due to the somewhat complex issues of setting up a cheese cave. Honestly, it has all been just a bit too mystifying for me. However; after a great deal of research, I have found the solution - a wine fridge with a lower temperature rang ( 9 -16 degrees Celsius), just perfect for cheese!

Now I have a place to store and age my cheese, I can finally have a crack at making it. I was going to do a cheese course but they never seem to be on the right day or running the right course for me so I thought, in true Ellendale Farm tradition, that I would just have a crack at it.

Finger's Crossed!

Chocolate Zucchini Brownies

As any zucchini grower knows, there is a time when you cannot eat another zucchini slice or preserve another jar of zucchini pickles.

This week I stumbled upon a recipe for Chocolate Zucchini Brownies at allrecipes.com.au.

I tried it last night and it was not only a hit with my children, but the adults too.

It only uses 2 cups of grated zucchini, but what a great way to use them!

To view the recipe, click on the link below:

http://allrecipes.com.au/recipe/10910/print-friendly.aspx

Broad Bean vs Kidney Bean

Does anyone else think that Broad Beans should really have been given the common name of Kidney Beans?

Somewhere - Ethical Farming

As an avid West Side Story lover, I was instantly drawn to the soundtrack used on a commercial the other night ... and then to see the content made me further investigate other clips etc on YouTube by the same organization and others about ethical farming.

We all need to ask where our food is coming from!

Make it Possible from Animals Australia on Vimeo.
We believe in a world without factory farming. www.MakeitPossible.com

Seasons in My Kitchen Garden

Seasons in My Kitchen Garden goes on sale today!

This book is the story of our tree-change journey, that charts the evolution of our garden from a derelict paddock (on a 20 acre hobby farm), to a fully functional potager/vegetable garden including orchard, vegetables, herbs and chickens. The entire project is based on sustainable practices and includes organic solutions — all sympathetic to the heritage of the site and the history of the area. The changes are charted over the course of a year (to capture cool and warm crops). While the book is a personal journey through the development of the garden, it also contains practical, step-by-step information to help anyone establish a kitchen garden of their own, whether they have a square metre of soil or half an acre (and more).

See Hardie Grant Books for more information. 

True Free Range Egg Farming & Not So Free Range

Not all Free Range eggs are ethically farmed. I think it's important to be educated about the choices we are making, rather than just trust the labelling. 

Free Range Eggs -  Farm 1



True Free Range Eggs - Farm 2



It's best to know something about the farm you are purchasing from to ensure you are buying what you are paying for!