Frustratedearthmother's Journaling Journey

[frustratedearthmother]

I've had about all the "easy" I can take, lol. I'm really feeling very much back to normal except for stamina. And - I lost that from being a couch potato - not from surgery. Time to get back to biddness!

 

[frustratedearthmother]

Finally got my truck back. Picked up a little feed and came home just in time for my DS to come by. He helped us get the mower offa the tractor and picked up two of the ducks that have been hanging around and making themselves at home. So he now has two ducks and there are two still hanging around here. They're really no trouble at all - and kinda cute too. Maybe I should get a few lady friends for 'em - or the other option is still to put 'em in my belly, lol.

I've got a big ol' pig leg thawing out tonight. I'll season it up and leave it in the fridge all day tomorrow and then cook it overnight tomorrow night. Love me some slow cooked pork - and it ought to feed us for awhile. It was nice to get that big thing outta the freezer too. Makes room for the next pig/goat/chicken to move in. I'm really ready to butcher - just waiting on that first cool front.

 

[baymule]

That sound yummy. We have lambs to take to slaughter, need to make room in the freezers.

 

[Mini Horses]

need to make room in the freezers.

Wilber was huge! Have a neighborhood cookout for Labor Day?

Right now my freezer is getting too full of ricotta cheese & milk...which I'll need for cheddar making & soap, next month or so, when work slows again.

FEM, sounds like that pig meat is in the oven tonight. Guess it's "back to work" next week...or... call in sore.

 

[baymule]

I have some meat and offal I am going to can for the dogs, that will me a project for this coming week. That will make me some more room.

 

[frustratedearthmother]

Guess it's "back to work" next week...or... call in sore.

I am sooooo not looking forward to that... I will be using any physical excuse to call in between now and January, lol. There are so many times when we go to work even when we don't really feel well. My workmates need a wake up call. I've been telling my boss that she needs to learn some of my job duties so she can train my replacement and nope....she refuses. So, maybe if I'm not there very much she'll get a clue, lol.

I was thrilled to bet my truck back yesterday - but gee whiz what an ordeal! Of course, there's always something the dealership does that pi$$es me off! ARGH. The service rep calls me at 3:30 and says they are finishing it up. I ask what time it will be ready and she says about 30 - 40 minutes. So DH and I show up an hour later - to give them some wiggle room, right? We get there and I ask where my truck is....? She says - they're still working on it and that's why I didn't tell you to come get it yet. So, I gently remind her that over an hour ago she said it would be ready in less than an hour. Oh yeah....remember now? Then they bring it up and it's not washed. So, I point that out - OMG she says - they didn't wash it. Yep.... that's right. So, then she asks me if I want to wait another half-hour so they can wash it. By this time it's after 5 and I need to get feed. So, I politely(lol) decline. As I'm getting into my truck they're running around checking pressures and putting air in the tires. Finally they tell me to go and I look at my pressure readings on my dash. They've put air in 3 of the tires. They're telling me I'm good to go - and I called the rep over to look at my tire pressure read-out and tell her - clearly I'm not ready yet - they've missed the right front tire. Well, as it turns out the air hose won't reach the right front from where they parked the truck Unfortunately, for me to be able to back-up they have to move three more cars. Oh well.....you people need to get your stuff together before you tell me to go. AND - to top it off they left the air hose attached to my tire, lol. Just as I'm putting the truck in gear I hear yelling to "stop!" Oh gee freakin' whiz! But - I did get my truck back.

Chore for the day - move at least one round bale. I've got some prep work to do before I actually move it but shouldn't take long. Then I have to come up with a configuration of panel pieces to put around it. I intended to go get some more panels yesterday morning - but guess what- my truck wasn't back from the shop yet. Probably shoulda done it today, but DH is volunteering at the Train Museum this morning and getting the trailer out of the pasture by myself is an ordeal without having someone to work the gates for me. Small problem of dogs who want to explore the neighborhood. I need to keep some leashes out there to just hook 'em to the fence when I've got open gates. I'll put that on the list of things to pick up. Only problem with Cowboy is that I need a chain not a leash. He can bite through a nylon leash in about 2.4 seconds, lol. Such a silly dog.

Gracie killed a possum in the feed room and I tossed it waaaay out in the back of the pig pen. Cowboy came around the corner of a pen and saw it on the ground and went a bit nuts. He was across a fence from it and couldn't get close but he tried to kill it again with his voice! He barked and barked and barked - he must've thought it was just playin' possum and not really dead. I've found 4 dead hens in the last 10 days or so - hope the possum was the one responsible. If it happens again I need to put the game camera out there and see what's up.

Need another cup of coffee and then pick what I'm going to focus on this morning. Need to get that pig leg rubbed up, need to do laundry and any other household chore you can think of. Yea...?

 

[frustratedearthmother]

Been a slightly busy day - not too rough - but got a couple things done. I've been trying to catch one of the baby pigs that always avoids getting wormed. She's smaller than her littermates. I managed to catch her today. She didn't want her Ivomec infused rice ball so I was forced to give her straight Ivomec by syringe into her mouth. At least I know she got it this time! The rest of the litter has been weaned/wormed and are ready to go. I'm thinking I may run a Craigslist ad and try to move them....or...maybe hold them until closer to the holidays? Maybe? Young pig might make a good holiday meal for some families? I do plan on putting several of them in my freezer at a smaller size than I usually do. I'm gonna try 'em at maybe 50 lbs. They're probably 20-30lbs now.

Also got one of the sows wormed that's looking a bit lean. I got lucky and went out when she wasn't out in the pasture - she was in the shade under the barn and came straight to me for a "treat." Sooo, now she's been wormed too. If she doesn't look better pretty soon I might wonder if something else is going on.

DH has been wanting homemade stuffed jalapenos - so I'm indulging him tonight. I originally planned to make them for his b'day but we went out instead. It's such a process to do these and I spent a couple hours on my feet in the kitchen. I need to find a simpler recipe! The filling is in the fridge and I'll cook 'em up later this evening - after feeding and round bale moving. Waiting for it to cool off a bit....sigh.

 

[baymule]

What is your stuffed jalapeno recipe? Mine is rather simple, either cream cheese or boudain, wrapped in bacon.

 

[frustratedearthmother]

@baymule

https://www.saveur.com/article/Recipes/Crab-Stuffed-Jalapenos/

Mine is loosely based on the above recipe:

10–12 medium jalapeños (I used 6 big ones)
1 tbsp. canola oil, plus more for frying
1⁄4 lb. lump crab meat, picked through to remove any bits of shell (I used 8 oz)
3 tbsp. cream cheese, at room temperature (I used 8 oz)
1 tbsp. finely chopped cilantro leaves
1 tbsp. finely chopped parsley leaves
1 shallot, finely chopped
1 1⁄2 tbsp. plus 3/4 cup dried bread crumbs
2 tsp. fresh lime juice (I forgot to add this)
1 egg yolk (I used 2)
1⁄2 cup all-purpose flour
1⁄2 cup milk
2 eggs, beaten
1 1⁄4 tsp. kosher salt, plus more to taste (I added a couple shakes of Old Bay)

• Heat oven to broil; arrange a rack 6" from heating element. In a small bowl, toss jalapeños with 1 tbsp. oil. Transfer jalapeños to a foil-lined baking sheet; broil, turning several times, until blackened, about 12 minutes. Transfer jalapeños to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and set aside to let steam for 15 minutes. Peel the jalapeños. Working with 1 jalapeño at a time, cut a slit down the length of the pepper. Scoop out the seeds with a small spoon (handle carefully so that they stay intact). Set jalapeños aside.
• With a fork, vigorously mix together crab, cream cheese, cilantro, parsley, shallots, 1 1⁄2 tbsp. bread crumbs, lime juice, and yolk in a bowl. Stuff each jalapeño with 1 heaping tbsp. of filling; transfer to a plate and repeat with remaining jalapeños. I didn't stuff the jalapenos - I chopped them up into the stuffing mix - basically making a jalapeno popper instead of a 'stuffed' jalapeno.
• Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• Put remaining bread crumbs into a shallow dish. Put flour into another small dish. Whisk together milk and eggs in a bowl. Working with 1 jalapeño at a time, dredge jalapeño in flour, shaking off excess. Dip jalapeño in egg mixture, roll in bread crumbs, and transfer to a plate; set aside.
• Pour oil to a depth of 2" into a 4-qt. saucepan over medium-high heat until a deep-fry thermometer reads 325˚. Working in batches, add jalapeños and cook, turning occasionally, until golden brown, about 3 minutes. Drain jalapeños on paper towels; sprinkle with salt.

Other changes: I sautéed a hatch pepper, 1/2 a large onion and a couple garlic bulbs in butter/olive oil mixture. When that was soft I added a lb of shrimp. I seasoned generously with Old Bay and cooked until the shrimp was done. Peeled and chopped the shrimp. Added that to the crab mixture and used some of the peppers and onions and juice from the pan. The over the top flavoring (in my opinion) was to use some of the oil/seasoning juice from pan that I cooked the shrimp in. I added just enough to make the mixture 'workable.' I didn't actually stuff the jalapenos - I chopped them up into the stuffing mix. Then I did the double dredge and cook.

DH loves stuff really hot so I divided the stuffing mix into two bowls and added more jalapeno ribs/seeds to his.

I dipped mine in a mixture of sour cream and little picante. DH used some other concoction with liberal amounts of hot sauce.

 

[frustratedearthmother]

Grrrrrrr! Lost two hens last night. That is in addition to the 4 or 5 over the last couple weeks. I really thought that the possum Gracie killed in the feed room was responsible - but obviously not. Of course, take out one predator and another one comes in to take his place. We will mount the game camera tonight to see if we can figure out the predator. First DH will have to go and get up a SiM card...stupid cameras do not come with one. Why is that? That's just dumb...they know you're gonna need it so just charge me more and include the stupid thing. ARGH!