View From the Back Forty

Invisible Veterans It is the week of Veteran’s day, a time to remember those who have served this country, and those who have given the ultimate sacrifice.  It is a very important day, a day that should not be ignored or trumped by sales ads.  I believe we should teach our children about the sacrifices veterans have made so that they can have the life they live. They are the reason that we live in the best country in the world, I don’t care about political issues blah, blah, blah…we do live in the best country in the world!  (I’ll explain how I know that later.) But there are veterans that I feel do not get the attention that they deserve, invisible veterans. Men/ Women who came home after serving and went back to their regular lives.  These are veterans who may not talk a lot about their service, and it may not be due to seeing terrible and horrific events in war.  It may simply be that they can not find the words to describe what they saw.  Or they try to tell others, but th

The Two-Faced Peach When you think of a peach, what flavor sits on your tongue?  You probably think of a sweet taste and memories of summer?  Do you think of a spicy flavor?  Maybe not a spicy flavor, but let me introduce you to the two faced Peach.                                                  Peach salsa getting ready to be canned Two-faced seems kind of harsh, but in this case I mean it in the most kind and sincerest terms.  There is only so much sweetness a gal can take before she needs a little spice in her life! And for me that is peach salsa!  I was skeptical at first, but I needed something new to do with peaches, and came across the recipe in the Complete Book of Home Preserving, it did not disappoint.  I was eating it out of the pot before canning (all proper party rules in place of course, no double dipping).  And peach salsa isn’t just for chips; it can be added to hamburgers, chicken,  maybe fish.   Very versatile salsa, and a touch on the spicy side.

Why canning?  Isn’t that more expensive then store food?  Are you preparing for the zombie apocalypse?  Isn’t canning a lot of work, when you can just get it at the store? These are just a few of the questions I have been asked when people find out that I can food. But that’s ok I have answers for them and any other canning doubters out there. Yes starting to can, buying/ finding jars and the equipment, finding safe recipes, and sometimes the trial and error of canning is definitely more expensive then buying food in the store.  Especially if you find a good sale on canned goods!  Once you get established canning your cost can go down dramatically, particularly if you use reusable lids.  But if you factor the time and energy required to grow or buy the food, it is probably still more expensive- but I have an answer for that too. Taste and nutrition are unequaled with canned food. You know exactly what goes into every single jar (hopefully).  You can adjust sugar content on cer

GO BIG RED!!!  This will be screamed by thousands of people this Saturday, as they watch the first Husker football game of the season.  Farmer Brown will be among them I’m sure!  But the Huskers are not the only thing red in our family.  We bleed red, but we also drive red.  Yes, that’s right were one of those people that love Case IH equipment.  Actually, for me I think it was stated in our wedding vows, not sure, will have to check the tape again.  And for the little Browns, they were just born that way, I swear!  Not only is it football season, but it will soon be harvest season, and Big Betty Lou (the combine) is getting ready for her big day too!  She is getting looked over to make sure everything is in working order for the first day of harvest, an extremely exciting time around here-it’s when we get paid back for all the work in the previous months. ( Do you know how many working parts are in one combine?  I don’t know either but it is a lot!)  But while Farmer B

It is a great day to do some canning!  On today’s to-do list I’m planning to can tomato juice, whole tomatoes and cucumber- mint jelly.  My family loves the whole tomatoes and tomato juice for chili, goulash, and a few random recipes I have that call for whole tomatoes.  And farmer Brown loves to drink the tomato juice right out of the jar!  The cucumber-mint jelly tastes great on lamb chops, or simply drizzled over cream cheese as an appetizer. To be honest my first plan was to make pasta sauce, but I had to change my plans quickly after one critical error.  I bought a new kitchen gadget for myself, a strainer/grinder for my mixer.  Thought it would be so helpful in preparing sauces and juices for making a lot of what is on my canning list.  And it will, but you cannot use the strainer to make pasta sauce, it turns the tomatoes into juice- hence the tomato juice I’m canning today!  Watching the strainer was amazing!  While watching it I thought how jealous my grandmo