Harvest

This week, we harvested three big staples for our diet: onions, garlic and potatoes.  After planting, weeding, watering, fertilizing and babying our crops for many months, harvest time is always exciting.

It has been such a shitty year weather wise, I'm surprised anything is growing here.  I'm not happy with the onions, but the garlic is gorgeous, and the taters are okay.

We are getting apples from our trees.  Williams Pride, one of my favorites, is loaded.  The kids have been eating apples from our Liberty tree for weeks, although they are not ripe yet, but the kids like them that way.

Harvest time is not just a personal time for celebration for us, but also a communal affair.  We live in an area with some great organic farmers and home gardeners.  

The other day, we hosted a potluck at our place, and I'm telling you, if you want to feast on the best, freshest, local food, invite your farming friends.  Wild caught salmon, corn on the cob, Greek salad with tomatoes, cucumbers, basil and Feta, potato salad, basil pesto, blackberry cobbler with whipping cream. 

Many of us might be considered poor by money standards, but really, we are rich.  We eat like royalty.  We have clean water and cold rivers to jump into.  We have loyal friends (humans and animals).  We are surrounded by stunning flowers.

These are sunflowers at our friend's farm, where we picked up huge zucchinis to feed to our pigs.

These are our own sunflowers - not blooming yet, but almost twice as tall as the kids.

I'm making all kinds of fun, fermented drinks for our oh-so-important gut health.  There's Kombucha, of course, and Beet Kvass, a drink made with beets, whey and salt.  Kvass is an excellent blood tonic, liver cleanser, and cure for kidney stones.  Plus, it's super pretty.

I'm working on an online fermentation workshop, where I'll teach things like how to make Sauerkraut, Kombucha, yogurt, different lacto fermented goodies, and some awesome bread.  I'll keep you posted.