poultry butcher / processors

Seems like Graps Bros is out of the chicken business - they had an intense check and failed approval for the poultry processing part of the business... they do still do goats etc, but since both brothers are nearing their 70ties they did not feel like investing the time and money to update the poultry part to qualify again - and I don't blame them!

If you are looking for someone else in the area as well, through the poultry forum of the Ithacan website we found a local Amish butcher near Ovid.

Parish Road Meat Processing / Paul
2666 Parish Road in Interlaken, NY 14521.
607.869.9446 but only between 730 and 8am (no machine, but will call back).

waddaya' mean: nobody eats rhubarb?!

my chickens literally eat everything... including rhubarb leaves, as you can see from this pic! I've had to fence the plants in, otherwise they'd have been mowed down to the ground! wow... I just wish they'd eat japanese beetles with the same vigour :-)

Our sugar maple adventure

During a nasty thunderstorm with lots of wind a very nice sugar maple came down at the back end of our property (behind the goats in the treeline). Since the base of the tree did not look rotted we decided to call a timber miller we know to find out what we could do.

Scott from Ithaca Urban Timber Salvage also thought the wood was in nice enough quality (as far as one can see without cutting) to try, and he gave us a good quote for the cost of cutting it up in 8 to 10 foot pieces (the diameter at the base was more than Rolf's saw could handle), transport to his mill, milling it to 1.5 inch boards (live edge) and delivering it back to our place. He lives right around the corner - maybe we can borrow that great tractor again sometime :-)

This is the final haul of the day, two large diameter long pieces, one large diameter short piece and two medium diameter long pieces. The one log on the left measered out to 200 board feet alone! wow... David Brown the farmers market woodworker is sharing costs for part of the wood - good thing we did not offer half the wood for half the costs; after loading Scott mentioned there was quite some more wood than he initially expected! Goodie - lots of material for lots of new projects :-)

finally our foundation posts are set...

Here is Alex pounding in the last couple posts, this time foundation posts for the goat barn. They look to be leaning left, but they're not, the shed is leaning right... First we'll finish the greenhouse (place windows, place plastic roof) then it's on to the big build!

Good Strawberry Jam recipes

What to do with all those you-pick strawberries?!

Strawberry Rhubarb Jam

2 1/4 cups of crushed strawberries
1 3/4 cups of cooked rhubarb
6 1/2 cups of (organic cane) sugar
1 3/4 pouch of pectin

Add fruit into 6-8 quart suacepot.
Add sugar, stir until desolved.
Add 1/2 teaspoon margarine to reduce foaming (if desired).
Bring mixture to full rolling boil on high heat, stirring constantly.
Stir in pectin quickly.
Bring back to full rolling boil and boil 1 minute exactly, stirring constantly.
Remove pot from heat and skim off any foam using a metal spoon.

Ladle into sterilized jars with 1/8 inch headspace.
Process for 10 minutes in a waterbath canner.

From Sure Jell Certo information pamphlet.

Spiced Strawberry Jam

5 cups crushed strawberries
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 box 1 3/4 ounces powdered pectin
1/2 teaspoon margarine
7 cups (organic cane) sugar

Combine strawberries and spices in 8 quart saucepot.
Add the pectin and margarine.
Bring to a rolling boil on high heat, stirring constantly.
Stir in exactly 7 cups of sugar and mix well.
Return to a full rolling boil and boil for 1 minute exactly, stirring constantly.
Remove pot from heat and skim off any foam using a metal spoon.

Ladle into sterilized jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace.
Process for 5 minutes in a boiling water bath canner.

From The Big Book of Preserving the Harvest, page 199.

Thank you, Alex, for the multitude of strawberries!