Farmer Q & A: How Do We Prep Our Calves for the County Fair (or How to Make Heifer Calves Queen for the Day!)

Let's face it, on the farm our cows are prettiest after a good strong rain.  In between times they can accumulate a lot of dirty and, well, organic material. There is one group, however, who gets a bit of the pampered treatment.  Mind you they work for it, but our 4-H calves are quite familiar with soap and water.  Let me explain How We Prep Our Calves for the County Fair.

I'm pretty sure we are among the last counties in Indiana to have our county fair, but the good news is it looks like we are going to have the coolest weather in the last couple weeks, so off we go tomorrow.  As I type, Tall Guy, Miss K, and two brothers of a cousin down the road are blowing out the last two calves for the night.  The heifers and one steer are just finishing up their final touch up with Revlon #10.  Yeah, even black cows sometimes aren't all black.  Kind of like some of us out there aren't quite sure what our natural color is any more!  (kind of guilty there myself!)

Not only do these calves have a bright shiny coat, they also have a a new "do."  Peeps, did you know there are special ways to trim the hair on calves to show off their best qualities, and just like in our world (kinda), the guys will get a different trim than the girls.

Every year we have learned more and more about how to show our calves, and grooming is the next big hurdle to jump.  We are so grateful to have friends who have kids who KNOW THEIR WAY AROUND A CALF!   When we were at Hoosier Beef Congress last December, TG and I found ourselves totally out of our league in prepping our calves for show.  For once my "never went to an event where I didn't know someone" paid off, and I called in a marker from an old friend who is blessed with two incredible young leaders.  Janelle & Jaye came over and helped fit our calves at Hoosier Beef Congress, and told us they would love to help again when it came around fair time.  I remembered this offer and took them up on it.

First step in the process is a first appointment to lay the groundwork for the true show. The kids came over and down on Monday to get this done, and they through in a few pointers on showmanship. They know a thing or two about that from all the success they had at their LaPorte County Fair the week before.  This is true 4-H kids using their hands to help other 4-Hers learn the ropes.

Our show day was that Saturday, so we had four days more to work with our calves until the big day.

First there is the washing.... 4 calves!

 

Then there is the little pep talk while she is eating.......

And now it is time to get these girls and boy ready for their "Close Up!"

The white paint is sprayed on so that it is easier to see the hairs that need trimmed.

Before....

During.......

And the finishing touches on her tail head.

Then the legs...

And the actual end of the tail.... 

 Ta Da!

Don't I look just MOOvalous???

The girls had their best year yet in the ring as far as showing and controlling their calves. We came back with a blue and red, but Tall Guy and I gave them both PURPLE ribbons in our book for the improvements they made with their showing abilities.  

Thanks again to Janelle and Jay and their momma, Andrea for making the hike down to our fair. Now the heifer calves are back out in our pasture, grazing and remembering the one day they were treated like queens.  

                 
                                                                        

Quick and Healthy Chicken Salad

Are your evenings and nights super busy? It seems like we never have a slow day here on the farm, and I've found a quick answer to supper when we are hustling around: Quick and Healthy Chicken Salad.  With just a few tricks, you can have this salad made and ready to share in 15 minutes, and around here that's a very good meal!

Farm Report:  Corn is tasseling and the silks of the new ears are coming out, so that means there will be some pollinating going on out the fields.   Pollen falling from the tassel to the silks is how how the kernels are made on the corn cob.  You might say that there are a lot of babies being made out in the corn fields right now!  Watch for the silks to turn brown to know that baby corn is on the way!  So with the corn doing its thing, all focus around here is gearing up for the 4-H fair in about 12 days~!

When we are finishing up projects and working with our calves and checking the sweet corn for critters and to know when it is ready to eat, meals are not at the top of anyone's list until that moment we are all hungry, and everyone looks at me to see what the next meal is.  Crazy thing, I'm usually out there with them working!!!  This Quick and Easy Chicken Salad is a great go-to if you do a little prep work ahead of time.

To get ready for this meal, It's nice to have some chicken breasts cooked as you like them ahead of time.  It can be last night's leftovers, or what we sometimes do is use rotisserie chicken.  I'm kind of in love with rotisserie chicken, and if I am in a grocery store that offers them, I will usually grab one or two to take home.  At around $5.00 a chicken, it's a great meal in itself.  We all love the dark meat, so it's legs and thighs for supper, and the breasts are saved for the next day.

Alrighty!  Let's get this salad started. First, diced up your chicken breasts and put in a large mixing bowl. Do the same with your veggies. I love these little peppers because you get just as much as you want!

Red Gold tomatoes are grown right here in Indiana, and I love that the tomatoes and chilies are ready to go!  *I use referral links to products I love.

Ok, now your bowl should look like this:

Well, not quite....Sigh, Yes, I put my bowl in the dishwasher, so yes, it has that lovely milky-foggy look to it.  Any ideas on how to make it clear again?  I would love to know what you know about this.

This next part is a bit tricky because, as I always remind you my Peeps, I don't faithfully measure as I go..... Start with adding 3/4 a cup of Miracle Whip, the minced garlic, horseradish, and Farm Dust seasonings to the bowl of chicken and veggies.  Stir it up gently, taste, and see what ingredient you might want to add.

I have to stop here a minute, and tell you that this is a VERY Indiana-based recipe!  Besides the Red Gold tomatoes and chilies, Miracle Whip and horseradish are pretty much staples in Hoosier kitchens.  The Farm Dust has a great name, and it too is made in Shipshewana, Indiana!  This is an Amish family business and goes by Weaver's Dutch Country Seasoning!  It's delish on everything you put it on.  Amazon is packaging it with a spicy version I didn't know about so YUM!  and Yea Indiana!

When you have the salad tasting the way you like it, add a lettuce leaf to a plate, grab yourself some water or Sweet Tea, and enjoy!

Printable Recipe here:

Quick and Healthy Chicken Salad

Yield: 4-6 servings
Ingredients

• 4 chicken breast, diced
• 1 1/2 C. peppers green, yellow, red, diced
• 1 C. celery, chopped
• 1 Can Red Gold Petite Diced tomatoes with green chilies
• 3/4 C. Miracle Whip or mayonnaise of choice
• 1 T. garlic, minced
• 1 T. horseradish
• 1-2 tsp. Farm Dust or seasoning of your choice

Cooking Directions

1. Chop or dice chicken breasts, and add to large mixing bowl
2. Chop or dice vegetables. May also add onions and radishes if desired. Add to mixing bowl.
3. Start with 3/4 C. Miracle Whip and add to bowl.
4. Add rest of ingredients.
5. Gently stir together. Add more Miracle Whip or other seasonings to suit your taste.
6. Refrigerate any leftovers immediately.

                                                                                      

Farmer Q & A: How Has Weed Control Evolved in Farming?

At the end of June and around the first of July, farmers are ready to let Mother Nature take over their crops.   It's time to sit back and watch them grow.  As you drive around our great country this weekend, you should be treated to tall rows of corn and rows of beans beginning to close the gap between themselves.  Every once in a while, however, you will come across a weedy field of beans and wonder how that can be when most of the bean field are clean, pristine, even, acres of uniform green.  It's all about treating your weeds.

Once upon a time, in a world far far away, farm children would walk out by a barn or shed or truck and see this tool........

......the tool that could make even the best kid moan and groan a bit inside his or her mind.  Do you know what this is?  I would love for you to leave me a message at the end of this post telling me just how and when you used it.

It kind of looks like something Miss Bo Peep might use on her miniature goats right?  Yeah, no such luck!  It is called a "Hook," but its function is not quite that whimsical...  It was/is carried down bean rows and used to "hook" large weeds out of the bean rows. Here's a picture of how it works.

Back in the late 60's and early 70's, my brother and I would find several of those tools hanging around our grandparents' barn lot, and when we saw a couple make their way to the bed of Grandpa's truck, we knew what that meant.  "Time to weed the beans!"  Now Grandpa Bill felt it a personal affront to his ability to farm if a weed dare show itself in his bean field.  He didn't care if it was just one lousy weed at the OTHER end of the field; if he saw it, it had to go, and we had to take our hooks out to get it.  It earned us a bit of money and a nice tan, so we didn't grump too much, but Grandpa was a bit OCD when it came to weeds, and most farmers still are!

In today's world as fences disappear and farms grow larger in size, weed management has changed its ways.  Today there are many tools farmers can use to manage the weeds trying to grow in our fields. From tillage practices like no-till to treated seeds to prescription weed sprays, we are able to keep weed populations down without having to spend extra time in the field.  Some farmers plant in 15 inch rows or drill beans so that exposed ground is limited to open time in the sun, and emergent weeds are choked out by growing bean plants.

Farmers are always looking for better environmental and economical ways to keep weed populations down in our fields.  It is important to find a way to stop weed growth, promote crop plant growth, and still be good stewards of the land.

                                             

The BEST Strawberry Shortcake Ever!

There are about as many ways to prepare strawberry shortcake as there are ways to fix Bubba's shrimp.  I've seen it with pound cake, angel food cake, sponge cake, biscuits, and pancakes!  One of my family's most favorite recipe's is my Grandma Lyons' Strawberry Shortcake, and I am about to share this treasured family recipe with you, my favorite Peeps!  It is The Best Strawberry Shortcake Ever!

There is a story that goes along with this recipe; actually there are many stories surrounding the making and sharing of this recipe, but the one I share happened 55-56 years ago.  It was the day my dad's parents came over to meet my mom's parents. Grandma Flossie, my mom's mother, knew that Dad absolutely loved strawberry shortcake.  Since this was a big, important occasion Grandma planned on making his favorite dessert.  As she brought out the strawberries and the little round pound cakes she bought from the store, Dad was on high alert that this was NOT his idea of short cake, so in his most polite, so-to-be-son-in-law manners, he suggested that Grandma Flossie wait until HIS mom got there, and she would make it for them!  ACK!  So glad everyone had a good sense of humor about his remark,or I might not be typing this!

So Mom learned how to make this, and my brother and I learned how to make this, my niece can make it, and now it is Miss Bear's turn to learn this storied recipe, with a little help from Grandma Becky. I'm sure Grandma Lyons is looking over our shoulders every time someone in the family makes her creation.

I have a picture of Grandma Lyons out at our farm near Brook with my brother and I showing off strawberries we picked at a U-Pick strawberry patch my Grandma Phyllis had on the farm....but of course I can't put my hands on it. Here's another picture of Grandma and I on a Christmas Eve a long long time ago.  It's my favorite.

Back in the day, there was a fairly good sized strawberry patch out at what we now call "our" farm. People would come from all over the area to pick Grandma's strawberries. That made me happy because then we didn't have to pick the patch!  It just one more memory I have of the farm that I treasure.  The strawberries are gone now, but the memories are safely in my mind.......

In present time, we were serving 17 people this day, so we tripled the recipe.  Yep, Everyone in my family LOVES this delightful dessert, and we usually only eat it in late May or June when the strawberries are ripe. Here are a couple of shots with Mom and Hannah working together, but I was never able to grab a shot of the finished dessert.  Poof!  It seriously was all gone by the time I came to grab a piece of cake and some strawberries.  We were able to remake it a couple nights ago just for the four of us, and I will be darned if most of it was gone by the end of supper.  Luckily, I served up my dish FIRST and was able to get a shot of the finished masterpiece, again made by Miss Bear.  She is becoming quite the chef, and I am really loving this new development!

And here it is!  Shortcake on the bottom, covered with sweetened strawberries, and swimming in some creamy half and half.  Sigh........ 

Now it's your turn to try Grandma Lyons' BEST Strawberry Shortcake Recipe!  Go to your favorite farmer's market or U-pick patch, get the sweetest ripest reddest berries you can find, some half and half in the dairy section of your grocery store, and enjoy this dish as much as my family does.

Let's get this party started!

Printable Recipe

Grandma Lyons' Strawberry Shortcake

Yield: 4-6 servings
Ingredients

• 1 Cup flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 2 T. lard, can use Crisco
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• milk
• 2 T. butter, melted in the baking dish

Cooking Directions

1. Mix all dry ingredients together
2. Cut lard into dry ingredients with a fork and knife, then use fingers to make the dough crumbly.
3. Add enough milk to make a soft dough.
4. Knead on a floured board , and then divide in half and roll into a square.
5. Form one half into the bottom of a 9 x 9 baking dish (pour butter out first!)
6. Pour half of the butter on dough in pan, then place other half of dough on top of the butter, and pour remaining butter on top and spread evenly.
7. Bake at 400 degrees for 15-18 minutes or until golden brown.

I have to tell you, dear readers, that sometimes I just smack the whole dough into the warm pan, punch it around with my hands and fingers until all corners are covered, then spread the butter on top and pop it in the oven.  This way you get crispy edges to your crust, but never fear!  The dough is all soft and yum.

We rarely make just this recipe; usually it is doubled or tripled.  Once you have some, you will understand!  From my grandma to all of my Peeps.....Enjoy!

P.S. If Grandma Lyons was still with us, she would be 118 years old!  I guess you could say this is an heirloom recipe!