The upshot: the program may cover 50-75% of the cost of the tunnel. It only covers 38 states, so make sure your state is in the list before getting your hopes up.

By the way, we’re not always saying government programs like this are advisable, but if you’re in the market for a grow tunnel and this program makes sense for you, it might be worth a shot.

The real take home: we think it’s cool that USDA has officially launched a study that is fundamentally about eating local.

Several weeks ago we picked up our beef and pork from the butchers.  We took the pigs to Salem Prime Cuts in Salem, CT and the steer to Maurice’s in Canterbury, CT.  They were both great.  Finding out the hanging weights is the best part.  It is the feedback for the work you have put into the animals.  Also, I really find it mesmerizing to watch them cut and wrap the meat.  They are so fast and so precise.  Plus, we are still getting acquainted with the basic cuts for these animals, so it is interesting to see exactly where the Boston Butt come from on the pig (amazingly it is the front leg) and where the tenderloin is on the cow.  Maybe once we have been doing this for a while, I won’t feel this way, but I wouldn’t miss a “cut-date” for anything.

We promise that soon we will put full details of the hanging weights and breakdowns of all the cuts.  The pigs’ hanging weights were about 208 lbs, and 228 lbs and the steer’s hanging weight was 564 lbs.  We had <10% waste on both butcherings.

We kept 1/4 of one pig and 1/2 of the steer.  We had 45 pounds of hotdogs made from a combo of our beef and pork.  There is a great meat processor called Noack’s down in Meriden, CT that does custom orders of nitrate/nitrite free hotdogs, sausages, wursts, etc.  They also have a USDA certified retail store and sell meat they get from local suppliers who raise their pigs with an all-natural diet and free of hormones and unnecessary anti-biotics. Definitely worth the trip if you are in the area.

We sold seven shares of pork, each one weighing btwn 15 and 20 pounds, and as of this writing nine out of ten offered beef shares, each one coming in right at twenty pounds.  By next weekend we should have finished distributing the shares and will hopefully have sold the last share.  With the pigs, we were able to break even, meaning that all of our direct outlays (purchase price for pigs, feed, butchering) were covered and the meat we kept for ourselves was paid for by our time (feeding, watering, fencing, transporting to and from the butcher, etc).  With the steer, we actually made a “profit” sort-of.  We came out ahead of our direct outlays (purchase price, feed, butchering fees). HOWEVER, when you factor in the cost of fencing the entire property and THEN having to run electric fence because a 48″ woven wire field fence is just not enough to contain a steer who is dead set on eating the greener grass on the other side, well, all profits are quickly erased.  Then, when you factor in our time, water, etc, well, let’s not go there.  We are not (as of yet) doing what we do to earn a living (thankfully) but rather as a lifestyle choice.  We are investing in a future for ourselves, our children, and our local agricultural community, so we consider it all worth it in the end.  That said, our “profits” on the steer will be directly invested into a spinning wheel and a set of spinning equipment for me, so I am happy to have “made some money”.  Plus, we have a freezer full of amazing, healthy meat that will be so great to draw from all year long.

We had a really great time at our party, thanks to all those who came and shared local foods with us.  We thought it was going to rain, so we didn’t prep the hay-ride or fire pit.  It ended up staying clear all day, so people were able to wander around and take farm tours to meet all of the animals.  But, it was unseasonably cold and windy, so I think everyone appreciated being able to come in  and sit by the warm woodstove.  The food was fantastic, and as good as the turducken was, the surprise hit in my mind was the rabbit stew.  It was made by making a stock from roasted rabbit parts, then slow cooking the stock, rabbit meat, onion, carrots, celery, tomato sauce, rosemary, and olives for the better part of a day.  The flavor was intensely rich and perfect on a cold day.

We also had our two bull calves that were born this spring turned into steers.  Our vet was out to do the fall rabies shots (we can do everything else ourselves but in CT you must be a licensed vet to give rabies).  She is the most wonderful small-town livestock vet.  She always has a vet student with her, this time one from Tufts.  We really love our vet, she is laid back, funny, but very knowledgeable.  Since we know so little about livestock, we consider her a great resource.  So, of course that morning it was truly a three ring circus getting the calves into their stall.  Most mornings they come running with their mommas once they hear me rattle the grain bucket.  Not so on this day.  We finally got them in with about ten minutes to spare before the vet showed up.  The shots were given and we got the calves in our shute to do the castration.  It took four of us, Mike was holding the sterile tools, the vet student was holding the tail while spreading the calves feet, I had my fingers in the calves nostril to distract it and the vet did the cutting.  I am not kidding, the tool she used is called an “emasculator”.  Essentially, they cut off the skin around the testicles, exposing them.  Then, one at a time, they clamp the emasculator on the top of the testicle for a minute after cutting the sac off.  When both are done, they spray some antiseptic, and that is it.  The best thing for the calf to do is get back out in the nice clean pasture.  One calf did well, the other bucked, but it all went very smoothly.  A lot of people band their animals, but castrating is much better, in that it is more humane, you are certain both testicles come off, and supposedly, you get much better beef yields over banding.  We think it is worth the expense of having the vet come and do it.

We also finished our grow tunnel and used it to butcher our last three turkeys.  It was so nice to have a covered space out of the wind.  One turkey will be for Thanksgiving, one for Christmas, and the last one will get ground up.  We are enjoying wrapping up the growing year and are looking forward to winter.

Out of 26 pipes, only 4 didn’t go in pretty much right away.  Three of the remaining four could be set using a shovel to move smaller rocks out of the way.  One pipe could only be set after we used the tractor’s bucket to dig out a rather large rock.

The hoops are spaced 4-feet apart for a total length of 48 feet.  The polytunnel is 14-feet wide and 10-feet tall at the peak.

We hope to have it covered and enclosed before the really cold weather sets in.  Our aim is to grow some late greens this year and get a jump on spring in 2010.

On Saturday, we went to run a few errands including purchasing this.  I don’t know why we hadn’t bought one before.  I was prompted to do it after a phone call from my good friend at Hurricane Farm.  She had called to ask for some sausage recipes.  Additionally, I have been cleaning out the turkey and chicken from our deep freeze in preparation for the pork and the new sets of poultry we will be butchering over the next few months.  We ground up some of the chicken and made chicken burgers, plain for the kids, and mixed with the last of our homemade pesto for us.  They were fabulous, the meat was still slightly frozen which made it very easy to grind.  We also ground up another huge batch and mixed it with a mesquite spice mix and then browned the meat.  Now we have four pounds of meat ready in the freezer for tacos, mac ‘n cheese, etc.  That is what I call “fast food”.

We had a slight break in the weather Saturday and Mike went to buy the tiller attachment for the big tractor from our neighbor.  Then the two of them spent the next three hours pulling massive boulders from our garden.  Below is a picture of Jackson standing on the biggest one.  Our garden is now 2/3 prepped, the pigs are finishing off the last section before they go to the butcher.  This week we hope to plant all the cold-weather crops: peas, carrots, lettuce, onions, potatoes, etc.  We also restarted our seedlings that had failed from our previous attempt.  This was on the recommendation from a very well respected organic farmer in our town who said that we would be fine starting them this time of year and not to even think about putting tomatoes in the ground until after Memorial Day.

On Sunday we did a few smaller chores, fenced in the garden, moved the last few big rocks, and I moved over some of the newest set of chicks to the shed.  We also sold several more set of our now seven week old chicks and ducks.  I feel so much more confident in my abilities to care for and sell young poultry that I have one more order of chicks coming on the 18th and one more set of ducks and geese mid-June.  The “highlight” of Sunday was chasing all four pigs around the property-again.  The big pigs popped their fence and as they made their way to the barn, got the little pigs so excited they not only busted from their stall, but from the entire barn.  Imagine, all four pigs, three sheep, three cows, the two kids and Mike and I in the rain trying to round everyone up.  It took about an hour, but we finally got them all where they were supposed to be.  If you have never heard a young pig squeel, it is quite a sound.  We completely reinforced the pigs’ stall in the barn (the four most essential tools of any farmer, the five-gallon bucket, the zip-tie, baling twine, and a wooden pallet) using pallets and twine.  I also wove together the big pigs pen and we have not had any more break-outs for two days.

Yesterday when I got home from work, the kids and I checked on the animals and then went for a walk around the property.  This will be our first spring here, it is amazing to see everything filling in so lush and green.  All of the trees and berry bushes we have planted are sprouting and appear to be doing well.  Also, we have tons and tons of dandelions.  Jackson was picking them and gave me a “dandelion family” so that I could have one to put in my hair each day.  He wanted to know if you could eat dandelions which led to a check in our edible plants book.  I knew you could eat the greens, but I wasn’t sure what else.  It turns out you can eat the whole plant.  From what I understand, the dandelion has a bad wrap for two reasons.  The first is that people want to look out and see nothing but green in their lawn.  I personally love the bits of sunny yellow, but to each his own.  The second reason is that eating dandelions is associated with the depression and poverty.  During hard times many people have eaten them as they are extremely high in nutrients.

So, here is what we made.  I recommend that if you have never tried dandelions, you do, but NEVER, EVER, EVER consume them unless you are absolutely certain they have not been sprayed with chemicals.  We don’t use anything that is non-organic on our lawn, so we felt safe eating ours.

Fried Dandelions

• Pick about 1 qt dandelions, try to get new blossoms and leave 1-2 inches of stem.
• Rinse dandelions thoroughly and pat dry.
• Mix the batter of your choice, we used 1 c. milk, 1 egg, 1 c. flour, and a little salt and pepper.  (Next time we will try it with a tempura batter)
• Bring oil to 375F in your favorite frying vessel.
• Dip the heads and stems in batter, turning to coat.  Place them in the oil in batches of 10-15 and fry for 1-2 minutes until golden brown.
• Drain on a cloth napkin and sprinkle liberally with sea salt.
• These taste like a cross between fried okra and asparagus.

We served them for dinner with. . .

Gravy of Chicken and Turkey Hearts on Toast

• Dice the hearts (we used six chicken hearts and three turkey hearts)
• Fry in a skillet with one tablespoon butter until golden, 2-3 minutes.  
• Toss in one tablespoon of flour, cook for one minute.
• Slowly pour in one c. milk while stirring.  Add salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning to taste.  Bring to a simmer and cook until thickened.
• Serve on toast.

I know this sounds like the strangest meal, but my kids LOVED it.  Jackson will eat pretty much anything if we grew it or picked it ourselves.  It was really amazing.  We have been re-watching the River Cottage Series with Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, you can download shows from amazon.com here.  He is a huge proponent of using every last bit of the animals you raise, including the organ meat.  We are trying very hard to follow his example.

Chicken & turkey hearts in gravy on toast with fried dandelion blossoms.

I also made a pate with the chicken and turkey livers, recipe courtesy of Jaques Pepin.

Mike and I ate the pate as a late night snack on crackers with dandelion jelly made from our earlier picking session.  It was extraordinarily delicious and we are used to eating very good food.  Here is the recipe for the jelly.

Dandelion Jelly

• Pick 1 qt of dandelion heads.  Rinse them thoroughly and discard the stems and green leaves directly under the flower head.
• Boil six cups of water and steep the dandelion flowers in the water for between 10 minutes and one hour.
• Strain the water through cheesecloth, compost the flower heads and reserve the dandelion “tea”.
• To this liquid add 1 tsp lemon juice and one package pectin.
• Bring to a boil.  Then add 4.5 c. sugar.  Bring to a boil for one minute and remove from heat.
• Ladle into sterilized jars and process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.  
• Makes about 5 pints.

We had this on pancakes this morning.  It tastes like spring, kind of earthy and sweet at the same time.

Last night I also made a sweet Italian chicken sausage and a turkey breakfast sausage.  I used the leg and thigh meat and added some of the pork fat we had from our friend’s pig.  They both came out lovely and we think that most of our poultry will be processed in a similar manner.  We also want to get a smoker at some point in the future.

Today we had a nice rainy-day visit with my parents.  We dyed play-silks with Easter egg dye, walked the property trying to identify more edible wild plants, and just tried to relax.  We will be trying to eat more wild food, I think nettle soup will be next on my list of things to make.  We will also be butchering more chickens later this week, so more sausage recipes are likely to be tried.

Please try to find something fresh that is grown near where you live, eat it, and be happy!

Some initial things on the list: a hay spear to manage round bales, pallet forks, trailer attachment…nothing big. After pulling and wrangling with hundreds of feet of fencing, it’s a little disheartening to see the wire unroller and stretcher listed. Wow that would have been a help. Our neighbor (the one who sold us the tractor) also still has a bunch of useful implements he says we can borrow or barter for: rototiller, log splitter, post-hole digger, hay rake, mower, etc.

It was pretty clear we weren’t going anywhere. It is about 8am, neither of us has eaten or had any coffee, and we are stuck in the mud. First we try pushing, that was stupid. Then we run back to the barn and get the come-along and some t-posts and try to pull the car out. I wish we had a picture, because it was so obviously useless. I ran back to the house and called our neighbor, he had a nice tractor (which he had offered to sell to us a few months back) and seems like the kind of guy who would be willing to pull his silly nouveau farmers out of the mud on a cold, early March morning. I left a message on the neighbors’ machine, checked on the kids, and went back to help Mike. We tried a few more things and were about to give up, when up pulled our neighbor on his tractor. It was like seeing a knight on a white horse. In no time, he hooked up the Blazer, got on his tractor, and pulled it out of the mud like it was a child’s toy truck. He said that his tractor was still for sale and we said we would think about it. After going back in the house, warming up, and having a cup of coffee, we decided a tractor is just the thing our farm needs. The kids and I drove over to tell him we would take it and drop off a loaf of our favorite pumpkin bread for his help this morning. Tomorrow we will bring him a check and drive home with another new toy for the farm.

Thank goodness for good neighbors, we feel truly lucky to be surrounded by such giving souls.