The Big Project, an update for this year

It's a rainy day here in Maryland, yet again, but it is a drizzle and temperature is nice enough for shorts. I've spent it planting bulbs with my new bulb auger which is a wonderful tool and makes things much easier. I've also potted up so bits of DNA pilfered from here and there and sat several times to watch the birds at the feeders and rest.

Have I mentioned that the Big Project (vegetable garden with raised beds in a medium to large mammal proof fence) is going great? Well, short of the dang stink bugs it is. Lovely soil, effective fence and brain finally wrapped around 3 season planting and crop rotations thanks to the help of growveg.com.

When my kids built me the fence they also ran power to the shed and water. DH just hooked up the electric (15 volt max) so I have a light and a plug place. The water still must be turned on at the house but I can run it out of a hose that stays inside the fence.

Other sub projects to come:
Build even more raised beds inside the fence (about 1/2 complete)
Box in a Freecycle double sink within the fence for washing up and potting
Set up a soaker hose system for each raised bed
Continue planting flowers on 3 sides of the fence (4th side is the shed)

In the rest of the yard my biggest new project is to plant liriope under my deck to stop the constant erosion.

This has been a great gardening year for me thanks to much help from family.

Beekeeping

Yesterday I attended a one day introduction to beekeeping seminar designed to help one decide if this is something one wants to do and to know enough to put in orders and obtain needed supplies so one is ready to open operations in April if the answer is yes. My answer is very likely yes. This is the wonderful group I have joined:
http://www.howardcountybeekeepers.org/

I am fond of insects in general but especially fond of pollinators. I'm a gardener who uses Integrated Pest Management. I'm retired and looking for new interests. I'm one of those crazies who pet bees. Honey bees often do better in garden apiaries than they do in the commercial, migratory operations. The group that put on this presentation was full of funny, bright and personable people. I joined the club today. They have an equipment loan program for members for the honey extractors. They hook new-BEEs up with a mentor who will work with the newbie one on one while installing bees in their first hive and while doing the first hive inspection. My county recently cleared up zoning questions leaving it clear I am unencumbered in that way. I'm told the nectar flow is good in Maryland and our disease problems are manageable. Importantly too, DH doesn't seem to object.

One of my concerns is the weight of the hives as they must be moved in order to inspect the colony. I was happy to learn there are options that reduce the weight of each element. The hive bodies come in 3 sizes as far as height goes and 2 sizes as far as the number of frames go. I will likely limit my sizes to medium boxes for brood and shallow boxes for honey storage. I will also go with 8 frames per box instead of 10.

The investment is not trivial. The hive itself, the workers and the queen, the protection gear for inspection and working the hive and misc. items like smokers and "hive tools". Still, it is less than many pets and way less than therapy. I will take another course 2.5 hours one day a week for 6 weeks, called "The Short Course" this winter and go to monthly meetings meanwhile. For now I'll review my notes, start reading, and Google a bunch of things I noted for that purpose today.

I really like having a new subject to study.

Dairy Free Pancakes

From :   http://dairyfreecooking.about.com/od/pancakeswaffles/r/basicpancakes.htm
Any changes I made noted with ( ... ).

Makes 8 large pancakes

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 3 T. sugar
• 2 t. baking powder
• ½ t. salt
• 1 cup unsweetened plain almond milk or other non-dairy milk
• 1 large whole egg, lightly beaten
• 1 large egg yolk, lightly beaten    (I just used 2 whole eggs and it was fine)
• 1 ½ t. canola oil 
• (I added frozen blueberries after pouring the batter and it worked well)

Preparation:

1. In a medium-sized mixing bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt, making a well in the center.
2. In a separate bowl, whisk together the almond milk, whole egg, egg yolk and canola oil until well combined. Add to the well in the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. (Batter should still have some lumps.)
3. Lightly oil a heavy-bottomed skillet or griddle and heat over medium heat. Once hot, add the batter to the pan, about ¼ cup at a time, flipping when bubbles begin to form on the surface of the pancakes and the edges begin to rise. Cook the other side of the pancakes for about 1-2 minutes more, or until golden brown. Repeat until all of the batter is used, keeping the pancakes warm either on a plate beneath a towel or in a 200 F. oven. Serve with toppings of choice.

Creamy Rice Pudding (from allrecipees.com)(made without raisens)

Rated: Submitted By: Erica G. Photo By: Gans Prep Time: 25 Minutes Cook Time: 20 Minutes Ready In: 45 Minutes Servings: 4

"Cooked rice is combined with milk, sugar, an egg and golden raisins, and flavored with butter and vanilla in this quick, stovetop rice pudding."

Ingredients:

3/4 cup uncooked white rice 2 cups milk, divided 1/3 cup white sugar 1/4 teaspoon salt

1 egg, beaten 2/3 cup golden raisins 1 tablespoon butter 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

1.	In a medium saucepan, bring 1 1/2 cups water to a boil. Add rice and stir. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
2.	In another saucepan, combine 1 1/2 cups cooked rice, 1 1/2 cups milk, sugar and salt. Cook over medium heat until thick and creamy, 15 to 20 minutes. Stir in remaining 1/2 cup milk, beaten egg and raisins. Cook 2 minutes more, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, and stir in butter and vanilla. Serve warm.

Tres Leches

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/tres-leche-cake-recipe/index.html

Tres Leches

This yummy, dense, hot milk cake (leche uno) is soaked in a vanilla milk sauce/thin pudding/thin custard made from combinations/permutations of sweetened evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, and/or sweetened heavy cream (leche dos) and covered in whipped cream or yup!cool whip "leche" tres). The cake and the soaking cream are usually heavily flavored with vanilla. Recipes for Tres Leches vary almost as much as the "we made it first" claims. All that can definitively said is it is widely popular. One possible theory for the general confusion about origin may be that it originated as a promotional recipe once distributed in many areas of Latin America, perhaps on cans of evaporated milk.

Nope, I don't have a recipe of my own so I won't cut and paste one of the many available on the web. There is no family tradition. I just read about this cake somewhere and had tried it many times when eating out before I ran into Alton Brown's version here. It isn't classic as it is not a hot milk cake base but it is very good.

Tres Leches is now my go to recipe for pot luck dinners.

I recommend you try Tres Leches next time you're eating in your favorite Cuban,Puerto Rican, Salvadorean or Nicaraguan restaurant or google "tres leches recipe" or try Alton Brown's version like I did and make it for yourself.


Alton Brown's version fits my pan perfectly which in turn fits perfectly into a cooler. I don't know if I want to rock the boat but next time I may use my mother in law's recipe (below) for hot milk cake and bake both layers together in the same 9 by 13 inch pan.

ROSE's HOT MILK CAKE:
Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees.

Grease and flour - 2 cake pans (8 or 9 " / round or square are fine).

Rose's Hot Milk Cake (also called sponge cake). Good with bittersweet chocolate icing (with or without vanilla pudding in cut layers), butter cream icing, or a base for strawberry shortcake (ice with whipped cream and berries). Rose also used to ice half the cake in butter cream and half in bittersweet chocolate icing. It is also good just plain with no icing, with ice cream or Jae's variation of cinnamon sugar sprinkled on top before baking.

Cream together - 2 cups sugar, 4 eggs, 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract plus a pinch of salt.

Warm together - 1/4 pound butter and 1 cup milk (skim is fine) just until butter is melted.

Mix in a separate bowl - 2 cups un-sifted flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder.

Add the flour mix then the milk mix to the egg mix in 3 alternating batches. Start with flour and end with milk.

Do NOT over beat (just enough to combine) and be quick. The baking powder activates quickly.

Pour into the 2 pans. Rap pan sharply on the counter to remove major air bubbles. Place in oven immediately.

Bake 1 hour or until golden brown and/or a toothpick inserted comes out clean. May need to rotate pans half way through cooking if your oven temperature is not staple.

Turn out of pan immediately and cool completely on cake rack before icing.

If desired cut each cake layer in half horizontally using dental floss. It may help to cut the corners on the starting side first with a serrated knife. This anchors the floss and prevents smashing the corners in.

 
Garden fence, water and electric trenches

Chickadee chicks

 
I think they will fledge soon. There are actually 6 of them in there.