The Home Grown September Challenge is a Bliss-full Challenge.

I began the September Home Grown Challenge  almost two weeks ago and with only one 24 hour break,  when I went to Chicago, I have been dining in on home grown fresh food.  We are streaming along. The food is glorious.   I do buy the raw milk that I would usually get from Daisy from down the road but other than that we are eating food off the farm all day every day. I have only allowed myself  coffee, tea, (though drinks are not part of the home grown challenge yet), flour, olive oil, salt, balsamic vinegar and a little sugar.

Everything else is off the farm. Even this apple custard pie. It will be served  with whipped ricotta cheese flavoured with home grown honey.  Picking apples off the little trees  that I planted myself has a wonderful feeling of accomplishment.

The ricotta cheese was made the cheats way with 1 gallon of raw milk heated to the first bubble, 1/4 cup of home made apple cider vinegar and a little salt.  Stand, cool, strain, eat. Perfect. Today I will make a regular farmer’s cheese for the weekend pizzas.  This means I will have to add rennet to my allowed list.

I am spending more time in the kitchen but this is not unusual at this time of year.

Summer Sauce to eat with home made noodles. Thank goodness the chickens are laying so well. The meat freezer is almost empty awaiting its October replenishment.  Our only meat is lamb, which is not as exciting as it sounds so I am creating some fantastic vegetarian feasts.

The second to last row of potatoes is gone, I might make it to the end of the month but no further, so I am conserving them. My Irish eyes are crying.

My answer to all this talk of autumn: My last planting of sunflowers has begun to flower.  Autumn is not here yet.

The bees have found their syrup.

Great Aunt Sis’s lamp stand. Finally come home to The Coupe.

My notes so far underline what I suspected, we are not growing enough of everything, we need more vegetables, better spacings and  less herbs  in the beds. Pots for herbs from now on. I am going to combine  and extend three of the smaller  gardens into one very big old fashioned garden, cutting down on the varieties.  Less staggering and more bulk planting. Less pretty, more food. Staggering plantings helps me keep fresh food in the kitchen, but I need fresh food in the kitchen as well as fresh food going into jars.

I also want to add carrots and parsnips to the gardens.

Having said that, I think I should be able to coast along to the end of the month eating what I grow quite easily.  I am the only one who is sticking to the home grown diet and it does not take much to feed one person. Though there won’t be much variety the food is absolutely clean, no preservatives or additives at all.  The portions will be smaller but are as high in nutrients as you can get.  Bliss. And we all eat too much anyway.

The next two weeks will be the challenge!!

You all have a lovely day. Take good care!

your friend on the farm, celi