When it rains I naturally turn towards the kitchen .
This are the chickens when I let them out yesterday – apparently the ducks pond has nicer water! Ooo.
Yesterday – I also shifted The Four from one field to another. Pigs shift very slowly – there is a lot to investigate on the way.
I take a bucket to sit on and a book to read when I shift pigs. I don’t mind if they mosy along.
Above is my pizza base. It is the sourdough one. Make it the night before – let it sit out 24 hours then divide and refrigerate until you need it.
I made a pear and sharp Canadian cheddar cheese pizza. Oh my!
Delicious.
These loaves are Spelt, Rye and the Janie’s Mill Sifted Artisan. I call the Sifted Artisan Bread Flour the Sifted Sister – I think I am the only one who laughs at that joke!
Very autumnal loaves – as is today. Not cold just wet and dark. I dread this winter.
I am putting my bread recipes in the #justjanies blog on the janiesmill website. They let me have a blog over there because I am not much good at writing recipes and they edit me in the recipe pages and I hate being edited. I am too much of a free spirit and I am not succinct enough. ‘Patting the dough on the head like a dog’ makes perfect sense to me and probably to you too! So I am happy to have my little blog corner.
Go to #Just Janie’s and will find me waffling on in there. Not terribly often. It is a flour blog. But I do love sharing my discoveries! Today I hope to get the sourdough pizza base in there and this Spelt/Rye loaf.
So – I had better get busy!!
Take care. Talk soon, lovelies!
Cecilia
Hi Cecilia!
That pizza looks so delicious. Who would think of pairing pear with cheddar! Creative! We were without power this am. No coffee. So I got dressed to go to Starbucks —only couldn’t open the garage. Hahaha! I have my ComEd bill on the table and trust me I don’t feel like paying it.
What are you reading these days? Anything to recommend?
Good question. Just finished The Splendid and the Vile. Erik Larson. I liked it . He approaches history from a surprising angle in each of his books.
H-e-l-l-l-o, Ceci!
Your pear pizza sounds devine and looks heavenly!! Thank you for the photos – everyone looks fine, especially the chickens – every farm’s staple. Your girls look particularly healthy and content. So good tp read from you again and, yes, I know exactly what you mean by patting the dough on the head like you would a dog.
What we wouldn’t give for rain! Fires, smoke all around us. Ten a.m. and it very dark outside from all the smoke. Enjoy your showers!
Sunny
Oh no – Dark outside from smoke sounds really awful – so sorry! c
I was just wondering how you are. It’s good to see a happy Plonker.
Silly chickens – there must be something exciting about duck poo water!
They have no respect! c
ROFL!
Hi Celi! Good to hear all is well on the farmy! All is well here. We are heading out to check the bees. Hopefully all will be well with them too! Sending hugs to you and everyone in the Fellowship of the Farmy!!!
The bees will have had a great summer I hope – lots of days to be outside – did it get too hot down there? We have had a cool summer all in all!
Sounds like all is well. The bread and pizza look amazing.
That pizza was simply glorious – i ate it for breakfast! c
I prefer recipes with instructions like “pat the dough on the head like a dog.”
Thank you darling – thought you would – how are your turtles?
We seem to be in our second summer here…they say 90’s all this coming week 😦 You can send some of your rain westward
90’s sound doable!
Thank you for a delightful farmy catch up. Lovely pics and delicious food. SO nice to hear from you.
That YOU Andrea, take care now, c
The bread looks terrific. I’m missing my bread now that I’ve moved and starting anew. You might want to check out my youtube channel, where I am documenting the new adventure.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCv6hqUcjUhZgeXcgl1Rfuzg?view_as=subscriber
The Apsley site is still useful as a reference but I won’t be adding to it now.
I figure the new bakery, once I’ve got it going, will be called “The Camp Road” bakery, since that’s the road it’s on. But of course I have to build a home first and this winter I’ll be living in a trailer on the new property. Lots to do.
Are you building your oven first? I bet you are! Love the new name. c
that looks like a perfect pizza! yummy….just make up the dough slice up the pears, put the cheddar on and then the pears? Anything else before putting in the hot oven on a hot stone? Cheers!i
Yes! I tossed the pears in a little hot browned batter so they would caramalize on the pizza. In fact here is the link https://www.janiesmill.com/just-janies/rxusxmibkor3hzvmvlox1lx56mub6c – it feels weird to link from one blog to the other but there you are!!
An unusual pizza. adventurous chickens, laid-back piggies and a book to read . . . sounds like a pleasant Sunday whatever the weather . . . Nice to hear from you ! Hope Sophie is managing alright in the most difficult-to-live-in state of Australia at the moment . . .
Yes – it is a lovely pizza! I ate it for breakfast!
I’ve never thought of pears on pizza much less cheddar cheese. Looks scrumptious though. I’m glad all is as well as can be there. How wise to take a bucket for sitting and a book while making a slow move. I love the look of your bread and would eat it by the loaf, just can’t make my own. I can smell it from here. Life sure has it’s twists and turns.
In NZ we use cheddar cheese for our pizzas. Not mozzarella. Weird right?!
Just different and that’s as it should be. How boring if we were all the same in every way.
I am always mad-jealous of your bread. I was not aware you had some many chickens!
My word, that’s a lively starter, look at that big bubble of hooch in the jar. I had to start again with my Corinna, the dried flakes just wouldn’t get going again, so I’m working from scratch and starting Corinna II with rye flour. She seems quite happy sitting on my bench, doubling in size every day right now as the weather is warming up as we come into spring. It’s a long time since I baked sourdough, and I’m looking forward to it. I’ll be baking mine in a clay pot and adding olive oil for a slightly softer crust, which is how the Husband prefers it.
Your chooks and piggies are all looking glossy and content, and I’m happy you have time to sit and read while you wait for the pigs to slowly meander towards their new quarters. And the pizza: I’ve made pear and Roquefort pizza before, but i’ve never tried with Cheddar. Must give it a go.
Stay well, lovely C. BTW, I’m OK, the blip on the scan was something to watch and wait, not something that needs urgent action. It’s not the all clear, but it is something I can live with, with half an eye and not too much attention on it.
Glory hallelujah, Kate ! So, so pleased matters are OK for the moment ! I lived with a blooming ‘blip’ for some 15 years before losing half my ‘topside charms’ 🙂 ! Best news on the post and methinks Celi will not mind my saying so . . . !
I’m already down one, I didn’t want to lose the other too unless I had to!
Oh thank goodness – I have been wondering! What a nasty scare. I love a really strong sharp cheddar – it is hard to find in america – they prefer very bland cheeses dyed ORANGE!
It could have been so much worse… Still not great, but a lot less scary – and urgent. Orange cheese with not much flavour does sound a bit blah…
You must come to Wisconsin and get the extra sharp, better yet, get the 12 yr Cheddar!
Maybe I will!!! Tima loves a good road trip!!
The photos are so pretty. What is it about a bowl of eggs that makes me so happy? They’re such perfect things, aren’t they? I love it that you’re blogging for Janie’s Mill…I just hopped over and was grabbed by the “I want pizza now” recipe! Can’t wait to try that.
That is a typical Celi recipe!
That was me that just posted about the egg picture and the Pizza recipe. Forgot to log-in to WordPress first. Hello!
Here is the pizza recipe – https://www.janiesmill.com/just-janies/rxusxmibkor3hzvmvlox1lx56mub6c – it is a sourdough base but you can use a yeast base – more Italian anyway! c
Thank you! I am behind the rest of the sourdough world. I have a beautiful book explaining to me how to make it step-by-step but I haven’t ventured yet.
I love your JM blog…you’ve managed a nice voice…still you but in a professional context. And the pizza recipes are much appreciated! Is it hard writing 2 blogs?
Nice chat about the farm. Herding plonkers sounds like taking my young grandson for a walk. You start off but not really sure when you will arrive! I think the pizza looks very pretty and I liked to see you left me one piece! Cheers and I will wander over to your bread blog.
I feel like I have a split personality writing at two blogs – the bread one is more of a journal really as they don’t get published like we do here at wordpress. c
I have never made sourdough pizza, but want to because it looks so good!
It is too easy – like all sourdough it just takes time.
You’re dreading winter… ours wasn’t so bad, one of the mildest for a while with just enough rain for a good garden season. But we are dreading a too hot summer. Fingers crossed for both of us. Cheddar and pear pizza… mmm. Mozzarella has its place on Italian pizza but we too like cheddar, or a blend… with cheese, anything goes.