Frugal Friday: Know Your Neighbours

Not Peanut, but still cute.

Our neighbours D and M.E. have three pet goats; Molly, Mike and their kid, Peanut. Peanut was the first kid that Molly has ever had. Everybody at D and M.E.'s work were running a pool as to when Peanut would arrive because their was no way to tell since Mike and Molly have always been together. We told D that the kid would be born on the coldest and snowiest day of the winter, because that's just the way it goes. D called in late February on the coldest, snowiest day (one of two snowstorms all winter!). We really hoped it wasn't about the goats because we couldn't get out the laneway. Luckily, Molly had                no problem with her delivery.

Last night we got a call from D because Mike has been losing weight and not eating. M.E. described him as acting depressed. This immediately caught our attention as weight loss, listlessness, and aversion to food can all be signs of parasites or an infection. We went over and had a look at Mike today and decided it is likely a parasite because he is showing signs of anemia; white gums vs. pink and white under the eyelids vs. pink. Financially it is not worth it for D to buy even a small bottle of the dewormer and vitamins that Mike needed. He simply would not use it all up before it expired because his flock is so small. For him to call the vet to look after the problem would have cost a minimum of $150 just for the vet to drive in the laneway. Everything after the vet got out of the truck would cost extra. For us to treat Mike wouldn't be a big deal as we already have the dewormer and vitamins. Giving Mike a dose is just using 1 small bit of our supply. It's a drop in the bucket, so to speak.


After we were finished treating Mike, D asked us how much the "vet bill" was. We told him that he didn't owe us anything, but that later in the Spring we'd come and get some cedar posts from him. If he was to get the vet in it could easily have cost him approx. $200. If we were to buy cedar posts, they cost $6 a piece (and we need a lot of them). To cut them ourselves would take hours, whereas D already has them cut from clearing trails. This situation, which is mutually beneficial, highlights to us the great benefit and financial savings that can come from getting to know your neighbours and cooperating with them. Not everything has to have a dollar value.

Tell us about a time that you have swapped skills or favours with a neighbour. We'd love to hear it.

Wildcard Wednesday: Bird Box Project

A male Eastern bluebird considers one of our boxes.

Since the spring of 2009 Hill Giant Farm has been involved in a bird box conservation project. As part of this project we have placed a dozen bird boxes along the fence lines of our property to supplement the natural habitats that exist on our farm. The main target of this conservation project is the Eastern Bluebird, but our boxes have also been used by wrens and tree swallows as well. Since the 1950's the population of Eastern Bluebirds in Ontario has significantly declined. Late winter snowstorms, heavy pesticide use, migration mortality and competition for nest sites due to the disappearance of natural cavities have all contributed to the birds' decline. 


The male Eastern Bluebird is the most recognizeable, having a bright blue back and rust coloured throat and breast. The bluebird is much smaller than the blue jay. The female and juvenile's have more grey on the back, blue in the wings and tail only, and a duller rust colour on their throat and breast. The song of the bluebird is made up of melodious whistling that can last for over 30 minutes. Here's a link to a site with various bluebird calls for you to enjoy. 


http://www.musicofnature.org/nsf/species_pages/_eastern_bluebird.html

Since putting up our boxes, we have had great success. Each year we have had an increase in the number of pairs that successfully nest and raise their chicks in our boxes. We only can account for the bluebirds that choose to nest in the boxes, however, we know that there have also been several pairs who have used cavities in our apple trees, sections of our many stone fences and other locations as their nesting sites. Our farm is an ideal location for bluebirds. Bluebirds are ground feeders who like open areas for feeding, but also look for sites with easy access to hedgerows and cover. They are also particularly fond of using dead trees, fence posts, boulders, and coarse weedstalks as perches. They also enjoy foraging in shorter grass, like what would be found in a recently grazed field. There is no shortage of these things on our farm. 

Yesterday, we noticed the first pair of bluebirds for this year checking out the nest boxes. Hopefully they will decide to stay.

Mmmm Monday: Della's Pastry and Three Star Chicken Pot Pie

Last night we had M's parents over for supper to celebrate their anniversary featuring roast chicken, gravy, mashed potatoes, carrots and fried mushrooms. There were of course leftovers which means it was time to make Three Star Chicken Pot Pie. The recipe(s) are below. It's a two for one deal today!

The first thing you need to do to make Three Star Pot Pie is whip up a batch of Della's Pastry. This recipe makes enough for 3-4 pies. You can freeze any extra pastry, thaw and use it in the future. Or, you can cut the recipe in half if you think that's too much work. You can use this pastry dough for whatever you like; meat pies, fruit pies, tarts, dumplings, new culinary experiments, anything.  It's a very simple recipe to make, only takes 10 minutes, and is a guaranteed way to impress your friends and neighbours.

Pastry Ingredients

Della's Pastry
5 1/2 cups of flour                           1 egg
1 lb shortening                                 1 Tbsp white vinegar
pinch of salt                                      Cold water

Begin by placing 5 1/2 cups of flour in a mixing bowl. I usually use my Kitchenaid mixer to avoid wrist strain. Add 1lb of soft shortening. I prefer Tenderflake as it is easily mixed with dry ingredients. Begin mixing the flour and shortening together. Next add a pinch of salt and continue mixing.

In a measuring cup break and beat 1 egg. To the egg add 1 Tbsp of white vinegar. With the egg and vinegar still in the measuring cup, fill it to the 1 cup mark with cold water. Begin to pour this liquid into the flour, shortening and salt. Mix well. The dough should be damp and elastic when it is properly mixed.


Tip: To make clean up easier, place a tea towel on your countertop/table and a cutting board on top of the tea towel. This way when you're done you can pick up the tea towel and cutting board and your work area is primarily clean.

To make your pie shell, transfer some of the pastry dough onto the well floured cutting board. Sprinkle flour over it and apply flour liberally to your rolling pin. Begin rolling the dough out in the direction of all four corners. Roll your dough until it is the thickness that you like for a pie crust. Place the pastry into your pie pan and trim the excess off.
Three Star Chicken Pot Pie

We began with the following items (as leftovers)
* roasted chicken
* mashed potatoes
* a small amount of cooked carrots
* a few fried mushrooms
* gravy

To make our pot pie we took pastry for a double crust 9 inch pie. We placed one crust in the bottom of the pie pan. We layered the leftover mashed potatoes, carrots (cooked) and mushrooms on the bottom crust. Next we broke the chicken into medium chunks and evenly spread it on top of the potato mixture.

3 Star Chicken Pot Pie ready for eating!

 In a medium saucepan we boiled 3 stalks of celery (cut) and 1 can of peas until the celery was soft. We drained off the excess liquid. In a small saucepan we sauteed 1/3 cup of onions in butter. Once the onions were translucent we added salt and pepper to taste, 1/4 tsp of poultry seasoning*, and our leftover gravy. Once this was warmed all the way through, we removed it from the heat.

We poured the celery, peas, onions and gravy over the chicken and potatoes. Finally, we added a top crust and crimped the edges. We baked it for 30 minutes in a 425 degree oven. It was delicious! We hope our delicious experiment in using up leftovers will inspire you to make similar recipes. Bon apetit!

* Pre mixed spices speed things up. Our poultry seasoning is made up of; thyme, sage, marjoram, rosemary, black pepper and nutmeg.

Frugal Friday: Kijiji

When it comes to buying the things we need for the farm, house, or ourselves at an affordable price, Kijiji has been a game changer. The ability to quickly and easily determine if something we need is for sale locally is a huge time saver and a great tool for networking. We also like the fact that you can go take a look at the product that is for sale in person before deciding whether or not to buy it, and its interesting to meet people and here their stories about why they bought the item they're selling. Once when we went to pick up a $40 grain grinder from an elderly couple we ended up spending the whole evening with them hearing all about their off grid house and their family business. It was a fascinating and unexpected way to connect with people. We've bought both our current vehicles, numerous pieces of our farm machinery, lambing supplies, canning supplies, and tools all in good shape for much less than if they were purchased new. For example, a seed drill costs approximately $3,000 used from a farm machinery dealership. At auction, the price is unpredictable- sometimes you get a great deal, other times you aren't even in the bidding right off the bat. We recently obtained a used seed drill in excellent shape for $600 through Kijiji. That's a big difference! Definately worth the time it took to search the ads. We've also had success selling hay off of Kijiji.

If  you've used Kijiji or a similar site (like Craig's List), what is something you got a great deal on? If you've never used Kijiji or a similar site we encourage you to do so. You just might find exactly what you need, save some money and meet some interesting people in the process.

Wild Card Wednesday: The Earth is the Lord's

Double rainbow, 2010.

Every business needs a guiding principle- something upon which they base their practice, a summary of their overall ideology. Hill Giant Farm is no exception. Our motto is "the earth is the Lord's and everything in it," an excerpt from Psalm 24 in the Old Testament. This motto reminds us to have a proper attitude towards the land that we farm, the animals that we raise, the innumerable springs and other water sources throughout our acreage, and our approach to forestry management. If the earth, and everything in it; the land, animals, water and forests that make up Hill Giant Farm- belong to God, then we must be careful with how we treat these things. If a friend or family member lends us a fragile or valued item, we do not carelessly toss it about, neglect it, misuse or abuse it. Rather, we treat it with care and respect. Viewing the earth as God's encourages us to think about the environmental and sociological impact of the way in which we farm.
Here's some of what this means on a practical level.

1. We treat our animals humanely and do everything possible to ensure they are healthy, happy and well cared for. This includes giving them water from the same source as our house water, cutting and storing excellent hay, rotating pasture often enough, giving vitamin E to newborn lambs, and using vaccinations only when necessary. If, or when, the time comes for us to terminate an animal we ensure it is done quickly and humanely.

2. We use everything possible and waste as little as we can. Kitchen scraps become chicken fodder, sheep manure becomes composted mulch for the garden. Fruits and veggies past their prime become feed for the sheep. Jars from canning are washed, sterilized and used each year. In the meantime, the serve as glasses in our kitchen cupboards and storage containers in our pantry. Empty juice and pop bottles become lamb bottles. You get the idea.

3. We grow our vegetables with sustainability in mind. As far as possible we use seed varieties that are not hybrids and save the seeds for replanting the following year. The sheep provide us with excellent organic matter that enriches and gives back to the soil. We don't spray our apple trees (or any of our vegetables for that matter) and so far our yields have been tremendous, as long as you don't mind that your produce isn't "perfect".

The earth is the Lord's and everything in it. We're glad we have the privilege of looking after and enjoying 100 beautiful acres in Grey County.

Mmmm Monday: Cheesy Chicken and Broccoli Casserole


Saturday R and I processed a batch of roosters. All together we dispatched 6 roosters in just over 2 hours with the help of some courageous friends. The final product was 6 birds for the freezer weighing anywhere from 3.5-6lbs. Just the right size for a meal! Just to be sure the quality was excellent (which of course it was!) we cut one up into pieces and roasted it over the open fire using a masala sauce. Delicious! The meat was moist and tender and it was by FAR the freshest chicken I'd ever eaten. Not surprisingly, I've still got chicken on the brain. So, our first segment of Mmmm Monday will feature one of my all time favourite chicken recipes.

Cheesy Chicken and Broccoli Casserole
8 pieces of chicken- cut up
2 heads broccoli
1 can cream of mushroom or cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup of mayonnaise
1 cup of cheese (any hard cheese will do)
1/2 Tbsp curry powder
 bread crumbs

Steam the broccoli and place in a 9x13 pan. The bright green of the broccoli is a sign of the high vitamin D content. Using a skillet or large frying pan, brown the chicken until it is tender. Cut it into bite size chunks. I prefer using breast meat as it is easier to cut up. Place chicken on top of broccoli and set aside. Mix the condensed soup, mayonnaise, 1/3 cup of cheese and the curry powder together. You should be able to spread this mixture over top of the chicken and broccoli. Place bread crumbs (buttered tastes yummy but unbuttered is healthier) on top and cover with remaining cheese. Bake at 350 for 1/2 hour. The smell is incredible! Enjoy.

Welcome and Wildlife Report

Welcome to Letter From Hill Giant Farm. We're glad you've found us! This is where you can find out what's going on at the farm- whether it's what we're working on, a lambing report, delicious recipes, money saving ideas- you'll find it all here. You can also ask us questions and we'll do our best to answer them.

Friday a.m.'s visitor.

 To start things off we thought we'd tell you about the wildlife we've seen on or around the farm this week.
 1. 4 deer in the valley at the bottom of our field- pretty common, but beautiful none the less.
2. A tiny Spring Peeper frog on the doorknob of our entryway. Very cool!
3. We heard our first frogs this week! M is really excited about this. They're her favourite.
4. A ring-necked pheasant crossing the road, and strutting his stuff to attract the ladies.
 5. Saturday we heard and saw 26 Sandhill cranes circling and calling over our fields.

 The calendar may still say it's Winter, but on our hundred acres it looks a lot like Spring.