Strawberry Picking and Freezer Jam

After our visit to the Star Wars exhibit we stopped at a strawberry field to pick some strawberries. It was really warm and humid. The berries we really ripe and sweet, perfect.

We made this jam last year too, it is very quick, easy and it was really good and tastes like fresh summer strawberries.

We use McCormick’s freezer jam packet. I like this one because it uses a lot less sugar that traditional jam. The recipe is off the back of the package. In a nutshell, you wash, hull and cut the berries, mix with sugar and contents of packet and let sit, stir and put in jars. Place in the freezer and you are done. This year I tried the plastic freezer jam jars. I always prefer glass, but it makes me a little nervous putting little jam jars in the freezer.
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Star Wars

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We crossed one thing off our summer to do list last weekend.   We went to a Star Wars exhibit.  Evie is quite a little Star Wars buff, at least for the original three movies.  She hasn’t seen the newer prequel movies, but those are also on the summer to do list also.  I think our list is quite long, although it is sort of a virtual list in my head.  I think I should make a real list so we can cross things off as we complete them.  I’ll add that to the list!

Back to Star Wars.  We all like the movies and Evie is extremely detailed in her study of the characters, their names and what their relationships are to each other. You can concentrate on that sort of thing when you are 5.  She was very excited to make it to this exhibit, so were her parents.  It is not every day you get your picture taken with R2D2 or Yoda. However, she would not get her picture taken with Darth Vader unless her Dad picked her up, she said he looked to real.  The exhibit is interactive and as you go through you created your own identity. The pictures are not very clear because it was a little dark and you cannot use a flash in the exhibit.

I am a Togruta farmer who lives on Naboo and I work to protect Wapoo habitat.  Not sure how that would work.  Evie is also a Togruta, but a fighter pilot.  Ray is a Wookie.  Interesting inter-species family.

At the end of the exhibit Evie got a Queen Amidala t-shirt and a Star Wars cook book to add to our collection of cookbooks.  We already used the book to make Greedo’s Burritos and Yoda Soda.  They were really good.  The next recipe to make from that book is Wookie Cookies.

After we left the exhibit the sun came out and we stopped at a strawberry field and picked strawberries.  Later that evening we made a really quick and easy freezer jam.  That will be for our next post.

Gardening & Rhubarb Muffins

We finally got to start the garden.  We weeded, dug and planted, now we have to just wait.  Max kept watch to keep the squirrels out.  The whole time we were outside Evie kept asking when we could cut some rhubarb.  Our rhubarb is still a small plant with little stalks.  I wasn’t sure what to make since we didn’t have much, then I found a rhubarb muffin recipe from Susan (I love this blog) at A Cake Bakes in Brooklyn (www.acakebakesinbrooklyn.com), and I had just enough rhubarb to make the cup we needed.  The old handmixer we found at an antique store when we were visiting the farm and had to get it.  It is perfect for Evie to use.  These muffins were so tasty and very moist.  We really liked them and will definitely add them to our recipe book to make again.  I have a few rhubarb recipes that I love.  I have to try to make a couple more before the season ends.  Maybe tomorrow morning we will go to the farmers market to get some and make something for dessert tomorrow night.

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Farmsitting Day 3

The hens only gave the one egg yesterday, and Evie checked frequently until I banned her from going near the hens.  I told her that she was stressing them out and they would not lay.  She later was explaining through the fence that they could not hold it or it would hurt their belly and was not good for their body.  This morning she was itching to get out to the henhouse.  There were 3 beautiful eggs waiting to be collected, it was very exciting!  The hen in the picture is Petal, named by Evie when she was just a little chick.  She is special and gets the most attention, not sure if petal likes that, but she does get extra treats. ImageImage

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Today we did more fishing and birdwatching.  We saw the nests or the barn swifts that flutter about all day, they stayed very close to us while we were around their barn.  The gold finches were beautiful and Evie saw her first hummingbird, working around the apple blossoms.  Image

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The hummingbird is sitting on the branch.

Only one more day and we have to go home, back to the city and work.  Evie is sad about leaving the animals, so am I we will miss them.