Early this morning during a restful sleep I woke to the dull, crackling sound of distant thunder, a sound I have not heard for some time. I appreciate now more than ever how much farmers pay attention to the change in the weather. This past July here in Southern Nevada was the hottest in recorded history. It was all we could do to get the work of planting and weeding done before 10:00am before we were personally cooked out there. Just when I thought things were cooling off in September the thermometer soared back up to 100 plus degrees finding us here at the farm scurrying for cover by noon. I was beginning to wonder if it would ever cool down. Then somehow it happened! Some how the forces of nature knew that it turned October today. I am hopeful that the weather knows the unwritten law that the temperature cannot rise above 100 degrees this time of year! It was as if I was being given a sign early this marvelous morning while hand watering in a few rows. I looked up into the beautiful cloud laden sky and there it was, hidden just a bit in the clouds, here and there fragments of a double rainbow. It was so subtly hidden in the clouds that I might have missed it if I hadn't taken the time to look up. I stopped watering for awhile taking time to enjoy the beauty of it all. Monte and our interns were all at different locations on the farm. I hoped they were able to see the grandeur of the moment. It's moments like this that make July worth while. I love this time of year!!!

Hot Off the Press Apple Cider

Recipe for making Homemade, Old-Fashioned, Fresh Pressed Apple Cider, Step by Step

1. Find an old organic apple orchard hidden in the middle of the desert.

2. Select your favorite apples for juice. Most people like a blend of sweet and tart apples. I prefer straight crisp, tart Jonathans.



3. Bring friends along who think a work weekend is a vacation!!! Meet Lynn Patterson. He climbs the trees and gives them a good shake. We run for cover! We collect the apples in tarps that we have strategically placed under the trees. It is no bother if the apples get bruised as they will be mushed to a slop of wet pulp soon.





4. Leave Symbria under the tree and forget to tell her about step 3.






5. Be sure to bring Sara!!! Note how many bushels of apples Sara has gathered compared to her mom (Symbria) above?!


6. Give the apples a good washing. Try not to get those around you wet. (Hee, hee!)















7. Convince family and friends that cutting up apples and slicing out worms for two days is therapeutic. Be sure to bring band-aids, if not for mistaking your thumb for an apple than for the blisters you get cutting for hours on end!








8. Pulverize the apples to a wet, sloppy, juicy sweet goo. We use a garbage disposal used only for this purpose to do the job. It does it nicely. (Notice how we gave this job to Lynn, and how he is sitting way over there by himself!)




9. Pour the apple slop into clean cotton kitchen towels. (These brown towels were once pure white. Quilters often die white cloth with tea to give it an antique appearance. No need, just give me a call!)



10. Well in advance, be sure to marry a man who can literally do anything. This is very important! He is "one of those guys you can send out into the wilderness with a pocket knife and a q-tip and he builds you a shopping mall." In this case Monte has converted bits of scrap oak, pressed boards, scrap metal and plastic into a grand work of art. An authentic first-rate old-fashioned press. Man he turns me on!!!!




11. Visit every antique shop and yard sell for old 1/2 gallon narrow necked canning jars. (Symbria has an absolute obsession for these narrow necked jars. If you have some you would like to part with you will be her friend forever! Better yet, give the jars to me and I will gloat in front of her at my fabulous fortune!) Sterilize the jars in boiling water. Be careful to not glug the piping hot water all down your front as the jars fill with water!)





12. Heat the pressed cider to 160 degrees. If you forget this part you will have "apple jack" in no time! 24 hours and the cider begins to take on new life! Carefully fill your precious jars with your liquid gold. Place clean hot lids on jars and set off to cool. Soon you will here what is called the "canners symphony", the sound of the lids popping letting you know that the jars have properly sealed.

(You will notice my favorite All-Clad 5 gallon stainless steel pot has turned tar black from the flame of the fire. Oh well, what can a girl do?)





13. When you pick your victims, I mean friends to "help" you with this project, be sure to pick the kind that want to come so bad that they will cook for you. Someone never told the Pattersons that you don't bring linen napkins when you are camping! We will never tell!!!)







14. To maintain nourishment during your labors it is very important to eat really well! Both we and the Patterson's are eating "local" as much as possible. All food in the following pictures (steps) are from our Quail Hollow Farm, the Patterson's Red Acre Farm, the Molto Vegas Farmers Market, or artisanol cheese from Jack Rabbit Ranch.


Breakfast Day 1: Light Omelet with Neuftchatel Cheese and Rosemary, Herbed New Potatoes, Farm Grown Sausage and Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice. (shown above)

Lunch: Sauted Corn Cakes, Summer Squash Carpaccio with Arugula, Pecorino, and Almonds; with an assorted Cheese, Apple, Cracker plate. (shown below)















And for Dinner: Creamed Tarragon Chicken with Apple Cider, Foil Roasted New Potatoes with Garlic and Thyme; Golden Beet and Blood Orange Salad and for my birthday boy what other than Warm Applesauce Cake baked in a Dutch Oven.
















Day Two Breakfast: Herbed Scrambled Eggs, Bacon, Honey Whole Wheat Pancakes with Apple Cinnamon Syrup, and of course by now Fresh Apple Cider.

Lunch: Turkey, Apple, Sprout, Jack Cheese Sandwich; Tomato, Lemon Cucumber with Chevre and Basil Salad; Nitty Gritty Dirt Farm's Slaw; Salami and Cheese; Fresh Melons.














Dinner: Harvest Vegetable, Bean Medley with Pesto Sauce; Lynn's Homemade Rolls; Apple Tart with Rustic Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream.

Breakfast Day 3: Carrot Zucchini Bread with Fresh Yogurt, Homemade Peach Raspberry Preserves and Sausage.
















15. All that work and eating requires a bit of relaxing and entertainment. Be sure to bring Grandma & Grandpa to play your favorite Blue Grass songs such as "Arkansas River", "Nobody's Darling", "Will the Circle Be Unbroken" and the ever popular, Grandpa's "I Just Don't Look Good Naked Anymore". And don't forget the grandkids who can entertain for hours catching and playing with huge bull frogs.

















When it is all said and done this is the reward for your labor. This year we pressed over 70 gallons of cider. With every sip of cider throughout the year we will remember a wonderful experience with family and friends and the flavors of fall from the apple orchard. Life is good!

By the way, if you are interested in some of the wonderful recipes that were served this weekend, many of them came from these two outstanding cookbooks: Eating Local by Janet Fletcher and Local Flavors by Deborah Madison. I highly recommend them!

For next year we are taking reservations for confused work-a-holics. $500 per "participant!" (think Tom Sawyer and the white fence!)

OK, I've turned over a new leaf and have recommitted myself to keep this farm blog up to date!
A most marvelous, wonderful, much anticipated and longed for thing has happened since I last posted on this blog. Monte, (Loverboy to me), my much adored husband has retired from his contracting business and has "come home to the farm"! I could never, ever have supposed that this farm would someday develop to the point that it would literally provide a viable income for us. It really helped push us in this direction when the construction industry crashed.
Although Monte's business was able to hold its own, it gave us pause to dream of working the farm together and now it has become the most wonderful reality! It is not all bliss and merriment as the work is hard and the hours are long, but we are enjoying every minute together and the farm is so much better for it. Monte has longed to have time to work on building and improving the farm. Little by little it is improving every day. One of the new improvements is that while he can work the farm with the help of our interns, I can spend the time needed to keep track of all the details such as time to return emails, write newsletters, keep the books and make new posts on this blog!