God's bountiful harvest

I am constantly amazed at the wonder of nature...When we came to this property 10 years ago, we began planting fruit trees - a couple every year. We follow the Torah's instructions in planting trees so we didn't eat the fruit until the fifth year...

Lev 19:23 And when ye shall come into the land, and shall have planted all manner of trees for food, then ye shall count the fruit thereof as uncircumcised: three years shall it be as uncircumcised unto you: it shall not be eaten of.

Lev 19:24 But in the fourth year all the fruit thereof shall be holy to praise the LORD.

Lev 19:25 And in the fifth year shall ye eat of the fruit thereof, that it may yield unto you the increase thereof: I [am] the LORD your God.

Earlier in the season, Dennis sprayed the tree with neem oil to run off any pests or fungas that might be coming our way. The result is a beautiful, bug free, fungus free harvest of large plums. This year the tree is so full I'm wondering how to steward all the fruit!!

Today we are making jam but tomorrow I'll probably make this wonderful recipe I found at All Recipes.com. Not only can we use our plums, but wonderful ricotta we made using our goat milk!

Maple Ricotta Parfait with Almonds and Plums


INGREDIENTS
1 tablespoon butter
1/3 cup maple syrup, divided
6 black plums, pitted and sliced
1 1/4 cups part-skim ricotta cheese
1/2 cup sliced California Almonds, roasted*


DIRECTIONS
Heat butter in a saute pan. Add 2 tablespoons maple syrup, and gently stir in plum slices. Cook on medium heat just until plums are soft and giving out some juice, but still holding their shape.
Meanwhile, stir together the remaining maple syrup and ricotta. Set aside.
Divide 1/2 cup prepared plum slices among 4 clear bowls or brandy glasses. Follow with a layer of ricotta mixture, then remaining plum slices, and then the remaining ricotta mixture. Drizzle with remaining maple syrup, and sprinkle with roasted almonds.
FOOTNOTE
*To roast almonds, place a single layer on a baking sheet and bake in a preheated 350 degrees F oven for 10 minutes, stirring at least once to ensure even roasting. Almonds will continue to brown after being removed from the oven.

Where to start??

One of the things on my never ending 'to do' list was to start a blog. With so much happening around the farm, there are so many things to write about - where to start??? So many issues to discuss...so many wonderful people to get to know.

So, we will use this first entry to let you know that more will be coming - issues on health, dairy goats, raw milk, Tooth Chips - Soap for Teeth, heirloom veges, gardening, and introductions of people that have really touched our lives. We hope you visit often - it will give you a taste of a city girl gone country and loving it!