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Published on Leave a comment on Backyard Beginner Beekeeper, Part 2

Hiya everybody. Hopefully you stuck with me after reading Backyard Beginner Beekeeper, Part 1 to find out how you really actually shake bees into a new hive!

But before I get to the exciting action, I thought I would talk a little bit about getting started.

Bee Prepared

As a first step, I started in January taking a monthly beekeeping class. Most classes start near the beginning of the year to get you ready to get your bees in April/May. The one I went to is the Montgomery County Beekeepers Association of PA beginning beekeeping class held in the 4-H building classrooms.  I was shocked at my first class (thinking there might be 5 or 10 people there) to find the class was close to 100 people!

...continue reading "Backyard Beginner Beekeeper, Part 2"

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Published on 5 Comments on Backyard Beginner Beekeeper, Part 1

The happiness of the bee
and the dolphin is to exist.
For man, it is to know that
and to wonder at it.
         -Jacques Yves Coustea

Well first off, who doesn't love Jacques Coustea? (for the younger crowd who might not know him, he was the oceanic 'Steve Irwin' of his time with a lot less dumb danger thrown in).

In addition to watching his television documentaries, my parents had this fantastic hardcover reference book set called The Ocean World of Jacques Coustea....I remember spending hours pouring over pictures and text in wonder of the amazing diversity of sea life (it was pretty exotic stuff for a land-locked Dakotan).

...continue reading "Backyard Beginner Beekeeper, Part 1"

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Published on 1 Comment on Lettuce Be More Exciting!

Anyone else looking at seed catalogs with dreamy eyes???

My fingers are itching to get out in the garden already but recent snows unfortunately have my wishes way ahead of my weather.

But I know I'm not the only one! Even our chickens, Speckles and Ginger, have caught Spring Fever, resuming their laying and enjoying some 'free range' time out of the coop wandering the yard.

...continue reading "Lettuce Be More Exciting!"

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Published on 3 Comments on Yogurt Yumminess – Yes!

Remember back when I was still an 'Instant Pot Ingenue', I mentioned the yogurt function on this magical machine but said it would have to be the subject of a later post?

Well, this is that post.

And it's made me even more fanatical about the Instant Pot now. Seriously, it's super easy to make your own fresh yogurt and it tastes amazing - I think better than the store brands. And, after making your first batch, you really only need a half gallon of milk to make repeat batches.

...continue reading "Yogurt Yumminess – Yes!"

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Published on 7 Comments on The Tale of the Farmer’s Daughter

As I sit in my garden quietly content after checking on the upcoming bounty of fresh veg, nibbling away at a few plucked snap peas and cherry tomatoes, I wonder about my ties to soil and the urge to have my hands in the dirt. 

Where does this come from? Why such a strong sense of connection to this voluntary toil I do with willingness, hope, and joy every year when so often the effort is way more than the output?

Or is it something deeper in us?  Some cellular level DNA thing that is built in over time?

I recently had reason to ponder this further when, out of the blue, an unserious web search looking at my family's genealogy produced some surprising but reaffirming revelations. What I found makes for a great story and ties into what this blog is all about despite the fact that I'm not talking about food this time.

...continue reading "The Tale of the Farmer’s Daughter"

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Published on 3 Comments on Summer Daze

I don't know what happened this Spring but was time on hyperspeed??  Some job changes, a load of kids' school projects and activities ranging from creating 3-D DNA models to piano recitals to soccer matches, and maybe stress over my own expectations about what I 'should' be getting done seemed to take over the days.

It really didn't help that I left completing 30 pharmacy continuing ed credits (which you have 2 years to do) to the last month this May. Adult procrastination fail! (and yes, I did buckle down and finish on time so still legal =)

But I am SO glad that Summer has begun - ready for a fresh season start - to chill, watch my garden grow, and hopefully see things slow down a bit.  And glad to finally get to writing a post on all things growing: summer flowers, gardening, and chickens!

...continue reading "Summer Daze"

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Published on 4 Comments on Instant Pot Ingenue

How many of you out there purchased an Instant Pot® after hearing it's the hot new thing and giving in to a sale on Amazon??

How many of you have actually taken it out of the box??

Confession: I got mine over 4 months ago and it just came out of the box a few weeks ago. There was too much to do over the holidays to start experimenting with something new.  And it didn't help that I'd read too many blogs about how people had suffered to overcome the initial trauma of its newness and many buttons. But I told myself it's an appliance for pete's sake and I have a graduate degree....I can DO this!

So I did. And it is awesome and simple and all things good and wonderful.
Here's my story.

...continue reading "Instant Pot Ingenue"

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Published on 1 Comment on Veggie Highlight: Japanese Sweet Potato

The Japanese sweet potato or 'satsumaimo' was one of those mystery veggies that came in my CSA box that I stored away in my potato basket for a couple weeks while I figured out what to do with it. Weeks went by and while extended family was here for Christmas, I thought 'what the heck, just roast it' (which is basically my go-to strategy for most mystery vegetables) and see what happens.  It was a hit!

Roasted with just olive oil, salt and pepper, they were quite sweet with a 'carmelized' nutty taste.  To me, they had a flavor similar to roasted chestnuts.  Served with grilled pork loin, it made a nice pairing. They don't have a lot of water content so the roasted sections I cut almost had a homestyle french fry type texture.  If you've ever tried to make sweet potato fries before, you know they have a higher water content and can sometimes turn into a soggy mess....not the case here.

...continue reading "Veggie Highlight: Japanese Sweet Potato"

Published on Leave a comment on Veggie Highlight: Leeks

Many people consider leeks in the 'semi-exotic' category of vegetables. This was true for me until I began cooking with them more regularly the past few years.  But I've now come to view them as essentially just gigantic scallions. They're easy to throw into dishes anywhere  you might use an onion.  As far as flavor, they tend to be a little less 'oniony', sweeter than onions themselves.

In history, the leek has held both an exalted and abused status.  The Welsh actually wore leeks in their caps to help distinguish themselves from their opponents in the battle against the Saxons in 640 AD. They did win the battle (presumably partly because they weren't attacking their own men?) and the leek became the national emblem of Wales.   In contrast, the French thought leeks were 'the asparagus of the poor'.  This remained the opinion until a French chef at the New York's Ritz Carlton in the 1920's came up with vichyssoise (cold potato and leek soup). Leek reputation restored!

...continue reading "Veggie Highlight: Leeks"

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Published on 4 Comments on Anniversary Interruptis

Hiya Everybody! I've been on a little unplanned hiatus....although it was the kind of adventure you don't want to have.

September marked the first complete year of the Dakota Pharmgirl blog and I had big plans for an anniversary article! Now here we are about a week before Halloween. That was not the plan!

Here's what was supposed to happen and how it got derailed.

...continue reading "Anniversary Interruptis"