Look What the Wind Blew In

At the farmers' markets on Saturday it was pretty warm; a typical summer day.  I was glad I was dressed in layers because by 11am it was in the mid-80's and I had stripped down to a t-shirt and jeans.  It was clearly still summer in Virginia.  By Noon, I was convinced the weather man was a liar.  There was no way it was going to be cool and fall-like on Sunday.

After we finished with the markets, Daniel and I headed to Tuckahoe to check on the new heifer calves before heading back to Cartersville.  By the time we left Tuckahoe, my jeans were rolled up and my shoes were off.  I clearly had not dressed appropriately for Summer's last hurrah.  Before we made it home, I was already thinking that I should plan on shorts for Sunday.

 Fall this year came in on the coattails of a crisp equinoxal breeze. Overnight, while the world was fast asleep, Autumn  made her debut.  Like the belle of the ball, she had stolen the show.  With her, she brought cool crisp air, un-cloudy skies, and a longing for hearty fall comfort foods and a fire in the woodstove.

 I again packed away my shorts and, instead, donned a warm sweater and a pair of boots I hadn't worn since early spring. We dusted off the stock pot, I dug up my lamb chili recipe and we let the pot simmer on the stove until we were done with the cattle.  And then, we ate, drank and laughed. Fall has finally arrived. 

Lamb Chili:

1 lb ground lamb. 

1 medium onion, chopped

A bit of salt and pepper

1 can black beans

1 can pinto beans

1 can kidney beans

1 can diced tomatoes (or fresh diced tomatoes if you can still get your hands on some)

2 large cans of tomato juice

1 tbs chili powder (more if you like it spicier) 

1 tbs brown sugar. 

Brown lamb and onion in a large stock pot with a bit of salt and pepper. 

Add beans, tomato juice, tomatoes, chili powder and brown sugar.  Stir.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and allow to simmer....at least 20 minutes (we usually do several hours) 

 

Snickers

Before I jumped off the high when I was a kid, a friend's older sister gave me some advice.  She told me to walk to the end of the board, close my eyes, think of my favorite candy and then jump.  After I willed myself up the ladder, I drug my heels to the edge of the board, closed my eyes and thought, "Skittles."

I spent the rest of the day racing up the ladder and careening off the high dive.  The advice my friend's sister gave me has held true throughout my life. The anticipation and expectations we create in our heads before a new experience are often the hardest part of that experience.

As a livestock farmer, you hardly see a day pass without something happening that you haven't seen before.

Today, I closed my eyes, sat down at the computer screen and thought, "Snickers."

Chicory

Cichorium intybus

Being out on the farm, you get to experience a lot of beauty in places you might not otherwise look.  All summer we have been admiring the chicory blooms.  Aside from its beauty, chicory is an amazing plant.  It is a valuable forage for sheep, cattle and honeybees, and humans have used the root as a coffee substitute. 

Here's to you chicory:

Deep roots carry here through the cold of wintertime

Spring timely arrives and opens her to the sun

Rainstorms sweetly bring out her bloom of beauty blue

Queen of the pasture

there is none other like her

Sky above so blue 

is a reflection of her bloom

Queen of the pasture

Queen of the pasture 

May you bloom and bloom forever 

When the days fall so short

Frost welcomes her in the ground

Her death is sleep

But she will soon bloom again 

                                                                                                      DANIEL 

Recipe: Grilled Chicken with Blackberry-Ginger Sauce

Yesterday at the Byrd House Market we scored a big bucket of Agriberry jam blackberries.  We plan to make jam with most of the berries, but tonight I wanted to try something different.

While Daniel grilled one of our chickens I made the blackberry sauce. 

Our favorite way to grill Tuckahoe chicken is in two-halves.  Cutting the chicken down the middle helps it cook more quickly and evenly than a whole bird on the grill.  Because the majority of our chickens' diet is fresh grasses supplemented with minimal local grains, the flavor of the bird is outstanding.  

To bring out the flavor of our pastured chickens, we simply brush the bird with a small amount of melted butter, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and grill.  

Blackberry Ginger Sauce

For the sauce, I gathered a pint of blackberries and put them in a sauce pan on medium heat.  While the berries were heating, I grabbed my potato masher and squished the berries as much as a I could.  

Next, I add 1/3 cup of white wine and stir while the berries began to simmer.  To the wine and berry mixture, I add the juice of half of a lime, a pinch of ground ginger, and a table-spoonfull of brown sugar.  Stir, turn the stove to low and allow to simmer for 15 mins, stirring occasionally.   Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly before serving.   

When the blackberry sauce is finished, it should have a slightly syrupy consistency and chunks of fresh blackberries throughout the sauce.  

Once the chicken is finished, we divide the halves into traditional chicken pieces: leg, wing, thigh, breast.  After dividing the chicken out between the diners, we spoon the warm blackberry sauce on the chicken for an amazing summer treat.   

Recipe for Grilled Tuckahoe Chicken with Blackberry Ginger Sauce

Serves 4-6

Chicken

1 whole Tuckahoe Chicken 3-4lbs

1 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

1 tbs butter 

Divide chicken into 2 halves.  Brush with melted butter and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Grill approx. 45 mins until cooked through, turning occasionally 

Blackberry Ginger Sauce

1 pt fresh blackberries (we prefer Agriberry)

1/3 c white wine

1/2 lime-squeezed

1/4 tsp ground ginger

1 tbs brown sugar

Heat blackberries over medium heat.  Using a potato masher or large spoon, crush warming blackberries.  Add wine, lime juice, ginger and brown sugar.  Stir.  Reduce heat to low and allow sauce to simmer 15 mins before serving, stir occasionally.  Spoon sauce onto grilled chicken. 

Tuckahoe Yarns

This fall, we sheared approximately 85 sheep...Cotswolds, Cheviots and Border Leicesters.  We couldn't think of a better way to share our wooly bounty than to have it spun into yarns. 

So, on a trip to Quebec with Case and Manse, I stopped by Green Mountain Spinnery in Putney, Vermont and delivered a mountain of fleeces.  Green Mountain was certainly worth the detour.  The Spinnery is a worker owned Co-Op and David and the rest of the team are amazing using turn of the century machines and green processes to create outstanding yarns.

Many months later, the wool is back and has been transformed from raw fleeces into beautiful sport weight yarns in a natural creamy white and natural grey.

The yarn is Sport Weight, 172 yards, $10/skein and available on the farm AND

The Byrd House Market~Tuesdays 3:30pm-7pm

South of the James Market~Saturdays 8am-Noon

St. Stephens Farmers Market~Saturdays 8am-Noon

You can also pick up Tuckahoe yarn at the Yarn Lounge in Carytown.  If you haven't been there, check it out.  The Yarn Lounge mission is to share their passion for knitting by providing knitters wih natural fibers, unique yarns and accessories in a comfortable and friendly atmosphere.  They teach classes, too for experienced knitters and spinners and kintter/spinner wanna-bes.  So next time you're in Carytown, check them out.  They're right on Cary just past Belmont. 

Stewart and Cate, two of the great Yarn Lounge ladies picked up a few skeins for themselves a few weeks ago at South of the James. They both loved the yarn and Stewart decided that the Yarn Lounge needed to stock Tuckahoe yarn!  Awesome!  

See their Blog Post Re: Tuckahoe's Yarns Here:  Tuckahoe Plantation yarn? RICHMOND's Tuckahoe Plantation? Yes!