Yes to APRIL!! Welcome Spring! 

The last week of March was a productive and successful week! 

Pot Luck brought a young group of regulars from PSU and Lauren Hurley (a great musician!), check her out here!

Proctor Academy stopped by for a tour of the Farm, and we hosted a group from Colby-Sawyer College as well! 

They had a blast (as you can see!), and I walked the tour for the first time since I've been here. Very informative, Josh is very passionate about giving young minds an option to think outside the box. For example: explaining to the group about the viability of a huge root cellar to keep food cold and in turn pump cool air throughout the facilities, instead of using fossil fuel to cool rooms to 60 degrees and placing foods in refrigerators. That, to me, is an interesting, viable and thoughtful initiative just waiting for the right person to hear it and run with it. 

The 20 year old Kiwi!

Pruning Fruit Trees = happy healthy trees!

And the Garden Grows

Watching the snow melt and the seeds grow has been quite the blessing, giving everyone here the bright happy feelings of spring right around the corner! Pruning is well underway.

Bree having a BLAST!

Project Renovating Red House
The red house is moving along at a steady pace. The shiplap walls are installed, the floor is down and sanding is underway. Painting is next on the tasks to be completed.

Savory Woodstove Meatballs

Resident James testing his super savory meatballs!

1 lb ground beef

1 lb Italian sausage 

1 cup bread crumbs

6 cloves of garlic

1 egg

1 cup nutritional yeast

1 tablespoon parsley 

1 tablespoon rosemary 

(sauce)

2 large onions diced

Braggs Raw Aminos (to taste)

Brown sugar, maple syrup or unsweetened applesauce (to taste)

2 tablespoons oil

Mix all contents together in large mixing bowl.

Once the mixture is well incorporated, roll into balls about the size of a half dollar coin (approx. 2 tablespoons). Fry in oil just enough to brown edges, then transfer meatballs into a dutch oven or medium sized saucepan.  

Fry diced onions in the residual oil and fat in the same frying pan used to brown the meatballs.  Adding aminos and sweetener until the sauce starts to caramelize slightly.  

Combine meatballs and sautéed onions in saucepan.

Cook on stovetop or woodstove, cook until your sauce develops a syrup consistency, then try out a meatball!

*to spice things up, add hot peppers *you can’t beat fresh ingredients, support local farms like us and feature your own garden in your meal.

Farmer Rich Kreating Kraut! (see what I did there?)

And, on Volunteer Day, Farmer Rich taught a mini "off the cuff" workshop on Kraut Making! Keep your eyes open for a video to be posted. I didn't realize that Kraut was just cabbage that can be augmented with veggies and sometimes fruit hanging out together in their own juices, which are being drawn out with sea salt! That's it, wicked easy, wicked nutritious and wicked delicious! Totally different than any kraut you find at the local grocery store.

Events for April: This coming Saturday at 7 p.m. we'll have our monthly Full Moon Walk (no snow shoes needed this time!) 

Farm Feast Breakfast on Easter: Why cook when you can come to a great place, meet awesome people, enjoy delicious food, and learn about D Acres too? Tour starts at 1 p.m.

Clothing Swap will be happening on Sunday too. The garage will be open, and filled with a great pile of "Stuff" that we want you to have!

Pizza and a Movie on Friday, April 10th - always delicious, always inspiring, and always a fun time! What are we showing you ask… hmmm

April 15th is also the deadline to take Jen Alba's Embroidery Workshop, scheduled for April 18th, 25th and May 2nd! She does amazing work, and you'll learn how to create 3 beautiful pieces!

The sunrises are epic here at the farm!

April 18th Super Awesome Book Release Celebration and Dance Party! Come experience joy and fellowship, don't forget your dancing shoes! Jazz Pianist and DJ is scheduled! Have you purchased a copy of it yet? It's a great read! 

April 24th Potluck and Open Mic - Who's bringing what? Who's making noise? Always fun, always a surprise, and always a great time to hang out at D Acres! What shall we make? 

April 25th we'll be at PSU's Earth Jam with a table! Stop by and say Hi! We'd love to see you!

And that's all Folks! Catch ya next week! Make your days Glorious! 

~Peace!

Sonia

Cooking with the Seasons at D Acres

We are well into Spring time now, but I have many recipes tucked away from the Cooking with Seasons classes being held here at D Acres.

We embarked on a fun potato-stuffed pastry originating from Eastern Europe. Here is a recipe for Piroshkis:

This simple pastry can be filled with anything really. The traditional filling is potatoes, cabbage, onion, egg and cheese, but on a cold night in February we went all out!

For Pastry
Unbleached White Flour or Whole Wheat Pastry, 3 cups
Salt, 1/3 tsp
Butter, 3/4 cup
Ice Water, 1/4 to 3/4 cup

Prepare the pastry by thoroughly mixing the flour and salt. Cut in the butter until the mixture resembles course cornmeal. Using a fork and a minimum number of strokes, mix in the ice water until the mixture can be formed into a ball. Chill the dough for 15 minutes. Form into balls and refrigerate for up to one hour.
(Pastry recipe taken from Moosewood Restaurant Cooks for a Crowd)

Our base for the filling was mashed potatoes. We then added various other ingredients to fancy up the piroshkis:
-Sautéed Sauerkraut
-Garlc Scape Puree
-Shredded carrots and beets

Divide each ball of dough into four pieces. Roll each piece into a 6-in. diameter circle. Preheat the oven to 350°. Place 1/2 cup filling in the center of each circle. Brush the edges with an egg wash (one egg beaten with 4 Tbsp of water) and fold over to form a turnover, pressing the edges together with a fork. Place the piroshkis on an oiled baking sheet. Brush the tops with the egg wash. Bake for 25-35 minutes, until lightly browned.

Look forward to more great seasonal recipes from the cooking class! We've been having a lot of fun with nettle this spring.

Eat well,
Regina