Friday on the Farm

In the afternoon, I drove out to the field to scout. The field of millet germinated and was off to a good start. Heat and moisture from rainfall has been great growing conditions. Though, it was really surprising how quickly the millet was growing. I very much look forward to seeing it grow before the cows graze.

raspberry lemon sorbet

raspberry = summer

Such a refreshing treat for the summer! This raspberry sorbet is so delicious! 

3 cups      frozen raspberries
1 cup      honey
1.5 cups      water
1.5 tablespoons      lemon juice

Blend the frozen raspberries, honey, water, and lemon juice together until it is creamy. Pour the mixture into a freezer container. Freeze the sorbet until serving. Makes 4 servings of raspberry sorbet. { I make two containers of sorbet to keep in the freezer. }

Enjoy this sweet summer sorbet! 

summer chalkboard

hello summer!  

It is sweet summertime! I am extremely excited for summer! I look forward to sunny days, star filled nights, sweet drinks, flip flops, and lightning bugs.

 love being creative and decorating. So, it is time to change my vintage chalkboard. This rustic chalkboard brings so much sunshine to my farm kitchen. Every time I see it, my heart smiles.

Friday on the Farm

On Thursday, we seeded a field with millet. The field will be grazed by a herd of cows throughout the summer. I very much look forward to watching the millet grow, and seeing our cows graze!

 

[ more agriculture photos @ monicastevens.photoshelter.com ]

millet

On May 27, a second field of rye was chopped and bagged. The ryelage will be used for feeding cows.  Following the rye, we decided to plant a crop for cows to graze during the summer in addition to their pasture.

 

 

We chose to no-till drill pearl millet into the field. It seemed to be the best option for us to plant. Cows will graze the field after the millet grows to a height of at least 20 inches. The field of millet will be used as rotational grazing throughout the summer. The millet will be grazed to a height of 6 to 8 inches. Grazing to this height will allow for regrowth.

We set the drill and seeded the millet at the rate of 25 pounds per acre. It was seeded at a depth of 1 inch. The soil moisture was great for seeding. Hopefully the millet will germinate quickly.

I am very excited about using the field of millet as part of grazing! And, I am looking forward to seeing the millet grow!

raspberry lemon bars

{ raspberry + lemon }

This is a delicious summer treat... raspberry lemon bars! They are full of sunshine!

 

crust...

2 cups      butter

1/2 cup      sugar
2 teaspoons      vanilla
2 teaspoons      lemon zest

2 cups      flour
1/4 teaspoon      salt 
 

filling...

12 ounces      raspberries

1 cup      sugar

4 - 6      lemons ( juiced + zested )

4      eggs

2/3 cup      flour

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9 x 13 pan with parchment paper.

Cream together the butter and sugar. Add in the vanilla and lemon zest. Stir in the flour and salt. Press the dough in the bottom of the pan. Bake for 20 minutes or until lightly golden brown.

Blend the raspberries and pour into a bowl. Add in sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest, eggs, and flour. Stir the ingredients well. Pour the mixture evenly over the baked crust. Bake for an additional 30 minutes.

Let the raspberry lemon bars cool and place in the refrigerator. Lightly dust with powdered sugar over the top of the bars. Lift the parchment paper from the pan. Cut the raspberry lemon bars into squares or triangles and arrange on a beautiful dish to serve.

 

 

Friday on the Farm

 

The double cropped soybeans are emerging. These soybeans were planted on June 1. Rye was chopped and bagged as feed for cows to then plant soybeans. The planting conditions were excellent. The soil moisture was perfect for planting, and we have had plenty of sunshine.   

Friday morning, it rained. It was great timing for the crops. We finished rolling up our first crop hay yesterday, so it was perfect. This rain will be incredibly beneficial for the young field of soybeans.

 

[ agriculture photos @ monicastevens.photoshelter.com ]

raspberry granola bars

These raspberry granola bars are sweet for summer!

1/2 cup      butter
1 cup      brown sugar
1 1/2 cups      wheat flour
1 1/2 cups      oats
1/2 teaspoon      baking soda
1/2 teaspoon      cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon      salt
1/4 cup      water
1 teaspoon      lime juice
1 cup      raspberry jam

Cream together the sugar and butter. Stir in the flour, oats, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt in another bowl. Add to the mixture. Mix in the water and stir well. Reserve 3/4 cup of the mixture and set aside. Spray a 9 x 13 pan with cooking spray. Press the remaining firmly into the pan. 

 

Measure one cup of raspberry jam. Add a teaspoon of lime juice to the jam. Stir well. Spread the jam over the granola mixture. Sprinkle the granola crumbs over the jam. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.

 

 

Enjoy my favorite treat to make in the summertime!

Friday on the Farm

Last Thursday, we chopped and bagged a field of rye to use as feed for our cows. This afternoon, we no-till planted soybeans into that field. Residue from the harvested rye and corn from the previous crop year remain protecting the soil. We planted into nice soil conditions with having rain on Thursday and Tuesday. With the soil moisture and warm temperatures, the soybeans should germinate quickly.  

[ view agriculture photos @ monicastevens.photoshelter.com ]