Greeting everyone! I hope you are enjoying your weekend. It's been a semi-productive one around our homestead. The snow is still waist deep around here but it's time to start preparing for spring.
I finally tested the new off grid oven with the most important test of all, baking bread! It's been a while since I had a working oven to bake with. I'm pretty happy with how the stove performed. We tried waiting until the bread had cooled but we devoured half a loaf while it was still piping hot.
Look at all these beautiful tomatoes! I froze a few bags at the end of season and pulling them out today gave me a little reminder of the bounty we have to look forward to in the season ahead. I have at least 20 different types of tomatoes seeds in my seed stash .. I am itching to get dirt under my fingernails again!
It's seed gathering time at our place. Its no secret that I am a bit of a seed hoarder. There are far worse things to covet and I do share! This is the only organized seed box in the house. The rest are in buckets and jars stashed in every nook and cranny imaginable. I love gathering them all up on the dining table to sort through. It helps me to forget that I am still trapped inside a snow globe.
We set up the grow rack in our guest bedroom. It drives me nuts that this room sits empty for 3/4 of the year but at the same time we like having company and they do need somewhere to sleep! Hopefully no one minds blinding lights as a wake up call (lol).
This rack is a heavy beast. I got it on kijiji for a steal! I know it's not pretty but once it's lined up with seedlings it looks much nicer. If we decide we like it in here, we'll probably make a permanent cupboard so I don't have to dismantle it all the time.
Now that the rack is set up, I need to mount the lights. Then I need to dig my way into the greenhouse and get my flats and soil ready. Maybe I'll get to that tomorrow .... :) I don't fancy carrying all those flats across the snowy terrain today.
I am really, really, ready for spring. Come on mother nature, let's move on from snow to sunshine please! Our wood stock is getting really low. This has been a really LONG winter!
I am off to do the dishes and tidy up and then I think I will take that nap I've been talking about. I am a wee bit hung over today. We cracked open a bottle of parsnip wine last night and I'm feeling the after effects quite heavily.
Have a wonderful, restful and happy weekend doing whatever it is you love to do. I'll be spreading seeds out all over our table and planning the garden tomorrow! ❀
Be Well!
Building a greener, more beautiful world one seed at a time.
Homesteading | Gardening | Frugal Living | Preserving Food| From Scratch Cooking|
You can also find me at: walkerland.ca
Photo copyright: @walkerland
That bread looks so good! I must have missed where you got your kitchen put back together :( We're officially in the windy, crazy seesaw weather month. Poor chickens are scratching up worms one day and seeing snow the next day!
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ohh ...the kitchen is still in shambles! I have to decide on counter tops today/tomorrow and its a little overwhelming (we don't have good local suppliers either - service is lousy). Weather seems to be crazy everywhere and I Really shouldn't complain!! I think I have a touch of cabin fever :)
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We don't have waist high snow and the Husband has cabin fever, so I'd say you have a definite excuse for it! What kind of counter tops are you thinking of getting? It's so much fun but you're right, it's stressful too!
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I don't know to be honest. I read that quartz will last forever, does not need to be treated with chemicals and is hard to damage. Sounds interesting but I don't want to have to sell a limb to buy a counter top. I'm doing my homework on-line tonight because I have no idea what these types of things cost.
We've got another big storm coming in for Tuesday. Expecting another 20 to 40 cm of snowfall with strong north-easterly winds, blowing snow and possibly rain too. YAY!
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Good luck on the countertop research! (I love quartz and recommend it!) We've got snow on the forecast, too...
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Congrats on the new oven!!! I can smell the bread all the way from Texas!
You've been in my thoughts, with all this crazy snow stuff going on...I'm glad you have a room indoors to play in!
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Nice to see someone else from Texas! I followed you and will keep up with your blog posts. :)
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Thank you. I am so thrilled with it. I am finding that I have to almost re-learn how to cook though. This oven gets so hot. It's like I've graduated from a kiddie stove to a grown up version ;)
You are so sweet to think of us. I could use a bit of Texas weather right about now. I think winter is having it's last tantrum and then it will start to melt. That's what I keep telling myself.
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Wow, if we still had snow like that, I'm sure I'd be losing my mind waiting for spring. We are getting a couple of days of spring-like ever week or so and then back to winter. Just enough to tease. "Come on Mother Nature", I'm with you.
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I like to moan about it but it's not so bad. Soon I will have the humidity to cry about and will be wishing for snow (lol) At least there are no mosquitoes in winter right?!
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Dang right about the skeeters.
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The bread looks amazing! There is seriously nothing like bread fresh from the oven...it doesn't even matter the type.
I don't think I could handle being trapped indoors for such a long period. It has been in the 70s in Texas today (not to brag, LOL). I've got vegetable seeds started, and worked on a wildflower bed yesterday. I'm so ready for fresh veggies!!
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Texas sounds like where I should be right now! The air is fresh and crisp and it's not so bad! :)
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Loved the view of your greenhouse! It must be gorgeous in springtime. I spent all day prepping to take stuff to the tax guy. Not fun!
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I am avoiding the fact that our insurance, property tax and income tax stuff is all on my desk. I totally feel for you. Not fun :(
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great article i have voted it,,, i also blog about gardening, where are you from? you have alot of snow too, im from canada and we have as much or more, cant wait for summer and grow season to come!
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Oh my!!! Look at that hot bread! I'm drooling! It looks lovely even with all that snow at your place - peaceful and clean :)
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Your bread looks perfect and I know it was delicious. Chad and I do the same way with fresh loaves. I have the butter out and we are ready when it is. Love to put apple butter or strawberry freezer jam on sour dough. I never mastered bread on the wood stove while we were in the barn. I want to still practice using a dutch oven on the fireplace. I got up this morning and built a fire, mainly cause I just felt like one today and then I decided to fry our weekly sausage and some hamburger patties on the fire. So much fun to me. We have sat here all day, no tv, no music just piddling and relaxing and now I am online. It has been a perfect day. We expect to get snow tonight so maybe I should go bake some bread?
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Your day sounds perfect!
I would love a wood cook stove. Our small wood stove has a little bit of a cooking surface but I've never mastered cooking on it. Usually overly crisp on the outside and raw in the middle. It's a lot harder than it looks.
Crusty, rustic loaves are my favourite and I am far better at baking those. My husband told me that he prefers a soft crust so I am working hard to learn sandwich type breads. I'm trying to find that perfect recipe that will let me use strong flours while not being to dense.
Hope you enjoy the rest of your weekend! :)
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