Recipe for Butternut Squash Soup

Don't anyone faint, but I am actually going to (at least try to) start blogging again!

Why you may ask?

Simply because I miss it and because of my passion for local food and wanting to share it with like minded people AND because funny stuff happens in my life.  I like to share these stories to give others a chuckle every now and again.

So here goes...

First I have to catch some of you up on an exciting local foods cooperative that has opened in Mitchell.  If you are not familiar with Hometown Harvest, here is the website.  If you live in the area and haven't been there... what are you waiting for?

http://hometownharvest.coop/

And their Facebook page:  https://www.facebook.com/HometownHarvestCoop

So for this post's recipe...

I made it last night so let me try to recall the recipe.  I rarely cook with a recipe book because I hate to be told what to do and don't like to follow rules.  I am a meal makin' renegade!

Let's see... how should I do this?  Do you want the instructions first or should I do it more in a recipe fashion?

Let's try to do the recipe fashion.

What you need:
1/2 stick butter (PS, I rarely measure so you won't need measuring cups!)
1 onion
3 cloves garlic
1 butternut squash (peeled and cubed)
4oz pkg Shiitake Mushrooms (sliced)
4 cups or so of Chicken Stock (homemade or organic)
1 or so cup of white wine (not necessarily necessary, but I think it adds nice flavor and is nice to sip on while you are making the soup!)
1/2 to 1 cup sour cream (told you I don't measure, I just spooned some in)
1/2 to 1 cup cream cheese (again, just spoon some in)
Pepper
Curry powder

I think that's it.

In your favorite soup pot (please tell me you have one, if not, get one!  I love my Lodge Dutch Oven 6 Quart Porcelain Enamel, google it) melt the butter, add the onion chopped and saute until translucent.  Add minced garlic cloves and saute for a few more minutes. Add sliced mushrooms.  Should smell heavenly at this point.  Saute some more, probably 3 or 4 minutes.  Who knows how long, maybe you can take a couple of sips of wine, and then it'll be done!

Okay, time to get serious.  Sorry.

Add the squash and saute a little longer, probably 3 or 4 sips...

Now add the chicken broth and wine.  Put the lid on and simmer until squash is softened and can be mashed easily.  Probably 20 minutes depending on how big your "cubes" are.  When the squash is cooked, puree everything in a blender (I use my mother's avocado green blender from the late 70's, works like a charm!).  DO NOT put too much in the blender at one time or the heat from the soup will cause the lid to sky-rocket off like a skyrocket in flight and you will have puree all over the ceiling!  This should be done in "batches".

Pour the puree back in the pot. Add the sour cream and the cream cheese (which you should cube so it will melt faster).  Season with pepper and curry powder.  Heat to serving temperature.

We toasted some jalapeno cheddar bread, buttered it and ate it with the soup.  It was delicious!!!

Okay, want to try it?!  Well, you can get all the ingredients (except the wine, which you really don't even need) for the soup at Hometown Harvest.  Well and the Jalapeno Cheddar Bread, which can be picked up at the Scottsbluff Winter Farmers' Market at Mamma Jane's Artisan Breads.

And just to highlight the LOCAL PRODUCTS used, here is a recap:

* The star of the show, Butternut Squash from Wind Harvest Farms, Henry, NE
* The co-star, the Shiitake Mushrooms from Hazel Dell Mushrooms, Ft. Collins, CO
* The supporting cast, Garlic from Mitchell Valley Farms, Mitchell, NE
* Chicken Broth made from pastured poultry that we raised.  We don't have any for sale, BUT you can purchase pastured poultry from Lazy W Diamond Ranch (Banner County, NE) at Hometown Harvest
* AND last but not least, the special guest star, Jalapeno Cheddar Bread from Mamma Jane's Artisan Breads, Huntley, WY

Enjoy!

Spinach, Ham and Cheese Quiche - Recipe

I made the most delicious quiche yesterday morning, I thought I should share the recipe. Besides, I haven't shared a recipe in a long time it seems... So here you go.

Let me first start by saying that if you don't know, I am a huge advocate for local food.  This was made with some of our farm fresh eggs, compliments of our beautiful egg layers here at the Open A Bar 2 Ranch, LLC, white cheddar dill cheese from the Cozy Cow Dairy in Windsor, CO and fresh spinach grown by Dan Weitzel of the Mitchell Valley Farm.  Dan grew the spinach in his high tunnel in Western Nebraska, in the months of January and February!  Can you believe it??  It is so tender and yummy.  Dan is a vendor, along with us at the Scottsbluff Winter Farmers' Market.  I often wonder how many people actually are aware of the fact that we are extremely blessed to have a winter market here.

If you are on Facebook... like the Open A Bar 2 Ranch, Cozy Cow Dairy, Mitchell Valley Farm and the ScottsbluffWinter FarmersMarket!


Here is the recipe.

I started with a basic recipe from the Better Homes and Gardens red-checked cookbook, one of my favorite all time go-tos, and tweaked it to my needs.

The Ingredients...


1 already made pie crust (because I stink at making pie crusts)
1/2 cup or so of chopped onion
2 Tbs. butter
8 farm fresh Open A Bar 2 Ranch eggs! (WARNING:  if you use store bought eggs you will probably get food poisoning or something of the sort...)
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup milk (I used raw milk, straight from the cow, because that's how we roll...  take that USDA police)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup sliced ham 
3 cups lightly packed fresh spinach from Mitchell Valley Farm
1 cup Rocky Mountain cheddar dill cheese from Cozy Cow Dairy


(This recipe is very versatile, so use what ever ingredients you want to... just stay with the basic ingredients of the eggs, sour cream and milk.)


1.  Bake the pie crust according to the directions on the package.
2.  Meanwhile, saute the onions in the butter until translucent.
3.  Beat eggs lightly in a large bowl.  Stir in sour cream, milk, salt and pepper.  Stir in onion, ham, spinach (I left mine whole leaf, but you can chop it up if you want to) and cheese.
4.  Pour mixture into hot, baked pie crust.  Bake in 350 degree oven for about 50 minutes.  I covered the edge of the pie crust with foil so it would not burn.  It is done when you can insert a knife in the middle of the quiche and it comes out clean.
5.  Let stand about 10 minutes before serving.
6.  Eat and enjoy!  Yum.


The remaining dates for the Scottsbluff Winter Farmers' Market are February 25th, March 10th & 24th and April 7th & 21st.  It is held at Aulick's TLC in the greenhouse from 1-4pm.  You should come.  Seriously, you will be surprised at what all it has to offer.

AND if you want farm fresh eggs but can't make it to the farmers' market... let me know.  I sometimes deliver...  Call us at 787-1111.  Now all you smarty pants who live many miles away... don't bother asking... the answer is no.

Open House!

In order to catch you up on the goings on around here this summer, I need to tell you about the Open House that we had here on the ranch on June 18th.

Now, before you start bellyaching that you didn't know about it or wasn't invited... don't worry, we are having another one in October! Date to be determined...

Dan the Man and I have been wanting to have an Open House here at the Open A Bar 2 Ranch for some time now. This is not our first one, some of you chicken customers will remember the one we had a few years ago when we raised heritage turkeys. Actually that was in 2008. Anyway, I'm getting off the subject.

Dan the Man and I want our customers to feel as the Open A Bar 2 Ranch is "their" ranch. We want everyone to be a part of what we are doing out here and to get to know us and our operation on a personal level. We want our practices to be transparent.

The Open House was on June 18th. People who had pre-ordered chickens for Batch #1 we able to pick up their chickens at the open house. But that was not all. I decided to invite several of our "farmers' market" friends to also come set-up and sell their wares. We had 9 vendors who came!! They included the following: Diane Edwards with Wind Harvest Farms who brought some of their most delicious strawberries! Dan Weitzel, with Mitchell Valley Farm (a local CSA) who brought some yummy radishes and information on his CSA. Nancy Butcher, Jams and Jellies Just For You, surely you can figure out what she brought. Flower Field Farm, Nathaniel & Rylee McGown, who had free ice cream cones made with milk right off their dairy. Sarah Pinet, you know her as the "goat cheese lady" of Victory Hill Farm, brought her delicious cheve and other goat cheeses! Jennie Salters, Chalk Butte Pottery, you know the awesome chicken roasters... (see this post, and yes, Dan the Man bought me another one!) Laura and Jim Whelchel with Double L Country Store came with their goat milk products such as lotion and soap along with a vast array of other neat-o stuff. Beth Everett of Meadowlark Hearth CSA brought veggies and seedlings such as lettuce and last but certainly not least Jane Sedman, who you know as the bread lady or Mama Janes' Artisan Breads, who has the best buttermilk cinnamon raisin swirl bread on the planet.

We had our own mini farmers' market going on out here at the ranch. Thanks again to all of you vendors who came!!

The Open House started at 1 pm and of course, wouldn't you know it that a storm moved in around 1:45 or so. We are talking wind, rain and hail folks! Actually it would appear as if "Wind, Rain and Hail" seem to be this summer's theme! Thank goodness we had room for everyone to get out of the storm in the shop and studio. People were great and just moved inside and visited.

Here comes the storm.
Picture courtesy of Katie Bradshaw.

Dave & Laura Whelchel, Double L Country Store waiting out the storm.
Picture also courtesy of Katie Bradshaw.

After the storm cleared, we continued with the festivities. I was afraid that the storm would put a quick end to the open house, but when the sun came back out, the people began to come out as well. Some even told us that the radio had reported a tornado sighting in Stegall which is 3 miles east of us!

Dan the Man gave tours of the operation to several people who went out in two groups. That was after the storm... good thing we had plenty of rubber boots to share! The children loved seeing all the baby chicks and the baby calves.

We had plenty of help with the open house. Our oldest son and daughter-in-law (Nick & Sarah) were here on vacation, Chris came home from Kearney for the weekend to help, Danny's parents (Bob & Penny) came down from Colorado, and Danny's sister and brother-in-law (Carla & Jim) came up from Casper. My sister, Lori, bought and helped me plant several flowers the week before to help pretty-up the place. Too bad most of those flowers got destroyed in the July 2nd storm.

Anyway... I think it is fair to say a good time was had by all. We had a wonderful turnout and can't wait to do another on in October. I hope I can convince Dan the Man to offer hay rides! We will also invite vendors. I can see it now... hay rides, hay castle for the kids to play in, pumpkins, gourds, indian corn for sale from the vendors, apple cider, cookies, smoked chicken, bonfire for making s'mores... awww yes!! Come on FALL!

RECIPE: Glazed Peach Habenero Grilled Pork Chops

Last night for dinner we had a meal totally comprised of local food purchased at the Farmers' Market. Wow, that makes me feel so good. Not a single ingredient was purchased at Wal-mart or any other store for that fact except for vinegar, sour cream, butter, salt and pepper.

The menu consisted of Glazed Peach Habenero Grilled Pork Chops, Sour Cream Cucumber Salad, Roadside Melon, Corn on the Cob and French Bread (warmed on the grill). I should have taken a picture of the whole meal, but it was late and I was tired.


Here is a list of the Cast of Characters and their producers:

Pork Chops (milk-fed pork) from Victory Hill Farm
Peach Habenero Jam homemade by Nancy Butcher
Fresh Garden Cucumbers from Mitchell Valley Farm
Sweet & Juicy Roadside Melon from Gary's Garden
Tri-colored Sweet Corn from Mitchell Valley Farm
Homemade French Bread from FlowerField Farms



And the recipe for the pork chops:




Glazed Peach Habenero Grilled Pork Chops

Ingredients

4 Pork Chops from Victory Hill Farm
1 jar Peach Habenero Jam from Nancy Butcher

Directions

1. Preheat Grill to 350 degrees.
2. Rub grill grate with oil. Use your tongs and dip a wadded-up paper towel in oil. Easy!
3. Grill chops for around 5 minutes per side. Brush a generous amount of jam on both sides of the chops while you are grilling.
4. Heat extra jam in a small sauce pan and serve with the chops for extra sauce!!
   

Try it! You'll like it!!