11^th June

Spring is just about over. What Spring you might ask? I

Think we had about three or four days with temperatures  in the low twenties. Mostly we had rain and damp and some cold windy days.

Well here is to Summer . It starts in about ten days from now. Somehow I am not expecting a great deal of improvement in the weather.  Just more of the same. At least it's not snowing.

To me, everyday of the year is about food. It just changes seasonally. Now Summer food is really exciting because we have our own fresh vegetables and the opportunity (scarce though it may be) to eat our meals on the patio with the flies and mosquitoes. The latter can be controlled with Deet although if applied in a sloppy manner it tends to taint the food as well. Here is one of my favourite recipes for this time of the year.

Calamari and Yoghurt salad.

From just about any store you can buy frozen Calamari rings. The trick is to buy enough. I find that one bag from Super Store is barely enough for two people being that they are so delicious. This recipe is for two.

 Dump the contents of a bag of Calamari into a large bowl of cold water to defrost.

Take ½ cup of Pine-nuts and heat gently on a stove. They are done when they turn slightly gold. Dump them out of the pan and into your salad bowl. Remember if you leave them in the pan they might keep on absorbing heat.

Put one handful of Mixed Baby Greens and one handful of Baby Spinach in the salad bowl. Use your favourite salad mix. Beet tops are excellent. Pigweed is superb.

Chop 4 to 6 inches of English Cucumber. Make the pieces the size of a thumbnail. Add a few sprigs of herbs. Basil, Mint, Summer Savory, Cilantro, Italian Parsley are all very good. Use one or a combination of herbs.

Peel and chop up 2 small mandarin oranges.

For the dressing mix

½ cup of Plain Yoghurt. Use diet Yoghurt if you have to.

1/3 cup of fruity Olive oil

¼ cup of freshly squeezed Lemon juice

¼ cup of Organic Maple syrup

1Tbs of Dijon Mustard

1 Garlic clove crushed

Kosher salt and black pepper to taste.

Whip all these ingredients until creamy and set aside until you are ready to mix and eat the salad. Taste and adjust .

By now your Calamari should be thawed. Dry well with paper towels. In a mixing bowl put

½ cup of white flower.

½ cup of corn starch.

1 tbs of Kosher salt

1 tbs of ground black pepper

½  tsp of cayenne pepper.

Mix well and add the Calamari so that the powder coats well.

Heat 1 ½  inches of oil in a wok med to hot. Not smoking hot. Add half the Calamari and agitate with a pair of tongs so that they separate. The Calamari should be sizzling in the oil. Cook for no longer than two minutes depending on the size and thickness of you Calamari. If you overcook they will be tough. Remove the Calamari with tongs and place on a Papper towel to drain. Repeat with the remaining Calamari. Add salt and pepper to taste and a squeeze of lemon Juice.

This, combined with your salad and a glass of white wine makes a light Mediterranean meal that will become a weekly favourite.

News from the Farm

            The lambs are really full of fun. They congregate in groups and run around the pasture, sometimes over the top of a ewe  lying down and trying to have a bit of respite from her demanding offspring. They actually play a game that looks like tag and another that is similar to King of the castle. Then the group will split up into two distinct groups and it is a type of rough and tumble butting war.   

It seems that the most active play time is just before we call in the flock

There has been quite a lot of interest in the The Great Tomato Tasting Contest. City Palate wanted some information on it and it seems that we might have a good turn out on the day. Remember to register if you are going to compete. There will be prizes.

Meanwhile the weather is exactly conducive to growing tomatoes. We need heat and sun.

News from the Restaurant.

Next Sunday is Fathers day. So we have decided to have a special Fathers day Saturday Night BBQ. We have added planked salmon with a Japanese wasabi sauce and Prawns Peri -peri . We will only be booking to 44 people so don't leave it too late. The special will also be available on the  25^th June.

We are available during and before Stampede to do private and corporate Stampede BBQ's any day of the week except Mondays. Please contact us and we will customize an event that will suite your needs.

We have successfully catered a few events off the farm and have been very successful. If you need an elegant special event catered why don't you see what we can do for you.

News from the Boutique

The ladies in the Boutique have really brought in some cool stuff for the Summer months. It appears that clear bright colours especially hot pink and turquoise are really in. Yesterday they unpacked a new line from Neon Buddha that features Jackets and dressy T- shirts. Great for travelling. Back by popular demand are the crinkle skirts. No wonder they are popular. You do not have to iron them. Just throw them in a travel bag and they are ready to wear. No fuss! We have in a new skirt  which took our breath away. They are made with a heavier cotton denim and would look wonderful at for Stampede or a BBQ. This year that long T-shirt is back in style and looks really sexy with leggings. And you know what? They look great with just about anyone.

June of course is gardening time. Your hands and feet will bless the PaSu line of creams for those hands and feet. If you have not tried this line then treat yourself to an amazing experience.

Summer is also Bikers time. Get smart and treat your tush to a sheepskin. It makes the trip worthwhile.

For the rest of June we are honouring Fathers  by giving special discounts on shirts and moccasins. Looking forward to seeing you.