Homegrown Goodness

Being able to enjoy homegrown food is a wonderful gift! Food grown in your own garden or in a neighbors garden is the best kind of food you can get! My garden was mediocre this year, but I was still able to enjoy a few things. I garden using the Square Foot Gardening method which is perfect for anyone who wants to start a garden and even for those who have been gardening for years and want to minimize space and weeding. Check out http://www.squarefootgardening.com/ to get started on a very efficient way of gardening.

We were also able to get a wonderful bounty of homegrown goodness from the gardener and his wife down the road. Holmer has a beautiful garden and he shares his harvest for a tiny amount of money. Inge, his wife, washes up the beans and lettuce before we even get there. He seems to grow Everything!

This week and last I was able to pick grapes for free. They couldn't use them all so they were more than happy to share. I made grape jam that everyone in our house just loves. I had never made grape jam before and we were all pleasantly surprised how very tasty it was. It ended up jam instead of jelly because so much of the pulp remained after straining and I didn't want to strain again. I use Pomona's Universal Pectin that lets you use honey instead of sugar. It contains no sugar or preservatives in the pectin. I used a 1/2 cup of honey per batch. It leaves an all fruit taste and not a sugary taste. Our Country Life co-op sells it (http://www.clnf.org/) or you can visit their website at http://www.pomonapectin.com/.

I had some juice left over and I drink it with a little water. It is a perfect cleansing drink full of antioxidants and is great for energy, circulation and has a high amount of anti-aging properties.

http://www.ehow.com/facts_4793335_health-benefits-grape-juice.html

There are also little signs along the country roads advertising fresh eggs that is so worth it to stop or maybe you know someone selling eggs like I do. There really is nothing like fresh eggs!

O.K. now all my childhood friends and even those who know me now are not going to believe what I am going to say next! I WANT CHICKENS! Oh My Goodness! People still think of me as a City Slicker! Well, just because I wear a fancy dress now and then seems to throw people off when I say I would love to have chickens. I won't be cleaning the chicken coop in high heels, don't worry! So Barb said she would look out for a free chicken coop for me. Thanks, Barb!

How wonderful it is to find local food. Not only are we supporting the people and businesses around us, we are also healthier because of it!

Let's see if I can spell our favorite table grace that was also one of my Grandma and Grandpa Storm's favorite. It is in Finnish. Here goes.

Kiitos Taivallinen Isa, Kaikkista roukasa. Amen.

Thank you Heavenly Father, for all this food. Amen.