Misc Stuff

Here is the promised picture of Carli in her scrubs. Her belly is getting bigger so she doesn't look all slim and trim like she usually does. I don't know if it's on purpose or not, but her dad keeps telling her she needs to gain some weight. Her doctor says she's fine, but in some strange way that makes me feel a little better about myself.

Meanwhile, she continues to study hard and it shows. Two tests this week and she got a 96% and a 100%. Her brother teasingly texted her a message: "Overachiever!"

This weekend we are sadly neither going to Utah for the cow show or San Diego for the Bracco gathering. Instead we are pouring cement for the new and improved out back patio. I thought I had a plan for the tile layout but my honey bunny said he wouldn't mind having something kind of bright and colorful, a little different. Now I'm in a tizzy because I don't know what to do. Stick to my original plan, which was not "bright and colorful" but kind of bluish-gray with a few iridescent tiles here and there, or try and come up with something really "different" like a giant mosaic lizard or some such thing. Well, I still have some time for that and I will most definitely make it a subject of this blog at some point.

I checked my calendar and the soonest we could expect any lambs would be the end of October. (I'm not really sure about the dates because, for example, Ewenice had at least three good markings, but she looks more pregnant than any of the others right now.) That gives me two months to clean out the stalls in the barn and get things ready. Since I have more ewes this season I'm going to divide the two stalls in half (still plenty of room) so there will be at least four stalls available for the moms and new babies to bond before they are set out with the rest of the flock.

On the "Today" show this morning was a story, part of which was about a goat farmer/cheese maker that started 16 years ago with 6 goats. Today she has 200 goats! It made me think about where my cheesemaking sister and I would be in 16 years. Right now I have five ewes. I can only dream about the future at this point. I could totally see me running the animal part of the business and she would be in charge of the cheese production part. We could get my AZ sister involved some how, perhaps she could be in charge of research and development! My brother could be the company doctor, his wife our hair stylist (we all have to be well groomed!) and the rest of the clan could be farm helpers.

That was one of my mom's fantasies. To have a family "compound" and be as self sufficient as possible. Perhaps, one of these days.

But right now it's 10 pm and the cement is arriving at 6:30 am. Time for some shut eye!

Strawberry Lemon Cheesecake

I'm always looking for tasty ways to use the lemon juice I save from my Meyer lemon tree. Here is the strawberry lemon cheesecake I said I'd make last week. Keep in mind I made this off the top of my head, so I was pleasantly surprised that it turned out so well. My friend Vicki and her husband were over, as well as neighbor Dean so they served as my guinea pigs. Dean couldn't get enough of the crust and I'm happy to report that all the plates were emptied. One thing I would do differently next time is let it sit in the fridge overnight before serving. I thought it tasted even better the next day.

So let's get started. The first thing to do is preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

For the crust you'll need: 16 gingersnap cookies (I don't know if they come in different sizes so the ones I used are 1 1/2" across); 6 oz pkg whole almonds; 2 T lemon juice; 1/4 C flour; 1/2 C butter (melted).

Crush the gingersnaps and almonds to a powder. My blender did a great job with that. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. Press the mixture into the bottom of a springform pan.

Bake for twenty minutes, let cool (I "speed cool" in the freezer).

Now for the topping. You'll need: 24 oz cream cheese, softened; 2 whole eggs; 1/2 C lemon juice; 1/2 C sugar; 1/2 C mashed strawberries. For the strawberries I took one basket of washed and hulled fresh strawberries and used my stick blender to mash them up. It made about one cup. Save the other 1/2 cup for later on.

Mix all that stuff up really well. Then pour over the cooled crust.

Bake in the 350 degree oven for one hour. Again, let it cool completely (again, I cheated).

Now for the topping. You'll need: the other 1/2 C mashed strawberries; 1/2 C orange juice; 1/4 C sugar; 1/4 C lemon juice; 1 envelope gelatin; approx 1 basket fresh strawberries, washed and hulled.

Figure out some way you want to place the fresh strawberries on top of the cake. I'm not all that creative in that way, so I just halved and quartered them and shoved them on top.

Meanwhile, put the other stuff in a saucepan. The gelatin should be carefully sprinkled over the top. Let it soak in for a minute before stirring to prevent lumps. Or you could just use a whisk I guess. Anyway, then bring it all to a boil, stirring often. Let it boil for about five minutes and then remove from the heat.

Carefully spoon the gelatin sauce over the strawberries. Put the cake in the fridge to give it a chance to set up. It's better the next day because the strawberries and lemon flavors have a chance to develop.

Whipped cream on top hides a multitude of ugliness, and sure doesn't hurt the taste!

Strawberry Lemon Cheesecake

For the crust:

• 16 1 1/2" gingersnaps
• 6 oz bag whole almonds
• 2 T lemon juice
• 1/4 C flour
• 1/2 C butter, melted

Crush gingersnaps and almonds in a blender so there are no large chunks. Add lemon juice, flour, and butter and mix well. Press into the bottom of a springform pan. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes. Cool completely.

For the cake:

• 24 oz cream cheese, softened
• 2 whole eggs
• 1/2 C lemon juice
• 1/2 C sugar
• 1/2 C mashed strawberries

Mix all ingredients well. Pour on top of the cooled crust in the springform pan. Bake at 350 for one hour.

For the topping:

• enough cleaned and hulled fresh strawberries to cover the top of the cake
• 1/2 C mashed strawberries
• 1/2 C orange juice
• 1/4 C sugar
• 1/4 C lemon juice
• 1 envelope gelatin

Arrange the strawberries on top of the cake. Place everything else but the gelatin in a saucepan. Stir until the sugar is dissolved. Sprinkle the gelatin on top and let it sit for about a minute. Then bring the mixture to a boil. Let it boil for about five minutes, then carefully spoon over the strawberries. Put in fridge over night and serve with whipped cream on top!

Raznjici

This is another one of those simple, yet delicious dishes from Yugoslavia. I'm not sure of the correct pronunciation. We always called it (roz nee chee), sometimes the accent was on the first syllable, sometimes on the second. If anyone knows better, feel free to advise me!

I recommend starting in the morning, to give the marinade plenty of time to do its work.

The ingredients are: 1/2 C vegetable oil; 1/4 C red wine vinegar; 1 onion, sliced; 4 garlic cloves, sliced in two or three; 3 bay leaves; 2 t salt; 1/2 t oregano; 1/4 t fresh ground pepper; 2 lbs pork loin cut into 1 1/2" cubes.

First of all mix everything but the pork together to make the marinade.
Try and trim as much of the fat and "silver skin" off the pork loin. Then cut the loin into the large 1 1/2" cubes.
Now it's time to put the meat in the marinade. Mix it all together very well. Cover with a plastic wrap and put it away in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours or overnight.
While your briquettes are getting ready in the bbq, get the meat ready on the skewers. The marinade is so good I was eating the onions while I was threading. Don't have a hissy fit. I know it was raw pork they were sitting with. I also was pinching off little pieces of the raw pork to "taste test". It was good. And guess what? I'm still here and I didn't get sick, so there!

When your coals are ready put the skewers on. You don't want the coals to be too hot. Just a nice, medium heat is fine. The skewers will need to be turned every few minutes. They only take about 10 to 20 minutes.

The meat is tender, flavorful, and oh so delicious! I think you'll really like this one.

RAZNJICI

• 1/2 C vegetable oil
• 1/4 C red wine vinegar
• 1 onion, sliced
• 4 garlic cloves, sliced in two or three
• 3 bay leaves
• 2 t salt
• 1/2 t oregano
• 1/4 t freshly ground pepper
• 2 lbs. pork loin

Combine all ingredients for marinade in bowl. Trim pork and cut into 1 1/2" cubes. Add pork to marinade and stir well. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 6 hours or overnight. Prepare bbq. While coals are getting ready thread meat loosely onto skewers. Cook 10 - 20 minutes, turning as necessary.

Happy Holiday

Happy Labor Day every one!