Life on the Farm Archives - Page 9 of 17

Cat Burglar Balm

All businesses must name their products. We tend to come up with some unusual ones for our products. One of these has garnered a lot of attention and questions recently: Cat Burglar Balm.

What is it?

Well, there’s a story if you have a few minutes.

Back in the 14^th Century the Bubonic Plague also known as the Black Death killed a quarter of the population in Europe and Asia. This highly contagious bacterial infection circulated again in the early 19^th Century. During one of these outbreaks, it is rumored a group of robbers went from home to home stealing from the dead. Somehow they did not catch this deadly disease. When they were finally apprehended, the authorities offered leniency in exchange for their secret to immunity.

The thieves identified a concoction of essential oils with anti-bacterial and anti-viral properties that they claimed protected them from the plague. This mixture of essential oils became known as “Thieves Blend”.

Here at Five Feline Farm, we have formulated our own proprietary version in a handy balm. Lemon, Eucalyptus, Rosemary, Cinnamon and Clove essential oils are blended with beeswax, coconut oil, vitamin E oil and sweet almond oil to create Cat Burglar. We use it on minor cuts, scrapes and insect bites to aid healing.

But what about the name?

Well, of course we are Five Feline Farm. Our thieves would all be Cat Burglars.

What else would you expect?

Does it work?

We are not making any health claims; however neither of us has come down with the Plague.

Get yours on Saturdays through September at the 18th Street Farmer’s Market, Fridays and Saturdays this fall at our onsite Mercantile and anytime through our online Mercantile.

How To Remove Seeds

Do you like seeds in your jam?

I’ve only met one person who reported liking seeds in her jam. In fact she said “the more the better”. But most people seem to prefer seedless jam. The same is true for tomato sauce. No seeds.

How do you remove all those tiny seeds?

Blackberries, raspberries and tomatoes all have bothersome seeds. I have two different methods for removing seeds. The choice of which to use depends on the final product.

For blackberry or raspberry jam, I use a Juice Mate.

This hand cranked strainer has a spiral inside that pushes the berries through and squeezes it against a fine mesh strainer. It will remove almost all seeds of these berries. The resulting pulp and juice makes a fine seedless jam.

The Juice Mate also works wonders for tomato juice. After washing, coring and quartering the tomatoes, the Juice Mate will remove seeds and skin.

One downside to this system is the cleanup, but here’s a tip: take the screen outside and use the garden hose for the first rinse. The power of the hose blasts out the stuck seeds allowing for an easier wash back in the house.

What about tomato sauce?

When making tomato sauce, I want the meaty sections of the tomato intact and an occasional seed is not as much of a concern. After removing the skin, I cut the tomatoes in half and drag out as much of the seed section as possible with a finger. Sometimes with juicier tomatoes simply squeezing the tomato half does the trick.

If you have any tricks or tips for removing seeds, we would love to hear about it. Send us a message through Facebook, Twitter or Instagram or an old-fashioned email.

Fresh Tomato Sauce

Forget about that thin, tasteless, bland tomato-colored sauce you buy in a can. In only a few steps you can make your own, either to store for future use or eat immediately. The current abundance of fresh, ripe tomatoes is the perfect time to create your own delicious and nutritious sauce.

How many tomatoes do I need?

Most recipes in a canning or preserving guide require weighing tomatoes. It is hard to weigh out 10 pounds or 15 pounds of tomatoes in a home kitchen. Plus, what if you have 13 pounds? Or 7?

I don’t have much time. How long will this take?

We all need to maximize our time. There is a certain amount of time required to turn home grown tomatoes into a delicious seasoned sauce. My method allows you to make sauce easily with large blocks of unattended time. You will not have to stand over the stove, stirring constantly to prevent scorching.

Here’s how you do it.

Prepare a boiling water bath and large bowl of ice water. Wash tomatoes. Working in batches, drop tomatoes into boiling water for 30 seconds then place into ice bath. This will help the skins slip off easily.

Hint: I use a large pasta pot to do this task. The inner strainer basket can be lifted out and tomatoes dumped at once into the bowl of ice water. This saves fishing out each tomato one at a time.

Peel, seed and quarter tomatoes. Place on a parchment lined, rimmed sheet pan in a single layer. Add olive oil and Italian herbs to taste. There is no real way to give a measurement as the amount is based on how many tomatoes you have and your personal taste. (I use approximately 1/4 cup olive oil and 2-3 Tbsp of seasoning for a full pan.) Leaving out salt at this stage is purposeful. If you are going to use the sauce fresh, go ahead and salt to taste. If you are freezing for later use, add salt at the time of use.

Bake at 300º convection or 325º, stirring every hour until the tomatoes have cooked and thickened. This will take approximately 2 hours, or more depending on the liquid content of the tomatoes. This is where you can go do another task while the sauce bakes.

When the tomatoes have cooked and thickened to your liking, pour into a deep bowl and puree with an immersion blender. If you don’t have one of these, you should stop everything and go get one. Seriously. There are many inexpensive versions available. Otherwise, you can use a blender, but work in small batches to avoid splashing burns.

Use now or preserve.

Your sauce is now ready for use. Boil a pasta of your choice, top with sauce and freshly grated parmesan.

I have successfully frozen this in 1 cup portions in a ziplock baggie. It will keep for one year in the freezer. My next batch will be preserved in canning jars following the Ball book canning guidelines for seasoned tomato sauce.

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Tea Tree Oil Balm

Are you interested in using more natural products to replace chemicals in your life?

So are we.

In fact, to that end we have created a line of skin care balms with all natural ingredients. Most are infused with essential oils for a variety of uses.

Below is an unsolicited but used with permission, customer testimonial about our Tea Tree Oil balm.

“I was cooking a salad dressing that contained oil in the microwave. When I opened it, the dressing exploded and splashed on my face. I immediately thought of my little jar of Five Feline Farm Tea Tree Oil balm and slathered it on the burn.

I called a family member who took me to the emergency room. At my followup appointment with my regular doctor, he told me the burn was healing beautifully. I told him what I did with the balm and he said that helped with my healing so much that I probably will not have a scar!”

—B. C.

We love to hear these kinds of testimonials about our products. We think our balms are pretty fantastic, but it is great to hear when someone else thinks so too.

What is Tea Tree Oil?

Tea Tree Oil is an essential oil distilled from the leaves of the Tea Tree which is native to Australia. The aboriginal people have used it for hundreds of years to treat minor skin conditions. It is reported to have antiseptic, antifungal and antibacterial properties. People use it for nail fungus, insect bites or stings, dandruff and other skin irritations. It is typically used in a carrier oil or as we do in a beeswax based balm.

Our Balms

We make two different formulas of our skin balms; each named after cats who have lived on the farm. Both have straightforward simple ingredients (beeswax, sweet almond oil and Vitamin E oil) in addition to an essential oil.

Phantom Balm is created with a higher proportion of beeswax to almond oil resulting in a more solid product that requires a small paddle to remove from the jar. Reine Balm is a bit softer with a lower beeswax to almond oil ratio.

Both are available at our Farmer’s Market booths and our on line Mercantile.

Disclaimer: this information is not medical advice and we do not have medical degrees. You should consult your medical professional about any and all medical treatment.