Tag: Farm Life

The Air Fryer Is A Revelation In Cooking

Why did I wait so long to get one?

When air fryers became a thing in the late 2010s, everyone wanted one. Not me. I was determined not to adopt this new technology. Now I’m all for new kitchen appliances and I have a vast array. A bread machine, counter top compressor style ice cream maker, three kinds of blenders, an electric griddle, and a myriad of hand tools.

But when the air fryer came out, I thought of it as only a countertop convection oven. Essentially, a convection oven includes a fan to circulate air, allowing for an even temperature and potentially crisper edges on everything.

I had no need for one of those. My kitchen is equipped with double convection wall ovens that meet all the same checkpoints offered by an air fryer.

So why would I use valuable counter space for a separate appliance to do what my convection oven already does?

Then came along an opportunity to trade a toaster for a brand new air fryer. This was a deal I couldn’t refuse.

The model I gained is a Gourmia brand with a bottom liner tray to catch crud, a solid pan with a rack, and a mesh basket. Plus, attractive French-style doors.

The first thing I tried were homemade fries. I love french fries. 

Who am I kidding? I love potatoes of any kind! 

But to make fresh fries at home is ideal.

Following the manufacturer’s directions, I hand-cut strips from large white potatoes. Lightly spritzed with avocado oil and seasoned with salt and pepper, spread in a single layer of the basket and popped in the air fryer the second the preheat bell signaled the machine was ready. 

The beauty of this air fryer and probably all air fryers for all I know is the series of preset buttons. One of which is fries.

These fries were delicious.

Crispy on the outside, tender and fluffy on the inside, all from the air fryer without the mess of hot oil on the stovetop.

I was hooked.

Then a friend stopped by and I was singing the praises of my new air fryer. She recommended trying mini tater tots and crispy crowns. These pre-formed nuggets of shredded potatoes are designed to become crispy, but in my experience, for whatever reason, never quite did in the convection oven. 

Oh my goodness! Crunchy deliciousness, just like out of a deep fryer, but without all the greasy residue.

I’ve been using it for all sorts of things, from boneless chicken wings to bacon, to warming up scones and chocolate chip cookies.

One word of caution, however. I tried some frying cheese in the basket. Even though the packaging said it was possible, mine dripped through the basket and was a horrible mess to clean up. 

I am also not a fan of using the toast function to make toast. My standard toaster does a much better job of evenly toasting bread, bagels and English muffins than the air fryer. Plus, I can store it in the cabinet.

The air fryer has earned its counter space in my kitchen.

Now, what other kitchen appliance can I add to my collection?

Processing Sweet Corn Efficiently

Ah, sweet corn season in Illinois.

Delicious ears of corn, bred to be tender and sugar sweet. This is one of my favorite summer vegetables.

Since it takes a lot of space to grow enough sweet corn to make it worthwhile, we purchase from local farmers at markets or roadside stands. One such stand near us, pile stacks of corn, still in the husk, high on a flatbed wagon. The method is to bring your own bag, load it up with ears and leave cash in the box on the stand. It’s an honor system that works.

Sometimes in the season’s height, a summer meal may consist of three or four ears of corn, a plate of fresh tomato slices and a mound of cottage cheese. Naturally, I want sweet corn year round, so to make that happen, I buy extra to preserve.

Putting up, sometimes called putting by sweet corn, is a time-honored ritual in my family. By putting up, we mean processing the corn and preparing it for storage. Then, in the dark days of winter, we will have a taste of summer in our pantry or freezer.

My Grandma used to pressure can most of the sweet corn she stored. It was shelf stable and not dependent on electricity to keep the food safe. While that is a great method, and I pressure can many foods, I freeze sweet corn. I like the flavor better and it is much faster to process.

Here’s my step-by-step method, developed through many hours of experience with an eye to efficiency.

First remove leaves or husks, or as we call it shucks and silk. This is best done outside and with helpers if you are going to process a lot of corn.

When shucking corn, have a line of buckets to work with and get a comfortable chair. I am right-handed, so I tend to work this chore from left to right. The corn to be shucked is in a basket on my left, a bucket to catch the shucks positioned in front of me, and a large pan or dish on my right for the bare ears. I pull down the top of the shuck from two sides at once, somewhat like peeling a banana. I try to get all the silks off, but this is not always easy. My trick is to keep my hands as dry as possible and use a twisting motion to loosen the silks, picking off as many as I can.

Next into the kitchen. For corn to stay fresh in the freezer, it must be blanched to stop the enzymatic actions that lead to spoilage. Blanching is a process of heating, then rapidly cooling. This year, I used my corn scientist friend’s method. Drop the ears into boiling water for three minutes, transfer to an ice bath, then cut the kernels from the cob.

Again seeking efficiency, I put the raw corn next to the pan of boiling water with the ice bath bowl next to the boiling water. I can do ten ears at a time in the boiling pot and also in the ice bath.

After the ice bath, I moved that bowl to a place on my left, my work bowl, more about this later, in front of me and a cob bucket on the floor on my left.

My work bowl is a bundt cake pan set on a rimmed baking sheet. A bundt pan may seem like an odd work bowl for this task, but it is actually perfect. Each ear of corn is placed on its narrow end in the middle of the cake pan and, using an electric carving knife, I cut rows from the cob. The kernels fall into the well of the pan. After all kernels are removed, I can drop the cob into the bucket on the floor in the same motion as I am reaching for the next cob from the ice bath. After cutting the kernels from each ear, I start the next batch of ten in the boiling water bath. I leave the water boiling the entire time I am working and refresh the ice in the ice bath as necessary.

While the next batch is boiling, I have just enough time to label four freezer bags and load each with 2 cups of corn. I use this amount as most of my recipes or serving needs can adapt to this amount of corn. To fill the bags, first label while the bag is flat, then open it up in a tall plastic cup and fold the edge down around the rim of the cup. This allows me to easily fill the bag with minimal mess. Press out as much air as possible, seal and toss on a cookie sheet for transport to the freezer when all is done.

Even with this efficient method and trying to keep the mess contained, processing corn is a messy job. But in only one morning of work, I have all I need for the winter ahead. Meals of soups and chowders, fried corn and simply buttered corn as a side dish will be welcomed throughout the cold weather. And on Super Bowl Sunday we will have sweet tamale corn cakes like the appetizer at Cheesecake Factory.

Delicious.

Lessons Our Dads Taught Us

Living on a small farm requires skills.

Lots of skills.

We both love being as self sufficient as possible, but there are some things we don’t do, because we don’t have the tools, knowledge or strength.

From the time I (Julia) was a child, my dad taught me how to take things apart and reassemble. He was a do-it-yourself kind of guy, mostly because it was more economical. I’d like to think he enjoyed some tasks as well. Not once did he ever suggest that I should not do things because I’m a girl. He was ahead of his time in that regard.

One of his side hustles was to put together feeders for cattle from a kit, then sell the finished product to other farmers. I stood by his side, reading directions over his shoulder and handing him the correct parts. (A skill that came in handy later with Ikea furniture.)

Donna’s dad taught her the value of hard work and doing for yourself as much as possible. Later, he taught both of us how to take on a fixer-upper house. He spent many hours teaching us what we needed to know. Everything from installing siding and shingles to changing out windows and electrical outlets.

Now when a repair job or maintenance need comes up, we first consider if we can fix it.

Change an outlet or light switch. Yes.

Change the oil in a mower. Sure.

And now change an ignition coil in the riding mower.

Having a couple of acres to mow means riding mowers (yes, plural) need to be in running condition. When one of them was sluggish, we decided to investigate.

After disassembling the housing around the flywheel, we found the problem. A family of mice had taken up residence in the engine. Apparently, during their construction efforts, they got a little hungry for spark plug wires. The little beasties had chewed off half the insulation and right through the wire.

After a YouTube lesson, an Amazon order and a half hour or so of labor, the mower is back in service.

Another do-it-yourself task completed.

Plus, we saved time and money.

Our Dads would be proud.

Learning How Not To Name a Product and When To Go For It

One time an unconventional name really worked.

What is “Cat Burglar”?

The question has been posed to us more times than I can count. It usually goes something like this:

A customer to our small farm approaches the balm display and looks over the scents. They pick up one or two, check the scent label and try to arrive at a decision about what smells best to them. Then they pick up the one labeled “Cat Burglar”.

Yes, it is a bit of a different name. When we first started creating skin balms from the beeswax collected during the honey harvest, we tried to find unusual names. We created a line called “Phantom Balm” named for one of the cats in residence. The same logic applied to “Reine Balm”.

The questions rolled in with those names. We quickly learned that in business, cute creative names are one thing, but when the names are so obscure the customers do not know what they are purchasing, it is a problem.

As good entrepreneurs do, we stepped back and reassessed. Too many times we found ourselves answering about the contents of these little tins. As we repeated that we used the names of our cats, we began to realize the absurdity.

Time to rename the products simply. Straightforward so there is no confusion. “Phantom Balm” is not going to either treat your phantom or turn you invisible. It is a soothing balm for dry cracked skin.

So we rebranded all of the scented balms under our new “Gert‘s Garden Balm” line. The new name was not so confusing. It was easy for people to understand this is a brand name.

But one balm name stuck and we are always willing to tell the story of “Cat Burglar”.

Most people who use essential oil blends have heard the story behind the Thieves blend of oils.

The story goes when Bubonic Plague was rampant in the 15th century, a group of thieves went from house to house robbing from the dead and dying. Even after repeated exposure to the highly contagious plague, the thieves did not get sick.

At long last, the thieves were apprehended. After conviction, the thieves were offered leniency if they would reveal the secret to their plague resistance. They disclosed they used a blend of cinnamon, clove, eucalyptus, and TK oil as a defense.

We have incorporated those same essential oils into our balm. In keeping with our feline named business and with a nod to the 15th-century robbers, we call our version “Cat Burglar”.

Just to be clear, this name came about well before the current pandemic ravaging the world. The story of the thieves’ protection from Bubonic Plague with essential oils is folklore. We make no representation that our Cat Burglar balm provides any protection from any disease, germ, or phobia. What we do know is the balm is soothing to dry, cracked skin, smells delicious, and has a cool name.

Now you know the story, you can order your own tin of Cat Burglar with the button below.

 

Cat Burglar Balm

Cat Burglar Balm

$2.00 – $4.00

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