Husbanding Floyd: The Dark Side

Remember these guys?

Well, they've had a really rough winter/early spring and yesterday disaster struck.

Cooking Floyd: Mediterranean Potluck

April has been a hit-the-ground-runnin' kinda month so far.  We started it off with a Mediterranean-themed potluck.  I was a little worried that people might be intimidated until I looked at a map and saw just how many different countries and cultures had a coast on the Med!  Something for everyone!

One of our non-cooking friends solved the dilemma by going to the olive bar at Krogers, corralling a deli worker and giving her the directive, "If it's Mediterranean put it in a bowl!" thus contributing a nice collection of gnoshes.

I took the opportunity to try a new method of roasting lamb as well as making enough dolmas to satisfy a crowd.  But what surprised me most was the almost immediate decimation of a simple grilled eggplant platter.

Preserving Floyd: Updated Class Schedule

I had to switch a couple of classes in order to rent appropriate kitchen space but everything is now in place and confirmed.  I look forward to seeing y'all soon!

 April - June Food Preservation Class Schedule

APRIL

April 13: Planning to Preserve - Topics to be discussed are: Tracking what your family consumes and preserving those things; What is or isn't worth the time/expense of preserving; Realistic goals for preserving; Different methods of food preservation (canning, freezing, dehydrating, root cellaring); Costs of preserving and storing food; Amounts to grow/buy in season and approximate yields; Keeping it safe.Location: Jessie Peterman Library, 321 W. Main St., Floyd, Va
Time: 11am - 1pm
Fee: Free

April 27: Home Food Preservation Safety - This is a prerequisite course for all home food preservation classes.  Topics to be covered are: Common food-borne pathogens; Basic sanitation and safeguards against bacterial and cross-contamination; Proper temperatures for food preservation and the role altitude plays. A receipt will be handed out to those in attendance at the close of the class and must be presented upon future registration for home food preservation classes.
Location: Jessie Peterman Library, 321 W. Main St., Floyd, Va
Time: 10am - 12 pm
Fee: Free

MAY

May 18: Home Food Preservation Safety - This is a prerequisite course for all home food preservation classes.  Topics to be covered are: Common food-borne pathogens; Basic sanitation and safeguards against bacterial and cross-contamination; Proper temperatures for food preservation and the role altitude plays. A receipt will be handed out to those in attendance at the close of the class and must be presented upon future registration for home food preservation classes.
Location: Montgomery Co.: St. Michael's Lutheran Church, 2803 Merrimac Road, Blacksburg, VA
Time: 10am - 12 pm
Fee: Free

May 25: WBC 101: Basics of Water Bath Canning - Learn the basics of safely canning high-acid foods in a boiling water bath.  Topics to be covered are: Basic jars, pots and utensils; What is a high acid food; Adding acidity to foods; Problem solving; Recognizing a product gone bad.  Class is hands on.  Participants will prepare, pack, process, and take home a jar of a high-acid food.  Please wear comfortable closed-toe shoes.  An apron is suggested but optional.  Prerequisite for this class is completion of the Home Food Preservation Safety Class. Class is limited to 15 participants.
Location: Montgomery Co.: St. Michael's Lutheran Church, 2803 Merrimac Road, Blacksburg, VA
Time: 1pm-4pm
Fee: $15 in advance, $20 at the door space providing.  Contact the Floyd Cooperative Extension Office to register at 540-745-9307. 
Payment may be mailed to or dropped off at the office at 209 Fox St NW, Floyd, VA 24091.  Remember, the only reservation is a paid reservation.

JUNE

June 1: Basics of Water Bath Canning - Learn the basics of safely canning high-acid foods in a boiling water bath.  Topics to be covered are: Basic jars, pots and utensils; What is a high acid food; Adding acidity to foods; Problem solving; Recognizing a product gone bad.  Class is hands on.  Participants will prepare, pack, process, and take home a jar of a high-acid food.  Please wear comfortable closed-toe shoes.  An apron is suggested but optional.  Prerequisite for this class is completion of the Home Food Preservation Safety Class. Class is limited to 15 participants.
Location: Floyd Co.: Farm Bureau, 335 E. Oxford St, Floyd Va
Time: 1pm-4pm
Fee: $15 in advance, $20 at the door space providing.  Contact the Floyd Cooperative Extension Office to register at 540-745-9307. 
Payment may be mailed to or dropped off at the office at 209 Fox St NW, Floyd, VA 24091.  Remember, the only reservation is a paid reservation.

June 15: PC 101: Basics of Pressure Canning - Learn the basics of safely canning low-acid foods in a pressure canner.  Topics to be covered are: Basic jars, pots and utensils; A pressure cooker is not a pressure canner; What is a low-acid food; Problem solving; Recognizing a product gone bad.  Class is hands on.  Participants will prepare, pack, process, and take home a jar of a low-acid food.  Please wear comfortable closed-toe shoes.  An apron is suggested but optional. Bring your pressure canner dial gauges for calibration. Prerequisite for this class is completion of the Home Food Preservation Safety Class. Class is limited to 15 participants.
Location: Floyd County: Farm Bureau, 335 E. Oxford St, Floyd Va
Time:1:pm-4pm
Fee: $15 in advance, $20 at the door space providing.  Contact the Floyd Cooperative Extension Office to register at 540-745-9307. 
Payment may be mailed to or dropped off at the office at 209 Fox St NW, Floyd, VA 24091.  Remember, the only reservation is a paid reservation.

June 22: PC 101: Basics of Pressure Canning - Learn the basics of safely canning low-acid foods in a pressure canner.  Topics to be covered are: Basic jars, pots and utensils; A pressure cooker is not a pressure canner; What is a low-acid food; Problem solving; Recognizing a product gone bad.  Class is hands on.  Participants will prepare, pack, process, and take home a jar of a low-acid food.  Please wear comfortable closed-toe shoes.  An apron is suggested but optional. Bring your pressure canner dial gauges for calibration. Prerequisite for this class is completion of the Home Food Preservation Safety Class. Class is limited to 15 participants.
Location: Montgomery Co.: St. Michael's Lutheran Church, 2803 Merrimac Road, Blacksburg, VA
Time:1:pm-4pm
Fee: $15 in advance, $20 at the door space providing.  Contact the Floyd Cooperative Extension Office to register at 540-745-9307. 
Payment may be mailed to or dropped off at the office at 209 Fox St NW, Floyd, VA 24091.  Remember, the only reservation is a paid reservation.

Cooking Floyd: Trencherman Thai

When I was cooking at the Valiant Trencherman one of my favorite dishes on the menu was Thai chicken.  Spicy hot with a little sweet, I never tired of it and twenty years later I still make it at home.

In fact, I'm so enamored of the flavor of the marinating paste that I'm tempted to try drying and powdering it just to see what happens!

Cooking Floyd: Anchovy Vinaigrette and Green Goddess Dressing

I've spent most of my life steering clear of fish on my pizza: NO ANCHOVIES!!  I used anchovies in stuff but always considered it the "spice that grows in the sea".  I'd use a couple tiny filets out of a can but then the rest would sit in the fridge for months until I threw it out.  As a child I loved Green Goddess salad dressing.  As an adult I was always bummed that I couldn't make it taste like I remembered.  It always somehow fell flat.  I just figured out the missing flavor is- Anchovies!

It's interesting how our taste for foods changes.  Black olives were right out for me until just a few years ago.  Then I tasted Cerignolas and now I can't get enough.  Anchovies were disgusting until I had better quality ones studding a Magarita pizza made with totally top quality fresh ingredients.  Now I crave the little buggers.  I've also noticed that my new favorites/formerly icky foods are both high on the umami scale.

Gardening Floyd: Everything Old Is New Again

I've been attending a Pocket Farming course sponsored by SustainFloyd and it never ceases to amuse me that the methods my grandparents used on their farm decades ago are being reassigned fancy new names, being repackaged, and "sold" as innovative new techniques to really squeaky new farmers.  Like "Biodynamic Farming".  Really?  The timing of my grandparents chores and farming events were often based on moon phases and celestial influences from starting seeds and breeding livestock to harvesting, butchering, and haircuts for my Mom and her six siblings.  It wasn't weird, most of the farm families around them did it too.  They had a connection with their farms that went beyond just a place to live and ground to make a living from.  Now it's got a fancy new name- Biodynamic.

Michael and I went out to Blue Valley Organic Farm, SustainFloyd's model farm, last Saturday mostly to see how to set up contours for plowing but also to watch another old technique made new again: plowing with horses.

Cooking Floyd: Decorating with Gum Paste

Shana and I took a short course in decorating cakes with gum paste flowers and sculptures this week.  I'm not much of a one for baking cakes and for this class we were actually supplied with a quite tasty cake by the instructor.  I'm always interested in new ways to decorate cookies and gum paste offers interesting options that royal icing doesn't.  Penny, the instructor, also demystified fondant and offered up her recipe for a fondant that tastes as nice as it looks!