C is for Cottage Cheese....F is for Figs.

Today was a great and busy homesteading day.My day started with some housework,which never goes away- laundry,dishes and tiding up. I then started our Apple sauce.I peeled and sliced a third of our box of Apples,this was all my biggest pot would hold.Cooked the Apples down and filled the jars...HMMM maybe this box will be all for Apple Sauce, I ended up with 6 quarts not nearly enough to last us for long.I am still mastering the "How much" part of canning our own food.One thing I know is the boys can finish off a pint of Apple Sauce in one sitting so I am going to need the whole box,if we run out I'll make some fresh later on. Once I finish this box I'll go pick up another to make Apple Butter.
Chance came home and went to pick the Figs we have been watching in an empty lot near by.They were mostly ripe but with the cooler nights they were not going to ripen any more on the tree. We had driven by a few days ago and saw a gentleman picking some of the Figs, with this in mind Chance left a fare share on the tree for others.He ended up bringing home 3 dozen which Chance plans to dry once they have ripened a bit more. One more treat to put away for winter.
Next our elderly neighbor Dick stopped by to ask us if we still wanted his compost.He had offered us his black gold many weeks ago and we just had not gotten to it. Dick lives behind us kitty corner so we put ladders up in the corners of our fences allowing Chance and I to hoist 5 gallon buckets up and over to our wheelbarrow.That was work, but we filled 5 wheelbarrows full before my arms and Chance's back gave out.There's still 4-5 more wheelbarrows full waiting for us to come get.Both Chance and I had a good time getting to know a bit more about our neighbor who is in his upper 80's and still cuts and stacks 6 cords of fire wood each fall. We both hope to be as spry as Dick when we are his age. We worked out a trade for the compost , we gave Dick a box of our Asian Pears and tomorrow (if the lazy hens give me some eggs) I am baking him some Gingerbread and will send a jar of Apple Sauce for it. Food for his belly and Food for our Garden.
Before we hauled the compost we laid out a new garden bed to use for Garlic.We planted 5 heads worth and will need to put in more in the next few days.With the thick layer of compost that looks like any bagged up garden soil you could buy, I am certain the garlic will do well.Like Onions, Garlic is a heavy feeder so the rich soil is necessary.
I want to share with all of you a simple dish I made with dinner tonight. Chance's grandmother used to make it mostly as a lunch dish but I also make it as a side dish. It is called Noddles and Cottage Cheese.Now when Chance first made this for me I was not too sure, warm Cottage Cheese? I don't know about that.Now tho' I love it and so do our boys. Here's how it goes...

Choose one pound of dried pasta, I like to get one that is a shape that will catch the bits of Cottage Cheese,like small shells or Macaroni. Chance's Grandmother always made it using Spinach Noodles.
Next you need a one pound tub of Cottage Cheese,which ever fat content you like. A couple of Tablespoons of Butter.If you are worried about fat the butter can be left out. Salt and Pepper to taste.
Cook and drain the pasta.Stir in the butter until melted.Now dump in the whole tub of Cottage Cheese mix it into the noodles.Salt and Pepper to taste.I don't always need the Salt depending on the saltiness of the Cottage Cheese.Serve it up. Our boys love it with steamed broccoli on the side.
I like this dish, it is easy,cheap, and goes well with almost anything or can even be served as a main dish. I also like the fact that it is as easy as a boxed Mac and Cheese but is fresh and healthier.I have used Gluetin Free Pasta's as well and it works great for that too. If your family likes Mac and Cheese this might work for you too.
Well, lets hope I wake up to a nest box full of eggs in the morning.This seems to happen to me, I suddenly have a stock pile of eggs so I share or trade them, then those crazy birds don't lay for days on end.I am left thinking should I just horde my eggs? It's kind of like which came first the chicken or the egg.I don't care I just want eggs.
Rois