When summertime finally creeps its way into my world. I try to think of easy and fun things to cook. When the temperatures rise it is very hard to think of cooking a huge meal that not only heats up the house but weighs on your stomach.
I have found that this simple meal is refreshing and light. When the kids head to Tennessee to stay with my parents. I get to take a vacation from the heavy cooking and my husband and I can eat a very light meal. The kids would never touch tomatoes and it works perfect for us. Settle down with this light meal and a glass of wine. Perfect for any summertime evening dreaming of the return of fall and winter!
1 loaf of french bread, sliced into 6-8 slices 1/2 inch thick
olive oil
2 medium tomatoes
6-8 basil leaves or dehydrated basil
fresh mozzarella
Salt and pepper
Chop the tomatoes and basil into small pieces. Drizzle with olive oil and add salt and pepper to taste. Stir to combine.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Slice the french bread about 1/2 inch thick and place on a baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil. Place spoonfuls of the tomato mixture onto each piece of bread. Top with sliced mozzarella.
I have decided to learn to knit. I love crochet and feel pretty confident with it, but i want to be able to knit. I visited two amazing yarn stores in Laramie over the past several days while my daughter was attending their volleyball camp. during these visits it juzt became so clear that I need more to do and shoukd therefore take up the challenge of teaching myself to knit. I left the Cowgirl Yarn store armed with a skein of yarn, a pattern, and some needles. I have watched several videos online and so far feel pretty good with my progress. Hopefully soon I will have a finished hat.
Well things are progressing nicely with this hat. I have a few holes from dropping a stitch and doing some weird thing. However ripping down to that and fixing it as my mother suggested is DEFINITELY not going to happen. What happens in the knitting stays in the knitting in my book. So I keep going. I have lost the pattern and will be calling the Cowgirl Yarn store ASAP today.
We’ll I am finished! It came along pretty quick and I really enjoyed the knitting. I guess now I have to begin a new hat.
When most people are looking forward to warm weather, shorts, and grilling. I am counting the days till Fall and winter begin.
Winter is by far my favorite season. I love the cold weather. I love snow and ice. I love sweaters and warm jackets. But most of all I love cooking in the winter. I mean who doesn’t right. Soups, stews, and hearty dishes to warm tummies and hearts. There is just something about chopping up vegetables for a great soup that truly touches my soul. I just enjoy it. We have had another cold snap that came through and I was able to get in one more soup last night. I made ham and potato and let me say it was divine! Cooking is one of my all time favorite past times. If I could serve people out of my home I swear I would open a restaurant. However I would then have to cook and clean continuously and as much as I love cooking, cleaning is not my favorite. If it is yours, let me know I will give you my address.
The other thing I love about winter is that life on the ranch slows down. We bring cows home from the mountain in November and life seems to gain a sense of normalcy. The kids are not involved in anything that requires the constant driving to town, so we are able to relax and enjoy family time. This is also the time that we go on vacations and travel to see family. Every other year we venture across the country to my family in Tennessee. It is a wonderful car ride and the kids are very good. They have been making this trip since they were 6 months old and really are great travelers. If I had to say it, which I will, they are much better than their father about driving without stopping.
As we round the new year I begin dreading the months to come. It just seems that once it starts it doesn’t stop until November. Here is a sneak at our calendar. It is probably pretty close to what every rancher does but in case you aren’t a rancher here it is.
‘Calving our heifers begins at end of February
Cows begin calving toward the end of March.
Branding the calves starts in May. We have three large brandings and then several small ones to catch all the late calvers.
In May we spaying the yearling heifers that we are not keeping.
Yearling steers need EID tags
Heifers get shots and then we begin AI’ing them at the end of May.
Bulls need tested to ensure they are in working order ! LOLTrailing heifers up the mountain. Day 2 of three 2013.
The last weekend of May we will trail the yearling heifers up the mountain to summer pasture. This takes 3 days and is a fun time for everyone. We are tired but enjoy it, well we enjoy it if the weather is nice.
The kids 4-H steers need feed daily from January through fair in July. They must also teach them to lead and be handled.
The cow/calf pairs must be trucked up the mountain from the north ranch to summer pasture.
Fence must be fixed at all locations. On the mountain the elk bring havoc on the fences. There are times we fix them only to return the next day to wires broke and more work than the day before.
We take archery Antelope and deer hunters around the middle of August. This means that the hunting house must be cleaned, linens washed, and food purchased for the hunters. It is 2-3 weeks of very early mornings and late nights. But it is so much fun and we meet the nicest people.
Kids begin school and fall sports in August.
On the mountain cows and heifers are moved to different pastures.
Weaning takes place and the calves are brought off the mountain.
We truck or trail the cows home from the mountain depending on weather in October or November. Last year we trucked them home due to the traffic and construction that our town has begun to see due to the oil boom. Trailing takes a week to get the cows home.
Ultrasounding the cows will be done to ensure pregnancy.
Then it relaxes. Yes it slows down. It is fall. It is chilly outside and I am cooking soups and stews. I can’t wait. We are only like 24 weeks away from fall and cool weather, and maybe snow. I can’t wait.
The puppies all got their shots today and were all given a clean bill of health. I can’t believe that they will be leaving soon to go to their homes and begin learning their jobs. Here are the current pictures that I was able to get this morning.
I didn’t realize until I was uploading that I forgot to get a picture of Hank alone. I will update that soon.
Jynx-female Sold Moriah – Douglas, Wyoming Hank -Sold Jill and Chuck Webb Savery, Wyoming
Dru-Male Sold Linda and Fred Matthews Buffalo, Wyoming
Nell-Female Sold – Cadence Vollman Douglas, WyomingZip-Female Sold- Sharon Douglas, wyTip-Male-sold Levi and Laci Glenrock, WyDuke-Male Sold Becca Shoshoni, WyomingZac-Male Sold JMooney Gillette, WyomingMeg-Sold Aaron Douglas, WyomingRed-Sold Nick and Gloria TennesseeZeke-Male Sold Natasha and Keith Wright, Wyoming
Well we are close to 4 weeks now. They will officially by 4 weeks on Thursday, but I am calling it close enough. They are starting to get more rambunctious and energetic. Taking pictures was definitely more of a challenge.
I am down to only 2 boys left. I can’t believe they will be leaving me in around 3-4 weeks. We have been working on going potty on the puppy pads and so far only a couple are still going outside the pad.
Puppy List
Aaron – Female
Moriah-Female
Sharon-Female
Natasha and Keith-Male
Nick and Gloria – Male
Pat-Male
Pat-Female
JMooney-Male
Becca-Male
Jynx – Female She is the runt of the bunch, but is growing quickly.Dru-MaleTip-MaleZeke-MaleHank – Male He was my last born. He is one of the bigger pups.
This recipe was so easy and most is completed in the mixer. Recipe to follow.
I was watching Barefoot Contessa from my DVR and she made this bread. It looked so easy, almost the entire process was made in the mixer. I am so game for that! I adapted it to fit my purposes and what I had on hand.
One note that she made that totally made the most difference was that when she mixed the water and the yeast, she stirred it with her fingers until it was all dissolved and activated. I think this made a change in my bread. I followed her recipe for the most part so I am just going to put it here. I would add a little more honey because it is a little bland.
1/2 cup warm water (110 degrees) 2 packages dry yeast 2 teaspoons sugar 1 1/2 cups warm whole milk (110 degrees) 1 stick of butter 3 tablespoons honey 2 extra-large egg yolks 5 to 6 cups all-purpose flour 1 tablespoon salt 1 egg white, lightly beaten Directions In a mixer bowl add the water and yeast. Stir until it is dissolved. Let it stand until bubbly.
In a small saucepan, heat up the milk, butter, and honey. Stir until everything is warm and the butter and honey are melted. Let cool.
Turn the mixer on medium speed and add the milk mixture. Add the egg yolks one at a time. Then add 4 cups of flour and the salt. Mix on low speed for about 5 minutes. With the mixer still on low speed, add up to 2 more cups of flour. Raise the speed to medium and slowly add just enough of the remaining flour so the dough doesn’t stick to the bowl. Knead on medium speed for about 5 minutes, adding flour as necessary. Make sure you lock your mixer. If it starts getting stiff remove.
Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead by hand until it is smooth and elastic about 1 minute. Grease a bowl with melted butter, put the dough in the bowl and turn buttered side up. Cover the bowl and allow it to rise for one hour, until doubled in volume.
Separate the dough into loafs. It will make 2 loaf pans or you can roll it into 3 or 4 smaller loafs on a cookie sheet sprayed with cooking spray. Cover and let rise until double.
Brush the tops with the beaten egg whites. Put pan into a 350 degree oven for 40 minutes or until they sound hollow when tapped and are a wonderful golden brown.
There is nothing like a bowl of old fashioned goulash on a snowy day. This past Saturday brought 3 plus inches of snow to our area. It was awesome. Well for me anyways. I was at a conference that whole day and by the time I got home all the work was completed. My hubby ran all the cows in and put the heavies into the shed. We were ready for winter to show it’s head one more time.
I of course was SOOO excited. I love winter, I love snow, and I love cold weather. But not so much for newborn calves and cows that need to calve. But it came anyway.
On Sunday we fed the cows and got everyone taken care of. That night things were pretty cold and I whipped up my husband’s favorite, Goulash. His grandmother Bobbi made this and it is fabulous. I made it for the first time about 2 years ago. I don’t know why I didn’t want to make it before or why I didn’t even want to taste it, but I didn’t. JJ finally talked me into it and I have loved it ever since. It is slightly sweet and just has the best flavor. To be honest I have actually made tomato soup from scratch just so that I could make Goulash. Now that is dedication.
When the power went out last October and I had a house full of hunters. I made this soup and it was devoured. It is one of those recipes that everyone enjoys. I like mine plain. My husband eats it with a slice of bread with jelly. The kids use butter crackers. Anyway you eat it, it is delicious!
I thought the photos would get easier but I guessed wrong. Here are the two week photos for the pups. They are starting to show more personality and are getting quite active. As soon as the top numbers pick their pups I will notify the lower numbers so that picking can be finalized. Thank you
Hank-MaleZeke-MaleDru-MaleZip-FemaleJynx-FemaleDuke-MaleNell-FemaleTip-MaleZac-MaleRed-SoldMeg- Sold
The Modern Ranch Wife 