Amazing crop of tomatoes this year – pears too -some of our animals passed while a new animal joins the family – sweet rescue

Posted on August 9, 2017 by Grandma
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After our beloved Central Asian Shepherd puppy of 1.5 years Smokey, died suddenly in her sleep a month ago we have been searching through rescue places for another rescue who could get along with our three cats. We found one – his new name is Benji – he looks just like the beloved TV and movie dog – he is 5 years old – was cooped up in a one room apartment with 4 other dogs then dumped at a pound and was rescued by fabulous folks called DAWG SQUAD –  ( dawgsquad.org) who cleaned him up. He has a slightly deformed front leg and bad arthritis there – but we don’t care – he has such a happy loving soul – and none of us are perfect ( especially as we get older!) He is supposedly 5 years old but we think he is older. Which is fine. We are looking for a rescue companion for him – not so easy but the Dawg Squad are on it!

We also had another animal passing this week as our goat Julia died – she was 10 years old and we are grateful to her for the hundreds of gallons of milk she gave us during her sweet life. That is about the longevity of goats – we were so sad to say goodbye. But we did find a large animal vet – and for that we were so grateful – it is not easy to find a large animal vet in an urban setting – and they are appropriately called VETERINARY ANGELS – started and run by a wonderful young woman Darlene Geekie – when Julia got sick within one hour they were at our farm with IV equipment and all that you might need for intensive care – and, after reviving Julia who had collapsed – in consultation with them we decided to let her go peacefully as she was at the end of her life so we just made her comfortable. What a blessing these Vets are – we shall be using them all the time – as our cow Bella is pregnant so we will have them as a fabulous resource to help us with her baby’s birth in about 7 months time ( cows gestation is the same as humans, goats are 5 months).

Living on a farm is a wonderful way for children and adults alike to learn to deal with life and death – always something being born, and something passing. Our new baby ducklings are now all grown up in a short 6 weeks – they are the same size as their mom and dad and happily jumping in and out of their mini swimming pond in their pen. New quail and chicken babies are born regularly as are birds in our aviary – so always something new to see. The kids love it and we love watching them love it!

It has been a great year for tomatoes – here are some giant ones! And the pear crop has been amazing.We have finally tented all our fruit trees and so have figs, peaches, etc in great amounts finally as we beat back the critters who normally get them all!

Here is Benji 

And here are some of the crops from this year.  Happy to have a doggie in our home again – it was terribly quiet and sad without that always friendly and excitable presence.

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I love to eat Blondie’s – do you?

Posted on August 4, 2017 by Grandma
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I don’t eat chocolate so Brownies are not an option for me. But BLONDIE’S are ! And here is a terrific recipe – the problem is that I love these too much. The recipe makes 9 and I cut them into very small pieces (to make 18 or more) so that I am tempted to eat less. Sigh. A continuing challenge for a foodie!
 
 
Blondie’s Recipe

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup of butter, melted
  • 1 cup of tightly packed dark brown sugar
  • 1 egg, lightly beaten
  • 1 teaspoon of vanilla
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/8 teaspoon of baking soda
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1 cup of all-purpose flour
  • 1/3 cup of butterscotch chips 

Directions

1 Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly butter and flour an 8X8 pan. Whisk together the melted butter and sugar in a bowl.

2 Add the egg and vanilla extract and whisk.

3 Add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt, mix it all together. Add the butterscotch chips or other mix-ins.

4 Pour into the pan and spread evenly. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool. Cut into squares and serve.

 

Makes 9 blondies. And of course if you are feeling particularly sinful you can frost them with butterscotch frosting. GOOD!

 

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Eating salmon – a lot! Making it interesting

Posted on August 2, 2017 by Grandma
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 Salmon is a wonderful fish – and eating it often instead of meat is a good idea for weight control. In fact I have found that eating fish 5 times a week helps me maintain my weight and I enjoy it anyway!

Here is a great recipe and soooooo simple for salmon for dinner.

Ingredients:

  • Salmon (12 ounces works for 2 people)
  • Salt and pepper
  • Chopped green onions
  • Sesame seeds
  • Paprika 
  • Lemon juice ( one lemon)
  • Lemon Zest ( one lemon)
  • Olive oil 2 tbsp

 

Directions:

  1. Put the salmon fillet into a baking dish and cover with all the other ingredients. Place into an oven at 395 for about 15-20 minutes ( I like my salmon a little undercooked – you will need to set the time to suit your tastes)
  2. Serve with salad or rice
  3. YUM!!

 

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Paradigm for Parity – Gender parity in pay and position by 2030

Posted on July 29, 2017 by Grandma
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 I am proud to serve on the steering committee of a movement called Paradigm for Parity.

Here is a recent NYC article on the topic.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/21/sunday-review/women-ceos-glass-ceiling.html?smid=tw-share

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Welcoming family from Basel Switzerland this week – such excitement!

Posted on July 26, 2017 by Grandma
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We have been planning for months for the visit of my niece and her husband and children and this is the week! We have a family get together on Saturday and lots of fun planned for the days before.

I thought I would share the menu with you!

Lunch 

Cheese Quesadilla for most and corn dog for one who doesn’t like cheese!

I know that Cheese Quesadilla is simple to make – but the best ones I have had – add some butter to the pan and brown the outside of the flour tortilla while the cheese is melting inside and that gives the rich crunchy taste that I love! Try it instead of just heating the tortilla!

Corn dogs are so unhealthy but once or twice a year – why not?

Dinner 

Steak and fries – we have lots of meat eaters in our family – and these little ones need lots of protein as they never sit down for a second! Swimming, farm chores and projects around the farm mean lots of energy is spent so lots of food is eaten!

Haagen Daz Chocolate and Vanilla Icecream bars for dessert!

Snacks in the afternoon – fresh peaches and nectarines and plums – the garden is rich with these wonderful organic fresh fruits this year!

Pre Party Dinner on Friday

Roast Tomato Soup and fresh home made Challah ( yes I do make it!) followed by Roast Rosemary Chicken and Roasted Potatoes with Little Farm Salad – and a special salad of shaved yellow and green squash with lemon and olive oil – an experiment – hope it turns out ok!

Dessert is fruit salad and homemade pound cake – a grandchild favorite!

Here is the recipe for the Tomato Soup – Enjoy! ( The Roast chicken and potatoes recipes are in the Archives of former posts)

 

Roast Tomato Soup

Ingredients

·        3 pounds fresh tomatoes (about 4 cups, halved)

·        6 cloves garlic, peeled

·        2 small yellow onions, sliced

·        ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil

·        Salt and freshly ground black pepper

·        3 cups vegetable stock

·        2 bay leaves

·        Handful of chopped fresh basil or cilantro (coriander) for garnish (optional)

Directions

1.       Preheat oven to 450F/230C.

2.       Wash, core and cut the tomatoes into halves. Spread the tomatoes, garlic cloves and onions onto a baking tray. If using vine cherry tomatoes for garnish, add them as well, leaving them whole and on the vine. Drizzle with ¼ cup of olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast for 30-35 minutes, or until caramelized.

3.       Remove roasted tomatoes, garlic and onion from the oven and transfer along with any roasting juices into a large stock pot. Add 3 cups of the vegetable stock and bay leaves. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes or until liquid has reduced by a third. Discard bay leaves.

4.       Use an immersion blender to puree the soup until smooth. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper. If freezing, let soup cool before transferring to freezer-safe containers

        Garnish in bowl with chopped fresh basil or cilantro.

 

 

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Recently a friend asked us to post our wedding photos – brought back memories so many years ago!

Posted on July 20, 2017 by Grandma
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 We are almost at 49 years of marriage – the big 50 coming up soon! Here are two pictures of that day. So young – I was just 19 and  my husband was 29. And we are still together! My father had died suddenly a few months before the wedding and you can see some of that sadness in my face – mixed with the wonder of being a bride.

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A gorgeous picture of our little family – all looking healthy and happy! Lucky us! And a great zucchini salad

Posted on July 19, 2017 by Grandma
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 Summers are wonderful in California – actually any time of year is great! And here is a super summer salad – no need to cook – light and easy to make – enjoy! Also a great picture of my son and I and then another one of our immediate family looking happy and healthy!

RAW ZUCCHINI SALAD

 INGREDIENTS

  • ·        1 pound medium or small zucchini, preferably a mix of green and yellow
  • ·        Salt to taste
  • ·        3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • ·        1 garlic clove, crushed
  • ·        3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • ·        2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley, mint, chives, dill or a combination

DIRECTIONS:

 

1. Slice the squash as thinly as you can. Sprinkle with salt, preferably kosher salt, and let sit for 15 to 30 minutes. Rinse and drain on paper towels.

2.   Mix together the lemon juice, garlic and olive oil. Toss with the zucchini. Season with salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate for four to six hours.

3.   Remove from the refrigerator, and remove the garlic clove. Add the fresh herbs, and toss together. Taste, adjust seasoning and serve.

 

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Telacu Foundation had its annual gala and I am honored to serve on their advisory board

Posted on July 15, 2017 by Grandma
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 What a star studded event it was! Hundreds of Telacu scholarship winners were on the stage and the tables were filled with luminaries from all over the State of California and elsewhere. And all of this is the brainchild and passion of David and Priscilla Lizarraga. It is an honor to serve on their advisory board – as their mission of finding worthy students and supporting them with money and mentoring is indeed my passion with the Larraine Segil Scholars. Here they are with their son David, the heir of the Telacu mission as well as a superb musician with many other talents to be sure. Of course I am accompanied by my husband Clive. What a FABULOUS evening down at LA LIVE. Priscilla developed and produced the whole event – and it was so professionally done that I suggested she take her skills to the academy awards! The evening was perfection!

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Our new Segil Urban Farm Fellow was appointed this last weekend – a wonderful celebration!

Posted on July 12, 2017 by Grandma
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This is the time of year that the Segil Urban Farm Fellow is appointed through an endowment my husband and I have made to the Shalom Institute. What a fabulous camp it is and the environment with the market garden, animals, bees and more – some of which we taught and donated – thriving with young adults and all the children ( thousands) who attend the camp year round being exposed to nature and good values and how the two are intertwined.

Here we are with our family and in the lower photo with the counselors who tend the garden and animals, Ariel our special Segil Urban Farm Fellow, the Camp CEO Bill and Camp Director Joel ( and divine little one) with expert photographer Marsha capturing the shot with our family too. Happiness is this!

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Shakshuka – a Middle Eastern dish that is delicious!

Posted on July 10, 2017 by Grandma
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Shakshuka is served in the Middle East especially in Israel – you can find it in the USA in many middle eastern restaurants. It is good for breakfast, lunch, dinner or in between and with warmed fresh pita is divine! And of course we use our Little Farm Tomatoes, onion and garlic as well as Italian parsley for garnish  – yummy!

Shakshuka – Little Farm Style

Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup of olive oil
  • 1 large onion chopped
  • 1 clove of garlic mashed
  • 1 red and 1 yellow pepper seeded and chopped
  • 8-10 large tomatoes ( try to use the farmers market ones – they have such a good taste compared to supermarket ones)
  • 2 Tbsp of paprika
  • 2 Tbsp of mild chili ( add a touch of cayenne if you like it hot!)
  • 1 tsp of cumin powder ( or more to taste)
  • Salt and Pepper to taste
  • 6 eggs

Directions:

  1. Use a cast iron pan if possible.
  2. Heat the oil.
  3. Fry the onions in the heated oil until translucent
  4. Add the garlic and saute for a few moments until combined
  5. Add the chopped peppers and saute until soft
  6. Add the chopped tomatoes with their juice
  7. Add the chili powder, paprika, cumin and salt and pepper and combine well
  8. Allow to simmer for about 10-15 minutes until the liquid has reduced
  9. Break the eggs in a circular pattern – with one in the middle 
  10. Cover the pan and allow to simmer until the eggs are the right consistency for you. ( you can add chopped parsley for garnish if you wish – we didn’t)
  11. Serve in the pan, with warmed Pita bread ( for dipping and wiping out the pan too!

 

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Carrot Salad and Cucumber soup – both are easy and low calorie

Posted on July 5, 2017 by Grandma
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 Post holiday weekend – and all that sugar fat and yummy stuff — sigh – today is back to watching what I put in my mouth day – and here is a truly fabulous low calorie carrot salad. One of the best things about it is that  you have to do a LOT of chewing – so it takes longer to eat and so one gets fuller sooner! And the cucumber soup is refreshing and cool and also low calorie. 

Cucumber Soup

Ingredients:

  • 8 small Persian cucumbers or two large English ones cleaned, chopped but not peeled
  • 1/4 cup of chopped sweet onion ( I used red onion my favorite)
  • 1 chopped garlic clove
  • 1 cup of vegetable or chicken stock ( depends on whether you want it vegetarian or not)
  • 1 cup of Fage 0% Fat yogurt
  • 1 cup of non fat Sour Cream
  • Dill plus thin slices of cucumber for garnish

 Directions:

Blend first four ingredients in a blender then add the yogurt and cream and blend again – add more stock for desired consistency – cool in the fridge for a few hours -and serve. It is that easy!

Carrot Salad:

Ingredients

  • 6 large carrots peeled and cleaned and then grated
  • 2 tbsp of yellow raisins
  • 1/2 cup of non fat sour cream
  • 1/8 cup of balsalmic vinegar
  • 1 small packet of stevia or splenda or 1 tbsp of sugar ( if you do not mind the calories and prefer rather than using the chemicals in the artificial sweetener)

Directions:

Mix the carrots and raisins. Mix the cream vinegar and sugar separately – then mix all together. Cool in the fridge and serve. YUM!

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Fabulous annual family week – happy times living in the moment!

Posted on July 2, 2017 by Grandma
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 This past week was  a wonderful one – with the entire USA based family for our annual family week. Such fun – tons of swimming and food and so much more. So lovely to have no schedule and just hang out! How blessed we are.

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Failed Cobb Salad Pizza recipe from Cooking Light – looks good but tasted bad! Plus adorable pics of our twins!

Posted on June 18, 2017 by Grandma
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 I tried a really fun looking recipe from Cooking Light and it was a disaster. So I am sharing it with you. The good news was that same weekend our grandson twins had a hip hop concert  – so adorable – lots of running around the stage – but they are darling so we hollered and yelled and they were happy and so were we!

 

So here is the recipe – I failed at it – what about you?www.cookinglight.com/recipes/cobb-pizza

What happened to me is the following:

1. Pizza crust got too hard

2. All the pieces kept falling off as we tried to eat it

3. Finally we gave up and eat the toppings and threw away the pizza part.

Not worth the calories. 
I am sure I was the problem as Cooking light are normally fabulous. Sigh and oh well. Onward we go! I had an empathetic group for lunch ( my god daughter and her son) and since I had great cookies for dessert that made up for it.

 

 

 

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The New Segil Urban Farm Fellow – Training Camp staff in Urban Farming, Beekeeping and More

Posted on June 11, 2017 by Grandma
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Every year we endow a young adult to become a Segil Urban Farm Fellow at the Shalom Institute Children’s camp in Malibu. My husband Clive trains them with his deep knowledge of farming in an urban environment ( although you can see from the picture below that the camp is in the middle of a bucolic scene protected by federal and state parks in the mountains of Malibu – but don’t forget –  it is surrounded by a city of 10 million people!).

Clive is an expert beekeeper too and the Institute has many offspring of our animals ( goats and chickens) as well as beehives my husband and our farm manager Max, have rescued. Thousands of children from far and wide, including many inner city kids who have no idea that eggs do not come from the supermarket but are laid by chickens, attend this camp for weeks, or weekends depending on the program. The camp also  has a special program called Shemesh for special needs children and adults. All moves the heart and soul and we are so proud to be involved albeit in a small way.

When reading a variety of texts, especially the Talmud, the 5 books of Moses ( The Torah), and the Bible both old and new testaments , it is found that acts of goodness are the active representation of a covenant among people, a social contract. This is not about simply getting a request in the mail for funds and writing a check, or bringing a can of soup to a box at your Church or Synagogue. It is not even about showing up once a year at the homeless shelter or soup kitchen or writing letters to Congress to effect social policies. Those are truly important, relevant acts, but they fail to engage people in relationships of understanding. It is when we become engaged with real people and communities on the other end of our giving of time and resources that we realize the covenantal aspect of doing good. The Segil Urban Farm Fellowship along with our Larraine Segil Scholars are our ways of creating joy for others as well as receiving joy at the same time. In a few months, there will be a small ceremony at the Camp for the new farm fellow and I will post a picture then with her name and background. Stay tuned!

 

 

 

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Making Ossobucco – yummy! And in the slow cooker it is a snap to make!

Posted on June 9, 2017 by Grandma
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 This is a really easy recipe for Osso-bucco using my Slow Cooker.

Slow-Cooker Osso Buco

Servings: 4

Bottom of Form

Ingredients

·        1/2 cup all-purpose flour

·        Four 1-1/2- to 2-inch-thick veal shanks (about 2-1/2 lb.)

·        Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

·        2 Tbs. unsalted butter

·        1 cup dry white wine

·        One 14-1/2-oz. can diced tomatoes

·        3/4 cup lower-salt chicken broth

·        1 small red onion, chopped (1-1/2 cups)

·        1 medium carrot, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch-thick rounds (1/2 cup)

·        1 stalk celery, chopped (1/2 cup)

·        5 sprigs fresh thyme

·        3 Tbs. finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

·        1 Tbs. finely grated lemon zest

·        1 large clove garlic, minced (1 tsp.)

Preparation

·        Put the flour in a wide, shallow dish. Season the veal shanks all over with salt and pepper and dredge in the flour; shake off the excess flour.

Heat a 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Add the butter, and when it foams, add the shanks to the skillet. Cook until golden, turning once, about 10 minutes. Transfer the shanks to a slow cooker.

Add the wine to the skillet. Scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the skillet and pour the contents of the skillet into the slow cooker. Add the tomatoes and their juices, chicken broth, onion, carrot, celery, and thyme. Cover and cook on low heat for 6 to 8 hours—the meat will be very tender and almost falling off the bone.

Transfer the shanks to a platter and cover with foil to keep warm. Pour the sauce from the slow cooker into a large skillet. Simmer over medium heat until reduced to about 2 cups, 10 to 15 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the parsley, lemon zest, and garlic to make a gremolata. Serve the veal shanks topped with the sauce and the gremolata.

 

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Bella the Cow is stealing the Little Farm Show!

Posted on June 5, 2017 by Grandma
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 We are in love with Bella our new cow! She is very tame – was in a petting zoo -and so loves kids ( and they love her). We are planning to breed her in a few weeks – hope it takes the first time  – we met her beau last week – he is gorgeous! Here are a few pictures! A good friend Roberta gave us a BELL for BELLA – do you love it? She looks very smashing with her new ribbon.  

 

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New Addition to The Little Farm – Bella the cow!

Posted on May 31, 2017 by Grandma
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 We are so excited to add to our menagerie – Bella the miniature cow. Here she is in all her glory with Farmer Clive who bought her at an auction. It is not easy to find a mini cow and Bella was a cow in a petting zoo so she is very tame – and friendly too! Bonded immediately to our grandkids, farm manager and Clive – and follows everyone around. She is now sharing a paddock with three turkeys and 5 guinea fowl and is eating up a storm of alfalfa and hay! We have located a wonderful Brahmin Zebu Bull to mate her with and hopefully within the next few months she will be pregnant. We look forward to that and also to the birth of her offspring – and finally the ability to milk her – and make Cow’s Milk Cheese in addition to the Goat’s milk cheese that we already make. She is a Brown Swiss/Dexter combination – and is able to withstand heat and dry climates – as well as give lots of milk.  SOO EXCITING!

Our dog Smokey is adjusting slowly to her arrival – keeps wanting to roll over and have her play with her – and doesnt yet quite get that Bella is not a dog but a small cow. Oh well she will learn soon when Bella butts her!

 

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Lovely recipe ( healthy too) for Idaho Trout and Swiss Chard! YUM!

Posted on May 24, 2017 by Grandma
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Came across this recipe and tried it out. It was really divine. So easy and quick too. We grow our own garlic, rosemary, onions, swiss chard, thyme, etc etc – so it was easy to pull together. Just had to buy the fish from Amazon Fresh – which delivers here three times a week -what a BLESSING that service is – the best freshest fish and meat and so much more. I am a HUGE fan!

 

Swiss Chard Trout with Charred Tomato Vinaigrette (this serves two or four depending on the big eaters in your family)

Ingredients:

 

·       2 large tomatoes, cut into 1/2-in.-thick slices

·       1/4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves

·       2 tablespoons capers, drained

·       6 tablespoons olive oil, divided

·       1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary

·       2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

·       2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

·       2 garlic cloves

·       1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, divided

·       3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided

·       1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and sliced into thin strips

·       1 yellow bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and sliced into thin strips

·       1 shallot, thinly sliced

·       3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

·       1 bunch chard, leaves and top portions of stems thinly sliced

·       1/4 cup chopped fresh basil

·       4 (6-oz.) butterflied boneless trout, heads and tails removed

·       1/4 cup pitted Niçoise olives

·       5 thyme sprigs

Directions:

1.   Heat a large cast iron pan or grill pan over high. Add tomato slices to pan; cook 6 minutes on each side or until well charred. Place tomatoes in a blender. Add parsley, capers, 1/4 cup olive oil, rosemary, juice, vinegar, 2 garlic cloves, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper; blend until smooth.

2.   Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high. Add 1 tablespoon oil to pan. Add bell peppers, shallot, and sliced garlic cloves; sauté 4 minutes or until tender. Add chard; sauté 2 minutes or until just wilted. Remove from heat; stir in chopped basil.

3.   Sprinkle trout inside and out evenly with remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and remaining 1/2 teaspoon pepper.

4.   Preheat oven to 400°F. Spread charred tomato mixture in bottom of a 9- x 13-inch glass or ceramic baking dish. Sprinkle olives over tomato mixture; spread thyme sprigs over mixture. Heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high. Add 2 trout to pan; cook 2 minutes or until skin is golden brown. Turn trout over; cook 2 minutes. Place browned trout in prepared baking dish. Repeat procedure with remaining 2 trout.

5. Cover the tops of the trout with the swiss chard mixture

6. Place baking dish in oven; bake at 400°F for 12 minutes or less until trout is just cooked through.

 

 

· 

 

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Little Farm Crops of fruit and vegetables this year – spectacular because of all the rain! YAY~

Posted on May 18, 2017 by Grandma
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 We have an abundance of wonderful fruit this year. And are making jams, relishes and compote like crazy! The family are happy as are friends as we are bearing giffs whenever we meet!

Here are just a few of our crops – blackberries, Cherries of the Rio Grande and Suriname Cherries as well as Avocados ( in high demand this year) as well as the Apricot Crop – oh my those apricot compotes – yum! Just sugar and apricots ( not to much sugar as the fruit is so sweet) simmer till soft and bottle! Save for those winter days to give you taste of summer.

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Learning about The Electoral College – I thought I understood it – but until I saw this video – I realise there were nuances I missed – take a look!

Posted on May 9, 2017 by Grandma
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 After the election I was driven to find out more about the Electoral College – its history and implications. I found a fascinating video that explained it so well. Take a look! I thought I understood before – but I really didn’t. Our founders were amazingly smart, wise and understanding of the faults and assets of humankind. How blessed we are to have had such wisdom built into our system here in the USA.

 

https://youtu.be/V6s7jB6-GoU

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