farm blog

Jim

Derby Day is here again!

It doesn’t happen often, but we are getting the day off! We tend to work most weekends, but not this weekend. Saturday is Derby Day! It’s the 88th running of the Canadian Derby. What a great chance to get out and enjoy some fantastic thoroughbred racing. Thoroughbreds, what a beautiful, sleek, fast animal.  Did you know they were derived from breeding English mares to Arab Stallions? I’m not going to turn this into a horse breeding lesson but since Twyla has such a soft spot for Arabian horses I would be remiss if I didn’t mention it. I would have to say there isn’t an animal on the farm that Twyla admires more than her Arabian. I confess, I have a bit of a soft spot as well. Maybe a little more about that sometime down the road. For now, we’ll stick with the Derby. Derby day is jam-packed with fun. It has everything: fine clothes, great food, exciting entertainment (read: betting), and a great selection of beverages.

Let us start with getting all shined up.

It’s not mandatory, but it definitely adds to the experience for us. To be sure, you will see everything there from summer shorts and flipflops, to tuxedos and walking canes. And sometimes you see them combined. For me it’s the hats, the ladies wear some of the most fantastic hats.

I love this butterfly hat.  

Twyla ran over and asked the wearer if we could take a picture and she agreed.  Isn’t it cool?

Between heats I find myself doing two things; grabbing a beverage, and looking at the various hats. There is literally anything and everything there. It’s fantastic. For ourselves this year, we went through a number of choices in the store before deciding on the hats for us. It can take awhile to pick just the right one. And yes, the guys will wear some pretty cool hats too, so I admit I also take my time.

The ‘Seamus’ hat.

(I should make a note here, that it is important to remember whose hat is whose when getting ready.  As you can see, Seamus got a little confused. Now, I’m not going say it didn’t look real nice…but perhaps the wrong venue?)

Okay back to the horses.

There are a ton of things to consider when you place your bet. Too many in fact. Explaining the various ways you can bet at the track is something I’ll leave to the experts. If I tried, this column would be a mile a long and very confusing. So for now lets forget the words exacta, trifecta, quaddie, treble, etc.

We’re just passive race bettors and that’s how we approach the Derby. We generally place the simplest of bets: “Race 1, Horse 6 to win, for $2 Please”. It doesn’t get much more stress-free than that. Watching the horse race is incredibly exciting on it’s own, but by placing that $2 bet it ensures we have some skin in the game. It’s what gets you on your feet as they round the clubhouse turn heading down the home stretch. “Go 6! Go! Get the lead out boy!!! Come On!” Oh yeah, that’s fun stuff!

How does one pick their horse?

Well, at one time we used to walk down to the outside tarmac and look over each horse carefully; size, musculature, walk, spirit, etc. We would even gauge the track conditions. Oh, and don’t forget the jockey! Does he have a winning record? The list goes on. It’s too much. And wouldn’t you know it? It did not change the outcome one lick as far as our betting was concerned!  We don’t do that any more.

Each of us does it slightly differently, but here is my very ‘technical’ method: “Yep, those are decent payout odds, boy that’s a cool name”. This year, for the final race I had to pick ‘Double Bear’.  The name just gave me no choice, right Brenna?  I screamed when they rounded the club house turn cheering on my ‘Double Bear’, it was so exciting!  It looked as if we were set pull it off too! We were actually going to win this thing! Then there was a bump from ‘Chief Know It All’.  Subtle, but there it was. Well, to make a long story short, that bump cost me my wager. Damn, that was close!  (As a side note, that bump is still being contested and although the race was given to ‘Chief Know It All’ during the derby, it won’t be official until the appeal launched by ‘Double Bear’ is ruled on.  Unfortunately for me, I threw my ticket stub away, so that bet is an official $2 loss now. Double damn.)

No matter, it was a very fun day. Although I ended up with negative winnings I figure it was $32 well spent.  When the last heat wraps up it’s time to head off to the Hotel Selkirk (a must stay) for some much needed supper, drink, and an old Fort Edmonton walkabout. We’ll take our time to enjoy all three before closing the doors to our rooms at the Selkirk for some shuteye. Tomorrow it’s back home to the farm we go. Once there we’ll have some coffee, look at our pictures, tell a few tales from the day before and believe it or not, start planning for next year’s Derby…what to wear, what to wear?

Read more

quesadillas on a plate
Brenna

You know how sometimes you have those go-to recipes under your belt? Something that’s likely quick, awfully satisfying, and ignites the warm and fuzzy on the inside? A dish that makes you feel nostalgic and content. It is exactly what you need after a long day, or a rough night? Well for me, that recipe is for quesadillas.

And not just any quesadilla’s, I’m talking about the quesadilla’s that they used to serve at The Three Amigos Cafe.

quesadillas ready to be cooked

 

Now, I know you’re thinking to yourself (or at least Pop is as he reads this over) “Jeez Brenna, what are you doing? This is a farming blog!” Yeah, I know, I know, but bear with me. I like food. I like making food, and eating food (I mean, who doesn’t?), and talking about food, and taking pictures of food, and pretty soon I’ll be blogging about food (more on that another time).

 

One of my favourite things about food is how it brings people together.

Making muffins, and cooking up dinners were always a great way I could contribute to the work on the farm. When I was too small to operate a tractor or chase the cows, I was at least able to toss together a batch of something delicious. I loved seeing my family gathered around the table (or sitting on the grass, or in the back of a pick-up, or in the cab of a tractor) enjoying something I had made them.  A favourite memory I cherish is of my parents enjoying a mid-summer supper, long ago.  The night Jess and I created a restaurant experience for Mom and Pop serving up quesadillas,  piping hot.

cheese, salsa and flour tortillas

Quesadillas are easy to make, like SUPER easy.

You can make them with so many different ingredients, they cook up in a snap, they aren’t toooooo unhealthy, and my goodness they are satisfying. When I was about 8 years old I found a recipe for them in a kid-friendly cookbook, and they became just the handiest snack around.

I quickly got Jess hooked on them, and we made them after school whenever Mom had the ingredients on hand. One summer evening when Mom and Pop were out in the field working away, and Jess and I on kitchen duty, we knew just what to make. In the spirit of Mary Poppins, my favourite thing to do when it comes came to chores is was to turn the upcoming project into a game…and that summer night The Three Amigos Restaurant was born.

As he was always better at drawing than me, and because I was the oldest and thought it better for me to deal with the oven, Jess oversaw the menus…

menu card

handmade menu for quesadilla supper

 

We knew that Mom and Pop had been working hard all day, so we decided to really roll out the red carpet for them, with a variety of different drinks, an appetizer, and two (gasp!) different types of quesadillas up for order.

It seems silly thinking back on this now, but this memory of a small contribution to farming is one of my dearest. I love summer on the farm; how the hard work brings people together, and the evenings spent around the table with everyone after toiling in the hot sun.

For this reason, these quesadillas are my go to. Sometimes I put eggs or veggies (woohoo I’m so healthy), but most of the time I do them Three Amigos Style, just like what Mom and Pop got when they came in for food that summer night. It wasn’t the fanciest meal, but it was made with the utmost love and best intentions.

Here’s the recipe below if you’d like to give it a try, let me know how it turns out!

quesadillas

 

Three Amigos Cafe Quesadillas

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients (for 4 quesadillas):

  • 1 1/3 cup salsa (your spice preference, I’m a fan of spicy, but you do you)
  • 1 cup grated cheddar cheese
  • 4 flour tortilla shells
  • additional toppings to your hearts’ content. Refried beans are a Three Amigos favourite, but you can also add cooked veggies, chicken, beef, or a scrambled egg.

 

Instructions:

  1. Preheat oven to 425°, and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper (not mandatory, but it makes clean up easier!).
  2. Place tortillas on cookie sheet, and place 1/3 cup of salsa on each tortilla, spreading it so it covers half of it.
  3. Sprinkle 1/4 cup of cheddar, and any additional toppings, on top of the salsa, and fold the tortillas in half.
  4. Place in the oven and bake for 5 minutes on each side.
  5. Allow to sit for a few minutes, then slice into 3 or 4 triangles (a pizza cutter works best).
  6. Enjoy! (They are AMAZING dipped in sour cream or guacamole).
Read more

Welcome sign
Jim

Coming from a farming background Twyla and I decided from the start that we wanted to raise our family in a rural setting.  This was not because we thought farming would make us wealthy, we knew better than that!  This was a choice of lifestyle, not riches.  And now, all these years later, even though we did not become prosperous land barons, as suspected, we can say with certainty that we actually did find treasure on our farm.  Richness, it seems, comes in all shapes and sizes.

The primary goal of our farm was to raise cattle.

Over the years while we were concentrating on doing just that, we found we were soon growing so much more.  We grew grains, gardens, pets, children, recipes, friends, stories, and memories.  It has all been quite the journey.  There can be a lot of chaos at our home but if you take the time to navigate through the confusion there’s usually a laugh or two to be had and a pretty good story to tell to friends at the end.  We hope you enjoy hearing about our farming adventures as much as we do telling them.

When folks think of the rural lifestyle they often picture these smooth rolling green pastures dotted with beautiful aspens and pines, late summer flowers in blossom sprinkled about, with all sorts of farm animals standing here and there enjoying the scenic majesty of sunny mornings.  Not far away will lie abundant fields of grain beginning to ripen looking forward to the fall’s harvest.  And there, in the middle of it all, you will find a perfectly manicured lawn and in the middle of that, stands a beautiful white storey and a half weathered but wonderful farmhouse.  Just a few steps from the house grows a lush weed free garden, bountiful fruit trees; apples, cherries, plums all lining the garden’s edge.  And still a few steps further is this mighty red with white trim giant prairie barn complete with hayloft and horse stalls.  Finally this whole package is framed with perfect white painted fences and a young girl skipping along the path to the barn, milk bucket swinging in hand and humming her favourite Walt Disney theme song.   Sounds nice doesn’t it?

This does exist and you may see it…sometimes.

But usually life isn’t all nicely wrapped up for us like this.   There are times when those rolling pastures could use a little more rain and that grain could use a few less weeds and a lot less grasshoppers.  We all love aging barns but still, it’ll need some paint and a nail now and again.   Let’s not forget that garden.   Constant attention to that and the orchard is needed if we plan to have plenty of good food for the winter.  Have I mentioned fences?  Fences are in constant need of mending.  Without good fences your livestock will soon put themselves on a first name basis with the neighbouring tribe.  Not good.  Farming is rewarding, for sure, there’s not a doubt in my mind about that, but it takes a lot of work and of that I’m just as certain.

We have strived to create that picturesque farm we have all imagined and we will share with you the stories that grow with us as we try to reach that goal.  So keep an eye out for all of the ‘sugar coated’ farming experiences we plan to send your way.  They are fun.  But keep in mind life isn’t always like that, so we also plan to share with you those little things that don’t always go to script.  In our world, we tend to experience the latter far more.

I guess we can say we’re doing ok.

Most times we can drive the road of life pretty well, but of course sometimes we do end up swerving or sliding a bit and then there are those times we end up completely off that road and right through one of those nice white rail fences we’ve chatted about.  But almost always you can find something in the whole experience to laugh about…or at least to share.  Ok, I guess that brings me to the end of my very first post.  In closing, let me say this – Welcome to our little slice of rural imperfection and the tears and the laughter that have come with it.

Read more