Honey . . . I think we have a beaver problem . . .

They're clear cutting!

Teeth marks are visible. And turtles are in the pond.

Beaver dam

Twas such a beautiful weekend to get out and explore. I took my daughter to see a beaver pond by a nearby pasture. They sure have been busy beavers.

Smoked Ham and Corn Chowder

This is one of our favorite soups as the ham brings so much flavor creating a hearty dish. I grew up in a household where we learned to use what was on hand and to creatively use leftovers as entirely different dishes. I tend to substitute ingredients often. That is done more now than ever seeing we live in a rural area as we're not going to drive several miles for a missing ingredient. We shop wisely, keep well-stocked and make do with what we have on hand. Feel free to substitute to fit your taste and enjoy.

Ingredients

Olive Oil

Unsalted butter

Bacon fat (optional)

½ cup diced purple onion

4 cloves garlic, chopped

1 cup diced smoked ham

¼ cup diced peppers

½ cup diced potatoes

1 cup of corn, freshly cut from the cob or frozen

¼ cup chipotle peppers (smoked jalapeno peppers) or a small can of chopped chilies

4 cups chicken broth
½ cup Whipping cream

Optional toppings:

Croutons

Crab meat lumps

Chopped chives

Black pepper

• Using large sauce-pan or Dutch oven, add olive oil and a small amount of unsalted butter to the bottom of the pan, and begin heating it. If desired, can add some bacon fat to add flavor.
• Add diced purple onion and garlic and saute until softened and mostly translucent.
• Next, add 1 cup of diced ham using a flavorful, smoked ham.
• Add 1/4-cup of diced peppers.
• Saute the ingredients over moderate heat.
• Add 1/2-cup of diced potatoes.
• Next, add corn. 
• Add 1/4-cup of chipotle peppers. Chipotle peppers are quite spicy. Chilies are a better option if you do not like foods that are too spicy.
• Continue stirring the ingredients over moderate heat.
• Add chicken broth and bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for 15 to 20 minutes minutes.
• Next, add whipping cream. Bring the mixture to a boil again, then reduce to simmer.
• Allow the mixture to simmer for about 50 minutes. If you like, you can puree the ingredients further using a hand-held immersion blender. Avoid over-blending.
• Ladle the soup into bowls.
• Soup may be topped with croutons or lump crab meat. Sprinkle with chopped chives and black pepper. 
• Serve with fresh bread and a salad if desired. 

Snowfall

First snow in corral

Snow on wheat field

Peach buds

We received our first measurable snowfall of the winter earlier this week, yet the week is closing with mild sunny days. The puppies are 11 weeks old now and the dogs all seemed to enjoy the snow.

Ted, Bentley, Flower and Little Dog

Ted and Bentley

February sunrise

They say Montana is Big Sky country but the sky is big here too. The sunrises and sunsets are truly amazing.  Here's the sunrise from this morning.

Country Living

Country magazines paint a picture of an idyllic country lifestyle making some folks dream of a utopia free of rush hour traffic and full of fresh food harvested from the garden. Even the cows here think the grass is greener on the other side of the fence as they reach their heads through the fence for that greener grass. That must be where the saying comes from. Anyways, truth be told . . . any place has its pros and cons. There are wonderful aspects of the country life. There are also challenges. Peace and quiet is traded for convenience. Things break and need to be fixed and in these here parts, you fix 'em yourself.

Just this week, we are working on extending water out to the barn and shop building. The compression fittings on the PVC connections just weren't holding. So we borrowed a friend's socket fusion block to heat plastic piping to 500 degrees using a cutting torch, thereby melting the ends of the pipe and fittings to fuse them together. We're keeping our fingers cross that that does the trick.

Sunny and Mild

It's a sunny day on the prairie, a little on the cool side but mild for February. The rains of last Friday were much needed. I planted broccoli in the fall and got plenty of leafy growth but no broccoli heads. After the brutal winter last year, it's a blessing to have such mild conditions that daffodils are coming up and broccoli heads are forming.