Welcome to Homegrown Bites by Jake's Run!

Tasty food, lamb meat, jams and jellies, fresh produce, and crochet accessories.


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August!

I didn’t forget the blog this time, but August blew by in a flash!

Each year, the farmer’s market slows down once school starts. I get it. By the time you’ve done the school morning, sports practices, laundry, etc. that is required when school is in session, when Saturday rolls around, you might not feel much like getting up early to get to the market. Been there. Done that. Got the t-shirt. There is nothing quite like it. While you’re in the midst of it, it can be challenging.

Market attendance did drop after school started, but it’s still a very good crowd count. I love that customers are still visiting. This means we’re doing something right. I hope the market continues to grow so we can serve more of our community through different programs. The Saturday market will always be the biggest market of the week.

Even though we mainly sell at the Saturday market, the prep takes all week. Reconcile the cash box, write the reports, shop for supplies, cut the veggies, bake the biscuits, make the gravy. I admit I DO NOT cook – Wes does all of the cooking, which is what HE’S really great at! I’m a really great recipe tester and I’m an okay prep chef. I’m the business person. I will balance the checkbook, crunch the numbers, order the supplies, etc. I make the jams and jellies, but I don’t consider that cooking.

Speaking of jams and jellies, we were getting really low on our inventory. Totally my fault. July and August were hot. Miserably hot. I’m not a hot weather person. Give me a good snow and I’ll be the happiest camper on the planet. When it’s hot, the last thing on my mind is making jams or jellies. I kept telling myself, “Just two more weeks and the temps are supposed to break.” It was my mantra. “Only one more week.” “I just gotta make it to Tuesday.” Some market days, I felt like I was going to melt. I resorted to Liquid IV intake to try to stay hydrated (spoiler alert: It didn’t work). If you visited us during the hot days, you probably saw me drenched in sweat, red faced, personal fan around my neck, with an ice water-drenched towel draped over my shoulders and back, drinking as much water as was physically possible. I was very uncomfortable. But we made it through and the heat FINALLY broke. :::::insert Happy Dance here::::::: I made some more jam and jelly.

Thanks to the better weather and our awesome customers, we’ve had really great days at the market. We’ve seen in increase in customers and have a number of customers who return each week to enjoy our food. It’s very cool and makes us smile. We’re proud to share the made-from-scratch food that we love to eat. We recently introduced breakfast wraps and pancake bites. They’ve been very well-received.

It’s such a warm feeling to see familiar faces – to get weekly updates on each person’s life – to watch the kids grow – to say “hello” to the puppers we know and love.

We’ve been doing this for 12 years now. We’ve seen babies grow, friends who tell us about their visits to other countries, vacations, grandchildren, and adventures. Some people tell us about their challenges or their victories. A few have shed their mortal coils and we’ve attended their funerals. That part never gets easier and it’s heartbreaking. But we love them all. If we didn’t love our customers, we wouldn’t do this. The customers (and sometimes their pets, too) make this adventure worthwhile. It’s not just about making money (although that helps). It’s about the relationships.

It’s a small (but growing!) farmers’ market in Western Kentucky. It’s 4 hours on Saturdays. But it’s also a time to get outside to enjoy the weather (even if we all might melt or if it’s raining) and spend time TOGETHER. Even if it’s not OUR market, find a farmers’ market and stop by, buy some healthy veggies and fruit, get some fresh meat. If you’re hungry, get some food to eat and find a picnic table. Keep an open mind about everyone, because we’re all there seeking a connection. Offer up a smile and a “good morning!” You never know how interesting people can be until you make the time to get to know them.

For the month of September, Wes has to work every Saturday and one of our helpers will be out for school activities. We will be a 2 or 3-person crew. Please be patient – we’ll be doing the best we can. Because of this, we will be offering a breakfast-only menu for September. But it will be a REALLY good breakfast, so stop by!

Hopefully I’ll have time to sit down with my laptop and tell you guys about our adventures. Until next time… S.


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Oh, hey there! I Forgot About the Blog.

Like anything that goes into our freezer, if it’s not in front of me, it no longer exists…

I literally keep a notebook with me at all times to jot down anything I have to remember to do. It’s the only way I can keep it all straight and get stuff done. Plus, it gives me a sense of accomplishment. I start a new list each week. Sometimes, it’s one page, other times it’s multiple pages. Let’s face it – we’re all busy. I’m not complaining. Don’t get me wrong. I love this life. But, when it gets busy, days kind of blend together in a blur. In the blink of an eye, a few weeks have passed and I’ve neglected my duties. Looks like I need to add this blog to the list. That being said, let’s summarize the past month.

HOLY CRAP!!!!!

The hubs works 4 days on then 4 days off. On his working days, he works 12 hours. Then he comes home to work more. He cooks, he cleans up. He. Is. Driven. I handle the supplies, the books, the sous cheffing (yep I totally made that up), and whatever else I can do to make his life easier. When he works on Saturdays, he drops our market trailer off at the market, then goes to work. I pick up the team and we arrive soon after to get it all set up and start the day.

Last Saturday, our longest break between customers was 8 minutes. We were able to serve and interact with 97 customers. He’s worked a few Tuesdays alone because he was off from work. The two of us have worked a few Thursday markets because he was off from work.

Between shopping for supplies, cooking, prepping, dishes (OMG – the sheer amount of DISHES!), the laundry, working our jobs, mowing, taking care of animals and just plain RUNNING (some days I have to make 6-7 stops before I can just go home), and life, we have very little free time and it’s all GO GO GO! In our free time, we sleep. Not well in this ungodly heat, but we sleep.

Odd flex, we do a lot of recipe testing. A very cool thing. Sometimes they’re hits, sometimes it’s a miss.

The market season is a long one. Mid April-first week of November. June and July are typically the busiest months. It will taper off when schools starts, then trickle down until the EXTRA SUPER INSANELY CRAZY BUSY Holiday Market to end the season. But we’ll make it. We may need to sleep for the entire remainder of November, but we’ll sleep.

In the meantime, we’re testing out a new product – the Kentucky Hot Brown Biscuit. A scratch biscuit topped with shredded turkey, mornay, bacon, and sliced tomatoes. Last night was the first time we offered it and it was a good seller. We’ll see how it does tomorrow at the big market.

The dream is a food truck. Do we know what we’re doing? Nope. Will we learn? Every day. I remind myself often to “do the best you can, with the knowledge you have and with the best of intentions.” Everything is figureoutable.


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Market Days 06.19.25 and 06.21.25

The longest, hottest, and busiest days of the year are upon us!

The Thursday market is a chill vibe. A time for people who can’t make it during the morning hours to visit the market and relax. It’s usually a much smaller scale than the Saturday market, but there’s food trucks, baked goods, great food, entertainment, cooler evenings, picnic tables, and a good time. This week was a “Taste of the Market” event, which means a local chef shops the market, prepares a dish, and serves free samples. It happens every other Thursday in June and July and is a great way to discover new dishes. It’s always delicious. This week, we had 400+ people visit the Thursday market. IT’S GROWING!!!

On the way home, our truck blew a cylinder in the engine. He limped it and the trailer home. I was thankful we didn’t have to call a tow truck – again. Decisions had to be made. We ended up renting a truck to get our trailer to the market because missing the Saturday market was NOT an option. Friday, he picked up the truck while I was running errands and refilling my mom’s medication boxes. He also checked out a replacement truck. It was a late night of baking for him. He maybe got 3 hours of sleep.

The Saturday market included the local hospital’s annual art and health event – always a very large crowd. Not only did our little market set a new market record with 48 vendors, attendance was 4000+!!! What a lovely day! I’m so proud of the growth of our market! Twelve years ago when we become vendors, there were maybe 10 vendors at the busiest time of the season. Now it’s an experience. Food, fresh produce, music, and a great place for everyone to just hang out and have a good, wholesome time.

It was forecasted to be hot and humid, but no rain. There was a lovely breeze and we had plenty of fluids to drink. We visited with many people – always great to see our customers, old and new. It got VERY warm around 11:30am, but we stuck it out. At noon, we tore it all down. We were 1 worker down, but we did it. By the end, we were hot, tired, sweaty, and hungry.

After the market and loading up, we went to Buffalo Wild Wings for lunch. On hot days, air conditioning is the #1 requirement for lunch. The cold air washing over us as we walked in was so refreshing. We enjoyed many glasses of ice water with lemon, wings, and salad. Then it was time to head home.

I drove worker bee #2 home and came home while he dropped off the market trailer and headed to town to drop off the rental truck. The original plan was for him to come home with his vehicle after dropping off the rental, then we would head back to town to pick up the replacement truck. But, he forgot the key. So, I grabbed his key and headed to him. We parked his vehicle at my office (yes, I have a day job working as a Business Manager – it’s a very odd life I live LOL), and picked up the new (to us) truck. I’ve named it “The Beast.” Hopefully, this truck will last us a while and allow us to keep building this dream on our shoestring budget.

We were hungry, so we ate at a local Himalayan place that offers delicious food. What a great meal! We like to eat at places that will offer us a sample of food from other cultures as much as possible. We watch a LOT of Food Network.

We came home after the meal, sat down for a moment and had a cold beverage before we went to bed, exhausted at the end of this long day. He was up early this morning (he’s a morning person – I AM NOT). I slept for 11 hours and was able to wake up slowly – a nice change of pace.

We picked up his truck and ran a few errands. The rest of the day was chores, laundry, watching some TV, and getting stuff done before our work week begins again.

He brought me in a fresh cherry tomato – our first of the season. It was warm, juicy, and sweet. A delicious reminder that summer DOES have a few good things like fresh tomatoes. Yeah, we’re weird people who like cold and snow; the people who sleep with the window open during the winter.

As crazy as it can sometimes seem, we are blessed to live this life. We are helping make a difference in our community. We are building a dream that will hopefully become a reality when we retire. We are building relationships with our customers while they watch our business grow. It’s an amazing life.


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Market Days 05.31, 06.05, 06.07, 06.12, 06.14

It’s been a minute, but I have good reason to not write.

I’ve been tired….

5.31:
Morning market AND food truck event that night. My day began at 4am and I got home at 10:30pm. Step count: 16,490. It was a VERY good day. The next day, I slept and pretty much stayed on the couch because I am old and my body was hurting. Thank goodness W took a day off. Grateful for the Helpers, who, although they didn’t expect to be THAT busy, hung in there and did good work. My Stepmom B pitched in and helped.

6.5:
First Thursday market. Normally, we don’t do the Thursday markets because of our work schedules, but we will have 3 Thursdays in a row where we’re available. It was a Taste of the Market event and a few food trucks showed up. For a Thursday, the crowd was great. It’s a real VIBE. A time for people to hang out and relax.

Left work, ran an errand, rushed home, changed clothes, grabbed a few things, rushed to the market, set up, worked the market. Home. Slept. Went to work the next day. Home after to prep, load, nap, go to market. Interviewed by the local news. Surreal.

6.7:
Saturday market. Up at 4am. Another Saturday. Moist day. Everything feels wet. Spilled an ENTIRE container of sausage gravy in the trunk of my car on the way to the market. Good crowd. Good market. Lunch with the helpers. CAR WASH to hose down the trunk liner and the trunk. Errands. Home. Sleep.

6.12:
Thursday of a very busy week. Monday was errands with 6 different stops after work. Tuesday Board Meeting. Wednesday Blues Fest and prep work. Thursday is game time. Errand after work, home, change clothes, grab stuff, rush to market to set up in time for open. Art at the Market tonight. My actual kid taught the class. Super proud of her. Good crowd, good sales. Late night.

6.14:
Up at 4am, pick up the kids, stop for drinks and ice, stop for doughnuts, set up the booth, Wes is back (YAY!). Nice to be able to actually take a quick walk around the market, buy things, and visit with fellow vendors. Car accident in the parking lot that I had to handle. Some grump people, but most were pleasant. RAIN. Tore down 15 minutes early. WET. Everything WET. Lunch. HOME. Sleep

Here I am, on my one day off, writing, to get it all out of my head.

It’s a lot. Job. Shopping for weekly supplies. The errands. The bills. Car issues. Did I mention my trunk suddenly decided it no long wanted to open? Yeah. That. I’ll have to get the car looked at this week or next. Might have to rent a car for that because I’ll have no transportation and that’s not an option for me or my life.

It’s been a busy couple of weeks. But it’s been a lot of fun. We’re building something. Not only our personal business, but the market itself. We have a vision for the market and we’re getting there. Baby steps, but it’s happening. I’m proud of the progress. I’ll eventually take a few days off, go camping, and recharge in the quiet of nature, among the trees. But, in this moment, tomorrow is Monday and the list of “Things To Do” begins anew.


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Market Day 05.24.25

Certain days are just so busy, we don’t have a chance to take a breath.

After sleeping 11 hours last night, I think my brain is finally clear enough to process yesterday.

Another day with W at work. A team of 3 – until Helper #2 missed their alarm. Yeah, I texted. I called 27 times with no answer. On the way to the market, Helper #1 and I decided we’d have to adjust the menu and psyched ourselves up on the monumental task of setting up the booth. GIRL POWER!!!

But we did it. We got the entire booth built, the electrical cords ran, the equipment set up, the food to temp, the griddle fired up, the sign updated, etc. We did it! Then the whistle blew and the day began. We had a beautiful day – a little cloudy, a little chilly (nice when you’re set up on asphalt) and a great crowd.

#2 showed up 90 minutes in and the regular menu was back on. We enjoyed the morning of people watching, talking with everyone, seeing the cute kids and dogs, and we made it through the day. We decided where we wanted to eat – always a popular topic. We tore it all down and went to lunch. Cold water, air conditioning, and tasty food while we relaxed. Ice cream after and our day was complete.

I drove each helper home. Once I got home I washed my face, put on comfy clothes, and relaxed. Everything else could wait until tomorrow (today as I write this). We went to bed early and I slept for 11 hours – much needed. I unloaded things today and have been going all day.

I’m thankful to have this day to recover and get things done. I’m thankful for an extra day off tomorrow and for those who gave the ultimate sacrifice to make sure we still have our freedom.

Until next week… do your best with the knowledge you have, with the best of intentions and be kind.


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Mama Said There’d Be Days Like This

Some days, if it CAN go wrong, it WILL. How we handle these days defines our character.

My alarm rang at 4am. The was the first day W would have to be at work instead of the market. We would be a crew of three. I looked at my phone and discovered a message from one of our workers, saying they didn’t think they could make it today. Uh oh. The entire season we’d been training the helpers for this day. I sent them a message saying I REALLY needed them today. They said they’d be there.

I loaded up the car, thankfully not forgetting stuff. Yes, I’ve forgotten important things before – the cash box, the iPad, whatever. It happens.

I always text the helpers to let them know I’m leaving, so they’ll be ready. If they don’t respond, I start calling. After a few calls, helper #2 answered. I had woke them up, but they said they’d be ready. I picked up 1. Picked up 2. We stopped to get drinks and ice. Went to the market.

When we arrived, the trailer had a flat tire – a problem for later. I remembered the correct key to unlock it (thank goodness!) and we began unloading. The appliances kept kicking off, so I had to engineer the lines to the generator to get everything going, all at the same time. Yesterday’s menu was the lamb meatballs in a vindaloo sauce over rice. I had decided to bring the rice cooker and cook the rice while we were setting up. While setting up, the rice cooker took a dive off the table, mid-cycle. I had only brought enough rice for 2 batches – no extra. So, I picked up everything and headed to the market kitchen to rinse the 2nd batch of rice and get it started. Later, one of our fellow vendors ran to the store and grabbed me a bag of rice – we are blessed to be part of such a great community of people. (THANKS BECKY!!!!)

Set up took longer than usual with a missing team member, so I was working on the “specials” sign at the last minute. We opened and the day began. It went by in a blur, but it was windy. 4 jars of jam blew off the shelf and broke. The only break I took was to run to vendors to pick up orders of ingredients for future meals. I didn’t even have a moment to take pics of the food or post on social media.

We saw many adorable children and dogs. We spoke with many people. We laughed. We enjoyed the beautiful (albeit windy) day.

When noon arrived, it was time to tear it all down and put it away. I was helping the Market Manager when the helpers decided to take down the canopy. A gust of wind blew in and one of the canopy legs got bent. OUCH! We managed to get it down, folded, and put away, but it will have to be replaced. I’ve already placed the order today, so it will hopefully be here later this week. (SIDENOTE: When we ordered the old canopy, it arrived as a huge air hockey table that we had to return, cancel the original order, and place a new order. I’m hoping that doesn’t happen this time!)

We locked up the trailer, aired up the tire and went to lunch. Taking time after the market to sit down together and enjoy a meal gives us all a chance to decompress. We went to Sam’s after, then headed to drop of #2. I’ve been giving driving lessons to #1, so we ran some errands, then came back to the house to drop off everything in my trunk. Our daughter stopped by and hung out for a bit, then #1 and I logged some more drive time to get them home.

It was a long day, filled will hiccups and a little stressful. But, it is what it is. The rice wasn’t finished by the time we opened, but people graciously waited and were patient. Everyone was kind today. Nothing that went wrong was anyone’s fault. Stuff just goes wrong sometimes. We keep on going, with the best of intentions. The world isn’t out to get us. Patience goes a long way.

On my way home on this very long day, I saw a beautiful sunset. I took a moment to snap a pic and document the moment. There’s something beautiful in every day – we just have to look for it a little harder some days.


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A Day At the Market (05.10.25)

The market day begins after a short night of sleep with an alarm at 4am. We get up, get ready, load up, and head out. Him in the truck with the trailer, me with the car in the opposite direction. He gets to the market, puts the trailer into place and gets started. I drive to pick up our two employees – two teenagers with no drivers’ licenses who, for whatever reason, have chosen to spend their Saturdays with a couple of older folks. They’re really good kids and we love them like our own.

Sunrise!
Sunrise on the way to the market

On the way, we stop for drinks, a quick bite to eat in the car (usually doughnuts), and ice. Then we head to the market to begin. We’re usually there by 6am. Then the fun begins.

Booth set up takes 60-90 minutes, with time for emergencies (we left the spatula! we need a bucket! I forgot the extension cord!) to get to a store quickly. It’s a parking lot before we set up. We bring everything and build this space each week – Canopy, weights, tables, product, food, sanitation, shelves, signage, POS system, tea, chairs, coolers, everything. This was our 5th set up of the season and we’re finally hitting our stride.

The booth with the kids

We change something every season, which means every year is different. This year, we moved up to a double booth to accommodate everything we need. It’s still a work in progress, but we’ll figure it out eventually. For now, we’re doing what works to get the job done. We’ve figured out where everyone goes and their portion of the job. I take the orders and handle the register. W cooks and is training G, who cooks and helps bring out orders. S’s job is food prep. She assembles the plates and works with the customers on toppings to finish out their sliders.

We are currently out of ground lamb (yes, we were shocked, too!), so we don’t have any lamb sliders at the moment. This week, we had our biscuit & gravy, the breakfast bowls, braised lamb in a stock reduction over rice, and an Italian beef slider in marinara on a brioche bun with provolone.

  • Braised lamb in a stock reduction, served over rice
  • Italian meatballs in marinara - served on a brioche bun with provolone
  • Sausage gravy
  • The slaw!
  • Italian beef slider with provolone.

We had our usual retail offerings – jams, jellies, honey, lamb meat, topped towels, bags, dishcloths, etc.

  • Jam

The Mother’s Day market is always a busy one. It was a beautiful day! Perfect weather. Not too hot. Not too cold. A breeze. NO RAIN!!! When we get a moment to look up from our booth duties, we watch the people. It’s so much fun to see the babies, the kids, the pets, and the people having a good time. We had music in the form of a live community band. Many times, fellow vendors will hop over to the booth to place an order and we’ll run their food over to their booth when it’s ready. We understand they have customers, too, and we want them to be able to get a good bite to eat. Throughout the market time, we discuss where we will eat lunch. It’s an important decision in the world of hungry teenagers.

The day went quickly. We were busy most of the time. Gone are the days of walking around the market to talk with fellow vendors and browse the wares. Now, if we get a moment, we RUNNNNNNN to a vendor to get what we need and hopefully we see something great we need to have. Tomatoes from Dakota Edge Farms. Lettuce from Fischer’s Family Farm. Bacon from Hill View Farms. This week’s slider meatballs were beef from Hayden Farms and Tichenor’s No Creek Angus. The sausage in the gravy is from Bittel Heritage Meats. We make our food from scratch and we use as many ingredients as we can source from our fellow vendors. If you ask, we’ll point you in their direction. BTW, my “had to have it” item yesterday, was a piece of strawberry cake from Taste of Home Baked Goods. It took me an hour to get enough bites to eat it, but it was tasty!

By noon, it was over. Time to take it all apart and put it away until next week. It all goes back into the trailer or my car. There’s dirty dishes and laundry galore! We tear it all down, put it away, and head to lunch. Normally, we’ve chosen a restaurant to fill our bellies. However, this weekend was the BBQ Fest (formerly International BBQ Festival, now known as BBQ & Barrels). I didn’t want to go, but I was outvoted, so we went. We had the kids turn on their phone locations in case of emergency, handed them $20 each, told them to get whatever food they wanted with it, and let them go be kids. Us old folks found a food truck, sat down to enjoy our food, then went out to find the kids. We watched them ride the rides with smiles and laughter.

I was wrong. We DID need to go to the BBQ fest. We gave the kids a moment to just be kids. Laughter and smiles are sometimes just what we need. Of course, they hadn’t eaten. After they were finished with the rides (and their stomachs settled), they got their food. We headed home after a really good day.

Today is Mother’s Day. My kids will be treating me to dinner tomorrow, when we’re all available. I’ve spent my day recovering from yesterday’s marathon. Tomorrow will be work. In this moment, I choose to be thankful – for a beautiful day, for happy babies, for adorable dogs, for laughing kids, for a cool breeze, for a beautiful sunrise, for the community of wonderful people who make up our farmers’ market, for our wonderful customers who keep coming back week after week, for strangers who visit our booth and become regulars, for people who stop by once because they’re from our of town, for this life – as crazy and hectic and beautiful as it can be.

Until next week…


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Then and Now…

First market booth, 2014
Current market booth set up.

We set up at our local farmers’ market for the first time in 2014. It was one table, a cool door sign with our prices, and a dream. We transported everything in our Ford Explorer. Eleven years later, we have a double booth, tables, shelves, a POS system, a truck, a trailer, lots of equipment, and two employees. The fun doesn’t end there! Our goal is to transition to a food truck when it becomes financially feasible.

In the meantime, we’ll be setting up every Saturday and The Owensboro Regional Farmers’ Market through November 1, 2025. We still sell our lamb meat, jams, jellies, honey, handmade items, fresh cut herbs, and (when available) produce. However, our primary focus is THE FOOD! Lamb sliders made with our Jake’s Run lamb, scratch made biscuits and gravy, breakfast bowls cooked to order, and a weekly special that’s always delicious!

  • Lamb slider
  • Biscuit and gravy
  • Asian braised pulled pork
  • Our amazing lasagna!

We love local! We strive to use as much locally grown ingredients as possible. We grow the lamb and the herbs used in the sliders and tzatziki. Our lettuce comes from Fischer’s Family Farms. The tomatoes and cucumbers are grown by Dakota Edge Farms. We use produce from other vendors at the market, depending on what we’re cooking and availability.

If you love local, scratch made food, give us a try! We’d love to see you at the market!


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Vanilla – How to Make Extract and Why

This is what the final product will look like.

I love the flavor of vanilla. Here at the farm, we make most things from scratch. A good vanilla is a MUST for baking or for batters such as waffle or pancake. Two years ago, I was shocked when the price of my regular vanilla extract skyrocketed. It has tripled in cost! :O

As of today the cost for 4 oz. of vanilla extract at Wal-Mart is $6.72! I can make better tasting vanilla extract myself for less and I’m going to tell you how you can do it, too.

First, let’s break down the cost for me to produce 4 oz. of vanilla extract…

COST TO MAKE VANILLA EXTRACT:
Vanilla beans (Madagascar, Grade A)
            Amazon – $18.95 per 15 beans
            Cost per bean:  $1.26

Rum (Silver)
            Sam’s Club – $13.98 / 1.75 L
            Cost per ounce: 27¢

Ratio of beans to alcohol:
            3 beans per 4 oz. alcohol Cost to produce 4 oz. vanilla extract:
            Vanilla beans:  $1.26 x 3 = $  .78
            Rum:                  $  .27 x 4 = $1.08
            GRAND TOTAL:  $4.86 / 4 oz.

Now, let’s get to the actual HOW:

HOW TO MAKE VANILLA EXTRACT:

Things you’ll need:
Alcohol (80+ proof – I prefer rum, but some people use vodka)
Vanilla beans (your choice – I get mine from Amazon and I use Grade A Madagascar beans.
Clean container with a top – usually a glass jar or bottle of some type. No need to get fancy here. Any glass jar or container with a good sealing top will be fine.

Yes, I’m aware that’s a huge bottle of rum. Sam’s Club only had one size and it was only $14!

HOW TO MAKE VANILLA EXTRACT

  1. Cut beans in half or whatever size works to fit them into your container.


2. Add beans to container.

3. Add appropriate amount of alcohol (3 beans to every 4 oz. alcohol)

4. Cap tightly. Be sure to write the date on the container or the lid.

5. Place container out of direct sunlight. Shake weekly. A gentle little shake will do it. Don’t go all crazy here. It will be clear when you first start it, but will darken over the next few weeks.

6. Your vanilla will be ready to use in as little as 8 weeks, but optimal flavor is reached at 6 months.  I have some I’ve had for over a year. I just leave the beans in there.

I did this one on Christmas last year. Look at that beautiful color. No need to get fancy with the container, I just used the rum bottle. It worked.

THE CONTAINER
Don’t worry much about the container. As long as it seals, it will be fine. This morning, we used the last of our maple syrup, so I decided it would make a perfect container:

It begins as clear, but in a few short weeks it will be a lovely amber.


With a few supplies, a little effort, and some time, you can have your own delicious vanilla extract!


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Lemon Balm Infusions

My lemon balm was overtaking the herb garden. I had no idea what to do with the stuff, other than walking by and pinching a leaf to smell. I turned to Pinterest for ideas and decided I would use my lemon balm to make infused oil and infused vinegar. The oil will be used later in products such as lip balm, salve and soap. The vinegar can be used in cooking, salad dressings or (most likely) as a conditioner for my hair (fragrance allergy, if you haven’t read past blog entries).
The process is super simple:

Harvest the lemon balm and wash.  Our wash station is made of two halves of a 55-gallon food grade barrel. 

That’s a LOT of lemon balm!

2.  Strip the leaves from the stems. Rinse leaves again. Dry leaves. I use my handy dandy salad spinner. 

3.  Stuff a clean glass jar 3/4 full with dry leaves. Really pack them in there. The more leaves, the better the infusion. 

4.  Pour liquid over leaves, making sure to get rid of air bubbles. I added grapeseed oil to some jars, apple cider vinegar to the rest. 

5.  Using plastic lids (I bought mine at Walmart), close jars. 

6.  Gently shake and roll jar to cover all leaves. 

When I was finished, I had 3 quarts of vinegar and 2 quarts + 1 pint of oil. 
Here’s the difference between oil process and vinegar process:

OIL:  Place jars in a sunny windowsill. Occasionally shake the jars and place back on windowsill. 8 weeks later, your oil will be ready. 

VINEGAR:  Place jars in a cool, dark location (mine are in my bathroom). Every few days, shake the jars gently and return to their dark place. 6 weeks later, your vinegar will be ready. 

After the infusions are finished, strain the leaves from the liquid and store liquid, to be used for whatever you need. I’ll be making soap, lip balm and salve with my oil.