Welcome back stranger...

Good morning! Happy 2025! It has been a long time since I have updated this Blog. So much has happened in my life in 2024 and it has been a whirlwind for sure. My mother-in-law has come to live with us. My father-in-law died about 5 years ago and it was apparent that she could no longer care properly for herself. She was failing health wise, very depressed and her health conditions were just overwhelming. She had cancer of the colon that needed to be addressed and some other life threatening disorders that had to be gotten under control PRAISE THE LORD He has allowed me to obtain a good deal of information and experience dealing with the human body. Being a Nurse (retired) for 40 years does afford one some insight. Also the studying under several very intelligent women in the field of holistic/herbal medicine. My understanding of diet and nutrition given to me by the Lord has also set her on a course of healing and a better well being overall. Cancer is completely gone and overall she is in better health. So praise the Lord with me!

Helene was a real disaster here for us. We had 25 huge trees go down, those trees took out portions of most of our fencing here on our 9 acre property. The electrical connection was completely torn off our Cottage/Bakeshop/Farm store. We were without power for 11 days. Our generator supplied the power for our vital necessities like freezers, our refrigerator and our Well. We used kerosene lamps and candles and rechargeable flashlights for our evening lighting. Even with all of this we knew God had spared us since our home had minimal damage and there was no loss of life to any human or animal in our home or farm.

Sadly on October 5, 2024 I had to help my husband try and wrangle one of our female goats back into her enclosure. The lack of electricity allowed our animals to test areas of our electric netting and she decided to hang out with the “boys” on the other side without permission. Not wanting any future baby goats it was imperative to get her back inside her enclosure immediately. I will spare you all the crazy and painful details but nevertheless I took a fall chasing our Anatolian Shepherd Anna and dislocated my left shoulder. I took and ambulance ride to the local hospital in Greenwood to have the injury assessed. Waiting for the ambulance to arrive I prayed and asked the Lord for grace and strength and proceeded to put my should back in place. This is one of the most painful injuries I have ever had in my 65 years of life. After seeing the ER Physician and give supposedly a clean bill of health, I was sent on my way with an Ortho referral and a sling. Needless to say my shoulder dislocated 3 more times and when I went went to my ortho appointment it happened for the 4th time when they were x-raying my L-shoulder. All said and done I ended up having fractured humerus, torn labrum, dented bone and because of the repeated dislocations chipped the bone again. So on November 1, 2025 after seeing the orthopedic doctor and being in a sling for a month I had a three hour surgery to repair that shoulder. Fast forward- After 2.5 months in a sling and 7 weeks of physical therapy I am about 60% recovered. As I sit here today so many of my thoughts about life have drastically changed. I am more determined by God’s grace to lean even harder on God. I am more determined again by God’s grace to leave a legacy we can be proud of as lights in a dark place. God owns this world and I am His child. He has filled my life with joy and peace in the midst of tremendous suffering and pain. My dear husband Craig and our five children and 20 grandchildren as well as neighbors and friends are even more precious to me know than ever. It has been good I have been afflicted…

2025 is a year filled with hope and restoration. I am thankful that God is my God and I have the privilege to love Him and serve Him every single day because of Jesus Christ my Lord.

July slowly coming to and end...

Greetings farm followers! I am usually a very positive person, but I cannot help but admit it has been an awful Summer here in the Upstate of SC thus far. We have had weeks of relentless heat in the upper 90’s and humidity that has been off the wall. We have gone weeks without rain then we get a deluge of rain which makes everything muddy and more difficult to manage. I am thankful that God controls everything and when my heart gets in this condition I can turn to His word and be encouraged. We have lived here for about 10 years now and if the truth be told I do not think I can handle another Summer like this. I know God brought our family here so I will continue to ask Him for direction as I ponder our future.

Life on the farm has been very challenging of late. We have had quite a few losses this Summer. We have an aging population of livestock so we expect life to end for many but nevertheless it breaks my heart every time. We have gone over our cleaning and disinfecting routine making sure that we have not missed anything. At the end of the day we have to leave it all up to God asking for His guidance and blessing upon their health and survival. We are responsible to be good stewards of what God entrusts to us and when we do our part we have no other choice but to trust God to work it out.

We have decided to finally dry our milk cow Lissa off. She will be artificially inseminated with some sexed semen when the Farm I have chosen has it available, but for now I need a rest and so does she. She is still cycling without interruption so I am trusting that will continue till we have a confirmed pregnancy.

We are adding a small flock of quail to the Farm so hopefully we will have some quail eggs in the future.

That about does it for updates. Hopefully you all are managing well in all the heat and chaos in our country. God is still on the throne so keep the faith. Jesus never fails.

Einkorn Mocha Coffee Cake

Ingredients

For the Cake:

• 2 cups (240 grams) einkorn all purpose flour

• 3 teaspoons baking powder 

• ½ teaspoon sea salt 

• 1 cup (240 grams) sour cream or plain yogurt 

• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract 

• 3 eggs yolks 

• ½ cup (100 grams) sugar 

• 8 tablespoons (113 grams) butter, melted 

• 4 tablespoons instant espresso powder or 4 espresso shots 

• 6 ounces milk chocolate bars, roughly chopped

For the Crumble:

• 1 ½ cups (180 grams) einkorn all purpose flour

• ½ (100 grams) cup sugar 

• ¼ teaspoon sea salt 

• 12 tablespoons (170 grams) butter, cut into ¼” cubes 

• 3 tablespoons cocoa powder 

• 4 tablespoons instant espresso powder 

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Butter a 9x13 pan and set aside. 

2. For the cake, sift together the flour, baking powder, and sea salt. Set aside. 

3. In a stand mixer, combine the sour cream, vanilla extract, egg yolks, and sugar. Whip on medium-high for 5 minutes or until pale and frothy. Add in the melted butter, espresso powder, and chocolate pieces. Mix to combine.  

4. Pour the egg mixture into the flour mixture and use a spatula to combine the two until just combined, being careful not to overwork the cake. Pour the mixture into the prepared cake pan and use the spatula to evenly spread it on the bottom of the pan.  

5. Place the cake into the oven and bake for 10 minutes. 

6. While the bottom layer of the cake is baking, combine the crumble ingredients in a bowl. Use a pastry cutter to work the butter into the mixture until it resembles coarse sand. 

7. Remove the cake from the oven and sprinkle the crumble mixture evenly over top of the slightly baked cake. Return the cake to the oven and bake for an additional 45 minutes, or until completely set in the middle.  

8. Let cool completely before cutting and serving. Dusty with powdered sugar, if desired. 

   Recipe courtesy of Jovial Foods

Einkorn Chocolate Chip Cookies (Jovial recipe)

Makes 22-23 Cookies

Ingredients

• 12 tablespoons (170 g) softened unsalted butter

• ¾ cup (150 g) light brown sugar

• ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar

• 2 large eggs

• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

• 3 cups (360 g) Jovial all-purpose flour

• 1 ½ teaspoon kosher salt

• 1 teaspoon baking soda

• ½ teaspoon baking powder

• 1 ½ cups (230 g) semi-sweet chocolate chips

• A pinch of flaky sea salt, optional

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

2. Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or hand beaters, beat together the butter and both sugars until fluffy, 2-3 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.

3. Add the eggs and vanilla extract and beat until combined.

4. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder.

5. Add the dry ingredients slowly in three batches, scraping down the edge of the bowl as needed, and mixing until all the dry bits are combined. Fold in the chocolate chips.

6. Scoop generous 2 ½ tablespoon balls (1½” in diameter) onto the baking sheet, leaving 2 inches between each. Sprinkle the dough balls with flaky sea salt, if desired.

7. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until golden brown around the edges and set in the middle. Transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely before enjoying.

Recipe courtesy of Jovial Foods

A Remembrance of Carla Bartolucci

Today marks the third anniversary of the death of Jovial Foods Co-Founder Carla Bartolucci. I never had the pleasure of meeting Carla in person but it was on my bucket list. However I did exchange a few brief emails pertaining to Einkorn with her. I have written several posts over the years giving thanks for her work in the promotion and education of the wonderful wheat Einkorn. God brought her work across my path to help mold me into the Einkorn baker I am today. Though I bake in a small town way “Cottage Baker” I have had the privilege to share and teach others how to master the techniques needed to use Einkorn effectively. I have maintained a small blog presence and I have had an Einkorn Lovers Facebook Group for quite a few years now. Her instructions and her cookbook and videos are immensely helpful even to this day. I purchased a signed copy of her cookbook Einkorn when it first came out and I continue to look at the inscription with joy each time I use it. So my prayers are with the Bartolucci Family today and all those who loved her that you will know that Carla made a difference and you are all part of it. .