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Lindsay’s Shepherds pie….
….we had a delightful dinner recently at Lindsay and John’s home and as always Lindsay went the extra mile to make even an informal get-together special. The candlelight and the lovely hostess you’ll have to supply, but here’s Lindsay’s recipe for Shepherds pie that we’re going to try soon: (Note: Lindsay does not measure when she cooks…it would be in metrics anyway…but by taste) First, she says, begin with Thistle Hill ground beef (a good beginning) browned with salt, pepper, nutmeg and thyme. Saute onions, brown some fresh mushrooms, and steam carrots and peas. Next, make a brown gravy in which you add Norwegian brown goat cheese (try Wegman’s if you…
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What we do at Thistle Hill…..
….is help people create quality Devon herds. And this two-month old heifer, at Tomina Farms in Kentucky, is an example. She’s by a bull we sold Regina and Tom Tesnow just over a year ago and we get frequent updates. They’re not only happy with the results but with the bull’s temperament and role in their pasture; so happy that they’re thinking of collecting semen from him. Best, of course, is to create your own bull on your own pasture but that takes a little skill and a lot of patience and luck. The greatest impact ever on our herd took place about four years ago when we spotted and bought…
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New to the heifer pasture….
….and we guess it’s because all four of our new piglets are female. They continue to tour but in a somewhat smaller circle and are now right at home with our yearling heifers. They quickly learned to stay clear of the hind legs and are quite bold….as long as the cows are in front. They’ve also made friends with our guard donkey, Jack, and they even nuzzle each other from time to time. But no matter how far they roam, the piglets are able to hear the sound of our Gator when we crank it up back at the house. And they’re waiting for dinner in their pen when we drive…
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We get hits….
You may not have noticed, but we had a “commenter” recently from Australia; it refers back to a post months ago. But it prompted us to check the hit counter to see just where our readers live. Not surprisingly, just about 90% are from someplace in the U.S.; we aren’t able to tell where. After that, the leading countries were Canada, New Zealand, Japan and the United Kingdom. Farther down the list were a few surprises: India, Russia, China and Uruguay. Our intention remains to give our neighbors a “feeling” for what’s going on at this grass fed beef and pastured pork farm in their midst and encourage more healthy diets…
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Help is on the way….
Wouldn’t you know? We recently made a down payment on a new puppy…an English shepherd which might grow up to be a herd dog. We had barely sent off the check when our editor of the “often-overlooked”—Bill Roberts of 12 Stones Grasslands Beef in Arizona—sent us video of an amazing rabbit that herds sheep. Now if someone would train a groundhog to herd cattle, we’d stop payment on that check. Here’s the video but a warning, it does get kind of monotonous after a minute or so; but the music is fun. http://www.theblaze.com/stories/yes-you-are-watching-a-rabbit-successfully-herd-sheep-like-a-dog/