"The Tall One"

This one is definitely a keeper.

UARC specialty in Columbus today

Annette with BOB Satin Angora, Marcus with BOB English, Charlotte with BOB French, and Colleen with BOB Giant.

Show Secretary Tina awards Charlotte with the Best in Show ribbon, certificate, and windchime.

It was a very nice show, and well attended.

Mexican Lamb in an Adobo Crust

1 tablespoon cumin seed 1 tablespoon fennel seed
2 teaspoons lime zest
2 teaspoon fresh oregano leaves
2 teaspoons minced garlic
2 teaspoons cracked black pepper
2 teaspoons coriander seed
¼ cup olive oil
8 lamb loin chops, 1 inch thick
½ teaspoon fresh rosemary leaves
½ teaspoon fresh thyme
1 ½ teaspoons salt
1 can refried beans
Tortilla chips, to serve
Fresh cilantro, for garnish

Toast the cumin, coriander, pepper, and fennel seed in a skillet for a few minutes or until aromatic.
Let the mixture cool, and then grind in a blender, spice grinder or with a mortar and pestle.
Stir in the lime zest, oregano, salt, and garlic, and then add the rosemary and thyme.
Rub the spice mixture over both sides of the lamb chops, then cover them and let them marinate in the mixture for 2 hours.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Heat an ovenproof skillet over a moderately high heat, then add 2 tablespoons of oil and warm it until it starts to shimmer.
Sear the lamb chops in the oil for 3 minutes, then turn and sear the other side for 3 minutes.
Put the skillet in the oven and cook the lamb for 5 to 8 minutes, or until it is cooked how you like it.
Serve the adobo crusted lamb with the tortilla chips and refried beans. Garnish each plate with cilantro.

The reason for the rain

Happy Easter!

They entered in and saw the empty tomb, for the stone lay rolled away

They saw the angel and, with fearful hearts, the place the body lay
And the angel answered unto them,
I know whom ye seek, be not afraid.
Ye seek the Lord, within ye shall not find him
He is not here, but risen who was crucified

Why seek ye then the living here among the dead?
Enter in and find him not!
He is risen as he said;

He is risen
Risen from the dead.

Sally DeFord Music

If the Easter Bunny was a zombie....

How creepy is this antique rabbit?  Those are big, gaping black holes for eyes.

Lambing is over



The last lamb of the year - a ewe lamb!  This is Somerhill Montrose's daughter.  She had her out in the pasture this afternoon, and brought her to the barn tonight at feeding time.



Vivace and her twin daughters born this AM.  They are really active and trying to jump already.

Peg's daughter Carondelet.  Her brother was hopping around too much to get in the picture. (that's a shadow, not black legs)

Yet another set of twin ewes

This time, out of Somerhill Vivace.  They are nice sized and doing just fine.  I need to get some pictures of the lambs - the camera battery was dead last night when it was sunny are sorta dry.  Now more rain - as much as 2.5 inches are predicted for tonight and tomorrow.  Hope it lets up for Easter Sunday, as we have the entire Rodenfels clan coming. 

Asian Rabbit Salad

2 C diced cooked rabbit
2 gr onions, chopped
1 carrot, shredded
1/2 small head napa cabbage, thinly sliced
1 T sesame seeds
1/2 c crispy rice noodles

Dressing:
1 c mayonnaise
1 T sesame oil
1 T sugar
1/8 tsp ground ginger

Prepare dressing ahead 3 hours and chill.  Toss ingredients together with dressing and serve immediately.

Almost done.....

Pegasus had a set of twins yesterday morning - one of each.  These may be her last - Peggy is getting old, and I'm concerned that she might not be around another year.   She's got a lot of daughters here, and granddaughters and more... 
The lambs are healthy and eating well, and of course she is doting on them and they will probably end up some of the nicest lambs when we wean them.  She's always been a good mother and milks very well.  The ewe lamb is named Carondelet.  (named for a Civil War ironclad gunship. )

We've got 2 more ewes to lamb - one ewe lamb, and Somerhill Vivace, who should go any time now. 

French Angoras for sale

NB Caramel Hi-Rise

Registered broken lilac tort buck, has sired several litters.  Born March 2010.

$25.

Can be purchased as a breeding pair with a young fawn Somerhill doe for $90.00

(Doe is not available sold separately.)

Sign of the times

Exactly when did it become necessary to remind your customers to wear pants in public?

Gyro Pizza

1# ground lamb
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 tsp ground rosemary
1 pizza crust, or large tortilla
1 large roasted red bell pepper, pureed
6 oz feta cheese
1 thinly sliced red onion
1/2 c fresh oregano leaves
1/4 c pine nuts
chopped tomato
* Quick Tzatziki sauce

Cook lamb with garlic and rosemary until no longer pink.  Put pizza crust on oiled sheet, spread with puree red pepper, then top with lamb mixture, cheese, onion rings, oregano and pine nuts.  Bake 20 minutes at 400 until crust is brown and cheese is melted.  Sprinkle with tomato and cut into wedges.  Serve with tzatziki sauce on the side. 
*Quick Tzatziki sauce:  mix 1 cucumber(peeled and chopped fine) with 1.5 c plain yogurt, 3/4 tsp dried dill, and a dash of salt. 

Satin Angora babies

Sumatra's 2 little ones - tort and red

Some of Virichic's eight.  They like to pile up.  She has black, tort, red, chocolate, chocolate agouti.

Ilaria's girl

Born 4-14-11

French Angora babies

Voodoo and Caramel's 5.  One cream, and 4 brokens - all dilutes

Oleander and Nightshade's 5.  Black, lynx(?), chocolate, 2 REW.

More lambs

Wynne and her ram lamb.  This was our first C-section in the 25 years we've had sheep, and thankfully, both mother and son are doing exceptionally well.   Wynne was standing 5 minutes after the operation, and starting eating ravenously the minute she got home from the vet's office.   

Arleen and her daughter, Roisin

Finally a little touch of spring

Rabbit and Wild Rice Salad

1-2/3 cups wild rice

3-1/3 cups water
1 6-1/4-ounce package chicken-flavored rice pilaf
4-1/2 cs coarsely chopped cooked rabbit meat (about 1-1/2 pounds)
1 medium red sweet pepper, cut into thin bite-size strips
8 oz fresh pea pods, trimmed, strings removed, and pods cut into thin bite-size strips
1 c bottled lemon-pepper salad dressing or vinaigrette
1/4 c bottled French salad dressing
1/8 tsp ground black pepper
2 bunches green onions (about 10 total), cut into thin strips

Rinse wild rice well. Bring the water to boiling in a large saucepan. Add wild rice. Return to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, covered, about 40 minutes or until most of the water is absorbed and rice is tender. Drain, if necessary.
Meanwhile, cook rice pilaf according to the package directions.
Combine the wild rice, rice pilaf, rabbit meat, sweet pepper, and pea pods strips in a large bowl.
Stir together salad dressings and black pepper in a small bowl. Pour over rice mixture. Stir gently to mix. Cover and chill for at least 2 hours or up to 24 hours.
To serve, arrange green onions around edges of  chilled salad plates. Spoon rice mixture into center. Garnish each plate with additional pea pods, if desired. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Sleepy Lucy

2 more sets of twins

One of the yearlings had a set of twins in the pasture last night when I got home.  Good ol' Penn, he stays right out there with them, and tips me off there are lambs.   Sadly, the ewe lamb was stillborn, but the ram lamb is doing fine once he got dried off and fed.  In the madness last night, I forgot to check her ear number, but I think its one of the "T" girls  - either Tibbie or Tabbie. 
While getting these lambs into the barn out of the chilly wind, Jillian had a whopping set of twins.  Jill is natural colored, and she had a white ram and black ewe lamb.  They have not stopped eating since they were born!  Good thing Jill has lots of milk - she is going to need it.  :^)  Funny - last year, Jill's twins were tiny little girls.  These lambs look half grown already.   The ewe lamb is named "Piper".

More twin ewe lambs

2 more sets of twin ewe lambs, also from yearling ewes.  Valley had a set out in the pasture yesterday around noon, and Joni had a set right after I got home from work last night.   That is 4 sets of twin ewe lambs in a row! 

Bad, Bad lambs

How many times do I have to tell you not to sleep in the hay feeder!

Next wave of lambs has begun.

China and her twin daughters, Fairlie & Fleur.  She had them in the upper pasture as far from the barn as she could get.....so I had to carry them in a sling all the way back.  They are doing great.



Dessa and her twin ewe lambs.  These are Dessa's first, as she is just short of the year old.  She is a perfect little mother and very proud of them.



Moose" & "Spot" . Two other possible X1 keepers

My favorite X1 ram lamb

Computer down

My computer is being repaired, so I won't have internet access over the weekend. 

New baby bunnies

OK, I think maybe its safe to announce some new litters that were born late last week.  After all my troubles this fall/winter with extreme temperatures, I was reluctant to even talk about new litters for fear of "jinxing" them.

Voodoo and Caramel have a litter of 5 FAs.  They are all either creams or dilute torts, and 4 are brokens.
Oleander and Nightshade have 5 FAs.  There is a black, a tort, a chocolate, and 2 whites.
Virichic and Max have 8 little SAs.  There are 2 blacks, 1 chocolate, 1 chocolate agouti, and 2 reds/fawns/torts.
Sumatra and Max have 2 SAs - we had some troubles with her giving birth and milking, but the 2 remaining are doing well now.  She has a red and a tort.

Baked Lamb with Cheese Crust

Found this recipe on a British recipe site.  They say to serve it with "potatoes, baked in their jackets".

1# left over cooked lamb, cut into cubes
3 T butter
2 medium-sized onions, thinly sliced
1tsp dried thyme
3 bay leaves
salt
freshly ground black pepper
14 oz  canned tomatoes
3-4 pieces of bread, torn into small pieces
1.5 c sharp cheddar cheese, grated

Preheat the oven to 350.   Meanwhile, melt 1T butter in a large frying-pan over moderate heat. Add the onions and saute them until golden and soft.
Put the onions in the bottom of a casserole dish, place the lamb on top and sprinkle in the thyme. Put in the bay leaves and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Pour in the tomatoes with their juice.
Melt the remaining butter in a large frying-pan, add the breadcrumbs and stir until the breadcrumbs are nicely browned and have absorbed all the butter.
Mix the breadcrumbs with the grated cheese and spread evenly over the tomatoes. Bake for 40 minutes, or until the top is crusty and all the cheese melted. Serve the casserole immediately.