I’m once again joining in with Heather over at her blog to chronicle what’s going on in my kitchen this week.

I feel a bit like my kitchen has been neglected over the last few days, but when I look back over a few photos snapped in the early part of the week I can see there’s been plenty of activity.  It’s been really busy here on the farm this week, it seems like every day there is more to do than hours or energy allows.  The garden is coming on apace, but then so are the weeds.  Trees need attending, herb transplants need to go in and there is always the weeding..and the weeding…and, well you get the idea.

Dinners are low key at the moment, we’ve had some of that really hot and humid July weather we get here in Ontario, the intense all consuming heat that makes activity five times more sweaty tiring than usual.  Light picnics are the order of the day, hummus and veggies with a good side order of honey-covered locally picked strawberries; just the ticket for a hot summer day.

Along with eating our body weight in hummus, I’m trying to use our own produce as much as I can.  Right now that means recipes using eggs and greens, there really is nothing like a feta and spinach omelette to fill the tummy without too much heaviness.  Light dinners notwithstanding I’m still finding plenty to do in the kitchen, but it is a different kind of work.  I’m trying to discipline myself to make more of my own basics, the kinds of staples we would usually buy.

With a fridge full of milk from our lovely milking cow, Wander, I’m in cheese making mode. The photos above are of my feta, currently seasoning and waiting to go into brine and then the fridge for a 30 day cure.  My first batch of feta melted into the brine, so I’m hoping that the addition of calcium chloride will keep it firm enough to sprinkle on my omelettes later in the summer.

Later today I’m hoping to have tried a batch of peanut butter hummus, made a double batch of mayonnaise and attempted some Queso Fresco cheese, which I’m frankly very nervous about.  On top of that there is bread to make, strawberries to pick for jam, lettuce to sew, fruit bushes to mulch, trees to weed out, animals to feed…totally doable.  Totally.  Yep.  No problemo.