Remember the meat grinder/strainer I received back in January? Here we are 8 months later, I finally have had the chance to play with the tomato attachment. I fell in love all over again. What had taken 20 or so minutes with my hand crank (including re-feeding the skin/seed "spit out" 3 times to extract all the pulp & juice it wasted), I spent 5 minutes continuously feeding tomatoes into the hopper of this baby:
When it would spit out the skin/seeds, they were bone dry. Bone dry! 
I had half a stock pot of tomato sauce in under 5 minutes. The time this thing will save me when the tomatoes really start pumping out are well worth it. I can not say enough great things about this machine. If your in the market for one on a budget, I would highly recommend this one. Being the combo of a meat grinder, I can make fresh meatballs & sauce in under a half hour for a meal!
While on the subject of meat, we butchered 2 of the rabbits last Friday. On the way home from last weeks auction, i had asked Lil' man if he would like to help butcher a few rabbits. he was all about it! I taught Lil' Man the process with the first one. He did the second. I was amazed & bursting with pride how he stepped up to the plate the way he did. At 7 1/2 years old he went from the very first step to the last with mom just there for any extra help needed. I was not sure how Frog would be since she is so young at 4 1/2 yrs old. She refused to leave and watched the entire process without any upset. Panda on the other hand has decided her mother is crazy.
In her words "Mom. Your cool. but your crazy. I'm going upstairs." I will not force her to participate if she does not want to. I believe it is wrong to do such a thing. Forcing a child will only make them associate this lifestyle with bad feelings. Besides, she helps with plenty of other things around here.
While at the auction last week, An Amish man had a very interesting and eye catching poultry carrier. I admired the round top with its simplicity and the ease of its complimentary shape when carrying it. I noticed that when a person carries the square tops, it is held further away from the body. Adding a cumbersome gait, straining of the upper body & arm. With his round top long carrier, he was able to carry it closer to his body without hindering his stride or posture.
As I stood behind him during the auctioneers speed talk, he noticed me eyeing it. I smiled and complimented him on his handiwork. Inquiring if the bottom was rabbit wire or wood. We did some small talk and he gave me a closer look at it. I thanked him and explained how I noticed it was not awkward to hold as the square shape but long enough to hold a few animals. I said "it's beautiful".He replied. "it's simple".
That is my project for this week. I will try to replicate the carrier he made. It almost has a shape similar to an upside down garden hod. More round at the top (which would be the bottom of a hod).
An upside down hod basket from an old tutorial.
I will be sure to document the progress and share the results with a possible how to if I am successful. It truly does appear simple and inexpensive. Very attractive despite being "simple".
I have strawberry vinegar to tend to before bed and 3 gallons of blackberry wine which have stopped fermenting- which is not good at this stage. Time to do some troubleshooting.
Sweet dreams,
~Tammie
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