A Traditional Farm Life 3-16-15

March 16, 2015

A Traditional Farm Life

By Shasta Hamilton

Greetings from Enterprise, dear friends!  The warmth of an early burst of spring has brought a new “spring” to our steps around here this week.  The first hints of green are shooting up in the pasture, and the first mosquitoes and flies have made their unwelcome appearance.  We must take the good with the bad, must we not?

Our boys are excited that a new horse walked over to our house this week.  Knowing our family’s need for more buggy and draft horses, as well as our oldest son’s desire to begin training horses, a generous couple outside of town donated a beautiful Palomino to the cause.  In return for this generosity, our son will spend time helping the couple repair fence for their remaining horses.

Coming from only about a mile from our house, I dropped the boys off Monday afternoon with a halter and lead rope.  The owner and his faithful dog accompanied them to our place, and his wife came to pick them up.  It just so happened we had some warm caramel glazed cinnamon rolls recently out of oven when they arrived, so we were able to send a token of our gratitude home with them.

Our oldest son christened the Palomino “Bob.”  This rather nondescript name has great significance to me, however.  Whether he named the horse with this in mind or not, my family has a history with a horse named Bob.

My Grandpa Will’s last pair of draft horses were named Bob and Patsy.  These horses have earned a place in family lore because of the circumstances in which they left the farm.

Grandpa was still farming with horses in the 1950’s, as were many others, but the practice was quickly dying out in favor of the different kind of speed and power that tractors were bringing to farming.  Just as farmers today are looking for “the next big thing,” the slower pace of life farming with horses couldn’t compete with the drive to quickly cover more acres for hopefully larger profits.

My Grandfather was a quiet and gentle man who did not possess a drive for great wealth.  He was an animal lover, but not in today’s sense of the word.  He simply loved all the animals God entrusted to his care on the farm.

But times were changing and the horse trader that kept coming around was relentless.

 “All your neighbors are selling me their horses and switching to tractors, shouldn’t you?  Don’t get left behind!”  After several such visits from the horse trader, my grandfather gave in and sold his beloved team.  He always looked back on that decision with regret.

It was true that tractors were replacing the draft teams, and perhaps he would have been “left behind,” but I selfishly wish my Grandpa had kept Bob and Patsy around.  He must have had a very special connection with them, for fifty years later he still regretted selling them.  Looking at it now as an adult, I have a feeling there was probably more to the decision than I’ll ever know. 

Grandpa’s been gone now for more than 13 years, so I can’t ask him.  But as scarce as cash money always is on the farm, and as sure as bills are to come in the mail, I’m guessing there was a financial need that eclipsed the sentimental.

So, you see, my reasons for being excited about a horse named “Bob” are really quite obvious.  Our desire is for our children to remember the old paths and learn the old ways.  We must not—cannot--let these rural skills fade away.  If we are able to acquire the right horses, we hope to have our boys market garden with them on our property.  We also hope that in time the boys will be able to find little pieces of ground in the area to farm with the horses as well. 

We can’t change the past, but we can influence the future with our choices today.  Long live Bob and Patsy!

The Buggy Stop Test Kitchen was busy this week trying out a few new cinnamon roll variations.  The following recipe is from Peter Reinhart’s The Bread Baker’s Apprentice.  Couple this glaze with your favorite homemade or frozen cinnamon rolls—baked as your recipe directs--and you are in for a treat. 

Incidentally, you might appreciate a Test Kitchen tip learned the hard way:  Use a couple 9” x 13” baking dishes instead of a jelly roll pan or you’ll be cleaning up a burnt caramel mess off the bottom of your oven!

Caramel Glaze for Sticky Buns

1/2 lb. butter, at room temperature

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup corn syrup

1 teaspoon lemon, orange, or vanilla

extract

In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the butter, both sugars and salt.  Cream together for 2 minutes on high speed with the paddle attachment.  Add corn syrup and extract of your choice.  Continue to cream for about 5 minutes, or until light and fluffy.

Use as much of this as you need to cover the bottom of the pan with a 1/4-inch layer.  Refrigerate and save any excess for future use; it will keep for months in a sealed container.

Shasta is a fifth generation rural Kansan now residing in Enterprise, Kansas.  She and her husband own and operate The Buggy Stop Home-Style Kitchen with their six home-schooled children.  You can reach The Buggy Stop by calling (785) 200-6385.