Summer is in full swing for the Clark family. Day camps, VBS, and keeping up with the farm chores. You name it, we’re busy! Aside from the heat and lack of rain, everything seems to be off to a great start.
Remember that broody hen – well, her eggs hatched! And a day earlier than expected. She was sitting on six itty, bitty eggs. Sadly, one didn’t make it but we’re lucky to have five adorable chicks to the coop for a little while. They are not ours to keep as we hatched for a wonderful friend and neighbor. It’ll be fun to watch them grow up with Buff our hen and once she had decided her little chicks no longer need her, they will be off to their new home.
And the ongoing garden adventure has not really changed much. We ended up buying a number of plants to grow this year. Thankfully everything is growing well, especially the weeds! If only I had a few more hours in a day or an extra me, I could work on keeping the weeds under control. Just another thing on the to-do list waiting to be crossed off.
We are really excited some of our fruit trees are starting to produce a little bit of fruit. Even the birds were generous enough to leave us this one tiny cherry. We’ll see if it is still there for us to enjoy when it is ripened.
Our little chicks – the ones we are keeping, as long as none of them surprise me and are roosters (I have my suspicions that one is a rooster) – are growing so fast! I try not to pick favorites, but this one is so adorable. I just love her. Sheep, named by our three year old, is a Frizzle and her feathers just crack me up. Now if only she felt the same way about me and didn’t run as soon as I came near.
And summer months means more time outside and our list of quick, easy to make meals for the kids to enjoy is on the menu! One of our favorites in Mini Corn Dog Muffins.
Mini Corn Dog Muffins
Ingredients:
¼ cup melted butter
¼ cup unsweetened applesauce
½ cup honey
2 eggs
1 cup milk
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 cup cornmeal
1 cup whole wheat flour
½ teaspoon salt
8-10 all-beef hotdogs, cut into 1 inch pieces
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Combine butter, applesauce, and honey in a bowl and whisk until well combined. Whisk in eggs and milk.
Combine in a separate bowl the baking soda, cornmeal, flour, and salt. Whisk in wet ingredients.
Spray a mini muffin pan with non-stick spray and spoon one tablespoon of batter into each mini muffin cup. Place one hotdog into the center of each cup.
Bake for 8-12 minutes – until the muffins are a golden brown. Cool for about five minutes in the muffin tin before serving.
We love to serve them with our favorite Parmesan Roasted Green Beans. And for the original, gluten free version of this recipe – visit Iowa Girl Eats (a favorite blog of mine – so great.)
So, I would love to hear from you! How are you and your family keeping busy this summer season?
Clarks in the Country 