Outstanding Young Farm Family Competition

Recognize anyone in these photos?

ALFA Farmers

This past weekend, Lance, Reed, and I competed in the Alabama Farmers Federation Outstanding Young Farm Family competition in Mobile. We competed in the cotton and poultry division. We won the cotton division and were selected as one of six finalists to compete for overall state winner the rest of the year! Here is the "official" press release on the competition/winners from alfafarmers.org!

"OUTSTANDING YOUNG FARM FAMILIES HONORED"

Jeff Helms

MOBILE, Ala., Feb. 26 -- Young farmers representing 10 agricultural commodities were honored as division winners in the Alabama Farmers Federation’s Outstanding Young Farm Family (OYFF) competition last night at the Young Farmers Leadership Conference in Mobile.

Six finalists also were selected from the group to compete for the title of overall OYFF at the Federation’s 91st annual meeting to be held this December in Montgomery. The winner will receive a nicely equipped 2013 Chevrolet or GMC pickup truck, courtesy of Alfa Insurance and Alabama Farmers Federation; a John Deere Gator XUV, courtesy of Alabama Farm Credit and Alabama Ag Credit; lease of a John Deere tractor, courtesy of SunSouth, TriGreen Equipment and Snead Ag dealers; and a personal computer system from Valcom/CTS Wireless. Alabama’s top young farm family will represent the state in the American Farm Bureau Federation’s Achievement Award competition at its January 2013 annual meeting in Nashville.

The OYFF commodity division winners were: Ben and Miranda Looney of Limestone County, Soybeans Division; Jon and Amy Hegeman of Calhoun County, Greenhouse, Nursery and Sod Division; Matt and Mandy Armbrester of Talladega County, Wheat and Feed Grains Division; Paul and Vicki Morrison of Dale County, Peanut Division; Lance and Stephanie Miller of Blount County, Cotton Division; Josh and Amanda Simpson of Monroe County, Beef Division; Daniel and Jessica White of Randolph County, Meat Goat and Sheep Division; Chase And Noelle Bradley of Monroe County, Poultry Division; Jamie and Amy Griffin of Shelby County, Equine Division; and Jeff Whitaker of DeKalb County, Hay and Forage Division.

The six finalists that will compete for the overall OYFF title are the Looneys, the Hegemans, the Armbresters, the Morrisons, the Millers and the Simpsons.

Now entering its 55th year, the OYFF program recognizes young farmers and farm families between the ages of 18 and 35 who are doing an outstanding job in their farm, home and commodity activities and promote a better understanding of agriculture with the urban populace.

In addition to the OYFF competition, the Young Farmers Leadership Conference included educational workshops and inspirational seminars on leadership, estate planning, farm management and agricultural advocacy.

The opening keynote speaker Friday night was Retired U.S. Army Chaplain Jeff Struecker. An Iowa native with over 22 years of active federal service, Struecker served for 10 years in the 75th Ranger Regiment. No stranger to war, his combat experience includes participation in Operation Just Cause in Panama; Operation Iris Gold in Kuwait; Operation Gothic Serpent in Mogadishu, Somalia; and multiple tours in Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan and Operation Iraqi Freedom.

During the opening banquet, Struecker shared his experiences in Mogadishu, which inspired the movie “Blackhawk Down,” and talked about the importance of leadership during tough times.

Other speakers included nationally acclaimed agricultural education specialist Betty Wolanyck, who hosted a workshop on the importance of being an advocate for agriculture. Custom Ag Solutions hosted a workshop on risk management and crop insurance, and Brooke Poague, an attorney with Wetumpka-based firm Bailey and Poague, led a workshop on wills and estate planning.
For more information about the Federation’s Young Farmers program, contact Director Brandon Moore at (334) 612-5159 or bmoore@alfafarmers.org, or visit www.AlfaYoungFarmers.org.

Oh, and we made the video too!

 

Something Sweet on Valentine's Day!

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!

 Here's the something sweet I got from Lance.

And here's the something sweet he got from me!

And now, my gift to you...the recipe!

Smores Cupcakes

Cupcakes
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup cocoa
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 cup milk
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 cup oil
6 jumbo marshmallows cut in half, plus more for decorating

Graham Cracker Crumb topping
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup butter, melted

Ganache
4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup butter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a bowl, mix flour, sugar, baking powder and baking soda together with a wire whisk.
Separate the mixture in half into two bowls.

Stir cocoa into one bowl and the graham cracker crumbs into the other.
Add 1/2 cup milk, 1 egg, 1 teaspoon vanilla and 1/4 cup oil to the cocoa mixture and beat on medium until combined.
Repeat adding the same ingredients to the graham cracker crumb flour mixture.

Prepare the graham cracker crumb topping.
Add the brown sugar and crumbs in a small bowl and pour on the melted butter. Stir until combined.

Pour a little graham cracker cake batter into the bottom of your baking cups and then sprinkle the topping mixture lightly on the surface.
Place a marshmallow half on top and then cover the marshmallow with the chocolate cake batter until it is about 3/4 full.
Sprinkle with more topping mixture.

Bake cupcakes for about 15 minutes. Place a cookie sheet underneath when you bake just in case. I had a little bit ooze over into the oven. Oops.

This recipe will make at least 12 cupcakes. I had a some batter from each left over so you can probably get more like 14-16.

Let cool and top with ganache.

Heat the butter and cream on the stove. Heat until just before it boils. Remove and pour over chocolate. Stir until completely melted and smooth.
Pour over cupcakes and add more marshmallows if you desire.

(From Bakerella)



Happy National Peanut Butter Day!

In honor of today being "National Peanut Butter Day", and the fact that we're peanut farmers, I thought I would share some interesting peanut facts!

Did You Know?

• There are enough peanuts in one acre to make 30,000 peanut butter sandwiches. That means that since we grew 150 acres of peanuts, we produced 4,500,000 peanut butter sandwiches.



• It takes about 540 peanuts to make a 12 oz. jar of peanut butter. Who knows how many jars we produced!



• Peanut Butter was the secret behind TV's Mr. Ed.



• Reese's Peanut Butter Cup was introduced to America in 1928.



• The average American eats over 6lbs of peanuts/peanut butter products in a year.



• Peanuts are naturally cholesterol free (but take it from me, don't go out to the field and eat a whole bunch of raw ones, they are not tummy ache free!).



• The peanut isn't actually a nut, it is a legume.



• About half of the peanuts grown in the U.S. are grown within a 100 mile radius of Dothan, AL, which is 250 miles south of us!



• Peanuts are also called "Goober Peas".

For more peanut facts visit National Peanut Board.

 

 

Now, everybody go and make a fried peanut butter sandwich!

 



2011 BCS National Champs!!

So...guess what I had tickets to on Monday?

Yep!

This year's game was held at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, LA.

If you've never been to New Orleans, it's right on the Mississippi River.

And of course, we had to visit Bourbon Street. I wasn't all that impressed. It smelled like sewage. Maybe it was just garbage day.

Anyways, back to what we came for...

This was the "Million Dollar Band" performing during pre-game.

Here is some more of the pre-game show.

The coin toss, which Bama won, by the way...

And here's some game play...

Some more...

This was part of the half time show. They had a lot of different high school bands that won a competition take part in it.

Hey LSU fans, where yall going? Honey Badger couldn't take what he wants? (I swear, if I saw one more shirt/pin that said "Honey Badger takes what he wants", I was going to scream. If you don't know who that is, he's #7 with LSU.)

Trophy Presentation!

Nick Saban hoisting the Coach's Trophy on the big screen.

Confetti! Whoo!!

Final score = 21-0!!

Roll Tide!!

And last but, but not least...Rammer Jammer!

You'll have to listen closely!

(Hey, Tigers! Hey, Tigers!

We just beat the hell outta you!

Rammer Jammer Yellow Hammer,

Give 'em hell Alabama!)

Dieters Beware!

Because you will gain 15 pounds just by reading this post! I've compiled all the desserts that I have made in the past few months and posted them below. Hope you enjoy...Remember, I warned you!

Triple Chocolate Pound Cake

(Yes, I got carried away with the frosting.) 

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, softened

1/2 cup sour cream OR 3 to 4 oz. cream cheese (almost half or half of an 8-oz. block), softened

1 1/2 cups sugar

3 eggs

1/2 to 1 Tablespoon half & half (if you’re using 3/4 cup cocoa powder–see below–use 1 Tablespoon of half & half)

1/2 to 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 1/2 cups flour

3/4 to 1 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease and flour a 9×5-inch loaf pan. In large bowl, cream together the softened butter and sour cream (or cream cheese). Add sugar and blend well. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each one. Add half & half, blending well; then stir in cocoa powder and mix well. Add the flour and blend well; then fold in the mini semi-sweet chocolate chips. Put batter into the prepared 9×5-inch loaf pan and bake at 325 degrees for 70-80 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean or almost clean (because it’s so dense and fudgy, the toothpick may not come out entirely clean; my baking time for the sour cream version was 75 minutes and 80-85 minutes for the cream cheese version). Cool in pan about 10-15 minutes, then remove from pan and cool completely (you may need to loosen the upper edges of the cake a little with a knife; then the cake will come out of the pan very easily). While the cake is cooling, you can make the frosting…

RICH CHOCOLATE BUTTERCREAM FROSTING:

1/2 cup butter (1 stick), softened

2 cups powdered sugar

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 Tbsp. half & half

1/4– 1/3 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips, for garnish

Cream the softened butter and powdered sugar. Then add in the cocoa powder and blend well. Add 1 Tbsp. half & half and mix well (if you’d rather have a thinner consistency, just add more half & half). When pound cake is completely cool, spoon all of the frosting on top of the cake and spread out to cover the top–you’ll have a nice thick layer of frosting! Then garnish with the mini semi-sweet chocolate chips, sprinkling down the center of the cake.



Reese's Peanut Butter Bark

(I forgot the peanuts, but it was still good!)

2 packages (4 oz. each) HERSHEY'S Semi-Sweet Chocolate Baking Bar, broken into pieces

1-2/3 cups (10-oz. pkg.) REESE'S Peanut Butter Chips

1 tablespoon shortening

1/2 cuproasted peanuts or toasted almonds, coarsely chopped

Cover cookie sheet or tray with wax paper.  Place chocolate in medium microwave-safe bowl. Microwave at MEDIUM (50%) 1 minute; stir. If necessary, microwave at MEDIUM an additional 30 seconds at a time, stirring after each heating, until chocolate is melted and smooth when stirred. Immediately place peanut butter chips and shortening in second microwave-safe bowl. Microwave at MEDIUM 1 minute; stir. If necessary, microwave at MEDIUM an additional 30 seconds at a time, stirring after each heating, until chips are melted and mixture is smooth when stirred; stir in peanuts. Alternately spoon above mixtures onto prepared tray; swirl with knife for marbled effect. Gently tap tray on countertop to even out thickness of mixture. Refrigerate about 1 hour or until firm. Break into pieces. Store in cool, dry place. About 1 pound candy.

Reeses Krispies

(They sorta look like boiled cookies to me!) 

1 Cup Sugar
1 Cup Corn Syrup
1 1/3 Creamy Peanut Butter
4 1/4 Cup Rice Krispes
1 Pinch of Salt
4 Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, chopped
1 Handful Chocolate Chips

In a large sauce pan over medium heat, melt the sugar, corn syrup, and peanut butter until smooth and evenly combined. Remove from heat. Quickly add the salt and cereal and stir to combine thoroughly. Add the chocolate chips and stir again. Wait about 1 min and add the candy, quickly folding the mixture together so as to not smash up the candy.Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and drop rounded tablespoons onto the sheet. Let cool and devour!



Colorful Sprinkle Cookies

(Not as pretty as they were supposed to be. They didn't get to stay in the fridge for as long as they were supposed to, so they smooshed when I sliced them.) 



2	cups unsifted cake flour
½	teaspoon baking powder
¼	teaspoon salt
⅔	cup unsifted powdered sugar
¼	cup granulated sugar
2½	sticks unsalted butter
1	teaspoon vanilla
½	teaspoon strawberry(or other)extract
½	teaspoon(or more)Rose food coloring
2	tablespoon unsifted cake flour
1½	cups sprinkles

 

Combine the flour, baking powder, salt and sugars in a food processor and process briefly to mix. Add the butter in pieces; process with on/off bursts until the mixture has the consistency of cornmeal. Add the vanilla and process until the mixture just forms a ball. Divide the dough into 2 equal portions then return one of the portions to the food processor. Add the strawberry extract, food coloring, and the extra tablespoons of flour to the processor and process until just incorporated. Roll out each portion of dough between sheets of waxed paper. You want a rectangle about 11 × 8½ inches by ⅛ inch thick. Leave the dough between the sheets of waxed paper and slide onto a baking sheet. Refrigerate until firm, for at least 2 hours or up to 3 days. Remove dough pieces from refrigerator. Pour the sprinkles into a shallow rectangular dish (such as a 9 × 13-inch pan. Peel off the top sheet of waxed paper from both doughs. Brush the vanilla dough very lightly with water. Using the waxed paper, lift the strawberry dough and flip it onto the vanilla dough so they are stacked. Press with your fingertips to seal the two doughs together. Remove the top sheet of waxed paper and trim the edges even.

When the dough is just pliable (but still cold), roll up the dough(begin with the long side) like a jellyroll. As you begin to roll, gently curl the edge with your fingertips so you don’t get any air pockets as you roll dough into a log. As you roll, the vanilla portion may want to tear, pinch tears together as they happen and keep rolling. After forming the dough into a log, throw away the waxed paper. Gently lift the log on top of the sprinkles in the dish and roll until the log is completely coated. Wrap the log in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm enough to slice (from 4 hours to a week, or freeze for up to 2 months; defrost in the refrigerator overnight before slicing).

Heat oven to 325°. To bake, slice the log into ⅛- to ¼-inch-thick cookies and bake on parchment-lined baking sheets for 15 to 17 minutes, until the cookies are no longer shiny on top and the bottoms of the vanilla portion are golden.

Homemade Butterfingers



(A little funny looking, but yummy!) 

1-2 packs candy corn

Peanut Butter (same amount of ounces as the candy corn

1 pack Almond Bark

Melt candy corn in microwave. Stir every 30 seconds.  After melted, stir in peanut butter. Spread in buttered dish. Cool. Cut into squares or roll into balls. Coat with melted Almond Bark.

Smores Pie





(Almost forgot to take a  picture!)

 

6 Regular sized Hershey Bars, broken into pieces

3/4 cup white sugar

1 cup all purpose flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 cup salted butter (1 stick)

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

1 cup graham cracker crumbs

1 7oz container of Marshmallow Creme

wax paper

Preheat oven to 350° Spray a 9″ pie pan with baking spray. Beat butter and sugar together until combined. Add egg and vanilla. On low add flour, graham cracker crumbs and baking powder. Divide the dough in half. Press half the dough in the bottom and up the sides of the prepared pie pan. Evenly spread the Marshmallow Creme over the bottom crust. Now spread the broken chocolate pieces on top of the Marshmallow Creme. Now, form the remaining dough into a ball and place on a piece of wax paper. Top with another piece of wax paper and flatten into a 9″ circle. Carefully peel the top piece of wax paper off. Flip the crust onto the top of the pie and peel the other piece of wax paper off.

Pinch the dough together to form the crust. Bake 20 minutes until lightly browned. Cool completely on wire rack and slice when ready to serve

 

 

Oreo Cheesecake

(I forgot to take a picture, so I had to swipe this one from pinterest!)

 

22 Oreos: 16 left whole, and 6 coarsely chopped

2 8-oz packages cream cheese, at room temperature

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

2 large eggs, room temperature, lightly beaten

1/2 cup sour cream

Pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 275 F. Line 12 standard muffin tins and 4 ramekins (or 16 muffin tins, if you have them) with paper liners. Place 1 whole Oreo in the bottom of each lined cup. Beat the cream cheese in the bowl of a stand mixer on medium. Gradually beat in the sugar and vanilla. Pour in the beaten eggs, a little at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. Beat in the sour cream and salt. Stir in chopped cookies by hand. Pour the batter into the prepared tins, filling each almost to the top. Bake, rotating pan halfway through, until filling is set, 22-25 minutes. Cool in the pans for about 15 minutes, on a wire rack, then transfer to a plate in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours.

Reed's First Christmas!

Well, Reed had a good Christmas, so I thought I'd share some photos!

He got a new John Deere Rocky Tractor...

A jumpy seat...

And a Bumbo!

Wiggley also had a good Christmas...



And so did we!



Ho Ho Ho!