Fiesta Chop Salad

Farmer's Market season + hot weather: It's the formula for a main dish salad for a tasty meal.

I love main dish salads in the summer. Randy likes them, too, but, in his estimation, some sort of protein needs to be included. And he'd prefer it not be chicken. I've been rationing the few steaks we have left in the freezer, but I decided to pull a package out when I saw the Fiesta Chop Salad recipe in an email from a Hutchinson kitchen store, Apron Strings. 

Covid-19 threw off our butchering schedule, so my beef freezer stash is alarmingly low. But grilled chicken or grilled shrimp would be tasty as an accompaniment to this salad, flavor-packed with spices and cilantro.

The original recipe called for iceberg lettuce. I prefer romaine hearts. When available, I buy the package with three hearts packaged together and chop them myself as I need them. They stay fresher and I can control the size of the bite. 

However, you could use salad greens from your garden or the farmer's market. With this salad, there's a "fiesta" of Mexican-inspired flavors coating the greens and the other veggies. The recipe called for corn grilled and cut from the cob, cherry tomatoes and finely-diced red onion. Randy and I prefer leaving the onion out ... so I did. That's the beauty of recipes like this - mix and match to suit your taste!

I also didn't have corn on the cob, so I charred frozen corn in a hot skillet on my stove top. It worked well.

While I used drained and rinsed black beans, you could use slightly-drained chili beans (like the email recipe suggested) or kidney beans. Sharp Cheddar cheese added flavor, along with the salty crunch of the corn chips tossed in at the very end.

The dressing started with a yogurt base, to which I added vinegar and oil, along with several spices. 

The recipe serves 6 to 8. Because I was making it for just us two, I used the ingredients needed to prepare two servings and kept the rest dressing free. That way, I could make fresh salad for another meal - much better than rehashing soggy salad greens and soggy corn chips!  

We also had more dressing than we needed for our two main dish salads. Just store the extra in the fridge and use the next time you make a salad.

A light meal will likely be on the menu at noon today. Randy test-cut wheat yesterday afternoon, and it was still a little too wet. The elevator at Zenith says it needs to be 13.4% before they'll take loads of wheat. 

Randy is like a little boy waiting for his birthday. He's hopeful that today is the day. And, if you're keeping track of our friendly family wager on our start date, Brent is poised to be the winner ... IF we go today. Susan has June 18, and I'm on the calendar for June 19. (I don't think I'm going to win the contest, but I'll win if we can actually start. And remember: Like a good mom, I had last pick of the dates.)

Randy actually went out twice yesterday to test cut - once right after lunch and once at 5 PM to see if it had dried enough. I accused him of wanting to stack the deck, since he had the June 16 date. We might have had to call disqualification.

Whether you're trying this salad as a harvest meal or just the way to beat the heat on a day when temperature records may be broken, I hope you enjoy! And good luck to our fellow farmers! h

Fiesta Chop Salad

Adapted from Apron Strings kitchen store

Serves 6-8

 

Salad

1 head chopped iceberg lettuce or 1 pkg. of 3 hearts of romaine, chopped

10 oz. grape tomatoes, halved

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

4 ears corn, grilled and kernels cut off the cob

Olive oil for brushing corn cobs

3 cups grated sharp Cheddar cheese

2 cups corn chips

1/4 red onion, finely diced (opt.)

 

To make it a main dish:

3-4 ounces per person to be served of your choice of grilled chicken, grilled steak, grilled shrimp, etc.

 

Creamy Cilantro Dressing

(Makes about 1 cup dressing)

1/4 cup white wine vinegar

1 tbsp. fresh lime juice

1/4 cup olive oil or vegetable oil

1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt

2 tsp. sugar

1/2 tsp. dried cumin

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 tsp. dried oregano

1/4 tsp. paprika

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. black pepper

2 tbsp. fresh cilantro, minced

 

Dressing: Combine all the ingredients in a blender and mix well. Refrigerate until serving. 

 

For Salad: Grill corn over direct heat until char marks appear. Once it's cooled slightly, carefully cut the kernels from the cob. (Because I didn't have corn on the cob, I charred frozen corn in a hot skillet on my stove top.) Wash and chop lettuce (I used romaine.) Half the grape tomatoes. Finely dice onion (if you want to use it. We prefer leaving out the raw onions.)

Assemble: Toss all the salad ingredients (except corn chips) together in a large bowl and combine with dressing, as desired. Top with corn chips. Serve immediately. 

To make it a main dish salad, top with seasoned chicken, beef or shrimp. 

Note: Since we don't have 6-8 people to serve at our typical noon meal, I just used enough ingredients for the two of us and refrigerated the remaining ingredients separately for another meal. Once dressed, the salad isn't as good for leftovers.

 

Corny Analogies

I've found a few of these hitchhikers lurking on the floor of our farm house lately.

Thankfully, most of its buddies ended up in the ground. 

It's corn planting time in Kansas. In the scheme of things, our farm is kind of like that single grain on the kitchen floor. The 294 acres we planted this spring on our dryland farm don't amount to much in the overall statistics of production for Kansas.

However, only five states produced more corn than Kansas in 2020. USDA estimated the 2020 Kansas Corn Crop at 766 million bushels, with a yield of 134 bushels per acre and 5.72 million acres harvested. Last year's crop was the second largest in Kansas history, falling only to the record 2019 crop of 801 million bushels. 

According to the Kansas Corn Commission, a third of our corn stays in Kansas to feed livestock; a third is made into ethanol and dried distillers grain at Kansas ethanol plants; and a third of our corn leaves Kansas to be used in other states or exported overseas, along with corn products. 

Since our primary crop is wheat, we don't contribute much to that total. For us, corn is one of the crops used in our rotational program to keep soil quality good and weeds down. For my brother and parents in a neighboring county, corn is a primary crop.

 

We began planting corn on April 26, a little later than our normal plant date. However, in mid-April, we had fairly chilly weather, so the soil temperature wasn't conducive for growing anyway. Plus, we had some cattle-moving tasks to complete first. (And, it allowed a visit with the granddaughters before we began the new task - bonus!)

Today, many farmers plant RIB corn (refuge in a bag) - whether it's irrigated or dryland.

The green-colored seeds have a different genetic make-up and are treated with a different insecticide than the purple-colored seeds. The purple seeds are a refuge for several different insects in a field, giving them a habitat to satisfy EPA rules. Before RIB technology was available, farmers had to plant so many acres in a field to a corn that wasn't resistant to the bugs and the rest of the field could be resistant. With RIB technology, farmers can plant it all at the same time, without changing seed and figuring acreage requirements. 

 

Randy adds a seed talc - or lubricant - to the planter boxes to facilitate the seed's journey from planter to soil. 

 

He also applies a starter fertilizer to promote early growth. The make-up of the starter fertilizer was determined after Randy did soil testing before planting. 

 

It included nitrogen, phosphate, sulfur and zinc. After planting, the co-op is applying more nitrogen, along with herbicide 

The fertilizer is in the tank pulled by the pickup. First stop is pulling up to the scales at the elevator to weigh the empty pickup and fertilizer trailer and tell the scale operator what kind of fertilizer we want. (There's another stop after the tank is filled for a final weight.) I also let them know how to bill the previous load of fertilizer.

Then, it's off to the fertilizer shed, where an employee fills the tank with the "recipe" Randy has ordered. 

I stand around and take photos of our prairie skyscrapers and the clouds. (What else is new?)

 

This year, we again picked up the seed as we need it at Zenith, so on some trips, we also get the bagged seed from another building. 

Once back to the field, Randy can then use the fertilizer in the trailer to refill the fertilizer tanks on the planter, attaching a hose. 

He starts a motor to pump the fertilizer to the planter.

He runs the motor until the tanks are filled. (You can see it's only about one-third full in this photo.)

 And then he's off to make another round. 

  

As always, we're "keepin'" it rural, just like our ancestors did.

 Corn was a primary crop in this area when it was settled. The 6th Biennial Report of the Kansas State Board of Agriculture of 1888 reported that corn was the main crop for Stafford County, covering 48,030 acres. Oats were grown on 10,849 acres, while the winter wheat crop totaled 8,717 acres. Pasture ground was tallied at 13,446 acres. Other crops in 1888 were millet, spring wheat, rye, Irish and sweet potatoes, sorghum, castor beans, cotton, flax, hemp, tobacco and broom corn. Swine outnumbered cattle in livestock. (Information taken from Stafford County History: 1870-1990.)

We got done planting our 294 acres of corn on Saturday evening. We still have a small food plot to plant as a custom farming job, but we are at a pause because of about 0.60" of rain we've received over the past two nights. We are thankful for the moisture.

Third Time's the Charm?

I've always loved the fairytale setting for our little farm home. The mighty arms of a chorus of old trees shade our house and yard.

Home Sweet Home "dressed" for fall - file photo

But on Tuesday night/early Wednesday morning, I was questioning my love affair with our big old trees. I know that Sunday night's storm toppling our 100-year-old-plus cottonwood had something to do with our hasty exodus from our upstairs bedroom to the main floor. As branches pummeled the roof and rain fell in sheets, it sounded a little like we were in a war zone. (Not that I know what that sounds like, but you get the idea!)

Early morning light revealed that not all the branches and trees had fallen in the Sunday night storm. There seemed to be plenty to "decorate" the yard and smash the rain gutter and flag pole after Tuesday night's storm, too. But, thankfully, the roof survived at our house. However, we will have to replace the roof at the farm employee's home.

The road in front of our house had been blocked by our massive cottonwood Monday morning. On Wednesday morning, it was trees from the shelterbelt across the road that blocked our way until Randy could get the loader tractor to again clear the path.

Our south driveway again took a hit in the Tuesday storm. This tree was just to the east of the cottonwood.

The tree that shades Randy's pickup also got an unexpected haircut. Thankfully, it didn't fall on his pickup.

We have had our share of wind storms this summer. A storm in mid-June skewed our lean-to and made it "lean" a little more than it should, as well as delaying wheat harvest for a few days.

The same storm damaged trees at a cemetery not far from our farm.

The two storms this week brings us to three - count 'em, 3! - violent wind storms since June 21. I'm really hoping "third time's the charm" comes true and puts an end to the storms and the damage.

Google tells me that the origin of the phrase "third time's the charm" is probably ancient since things that come in sets of three have often been associated with good fortune due to their similarity with the Holy Trinity. Another source says that the possible origin for this phrase comes from the common folk belief in perseverance. It's said that one shouldn't just give up in the face of setbacks and should instead, "Try, try and try again." This suggests that trying once or twice isn't enough, but trying four times is too much.

I'm all for perseverance, but I'd say a fourth wind storm this summer would, indeed, be too much.

However, Randy and I were surprised to see that the corn had fared much better than we'd expected.

Both of us had envisioned our corn snapped in two and leaning over like our trees. So we were surprised and, yes, thankful, too!

I missed this round of the clean-up since I needed to be in Stafford at 8 AM to help with 4-H foods judging.

Hmmmm - maybe I wasn't too sad about that!

***

This morning, we did a little farm scouting tour. Here's the milo, which has enjoyed these abundant "drinks" of water lately:

The silage is doing well, too:

Cleaning Up? A Corn 2020 Tale

If we were smarter, we might increase our corn income in 2020 by bypassing the corn and moving directly to the cobs.

We got this "special delivery" package from some caring (?) friends soon after the hoarding of toilet paper depleted it from store shelves.

Even though our local grocery store - Paul's in Stafford - has had most items in stock, they couldn't keep toilet paper on the shelves for awhile. Owner Jim Chansler didn't lose his sense of humor as evidenced by the display in the TP section.

Facebook post by Jim Chansler on March 18

(FYI: There is TP now in Stafford, though not a huge variety and not my preferred brand, but beggars can't be choosers as all the old wives will tell you.)

With corn prices in the toilet - so to speak - the cobs may be worth more than the corn. (I'm joking ... I think.)

Covid-19 has brought U.S. travel to a screeching halt, and with it, ethanol production has plummeted. The cutback in ethanol production has already led to a significant drop in corn prices, since corn is the predominant grain used in production nationwide. According to the Renewable Fuels Association, since early March, corn futures prices have fallen by 17%.

Out of the more than 800 million bushels of corn produced in Kansas each year, the Kansas Corn Growers Association says 27% goes to Kansas ethanol plants, 27% goes to Kansas livestock feed and 44% leaves the state. 

But we - like other Central Kansas farmers - are planting the 2020 corn crop. We began planting corn on April 20 and finished on April 28 (with starts and stops in between). 

As I've said before, corn is not a main crop for us. Last year, because of weather conditions that prevented wheat planting in fall 2018, we raised corn on 600 acres. But since we are primarily wheat farmers, that was a lot of acres for us.

This year, we are back to 180 acres committed to corn.

 

Today, many farmers plant RIB corn (refuge in a bag) - whether it's irrigated or dryland. Our farm is entirely dryland.

The green-colored seeds have a different genetic make-up and are treated with a different insecticide than the purple-colored seeds. The purple seeds are a refuge for several different insects in a field, giving them a habitat to satisfy EPA rules. Before RIB technology was available, farmers had to plant so many acres in a field to a corn that wasn't resistant to the bugs and the rest of the field could be resistant. With RIB technology, farmers can plant it all at the same time, without changing seed and figuring acreage requirements. 

Randy adds a seed talc - or lubricant - to the planter boxes to facilitate the seed's journey from planter to soil.

He is also putting on a starter fertilizer to promote early growth. The make-up of the starter fertilizer was determined after Randy did soil testing before planting. 

 

It includes 20 pounds of nitrogen, 15 pounds of phosphate, 5 pounds of sulfur and 1 pound of zinc per acre. After planting, the co-op is applying 70 pounds/acre of nitrogen, along with herbicide 

The fertilizer is in the tank pulled by the pickup. First stop is pulling up to the scales at the elevator to weigh the empty pickup and fertilizer trailer and tell the scale operator what kind of fertilizer we want. (There's another stop after the tank is filled for a final weight.) This year, because of social distancing, the request was made through the office window, rather than going into the office.

Then, it's off to the fertilizer shed, where an employee fills the tank with the "recipe" Randy has ordered.

This year, we again picked up the seed as we need it at Zenith so on some trips, we also get the bagged seed from another building.

Once back to the field, Randy can then use the fertilizer in the trailer to refill the fertilizer tanks on the planter, attaching a hose.

He starts a motor to pump the fertilizer to the planter.

He runs the motor until the tanks are filled.

 And then he's off to make another round. 

The corn planting was slowed briefly last week when we received 0.60" of rain. (We aren't complaining about that.) But Randy completed the task on Tuesday. Now we're waiting on it to emerge. Today, it's another day of moving cattle to summer pasture. More on that to come!