Farmhouse Feast

Posted on Wed Sep 11th, 2024 @ 6:59am by Lieutenant Muffy Harrington

1,249 words; about a 6 minute read

Farmhouse Feast
Personal log
Muffy Harrington

Muffy was excited to be hosting so many at the farm. She had spent most of the day before setting up for the guests. The farmhouse was on the left hand side of the road entering the farm. The house had a wrap-around porch with a few padded swings and many rocking chairs, ready for someone to sit and enjoy the fresh air and the beautiful day. To the right of the farmhouse was a series of gardens. One had strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries growing in sections. The next garden had peas, bush beans, tomatoes, marigolds, and various peppers from sweet bell to Carolina reapers and included szechuan peppers. The next garden had vines, cucumbers, zucchini, yellow squash, acorn squash, spaghetti squash, hubbard squash, pumpkins and jack-o-lanterns, and other squash. The next garden was fresh herbs including dill, basil, oregano, parsley, sage, thyme, rosemary, marjoram, mint, catnip, tarragon, lemongrass, scallions, and cilantro. The next garden was root vegetables, and rather than having them planted in the ground, they were planted in stacks of tires so to harvest you just take off the top tire and empty it go get a pile of peanuts, or red potatoes, yukon potatoes, russet potatoes, sweet potatoes, radishes, beets, turnips, and carrots, The next garden was leafy with lettuces, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, mustard greens, dandelion greens, and collard greens. Next garden was celery, onions, garlic, shallots, leeks, and such. The gardens continued with each featuring a different group but there was string beans, grapes both table and juicing grapes, corn of several varieties, etc. The green houses were set to different climates depending on what was growing from tea to coffee to vanilla to chocolate, and various tropical fruits and vegetables. She had left baskets by each garden and greenhouse for those who wanted to pick produce to take home.

The animals had been taken care of,but the chickens were out searching for more to eat. The goats were playing in their pen, Ducks, geese, and swans were on the small lake behind the house. Sheep and rabbits were in their pens, grazing or sleeping. There were many horses and they were waiting for someone to come and ride them down one of the many paths through the woods out back. Cows were grazing until the evening milking.

On the shore of the lake between the water and the farmhouse had been set up as a picnic area and play area. Several picnic tables were scattered around the lawn and could be moved as desired. Next to the house were banquets with hot tables and cold tables. There was badminton, croquet, horseshoes, cornhole, and a small playground with a slide, teeter totter, merry go round, and swings. Finally, there was a hammock area and a hammock swing that swung over the lake a little way, and then a tire swing that also swung out over the water, and then just a rope swing going out a little further than the others for those who wanted to swim.

IN the hot table were large pans of home ground and cased and cured sausages, home smoked bacon, and cured ham steaks, home grown, grass fed, and dry aged steaks cooked to various degrees of doneness from rare to medium, but nothing over medium. There was scrambled eggs with cheese, fried eggs, and boiled eggs. Then there was french toast, pancakes, waffles, country hash browns and shredded hash browns. Hot and flaky biscuits, muffins with different berries inside of them. There was also sausage gravy, country gravy, and red-eyed gravy. There was also fried pork chops, country fried steak, and country fried chicken. There was also grits, oatmeal, cream of wheat, and rice pudding. Finally there were crepes that could be filled with the sausage gravy, pieces of the chicken, bacon, etc or fresh fruit like berries, apple pie filling, cherry pie filling, sliced bananas, pineapple pie filling, lemon curd, and fresh whipped cream.

In the cold table was fresh fruit, a salad bar, and juices with everything from apple, grape, peach, pear, various berries (single and mixed), citrus, cherry, tropical, and melon. There was also homemade butter, cream cheese, various cheeses, sour cream, and whipped cream.

On another sidebar that was neither hot or cold was various syrups from fresh harvested and made maple syrup to different fruit syrups as well as caramel and chocolate. There were also freshly made pastries from sticky rolls to doughnuts.

Inside the farmhouse there were a few rooms with closed and locked doors but the rest were open for those visiting to use. The front door opened to a large and comfortably furnished living room. To the right of this was a formal living room that looked like it came from some magazine. That led to an office and a closed door, locked door. To the left of the front door was a family room that looked like it had seen better days, but everything was in perfect repair, and there were games and puzzles and ancient console games with controllers and screens to play them on. Then there is a full wall screen for movies. That room led to a family dinning room that was as comfortable as the family room, that led to a breakfast nook to the left and opposite that was a butler’s pantry on a very short hallway that opened up to a very large kitchen with several workstations and storage galore. There were two different range tops with the smaller having six burners and the larger having ten. There was a wall of ovens that vented to the outside and into the baby animal pen so if the little ones got cold they had something warm to cuddle with; the outside vents taking the forms of mama animals complete with fur or feathers and a simulated heartbeat. Off of the kitchen was a formal dining room and another locked door. There were three bathrooms on this floor, one off of the living room, one off of the family room, and one off of the hallway leading from the formal dining room to the locked room and a laundry room. There were two sets of stairs, the ones leading down to a cellar were found next to the butler’s pantry. The set leading to the second floor was located between the family room and family dining room. Both sets of stairs had been closed off.

Muffy watched as Ian brought out the pan filled with crepes and nodded and went to the triangle hung from the porch eaves by the kitchen door and rang it loudly. “Everyone, brunch is ready and set out over in the picnic area there.” she pointed to the side of the house opposite the outbuildings. “Please help yourselves to whatever you wish, it is buffet style. If you want drinks, we do have a small bar with a bartender who can make you whatever you wish. I do need to warn you though, we do make our own whiskeys, ryes, bourbons, vodka, rums, tequila, and wines, so you will be getting real alcohol in those drinks. However, Doctor Toulaine is here and will treat anyone who imbibes too heavily.” She gives everyone the knowing look that said being treated by Toulaine for over indulging would come with a Toulaine lecture so don’t over imbibe. Then she waved them to the lawn and the tables and the food.

End log

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