Hello campers and families!
Sorry for not writing a blog post yesterday. The internet went down on the farm.
Friday was so much fun!
Meet the blue peppers! They loved gardening this week!
Meet the red peppers! They loved building nests at the pond! 
Meet the orange peppers! They loved hiking in the woods!
Meet the yellow peppers! They loved playing games in the children’s garden!
Meet the green peppers! They loved singing songs on the wagon ride!
Campers enjoyed horse back riding Thursday and Friday. Each group took a turn in the corral with the horses.
Are horses ruminants? How can you tell?
This horse was running around on a lead rope. 
After running, the horse had an increased pulse. The blue peppers took her pulse using a stethoscope. 
How many times does the average horse heart beat per minute?
How do you measure horses? With hands! A hand is approximately 4 inches. This horse is approximately 15 hands tall from hoof to withers (shoulder).
Who puts shoes on a horse? Why is it important for a horse to have horse shoes?
Horses like to roll in the dirt as much as a clean dog.
The teen volunteers led “fishy story.” The story tells of a fish traveling down a river contaminated with fertilizer, oil from a parking lot, trash, and other pollutants.
How did the fish feel in a polluted habitat? 
The pepper groups enjoyed a wagon ride in the afternoon!
The campers learned “repeat after me” songs.
The campers built the nests all week for STEM. Then this afternoon they dropped an egg in the nest to see if the egg would survive a fall. 
Did your camper’s egg survive the drop? What materials made durable nests? What materials were more likely to break an egg when dropped?
In garden kitchen, campers made ricotta cheese with tomato/basil sauce and spider oat bites.
The green pepper group picked tomatoes in the garden. The campers washed the produce before using it in the kitchen.
Here are the recipes:
Morning: Homemade Ricotta
4 cups of whole milk
1 cup of heavy cream
½ teaspoon salt
2 tbsp white vinegar or lemon juice
Line strainer with a couple of damp paper towel or cheesecloth and set inside of a large bowl. In a saucepan, combine heavy cream, milk, and salt. Bring to a boil over medium high heat. Once boiling, remove the pan from the heat and stir in the vinegar or lemon juice. Let the mixture sit for 2 minutes, then pour into the strainer and let drain for 20 minutes.
Afternoon: Assemble homemade ricotta on bread slices with tomato sauce and basil.
Tomato Sauce
3 tomatoes, chopped
1 clove garlic
1 onion
½ cup fresh basil leaves
Heat oil on a medium saucepan. Add the onion, and cook over moderate heat until it is translucent 5-8 minutes. Stir in the garlic and the tomatoes with their juice. Season with salt and pepper and add basil. Cook for about 20-30 minutes and adjust seasonings if desired.
Optional step: pass the sauce through a blender or food processor. To serve, reheat gently.
Spider Oat Bites
1 cup oats
2/3 cup coconut flakes
½ cup nut butter/sunflower seed butter
½ cup ground flaxseed or wheat germ/bran
½ cup chocolate chips or cacao nibs (optional)
1/3 cup maple syrup
1 tbsp chia seeds (optional)
1 tsp vanilla extract
Stir all of the ingredients together in a medium bowl until thoroughly mixed. Cover and let chill in the refrigerator for half an hour. Once chilled, roll into balls of whatever sizes you would like. Store in an airtight container and keep refrigerated for up to one week. Makes 20-25 balls.
Here are additional photos from the week:
https://goo.gl/photos/hna9NroBB6vav8yt5
Have a great weekend!