Fern Canyon on the Grieb Ranch is a gathering place for family and friends.  Special days such as Easter, Memorial Day, July 4th and Labor Day give us reason to celebrate and create memories.

Easter provided a time to remember Christ’s Resurrection. Memorial Day we took time to remember those who have served our country and then we feasted.  At any gathering includes much food and fun – visiting with family and friends and playing badminton and horseshoes.

Memorial Day we enjoyed a roasted sucking pig stuffed with lemon grass. BBQ Tri-Tip and chicken are always a scrumptious staple at these gatherings.

 Roasted Suckling Pigs

Cook’s notes

We cook the pigs over an open barbecue spit. All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified.

Instructions

First, light the barbecue coals. The coals are not ready until white (no flame should be present when cooking). This will take an hour or two.

With a sharp knife, remove the tail and ears of the pig. Turn the pig over and remove the kidneys and any loose fat.

Rub the surface of the pig with crushed garlic, ensuring it is well massaged in. This will add flavor as well as moisten the skin. Once thoroughly massaged, place the remaining pieces of garlic inside the cavity of the pig.

Apply a liberal amount of coarse salt to the skin and massage well. The salt is crucial to dry the skin and create a perfect crackling. Add salt and pepper liberally to the cavity.

Apply a liberal amount of pepper to the skin.

To ensure an even roast, fill the cavity with the roughly chopped onions, carrots, apples, garlic and parsley. Once the cavity is filled, stitch the belly closed with heavy wire, ensuring a tight seal.

Massage the soy sauce into the skin. This will help create a golden-brown color.

To mount the pig on the spit, place it flat on a large bench or table, belly down. Instructions will be provided on how to use the spit attachments (each varies slightly). Ensure you have them all in place as you slide the main axle along the length of the pig. The axle is inserted from the rear of the pig. It is vital that the pig does not slide around on the axle – check it prior to loading onto the spit.

An 8kg pig will require approximately an hour and a half to two hours of roasting time.

With a shovel, move the bulk of the coals to the edges, underneath the legs and shoulders, with only a small amount of coals under the mid-section. The legs and shoulders are the thickest areas and require the most heat.

As the pig cooks, ensure the color remains even. If any patches are lighter in color, move more coals under this area. If an area is darkening too quickly, move coals away.

Occasionally, apply olive oil with a basting brush to improve the crackling.

In the late stages of roasting, the vegetables in the cavity of the pig will soften and release their juices. It’s a good idea to wipe the juices away to maintain an even finish on the skin.

When the knuckles of the pig begin to be exposed, the pig will be close to ready. To test, stop the rotisserie and insert a meat thermometer into the thickest portion of the leg of the pig. A reading over 160 F will indicate the pig is ready. Alternatively, insert a small knife for 30 seconds and remove to test whether the tip of the knife is hot.

It’s important to move the pig to the place you wish to serve it, prior to removing the spit-mounting from it, as the connective tissues will have cooked and the pig may fall apart if it’s moved after the apparatus is removed. Turn the rotisserie off and use tea towels or oven mitts to handle the spit-mounting. You will need two people to move the roasted pig.

Once the pig is in its final position, carefully remove the spit-mounting, carve and serve.

Every summer the Grieb family spent many hours harvesting apricots. Most of the crop was cut and sun dried in preparation for selling to SunSweet Growers.  However, the family always saved enough to meet their own needs to eat fresh, bake in pies or cakes or preserve in Mason jars.

Orchard Apricot Jam

Our favorite was the jam. Many hands were needed to make enough jam to last until the next season. Tasks were divided up – washing, peeling, grinding, measuring the sugar and stirring the big pots and ladling in jars. It was hot work, but oh, how good that jam tasted and smelled. And the family time was priceless.

Here is Grandma Grieb’s recipe—no pectin—no pineapple just pure apricots.

Apricot Jam (Makes 2 ½ pints)

3 C ground apricots (Grandma peeled hers)
2 C sugar

Bring to boil and boil 20-30 minutes stirring constantly until jam drips heavy off wooden spoon.  Skim off foam. Ladle into hot jars, leaving ¼ inch headspace.Wipe rim. Center lid on jar. Screw on band until just tight.

Need to make a big batch? Here is the big batch quantity.

9 C ground apricots
6 C sugar

Prepare as above.

Recipe submitted by Sandi Ferrio a grandaughter.

Grandpa Fred Grieb enjoyed fishing.

The Grieb cousins have fond memories of Grandpa Fred Grieb teaching them how to make fishing poles out of bamboo sticks and fishing line.  The cousins would walk up and down the Arroyo Grande creek and stop and fish from the banks.  They also enjoyed camping out at the Nelson Place (now under Lopez Lake that was built in 1960’s) where Grieb Ranch ran the cattle.  So many treasured memories and fun times camping with the Grieb cousins.

Recipe for: Trout

From the Kitchen of: Grandma Gertrude Grieb                    Servings: 5

Needed: 6 Medium-sized fresh trout

Ingredients for Coating the Trout:

1C Milk in bowl
1 tsp Salt
Dash Pepper
1 Cup Progresso Bread Crumbs
½ Cup Cornmeal

Bacon grease for fry pan

Instructions for Cooking the Coated Trout:

Begin heating fry pan with hot bacon grease.
Put milk, salt and pepper in bowl.
Mix cornmeal and bread crumbs in another bowl.
Dip trout thru milk.
Roll in crumbs.
Fry coated trout in bacon grease until fork-flaky.