Kale Sighting

 

I had to laugh at this fabric sighting today while shopping for fabrics for a Christmas quilt I'm eager to make.  Kale has become quite popular in the gardening/food world these days, and it's popularity has now overflowed into the fabric industry!

If you need some ideas on what to do with kale, click here for lots of recipes from Martha Stewart.  And, click here for a few recipes from me as well!

Here's to kale!
:)

Worth Contemplating

"... the deposit of love in every dish is as rich as the deposits of minerals and nutrients in the good earth that nurtures our food."

 

"Mom used to say, 'Don't good when you're unhappy.  Someone will taste it and think you don't love them.' "

 

- Michael Nischan,

Homegrown: Pure and Simple

Lovely Garlic Scapes

 

I love the look of garlic scapes!  It's hard to capture their beauty.... 

 

But, not only are they beautiful and intriguing to look at, they are delicious too, something I'm just learning.  Last year I waited to long to cut them because I wanted to feature them in a dinner I was hosting, and the year before I didn't even know that's what you are are supposed to do; I thought you were supposed to simply enjoy looking at them!  Apparently you're to clip them so the garlic can devote its energy into producing the bulb instead of this beautiful scape. 

 

This year I'm determined to enjoy them fully!

Last night I used one in the place of a garlic clove in this Chicken Caesar Salad recipe - yum!

Amish Goodies

 

 

 

I stopped by a sweet little Amish stand this evening to pick up some rhubarb to make a Strawberry-Rhubarb Slab pie - yummmm!!! 

 

And, I was happy to purchase some homemade sauerkraut - another yummm!!

Lunch....

Cream of Green Bean Soup

Roasted Beets, Goat Cheese and Arugula Salad

Homegrown Popcorn

At my request, my soon-to-be-87-year-old father was gracious enough to grow some popcorn for me this year.  I just don't have enough space to grow corn in my garden, but my dad has a large garden and is still agile enough to exercise his green thumb.  

He grew two varieties for me,

 

a Strawberry popcorn which can be used for ornamental purposes OR for eating,

and the Snowpuff variety. 

We had no trouble shelling the white popcorn, but we had a terrible time with the Strawberry.  In fact, my dad insisted that I didn't know what I was talking about, and that the Strawberry wasn't meant to be eaten.  But, I double checked the Rohrer Seeds catalog when I got home, and indeed it said it can be popped into fluffy white popcorn.  When I get hungry enough, I'll work at shelling it.  But for now, it's being used for decoration. 

:)

This is what happens....

... when you wait too long to pick your eggplant!  I'm ashamed to even admit it - I had two beautiful, glossy purple eggplants hanging from my plant, but I kept procrastinating picking them because I just didn't know how I wanted to prepare them.  I know they're best eaten immediately after harvesting, so I didn't want to pick them until I was ready to cook them.  I had tried cooking eggplant a few years ago, and wasn't impressed, but since them I have collected a number of yummy-sounding recipes.  So, even though I was determined to find a better way to prepare this gorgeous produce, I just didn't have the time or mental energy to tackle it.  Then, the plant blew over in a rainstorm and ended up being hidden by a huge bunch of  kale; I basically forgot about it until the other evening when I was cleaning up the garden.

Since I had been so irresponsible in letting these precious vegetables get this mature, I decided I would eat them anyway as pennance.  I remembered an Italian co-worker telling me that mature eggplants are fine to use as long as you peel them.  So, I selected one of the eggplants, held my breath and cut it open, expecting it to be brown and nasty-looking inside. 

It wasn't!  In fact, it looked just fine to me (but what would I know?!).  I proceeded - I peeled it, cut it into cubes, tossed it in olive oil and and roasted it (my favorite way to cook any vegetable these days).

I was very pleasantly suprised to find that not only was it edible, it was delicious!!  (No pennance whatsoever!)  The texture was perfect, and it wasn't even bitter!  (I'm sure the roasting helped to sweeten any bitterness.)  I was so, so pleased!  I simply tossed it with some fresh mozzarella, fresh basil, a roasted red pepper and some wonderful sweet balsamic viniagrette.  (This basically ended up being a simple version of one of recipes I had collected.)  You can view my recipe (if that's what you call it!) here.

Fabulous!

Dinner Menu for a Fellow Gardener

My dear friend and mentor Elma is an amazing gardener and has blessed me with all kinds of produce over the years, so I wanted to make a special in-season meal for her and her husband using fresh produce from the garden.  Of course, I didn't think to take any pictures (partly because I was rushing around since I hadn't planned on needing to release a rabbit in the midst of my preparations - see post below!), but the food was yummy and she thoroughly enjoyed it, which meant the world to me.  She was also gracious about helping me finish up the food prep.

One of my goals for this summer is to share the beauty of my backyard by doing some entertaining and exposing people to the fabulous food that can be prepared from fresh, in-season garden produce.  It's a delight for me, because good food eaten in the company of people I enjoy makes the food taste ten times better.

Below is the menu (minus any pictures!):

The Menu:

Radish Butter Crostinis

Arugula with Roasted Beets, Goat Cheese and Caramelized Walnuts

Roast Chicken

Smashed Potatoes

Lemon Orzo Salad with Sugar Peas and Sun-Dried Tomatoes

Strawberry Sorbet with Fresh Whipped Cream

Pizza and Champagne!

I had a wonderful time last evening celebrating my 5-year cancer milestone with family and friends over pizza and champagne.  The weather was lovely, and it was a perfect way to celebrate health, honor dear ones who had walked with me, and to feature the in-season  food God so wondrously designed our bodies to be nourished by and enjoy.

One of the fruits of my cancer journey was discovering the "local/in-season/organic" approach to eating.  While I certainly wasn't happy about having to endure a cancer diagnosis and treatment, I will be eternally grateful for where I landed food-wise; it was very significant for me to celebrate that aspect of the journey last night as well.

Everyone pitched in and helped...

... young and old.

 Since garlic was one of the featured ingredients of the evening, it seemed only fitting to include the beautiful garlic scapes...

 ...as part of the decor, in addition to incorporating it into the menu.

The Menu:

 

Crostini Appetizers:

White Bean with Garlic Scapes

Radish Butter

Goat Cheese with Strawberry Jam

~

Home-canned Grape Juice

 

Pizzas:

Pizza Margherita

Sausage, Arugula & Parsley

Spinach Feta

~

Champagne & Sparkling Cider

 

Strawberry Sorbet with  Fresh Whipped Cream  

Peter Reinhart's pizza crust recipe was the backbone of the evening, so here's the recipe:

Peter Reinhart's All-Purpose Pizza Dough

Source:  adapted from Better Homes & Gardens Magazine

5 c. unbleached bread flour (22.5 oz.)

1 T. sugar

 1-1/2 t. sea salt

1 t. instant yeast

2 T. olive oil

1 3/4 c. plus 1 T. water, room temperature

olive oil spray

In a large bowl using a large spoon, combine all ingredients.  Mix until ingredients are combined and all the flour is wet.  (Dough will be soft, and gluten won't be fully developed at this point.)

Turn dough out onto lightly-floured counter and knead until dough is smooth and supple, about 3 minutes.  If dough seems very stiff, incorporate more water, a teaspoon at a time, as you mix; if the dough is wet and sticky, sprinkle in more flour as you mix.  Dough should be tacky but not sticky.  Lightly grease a bowl with olive oil.  Form dough into smooth ball and place in a deep bowl, turning to coat the surface with oil.  Cover bowl with plastic wrap but do not let wrap touch dough.  Let dough stand at room temperature 30 minutes, then refrigerate overnight, or up to three days.  (The dough will continue to rise in bowl until it goes dormant from the cold.)

Two hours before you plan to make the pizzas, mist a baking sheet with olive oil.  Cut dough into 4 equal pieces, and form each piece into a smooth, round ball.  Place dough balls on prepared pan, mist lightly with olive oil, and cover lightly with plastic wrap.  While dough proofs and comes to room temperature, prepare toppings and preheat oven.  Stretch into 8-10" rounds and place on parchment paper.  (Be sure to click on this helpful link to learn Peter Reinhart's technique for shaping pizza dough.)

To bake pizzas:

About 45 minutes before baking, arrange an oven rack one-third of the way up from bottom of oven.  Place pizza stone on rack.  Preheat oven to 500 degrees.  Prepare pizzas as directed in recipe.  (You will be baking the pizzas one at a time.)  Using pizza peel or flat cookie sheet, slide topped pizza along with the parchment paper onto the hot baking stone in oven and bake 5-7 minutes until toppings are bubbling, cheese is turning golden, and edges of the pizza are golden brown.  Rotate pizzas halfway through for even baking if necessary.  Remove pizza from oven with peel and allow to stand 5 minutes before slicing.

Yields: 4 crusts

"The quality of the pizza is determined by the crust.  A pizza with a great crust can have anything on it and still be memorable."

 

 

 

Cancer Treatment Centers of America logo, as drawn by my nephew Ricky.  :)

 

(Thanks, Juanita, for snapping most of the pictures!)

Local In Season Delights

My long-time friends Julia & Alan came for dinner on the patio last night.  They enjoy food and the in-season approach as much as I do, so it was a delight to cook for them.  In keeping with the "Local, In-Season" theme, Alan brought this fabulous bouquet of flowers from their garden - it looked like it was straight out of a Martha Stewart Living magazine (it certainly beats imported flowers from the florist!).  It's so frustrating not to be able to capture the beauty of his arrangement with my camera....  Here are a few more shots:

These dear friends were great about allowing me to try out some new recipes on them, and they even brought a few produce ingredients that I didn't have available in my garden at the moment (fresh asparagus from Julia's garden, radishes from their weekly CSA drop, and hull peas from the local market where Julia shops).  Julia & Alan shelled the peas while I did food prep.  They also brought some local wine in keeping with the theme.

The Menu:

Roasted Red Pepper Hummus with Sugar Snap Peas

Radish Butter Crostinis

Home-Canned Grape Juice

Roasted Chicken Salad with Fresh Peas and Mint

Lemon Orzo Salad with Asparagus and Sun-Dried Tomatoes

Wine

Strawberry-Rhubarb Slab Pie

What an enjoyable evening!  All the ingredients (except for a few lemons!) came from our gardens or local sources; I love that concept!!  Julia and Alan were also gracious about allowing me to give them the garden tour.  Can't wait to do it again!

Today...

Dehydrating strawberries

Today's Harvest

Today...

Asparagus Lament

I am in mourning....  I cannot be consoled.  The asparagus season is OVER for me - a very brief two-week harvest season for my crop since my plants are only one year old.  (This article nicely details the recommended cutting time frames during the first four years of harvest.)  Asparagus is a thinking-ahead-to-the-future kind of crop as it takes a while to get established, but then produces for years.  Oh my, I barely had a chance to enjoy my limited harvest, much less try out all kinds of recipes tucked away in my asparagus file. 

There is no picture to go with this post as I have no freshly harvested asparagus to photograph!

Boo hoo....  Sob.... Wail...

Words can't even describe how fabulous it was.  I had read that freshly-cut asparagus is so much better than anything you can buy because it quickly turns fibrous and woody after being harvested.  It's so true!!  It was wonderfully tender and tasty, both the thick and the thin shoots.  Maybe the flavor was so amazing, partly because of the memories of  digging that asparagus trench all by myself last spring in anticipation of this very moment (I had considered paying someone to do it for me, but who do you get to dig asparagus trenches these days??  Even if I had a husband, how many husbands do you know who happily dig anything  for their wives??), or maybe it was because it was some of the first produce of the season from my garden.  Either way, I was quite enamoured and incredibly satiated.

Of course, I could keep cutting some more spears for eating; the asparagus season will last for another 6 weeks or so.  But, I'm going to be a good girl and give my asparagus the chance it needs to develop into healthy, established plants that will yield abundantly for years to come - 10-15 years according to the same article I referenced above.  Believe me, it was tempting to keep picking it - who would know, much less care?  Bottom line, it's worth the present restraint for the bounty I'll reap in later years.  (There's nothing like a garden to teach you self-discipline, not to mention loads of other spiritual lessons!)

At this point, I think I'm going to see if I can survive the rest of the asparagus season without purchasing any whatsoever for my own consumption.  (Of course, if someone serves it to me, I most definitely will not turn it down!)  Yes, I certainly could ask my dear asparagus gardener friends for a stash since they always have an abundance and delight in sharing their bounty with others.  I certainly could buy it at the local farmers market since it is plentiful and inexpensive right now, not to mention local and in season.  Instead, I'm going to see if I can hold off until my plants produce again next spring.  Why??  For a number of reasons.  Because there's lots more veggies coming in season in my garden, and I don't want to miss their shining moments.  Because it's a reminder to me that we're often so busy looking off into the horizon for the things we want or think we need when there are all kinds of wonderful things right under our noses.  Because I want to eat out of God's provision, not out of my own ability to provide for myself.  And, because I want the anticipation for next year's harvest to heighten my enjoyment of it next spring.

Bless you, asparagus!

Lunch...

Roasted Asparagus

Cream of Zucchini Soup

Garlic Toasts with Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

Yum!

Breakfast....

Roasted Beet Sandwich

Saturday Sauce

Family-Favorite Pasta Sauce

Today...

In preparation for Quick and Easy Pumpkin Black Bean Soup 

Ode to Chard

Believe it or not, I picked the last of my Swiss chard today!  I said farewell by enjoying it in a yummy breakfast salad.

OK, I'll admit - I have this strange affinity for Swiss chard.  While I can't say that I love the flavor, I am intrigued by a green leafy vegetable that can be planted first thing in the Spring, is able to endure the ravages of Summer's heat and insects, lasts into the frosty stages of Fall and only barely misses making it to Winter.   For just pennies, it feeds me the entire growing season, whether I use its tender, young leaves in a salad, blend the heck out of it in a smoothie,  cook its stalks, or wilt its greens.  Because of its noteworthy character (not to mention its beauty!), I'm determined to learn to like its flavor, and eat it because I enjoy it, not just because it's inexpensive and healthful.  I'm not quite there yet, but I'm getting there.  And, I'm convinced it's more about me needing to learn how to prepare it tastefully vs. demanding that it please my palate.

So, here's to you, Swiss chard!

Tonight's Dinner

This is a great recipe from Everyday Food magazine that does double duty. The leftovers make a great lunch - simply chop the broccoli, flake the salmon and toss with the rice. Yum!

Glazed Salmon with Spicy Broccoli

2 t. olive oil

1 T. soy sauce

1 T. rice vinegar

1 garlic clove, minced

1/4 t. red-pepper flakes

1 T. apricot jam

1 skin-on salmon fillet (6 oz.)

1 1/2 c. broccoli florets

cooked brown rice, for serving

Heat broiler, with rack in middle position.  In a small bowl, combine oil, soy sauce, vinegar, garlic and red-pepper flakes.  Divide mixture in half and stir jam into one half.

Place salmon on a broiler proof rimmed baking sheet lightly coated with cooking spray.  Brush salmon with jam mixture and broil until fish is opaque throughout, about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, set a steamer basket in a saucepan with 2 inches simmering water.  Add broccoli, cover and steam until crisp-tender, 4 minutes.  Toss broccoli with remaining soy sauce mixture; serve with salmon and rice.

Serves 2 (or 1 serving with leftovers)