It is difficult to say the words "life lessons" without sounding preachy. However things I learned by gardening fall into this category fair and square. I'll try to keep it simple and hope some of this will translate in real life...
1. Living with imperfections: Don't worry about your garden being perfect. The pristine vegetable gardens you see on magazines rarely stay that way after the photo shoot. Keep the weeds down when your plants are young. You just need to play a hand at tilting the odds in their favor. If you did that, plants will be able to compete with the weeds on their own when they are bigger. Do whatever you need to create the most favorable environment for your plants so they can be more productive.
2. Taking care of problems early on: Whether it is weeds or insect, spotting the problems early on and taking actions is the best you can do. Even if the problems seem like an non-issue. If you let the problems fester, it will come to a point of no-return, and you will lose everything.
3. Letting go: At some point of the plants life, you will find yourself putting more energy into it than it is worth. This is the time to let go. Be decisive, remove the unproductive plants, replace them with something new. No sense wasting your time wondering what could've, should've, would've. This is one way to keep your garden productive. (Now this does not translate in elderly care, just sayin...)
4. Last but not least, shit happens. When it does, take whatever actions needed and move on. Just like a good doctor you can too bury your mistakes.
Always learn from your experience or others' experience. It will not only make you a better gardener, it will make you a better person.... Happy gardening!
Cabbage Rolls Summer Delicious
Cabbage rolls is one of my favorite summer dishes, especially using the first head of cabbage from my garden. I through in plenty of herbs, whatever is in season and use home made tomato sauce from last season. The smell of my kitchen is enough to make anyone droll... This time I used fresh peas (cooked with rice), leaks and fresh spring onions. The stuffing is seasoned with garlic salt and a pinch of hot pepper flakes. Easy peasy delicious!
The Taste of Spring: Creamed New Potato and Fava Beans Plus Peas
Fava beans, fresh peas and new potatoes represent the first things coming out of the garden in the spring. They happen to make a fabulous dish together: Creamed New Potato and Fava Beans Plus Peas. The fresh flavor of this dish will make you want to grow a garden every year.
1.5 C. fava beans and fresh peas, shelled. For fava beans, jackets removed;
1 medium sized new potato, cut into pea sized cubes;
1 T. butter
1 T. flour;
3/4 C. milk or half-n-half, or a combination of the two;
1 clove of new garlic, crushed (use dried one if a new one is not available. If you grow your own, the garlic is about ready to use when the fava beans and peas are harvested)
Steam peeled fava beans, peas and potatoes in a steamer for about 10 minutes or until they become tender to the bite.
Heat a non-stick skillet on medium heat, add butter and flour. Cook until flour turns slightly brown. Add liquid. Stir until the sauce thickens. Add crushed garlic, steamed vegetables salt and pepper. Stir to combine. Serve immediately.
1.5 C. fava beans and fresh peas, shelled. For fava beans, jackets removed;1 medium sized new potato, cut into pea sized cubes;
1 T. butter
1 T. flour;
3/4 C. milk or half-n-half, or a combination of the two;
1 clove of new garlic, crushed (use dried one if a new one is not available. If you grow your own, the garlic is about ready to use when the fava beans and peas are harvested)Steam peeled fava beans, peas and potatoes in a steamer for about 10 minutes or until they become tender to the bite.
Chocolate Covered Hazelnut Brittle
After transplanting all my seedlings to the garden, I feel rather good. While patiently awaiting the veggies in my garden to mature, I made some hazelnut brittle. The recipe is easy and it is delicious, a great treat to share with my gardening friends as I couldn't possibly eat it all by myself. Here's how:Combine: 2 C. sugar, 1/2 C. light corn syrup and a ash of salt in a heavy bottomed stainless steel pot. Cook on low heat until the sugar melts and the syrup turns to a brown caramel (5-10 minutes, depending on the heat). The Add 3 C. hazelnuts, stir and cook for another minute or two. Then add 4 T. butter, 1 t. baking soda and 2 t. vanilla extract. Be careful the content in the pot is VERY HOT, use a stiff spoon such as a bamboo spoon to stir. A silicon spatula can flex and you can burn yourself (I did). Remove from the heat. Stir until everything is incorporated. Pour the content out on an oiled cookie sheet. Spread as thin as you can. Sprinkle 1 C. chocolate chips on top. The heat from the candy will melt the chips, when that happens, spread the chocolate evenly over the surface. Wait till the hazelnut cools completely, break it apart. Keep the pieces in an air-tight container. Enjoy!
Basic Cinnamon Rolls Recipe
Cinnamon rolls/Sticky buns are my favorite dessert to make. You may double the recipe for a bigger batch. It is easy once you master the basic dough recipe. You can make changes to the filling and gooey pan sauce, with or without nuts, raisin, and frosting. My basic dough recipe goes like this:
Dough:
1 C. warm liquid (water, milk, half-and-half or a combination of the above);
3 C. four (all white or part white, part rye);
2 t. dry yeast;
2 t. sugar;
2 eggs,
pinch of salt;
Filling: 1/2 C. margarine, 2 T. cinnamon and 1 C. granulated sugar.
Gooey pan sauce: 1 C. brown sugar, 1/2 C. corn syrup, 2 T. butter, 1 T. water. Cook in a sauce pan on medium heat until sugar melts and simmer for 3 minutes. Pour on the bottom of the pan.
Frosting: 1 8oz. pack of cream cheese, 4 T. butter, 2 C. powered sugar. Optional.
Combine liquid, yeast and sugar, let set for 5 min. or until yeast become bubbly. Add all other ingredients to make a soft dough. Stand mixer with dough hook is ideal for the job. Keep the dough in the bowl covered until it doubles in size.
Roll out the dough on a well floured surface. Spread the filling evenly on the rolled out dough. Roll up the dough. Cut into small piece to your liking. Arrange cinnamon rolls on pan with gooey pan sauce. Cover with a piece of plastic wrap. Let stand for 20 minutes. Bake in a pre-heated 400 F oven in the middle rack for 20 minutes.
Dough:
1 C. warm liquid (water, milk, half-and-half or a combination of the above);
3 C. four (all white or part white, part rye);
2 t. dry yeast;
2 t. sugar;
2 eggs,
pinch of salt;
Filling: 1/2 C. margarine, 2 T. cinnamon and 1 C. granulated sugar.
Gooey pan sauce: 1 C. brown sugar, 1/2 C. corn syrup, 2 T. butter, 1 T. water. Cook in a sauce pan on medium heat until sugar melts and simmer for 3 minutes. Pour on the bottom of the pan.
Frosting: 1 8oz. pack of cream cheese, 4 T. butter, 2 C. powered sugar. Optional.
Combine liquid, yeast and sugar, let set for 5 min. or until yeast become bubbly. Add all other ingredients to make a soft dough. Stand mixer with dough hook is ideal for the job. Keep the dough in the bowl covered until it doubles in size.
Roll out the dough on a well floured surface. Spread the filling evenly on the rolled out dough. Roll up the dough. Cut into small piece to your liking. Arrange cinnamon rolls on pan with gooey pan sauce. Cover with a piece of plastic wrap. Let stand for 20 minutes. Bake in a pre-heated 400 F oven in the middle rack for 20 minutes.
Meatball Sub and Netflix for Dinner
Tonight I am having meatball sub on a homemade bread, it goes perfectly with the Neflix movie I just received in the mail-Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. On first look, this meatball sub didn't seemed all that "garden" intensive, but upon a closer exams, it is filled with the delicious flavors preserved from the summer garden. The sauce is my homemade tomato sauce. I am almost running out of the tomato sauce I canned last year. Thank goodness I just planted this years crop.
The meatball is filled with flavors from the herbs I dried last summer. This is when the work you do in the summers paying big dividend. I can't imagine living without them. The spring is chugging along, fresh lettuce is all the rage at the moment. My new discovery this year is a lettuce called "Prize Head". It is a small butter head type lettuce, fast mature and very crunchy with great flavors. Before long, the garden should be in full production again...
Sue’s Homemade Salsa
Sue’s Homemade Salsa
Ingredients: Homemade tomato sauce,
tomatoes, onions, vinegar, jalapeno peppers,
garlic, cilantro, salt, cayenne pepper and cumin.
Per Elaine: when I make salsa I cut up everythin, than I put a half a cup of salt on top, let it sit overnight and than drain, Than I add my vinager and add the juice back as I need it, to make the thickness I like, this method works reat, than I use the left over juice, cooked down a little for blody Mary mix
Ingredients: Homemade tomato sauce,
tomatoes, onions, vinegar, jalapeno peppers,
garlic, cilantro, salt, cayenne pepper and cumin.
I used my 12Q stock pot. To the thickened tomato sauce, I added: cumin, cayenne peppers, fresh garlic, fresh cilantro, fresh jalapeno peppers. I also added white vinegar and juice from one lime. I added the salt to the tomato sauce and let it devolve thoroughly before adding the other ingredients, and adjusted the salt later. Bring the pot to a boil, and pack hot salsa in sterilized pint jars, cap and process in hot water bath for 20 minutes. Makes 15 pints.
Per Elaine: when I make salsa I cut up everythin, than I put a half a cup of salt on top, let it sit overnight and than drain, Than I add my vinager and add the juice back as I need it, to make the thickness I like, this method works reat, than I use the left over juice, cooked down a little for blody Mary mix
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