I admit, I was wrong

We can't eat all the greens that we are growing--at least not fresh. So, while still eating about a pound a day (and giving away several pounds) we were able to blanch and freeze 6 pounds (3 lbs collard, 3 lbs kale). Daniel and I spent the evening in an assembly line of washing, chopping, weighing, boiling and freezing all this.

 From the picture below you can get an idea of how tall and big our onions have gotten.  I was standing up while taking the picture. Some of them are as tall as I am! (I took this picture the same day we harvested a ton of greens) The biggest are multiplier onions that we planted last year, but instead of harvesting them all we left some in the ground. Daniel also planted some other onion sets and slips that I purchased at a local shop.

These beautiful blanket flowers came back from last year. We started them from seed a few years ago and they have really taken off. From now on I should be able to have fresh flowers inside for the rest of the summer.

From Yard to Table

Picking peas this morning. Eating them fresh all day...

May 6, 2011

If you know me you know that I LOVE kale. I use it all year around in about everything I can think of. It is super healthy, easy to eat raw or cooked, relatively easy to grow, and pretty too! The dark greenish, blue color is beautiful in the garden.

May 6, 2011

We have one whole row of kale this year--about 60 plants. People ask me, "What do you do with all that kale?" Although we give some away to neighbors and friends, the answer is we could eat all of it! (and the row of collards also but I'll save my I love collards post for later.) You can use kale in any dish that calls for spinach. I steam it to replace it for cooked spinach in lasagna, and add it raw to soups, Indian dishes, dips, etc.

My lunch today

One of my favorite ways to eat it is in a raw salad with oil and vinegar dressing. To get the best flavor you have to message (or rub) the leaves with the dressing for a few seconds. I like to chop it up, put it in a bowl and then drizzle a little balsamic vinegar, ume boshi plum vinegar, and canola oil on top. Rub the leaves with your hands--there's no way around it being messy. Recently I've been adding a few slivered almonds for fun. Let it sit for a little while (30 mins to a couple of hours) to absorb even more flavor. You can see the leaves turn dark green and look like they've been steamed. They taste tender and oh so good!

First Spring Harvest

This is not exactly the first harvest. We've brought in a few other greens and things that grew over the winter. I've also used small batches of greens and lettuces from the garden for dinners all last week. This is the first big harvest of lacinato kale--1 pound 12 oz.

Here is how the garden is coming along. Remember those little seedlings we started inside back in January? (Here's the link to the post and pictures about how we got everything started.) The row to the far right of the picture is cabbage and Brussels Sprouts, the second from right is collards, the third is onions.

Here the far right row is red Russian kale and garlic, then lacinato kale, then peas, then broccoli, lettuce and garlic, the far left row is potatoes.

Daniel and the girls outside all weekend.

Still coming up with new ways to ride the zip line.

Homemade Jam: How to and Why I love it

I have been making jam with fresh picked berries for several years. Each year I do it I make more because we love it so much. We go to u-pick farms for strawberries in the spring and then blueberries in mid summer. As I said in an earlier post this week we picked about 14 pounds of organic strawberries for $2.25/lb. I think we ate about 4 pounds fresh on pancakes and for snacks, so I had about 10 pounds for jam.

Benefits of making jam at home:

1. Control of amount of sugar and what is going into the jam
2. Supports local farms
3. Less waste--use same jars year after year
4. Cost:  I spent about $1.50 per 8oz jar of jam 

•  I've been buying conventional (not organic) all fruit preserves at Kroger for $1.79 for 8 oz. To get it homemade, local, and organic would be a whole lot more.
• The only place you can get organic jam cheaper is in large quatities at Costco or maybe Trader Joe's and we don't have either. 

This homemade (local and organic is even better!) jam makes great gifts for teachers, friends, neighbors, and families. Another thing I love about having jam around is that it is very satisfying to have the pretty red or blue jars of fruit in the pantry. It is very rewarding to pull a jar of my own jam out of the pantry and serve it to my family:) 

What you need to make strawberry jam:

Berries. For the smallest batch you'll need about 2 quarts of berries which will yield 4-5 cups of jam. (If you want to make a bigger batch you can. I made 4 batches at once.)

Pomona's Fruit Pectin

This is an all natural pectin that can be found at your local natural food store like Earthfare, Wholefoods, etc. (or the amazon link provided) It is what makes the jam have the gel consistency without using gelatin or alternately using tons of sugar and cooking way down the old fashion way. It comes in a small box for somewhere around $3.00-$4.00. There are detailed instructions and recipes inside the box.

Jars. Jars come in cases at the grocery stores. You only need 4-5 cup or 2 pint jars but you have to buy them in a case. Consider this an investment as you'll be able to use the same jars for many years.

Lids and rims. The metal rims can be used many times but the flat lids have rubber seals and these need to be replaced every year. Get these near the jars at the grocery store.

Sugar. The amount depends on how much you want to use. I used 1 cup organic sugar per batch.

Water Bath Canner. Get from Target, Walmart or hardware stores. 

Misc. Canning supplies optional but very helpful. The funnel and tongs are a must.

The Process:

1. Wash, trim, and mash about 2 quarts of berries. You'll need 4 cups of mashed berries for one batch.

2. Sterilize the jars. Do this by boiling them in water for 10 minutes or cleaning them in high heat dishwasher. Leave them in the water or washer until needed so they stay warm. Consider how much time this step is going to take because getting a large pot of water to boil or a cycle in the wash take different amounts of time. When you have about 20 minutes left start the rest of the process.

3. Sterilize the lids and rims. Put them in small pot covered with water and boil for 10 minutes. Leave them in the pot until needed.

4. Open box of pectin. Directions clearly explain the following. It comes with 2 small pouches. The large one is the pectin that you add to the sugar and the small one is calcium powder.

5. First add the 2 teasponns of calcium to 1/2 water and stir well. Keep in the refrigerator until needed.

6. Measure proper amount of sugar in a bowl. The amount varies depending on your taste.

7. Measure 2 teaspoons of the pectin (large pouch) and add to the sugar. Stir well.

8. Place berries in large pot and add calcium water. Stir well. Bring to a boil. Add sugar and stir vigorously for 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat.

9. Use a ladle and funnel to scoop hot jam into hot jars. Leave a half inch of space at top of jar. Wipe rims with wet cloth. Place lids on top. Screw down rims tight but not too tight. Usually I tighten as much as I can then go back a bit.

10. Use tongs to place jars in boiling water. They need to be fully submerged with about an inch of water on top. Boil for 5 mins (check instructions because you may need to add time depending on altitude.)

11. Remove from water with tongs and let cool. After a few minutes check that jars have sealed. I love hearing the little clicks as the lids are sucked down:) It's a sign of success! If they do not seal the first, remove lid and check that there is nothing on the rim blocking the seal and reboil for 5 minutes.

Day trip: Strawberry Picking, Angel Oak, and Folly Beach

We are actually on Spring Break this week so we decided to head over to the Charleston area with some friends for a quick day trip. Last year we visited Ambrose Farms to pick organic strawberries. The Farm is beautiful and full of veggies so I was in heaven. We picked 14 pounds of berries in about 30 minutes. I made jam out of them today!

While driving to the farm last year we drove right by the Angel Oak Tree but didn't have time to stop. So this year we took a picnic and ate lunch by this massive 400-500 year old Live Oak tree. To give you an idea of its size, the tree's circumference is 25 feet and its area of shade is 17,000 sq. feet.

The girls were not happy that they were in the presence of the best climbing tree ever but not allowed to climb it.

They didn't stay sad long.

We spent the last few hours of the day at the beach. It was extremely windy and a bit chilly but the kids never seem to mind.

Ahhh, Summer!

The girls and I have taken a break from school work for few weeks. We home school year-round but take several weeks off during summer and around the holidays. Lately we've been enjoying sleeping in, staying in our pjs, long sessions of reading aloud and to ourselves. I've had extra time to work on organizing our schedule for the next year and order new books for the year. The girls have been reading a lot but they are experiencing some summertime boredom. I think it's good for them to figure out what to do with themselves at those times. Since we don't have a tv and I won't let them watch many movies (usually 2 a week) they've got to be creative. We have tons of toys so I keep reminding them about all the stuff that's in the playroom and their bedroom -- hundreds of playmobil guys and littlest pet shop, a closet full of stuffed animals, an unreasonable amount of dress up costumes, etc.

So the funniest thing they said to me the other day was that they didn't want to play with all their toys because they knew they were going to have to clean them all up later in the day! It's true, when they are really into something they will spread out in every room of the house and have little homes or shops that they visit with their toys. It's great fun and imaginative for a little/long while. They are starting to think about whether or not it is worth getting it all out if they are going to have to turn around and clean it all up! I wanted to say, "Well now you know how I feel every day with cooking, cleaning, laundry, etc." Don't worry I didn't say it exactly like that:) 

They had a sleep-over last night so I've had about 24 hours without them. I really don't know what to do with myself when they are not around. Isn't it true that we get so much more accomplished when we have a deadline or a short amount of time to do it? Well, I could be planning the school year, preparing food, cleaning, bills, working on my dance classes, weeding, but...I think I'll work on the blog. I'll get to that other stuff later:)

Daniel and I had a nice quiet evening alone. We enjoyed a home-cooked meal from the garden and he played the guitar while I worked on the computer for a little while. I love it. I feel like I'm being serenaded. Ended the evening with a movie from the library.



For the latest garden news...this is what we've harvested since June 1st (the last post about the garden).

• 18 pounds of onions (almost all of the onions we grew this year)

• 4 pounds of garlic (most of the garlic also)

• 6 pounds of potatoes

• 10 ounces of beets

• 3 1/2 pounds of collards

• 3 1/2 pounds of kale

• 1 pound yellow squash (2 medium)

• 2 pounds zucchini (3 medium/large)

• 10 ounces basil

Saturday Harvest with Beets and Onions

• 3 pounds collards
• 3.5 pounds kale
• 11 pounds potatoes
• 4 pounds bok choi
• 14 ounces chard
• 1.5 pounds beets

We ordered all of our seeds including the multiplier onions pictured below from Southern Exposure Seed Exchange. We are very excited about the success of these onions. We have harvested a portion of the bed and now they are curing (drying) in the shed for a few weeks. Most of the bulbs are a nice size and much bigger than anything we've ever grown. We also harvested garlic this week but did not weigh them (or the onions) yet. We've decided to wait until they dry. We noticed that the local organic garlic was selling for $2 a bulb at the farmer's market! I look forward to doing a cost analysis to see how much money we are saving with growing the food in our garden.

Beets! This is another crop that we are successfully growing for the first time this year. We don't have very many but the ones we have are beautiful! I love the deep red color. I'd love for a suggestion on how to cook these. I'm going to try roasting them tomorrow. I don't usually buy beets so I'm going to have to experiment with some new recipes:)

Friday harvest and recipe

• 3 lbs potatoes
• 2.5 lbs collards
• 3 lbs bok choi
• .75 lb turnips
• 1.5 lbs turnip greens
• .75 lb radish
• 1.25 lb swiss chard
• 1 lb kale
• .75 lb little bok choi
• 14 oz lettuce
• 1.75 lb bunching onions

Here is a recipe for a Greens, Tomatoes, and chick peas dish I pulled and modified from Joy of Cooking (my all time favorite cook book.) Rachel Ray also has a similar recipe. It is quick (30 mins) and easy. Spinach is probably the best--you can even use frozen. I use whatever greens we have available. The spices may be unfamiliar but we use them a lot for Indian dishes. You can get them at an Indian grocery or on Amazon.

1 onion
1 can crushed tomatoes (can used diced also)
3 tsp. coriander
1 1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp.  Garam Masala 7oz
1/4 tsp. turmeric
1 can chickpeas, rinsed
1 tsp of salt (or to taste)
1 bunch of greens rinsed and chopped or 1 pack of frozen spinach

Heat onion in oil or water until soft. Stir in tomatoes, coriander, cumin, garam masala, turmeric and salt. Cook for 3 mins. Stir in Chickpeas and greens and cook 10 minutes or until the greens are as soft as you like!

Serve over any grain like rice, basmati or jasmine is perfect but we just use brown most of the time. I've also served this with quinoa. I usually double the recipe also.

Mother's Day Harvest

This was a wonderful and relaxing Mother's Day. I slept in and rested on the porch with a good book (Middlemarch by George Eliot) while Daniel made all the meals, cleaned inside and worked outside. I also wandered through the garden picking these beautiful spring veggies and taking pictures of flowers and bugs. We also planted most of the summer veggies that we started from seed including zuchinni, yellow squash, trombone squash, cucumber, pole beans,  cantelope, eggplant, basil, more swiss chard and bok choi. I re-potted the tomatoes since we have to wait for garden space to come available. Okra, bush beans, sweet potatoes, and watermelon are still waiting to be planted.

As I mentioned in an earlier post we are keeping track of all the produce we harvest by weighing it and charting it on a clip board in the kitchen. Here is the harvest amounts from Sunday.

• 1.5 lbs collards
• 1 lb 4 oz kale (lacinato)
• 2.5 lbs lettuce (butter crunch and green leaf)
• 10 oz spinach
• 4 oz peas
• 1 lb 4 oz radish (or about 10) 

Now you might be wondering what we do with all these greens! Stay tuned for recipes and ideas. Believe it or not by Wednesday night we have already gone through everything but a few ounces of lettuce and collards.

Spring days in the garden

These photos have been taken over about a week. We spent all of last Saturday digging in the garden and getting 2 new rows ready. Daniel trimmed the lupine cover crop that had been growing all winter. We added our compost and then tilled it under and mixed it all in with shovels. Even though you don't see me in these pictures I was out there for most of the time. Daniel does way more of the work in the garden than I do but I really do enjoy being out there working along side of him.

The area that we were working in had potatoes and beans in it last year. The rows were shaped differently and we wanted them to look like the rest of the garden. The second picture is the finished product--2 more long rows.

(potatoes are planted in the 3rd row on the left. We planted those in late February)


We are excited about 2 new crops that we are trying out this year. Pictured below the top bed has jerusalem artichoke and the bottom has taro. Both of these plants are perennial and you harvest and eat the root or tuber.  They are also beautiful plants while they are growing. The jerusalem artichoke grows tall and have big yellow flowers and the taro have elephant ear stalks and leaves.

We started summer seeds (flowers, veggies, herbs) last week also.

In another part of the yard we have had this cabbage (along with  several others) growing all winter and it is big and beautiful now. We have a new found love of cabbage and I can't wait to harvest this one this weekend and enjoy it with friends.

We have lot's of sugar peas coming up on these two rows.

We have garlic and onions here with lettuce seeds scattered and beginning to sprout all over. Some other things we started as seeds in a few rows are carrots, radishes, turnips, bok choy. We will be transplanting our broccoli, kale, lettuce, and cabbage seedlings this weekend.

We ended one day last week hanging out by a fire.

Another night Daniel took E and A to see a local theater's production of The Sound of Music. We had friends that were acting in it and that musical is one of  our favorites.