The SB headed out to do some work this afternoon, so I spent the alone time cleaning out the fridge and making one hell of a mess in the kitchen. There was much that needed catching up on. But now, we have a nice clean fridge and LOTs of yummies for the coming week.
Cold corn soup. Refreshing and super simple.
Coleslaw, no real recipe, just the quarter head of cabbage, a little grated onion, a grated carrot and some sour cream, a splash of vinegar, salt and pepper. Mmm.
Chicken salad (actually made this AM before the SB headed out).
Beets, from the garden and simmered until done.
Fruit salad with all the bits of stuff that needed using up. Cantaloupe, watermelon and mango.
Yogurt.
Tomatillo salsa. Tomatillos, pickled pepper, a little onion, garlic and cilantro, salt and pepper. Whirred in the cuisinart. It is gonna be hot. Those pickled peppers from last summer are pretty fire-y.
With all that cooking I had to turn the AC on for a while. It is pretty stinkin' hot out there. The cat, came in panting and laid in front of the fan. I feel fortunate that the ducks don't know about that option.
Then I cleaned everything up. Then I had a nap.
Unfortunately the SB took the camera with him. No photos. I know you are surprised.
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Friday, June 25, 2010
Wow
It has been a wild couple of weeks here... Mostly work related. My schedule ebbs and flows with the coming and going of the new physicians. The first half of June is most definitely a flow. No complaints, it is all good stuff, just lots all at once. The welcoming of new friends and sending off of old ones coincide and make things a teeny bit easier.
I have a bunch of posts that have been swirling around in my brain, but I can conjure none of them at the moment. So we will have a list.
1. Flea beetles totally suck.
2. I am excited about the tomatoes.
3. The ducks have cut back to 6 eggs a day. No complaints, nine is a lot.
4. We got our garden sink installed. Woot! Pictures WILL follow, but the SB has the camera.
5. Our asparagus beans are finally starting to bloom.
6. I really need to do something with the bees.
7. We are growing corn beans and squash. Can't wait to see if it works.
8. We put in a new bed on one side of the house. All the orphan tomatoes ended up there. Don't know if they will do anything or not, but at least they aren't suffering in their tiny six packs anymore.
9. We have tons of Thai basil.
10. I made my first batch of rural salad, cheating only a little with some of the tomatoes
11. Peaches. Need I say more?
12. BIG ASS STORM yesterday.
13. BAS (#12) resulted in me being out of work most of the day b/c the hospital didn't have all its power back. Surprise long-ish weekend. Yay me!
14. Delightful gathering at the Urban Farm last night sans power (due to BAS) but with friends and lots of good food. Love me some dark nights. Without power (i.e. fan) I was able to enjoy many many hours of the darkness since I was up all night sweating.
15. I made potato salad from the fingerling potatoes and used boiled duck eggs .... Thanks to the Diner for telling me that the info about boiled duck eggs being rubbery doesn't hold up... Pretty delicious.
16. I had to restrain myself from digging all the potatoes. You know I love to dig me some potatoes.
17. The cukes can just go ahead and start producing any time now. Ditto peppers.
18. Very close to starting some of the fall crops. They will go in where the garlic came out. Garlic harvest was somewhat disappointing, but can't complain too much. It was a very rough and very wet winter for them.
OK, hopefully I will be able to post something other than a list soon. Maybe even pictures.
I have a bunch of posts that have been swirling around in my brain, but I can conjure none of them at the moment. So we will have a list.
1. Flea beetles totally suck.
2. I am excited about the tomatoes.
3. The ducks have cut back to 6 eggs a day. No complaints, nine is a lot.
4. We got our garden sink installed. Woot! Pictures WILL follow, but the SB has the camera.
5. Our asparagus beans are finally starting to bloom.
6. I really need to do something with the bees.
7. We are growing corn beans and squash. Can't wait to see if it works.
8. We put in a new bed on one side of the house. All the orphan tomatoes ended up there. Don't know if they will do anything or not, but at least they aren't suffering in their tiny six packs anymore.
9. We have tons of Thai basil.
10. I made my first batch of rural salad, cheating only a little with some of the tomatoes
11. Peaches. Need I say more?
12. BIG ASS STORM yesterday.
13. BAS (#12) resulted in me being out of work most of the day b/c the hospital didn't have all its power back. Surprise long-ish weekend. Yay me!
14. Delightful gathering at the Urban Farm last night sans power (due to BAS) but with friends and lots of good food. Love me some dark nights. Without power (i.e. fan) I was able to enjoy many many hours of the darkness since I was up all night sweating.
15. I made potato salad from the fingerling potatoes and used boiled duck eggs .... Thanks to the Diner for telling me that the info about boiled duck eggs being rubbery doesn't hold up... Pretty delicious.
16. I had to restrain myself from digging all the potatoes. You know I love to dig me some potatoes.
17. The cukes can just go ahead and start producing any time now. Ditto peppers.
18. Very close to starting some of the fall crops. They will go in where the garlic came out. Garlic harvest was somewhat disappointing, but can't complain too much. It was a very rough and very wet winter for them.
OK, hopefully I will be able to post something other than a list soon. Maybe even pictures.
Friday, June 4, 2010
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Where to start?
I had a few days off before the holiday weekend. I planned to do all kinds of house and garden work and multiple blog posts. As usual, the list was longer than the vacation...
Where should I start....
The two frogs, courtesy of The Bad Cat on the doorstep? Only one entirely dead. No, let us not start there.
The 3.5 inches of rain Friday night (in two hours) causing basement flooding? No, that really isn't a good place either.
The three nights of babysitting? While. On. Vacation. No. Not there.
I did have a very nice wedding luncheon to attend for some of my coworkers who were just married. They are Indian, so we met at Royal Indian. Yes. That is the place to start though it was in the middle of the vacation.... I really MUST recommend the eggplant. Spicy and delicious.
I washed a ton of sweaters. The Switching of the Clothes is one of the most dreaded of tasks. At least the winter to summer side.... I hate the washing and hanging of sweaters and I procrastinate. So even things unworn need to be frozen (48 hours kills moth larvae) before storage.
I hung out my laundry on the porch. (I *heart* Starr Hill Girl who always hangs her laundry). Because I have a drying rack and not a line, I compromise by hanging the bigger stuff (towels and shirts and pants) and drying the smaller stuff (underwear and socks). It works for me - hanging small stuff seems more trouble than it is worth. Of 5 loads of laundry I dry only one. Yay me.
We continued to work on the corn, beans, and squash planting. We ordered a "kit" from SSE. We are planting about 20 hills of 4 corn plants and 4 bean plants and then interspersing this with hills of squash (actually pumpkins, but who can tell the difference, I mean, really?) We will improvise on some of it as we will run out of bean seeds and it would be nice to have a variety of squashes. This is the planting that is occupying the new ground in the garden. It is a good compromise, as we only have to dig mounds and not the whole thing.
My garlic is looking AWFUL. Too wet this year. Hopefully I will get some good storage worthy bulbs. Right now, things are moldy, though if you peel the outer layer, the insides are fine. I am trying not to panic.
We have some potato wilt. The La Ratte potatoes seem to be the first to succumb. We have eaten some tiny ones already, but they are dropping like flies. Luckily, the smaller beds look very healthy and happy. No solanaceae for the infected beds for a veeeeeeery long time. Dammit.
I have fallen head over heels in love with my tomatoes. I know. They will probably succumb to wilt like the do every year. But for now, I could spend many contented hours staring at them and smelling the green tomato smell. Green Grape, Principe Bourgese, Winter Keeper, Yellow Pear, Pink German, Black Plum, San Marzano, Celebrity. Bring 'em on. A dozen plants aren't too many for two people, right? Remind me how much I love them if we are fortunate enough to be buried in tomatoes this summer.
The garden is pretty much in a holding pattern. The greens have been harvested and frozen, the potatoes, tomatillos, peppers, eggplant and garlic aren't ready. The squash and cukes and beans are really just getting their footing. The herbs are the only thing producing. And remarkably, despite the heat, I still have some lettuce.
I am plotting for the fall garden though.... garlic, leeks and onions to replace the potatoes. Cabbage, broccoli and brussells sprouts, carrots and beets to replace the garlic. Greens to transplant out as the okra and tomatoes and peppers begin to fade.
I also cleaned the bedroom. That took days.
I took some pictures, but the SB stole them. I will see if I can get him to send them to me. They were of our most adorable bean trellis, which will soon be providing shade for the duck yard. Woven bamboo. Sweet. And Free (even better - thanks Cho!)
The bees seem happy and active, and I am wondering if I am missing out by not having a second super on the hive. Must. Find. Out. Soon.
Where should I start....
The two frogs, courtesy of The Bad Cat on the doorstep? Only one entirely dead. No, let us not start there.
The 3.5 inches of rain Friday night (in two hours) causing basement flooding? No, that really isn't a good place either.
The three nights of babysitting? While. On. Vacation. No. Not there.
I did have a very nice wedding luncheon to attend for some of my coworkers who were just married. They are Indian, so we met at Royal Indian. Yes. That is the place to start though it was in the middle of the vacation.... I really MUST recommend the eggplant. Spicy and delicious.
I washed a ton of sweaters. The Switching of the Clothes is one of the most dreaded of tasks. At least the winter to summer side.... I hate the washing and hanging of sweaters and I procrastinate. So even things unworn need to be frozen (48 hours kills moth larvae) before storage.
I hung out my laundry on the porch. (I *heart* Starr Hill Girl who always hangs her laundry). Because I have a drying rack and not a line, I compromise by hanging the bigger stuff (towels and shirts and pants) and drying the smaller stuff (underwear and socks). It works for me - hanging small stuff seems more trouble than it is worth. Of 5 loads of laundry I dry only one. Yay me.
We continued to work on the corn, beans, and squash planting. We ordered a "kit" from SSE. We are planting about 20 hills of 4 corn plants and 4 bean plants and then interspersing this with hills of squash (actually pumpkins, but who can tell the difference, I mean, really?) We will improvise on some of it as we will run out of bean seeds and it would be nice to have a variety of squashes. This is the planting that is occupying the new ground in the garden. It is a good compromise, as we only have to dig mounds and not the whole thing.
My garlic is looking AWFUL. Too wet this year. Hopefully I will get some good storage worthy bulbs. Right now, things are moldy, though if you peel the outer layer, the insides are fine. I am trying not to panic.
We have some potato wilt. The La Ratte potatoes seem to be the first to succumb. We have eaten some tiny ones already, but they are dropping like flies. Luckily, the smaller beds look very healthy and happy. No solanaceae for the infected beds for a veeeeeeery long time. Dammit.
I have fallen head over heels in love with my tomatoes. I know. They will probably succumb to wilt like the do every year. But for now, I could spend many contented hours staring at them and smelling the green tomato smell. Green Grape, Principe Bourgese, Winter Keeper, Yellow Pear, Pink German, Black Plum, San Marzano, Celebrity. Bring 'em on. A dozen plants aren't too many for two people, right? Remind me how much I love them if we are fortunate enough to be buried in tomatoes this summer.
The garden is pretty much in a holding pattern. The greens have been harvested and frozen, the potatoes, tomatillos, peppers, eggplant and garlic aren't ready. The squash and cukes and beans are really just getting their footing. The herbs are the only thing producing. And remarkably, despite the heat, I still have some lettuce.
I am plotting for the fall garden though.... garlic, leeks and onions to replace the potatoes. Cabbage, broccoli and brussells sprouts, carrots and beets to replace the garlic. Greens to transplant out as the okra and tomatoes and peppers begin to fade.
I also cleaned the bedroom. That took days.
I took some pictures, but the SB stole them. I will see if I can get him to send them to me. They were of our most adorable bean trellis, which will soon be providing shade for the duck yard. Woven bamboo. Sweet. And Free (even better - thanks Cho!)
The bees seem happy and active, and I am wondering if I am missing out by not having a second super on the hive. Must. Find. Out. Soon.
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
I know you are wondering
It keeps you up at night, doesn't it? The fact that I rarely post photos... I know. It probably keeps you from coming back too, doesn't it.... Sigh. The truth is that my card reader makes the old computer crash now. The SB set me up with his old laptop and a very nice flat screen, keyboard and mouse. So I am totally set. Except when you upgrade, you have to leave some things behind. Unfortunately, the ancient card reader is it. Now, I am much too lazy and ill informed on such things to explore my other options. It isn't that I don't think about it, but let's be real, on a nice evening I am either outside or babysitting. If it isn't nice, I am inside catching up on blogs and wondering how it is that two people can create so much freakin' laundry.
So, that is why the pictures have come to a screeching halt. I don't know if the SB will allow me to use his camera. Certainly not without a LONG list of instructions, warnings and threats about what happens if anything befalls it while in my possession. Or if, God forbid, I should return it with the batteries low.... I ask you, is it worth it? *pause* The jury is still out.
As for the garden, I have planted tomatoes and peppers. I continue to battle the flea beetles with diatomacous earth and fertilizer to try to get them big enough that the holes don't matter. Neither is particularly effective, but perhaps a teeny bit better.
I tried two new recipes. Both from the New York Times. One, the White House Fruit and Oat bars and Asparagus Pesto. I only modified them a little bit. Adding nuts to the bars and subbing in some OJ for maple syrup. Those Obamas may not like sugar, but they sure like sweet. The asparagus pesto had some arugula added in. Cuz I had it and needed to do something with it.
The SB and I started using the second batch of guanciale. Talk about yummy. Two varieties of sugar cured and two of salt. This time the hog jowls were whole and the entire process was super duper easy. Not sure if we can squeeze in another round before the basement is too warm. I think not. But oh, now I am getting used to the home made deliciousness, it is going to be hard to give it up.
We have gotten into the time between things in the garden. I have put up some greens, chard, mustard and kale, and now am waiting for the other things to come along. The strawberries are doing well other than being struck by mold with all the rain on the ripe berries. But we are still getting enough for a few freezer bags full for smoothies and ice cream. Next is blueberries, though we had some snow damage and probably won't have a lot of extra of those. There is lettuce and some spinach getting ready to bolt. The potatoes are going gangbusters. Soon we should have basil. The beans are up. I am growing both the short and tall varieties. The tall ones will be climbing up the duck yard fencing to give the ducks some afternoon shade. We also have some cukes and squash in, those are coming along slowly.
We still have a huge part of the garden to dig and are looking for a tiller to borrow. If you know someone, hook me up. We don't normally use a tiller (preferring to incapacitate ourselves with hard labor), but with so much new ground to break, it would be too much to try to do by hand... At least if we have any hope of getting corn in this year...
So, that is why the pictures have come to a screeching halt. I don't know if the SB will allow me to use his camera. Certainly not without a LONG list of instructions, warnings and threats about what happens if anything befalls it while in my possession. Or if, God forbid, I should return it with the batteries low.... I ask you, is it worth it? *pause* The jury is still out.
As for the garden, I have planted tomatoes and peppers. I continue to battle the flea beetles with diatomacous earth and fertilizer to try to get them big enough that the holes don't matter. Neither is particularly effective, but perhaps a teeny bit better.
I tried two new recipes. Both from the New York Times. One, the White House Fruit and Oat bars and Asparagus Pesto. I only modified them a little bit. Adding nuts to the bars and subbing in some OJ for maple syrup. Those Obamas may not like sugar, but they sure like sweet. The asparagus pesto had some arugula added in. Cuz I had it and needed to do something with it.
The SB and I started using the second batch of guanciale. Talk about yummy. Two varieties of sugar cured and two of salt. This time the hog jowls were whole and the entire process was super duper easy. Not sure if we can squeeze in another round before the basement is too warm. I think not. But oh, now I am getting used to the home made deliciousness, it is going to be hard to give it up.
We have gotten into the time between things in the garden. I have put up some greens, chard, mustard and kale, and now am waiting for the other things to come along. The strawberries are doing well other than being struck by mold with all the rain on the ripe berries. But we are still getting enough for a few freezer bags full for smoothies and ice cream. Next is blueberries, though we had some snow damage and probably won't have a lot of extra of those. There is lettuce and some spinach getting ready to bolt. The potatoes are going gangbusters. Soon we should have basil. The beans are up. I am growing both the short and tall varieties. The tall ones will be climbing up the duck yard fencing to give the ducks some afternoon shade. We also have some cukes and squash in, those are coming along slowly.
We still have a huge part of the garden to dig and are looking for a tiller to borrow. If you know someone, hook me up. We don't normally use a tiller (preferring to incapacitate ourselves with hard labor), but with so much new ground to break, it would be too much to try to do by hand... At least if we have any hope of getting corn in this year...
Saturday, May 15, 2010
Just go
If you haven't already, you must go. You must get in your car and find the most rural, gravel, unmaintained road within a 30 mile radius. But you have to be in Virginia. And if you have a convertible, that is even better. You must drive down the road as the air is cooling in the evening. You know the roads, they go over hill and dale through wood and field and between old barns and their houses. Go around the bend where the trees are, right where the seep comes through the rocks and dribbles under the road into the creek on the other side. And when you come out of the trees into the pasture road where the honeysuckle and the multiflora rose are blooming, you should drive slowly, so as not to kick up any dust. Because nothing should get in the way of the overwhelmingly decadent scent of the flowers. Take your time. The season doesn't last long. But if you miss it, you'll be waiting another year. And every year the roads are harder to find. And the barns fall down, and the creeks get put into concrete culverts. Really. What are you doing today anyway?
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