A planting I shall go...

Back in early April, I started my garden by planting seeds. Since it's cool outside with warm weather soon to be on its way, I planted the following seeds: spinach, lettuce, carrot, squash, cucumbers and onions.

Here is the garden growing as of Mother's Day.....

Carrot Forest

Cucumbers, pickles will be in our future. 

spinach

onions with a few left over carrots growing.

So the first weekend after Derby, which is a standard event that marks planting your garden in Louisville. Because everyone knows up until then it could be sunny, rainy or even snowy. With that date in mind, I took a vacation day the Monday after Mother's day just to plant my garden.

The day before JP helped me take the compost out of our two bins. It was nice to see that rich black soil that we made from our food scrapes, leaves, grass and chicken coop straw. There was enough to fill the potato bed high and add some to each of the other raised beds to be worked into the soil. With joint effort we got this done rather quickly.

I woke up just as if it was another work day, went through my routine. Dropped little bit off at day care and stopped on the way home for a jog. By 9 a.m. I was dressed in a tank top, overalls and boots. Wheel barrel, shovels and garden plan out and ready to go. It took several trips to get all the plants down to the garden.

Reviewing the garden layout, I got all the plants next to their raised bed. I made sure to rotate plants into different beds. Here are the beds after hours of work, joyful work.

Pepper plants I purchase from the farmers market, half of mine seeds did not sprout.

Here are some of my pepper plants, small compared to the others I purchased. 

Tomatoes

More tomato plants!!

So after all was said and done, I planted 50+ tomato plants including cherry, yellow pear, roma, early girl, beefy and heirloom, 30+ pepper plants including bell pepper and banana, 9 squash/zucchini. It was  a wonderfully cool slightly breezy day, with the sunny popping in and out. I also planted a bed of potatoes.

Now I just need to keep it de-weeded, watered and growing. This is going to be our best garden yet, can't wait to see all that it produces.

Here's whats growing in my herb garden...

Basil

Oregano

First Strawberry

Thyme

Less then an week later.... this is what I saw, my greenbeans sprouted

So what do you eat?

The way we eat has become a foundation of who we are. A person could be any of the following and I’m sure there are other new definitions being created as I speak.

Vegetarian – someone who lives on diet of plant based foods, eggs and dairy.

Vegan – someone who consumes only plant foods such as vegetables, grains, legumes (beans and peas), fruits, nuts and seeds. Avoiding all animal foods including meat, fish, poultry, eggs, dairy, and honey.

Flexitarian –  someone who eats vegetarian or vegan most of the time but eats meat and animal products every now and then. Also, could be called a semi-vegetarian.

Locavore – someone who eats food made near where they live, usually within 100 miles.

 

In the winter of 2010, after the birth of my daughter, I started getting interested in watching documentaries. My first one was Food Inc., after viewing the film, I had a desire to start making better choice about the food my family ate.

So for defining purposes, my family is a Flexitarian with a lot of Locavore and Homegrown thrown in. And to keep things interesting, my step-daughter is also a Chickenarian, one of those new words/terms I mentioned above. We have a 2 chicken flock in our backyard, they give us eggs and after they are done producing eggs. They will become well….dinner. So after time to think about this Avery at the ripe of age of 9 decided to stop eating chicken all together. Avery will be turning 11 in February and is still chickenless.

In the summer of 2011, I moved and expanded our failing first garden. In the garden, I grew tomatoes, melons, carrots and peppers. The garden did wonderful and in 2012 we made and installed all raised beds and expanded the garden just a little. We grew tomatoes (several varieties), peas, cucumbers, green beans, greens, lettuce, peppers, carrots, pumpkins, herbs, blueberries and raspberries. The garden did fantastic, leaving me with the planning of this year’s garden.

I shop every Saturday at the Farmers’ Market, where I try to get and plan the majority of my meals around. I also stock up on produce during the peak seasons to preserve for the winter. I preserve through hot bath canning method, blanching,  freezing and drying.

I buy Kentucky flour from a local store, so that I can make bread, pizza dough, pie crust, cookies, desserts and homemade pancake/waffle mixes.

Veggie Skillet (includes: onion, potato, kale and eggs)

Our meals consist of a heavy vegetarian diet, I personally feel that it balances out of all the good things to eat. I try to purchase mainly local meat, and from the grocery store organic meats. Another reason we eat a lot of vegetarian meals is because of the cost to purchase organic meat.

The majority of our meals are made from scratch after work. I try to plan leftovers for lunches over the next couples days and for a dinner, if there is enough. It is challenging to make this effort everyday with the world around me throwing convenient food at me. But this is something that is key to making healthy food for my family. And we may not eat until 6:30-7:00 o'clock some nights, but its worth the wait.

Homemade Pizza (includes: homemade dough, tomato sauce, red pepper, dried tomato, spinach, sausage and cheese)

 

Now I’ve watched many more documentaries that help keep me focused on the little things I can do that will make a big difference in my family’s diet. Both of my kids are not picky eaters. Both drink water and some milk with very little or no soda or juice. My step daughter’s diet varies from our, because she is at her mom’s house half of the time.

Vegetarian Quesadilla (includes: cheese, black beans, corn, red pepper, onion and tomato)

Now we do have things in our house that are not “healthy”, these are mainly for the kids and my husband. In our pantry you’ll find potato chips, Dortios (at times), little Debbie snacks and some sugary cereal. We are a work in progress.

I try to always keep in my mind a quote from one of Michael Pollen’s books, “You can eat all the junk food you want as long as you made is from scratch.”

This past weekend, I sat down with a nice hot cup of tea looked out the window into the winter cold and thought of my garden. Since I have a greenhouse this year, I can get my seedlings started early and not take over the dining area in the house.

So I got out my graph paper to draw out my current garden of raised boxes. Took out of the cupboard my stash of seeds and seed catalog, now I can begin to plan. This year I plan on adding zucchini and summer squash to the list, dropping the peas because I did not get a lot with the space I have. And mini bell peppers, I still need to find a place to order these from.

So this year I’ll be planting green beans, tomatoes, bell peppers, mini bell peppers, pumpkins, carrots, greens, spinach, broccoli (one more time), melons (watermelon and cantaloupe), onions, zucchini, summer squash, and cucumbers. I also still have the strawberry patch in the back, along with the herb garden. The blueberries and raspberries, and hoping to add blackberries this year. Lastly, I hope to add two apple trees, I want a small orchard in our back yard!

Now I need to purchase some soil, finishing placing everything on the garden layout so I can figure out how many seedlings to start. Order a few seeds. Then in mid-February, I’ll get the seeds planted and set out in the greenhouse.

What are you planning to grow this year?

Extending my season...... green house

I have also got and constructed a greenhouse, which we located on our back deck. It is 6’ x 4’ by 7’ tall, there is a shelving unit on one side while the other side is left open. 

I spend one evening gathering all of my pots, getting them filled with dirt and placed inside. The following evening I went out and planted my seeds, including the following: lettuce, spinach, broccoli and potatoes. I move my current planter of celery and carrots in there to continue their growth.

Celery and carrots

Every day you can see the moisture built up on the walls. My little one likes zipping the zippers up and down on the door and running around the outside. It’d been about a month now and the plants inside are doing well. Only time will time if the plants will grow and produce a harvest.

I have great hope for my broccoli plants.

lettuce

spinach

Lettuce and spinach seemed like a great fit for growing in pots. I also attempted to grow potatoes.

The above potato plants seemed to do well and seen above, however as temperatures dropped they all died. So lesson learned, stick to potatoes in the spring through fall. With the death of these plants, I decided to dig them out and plant something new. So I planted more lettuce and spinach because who wouldn't love a fresh salad in the middle of winter.... I know I would. Now lets see how my plants will grow.

Extending my growing season.... Hoop Houses

Mid September, I was busy pulling the last of tomato and pepper plants. Clearing the area for the fall garden to be planted. This year I’m planting green beans, broccoli, carrots, greens, spinach, and lettuce.

Greens 

Garlic for next year

Broccoli

collard greens

lettuce

Rabbits have been an issue, so I’ve covered the plants with chicken wire.

As the first projected frost was anticipated, I need to get the hoop house constructed. We bought some tubing from the hardware store and 6mil plastic. Since my raised beds are not very wide, I was also able to use hula hoops. Hoops and tubing was cut in half, then my hubby screwed them into the inner corner of the raised beds. Then we cut the plastic long enough to cover the beds with excess to close off the ends. Then we simply placed bricks, rocks and broken stepping stones we have around on our property.

On one strip of three beds we cut one long piece of plastic. JP then partially screwed in screws and the top of the tube and into the top of the two corners. Now we can use these to slip the plastic on and off as needed.

Now I can easily uncover the raised beds for watering and warm days. Then fairly quickly get them covered and kept from frost during the night.

I leave you with my evening harvest of lettuce for a dinner salad tonight.

A Harvest of Autumn

Autumn is my favorite part of the year, with the cool crisp of the wind blowing by, the colors nature transforms into and all the wonderful seasonal produce.

This weekend was pumptastic, yes thats a word, my word. This spring I planted my first pumpkin plants. The plants were on a conquest to conquer the garden all summer. My prize fairy tale pumpkin is (how appropriate) my beautiful 24 pounder.

Pumpkin puree was on my brain, so I started out with the pumpkin and a knife.

 So first I slice the pumpkin in to half. Now you can notice from the below picture that this pumpkin is full of meat compared to the jack-o-lantern pumpkins. The meat is easily 2 to 3 inches thick.

Then scoop out all the seedy goodness. Now you can save the seeds to eat or to plant in the spring.
Here are few seeds that wanted to get a jump on spring time.

Now for this type of pumpkin, preheat the oven to 400 degrees and move the rack in the center. Lay the slices on a baking sheet and cover with foil.

 Cook for two hours. Now this process took me 6 hours due to the size of my pumpkin. They are ready when a fork can pierce the meat with ease. Remove from the oven to cool, you want then cool enough to handle with your hands.

Once they have cooled, cut the meat from the skin and put it into the food processor. 

Puree the pumpkin until smooth. Then measure the puree out into ziplock storage bags. I measure mine out into 2 cups and 4 cups. Place the bag puree onto a cookie sheet flat and place into the freezer. This method allows you to stack the pumpkin puree in the freezer easier. 

I'm proud to say that I got 22 cups of pumpkin puree from my pumpkin. Now I can dream of pumpkin pasta, breads, muffins, pancakes, pies, and cheesecakes.

Preserving Summer, Part 1

Summer is in full stream. Garden is growing and producing goodness everyday. During my evening walk through I see new things growing and ripening.

While the it takes care of itself, and I work on planning our fall garden. Every weekend is full of trying to preserve the taste, flavors and produce of the summer season. My yellow pear tomato and grape tomato plants are in abundance, so I've been oven roasting them. Since I don't yet have a dehydrator, I have to use the oven in between my bread baking schedule.

Oven drying small tomatoes are simple, I got this recipe from one of my favorite blogs, www.digthischick.net. Preheat the oven to 275 degrees. Spray a cookie sheet with oil, then slice all the little tomatoes in half. Placing them on the sheet slice side up, then drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

 Then place in the oven for three hours, around that time start checking the tomatoes. You want them to be dried and leathery, so they may need to cook longer depending on their size.

Then you can store them in an air tight container or place in zip lock bag and toss into the freezer. During the winter pull them out and add to soups, chili or pizza.

Now freezing is another busy task I take on pretty much each weekend. I've been keeping busy with green beans and corn from the farmers market. Now you can find blanching times every where on the internet. I usually turn to pickyourown.org. Each vegetable has there own required blanch time. So you cook them for the time necessary then immediately put the produce into ice cold water, this stops the cooking process.

Then place them into the a zip lock bag, now for a great trick I learned at a 15Thousand Farmers. Once the veggies are in the bag, zip it almost close, stick a straw into the corner. Then suck the air out of the bag, creating a vacuum seal.

With these little things done here and there, my family will be able to enjoy this bounty of summer during the chilliness of winter.

My FairyTale Weekend