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April/May Garden Journal

5/26/2015

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Blooms from an ornamental tree in the front yard.
April was a joke. I transplanted everything I could think of before I remembered to harden off the plants first. Now they all look sunburned. I left the garden gate open for an hour and a half while my chickens tossed my seedlings around the yard. That didn't help the sunburn. 

My amazing zucchini plant turned yellow and started to die. My butterhead lettuce turned yellow just as it was on the verge of perfection. My tomato plant in the greenhouse started to turn yellow. My arugula all went to seed. It wasn't an inspiring month. 
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Sad, sad zucchini
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Bizarre yellowing tomato plant
I visited the local nursery where they told me that fresh potting soil, even organic potting soil, isn't made with enough nutrients in it to support much plant life. This is disappointing to say the least. So I bought two boxes of E.B. Stone's organic vegetable fertilizer and doused my entire garden. It's been a week, and things are already looking greener. 

My zucchini were suffering from blossom end rot, which occurs when there isn't enough calcium in the soil for the plants to form correctly. 
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A week after getting organic plant food
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A month or so later and zucchini are growing in a few different places.
The next discovery came when I compared my tomato plants. The first tomato plant on the left was planted in amended potting soil. The tomato plants on the right were planted some time later in a raised bed that I had filled halfway with unfinished compost to save money on organic potting soil. As you can see, they don't even look like the same kind of plant. 
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Below is a side-by-side example from another raised bed. The tomato plant on the left was planted over chicken bedding (fresh, completely un-composted), and the one on the right was planted in organic potting soil and amended with lots of plant food. 
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The next time I cleaned out the chicken coop, dug holes in my raised beds and buried the bedding directly there since I'll be filling in with more tomatoes and peppers soon. It seems weird not to compost it first, but so far no harm has come from it. If my family all dies from some kind of weird food poisoning, at least you'll know better than to try it. 

It turns out that nearly every vegetable you grow in the summer requires lots and lots of rich soil to grow well. Rich soil never meant anything to me now, but I suppose it's code for being full of lots of rotten decomposed former plant life- compost and rotten manure. Corn, tomatoes, pumpkins, summer squash, cucumbers and peppers all require a lot to grow. 

The other interesting thing has been the enormous number of aphids in the garden. I noticed them on the roses first, but shortly thereafter I realized that the tree next to the roses was dripping with ladybugs. I decided to let them all duke it out on their own. I've had a jalapeño in the greenhouse since last summer that I couldn't keep the aphids off of, and so I went and put it under the ladybug tree. First the aphids circled, then the ladybugs. The plant seems to be fine. I'm not sure that there's a huge takeaway from all this, but it's interesting to me. 
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To the left is my jalapeƱo under the ladybug tree, above is a closeup of the insect life swarming around beneath it. Ew.
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You can see how many ladybugs are all over this plant. Like a convention.
A few years ago my dad planted a few tomatoes in the greenhouse. He felt that the ones outside grew better, but the plant in the greenhouse that survived went on to produce tomatoes for another year. It was a monster. I named him Seymour. So I am trying to grow another Seymour, but I think it might be necessary to prune at some point. Next time I will try this with a grow bag since they air-prune the roots, and maybe I'll have a perennial tomato. 
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Seymour the Second, who clearly wasn't planted in compost but survives in spite of me.
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Some basil I planted that is covering the the cucumbers in the same pot.
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First shelling peas have appeared.
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My first tomato this year!
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I am the only person I know who struggles to grow nasturtiums...
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The corn is just starting.
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Afghani Lamb Stew with Yogurt

5/24/2015

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Maybe this is an odd recipe to post on Memorial Day weekend, when everyone in their right mind is either camping or grilling. This recipe is so simple I almost didn't post it, but after some thought I decided that was the charm. It really is easy. The yogurt gives the stew a nice tangy flavor, and next time I'd like to try this with cream instead of the yogurt. I'd also like to try some more exciting Afghani dishes, but this was easy on a weekday and great served with rice and a roasted vegetable. According to Helen Saberi in Afghan Food & Cookery, this dish can be made with chicken as well without sacrificing authenticity although I plan on doing just that when I try this with cream next time. You can make this ahead of time and reheat it right before dinner. 

I have eaten amazing Afghani food and ho-hum Afghani food, but I am hoping to find the great recipes in Helen Saberi's book. Her vegetables call for vegetable oil, but I use a blend of equal parts olive oil, coconut oil, and sesame oil. I bet that the traditional cooking fat was lamb fat, but that is impossible to find. Some day...
Ingredients:
1 onion, peeled and sliced
1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed
1/4 cup of oil
1 pound of boneless lamb or chicken
1 tablespoon on tomato paste
1/2 teaspoon of turmeric
2 whole cardamom pods
salt and pepper
3/4 cup full fat yogurt
Directions:
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In a pan, heat the oil and add the garlic and onions. Salt the onions lightly. Saute the mixture until the onions are golden, and then add the meat with a little more salt and fry it until it has browned. 
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Stir in the tomato paste until it's well mixed in. Add 1/2 cup water, the turmeric, the cardamom pods, and pepper to taste. 
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Bring it to the boil, then turn the heat down and simmer until the meat is tender. This part can all be done ahead of time. When you are ready to serve dinner, stir in the yogurt and gently reheat the pot. 
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P.S. My husband deserves full credit for the cream idea. I'll post an update once we try it. 
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May Farmer's Market Menu Plan

5/18/2015

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If this sounds sanctimonious, you'll be relieved to know that I am typing this post over a corn dog. 

I bought lots of blueberries, cherries, strawberries, and oranges. All the berries will be gone by tomorrow. I also found cabbage leaves, onions, zucchini, mushrooms, spinach, and beets. They all look amazing and fresh, and I want to get things chopped and roasted before they rot in the vegetable bin of my refrigerator. I hesitate to plan more than three meals at a time since I usually find it goes haywire if I plan out more meals. Other days we end up eating leftovers, soup, or spaghetti. 

So here was the plan:
  • Lamb, Zucchini and Mushroom Kebabs with Spinach
  • Roasted Beet and Walnut Pasta
  • Cabbage, Mushroom, Zucchini, and Ground Pork Stir Fry
One week later, here's how it actually went. 
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Beet Walnut Pasta
We started with the Beet Walnut Pasta and added fried pancetta. It was delicious, if a little garish. 

We sauteed the greens and cooked and peeled the beets ahead of time so that all we had to do was boil the pasta and assemble it. 

Full disclosure... the kids hated it. They loved it once, but this week beets are out. 
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Lamb Kabobs with Zucchini and Mushrooms
I marinated one pound of lamb cubes in olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic, oregano, and lemon juice. Unfortunately, this was a cold day and no one wanted to BBQ, so we broiled them in the oven instead and served them over rice and a spinach salad. This was my favorite from the week. 
And the stir-fry. I mixed some salted black beans and garlic in with the pork, fried it, and then stir-fried all the zucchini. There were so many vegetables I didn't include the cabbage or mushrooms. Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture. If you would like to see an easy way to stir-fry, here's one way that I posted. I served that with rice and pickles. 
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One tomato became a salad with basil and fresh mozzarella, the other became a salsa to go with eggs for breakfast. 

All the leftover veggies are going into a peanut curry so that hopefully nothing is wasted. I still have spinach, cabbage, mushrooms and green beans, and peanut curry is the best answer I have for random and disparate vegetables. 

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Strawberry Popsicles

5/15/2015

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Small children have been trying to sneak into my freezer. An independent panel of little boys have assured me that these are the best popsicles they ever had. Need I say more?
Ingredients:
2 baskets of strawberries
1/4 cup of honey
3/4 cup cream
Directions:
Blend the strawberries and honey together in a food processor or blender. Add the cream and blend again briefly. Pour the strawberry puree into popsicle molds and freeze. Enjoy!
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Djuvedj (Baked Lamb with Vegetables and Rice)

5/11/2015

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Pronounced "jew-vedge", this hails from the part of the world formerly known as Yugoslavia. This is home cooking at it's best- simple, nutritious and rich. The miracle of this dish is that I made a mistake, turned off the oven halfway through cooking, and came home three and a half hours later to perfection. My kids have activities every afternoon right now, and I don't get home until around 7. I will be making this dish as often as my family will eat it. 

I found this recipe in Elisabeth Luard's The Old World Kitchen: The Rich Tradition of European Peasant Cooking. It was published in 1987, so it's hardly the hot new thing, but it is a good thing. The directions were so simple I reread them again and again because I kept thinking that I had left something out. No- it's just that easy. And did I mention delicious?

My kids abhorred the eggplant, but my sympathy is limited. Your family, your call. This needs at least an hour and a half to bake. 
Ingredients:
1/2 cup olive oil (it's rich, not greasy)
2 sliced onions
3-4 cloves of sliced garlic
2 pounds of boneless lamb, cut into bite sized pieces
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon hot paprika
salt and pepper
2 pounds of chopped mixed vegetables (bell pepper, zucchini, green beans, eggplant)
1/2 cup of rice
1/2 pound sliced fresh or canned tomatoes
Directions:
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1. Heat up 1/4 cup of olive oil in a frying pan and add the onions and garlic. Add a little salt. Saute them until they are golden. 

Soak the rice in warm water. 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 
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Push the onions to the side, and add in the lamb. Let it fry for a minute before adding the spices, and some salt. 
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Pour the mixture into an earthenware dish with a cover or a dutch oven.
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Add the vegetables and salt them lightly. 
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Drain the rice and spread it over the vegetables.

(The rice in the picture wasn't soaked, but some of it came out a little crunchy. If you forgot to soak the rice, just throw it on and forget about it.)
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Add the tomatoes to the top. If you are using fresh but flavorless tomatoes, sprinkle a little sugar over them. Pour water in up to the level of the rice, and drizzle the last 1/4 cup of olive oil over it. 

The shape and size of your cooking vessel will  alter how much water you use, but this is home cooking, not rocket science, so don't worry about it too much. 
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All of this BARELY fit into the dish I had, so I put a baking sheet underneath it in the oven so it wouldn't bubble over and make a huge mess. 

Put the djuvedj in the oven and bake it for an hour and a half. The recipe said to remove the lid during the last 20 minutes of cooking for the juices to cook down and concentrate, but my pot only just held it all and this wasn't necessary. 


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I planned really badly for this, and not quite an hour into the cooking time, I had to leave. I turned everything off, left it in the oven, and came home three and a half hours later to a perfectly cooked hot meal. I think the ceramic pot had a lot to do with this because it retained the heat so well. 

This made 6 to 8 servings and only got better the next day. Serve it with wine and bread to soak up the juices. 
Options and Alterations:
You can leave out the meat and add feta cheese during the end of the cooking. You can switch out the vegetables for whatever is in season. You can substitute chicken for lamb. You can use 4 peeled, sliced potatoes instead of rice. You can also add some cumin to the spices. The original recipe called for 1/2 teaspoon of chili powder, not the paprikas that I used. 
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Lamb with Tomatoes and Eggs

5/4/2015

1 Comment

 
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This was like a meaty shakshouka, another dish I love. It is an Iraqi breakfast dish, and a bit meatier and more aromatic than most American breakfasts. If that offends you, make it for lunch or dinner. I tried this with lamb and beef. The lamb is my favorite but it is more expensive and I know not everyone is a fan. This is such an easy recipe that once you try it, you'll see this is the kind of thing you can throw together at the last minute and has lots of possible variations. I kept the original amounts from the original recipe, but I think it should really read more like, "lots of chopped parsley, lamb for four people, plenty of juicy tomatoes, lots and lots of curry powder, etc."  According to the Saveur article where I first saw this, this is based on a recipe found in a tenth-century Mesopotamian cookbook. It's called Makhlama Lahm, if that means anything at all to you. Here's a link to the original article. 

This recipe finishes the eggs in the oven, but if you have really juicy tomatoes, you can just cover the pan and let the eggs finish on the stove. 
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound ground lamb 
1 minced yellow onion
1/3 cup minced parsley
1 teaspoon curry powder
2 chopped tomatoes, or enough to make it moist and juicy
salt and pepper
4 eggs
crushed red chile flakes to garnish
griddle bread or flatbread
Directions:
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Heat the olive oil in a 12-inch frying pan over medium high, and cook the lamb until it is brown and broken into pieces. Add the onion and cook until it's soft. 
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Stir in half the parsley, the tomatoes, and the curry powder. Season with salt and pepper, and let it cook until the tomato has broken down. This much lamb takes more salt than I expected, so be sure to taste it. 

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. 
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Make four little indentations in the meat mixture and crack four eggs in. Season the eggs with salt and pepper and put it in the oven. Bake it until the egg whites are set. 

After you bring it out of the oven, sprinkle on the rest of the parsley, chile flakes to taste, and eat it up with the flatbread. 
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    I love trying new foods, cooking, and gardening. I hope to share these experiences on this site. Thanks for taking a look! 
            -Megan

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