Well, school is going to be starting up soon for the kids and for most of us that means…….home school. Not sure about you but I like to have a cocktail some days while helping my kids with their school work. Or any other time too of course. Since we have been home more, we have gotten a little more creative with putting together recipes with fewer options and blackberries are definitely in our yard. If they are not in your yard, they are usually not too far away. Read more…
Rescuing a few throw away vegetable parts in this way makes something out of nothing and although I do not have a lot of ways to do that, here is one really good way. Actually going into the compost pile or bin to retrieve scraps is not the idea here but I would not shame anyone who does that. The first time I put this together I was not expecting much but I was pleasantly surprised, this coleslaw preparation is really good. Read more…
Lettuce greens, spinach, and kale planted as starts in the spring will be ready really quick and are likely the first vegetable available in the early spring garden. They are versatile and can be combined with dried grains and legumes in a number of ways. Indicated by the lack of beans in grocery stores lately, I am going to conclude some of ya’ll have ’em and assume that a recipe using beans might be useful because ya can’t have too many bean recipes. Read more…
At the beginning of each month I clear the family dry-erase calendar and write in the next month’s dates, and then fill in the important activities. For the first time ever I awoke to the surreal realization that there was not a single activity on our calendar. I mean, I knew there was nothing going on but the visual for some reason brought it all home. Read more…
There are a number of teas that sooth the throat but none more available as a home remedy than Sage! It grows everywhere and as a woody herb, usually remains vibrant in the garden year round. Sage works so well it’s really pretty incredible. I will typically make this as a tea and drink it straight, however those who tend to complain about a scratchy throat in this house (the smaller people) are more likely to accept this with a drop of honey. It can also just be used as a gargle for a sore throat. Sage has numerous properties that are known to fight infections of the throat. Read more…
If you did your garden up just right you might have all the vegetables you need as this is a fairly common group of late spring/early summer garden offerings. Of course they will all be easy to find at farmer’s markets as well. If you have never tried plucking pea leaves off and cooking with them, this is a good chance to give it a try. Baby spinach is a good substitute if you don’t have peas actively growing in the garden. Read more…
Vegetable stocks frequently come out dull and flavorless. This recipe attempts to remedy some of the missteps that prevent these veggies from reaching their full potential. Unlike a meat based stock that would be covered and cooked for hours, this recipe is cooked much quicker as the volume of liquid reduces to concentrate the flavor. The most important ingredient in a vegetable stock is anything from the onion (allium) family as this is where much of the flavor will come from. Read more…
The time frame to enjoy your own garden or farmer’s market tomatoes is very short so there is no time to mess around. I think a tomato salad is just about the best way to properly dispose of large quantities of one of the all time best garden items. Read more…
Zucchini blossoms are a great seasonal ingredient and a fun one to work with. Yes, you will get a little less zucchini when you harvest the flowers to eat but I think anyone who has grown zucchini can agree that this is just fine. The fried zucchini blossom sitting atop a fresh heirloom tomato salad is a divine treat. Thank you, garden! Read more…
Back in the day, people would can large amounts of pickles and vegetables because they had gardens so bountiful they needed a way to store the food surplus over the winter. Read more…
by the handful 