Late Spring Garden

Today was a huge harvest from my garden. I started a garden subscription box to maybe add a little variety to what I grow. I saw leaf’d box  on Facebook and decided what the heck, it could be cool. had never grown endive or radicchio and was excited at how beautiful they grew

Radicchio 

Endive


I have so much of these so I searched for recipes. Here are two I plan on trying.

 

Quick Sauté with Chicken and Endive

Roasted Radicchio

I also harvested bunching onions, lettuce, fennel, cabbage, beets, bok choy, and kale. So. Much. Kale. Thank goodness I love it!

Almost forgot the beans and peas! I am making pickled beets and can’t wait to eat them.

Soon I will have tons of squash as the blossoms have started forming. Yum! The broccoli has also started making tiny florets. 

Happiness achieved.

Peldyn

Garden Stuffs

My winter garden is still producing well. The chickens have gotten in a few times, but I am still getting a good harvest. The broccoli, fennel, kale, and cabbage have been amazing. I did learn a fun fact about fennel. You can grow it from the end of the cut bulb and if you leave the root in the ground it grows back too! So for every fennel I harvest, I get two new plants. I call that a win win.

My chickens are laying plenty of eggs so that means lots of quiche and custard. Mmmm lemon custard. I really need to plant a lemon tree.

Mmm cabbage 

The damage on the cabbage is from my chickens. They love it too, lol.

Peldyn

Seasons Change

Eating seasonally. Many of us have forgotten this due to having an abundance of veggies available all year round. Once you start to try and grow your own, be it in pots on a sunny window sill or a multi acre farm you learn this lesson. Growing things have a season. With the food shortages we have experienced I expanded my garden. While this has helped , it also really struck home how I need to adjust my eating habits. No wonder winter is the month of soups and stews. Not only are they hearty, but make good use of root vegetables and crops that are winter hardy. I will miss the ripe tomatoes of summer, but look forward to the cabbage, peas and turnips. 

So tonight’s dinner is going to be Tatie and Neeps and old Celtic recipe.

May the goddess bless you all with abundance

Tattie and Neeps Recipe

4 cups  diced potato

1 or 2 cups diced turnip

1/2 cup cream

4 tablespoons butter

2 cups sliced cabbage

1 small onion chopped 

Salt and pepper to taste

Optional 4 slices bacon crisply cooked and crumbled

Cook potato and turnip in boiling water until tender.

Drain and reserve.

If using bacon cook the cabbage and onion in the drippings until tender. Use olive oil if not using bacon.

Add potatoes and turnips to the pan with the cabbage and onion. Mash. Add cream, butter, salt and pepper, mixing well. If you like, you can let the bottom get slightly browned. Top with crumbled bacon.

Serves 6 as a side dish or 4 as a main course.

Weeding

Let's get straight to it. I hate weeding. Because I hate it I think I have more weeds than the normal person.

Since I have pets and grandchildren I eschew the use of pesticides. That means it is up to me to hand pick those little buggers.

Yeah.

They get away from me.

Today I did pick some. My chickens were very happy.

"Thanks mom for all these yummy weeds! Hey, let us give you some eggs."

On another note, the new ranunculus and Mediterranean bells bulbs I planted are sprouting. I didn't expect that as I had bought them last year... Or was that the year before last?

My roses are also blooming like crazy inspite of me not having pruned them back.

Maybe a little benign neglect is not a bad thing.

Peldyn