Blueberry Goodness and other Culinary Delights

Morgaine and I put our culinary delights together this weekend.  I like going out to her place. She lives on an island on the Columbia River.  It's not very far, about 20 miles, but it seems like I've gone somewhere far when we're out there.  The scenery is a bit different driving along the river, there are many shorebirds and a fresh coastal smell. It was a great break.  She's also a whole foods cook, working with the freshest, local ingredients available. We both love the adventure of just trying something that sounds good with the ingredients currently available, recipe in hand or not.  Dessert was very blue and very tasty.She made some blueberry pie with local blueberries she put up last summer.

I made a vegan blueberry pudding cake, a variation of the lemon pudding cake I've made before from the Vegan Dad cookbook.  I substituted blueberry juice for the lemon juice in the recipe, used orange zest instead of lemon, and put a layer of fresh blueberries on the bottom of the pan before the cake batter.

They were very good together, parfait style with a little soy whipping creme.

For our dinner, I made vegan AuGratin potatoes and roasted a whole acorn squash.  She made some wonderful whole grain bread, vegetables tempura with a nice variety of fresh vegetables, onions, carrots, yams, and more.  She also made a sweet and sour sauce for the vegetables and some sautéed chicken breast.  Most of the meal was plant based.  This is where my flexitarian comes in.  I didn't enjoy a whole portion of chicken breast, but I did have a small taste.  After all, someone did go to the trouble to make it, I am going to show my appreciation for her cooking and try it. I also know that she obtains her animal protein from the most local sources. I used her homemade sauce over the tempura vegetables, it was a great combination.  Together we came up with a great feast and there was some jolly conversation in the room after dinner, but soon there was a quiet that came over the house as everyone settled in very well fed and relaxed.

Vegan Au Gratin

Homemade Fresh Whole Grain Bread

Tempura Vegetables

Jorma Kaukonen - Song for the north star

Onions, Shallots, & Peace ~ Garden 2011

Garden Friends

 It was a successful day.  Peaceful, quiet, and productive. I spent three lovely hours working in the garden.  I did get that healing massage and I took the time to get a pedicure.  This gave me at least one hour of relaxing with a book today too.

 
Funny, I got a manicure too but  that's just to make my hands look nice and clear up the frayed cuticles, they don't stay very pretty for long.  Within about an hour and a half of leaving the nail salon, I was out in the garden, my fingers deep in the mud.  It was cloudy, but not raining much.  There were a few drops, but nothing to keep me indoors.  It was, however, very cold.  I brought extra socks, wore leggings under my jeans, carried extra gloves, and brought some ear muffs just in case.  No problem though, soon I was too warm and grateful I dressed in layers.

I weeded the mound we had most of our peppers in last year and planted about 100 white onions, 100 yellow onions, and maybe a dozen large shallots.  The plant by the small post is a Columbine already waking up from the winter.  There was quite a bit of green growing from the center. I gave them a little trim too.  The ground temperature was 45° today, perfect for onions and peas.  Hopefully I'll get some lettuce, chard, kale, and spinach in the ground this weekend too. But, if the weather doesn't allow it, that's OK.  I managed to get quite a lot done today.  I can work on the indoor seedlings.

I softened, weeded, and turned the dirt at the bottom of the structure our beans grew on last year and planted a package of snap peas.

Peas Soon

A benefit of working in a community garden is getting the chance to learn from other gardeners.  There were three or four out there today checking out what work needed to be done. A couple of the older gentlemen came over to say hi and see what I was planting. I enjoy watching everyone's garden growing too, everyone has their own style.

Elizabeth, the gardener right behind us, uses a cardboard and leaf mulch.  She packs dry leaves into her plot all winter.  She's got a pretty good bed going now.

The Jolly's have a very nice raised garden set up.  They'll be out there soon too planting their kole crops.  They'll drape plastic on those hoops making it nice and warm inside for their tomatoes and peppers.

The neighbors right next to us use, what I think they said is a Japanese system.  They built an oblong structure and place their compost in the center.  The roots of the plants then grow into the compost and the plants grow kind of a vertical.  It's very pretty when it's green and blooming. 

And the best part of all, I came home with somewhat of a harvest. There were a whole bunch of tiny little carrots that stayed in the dirt all winter.

I also managed to smile inside myself most of the day.  It could have been very different due to the events of the morning in the courtroom.  But, I started the day with some meditation, prayer, a gratitude list, and a mission to stay calm and positive. Staying calm throughout the day wasn't very hard at all.

Life is good and gardening is cheaper than therapy!

Gratitude and Growth

I'm a bit melancholy today.  Part of my son's current journey is over today.  I don't think there are any more charges to be brought against him.  He now has to get through the summer in jail and then get on to rebuilding his life. He's got a much harder path to walk then he had two years ago. He has plead guilty to two more felonies.  This makes six felonies in three counties for a very stupid decision. How the F*!k does a person ever get a job with that many felonies? (Pardon the anger showing please.)  When this all started, my biggest fear was that he would spend six months in jail.  He has now been in five different institutions and pretty much incarcerated for the last two years.  He was 21 when he went away, he will be 24 in March. We've spent a lot of holidays talking with glass in between us.

Today he is officially sentenced to 70 months of correctional custody.  They have suspended 5 years with probation and he will serve another 210 days in county jail.   My very polite son, who had so much promise, has now spent the last two years in some kind of correctional facility.  I chose not to go to the courtroom today. Most of me feels good about that decision. One of the biggest lessons I've learned from this ordeal is that I cannot change anything.  I am reminded that the only thing I can change is how I react to the situation.  Instead of being angry, I can find another way to get through this day. I haven't slept much, I knew that would happen.  Even if I am not there, I am still feeling what is about to happen today. This is not what I had in mind for that cute little baby boy. I don't think I will accomplish anything by going through that fear in the courtroom today.  Instead, I'm taking care of myself. I've taken a vacation day and doing a little pampering and then some preparations for spring. Today the gardening begins, indoors and hopefully a little outdoors.Yes, gardening is cheaper than therapy.

My dear friend Cheryl, who passed away in 2009, would have reminded me that everything does work out.  It doesn't always work out the way we want it, but it does work out.  She'd remind me that getting out of ourselves and helping someone else usually helps us feel a little better. She'd ask me when the last time I did a gratitude list was.  You know, it's been awhile.  'Bout time I think.

I am grateful to be a sober. I only thought about drinking a couple times through this ordeal.  I am grateful for all I've learned that helped me not drink.

I am grateful for my loving husband who shows it every day. Sometimes I haven't been too much fun through this.

I am grateful for my sons and grandchildren.  Although we worry, there's a lot of love.  I've heard we can't appreciate the joy without the pain.  I'll try to be grateful for the pain too.

I am grateful for my beautiful warm home.(Especially the great kitchen I spend most my time creating edible art.) I heard yesterday that cooking was a great distraction.  It's working.  Happiness is taking photos of the great experiments gone right. Oh yeah, then sharing them.

I am grateful we found gardening.  My husband and I share a lot of love when we are in the sunshine and dirt taking care of our babies.

I am grateful for the busy job I have which keeps my mind active and allows for a vacation day when necessary.  My job is never boring and always changing. I usually feel appreciated there too.

I am grateful for the loving friends I have in my life. There is a lot of love in my life.  

I am grateful for the ability to be creative and share that with others. Love sharing art and the love of good food with others.  The potluck is a great new distraction. It's been a blessing to have this in my mind instead of my son's troubles.

Now Cheryl would have me do at least five, there's eight.  On my way to feeling better I think.  I haven't slept as much as I would like.  But that's OK, I get to move at my own pace today.   Another reason to be grateful for vacation days. I'm doing OK, but I don't think I want to interact with too many today. I need some solitude myself.  It's time to get ready for spring.  I am starting the day with a deep muscle massage, then a pedicure, (which also comes with reading time), and then if it's not too wet I am headed out to the garden to start some lettuce, onions, and peas.  If it's raining, I'll get them started here.  I also have some Almond Madeleine dough setting in the fridge, I'll share them with you later. I am looking forward to the day!

I have learnt silence from the talkative, toleration from the intolerant, and kindness from the unkind; yet strange, I am ungrateful to these teachers.


Kahlil Gibran

Saturday Winterfolk Surprise

Winterfolk 23, Portland, OR

As I left the office Friday, I mentioned I had no plans for the weekend other than do some cooking, reading, and relaxing. If it was dry at all, I'd get some work done out in the garden.  I received an email Friday afternoon informing me I had won a couple tickets to Winterfolk in Portland from KBOO Friday evening. That was a very nice surprise.  I entered a comment on their Facebook page for a drawing early Friday morning.  I didn't even remember doing it as I have done that so many times before without expecting to win. Now we had some plans. We headed to Portland in the afternoon Saturday. I got a chance to hit the Peoples Co-op and stock up on some needed items like vanilla beans, fresh tempeh, pure maple syrup, and some bulk grains and nuts. There are so many nice items in People's that I can buy in bulk that I either can't get in town or they are much more expensive.

We arrived at the theater about an hour before the show. There's a little bar and cafe next door with an entrance to the theater. We had a nice meal for about $25 and headed into the show. For people who had no plans, it turned out to be a lovely evening for the both of us. We bought a raffle ticket for the cause, and a chance to win a nice guitar.  The whole date was $35. 

I love folk music and I really like the Aladdin theater. It's small and accessible, never a problem parking, and it's a good place to go hear live music. We've seen a lot of musicians there. We've seen some famous people who've been writing music and singing their songs some as far back as the 50's. Many have been performing for 30-40 years. It's nice to hear them now and to hear the stories they tell about how the songs came to be written and what the motivations were at the time. It's a reminder to me that even with so much change, so many things remain the same. This night the performers were young and old, I believe Joe Hickerson may have been in his late seventies. He, we all, sang "Where have all the flowers Gone" and he's been singing his own version with three added verses since it was originally written. Many of the musicians Saturday night played songs written or performed by artists we've seen at the Aladdin, Jorma Kaukonen, Jack Cassidy, and Joan Baez. Winterfolk is an annual benefit for the Sisters of The Road Cafe. 

There were lots of wonderful musicians, three sessions with two different sets of performers each session.  The MC even got in a few songs. We heard: Tracy Grammer, Beth Wood, Dncan Phiilips with Kate MacLeod, Doug Wintch & Gigi Love, Tom May, Joe Hickerson, Chris Kokesh & Lincoln Crockett, and one of my favorites, Doug Smith.  His guitar sent me off to wonderful places.

Perfect Love

Perfect love sometimes does not come until grandchildren are born.

Welsh Proverb

The Vegan/Vegetarian Potluck was a Success!

Our first vegan/vegetarian potluck in Longview was a delightful experience.  We cleaned up the store and put out some tables, lit some candles, and put out some wonderful food.  Thirty five people showed up with a nice variety of vegan and vegetarian dishes. I didn't taste anything I didn't like and I saw many people going back to the buffet tables more than twice. 



I may have missed some, but of the wonderful dishes to choose from for dinner was:

Lentil Salad
Cauliflower & Raisin Crustini
Spanikopita
Vegan Mac and Cheese
Spinach Quiche with green & red peppers and cheddar cheese
Vegetarian Pizza
Roasted new potatoes with cheddar cheese, yellow bells, olive oil, butter, and balsamic vinegar
Vegan Taco Soup with crunchy toppings like tortilla ribbons and roasted sunflower seeds
Butternut squash and white bean stew with almonds, chickpeas, potatoes, raisins, and spices
Crock Cheese made with tofu and white miso
Raw Kale Salad with Root Veggies
Green salad with romaine, green leaf lettuce, spinach, almonds, and pureed plums
Vegan Cornbread
Asian Pasta and Greens salad
Pumpkin Pie Bars
Sweat Meat Squash Muffins
Peanut Butter Celery Logs
Chocolate Beet Cake muffins with Raspberry Icing
Hibiscus Lemon Cheesecake (I have some of that to munch on today, Thanks Morgaine  :D)

Thanks to my friends for all your help.  Rachel put together a beautiful flier, Michele used her fantastic scrap-booking skills to make us some table signs, Christy, Lester, Rhonda, & I turned that little produce store into a dining room for the evening, and everyone prepared something great for the dinner. I do believe the potluck was very successful. Everyone I've heard from enjoyed themselves and are interested in doing it again.  Peter gave a great talk with a lot of information in a very short time. I was toast yesterday, but I don't think the next one will be as much work. Next time, I'll have a little more help with the arranging. I think having one monthly might be too much, but every two or three months might work.  We'll see. Christy and Les at Payton's enjoyed it and are up for doing it again.

Tepary Beans & Zucchini Orzo

One of my holiday gifts this year was a basket of heirloom beans. This weekend I cooked up the Tepary beans. Tepary Beans are a little larger than a lentil, but plump up like a bean.  I just made a simple bean pot. Sauteed garlic, onions, chopped red bell pepper, simmered in low sodium vegetable broth.  I think I threw in some thyme, basil, a couple tablespoons raspberry balsamic vinegar, and a tablespoon of pumpkin honey.

The Orzo is a variation of a recipe in a book I've been reading this year, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. There are recipes at the end of many chapters and lots of good gardening and food preserving information in it.  There's even a whole day planned out canning chutney, barbecue sauce, relish, and tomato sauce.  The directions even tell you to invite a friend for that day.  Heads up Morgaine.  The chutney and relish recipes look good. I was looking for a recipe I'd tried last summer and came across this easy Zucchini and orzo.  I've had half a box of orzo sitting on my counter looking for a home for about a month.

They talk about the end of the summer when the gardens are overflowing with zucchini. People who don't ordinarily lock their doors make sure they are locked because someone might drop off a bag of vegetables it they don't.  That didn't happen this year in our area, hope it's better this year. They have lots of recipes to hide the zucchini so the family doesn't know how much they are eating. This my version of one called "Disappearing Zucchini Orzo". 

Prepare 8 oz. Orzo
1 chopped red onion
1 red bell pepper, diced
3 cloves chopped garlic, or to taste
2 large zucchini, grated (I used a couple very large yellow zucchini)
2 large carrots, grated
Olive oil for saute
Thyme
Oregano
1/4 cup vegan cheddar cheese
1/4 cup vegan mozzarella cheese

Saute zucchini, pepper, and carrots briefly with chopped onion and garlic until lightly golden.  Add spices to zucchini mixtue, stir thoroughly and remove from heat.  Combine with cheese and cooked orzo, salt and pepper to taste.  Serve warm or cold.

New Year's Day ~ Vegetarian Breakfast

Shredded potatoes, with green onions, chopped sweet onion, a little grated sharp cheddar cheese, smokey maple bacon flavor tempeh, (Yeah, whole grains with a smoked bacon flavor, yippee! Thought I'd try it and it worked.), and slightly beaten egg whites.

New Year's Eve ~ Black Eyed Peas & Greens

 Nice to have a Friday off for the holiday.  I got my shopping done and some cooking done that I would usually do on Saturday, so I don't try cram so much into the weekend.  It's like getting an extra Saturday or extra Sunday, however I look at it .  I enjoyed having today.  I wandered out to the garden to peek at the sleeping plants this morning.  It's somewhere in the 20's and very icy, but a beautiful sunny day.  The garlic is still growing and so are the brussels sprouts.  Most of the plants seem a little sleepy or dead, but under some of the ice, I found some green, healthy plants.

Frosty Sage

Brussels Sprouts

The seed catalogs started coming last week, I'm now deciding what to plant soon.  I feel like a kid looking through the Sears catalog making a Christmas list. Late January and early February are when I can start my seedlings downstairs, that adds some sunshine to my heart.

My sweetie and I had a lovely New Year's Eve together.  We stayed close to home and enjoyed each other's company. We took a long walk along the Cowlitz River in the afternoon and played with our cameras.  The sun was out and it was an absolutely gorgeous afternoon.  If it weren't for the temperature being in the 20's the sky and air looks as if we could take a drive in a convertible with tank tops.

Walking on the Cowlitz

Before we left I cooked a pot of black eyed peas.  I just simmered them in water and sea salt so they could be used in other recipes this week. I just wanted the flavor of the peas.

When we returned from our walk. I sauteed a carrot, a thinly sliced onion, about a TB minced ginger, 2 tsp thyme, 2 tsp oregano, and a TB garlic. When they were tender I added six cups chopped beet greens and some dark green kale, 1/2 cup vegetable broth and let that simmer on low heat about 10 minutes.  To that I added about 2 cups of the cooked black eyed peas, 2 TB Shoyu, 1/4 tsp liquid smoke, 1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce, a dash of sea salt and a smaller dash of cayenne pepper. Let it cook for about 5 more minutes.

 Black eyed peas, greens, and carrots, A great warm meal for a cold winter night.

I WISH YOU PEACE, GOOD HEALTH,AND HAPPINESS IN THE COMING YEAR!

Christmas Limas - Festive Holiday Pie

The other half of the pot of Christmas Limas I cooked up this weekend became a Festive Holiday Tart.  I was looking through a holiday cookbook I purchased from VegNews Magazine this morning.  I thought since I paid for it, I should probably use it.  I found a recipe for something called a Festive Holiday Tart.  I had most of the ingredients in the kitchen.  It called for canned chickpeas so I used the rest of the Christmas Lima beans I had cooked.  It also called for some frozen spinach and I just happen to have some lovely collard greens and kale.  I lightly sauteed them together, just until they were wilted and bright green,  in a little sage oil and set aside.This is a very unusual pie.  It's very good, but I can't describe it to you by comparing it to anything I've tried before. I thought it would be something like a vegan mincemeat pie, but it's not like mincemeat either. It is truly unique.  It combines the some of the most prominent flavors of the holiday season, thyme, cranberries, fresh greens, and Christmas Limas.  It's a complete meal.

 

This is my version of the Festive Holiday Tart Recipe,

by Drenna Burton

I made a whole wheat, dairy free, pie crust and put it in the refrigerator to chill. 

1½ TB rosemary oil, divided

1 cup diced onion

¾ cup diced fennel bulb

5 cloves garlic, minced

½ teaspoon sea salt

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

2 cups cooked and drained Christmas Lima beans

     Save the drained sauce for making gravy later

¾ cup + 2 TB pecans, chopped and divided

2 TB fresh lemon juice

1 TB plus 1 teaspoons shoyu, divided

1¼ cup slightly sauteed collard greens and kale

    The original recipe calls for frozen spinach, that will work fine, if you didn't have the fresh greens

3½ TB dried cranberries

¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped

1½ TB dried thyme

1. Preheat oven to 400°  In a skillet over medium heat, heat 1 TB oil, add onion, fennel, garlic, salt, and pepper, and cook until onions begin to caramelize. Set Aside

2.  In a food processor, add Christmas Lima beans (reserve about ½ cup), ¾ cup pecans, lemon juice, and 1 TB shoyu, and pulse to lightly chop (do not purée).  Remove half of the chopped mixture from the food processor and transfer to a large bowl.

3.  Transfer sautéed onions to the remaining mixture in the food processor.  Purée until smooth, scraping down sides of bowl as needed.  Transfer purée to bowl with lightly chopped beans and pecan mixture.  Add greens, cranberries, parsley, thyme, and the reserved lima beans.  Stir to combine and transfer to the prepared pie shell, spreading evenly.

4. In a small bowl, combine remaining oil and shoyu, and brush on top of pie and crust.  Sprinkle with the remaining pecans.  Bake for about 35 minutes until lightly browned.

Christmas Limas - with Roasted Beets & Quinoa

My boss has some fun with us at Christmas, she does "a twelve days of Christmas" event as our Christmas gift.  It's lots of fun, it sure makes December a fun month at work. Donna and I receive a gift, go to lunch, take an hour at Starbucks, play a light hearted game together of dominoes or cards with the three of us and no phones for an hour, create something crafty and festive, or sometimes it's a scavenger hunt to find a gift.  The scavenger hunts are fun, she goes to quite a bit of work sometimes coming up with her clever clues.  It might catch on too, others in the building have fun watching us wander around the building hunting for the next clue.  Sometimes she involves them in the game.  My husband likes it too, he looks forward to finding out what we did each day.  She also gives most useful gifts.  One of our days' gifts this year was a basket with three different kinds of beans and spices.  I'll get at least eight to twelve meals out of those beans.

Of the three varieties of beans were "Christmas Lima." I'd not heard of these before and the description sound good, "A savory flavor with hints of chestnuts."   

Christmas Limas (Phaseolus Limensis) are related to the lima bean, similar to the giant Peruvian Lima but plumper. This is a large bean with a maroon pattern over a creamy background. The Christmas Lima may be referred to as a speckled lima or butter bean in addition to a calico bean.

I set them to soak Friday night and Saturday morning I cooked them with  filtered water, salt, a diced onion, and a couple carrots.  i wanted to cook them very simply so I could taste the flavor of the bean.  It's a very flavorful bean with a nice texture and doubles in size.

While they were simmering I searched for a recipe.  It didn't take long to find one and I was pleased to find I had all the ingredients handy. 

Christmas Lima Beans and Quinoa

Christmas Lima Beans and Quinoa

 Christmas Lima Beans, Roasted Beets, Quinoa, Avocado, Lemon Juice, sweet onion, honey, and white balsamic vinegar.  The recipe calls this a side dish, but for us it was a perfect winter maindish. 

 

My husband rolled this collard green like a tortilla and had a Christmas Lima burrito. 

Vegetarian Lasagña

When I first moved here one of my new friends thought it was very strange that I would get up and make dinner in the morning, normal for me.  After this, my granddaughter and I will make a vegan chocolate birthday cake for grandpa and while it cools I think we'll check out the Toy Soldier Bazaar.   We have all day to play together, dinner is ready to pop in the oven.

I made a sauce with onions, garlic, julienne carrots and zucchini, a quart of my homegrown tomatoes, chopped green pepper, a diced mild chili, a small can of organic tomato paste, dried herbs from the garden, oregano, basil, rosemary, parsley, sea salt and fresh ground pepper. I added a little agave and some white balsamic vinegar, a dash of cooking sherry, and some sliced mushrooms.  Sliced large because my husband doesn't like them too much.  I still cook with them, but make them large enough for him to pick out.

I made the Ricotta by blending tofu, garlic, a dash of shoyu, oregano, basil, rosemary, parsley, about 1/4 cup olive oil, and about half a large chopped red bell pepper.

I have come along some on the cheese.  I've made this recipe for many years. I used to use cottage cheese, eggs, and Parmesan cheese for a ricotta and about a pound of mozzarella cheese and more Parmesan cheese. This only has about 4 - 6 oz. of cheese for the whole recipe.  I blended grated mozzarella, Parmesan, and Romano cheese.

There's also a layer of chopped greens from the garden, chard and beet greens, between the lasagna layers and the ricotta.

Bake this in the oven on 400° for about 45 - 50 minutes until the cheese melts and browns and the sauce is a bit bubbly.

Pumpkin Polenta

I ran across this idea from a blog I read called Gluten Free Goddess.

Her recipe is for four servings, I doubled the polenta recipe to use in other meals later.  I used four cups low sodium vegetable broth, 2 cups water and 2 cups polenta.  When the polenta had absorbed most of the liquid I added 1 can of coconut milk, about 3 cups pumpkin pureé.  The pumpkin came from the garden, but I didn't grow it.  It just appeared in the corn rows.  I assumed it was either a gift or the folks stealing the corn put it down and forgot it.  I also added fresh herbs from my garden, parsley, rosemary, and some purple basil. When it had simmered a little I added 2-3 TB vegan margarine and 1 1/2 TB agave.

Tomatillo-Avocado Salsa Fresca
by Karina Allrich - Gluten Free Goddess

3 tomatillos
1/2 orange or yellow bell pepper
1 Anaheim chili pepper
1 fresh lime
A dash of extra virgin olive oil
A drizzle of raw organic agave nectar
Sea salt, to taste
A handful of fresh chopped cilantro
1 small avocado

Remove the papery skins from the tomatillos and wash the stickiness off with produce soap and water. Roughly chop. Toss into a bowl. Wash and halve the bell pepper; seed and chop one half. Add to the bowl. Stem and clean the chili pepper; dice. Add it in. Drizzle the mix with fresh squeezed lime juice, olive oil and agave nectar. Season with sea salt, to taste. Add in fresh chopped cilantro and stir to combine. Cover and chill till serving.

Just before serving, peel and pit the avocado, dice it and add the avocado to the salsa.

This is the same pumpkin polenta chilled, then sliced and warmed, served with black beans and roasted vegetables (carrots, beets, parsnips, and yams).

A Good Day for Gardening

Artichoke Blossom

Well, it wasn't a 70° day, but it was pleasant.  I spent about four hours in the garden and could have done more.  I did work up a bit of a sweat and decided I'd gotten my exercise for the day very early.  Just like a regular workday, noon came before I knew it.  I stayed out until about 1:00 p.m. or so and then went home, ate a nice bowl of beans and spent the afternoon with Rhonda.

The tomatoes are pretty tired now, I think I've gotten what I'm going to get out of them.  I did go home with about ten pounds of red tomatoes and five pounds of some nice green ones I saved.  Many of the ripe tomatoes do look like it's gotten too cold and some have experienced a little freeze. Some of the green ones I will try to ripen and some of them will go into some green tomato recipes.  I think I'm going to try a green tomato bread recipe I saw recently.

I pulled three of them up and worked the soil and planted three varities of garlic in their place, two purple varieties and one white. I think one of them is an elephant garlic.  I do love to roast those.

On top of the garlic I spread the dried seed pods from my shelling beans and a layer of the very large cauliflower leaves for a nice mulch.  I'm looking forward to seeing them blossom in the springtime.  I planted a little more than last year.

After that I dug up the rest of the blue potatoes, at least I think I got them all.  They do look like dirt clods.  I also grabbed a couple pepper plants to hang and let the peppers finish ripening and dry.  I planted quite a few varieties of peppers this year. Anaheim, cayenne, jalepeño, Tennessee cheese, red and green bells, something called New Mexican hot, and a few more I don't remember the names of.  I am thinking of drying them and stringing them in some artistic way for holiday gifts this year.  I came home with a few cucumber, some zucchini, summer squash, a small head of cauliflower, and some lettuce.  There's still lots of work to do. Even though I did work hard yesterday, it was a most peaceful day.

When Rhonda called, I was on my knees very deep in the potato trench.  I'd been working for four hours and when she said, let's go out for awhile, it was perfect timing.  We got to share some time talking about life and her daughter's upcoming wedding in April.  I will be helping with the food, of course.  I've catered many weddings, this will be the first that I will bring many vegan and vegetarian items.  I'm looking forward to this little adventure.

The Uppity Blues Women - Bald Headed Blues

Felt like some Uppity Blues Women this evening.  Found this.....

Vegan Apple Spice Ginger Cake

It's that time of year for apples in the Northwest.  I received a large bag of apples from a friend and made some homemade applesauce and put some up in jars last night.  Today I combined some of that applesauce with some freshly grated ginger, freshly ground Jamaican allspice, some molasses and maple syrup for a not too sweet, but flavorful apple spice cake.

1/4 cup molasses
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1 cup applesauce
1½ tsp ground Jamaican allspice
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
1½ cup whole wheat pastry flour
2 tsp grated ginger
1 medium apple, diced

    *  Combine the molasses and applesauce in a large bowl.
    * Combine remaining ingredients and stir into the liquid. (If the batter seems very dry, add a little more applesauce or a little water.)
    * Bake in a nonstick or pan-sprayed 8x8-inch baking pan, in a 350 degree oven, for 30-45 minutes or until it tests done.

Whipped Tofu Topping

This is a delicious nondairy alternative to whipped cream. Keep blending until it is really creamy.

Ingredients:
 8 ounces silken tofu
 2 tablespoons maple syrup or agave nectar
 2 tablespoons oil
 1 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract
 1 tablespoon soy or other nondairy milk, if needed Puree tofu, sweetener, oil, and vanilla or almond extract in blender or food processor until very smooth and creamy. Add milk if necessary for creamy texture. Chill for at least one hour before using. It will firm slightly as it chills.

Makes about 1 cup

Note: A few drops of liquid stevia extract can be substituted for other sweeteners.

Friends in the Garden

As I was picking beans last Saturday morning, a man came up behind me because he wanted to meet the person gardening behind his house. He would also like the corn stalks when I'm done for his friend's cows. Apparently it's a great treat for them. I know this man, his name is Steve. I haven't seen him in over a year and a half. He didn't recognize me at first as he is getting a bit old, 85 I think. When I told him my name and gave him a big hug, he remembered right away. His wife died last year and she was one of my closest friends.

Last year I experienced some emotional growth. That's what I'm calling it now anyway. It seemed that devastating news came about every two weeks. It began with learning my very dear friend would be dying from cancer. I felt privileged to be able to help her through it, but it was sad nonetheless and I miss her. I missed her terribly when life seemed a bit hopeless last year. Cheryl is the first person I thought of calling when things got tense. She'd have been at every court date she could, sitting next to me and reminding me things always work out. She'd remind me that things don't always work out the way we'd like, but they do work out. The sun usually comes out, in theory anyway, we do live in the Northwest.

One of the reasons we began the big garden was to work out some of the stress and tension we were under last year. It sure works, we also didn't realize how much we love the gardening. That's turned out to be a huge blessing that will hopefully continue for a long time. It's a very large community garden, surrounded by houses on either side. Turns out since Cheryl died, her husband Steve's eyesight has gotten weak and he can't drive. He's moved into town. He has been living directly behind my garden since last year. He says he comes out and looks around it every night. He loves our garden.

I felt comforted that someone I love has been there when we weren't. Sometimes when I'm working out there, I've had some conversations with Cheryl. I felt a little more like she has really been there. After he left I had a good cry. It was a grateful cry, kind of a cleansing cry. I love ya Cheryl, glad you are part of my life.

Cheryl Harman