Garden Babies at 1 month

 

 Artichokes, garlic, onions, basil, peppers, strawberries, lavender, off to a good start. This project is bringing me more joy than I could have imagined. Soon it will be time to give some babies to other gardeners and make room for peas, tomatoes, eggplant, broccoli, cauliflower, and more.

 Lavender

 

Cioppino & Raw Vegetable Salad

Cioppino

One of the benefits of living in the PNW is sometimes someone brings gifts from the sea. A friend brought by a couple nice crabs last evening. I knew what to do with them right away. I haven't made Cioppino in a long time. It's something I like to make for birthdays. I have never used a recipe for this so I may tell you how to cook it differently each time. This is how I made it this time. It came out awesome, just the way I like Cioppino to taste! I used the crab legs for this, the bodies will become something else. Not sure what yet.

Cioppino

1/2 - 3/4 lb white fish, I used some Alaskan Cod I had in the freezer.
1/2 lb prawns
1/2 lb small clams
Crab Legs - with shells

1 Medium to large chopped onion
3-4 celery stalks, diced
1 large bell pepper diced
1/2 fennel bulb diced
1/2 cup diced green onions
3 TB chopped parsley
1 TB crushed dried basil
1 TB crushed dried oregano
freshly ground sea salt and pepper
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1 large can organic fire roasted tomatoes.

I sauteed the vegetables in coconut oil until they were tender adding the spices while they cooked. Then I added the tomatoes and about a quart of water and the white fish. When the sauce began to boil, I put in the crab and prawns. The crab was still frozen so I raised the temp just a bit and when it began to boil again I added the clams. When the clams open, it's done. This nice meal only takes about 45 minutes to make and tastes like it took hours.

We put together our second salad for the week tonight. I was asked yesterday if I had any salad ideas because a friend is on a restricted diet and beans aren't good for her right now. She is enduring some kind of cancer therapy. I told him, I just experiment with all the vegetables. Put in anything you like. If you are unsure about the vegetable, chop them very small and try them raw. My husband eats vegetables raw he would have not eaten cooked before. Our salads have at least ten different vegetables and sometimes fruit. This one was a little different than our usual vegetables. 

Romaine, Red seedless grapes, chopped cucumber, red bell pepper, red cabbage, 2 leeks, diced fennel bulb and the feathery leaves, grated carrots (grated very large), 2 avocados, cauliflower, raw almond slices and the juice of a whole orange. I crushed the pulp and threw it in too after juicing. No dressing is needed, the avocado oils the vegetables and the vegetables blend together and add flavors to each other.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Friends, Gifts, & Messages

It could have been a rough week for me. It was my youngest son's birthday yesterday, we wished him a happy birthday on Sunday, as happy as it could be in prison. He began this adventure around his birthday last year. So it's been a whole year of, well, a different type of education for us all. We are learning to laugh a little together through this. It will be over someday. It does help that we can visit in person. Heck, we're spending one on one family time. OK, it's under armed guard, we are spending some time together.

I got through his birthday rather well, without a conscious emotional roller coaster. A couple of times sad thoughts drifted through my heart, but I didn't let it ruin my day. I even got to speak to him, he had been moved to another facility and called to let us know. I had my fears about how I would handle this emotionally, but I was reminded of my husband and friends and the love I have all around me. There have been quite a few special gifts come my way this week.

It's a busy week at work and there are too many numbers flying to pay attention to the noise in my brain. I think that helps tremendously. I really like this part of the month except for that I move so fast, it's hard to completely absorb all I am doing right away. I had one of those days today. The numbers were flying and it seemed there was an issue in every department. I felt like my brain was changing channels a little too fast today and by the afternoon, I knew it for sure. I went home a little discouraged and cranky with myself. I did, however, have an urge to go right home and exercise. I was surprised at those thoughts, that's a nice change. Our little Olympic Gold challenge at work has given me the motivation to get started. Maybe feeling like I'm on a team and not doing this alone helps. Who knows, somethings working. I am actually looking forward to a work out. Hope I keep it up. I got forty minutes in and what do you know, my attitude brightened pretty quickly. Maybe I can do another twenty before bed.

When I did get home today, I found a "message from home" on my porch. It was a bright message, put a smile in my heart. I had ordered some fresh organic, hand crafted goat cheese from my friend's farm in Pescadero. It came today with a very fun return address as well as the goodies inside. I shared this cheese with a friend that likes to play with her food as much as I do. I can't wait to see what she does with it.

I got to thinking something might be wrong with a friend or there may be news in Pescadero because it's been on my mind a lot lately. I planted a few artichokes this last month. I don't see them grow much here and where we lived in Pescadero artichokes were seen for miles along the coast. Another wonderful gift I received this week were a couple nice crabs. My first thought was to make Cioppino. Cioppino is the meal you have on your birthday in Pescadero or other important family affair. That's where I learned to create it. I got to wondering why Pescadero was on my mind so much.

After exercising, meditating a little, and creating a new salad with my husband my mind cleared a little, I think I may have sorted it out. I worked in Pescadero at Duarte's with Dee and her then, future family, when Marty was born twenty three years ago. I guess I am thinking about his birthday, just not the way I thought I would. Instead of worrying about him, I am having fond memories of us when he was born. Life is Good

 

Large round: Fresh goat cheese with edible flowers and sunflower seeds. 

Small round: with cranberries and walnuts

I will get back to you about what I do with it, soon.

Peaceful Sunday

Great day yesterday. Even though we did have to go through some uncomfortable moments visiting our son, we found some peace through the day. The weather was mild, almost springlike so the drive was very nice. We always shoot straight up there to get there on time, it's an hour and a half drive, then we meander home stopping along the way for a walk in the woods and some photos.

 

I didn't cook anything out of the ordinary this week. Put together the staples for the week. We made a large raw vegetable salad together, I made some Au gratin potatoes with cauliflower and rice milk. I made a pot of chili with pinto and black beans. I tried something different in the chili this time, I added cinnamon on a whim. It added another dimension to the flavor. 

I thought it a little weird to include my cake in my blog as I started with a mix. But I only begin with the mix and change it up to be my own. Also, there are many people who can't eat gluten or dairy products and don't know these wonderful products are out there for us to experiment with on our culinary journey to good health.

I made a gluten free, dairy free cake. I started with a gluten free cake mix from Bob's Red Mill. I used egg replacer and rice milk in place of the dairy items on the ingredient list. I frosted it with an Orange glaze which was pretty simple and very flavorful.

1/3 cup non-dairy milk (I used almond milk)

1/3 cup evaporated cane juice (I used turbinado)

1 whole orange

1/4 cup dissolved Agar powder

I blended the first three ingredients and then put them in a small sauce pan to heat up and melt the sugar. I got it just to a slight boil and then let it simmer about 2 minutes. In another small saucepan I heated a cup of water to boiling and added 1/2 TB  Agar powder. Agar is a natural gelatin made from seaweed. It is pretty effective so a little goes a long way. When the Agar mixutre is smooth, melted and getting a little thick remove it from the heat and combine with the orange mixture. Let it cool a bit and then spread on the cake. It will thicken as it cools. This was a very rich chocolate cake, made with garbanzo bean flour it also a fair source of fiber and protein.

 The garden is beginning to look like a garden. I lost a few pepper plants overnight. I think I may have over or under watered. We still have quite a few, but the Tennessee Cheese peppers may need replanting. I am having great success with many others. Just like everything else, this is a learning process. It is bringing me some peace and joy!

 

Don't think I have ever planted Oregano before from seed. I can't believe how tiny the seeds are. They were inside an envelope inside the seed packet.