We stopped the car, handed over our currency.
Not quite local, but close.
Little fingers, juices dripping.
Delicious dessert.
Category Archives: Edibles
Sprouts.
One word describes this delicacy. Easy.
Only three parts to complete this whole.
Seeds. Soil. Container.
Okay, maybe five parts, if you add sunshine and water into the equation!
In just over a week, we went from simple sunflower seeds to fat, succulent, juicy sprouts.
Trimmed with scissors, rinsed and tossed in with a little basil-infused olive oil, salt and pepper. Described as nutty or a bit like a pumpkins’ seed flavor. My thoughts were quenching and tender.
We shared them with our first visiting guests. Dinner wouldn’t have been complete without the joyous company and the sprouts didn’t last very long either!
I sourced my sprouting seeds from Johnnys Select Seeds!
Orchard day.
Slanty sun.
Leaves falling.
Horses munching.
Apple barrels.
Crisp, bright.
Juicy, sweet.
Warm breeze.
Plum picking.
Family chatter.
Plum Butter:
In the evening, fill slow cooker with tiny plums.
Add water to 3/4 full.
Set at low overnight.
In the morning, remove pits with a food mill.
Return pulp to slow cooker.
Add some sugar if desired.
Add steeping bags with cinnamon, cardamon pods, and cloves.
Cook on low until desired consistency reached.
Remove spices. Add splash of vanilla.
Can in jars.
Applelove.
We have just two apple trees in our yard. This year, when our main tree gave us this spring display, we knew a BIG apple year was on the way:
Four months later, we’ve harvested over a dozen bushels of apples from this tree. We managed to get another two bushels off and older, diminishing tree.
Wonderful friends, whose garden we shared with you earlier this summer, kindly loaned us their cider press. And we got to work!
Our pantry is now stocked with many quarts of beautiful apple juice. It will be a joy to drink warm, on a snowy January day!
Hand to hand.
From your hands to the earth.
From the earth to the roots.
From the roots to the stems.
From the stems to the leaves.
From the leaves to the flowers.
From the flowers to the fruit.
From the fruit to your hands.
From your hands to my hands.
I receive my treasures from hand to hand.
Dessert.
In the recent explorations of our generous friends garden, there was a certain corner of the garden that kept pulling us in.
Can you imagine why?
The first day we picked and ate and picked and ate. No berries made it home with us.
The fourth day, we were barely able to save enough raspberries for one batch of freezer jam.
Oh, how precious it is and how thankful we will be in January, nibbling warm toast and watching the snow fly.
The rest of the berries have been eaten on site or made into several delicious desserts.
Not only were our friends kind enough to share their bountiful raspberry crop with us, they also shared a delicious recipe with us a few years back.
Enjoy!
Swedish Cream and Berries
2 1/3 cups cream or half and half
1 cup sugar
1 envelope plain gelatin
1 tsp. vanilla
1 pint sour cream
Mix together cream, sugar and gelatin. Heat until dissolved. Cool. Gently mix in sour cream and vanilla. Pour into 8 x 8 baking dish. Refrigerate. Serve chilled with berries.
** Use whole milk and fat free sour cream to lighten this up a bit. I have always wondered about using honey in place of the sugar, but haven’t tried it, yet. **
Quench.
In the spirit of summer, I always try to have a glass of this on hand.
Reaching for a handful of fresh herbs, on a quick stroll through the garden, while taking compost out to the pile.
It starts my day with a burst of fragrance, a bit of nostalgia (breath in, oh lavender), and a reminder to drink. Water. More water.
It feels like a treat, a delicacy and is a token to help cherish these long, hot days of summer. Most days it is mint and lavender, but then there are the sage and citrus marigold days, and cilantro blossoms are running a close 3rd.
So, we (yes, my glass is often in the hands of another family member, or two…) slow down and drink. Quench. And toast, with each glassful, to the beauty of summer.
Red.
Rhubarb. Often thought of as the “forgotten fruit”.
Splendidly red stems can be eaten in so many ways. Cobbler. Pie. Preserves. Drinks.
We have been eating our fair share of cobbler around here, which we actually prefer to call “gobbler”. One member of the family prefers to shout “CAKE, CAKE”, when gobbler time has arrived! It is sure tasty coming out of the oven, warm and bubbly. But no one feels a bit bashful to have another scoopful for breakfast either.
We have also added rhubarb-honey drinks to our repertoire. Added to sparkling water or better yet, a chilled glass of Prosecco.
Ahhh…. Summer seems to have finally arrived.
Honey Rhubarb Simple Syrup:
3 cups fresh rhubarb, chopped.
2 cups water
1/2 to 1 cup honey
Mix. Boil. Simmer 15 minutes. Cool. Strain.
Add. Mix. Drizzle. Sip.
Enjoy.
Recipe Share: Swiss Chard Artichoke Dip
Here’s a new recipe creation from a Thanksgiving we shared together. After serving this dish as an appetizer with a variety of crackers, we decided it was worthy of sharing. And yes, this sweet, succulent swiss chard is straight out of the late, late, late autumn garden. It’s verging on winter here, and since harvesting these ingredients, the plants are finally wilted from frost. All that remains is strong, dark, ever green, ‘Blue Vates’ kale. And won’t it be amazing to harvest and eat fresh into December…keep your fingers crossed. And Enjoy!
Swiss Chard Artichoke Heart Dip:
1 can quartered artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
3 cups finely chopped Swiss chard, veins removed
1 TBS lemon juice
1 large clove garlic, minced
1 cup ricotta cheese
1/4 tsp. sea salt
8 oz cream cheese (1 brick)
Fresh ground pepper to taste
1 c. plus 3 TBS, low fat mozzarella cheese, shredded
Preheat oven to 350 F.
Mix all ingredients. If a finer consistency is desired, pulse in a food processor.
Spread into an 8 x 8, oiled baking pan. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, or until brown and bubbling.
Served with toasted baguettes or crunchy crackers.
Recipe Share: Arugula Pesto
Arugula! Pesto! This rivals traditional basil pesto in my kitchen. But it’s a tight race. This year, I didn’t process nearly as much basil pesto as I have in other years. Instead, I replaced a few batches with arugula pesto. I can already taste the warm sandwiches, spread with a thick layer of tangy, spicy arugula. Or the occasional dollop (or two…) added to a hearty soup this winter.
Arugula Pesto
4 cups loosely packed arugula
1/4 to 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 to 2 cups nuts. Walnuts, pecans, almonds, pine…the choice is yours!
3 cloves garlic, crushed
salt, to taste
parmesan cheese, to taste *
Layer ingredients in blender or food processor. Blend until smooth, adding more olive oil as moisture is needed.
* I add the parmesan just before eating, for a fresher taste.
Eat a batch fresh! This recipe also freezes well. One cup in a freezer bag smoothes out flat for stacking. Just break off as much or as little as you want for a slightly spicy addition to any recipe. Enjoy!
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