Let’s Eat
What You Can Grow in a Small Garden
This year I decided to jump in and plant a raised garden at my church surrounded by a twelve-foot fence to keep the varmints out. It’s only four by twelve feet but has produced abundantly. To date, I’ve harvested 38 zucchini off three plants, 11 green peppers, 15 pounds of potatoes, four pounds of green beans, 2 okra, and 81 tomatoes. Currently growing are more green beans, tomatoes, okra, and cantaloupe. I plan to remove the plants that are finished growing and add fall crops like cauliflower, kale, turnips, pumpkins, beets and broccoli. It certainly helps to keep squirrels and
It’s Blackberry Time!
Blackberries make wonderful pies. The only drawback, they’re ready to pick in the hottest months of the year! I went to the blackberry patch in Louisburg, KS last week when it was only 80 degrees at 8:00 a.m. As you can see, there will be a lot more soon. I managed to pick enough for nine pies, so I’ll have to ration myself to one every six weeks or so to make them last. Here’s a recipe for a great blackberry pie. Berry Pie Preheat oven 400 degreesThis recipe can be used for any fruit filling. 3 cups fresh, canned,
National Avocado Day
My mother-in-law, born and raised in California, loves avocados. She couldn’t believe it when I told her early after I married her son that I didn’t like them. Over time, and probably due to her influence, I learned to eat avocados. And now I even like them. But I never knew how to cut them. How does one get the soft pulpy fruit off the seed? Then one day, my daughter showed me:. Slice through the skin down to the pit, and cut all around the vertical circumference of the avocado, then twist the two halves apart. Then quarter it.
Who Doesn’t Need a Coffee Milkshake?
Many beverages can leave you awake, bloated and wired on sugar to face your day, but none do it quite as well as a coffee milkshake. And this is the day to do it, so get out there and demand your coffee milkshake. On National Coffee Milkshake Day, let’s show the world how much work (almost) gets done when people are fueled by caffeinated dessert!
National Peach Ice Cream Day
One of my favorite summer treats is peach ice cream. It is so cool and refreshing on a hot summer evening. And today is National Peach Ice Cream Day. Yum. I’ll have to make sure to get me some. One summer long ago we made homemade peach ice cream for a party we held. It took some effort with salt and ice, but it was SOOO good. We still have the ice cream maker, though we haven’t used it in years. Buying from the store is much easier. Do you make homemade ice cream?
Happy Graham Cracker Day!
Until a friend sent me a link of national days, I had no idea today was National Graham Cracker Day. The first thing that pops into my head when graham crackers are mentioned is a great recipe for Key Lime Pie. I don’t crunch the crackers to make the crust. I do it the lazy way and buy a pre-made one at the store. This recipe has only three ingredients for the filling. 1 14 oz. can of sweetened condensed milk3 egg yolks (no whites)1/2 cup Nellie and Joe’s Key West LIme Juice Combine milk, egg yolks and lime juice.
1st Pepper
This year I have rented a raised garden bed at church surrounded by a 10 foot high fence. When I planted my garden around my patio, the squirrels and rabbits had a feast, but not me. This year, the garden is incredible! Here’s a picture of the first green pepper. Notice there are no varmint bites. I can’t wait to taste potatoes, zucchini, green beans, tomatoes and squash.
It’s Strawberry Time
Here’s the first of my strawberry crop. They’re supposed to be ever-bearing but I think they kind-of forgot the “ever” part! I love to eat fresh strawberries on pie dough. Here’s my dough recipe. It works like playdough. Very easy. I keep a batch in the refrigerator all the time in a Ziplock bag. Pie Crust-Never-fail Variety Grandma Sally lived in south-west Missouri on a farm. Down the road and a half mile south, lived Bernice (pronounced Burn-nis, with the emphasis on burn). She always made lovely pies. Her crust was flakey and light. I’ve never had a piecrust fail
My Favorite Lunch Hangout
One of my favorite lunch spots is Baramee Thai Bistro in the Crossroads. I love Thai food (okay, I love most food) and so do most of the people I work with. It’s a short walk from the office, making it one of our more common lunch choices. I’m certainly no aficionado, so don’t ask me what makes it northern Thai versus any other sort of Thai. I just know what I like, and this restaurant has it. Incidentally, I could not figure out whether to capitalize “Thai” when describing the style of food, so I looked it up. I
Irish Soda Bread
I ran out of all-purpose flour this week, just as I was about to make Irish Soda Bread for an early St. Patrick’s Day celebration. So I substituted a cup of whole wheat flour in my recipe. It turned out fine, a little heartier than usual, but still tasty. I might experiment further with a mix of flours. What recipes do you adjust to suit ingredients on hand?