July 8, 2009 · 6:47 pm

Presto. Pesto.

I have a friend at work named Marjorie.  Marjorie and I have the same birthday.  June 27th.  Go ahead and get a pen to write that down, I’ll wait.

I’m not exactly sure how this tradition started, but now every year on “her” birthday I make her pesto ( “tradition”  means it’s kind of  expected).  Last year, it was told by another coworker that Marjorie ate her pesto with a spoon right out of the jar.  This year, she said she did put it on crackers.  She loves her some pesto!!

And so do I!!  I did have to make Marjorie wait until the basil was ready which wasn’t until this past holiday weekend. 

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 I have also sowed another packet of seeds which are coming up nicely

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 and then today I sowed another packet.  Here in Texas, we will be having  “warm” days up until September, sometimes even into October.  So we will have lots of perfect days for basil and we will need them because it takes four cups of basil leaves IMG_0588

to make 6 oz. of pesto.  Yep, that’s the bad news.  But the good news is,  it whips up in no time.  Here is the recipe I use and it came from a back issue (and that means  years ago) of Cooking Light.  I have tried several pesto recipes but I always come back to this one.  So, don’t worry Marj.

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Pesto

4 cups loosely packed basil leaves

1/2 cup (2 ounces) grated fresh Parmesan cheese

2 tablespoons toasted pine nuts (or walnuts), coarsely chopped

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 cloves garlic, peeled

1/4 teaspoon salt

With the food processor running, add garlic and pine nuts through the chute until finely minced.  Add oil; pulse 3 times.  Then add basil, cheese, and salt;   Process until finely minced, scraping sides of bowl once.   I recycle my pimiento jars (4 oz.) for the pesto.IMG_0624

and Presto……

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Pesto!!

I also have a couple of other ways I put up all that basil.  Sometimes, the pesto can get a little pricey and so I make this.

Basil Puree

Process 4 cups loosely packed basil leaves and 1 cup olive oil  or  (this is what I do most often) the basil with   1  –  (8 ounce) can tomato sauce in a food processor until basil is finely chopped.  Spoon into ice cube trays and freeze.  Pop out the cubes and store in freezer bags up to 6 months.  I use these in soups and sauces.  This recipe I got from Southern Living magazine March 2004.

I have lots more ways to use basil, so stay tuned for the next crop.

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June 29, 2009 · 9:24 am

Produce

Unfortunately, we are having 100 degree weather here at fromgardentotable. If I were a vegetable (no editorial comments, please) I am very sure I would have quit producing. But, luckily, that isn’t what has happened …yet.The tomatoes are ripening.  I have to pick them just when there is the faintest blush of pink on them or the birds will peck them.  So, I pick them as soon as I can and let them ripen on the windowsill.

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These are the Porter tomatoes.   But, I also have some Aunt Ruby’s German tomatoes which are a green tomato which when cut have a pink center and some Green Zebra’s which are rather small.

The basil is coming along, and I have sown some more.  I am of the opinion one can never have enough basil.

My purple hull peas are growing, but as I was examining them yesterday SOMETHING has been chewing on the leaves.  I suspect grasshoppers.  Nasty little buggers.

But, the real show stoppers right now are the cucumber vines.  Wow!  They have really taken off.

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So, I read the other day that cucumbers have two blooms.  A male bloom which appears first and then falls off.  A female bloom then appears which makes the fruit.  I also read that honey bees are needed to pollinate the blooms.  Look what I found when I was examining the vines.

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If you look real close, there is a bee in the center of the flower.  And evidently, they have been doing their  job because I found THIS!

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Um, now I just need a few more so I can make pickles instead of  a pickle.  Also, this photo makes the cucumber look sooo large but it is actually only about 5-6 inches long.  There are tons of blooms, though, so I am very hopeful.

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June 26, 2009 · 7:22 am

Goldilocks and the Three Garlics

Here is a tale of garlic.  Once upon a time a girl  gardener planted cloves of garlic.

One batch was planted in an area too wet.  Another batch was planted in an area too dry.  But another batch was planted in an area just right.

The garlic in the wet area were too small.  The garlic in the dry area were a little bigger.  But the garlic  in the ” best” area were the largest (although still not as big as they could be).

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Here is how they started out.

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Garlic after harvesting. 

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 I must say knowing when to harvest is a tricky wicket. My best advice is to go to this web site www.gourmetgarlicgardens.com and read their wonderful guide.  They even have advice for growing garlic in the south, especially Texas.   Basicly, what I read is “when the lower leaves have all died and only top 6 leaves are still green, it’s ready”.  I also learned that “the upper leaves of the plant determine how many bulb wrappers the harvested bulb will have” .   There is a wealth of information about planting, growing, harvesting, curing  and storing garlic.

 Here is the garlic curing.   Curing is basically a drying process.  Gourmetgarlicgardens says “The idea is for excess moisture in the roots and leaves to evaporate or withdraw into the bulb.  When the roots and necks are completely dry and don’t emit a typical garlic odor when cut, it is time to trim it.”

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Garlic ready to be “cleaned up”.

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 I had hoped to have a picture of all my neatly trimmed and cleaned  up garlic, but when I trimmed the top of three of them, they weren’t quite ready for storing.   But these will be used this weekend in pesto and salsa.

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YUM!!

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June 24, 2009 · 4:20 pm

The Cabin

We call it The Cabin because I suppose most of our my parents labor went into building it and the pond.  I’m not sure why we don’t call it The Pond, but we don’t.  Before it was The Cabin,  it was The Farm.  This was when my grandfather, whom we called Papaw and later Papaw Hawkins, so as  not confuse him with my Dad whom my children and nieces also called Papaw,  raised cattle there.

The cabin was built in the 80’s my  boys being around two and five, now 23 and 26, my daughter not yet born.  They loved it as you can imagine.  Running wild,  seeing wildlife and even a deer shot for food.  My mother, because she is a wise woman, would take the boys only one at a time, with her and Dad,  to “enjoy” for the weekend.

You just can’t imagine the quiet and solitude there.  It is like being transported back in time.  No phones, no lights except the ones from inside the cabin, and no agenda.  We are always sighing and saying “Oh, it’s so peaceful here.”  If we have said it once we have said it a million times!

One weekend, my mom and dad had taken my younger son Connor with them.  Connor was never still.  But, at one point in the weekend mother and Connor were sitting on the porch swing, swinging.  His little legs,  usually in perpetual motion,  accenting the methodical rhythmn of the swing.  After they had been swinging awhile (unusual for him to be in one place that long) she said he looked up at her and said “Isn’t this Peace?”  Yes, darling, it sure is.

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blackberries

blackberries

 

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Connor on the porch swing

Connor on the porch swing

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June 18, 2009 · 7:43 am

All in the Family

My mom has been busily working in her garden and wanted me to take some pictures of her hard work.

My mom and I have totally different gardens.  If  she were to have a blog it would be called The Immaculate Gardener or The Perfect Garden. 

 My garden is more of a “cottage” style garden if I had to label it.  It has sprawling tomato plants and cucumber plants and trellises with vines or vegetables scrambling up them.  Nothing ever seems to stay within the confines of their pot or planter and I’m okay with that.  If  leaves find their way into the garden, they are raked into the compost bed. 

My mom, however, does not tolerate leaves messing up her beautiful garden.  She is meticulous with her secateurs and frets when mother nature (sometimes in the form of squirrels) spits acorns onto her lawn.

I wish I could be more of a perfectionist, but I guess I will have to leave that to the professionals.  Like my mom.   Welcome to Mary’s garden.

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June 15, 2009 · 9:35 pm

That’s what I’m talking about.

So, Friday  I had to take something to work for our monthly Birthday potluck.  And since I had bell peppers growing in the garden, I decided whatever I took must include bell pepper.

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One of my favorite recipes for large groups is my Cornbread Salad recipe.  (When you see the ingredients, you will understand why you wouldn’t want to make this for yourself to be eaten in one sitting) although, ahem, it can be done.

This recipe came from one of my home health patients from several  years ago, Mrs. Birdsong.  Now I probably visited Mrs. Birdsong a total of two times (I was filling in for her regular nurse) but we had an immediate comraderie.  She loved to garden and she loved to cook.  I think of her whenever I make this.

Cornbread Salad

  • 2 packages of Mexican cornbread prepared according to package directions    
  • 2 bell peppers, diced
  • 2 large tomatoes, diced
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 1 lb. bacon fried til crispy
  • 1 pint Hellman’s mayonnaise

 Crumble the cornbread and bacon.  Add the bell pepper, tomatoes and onion.  Stir in the mayonnaise and mix well.

It was a lot of fun to be able to go out into the garden and pick the bell peppers for this.  My tomatoes are not ready yet or they would have been used as well.   This is what I have looked forward to all of this growing season and there’s more to come!!!  cause I’ve got blooms on my cucumber vines…….

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That’s what I’m talking about….

                     

 

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June 12, 2009 · 7:06 am

Gilding the Lily

This past weekend, I went to East Texas.  Our family has acreage there, thanks to my sweet Papaw who left it to us.  My parents built a log cabin and we love to go there as often as we can, which isn’t nearly as frequent as we would like.

My Aunt Pat and Uncle Warner live just down the road.  In a previous post, I shared the Irises my Aunt Pat had given me.   Well, I missed taking pictures of her Irises this year but this past weekend her lilies were in bloom.  They were spectacular!!!!!!

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My mom outside the fence for a closer look.

My mom outside the fence for a closer look.

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Aunt Pat

Aunt Pat

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June 11, 2009 · 6:20 pm

New Digs

I was really getting tired of the “Outback Theme” (at least that’s what it reminded me of) so I decided to play around with the header and see what I could come up with.   I decided to put in the header what I use everyday.  I did clean up my shoes, and the gloves are new because I had completely worn out the previous pair.  But, these are my favorite gloves.     

I do wear my hat and sunscreen, although I have a “farmer’s tan.                            

As you know, I am a nurse and have worked for a MOHS plastic surgeon.  Once you have seen some of the skin cancer patients he has repaired, you start to wear your sunscreen to bed every night.

Anyway, hope you like it.

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June 10, 2009 · 7:33 am

What’s Up?

So, here’s what’s happening  at fromgardentotable.

First, the lettuce.   I snipped the leaves after I took this picture and made the BEST salad.  I realized by growing it in a container, the leaves were perfect.IMG_0441

Next, my purple hull peas are coming up nicely. IMG_0448

The cucumbers have taken off. IMG_0453

Bell peppers are getting bigger. IMG_0480

Jalapeno peppers are prolific.   This is the 2nd or 3rd picking.IMG_0500

Tomatoes are growing. IMG_0452

But, the most exciting plants are the ground cherries!  Just as a refresher, this is what they started out as. IMG_0103

One of the tiniest seeds I have ever seen.  The black seeds, on the left,  are poppy seeds and the  seeds on the right are the ground cherries.

 So, 2 of the original 6 survived and they had a rather  shaky beginning.  But, I noticed the other day that there was actually fruit growing under the leaves. IMG_0478

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Can you see what looks like little paper lanterns?  (I had to lie down on the ground to get this picture.)

These ground cherries are a “cousin” to tomatillos.  So, they have a papery husk on them like the tomatillos, which start out green (as well as the fruit) and then ripen to a golden color with a brown papery husk.  When they are ripe, they just fall on the ground, hence “ground cherries”.  Which I thought was mighty nice of them as some fruit/vegies are not so easy to tell when they are ready for harvest.  Hopefully,  the cherries will get larger and more prolific so I can make JAM!.  But if not, I will definitely plant these again.  It is so much fun to experiment with new plants. 

 What new plants have you planted this year?

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May 29, 2009 · 4:12 pm

Hi, I’m “Bob the Builder”.

I have so many projects around here that I am becoming frustrated having to take time out of gardening, to do some “building”. 

Project #1  First, there are the slate (I think they are slate) stones that I brought over a few at a time from my mom’s house in the back of my Honda.

  1. First, I need to get about 25 more from a stone place as I didn’t have enough to complete the space.
  2. Then, I need to place them exactly where I want them. (sounds easy, doesn’t it. ha!)  (some are reeaally heavy)
  3. Then, I have to take them up and either a.) kill grass and weeds with Roundup or  b.) put down black plastic underneath to kill them ( one is quick and not environmentally friendly; the other will take longer while being environmentally safe) decisions, decisions.
  4. Then, I need to put sand underneath the stones.  If  I were to put the stones down directly on this black clay, they would move and shift, possibly even break. ( this has already happened to a couple of them)
  5. Then, I want to plant a “steppable”  herb like thyme or a moss or something  between the cracks.
  6. Because this is how it looks now when it hasn’t been trimmed.IMG_0389 any questions?

Project #2  I am making a pathway out of bricks to be placed on the north side of my house between my hydrangeas and another bed.  It is very narrow and doesn’t look like it would take much time or construction, but  I.was.wrong. It is literally going to take bags and bags of sand AND more bricks.   IMG_0374

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This is the semi-finished project.  I only have about eight more of these to complete.  yikes!

Project #3  My pitiful gazebo is literally falling down. 

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 It began its descent after hurricane Rita hit the gulf coast of Texas and we received winds of 60 mph+ here in Dallas. (Yes, I know that was a couple of years ago)  So, I need a new “something” to replace it.  This  will involve taking down the old one which is covered in my Peggy Martin rose and erecting the new one in its place.  My problem has been finding something that will work, something I like and ,unfortunately, can afford. (this may end up being a fall project/hoping to get a pergola on sale at end of summer) If I can wait that long!!!!!!!!

On to more exciting “projects”,  I have itty bitty tomatoes on my plants.  IMG_0379

and little bell peppersIMG_0400

as well as more jalapeno peppersIMG_0384

and I planted my purple hull peas!!!!!  The other day Heather at www.heatherbakes.com asked what our favorite summer food was, to which I replied tomatoes and peaches.  But, I totally forgot about purple hull peas.  They are fantastic!   My absolute favorite pea, and always remind me of summer.

I made a salsa this weekend with my peppers and it was really good.  I used two jalapeno peppers (seeded and chopped), tomato (chopped), onion (chopped), one clove garlic- finely minced, cilantro-chopped (you can omit if you don’t like it), freshly squeezed lime juice, kosher salt and freshly ground pepper.  After mixing together, I added an avocado cut into small cubes. mmm. good.  It tasted just like summer.

What tastes like summer to you?

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