The Modern Victory Garden

Each Monday, Daphne’s Dandelions hosts “Harvest Monday” where everyone submits links to their blog posts summarizing their harvest for the week.   It’s fun to see what people are producing from gardens from so many different regions, and how they are using it.   Check it out and join in too!                

It was another week of minimal fresh harvesting.   As always though, we use stored, frozen, and canned items a great deal in the preparation of our evening meals, but the fresh harvests are at their annual low point for the time being.   If you are interested in what was cooked and what garden produce was used (whether fresh, preserved, stored, or frozen), you can always find that information on the calendar page.   I always note the harvests, what was cooked for dinner, and what garden produce was used in the preparation of those meals.                                    

Sunday afternoon I harvested some fresh chard leaves just before the snow began to fall.                                               

This was used to make the Sunday evening meal of stir fried boneless/skinless chicken breast strips in a homemade Thai peanut sauce served on a bed of cooked (stir fried) swiss chard leaves.   Usually I use spinach for this recipe but swiss chard is a great substitute.   Hot cooked rice served as a side dish.   This is one of our favorite meals featuring spinach or swiss chard leaves.   I found this easy peanut sauce recipe on the internet some time ago and have made a few modifications to suit our tastes.                                                

Simple Thai Peanut Sauce

• 1 13.5 ounce can of coconut cream (or coconut milk) 
• 1/4 cup of Thai red curry paste
• 3/4 cup of creamy natural style peanut butter
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup of sugar
• 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup of water

Mix all the ingredients in a medium sauce pan and bring to a gentle boil over medium heat, stirring constantly.    Turn the heat down low and simmer the mixture for 3 to 4 minutes.    Be sure to stir frequently so that the sauce does not scorch.     Remove from heat - use immediately as a sauce for stir frys or allow to cool to room temperature if using as a dipping sauce.     This makes a fairly large batch, but the extra sauce keeps nicely in the fridge for several weeks or can even be frozen.

Harvest totals for the week of January 9th through January 15th (rounded to the nearest ¼ pound).

• Swiss Chard 0.25 lbs

Total For Week 0.25 lbs

Total Year to Date 2.00 lbs                                  

Eggs collected this week – 7                                               

Laura

kitsapfreedomgardener

HARVEST MONDAY

Each Monday, Daphne’s Dandelions hosts “Harvest Monday” where everyone submits links to their blog posts summarizing their harvest for the week.   It’s fun to see what people are producing from gardens from so many different regions, and how they are using it.   Check it out and join in too!           

Another rather crazy week for me and as a result I was not in the garden much at all.   I did harvest some green onions and chives during the week, which were used in evening meal preparations but they were never photographed or weighed.   On Sunday I pulled some regular and some golden beets. 

I just trimmed them up and roasted them skin and all with a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkle of sea salt.   Just before serving, I cut the larger root into quarters.   They were delicious served alongside baked salmon in dill sauce and pasta tossed with freshly grated parmesan cheese and a sauté of garlic (storage), chopped tomato (frozen whole tomatoes), and small dices of a quality hard salami.                                            

Harvest totals for the week of December 12th through 18th (rounded to the nearest ¼ pound).

• Beets 0.75 lbs
• Onions (green) 0.00 lbs (not enough to make harvest tally weight)

Total For Week 0.75 lbs

Total Year to Date 366.50 lbs                                    

Eggs collected this week – 12                                               

BREAD RECIPE TINKERING

I have long been a fan of no knead bread and make it regularly because I love the consistently beautiful artisan style loaves it produces; crisp crust with a tender crumb inside and all without a whole lot of work or time demands of the baker.                             

There are so many good things about this bread that it is hard to find fault with it, but it does indeed have some limitations, especially for those of us that work out of the home during the week.   The regular sized loaf of bread either gets used up early in the week and I have to then pull a previously baked loaf out of the freezer (which is never as good as a fresh baked loaf) OR the loaf is not used up quickly and the crust gets soft and the bread gets stale tasting.   The long soak period of no knead bread makes it impractical to work into a regular work day, so a mid-week baking has not been an option.   My wish list for the no knead bread was to have more frequent baking (not confined to the weekend) as an option and a smaller loaf so that it would be used fast enough to ensure it was at its peak from start to finish.    

Recently, a Mother Earth News article referenced a prior article they had published in December 2008 about “fresh-baked bread in five minutes a day”.   This recipe and approach uses high moisture dough with no kneading involved too, but refrigerates the dough which replaces the majority of the soak period.   You then pull off a chunk of the dough, shape it into a boule, and bake it in a high heat oven (on a baking stone) with a pan of steam water – after first letting the dough warm up and rise for a bit on a cornmeal dusted pizza peel.   This recipe as described works beautifully and produces a smaller loaf of bread and the dough is ready when you are which makes evening baking mid-week practical.   I made several batches of this recipe and baked it as described with consistently good success.   However, I yearned for the simpler baking process of the traditional no knead bread – using a covered Dutch oven to hold in the steam which removes the need to use the pizza peel, baking stone, and pan of hot steam water.   I just find it much simpler to use the covered preheated baking pan.    I decided to hybridize the “fresh-baked bread in five minutes a day” recipe with the baking process of the no knead bread recipe to get gorgeous artisan style bread baked on demand and in smaller loaves.   I have been testing the recipe out for the past several weeks and am happy with the consistent results I am getting.   I like to do the initial mixing and rising on the weekend when I have more time, but I have also done it during an evening during the week day. 

To start out with, I had to find a smaller version of the covered enameled cast iron Dutch oven that I use for the no knead bread as it is just too large.   I was able to find a 2 quart version that is just right for the purpose.   Here it is next to my full size pot that I regularly use for the no knead bread.  

So here is the recipe as modified:                                               

Ingredients (makes 4 one-pound loaves)

• 3 cups lukewarm water
• 1 ½ TBSP granulated yeast (1 ½ packets)
• 1 ½ TBSP course kosher or sea salt
• 6 ½ cups unsifted, unbleached, all-purpose white flour

Mixing and Storing the Dough

1. Heat the water to just a little warmer than body temperature (about 100 degrees Fahrenheit)

2. Add yeast and salt to the water in a 5-quart bowl.

3. Mix in the flour by gently scooping it up with the measuring cup and then level it with a knife.   Mix with a spoon or in a food processor or stand mixer with dough hook, until uniformly moist.   If hand mixing gets too difficult, you can wet your hands and press it together.   Don’t knead though!   Should be completed in just a matter of minutes and the dough should be very wet and loose enough to conform to the container.   The wetter dough actually encourages the development of sourdough characteristics while in storage.   By the end of the week, my dough has a very definite sourdough smell and taste to it.

4. Cover the bowl loosely (not air tight) or place in a 6-quart dough tub which is a resealable, lidded container (not airtight – with gasket or with the corner lifted) and allow the mixture to rise at room temperature until it begins to collapse (or at least flatten on top).   This usually takes about 2 hours.   The dough is very forgiving and longer rise times will not hurt it at all.   Once it is raised, you then put it in the fridge where it will stay until you are ready to use it!   In fact, you can use it just three hours later if you would like, but I find it is better to wait at least 12 hours.   The dough improves with age.                                                        

On Baking Day

5. Sprinkle flour in the bottom and sides of a 2 or 3 quart bowl – roughly the same size as the pot you intend to bake the bread in.

6. Sprinkle the surface of the refrigerated dough with flour, then cut off a 1-pound (large grapefruit-sized) piece with a serrated knife or with your hand (messier but easier).   Put the rest of the dough back into the refrigerator.   Using flour on your hands to keep the dough from sticking, gently stretch the surface of the dough around to the bottom on four “sides”, rotating the ball a quarter-turn as you go, until the bottom has a seam of bunched up ends.

7. Place the ball in the previously prepared bowl.   Let it rest (warm up) and rise for 2 hours.   At least a half-hour before dough is ready, heat oven to 450 degrees.   Put a 2- to 2 ½ -quart heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic) in oven as it heats.   When dough is ready, carefully remove pot from oven.   Carefully and quickly invert the rising bowl with the dough over the hot pot, turning the dough out - seam side up; it may look like a mess, but that is O.K. Shake pan once or twice if dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes.   Cover with lid and bake 20 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 10 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned.   Cool on a rack.   

Laura

kitsapfreedomgardener

Each Monday, Daphne’s Dandelions hosts “Harvest Monday” where everyone submits links to their blog posts summarizing their harvest for the week.   Robin from The Gardener of Eden is similarly hosting “Thursday’s Kitchen Cupboard” each week to highlight how we use our harvests by either preserving or cooking with them.   It’s fun to see what people are producing from gardens from so many different regions, and how they are using it.   Check them out and join in too!                                   

Here is a recap of our dinner menus this week and the garden harvests (both fresh and preserved summer bounty) that were worked into them.   If you don’t see a day listed, it means we either ate leftovers that night or ate out.   Produce noted in bold are items that came from our garden.    

Tuesday’s dinner was soft tacos made using mache (harvested fresh the previous Sunday) in place of lettuce and chunky salsa (home canned).  

Wednesday’s dinner menu was pan seared sirloin steaks topped with sautéed red bell pepper chunks (frozen) and a drizzle of a reduction sauce of pan juices and white wine, accompanied by homemade macaroni and cheese, and cooked broccoli (frozen) dressed simply with a little butter and salt.             

Thursday’s dinner menu was ground beef stroganoff with lots of sliced mushrooms and leeks (prior fresh harvest that has been in my crisper), cooked/drained wide egg noodles, and steamed whole green beans (frozen) dressed tossed with a little butter and a sprinkle of salt.      

On Saturday, I noticed there were still some ripe raspberries and blueberries available so I harvested them.   They have been through a freeze so they were not as tasty as earlier harvests but good none-the-less.  Most of the berries were just eaten fresh for snacks, but some of the raspberries were used for Sunday dinner.    I also cut some spinach to use for the meal preparation.  

Saturday’s evening meal was homemade Swedish meatballs served with cooked/drained wide egg noodles, and spinach (fresh harvest) salad topped with raspberries (fresh harvest) and some goat cheese crumbles.         

On Sunday, I pulled a few parsnips.                                      

These were used as part of the Sunday night dinner – baked chicken breasts in a honey/Dijon mustard sauce, baked potatoes (storage), and parsnip (fresh harvest) dices cooked with peas (frozen) tossed with butter and a sprinkle of salt.                                              

Harvest totals for the week of November 27th through December 4th (rounded to the nearest ¼ pound).

• Berries 0.25 lbs
• Parsnips 0.50 lbs
• Spinach 0.25 lbs

Total For Week 1.00 lbs

Total Year to Date 365.50 lbs                                   

Eggs collected this week – 13                                                  

Laura

kitsapfreedomgardener

Each Monday, Daphne’s Dandelions hosts “Harvest Monday” where everyone submits links to their blog posts summarizing their harvest for the week.    Robin from The Gardener of Eden is similarly hosting “Thursday’s Kitchen Cupboard” each week to highlight how we use our harvests by either preserving or cooking with them.   It’s fun to see what people are producing from gardens from so many different regions, and how they are using it.   Check them out and join in too!                                       

Here is a recap of our dinner menus this week and the garden harvests (both fresh and preserved summer bounty) that were worked into them.   If you don’t see a day listed, it means we either ate leftovers that night or ate out.   Produce noted in bold are items that came from our garden.         

Wednesday’s dinner menu:   Tossed some boneless / skinless chicken breast pieces and broccoli (frozen) together in a stir fry using a simple soy sauce based stir-fry sauce, made some fried rice with peas (frozen) to go with it.   A hen egg was used to make the fried rice.   On Wednesday night I also made the pumpkin pie for the next day's feast by roasting one of the pumpkins (storage) in the morning before going to work and then letting it chill in the fridge while I was away.   In the evening after work, I then pureed it and made my favorite pie recipe.   I used several eggs from the hens in the pumpkin custard for the pie. 

On Thursday morning I harvested a small amount of tender young stalks of celery that have been growing from the root crown of a previously harvested bunch of celery.   I needed it for the Waldorf salad I was making for our Thanksgiving Dinner.   It was not enough to make harvest tally weight and I did not get a picture of it.

Thursday’s traditional Thanksgiving holiday meal was made with lots of items from our garden.   The menu: roast turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes (storage), sage stuffing (onions from storage and frozen celery), fresh cranberry sauce, steamed buttered peas (frozen), homemade rolls, Waldorf salad (fresh celery), deviled eggs (from the hens), and pumpkin pie (storage) for dessert.    Absolutely delicious and a lovely day was spent with family enjoying the feast.  

Saturday’s dinner menu was “Something Not Turkey" - Mexican skillet casserole made with diced onion (storage) sautéed and then cooked with ground beef until both are thoroughly cooked.   A 2 cup package of sweet corn kernels (frozen – thawed before using) was then added and also stirred and cooked until they had a nice roasted flavor.   To this, a pint jar of tomato sauce was added along with some dried cumin powder, a little dried cilantro, some chili powder, and a bit of sugar (takes the acid edge off of the tomato sauce), 2 cups of cooked and drained small red beans, and 1 cup of cooked white rice.   Both the rice and the beans were cooked earlier in the afternoon so they were ready for the evening meal prep.   This was all stirred and continued to be cooked until mixed and heated through.   Salt was added to taste and then the casserole was served straight from the skillet with grated sharp cheddar cheese on the side to use as a topping.                                                        

Sunday I harvested some beautiful fresh mache (corn salad) and declared all the remaining pumpkins that have been ripening off the vine in the warmth of our house as “done” and ready for cool storage.                  

Sunday’s dinner menu: Cod fillets that were previously marinated in lime juice and then pan poached with chunky salsa (home canned last year), roasted chunks of pumpkin (storage) with garlic (storage) and thyme, garden peas (leftovers from Turkey Day) and a fresh salad of mache (fresh harvest) topped with goat cheese and toasted sunflower seed kernels with ranch dressing on the side.                                     

Harvest totals for the week of November 21st through November 27th (rounded to the nearest ¼ pound).

• Celery 0.00 lbs (not enough to round to ¼ pound)
• Mache (corn salad) 0.25 lbs
• Pumpkin 11.25 lbs

Total For Week 11.50 lbs

Total YearTo Date 364.50 lbs                                              

Eggs collected this week – 16                                   

Laura

kitsapfreedomgardener

Each Monday, Daphne’s Dandelions hosts “Harvest Monday” where everyone submits links to their blog posts summarizing their harvest for the week.   Robin from The Gardener of Eden is similarly hosting “Thursday’s Kitchen Cupboard” each week to highlight how we use our harvests by either preserving or cooking with them.   It’s fun to see what people are producing from gardens from so many different regions, and how they are using it.   Check them out and join in too!                             

Here is a recap of our dinner menus this week and the garden harvests (both fresh and preserved summer bounty) that were worked into them.   If you don’t see a day listed, it means we either ate leftovers that night or ate out.   Produce noted in bold are items that came from our garden.   

Tuesday I harvested some Arctic King butter head lettuce. It was not a large amount (not enough to make tally weight) and I did not get a picture taken of it either.   Tuesday’s dinner menu was tacos made with seasoned browned ground beef, shredded fresh lettuce, grated sharp cheddar cheese and home canned chunky salsa (using up the remaining jars of last year’s salsa), served in hard corn taco shells.                  

The Washington state coast is a large producer of fresh cranberries and I try to take advantage of this local seasonal item as much as possible when they are available.   On Wednesday I made roasted pork chops served with a large dollop of fresh cranberry sauce, homemade macaroni and cheese, and steamed green beans (frozen – whole) with just a bit of butter and a sprinkle of salt.        

Saturday I harvested a colander of kale.                              

I used the fresh harvested kale, leeks I harvested last week that were in the fridge, frozen diced red bell peppers, frozen diced celery, 3 large frozen whole tomatoes (peeled and cored), and garlic from storage to make kale and sausage soup with white beans.   You need to soak and cook the white beans in advance of making this recipe or you can alternatively use a pint jar of pressure canned white beans (or a commercial can of beans that has been drained and rinsed).                    

Kale and Sausage Soup with White Beans

• 2 TBS olive oil
• 1 cup diced onions or leeks
• 1 cup diced red bell pepper
• 1 cup diced celery
• 8 ounces of Italian sausage in casings cut into bite size chunks
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• ½ to ¾ pounds of kale, chopped
• 4 cups chicken stock
• 3 large tomatoes peeled and chopped
• 2 cups of cooked/drained white beans (such as Great Northern or Cannellini)
• ½ teaspoon salt (or to taste)
• ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• Dash of Tabasco

In a large soup pot, heat olive oil over medium-high heat.   Add onions/leeks, bell pepper, celery, and sausage pieces.   Sauté, stirring, until onion/leeks are just tender.   Reduce heat to medium-low.   Add kale and garlic; cover and continue cooking for 2 minutes.   Add remaining ingredients; cover and cook for 20 minutes or until vegetables are tender.   Salt to taste.         

On Sunday I pulled another pumpkin from the group that has been ripening off the vine.   This one is not very big but is a perfect size to be roasted and pureed to make a single pumpkin pie.   I will be using this pumpkin next Wednesday to make a pumpkin pie for the Thanksgiving feast.   I also harvested some beautiful fresh spinach.                                    

Sunday’s dinner was homemade creamy pork pot pie with a spinach salad on the side that was topped with cranberry raisins, sunflower seed kernels, and crumbled goat cheese (your choice of several dressings).    Usually I do not get pictures of dishes I prepare because they go straight from the oven to the table but the pot pie needs to cool slightly before being served, so I was able to grab a quick picture of it before we sat down to eat.                               

I combined the best elements of several recipes I have used in the past to make this dish and it was delicious.   I used leeks I had on hand in the fridge (rather than onions), frozen shelled peas, frozen diced celery, and potatoes from storage.                                                     

Creamy Pork Pot Pie                          

Crust:

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup shortening
• 5 to 6 TBS of cold water
• 1 egg
• 1 TBS of white vinegar

Filling:

• 2 TBS butter
• 1 ½ cups cubed peeled potatoes
• ½ cup peas
• ½ cup sliced celery
• ½ cup chopped onion (or leeks)
• 2 cups of cooked pork cut into bite sized dices
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Sauce:

• ¼ cup butter
• ½ cup all-purpose flour
• 1 ¾ cups chicken stock
• ¾ cup milk
• salt and pepper to taste

In a bowl, combine flour and salt, cut in shortening until the mixture resembles coarse crumbles.   In a separate small bowl combine 5 TBS of water, egg, and vinegar; sprinkle over dry ingredients one TBS at a time.   Toss lightly with a fork until dough forms a ball; add additional water if necessary.   Divide into two balls; chill while preparing filling. 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.   In a large saucepan heat 2 TBS butter over medium-high heat.   Add potatoes, peas, celery, and onions (leeks).   Sauté, stirring, until onion/leeks are just tender.   Add pork and season to taste.   Take off the burner and set aside while you prepare the pie crust.                      

On a floured surface, roll one ball of dough to fit a 9-inch pie pan.   Line the bottom of the pie pan with the dough and then fill with the vegetable and meat mixture.                                                         

Using the now emptied saucepan, prepare the sauce.   Melt ¼ cup of butter.   Stir in flour until smooth; gradually add chicken stock and milk stirring as you go.   Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened.   Add salt and pepper to taste.   Pour the creamy sauce over the vegetable and meat mixture in the pie pan.             

On a floured surface, roll out the remaining ball of dough to fit on top of the pie.   Seal and flute the edges and then cut or prick ventilation holes in the dough.    Bake at 375 degrees for 45 to 50 minutes or until golden brown.      Allow to cool approximately 10 minutes before serving.           

Harvest totals for the week of November 14th through November 20th (rounded to the nearest ¼ pound).

• Kale 0.50 lbs
• Lettuce 0.00 lbs (not enough to round up to ¼ pound)
• Pumpkin 2.00 lbs
• Spinach 0.25 lbs

Total For Week 2.75 lbs

Total YearTo Date 353.00 lbs                                    

Eggs collected this week – 15                            

Laura

kitsapfreedomgardener

Each Monday, Daphne’s Dandelions hosts “Harvest Monday” where everyone submits links to their blog posts summarizing their harvest for the week.   Robin from The Gardener of Eden is similarly hosting “Thursday’s Kitchen Cupboard” each week to highlight how we use our harvests by either preserving or cooking with them.   It’s fun to see what people are producing from gardens from so many different regions, and how they are using it.   Check them out and join in too!                                     

Here is a recap of our dinner menus this week and the garden harvests (both fresh and preserved summer bounty) that were worked into them.   

Monday was a "use up the leftovers” night.   I really dislike changing back to standard time each fall and Monday was the first full day of being on the new time schedule.   It's depressing to come home in the dark and not be able to easily harvest on weeknights anymore.   I just could not bring myself to mess with it Monday night, but luckily we had lots of food in the fridge that really needed using up.                         

Tuesday night’s dinner menu: Thin strips of pork stir fried with diced red peppers (frozen) and green beans (frozen whole - cut into large pieces). Once the meat and vegetables were done; cooked/drained Chinese noodles were tossed in along with a spicy Thai peanut sauce.              

On Wednesday I got home rather late from work but did pop out to the garden when I got home to harvest some large leaves of lettuce.   It was too dark to get a picture of them and they did not weigh enough to make my weekly harvest tally.   Neither of us was all that hungry - so dinner was simply tuna salad sandwiches - canned tuna (water pack) drained and then mixed with lots of my dill pickle relish (canned) and mayo on slices of crusty no-knead bread with lots of leafy garden fresh lettuce (fresh harvest).                                       

We had a dinner engagement on Thursday evening, so dinner was eaten out.  

Friday night’s dinner menu: Grilled steaks, steamed green beans (frozen – whole), and a baked potato (storage) with sour cream and some freshly snipped chives (fresh harvest).   I never manage to weigh the fresh herbs I use from my herb pots as the amounts are so small and I am usually in the process of cooking when I harvest them - so I do not take the time to get pictures of them either.  

On Saturday I harvested the last big bunch of celery.    

I used the celery along with some frozen whole tomatoes, storage onions, storage garlic, and frozen diced red bell peppers to make Celery Stew.    This is a modification of a recipe from the Victory Garden Cookbook by Marion Morash.   This is a lovely recipe which highlights how delicious properly cooked fresh celery truly is. 

CELERY STEW

• 4 cups celery cut into 1/2 inch chunks
• 1 cup diced sweet red bell peppers (fresh or frozen may be used)
• 1 cup sliced onions
• 3 TBS butter
• 1 TBS olive oil
• 1 very large clove garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon celery seed
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 whole tomatoes (fresh or frozen may be used – if frozen, partially thaw before using)
• 1/4 teaspoon dried Tarragon
• 1/2 cup chopped celery leaves
• 3/4 cup hot chicken broth
• 2 cups cooked/drained great northern beans
• Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Blanch celery for five minutes in boiling water; rinse with cold water and drain.   Cook peppers with onion in butter and oil until wilted and lightly browned.   Chop garlic, add to pan, and cook for 1 minute.   Stir in celery, celery seed, and salt; cover and cook over medium-low heat for approximately 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.   Remove the skins from the tomatoes and trim stem ends; chop coarsely and add along with the celery leaves, tarragon, and broth.   Cover pan and cook for 10 to 15 minutes more or until celery is tender.   Stir in beans and cook until heated through.   Season to taste and serve hot.   Serves 4 to 6.             

On Sunday I harvested several leeks and pulled a pumpkin out of the group that has been ripening off the vine on the windowsill.   I also harvested some blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries.              

The berries are still giving us periodic small harvests.   They taste extra sweet from the nightly chill they are going through now.   We just used these for fresh snacking.    Several of the leeks were put in the refrigerator crisper for use later this coming week.   The pumpkin, some garlic from storage, and two of the smaller sized leeks were used to make Sunday’s dinner, which was Pumpkin Stuffed With Everything Good.     You can view the recipe by clicking on the link; it is the second recipe on the page.   I strongly encourage you to try this recipe as it is absolutely delicious!             

Harvest totals for the week of November 7th through November 13th (rounded to the nearest ¼ pound).                       

• Berries 0.25 lbs
• Celery 1.50 lbs
• Leeks 0.50 lbs
• Pumpkin 4.50 lbs

Total For Week 6.75 lbs

Total YearTo Date 350.25 lbs                                    

Eggs collected this week – 15                                  

Laura

kitsapfreedomgardener

Each Monday, Daphne’s Dandelions hosts “Harvest Monday” where everyone submits links to their blog posts summarizing their harvest for the week.    Robin from The Gardener of Eden is similarly hosting “Thursday’s Kitchen Cupboard” each week to highlight how we use our harvests by either preserving or cooking with them.   It’s fun to see what people are producing from gardens from so many different regions, and how they are using it.   Check them out and join in too!                        

Here is a recap of our dinner menus this week and the garden harvests (both fresh and preserved summer bounty) that were worked into them.    

Monday was Halloween and we honored the “spirit” of the day (pardon the pun!) by enjoying an evening of watching older classic horror movies – the 1931 Dracula movie starring Bela Lugosi, among others.   Dinner was kept very simple so we could get to our movie night quickly - cheese omelets made with several of our fresh hen eggs.                        

Tuesday I harvested some fresh Arctic King butter head lettuce and some Vit mache.                 

The fresh greens were used to make that night’s dinner, which was chicken Caesar salad.    Prior to prepping the greens, I heated the oven to 400 degrees and placed a pan in it with a bit of butter.   I dredged some boneless/skinless chicken breast tenders in seasoned breadcrumbs (fine dry bread crumbs, dried oregano, freshly grated parmesan and a bit of sea salt) and then placed them in the pan in the hot oven (after the butter was all melted).   It did not take long for them to cook through.   I turned them once during the cooking process to ensure a crisp coating on all sides.   The cooked chicken was removed from the oven and while I prepped the greens, I put the crisp breaded chicken into the refrigerator to cool them down a bit.   The lettuce and mache was then cleaned: spun dry; and torn into bite size pieces.   The greens were then heaped on our plates and the warm (but not hot) chicken pieces were placed on top.   Fresh grated parmesan and a few croutons topped the salad, and it was all served with Caesar dressing and a few whole grain crackers on the side.                             

Did some shopping on the way home from work Wednesday night and it was raining quite heavily – too dark and too wet when I finally got home to even think about doing a fresh harvest for dinner.   My husband was scheduled for some oral surgery the next morning to deal with a crown that broke leaving a cracked root still in place.   I wanted to make a substantial dinner for him despite the lateness of my getting home, as he was going to be on soft foods for a day or so after the procedure.   Menu was grilled tenderized flank steak made into pinwheels stuffed with crumbled blue cheese, steamed garden peas (frozen) with a little butter and salt, and linguini pasta with a creamy garlic (storage) parmesan sauce.   Very yum!                                         

Thursday was all about my husband’s oral surgery.   It went very well and he had a great recovery almost immediately afterwards, but he was still relegated to bland and soft food for the first 24 hours following the procedure.   Rather than fix two meals, I just joined him and we both enjoyed roasted garlic mashed potatoes for dinner and homemade vanilla pudding for dessert.   The garlic and potatoes came from our storage supplies and the pudding was made with fresh eggs collected from our hens earlier that day.                   

By Friday evening my husband was ready for something more substantial to eat.   When I got home from work, I harvested a few large leaves of lettuce (managed not to weigh or photograph them) and made some grilled hamburgers with slices of melted cheese, served on whole grain buns dressed with lettuce and dill pickle relish (home canned) and your choice of condiments (mayo, mustard, and ketchup).   Dill pickle spears from our jar of refrigerator dills served on the side.                        

The harvest on Saturday consisted of some beets, parsnips, a leek, and two small heads of cabbage.                             

Saturday’s dinner menu: Pot roast with lots of chopped garlic (storage), diced leeks (fresh harvest), and a few quartered mushrooms roasted with it.   Served with roasted beets and parsnips (both fresh harvest), and a coleslaw made with shredded fresh cabbage (fresh harvest); a peeled/cored apple that was cut into chunks; and a handful of dried cranberries (for color mostly), all of which was then tossed with my favorite slaw dressing.                                    

My Favorite Coleslaw Dressing

• 3/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1/8 cup lemon juice
• 1/8 cup real maple syrup
• Dash of ground nutmeg

Whisk all ingredients together.                             

Sunday’s dinner menu: Baked salmon filets seasoned with some dill weed and sea salt, leftover coleslaw from Saturday’s dinner, and confetti rice made using frozen diced red peppers and frozen garden peas.          

Confetti Rice

• 2 cups chicken stock
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 cup uncooked long grain rice
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
• 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 cup diced sweet red pepper (frozen works fine!)
• 1/2 cup frozen green peas, thawed

In a large saucepan, combine the first six ingredients. Bring to a boil. Stir in sweet peppers. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 10-15 minutes. Stir in peas and cook for another 5 minutes or until liquid is fully absorbed. Remove from heat and let stand for about 5 minutes. Fluff with fork prior to serving.                                 

Harvest totals for the week of October 31st through November 6th (rounded to the nearest ¼ pound).

• Beets 0.50 lbs
• Cabbages 0.50 lbs
• Leeks 0.25 lbs
• Lettuce 0.25 lbs
• Parsnips 0.25 lbs

Total For Week 1.75 lbs

Total Year To Date 343.50 lbs                                    

Eggs collected this week – 18                                     

Laura

kitsapfreedomgardener

Each Monday, Daphne’s Dandelions hosts “Harvest Monday” where everyone submits links to their blog posts summarizing their harvest for the week.   Robin from The Gardener of Eden is similarly hosting “Thursday’s Kitchen Cupboard” each week to highlight how we use our harvests by either preserving or cooking with them.   It’s fun to see what people are producing from gardens from so many different regions, and how they are using it.   Check them out and join in too!      

I am officially into the fall/winter garden phase now.   I am using the late season fresh garden harvests to supplement the items we have in storage (onions, garlic, potatoes), frozen (green beans, corn, broccoli, pumpkin puree, kale, swiss chard, spinach, red cabbage, diced red peppers, sliced celery, and whole tomatoes), and canned items (diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, apple sauce, and dill pickle relish).   I also have some pumpkins I harvested last week that are now ripening off the vine indoors.   I will be adding these to my harvest tally when they are fully ripe and cured and they will be part of my “storage” supplies once ready.   So here is a recap of this weeks dinner menus and the garden harvests that were worked into them.   

Monday’s dinner menu: Spaghetti w/mushroom and meat sauce, and spinach salad with your choice of dressings.   The spaghetti sauce was made using a couple of whole frozen tomatoes from the freezer and a pint jar of seasoned tomato sauce (last year’s canning that I am still using up).   The mushrooms were purchased but very fresh.   The spinach salad was left over from last Sunday’s fresh harvest.   I have quite a few bags of whole frozen tomatoes in the freezer.   It is an efficient way to preserve tomatoes when they ripen in smaller groups that are not big enough to process by canning.   They are easily used for cooking by partially thawing them so that the skins slip easily off and then cutting out the stem end etc and then chopping up and using in recipes the same way you would a fresh tomato.    The texture is not the same as a fresh tomato so it cannot be used for fresh slices etc., but works beautifully where the tomato is to be cooked.   I like to start the thawing process by running some water over the solidly frozen tomatoes and then letting them sit at room temperature until the skins are easy to slip off.                                     

Tuesday I had a commitment to attend to after work, so I gave myself the night off from cooking (mostly) and picked up a take and bake pizza from our local Central Market.                                                             

Wednesday’s dinner menu: Boneless/skinless chicken breast chunks stir fried with diced leeks and swiss chard stems, and coarsely chopped swiss chard leaves in a spicy Shanghai orange sauce (bottled sauce) and served with hot cooked rice.   The leeks and swiss chard were harvested that evening right before I prepared the meal.                                         

Thursday was my birthday and we celebrated by going out for dinner.   I enjoyed lots of good food, wine, and a nice evening of conversation with my husband without the distraction of having to prepare the meal too.         

Friday’s dinner menu:   Leek and potato soup.   This soup was made from leeks harvested just a few moments before using them, potatoes from our storage boxes, and a few snips of fresh chives from the clumps growing in containers on our front porch.                                     

Leek and Potato Soup

• 3 TBS of butter
• 3 large leeks or equivalent amount of smaller leeks (white and pale green parts only – halved lengthwise and then thinly sliced – about 4 ½ cups)
• 2 large potatoes or equivalent amount of smaller potatoes (about 1 ½ pounds) peeled and diced
• 4 ½ cups organic free range chicken stock
• 3 to 4 slices of bacon cooked crisp
• 2/3 cup of organic heavy cream
• 2 TBS (approximately) of fresh snipped chives

Melt butter in a heavy large saucepan over medium heat.   Add leeks and stir to coat with butter.   Cover saucepan; cook until leeks are tender, stirring often (about 10 minutes).   Add potatoes.   Cover and cook until potatoes begin to soften but do not brown, stirring often (about 10 minutes).   Add the chicken stock and bring to a boil.   Reduce heat, cover and simmer until vegetables are tender (about 30 minutes).   Remove from heat.   Using a stick blender, puree the soup until smooth (alternatively you can do this in batches using a food processor).   Crumble into pieces the cooked crisp bacon and add to the soup along with the cream.   Stir until blended and then add salt and pepper to taste.   Ladle into bowls and serve with fresh snipped chives on top.   Makes approximately 4 servings.                  

On Saturday we chose to make it a “clean out the fridge” day and just ate leftovers.   Usually we don’t do this on a weekend, saving the convenience of a left over night for busy workdays, but this week the leftovers were accumulating in too great of a volume and needed to be used up sooner than later.                            

Sunday’s dinner menu: Chili with beef and beans.   This was made in our large crock pot.   I started 1 lb of dry light red kidney beans soaking the night before so they were ready to be rinsed and used by mid-morning on Sunday.   I browned some beef stew meat (grass fed beef) in a little oil in a saucepan and then set it aside.   In the crock pot I layered in 1 onion cut into large chunks (from storage), 1 cup of diced red sweet peppers (frozen), 1 lb of light red kidney beans pre-soaked, rinsed, and drained, ¾ lb. of browned stew meat, 3 large tomatoes cut into large chunks (frozen whole tomatoes – partially thawed with the skin slipped off and the stem end removed), 1 pint jar of tomato sauce, and seasoning to taste (dried ground cumin powder, red cayenne pepper, chili pepper powder, and salt/pepper).   Cooked in the crockpot for hours until the beans are tender and the beef is fork tender.    

Frequently, I get questions as to how we use the bounty of eggs our flock of hens provide us each week.   I thought it might be good to just recap here the answer to that question.   First, I try to keep a dozen boiled eggs on hand in the fridge which we use for making egg salad sandwiches or slicing up on salads etc. for lunches or for just snacking on.   Second, we alternate between having oatmeal or cereal for breakfast with days that feature eggs for the morning meal.   Sunday is always a late start brunch for us and eggs are always used for that in some fashion.   Third, we use them for baking and cooking as needed, and occasionally we have omelets for dinner when I need a very fast option for dinner.   Finally, after all that is said and done though, our hens often produce way more than we need for our own consumption and I share that extra with others by periodically giving a dozen eggs away to some of my employees who have requested to receive them when available.                             

While we have had lots of extra eggs to share with others, in the future this may not be the case as I must sadly report that we lost two of our hens on Saturday to an attack by raccoons.   While I was away putting in some volunteer time at the Kingston Farm and Garden Co-op Giving Garden Saturday morning, some raccoons dug under the property fencing and attacked our flock that was out for the day grazing and foraging in the larger fenced in area.   We found “parts” of one of the hens and the other is just completely missing in action.   We assume she was killed and then dragged off.   We blocked the hole that was dug but totally expect them to be back in the near future, since they got a taste of fresh chicken from our flock.   We saw a large family of raccoons passing through our front yard about two weeks ago and strongly suspicion it is the same group that came back through again.   Our task now is to protect the remaining four hens from the same fate (if possible).   They are having their hours of free ranging reduced (later start and earlier return to the secure hen yard and coop).   In addition, my husband is doing a perimeter walk of the fence before letting them out each mid-morning, to ensure no new holes have been dug for access and he has our shot gun on hand for a fast dispatching of any that should dare show themselves again.   While it is sad to lose the two hens, it is something we have been expecting to have happen eventually.   We actually only need four hens but purchased six chicks initially because the odds were high we would lose a few along the way.   We have been very lucky to date with the health and continued survival of all of our chickens.   However, I guess our luck ran out on us Saturday.              

Harvest totals for the week of October 24th through October 30th (rounded to the nearest ¼ pound).

• Berries 0.00 lbs (not enough to round to ¼ pound)
• Leeks 1.50 lbs
• Swiss Chard 1.00 lbs

Total For Week 2.50 lbs

Total Year To Date 341.75 lbs                    

Eggs collected this week – 18                              

Laura

kitsapfreedomgardener

Each Monday, Daphne’s Dandelions hosts “Harvest Monday” where everyone submits links to their blog posts summarizing their harvest for the week.   It’s fun to see what people are producing from gardens from so many different regions, and how they are using it.    Check it out and join in too!  

This week’s harvests had bits and pieces of a variety of things, some of which never made it into a picture and some of which was too little to make my harvest tally weight requirement of 1/4 pound or more.   I cut a few leaves of lettuce on several days but none of it was enough to make weight and I managed not to get any pictures of them.   I also harvested a leek on Tuesday and did not get a photo of it either.   In addition, the late fall raspberries are ripening up (slowly) and we enjoyed a few fresh from the canes but again – never got a picture or weighed them.   The following are the harvests I did manage to capture with a picture!  

On Wednesday I harvested some broccoli florets (side shoots), a small head of cabbage, and pulled a few more tomatoes out of the box where they have been ripening off the vine.                                 

The tomatoes were set aside for later use (Sunday).   The broccoli and cabbage (shredded) were combined with some of the leek (diced) I harvested Tuesday and a couple of carrots (sliced) in the fridge from a prior week harvest, to make a vegetable fried rice side dish to go with dill seasoned baked salmon fillets for dinner.                   

Saturday I harvested a handful of pole beans, a couple of red beets, dug up a few parsnips (first I have harvested from this patch for 2011), and cut the last small zucchini.                                 

All of these vegetables were used to make that evening's meal, which was pan seared steaks with a white wine reduction sauce, sautéed mushrooms, and a platter of mixed roasted vegetables (pole beans, beets, parsnips, zucchini, and some carrots).   The carrots were the remaining ones in the fridge from a prior harvest.        

On Sunday, I cut a colander of spinach.                

This was used to make spinach side salads to go with our blue cheese hamburgers on whole grain buns, dressed with some sliced garden tomatoes (those tomatoes from Wednesday) and some fresh lettuce (not pictured or weighed).     

Harvest totals for the week of October 17th through October 23rd (rounded to the nearest ¼ pound).

• Beans 0.00 lbs (not enough to round to ¼ pound)
• Beets 0.75 lbs
• Broccoli 0.00 lbs (not enough to round to ¼ pound)
• Cabbages 0.50 lbs
• Leeks 0.25 lbs
• Lettuce 0.00 lbs (not enough to round to ¼ pound)
• Parsnips 0.75 lbs
• Spinach 0.25 lbs
• Tomatoes 0.25 lbs
• Zucchini 0.25 lbs

Total For Week 3.00 lbs

Total Year To Date 339.25 lbs                                     

Eggs collected this week – 20                                             

Laura

kitsapfreedomgardener

Each Monday, Daphne’s Dandelions hosts “Harvest Monday” where everyone submits links to their blog posts summarizing their harvest for the week.   It’s fun to see what people are producing from gardens from so many different regions, and how they are using it.   Check it out and join in too!        

With the exception of the pumpkins (which I have yet to harvest as they are still maturing), all the big summer crop harvests are behind me now for the 2011 garden season.   For the next many months the weekly harvests will be composed of items picked largely for the purpose of preparing our evening meals.   The fresh harvest items supplement our storage and preserved supplies.    The amount of fresh fare harvested will decrease and the use of storage and preserved items will slowly increase as the days get shorter and colder.   Here’s what I harvested and how I used it in combination with items from storage and from the freezer to feed us this week.               

On Tuesday evening I harvested some butterhead lettuce (Arctic King) and pulled a couple of tomatoes out of the box where they have been ripening off the vine. 

The lettuce was part of that night’s dinner menu - spaghetti with mushroom and meat sauce served with a beautiful fresh garden salad made from the butterhead lettuce and those ripe tomatoes cut into wedges. The salad also included some peeled and sliced cucumbers, and some peeled and grated carrots.  The cucumbers and carrots were from the prior Sunday harvest and were in the fridge waiting to be used.   The spaghetti sauce used a pint jar of seasoned tomato sauce (last year's canning actually as I am using the last of those first), lots of garlic (from storage), fresh mushrooms (purchased) cut into large chunks and sauteed, several ripe tomatoes that were cored and then chopped up, and of course some browned ground beef, basil, oregano, and salt to taste and a bit of sugar to take the acid edge off of the tomato sauce.                                                           

I harvested one medium large zucchini on Wedneday night.                      

This was used for that night’s meal, which was lean beef strips stir-fried with the sliced and quartered zucchini and about a half cup of diced red pepper (scooped out from a bag of chopped frozen red peppers in the freezer).   Once the meat and vegetables were cooked, I added some cooked and drained chinese noodles and tossed them in the pan until well mixed and then added teriyaki sauce and tossed some more until all was mixed and heated through.                                            

On Saturday, I harvested some pole beans, a small zucchini, and pulled some more tomatoes out of the box where they have been ripening.         

The tomatoes and zucchini were set aside for later use.   The green beans were used for that night’s dinner - pan seared steaks (grass fed beef) served with mashed potatoes (from storage), gravy made from the pan drippings, and the pole beans steamed and dressed simply with a little butter and salt.  

On Sunday I picked the blueberry bushes and I harvested some of our tree kale.                              

The blueberries were eaten fresh within moments after I finished weighing them and taking this picture.   The kale was destined to be part of the Sunday night meal which was roasted chicken thighs, homemade macaroni and cheese, and the kale sautéed with lots of garlic (from storage), raisins, coarsely chopped pecans, and sprinkled with some freshly grated parmesan cheese.                   

Harvest totals for the week of October 10th through October 16th (rounded to the nearest ¼ pound).

• Beans 0.25 lbs
• Berries (blueberries) 0.25 lbs
• Kale 0.50 lbs
• Lettuce 0.25 lbs
• Tomatoes 0.75 lbs
• Zucchini 0.75 lbs

Total For Week 2.75 lbs

Total Year To Date 336.25 lbs                             

Eggs collected this week – 19                                                 

I will be doing a blog post later this week to cover all the work I did in the garden this past weekend.             

Laura

kitsapfreedomgardener