Even the Bees Make Pots & Frugal Accomplishments

Hello, friends.  I hope your July was as good as it could be, in these interesting times.  Last week, I harvested tomatoes, cucumbers, tromboncino squash, red noodle and pole beans, apples, lima beans, eggplant, carrots, beets, and lambs quarter.  I canned tomatoes twice, juiced cherry tomatoes, and dehydrated tomato skins for bird suet.  Hopi dye sunflower seedheads, dyer's coreopsis, black eyed susan and dyer's chamomile flowers were gathered for future dyeing adventures.  I gathered lactarius indigo mushrooms.  It's said they get buggy quickly, which I found was the case.  I saved the good bits to dry and composted the rest.  I gathered chanterelles several days, and dried any that didn't make it into a breakfast scramble.

After an appointment, I headed to a nearby thrift store,  I didn't find any of the things I was looking for, but did spend .75 for two napkins and a greeting card.  I then headed to Food Lion, where the pup's dogfood was still $3 off, and seedless watermelons were $3.99.  I caught a $3 overcharge on some local honey, which they corrected.  Meals this week included asian cucumbers, zucchini frittata, zucchini tots, garlicky green beans, and sauteed squash with sweet onion and basil.  I redeemed swagbucks for a $25 amazon gift card.  While in the garden this week, hummingbirds and a praying mantis kept me company while I picked. 

Not frugal for us, but after a number of inquiries about our old stove, which J listed for $50, he ended up giving it to a man that showed up.  Laundry was hung on the line.  Beet, carrot and flower beds were weeded.  I blanched and froze one meal of lambs quarters and two of lima/butter beans.  I found a branch from our oldest pear with lots of pears on the ground, we assume from squirrel activity.  It's getting close to when they begin to ripen, so I gathered up the good ones.  Lima beans were harvested again.  After cleaning and powder coating orders on Saturday, I made hummus and cut up cucumbers for our lunch.  While in the garden one day, I noticed these pots made by some sort of bee on the tromboncino trellis.  How cool, and perfect for the pottery community I live in.  Update: a friend shared info on the potter wasp.  

More elderberries were harvested, which finished filling a jar of tincture.  I also harvested lemon verbena, which is drying for tea, and stevia. In the past, I've dried stevia, but this year, I'm trying an extract.  I tried a new recipe, for Lemony Ricotta Pasta with Basil.  It sounded like summer to me, and fit the bill.  On an evening walk, I was happy to notice honeybees working wild sumac flowers along our path.  I'm amazed at how quickly our new oven pre-heats.  It takes maybe three minutes, and used to take 40 minutes or so.  Hard to imagine.  We knew our oven was on it's way out for a while.  This will save so much time and gas!  Much of the oregano is flowering, but I was able to harvest enough to fill a pie tin, which is drying for winter use.  J harvested some of our second round of corn.  The Japanese beetles have been eating the silks, so I was afraid it wouldn't amount to much, but they were mostly filled out.  We enjoyed it with some sliced tomatoes, and the leftover pasta.  Homemade ice cream is on the menu too; toasted almond this time.  Ah, summer days.  Wishing you a week of seasonal pleasures, friends. 

Taters & Maters & Berries

Hello, friends.  One morning, after a good rain during the night, I looked out and saw this tree steaming in the sun.  It lasted for several minutes.  Last week, I made pesto with basil and purslane from the garden.  I painted the baseboard in the workshop, which was good to check off my to do list.  J trimmed the roots and stems off the garlic, and they were stored in the basement.  Groceries were bought at Food Lion and the natural food co-op after a soap delivery, but there are no exceptional sales to report.  I perused the little free book library at the B&B, and found one by an author J likes.  The B&B was recently sold.  I'd been worried that I may lose my gig of supplying them with soaps, but instead, gained a second B&B they also own.  That was a nice surprise.  A free trial of Sirius was enjoyed while driving.  I was offered three months free, without providing any payment information, so took them up on it.  

a portion of our potatoes

J dug our potatoes.  When we've had a large amount, as we do this year, we keep them in an unusual way, which we read about and which works well for us.  At the edge of the woods, under tree cover, we spread pine straw on the ground, lay the potatoes on top, sprinkle with agricultural lime, which keeps insects away and inhibits mold growth, then cover with more pine straw, and lastly roofing tin.  They've lasted well this way until March, much better than in our basement.  We just wash them well when we're going to use them.  In the meantime, we've been eating potatoes most days... steamed, grilled, in a saute, and potato salad, trying to use up the damaged ones.  On our morning walks, I saw wild turkeys a couple of mornings at the back field.  One morning, they left this calling card. 

I harvested blackberries, blueberries, lambs quarters, tomatoes, cucumbers, basil, the first tromboncino, lavender, parsley and oregano. There are 5 small chard seedlings at the moment, which don't seem to be growing.  For some reason, I've had a challenge with chard this year, and planted four more seeds, which have started sprouting.  I'll give them all a dose of garden tea.  I finally changed summer and winter clothes in the closet, and decluttered 9 items.  It's a small closet, and half is rather hard to get to, so putting the current season to the front makes it easier.  My Lowe's cc balance was paid in full.  This way, I can take advantage of 5% off the purchase, but accrue no interest.  

One of our freezers failed.  Much of it went into the compost.  Some items that were still icy were salvaged, and crammed into our other freezers.  I salvaged a couple of small bags of chanterelles I had foraged last year, which had been sauteed in ghee.  I made a saute with them, added some leftover potatoes and fresh lambs quarter for lunch, which was very good.  The ghee isn't in my current diet (no dairy), but one has to make exceptions sometimes.  I was pretty sad about the homemade pizza, which hadn't been in there long, I guess just before I started the protocol.  I'd been making a double batch of pizza dough, and freezing one, but this time, I also added the sauce, so all I needed to do was add veggies.  Oh well.  I'm counting down the last two and a half weeks of the eczema protocol, and hope I can begin introducing a few things back into my diet.  

On the 4th, I canned the first round of tomatoes.  Since there weren't many, pints were canned for this round.  I ran out of those during the winter, and want to have more going into the coming winter.  One jar didn't seal, so was put in the fridge to be used this week.  I spent a good amount of time crawling around on the workshop floor last week, between taping it off three times to paint the baseboard and the final coat on the walls, then to seal the floor.  First, J & I got up all the paint splatters and caulk, and sanded black marks and such off.  Then I vacuumed and steam mopped it, before J put two coats of sealer on it.  We'll soon be able to move the powder coat oven in, and create the shipping and storage areas.  I'm looking forward to getting in there.  A watermelon was cut to enjoy, and a "clean" version of caprese salad was made, subbing avocado for the cheese, and lemon juice for the balsamic vinegar.  I'm thankful for the rain we received last week, and hope those in hot and dry areas are getting some relief.  Be well, friends.

Early May Frugal Accomplishments

This toad paid us a visit on the porch.  I love how his eyes look like they're rimmed with gold eye liner.  I'm joining in with Brandy's Frugal Accomplishments.  I boiled eggs for salad and poured the water on plants.  Harvested lambs quarters, blanched and froze enough for 2 meals, with some left over.  Added asparagus ends and lambs quarter stems to my broth bag in the freezer.  Harvested broccoli from the garden. I started tomatillos and spilanthes from seed, planted all my recent plant purchases, including 3 different lavenders & a chamomile plant.

Noticed a great price on Glide dental floss at Walgreens, which also gave a $1 reward, to use on another purchase.  I went back with the reward, and picked up another floss, along with another item I needed.  Got an ebates check for purchases I was going to buy anyway.

At the discount grocery store, I purchased about 20 lbs. of sunflower seeds for $6, some cans of organic tomato products, pasta, a Lundberg quinoa & brown rice side dish, several organic soups for .50 ea. (I like to start with these when I don't have much interesting vegi's to put in a pot of vegetable soup), Carr water crackers to have with cheese for .50 (doesn't expire for another month or two).

Washed laundry with homemade soap and hung on the line.  We have not run the A/C, opening windows when it's cool, and closing up the house during the day.  I did run the fan some in the afternoons.

SO & I got some of the garden planted.  We planted 40 of the tomatoes I grew from seed (several varieties), & he planted cucumber and summer squash seeds, and moved some volunteer lettuce & dill seedlings.  I went to a plant sale with a friend, & purchased several medicinal plants, as well as another male kiwi.  I purchased kiwis 5 years ago, both male and female.  One male died, and the other has never bloomed, though at least one female has bloomed for a couple of years.  I was told they should have been bearing fruit by now, so I hedged my bets by buying another male.  I'm hoping the new male will do better than the original, and we will have kiwis next year.

The Littlest Hen

First cucumbers and squash were picked from the garden this morning.  Both Asian and pickling cucumbers, and yellow and patty pan squash.  There were also lambs quarters, chard, and a precious few raspberries and blackberries in my basket.  Garlic has been harvested, and is drying.  The onions will soon follow suit.  Our last Americauna left us Friday.  No obvious cause, so we're wondering if it was just the heat that got her.  I will miss her, our littlest hen, and her blue eggs that always looked so festive among the various shades of brown. 

Garden Ups and Downs & Another Year Around The Sun

Hello, friends.  I hope you've had a good week.  For Labor Day, J cooked our dinner on the grill.  I prepped eggplant, potatoes, and mushrooms, and he added corn and pork.  We ate on our porch for the first time this summer, which was lovely.  I recently had my first shower of the year in our outdoor shower.  I forget how absolutely wonderful that is, and really should use it more often.  It's one of life's simple pleasures.  I blanched and froze lambs quarters.  J has had to fix more things on the homestead.  First, the pressure switch for our well went bad, which he got a part for, and replaced.  My steam mop had stopped steaming. He soaked parts in vinegar, and thinks he's got it working again.  Even though I only use rainwater in the steam mop, he thinks the tannins, which get through the initial three house filters, may have clogged it up. 

I was able to can a small amount of tomatoes, which was good.  After a lull, I've been working on soap, gearing up for the holiday season and upcoming show.  Daisy had asked for information on where I'll be vending, and I'll be at this herbal symposium in Pittsboro.  We're still awash in pawpaws, and shared them with several people throughout the week.  We received a bag of cucumbers from a neighbor, which was much appreciated.  All laundry was dried on the line.  I made golden paste for the pups.  This continues to be a most interesting year in the garden.  Now that the tomatoes have quit rotting, there's a new problem of many worms/caterpillars on them.  On Saturday, I picked off 42, of at least four types!  At least the chickens have been getting extra protein.

It's been a good eggplant year, however.  I made a pasta dish with caramelized onions and eggplant on my birthday, Wednesday.  Though it was a lowkey day, with J working, I gathered a bouquet, took a longer than usual walk, and made cookies.  Giving myself a little more than the usual down time was nice.  It was also nice the celebration continued, with flowers arriving from my daughter in spirit Thursday, time spent with my sister Friday, and time with friends at a winery on Sunday, so all the best things were enjoyed.  I've recently noticed what seems to be a decrease in pollinators in the garden.  I'm seeing some around it, mostly bumblebees on the morning glory and garlic chive blooms, but very little in the garden, and no honeybees, though we have two neighbors with hives about 1/2 mile away.  The tomatoes and eggplant are obviously getting pollinated, so hopefully it's nothing to worry about.  I'll keep my eye on it.  We were able to have the windows open a lot this week.  I hope the weather is lovely in your little spot in the world.

It's a Mystery**

Recently, I came across some very tall fruiting shrubs on this land. They were just covered in fruit.

I would say the one in the pictures is close to 12 feet tall.

There are many of them here, most much smaller. I'm wondering if they are related to the blueberry, but my wild plant books, and an online search have not helped me with identification.

The fruits are small, about 1/4" diameter. Perhaps not so wisely, I did end up tasting them. They have a slightly sweet, somewhat "berry-ish" taste, though the flesh is quite dry and mealy. Any ideas?
                          

Last night, I made Rhonda's Impossible Quiche. This quiche has no crust, which simplifies things. I made a vegetarian version, which turned out wonderfully.  I couldn't find hers to link to, so here's my version-

Impossible Quiche

Place the following in a frying pan and cook, then put to one side.
1 tbs olive oil
1 small onion, diced
2-3 garlic cloves, diced
1/2 small sweet red pepper, diced
approx. 1/4 cup mushrooms (I used some I canned)
handful of lambs quarters, chopped

In a mixing bowl, combine
4 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup kefir (hers called for cream)
1/2 cup unbleached white flour
1 cup grated tasty cheese (I used 2/3 Robusto & 1/3 sharp cheddar)
handful of chopped basil- use the herbs you like
salt and pepper to taste

Add the fried vegetables to the egg mixture and pour into a greased quiche dish or shallow pie pan.  Cook at 375 degrees until golden brown and set in the middle, approx. 30 mins.

**Note-  Thanks to Mrs. Mac's comment, which sent me off on another tangent, I discovered these plants are Vaccinium arboreum aka sparkleberry aka farkleberry- don't you love that name?!http://nearlynativenursery.com/PlantsDetail.cfm?ID=804

The Tastes of Summer & Frugal Accomplishments

Hello, friends.  I'm joining in with the Frugal Accomplishments community today.  Last week,  I picked elderberries, and froze them for possible jam. Once I strain all the elderberry tincture, I'll decide if that will be enough for the year.  If so, this picking will become jam.  I'm harvesting tomatoes, cucumbers & squash, a few tomatillos, peppers & eggplant, and pulled the first of the beets.  Small amounts of lambs quarters are being picked.  Some of the lima beans and butter peas are drying on the vine, so I'm picking and shelling those as I see them.  Pawpaws are ripening, and I'm gathering those as they fall.  I've dried tomato skins from 4 canner loads of tomatoes... not sure how many pounds that was.  I think I'll try using some before I dry any more.  If you've ever used any, I'd love to hear how you used them and your impression.

I occasionally help out at one of the local pottery shops.  The top photo shows the beauty outside I was able to gather, and the photo above shows a bit of the beauty I'm surrounded by in the shop.  It's a lovely place to spend the day.  I brought leftovers for lunch, snacks and my water bottle each day.  I received a check from ebates for cash back from purchases.  We've got lots of cherry tomatoes this year.  Besides eating them fresh, I've used some in recipes & added some to canning jars, but most days I pick a couple dozen for the chickens.  McNibs begs for some, so he gets some too!  I canned eggplant and summer squash.  Harvested a dozen carrots.  Carrot tops, and end bits from squash and eggplant went into the broth bag in the freezer.  I've picked 16 of our tiny plums.  This is the first year they've fruited, and there's not much to do anything with, so I'm pondering what to do with them.  Maybe I'll freeze them, and once they're all collected, perhaps there will be enough for a small batch of jam.

Because of comments I read on The Prudent Homemaker, I checked out a couple of shows on youtube.  The first was Extreme Cheapskates.  I should not have expected anything from the title, but thought it could be interesting.  I watched it long enough to see a couple share a Q-tip, a toothbrush, and floss... just.ewwww.  Thankfully, the other show was better.  It's called Great Depression Cooking, and I believe the secondary title is Clara's Kitchen.  An amusing 95 year old woman recollects recipes from the Depression era.  I colored my hair at home.

J & I joined my brother & SIL for a concert.  We saw Ray Lamontagne at an outdoor amphitheater.  The concert started 1 1/2 hrs late, we got rained on twice, and the music was very loud with several intense jams, rather than the mellow tunes we like Ray for.  All in all, a disappointment of a show.  Thankfully, we enjoyed a most lovely and very intimate (the small room held less than 40 people) concert with Chris Trapper in Raleigh a few weeks ago to balance it out.  His talent and heartfelt music made the evening pure joy.  Do see him if you get the chance.  I harvested enough basil to make a double batch of pesto and some caprese salad.  What summer tastes are you enjoying?

Peace, Squash and Thankfulness

On my walk this morning, I was happy to see a young doe and buck munching happily, when I arrived at the back field. They smelled me before long, but didn't see me for a time, so I got to enjoy their beauty. I'm thankful for that. We've been in summer squash bliss here lately. I must admit, I don't love the taste of either summer or winter squash, but if I doctor them up in some manner, they're good eating. Both of them grow so well here, I've been searching for good recipes, and having done that, I want to share them with you. The first one is a Zucchini and Ricotta Galette from the Smitten Kitchen. It requires the most work of all the recipes, and requires a lot of waiting time. So, I'd suggest you read it over before you commit. I didn't, & that night, we sat down to dinner at 10:30! It's worth it. This next recipe was Ruby Brown's, the mother of my Mom's partner:

Calabazas con Elote (Italian Squash with Corn)
1 pound zucchini (4 smallish), washed & cut in 1/4" rings
1 medium onion, chopped
1 can whole kernel corn (or the equivalent fresh)
3 medium tomatoes, cut in 1/8's
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/8 tsp pepper

In large frying pan, heat 4 tbs olive oil. Add onion & saute for 3 mins or until tender. Add zucchini & saute for 5 mins, turning often. Add corn, tomatoes, and remaining ingredients. Cook, stirring for 10 mins or until squash is just tender. Serves 6.

Next is my Mom's zucchini soup. Not new to me, but it hit the spot, along with some homemade bread, on a recent rainy night. Sorry, I have no measurements for this one, but will give suggestions. Feel free to improvise.

Mom's Zucchini Soup

Saute onions & garlic in olive oil. Add zucchini (4 cups) & fresh tomato (1-2), chopped up, and celery (1 stalk), chopped, a handful of basil, chopped and some parsley (optional). Cover with water, and cook until squash is tender. Add small pasta (optional), such as stars, last 10 minutes. Salt to taste.
After ladling into bowls, top with a good amount of Romano cheese.  *If you save the rinds from your Romano cheese, this is a good time to use them.  Just throw in the pot with the rest of the ingredients, then fish out when soup is done.  This typically makes enough for the two of us with a little left over.

Spaghetti Squash Florentine

1 small (1.5 lb) spaghetti squash
2 c spinach, firmly packed (I used lambs quarters)
1 tbs butter
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 tbs heavy cream or sour cream
salt & freshly ground pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly oil/spray a baking sheet. Halve squash lengthwise & scoop out & discard seeds. Place cut-side down on the baking sheet & bake 40 mins, or until flesh is just tender. Meanwhile, cut spinach into very thin strips & set aside. Set the squash right side up to cool. Once cool, use a fork to scrape the spaghetti-like strands of squash into a small bowl. You should have approx. 2 cups.

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the squash, spinach & nutmeg, and stir until the spinach is wilted & the mixture is well-combined, approx 2 mins. Stir in heavy cream or sour cream, & season with salt and pepper. Serves 4.

Today, I'm making my second batch this week of Green Tea soap. I'm stocking up, getting ready for the Seagrove Potters for Peace event. Tomorrow, I'm off to Virginia Beach with Teresa. Every so often, we just need a road trip. J will be holding down the homestead in my absence. Eat well, and have a marvelous weekend, friends!

A Surprise & Spring Days

Hello, friends.  When I guessed I had 5 or 6 gallon bags of veggie scraps in the freezer last week, I was a bit off.  There were actually 12.  Certain things fill up the bags quickly, such as skins from winter squash, asparagus ends, and the ever present celery butts.  Another round of broth was canned, making use of 4 of the bags.  As the temps have lowered in next weeks forecast, I expect I'll can some more.  Last week, I harvested kale, lambs quarters, asparagus, dandelions, and a beet.  I pulled bolting lettuce for the chickens.

I went to the annual NC Herb plant sale with a friend, and brought home several lovelies.  This year, I got rose geranium, borage, woad, weld, jiaogulan, pussy willow, American arnica, lanceleaf rudbeckia and painted daisy.  The next day, I created a new flower bed I'd planned for some dahlia tubers I had gotten, along with J's help.  Besides the dahlias and a volunteer sunflower, the borage, painted daisy, and wintersown marigolds were planted here.  In different beds, I transplanted a volunteer clump of bachelor buttons, and a hollyhock with another I had started from seed.  The jiaogulan was planted alongside an arbor.  The wintersown zinnias and all but one of the calendula were killed by the cold, so more seeds of both were planted.

Between rain showers, J and I planted the pussy willow down by the pond.  Over the weekend, we finished putting up the deer fencing around the garden.  Several jars of herbal glycerites were strained and bottled.  Recently, J surprised me by bringing home a school bus, which he intends to convert into an RV, so we can travel in comfort around the country.  We've both been watching youtube videos, gathering ideas.  Life is always interesting around here!  I found an event happening soon in VA, which will have tiny homes, along with van and school bus (skoolie) conversions.  We're excited to learn more, and meet others who are doing it.  I've been pondering the possibility of starting another blog specifically for the skoolie, for our journey in converting it, and then sharing wherever it takes us.  It seems enough different from the usual homestead and frugal things I share here.  If you have any thoughts about that, I'd love to hear.

Spring Happenings

Hello, friends.  We've had what is likely the last fire in the woodstove, until the Fall.  The weather has been lovely.  I harvested asparagus, lambs quarters and parsley.  I pulled out some soapwort, which was overtaking the oregano.  I'd known that it got it's name, due to the saponins which make it soapy, and decided to try a batch.  Soapwort flowers have one of my favorite scents, and I could smell a milder version in the leaves, stems and roots.  Sadly, it did not make it through the simmering process, and ended up unscented.  First, I used the liquid in a dark load of laundry.  I didn't measure it, but poured something between a cup and a cup and a half in.  It was then used to wash J's work clothes, half and half with laundry detergent.  I haven't used it on whites yet, so not sure how it does with stains, but the clothes all smelled clean.  I used some on the bathroom baseboards.  It's nice to know an alternative to bought items.

Nettles and comfrey were harvested, and dried.  I made potato soup on a cool evening, and used lots of fresh parsley as a garnish.  J turned on the outdoor shower for the season.  I intended to bathe the pups over the weekend, but all the weeding drew me in.  I'll get to it this week.  I'm happy the carrot bed is weeded, and work done on several flower beds.  The potatoes are doing well, including the ones in the grow bags.  J planted out pepper and tomato seedlings in the garden, and I fed all the indoor seedlings with fish emulsion.  I did the big chicken coop clean out, and gathered mint growing where it shouldn't, for the nest boxes and floor.  The scent doesn't last long, but it's nice while it does.  On Easter, I prepped asparagus and potatoes for J to grill.  We had a little "pond sit" afterwards.

We had a bit of excitement midafternoon Friday, but not the good kind.  As J was working in his shop, a highway patrolman and fire fighter came walking up, asking if he knew about the car that had wrecked in our woods.  Apparently, a man with an open case of beer careened across a lane and our ditch, went into the woods, knocking down a tree, and got stuck between two others, deploying all the airbags.  When law enforcement arrived, he took off, into our woods.  I mostly stayed inside, but anytime I went out the rest of the day, J was with me.  The HP wandered our land a bit, but didn't find him.  We figure the man called someone to come pick him up, further down the road, at some point. 

The first wild Atamasco lily bloomed the day before Easter.  It's typical to first see them here right around Easter, so they're right on time.  I hope if you celebrate Easter, yours was lovely, with good food, good people, and the beauty of the season.

June Doings & Frugal Accomplishments

ironweed

Sadly we lost our ailing rooster this week.  The rest of the flock, including the 3 new chicks look healthy, thank goodness.  Last week, I harvested parsley & basil.  On a day when I wasn't feeling well, I watched a documentary and a couple of episodes of Call the Midwife on youtube, while working on my quilt.  I used homemade bread crumbs in a pasta dish.  Hand picked japanese beetles daily  & fed them & greens to the chickens.  Made a sweet potato pie from our potatoes.  It did seem a little odd to be making one this time of year, but we enjoyed it just as much.  I found a tomato volunteer, which J transplanted in the garden.  I collected eggs from the hens and used cloth napkins with meals.  I'm joining in with The Prudent Homemaker's Frugal Accomplishments today.

soapwort

To keep the house cooler on hot days, I closed the blinds and door on the south side of the house.  After trying the new Harris Teeter a second time (the first time they charged full price for sale items I had bought), I was once again less than impressed.  The cashier forgot to ring up my $10 off $50 coupon, so I had to go to customer service.  That wasn't too bad, but when I got home, I realized the almond milk I had bought had a use by date of Nov. of  '15, and this store wasn't even open in November of  '15!  After letting them know of my displeasure, I was given a $10 credit on my VIC card, which will go towards my next purchase.  When I received a survey from the company I buy supplements from, I let them know that I much preferred the shipping they used prior to the past several months, which got orders here typically in 2 days vs 6 or so.  Because of that, they have upgraded my account to always use Fedex shipping for my orders, instead of being turned over to USPS Smartpost.  I guess sometimes it pays to complain :o).

I found this yellow flowering plant down near the creek, which I've not seen before.  If you know what it is, I'd love to know.  I believe it may be some type of hypericum, but I haven't found anything like it yet online.  The leaves are smooth ovals, & do not show spots when held up the the sun, as I had been taught, so I'm not sure.  I've been hanging on to a free Tofutti coupon for a long time.  We were headed to a family gathering, with a Whole Foods a block away, so we used it when buying groceries there.  I've begun gathering the first ripe blueberries, along with wild blackberries, & rare raspberries & mulberries.  I used our garlic when making hummus.  We've had some very hot days (mid 90's), so I gave the chickens some frozen corn "muffins" to cool & amuse them, and froze another batch.  I made an herb tea using red clover, nettles, spearmint & red raspberry leaf harvested here, & planted 3 varieties of beans in the patches where the previous beans didn't come up.  Our garden spigot had a significant leak, which J felt was finally beyond repair,& he and I replaced it.  In between helping with that job, I weeded around a fig bush, cut away a mulberry seedling & some milkweed that were keeping sun from it & pulled up horse nettle & wild blackberry that had come up around it.  I'm hoping that will mean more figs in the future.  We have 5 fig trees, but a total of only 3 figs so far this year.  Three of the fig trees have become fairly shaded by various other plants, which doesn't help.  Oops, make that 7 fig trees.  I forgot about the 2 youngest ones next to the pond.

loving the various colors in this bachelor button mix

Laundry was hung on the line, after washing it with homemade laundry soap & soap gel.  I trimmed the dogs nails at home.  Guinness is a sweetie, & lets me trim all of his.  After much cajoling, McNibs let me trim his 4 longest nails, which I consider an accomplishment.  Though he is very food oriented, even treats don't help in this instance if he doesn't want to do it.  I gave both dogs a bath using my Sirius dog soap, which includes a number of essential oils for fleas and ticks.  There was a huge auction nearby over the weekend.  It was so large they had two auctioneers working in different parts of the estate.  J & I looked around, but ended up leaving in an hour without bidding on anything.

I did a clean out of the crispers in my fridge, which seriously needed some love and attention.  Some broccoli was steamed, a mix of spinach and lambs quarters was steamed & frozen for future meals;  zucchini, peppers and leeks were grilled, an elderly beet and apple were turned into apple beet salad, & I'm embarrassed to say some cranberries which were soft but not moldy were given to the chickens, who enjoyed them immensely.  I fully intended to freeze them at some point, but didn't.  The one thing wasted was a small bag of  arugula I had harvested some time back, & it went into the compost crock.  I sprayed a liquid fertilizer on the wine grapes, & also picked off japanese beetles while I was attending to them.  A late frost damaged a lot of our fruit, so I don't think we'll be making wine this year, but there's always next year to look forward to for our first batch.

A Couple of Plant Based Recipes to Share

Hello, friends.  The temperatures have gotten more seasonal here, with highs mostly in the 80's.  I finally switched out the winter quilt for the summer bed cover.  After dropping a friend off at the VA one day, I shopped at Trader Joe's and a natural food co-op in Chapel Hill.  And dang if I didn't realize I'd been charged an extra $7.99 after getting home.  The store is an hour & 1/2 from me.  There must be a lesson in this, as it keeps happening.  I suppose the lesson is to not be in such a hurry that I skip reviewing the receipt before leaving the store, but I just want to get home, you know?  Not to mention, it usually feels like they're rushing to get to the next one behind me.  Ah well, I do trust it all works out in the end.  

After shopping for groceries, I stopped at a garden store, and purchased three roselle/rosella hibiscus, which is edible and medicinal.  I also bought one tickseed, which is a dye plant, and got all in the ground the next day, after creating a small flower bed.  Rocks were gathered to edge it.  I made hummingbird food, canned broth, and the stovetop was cleaned with homemade thieves vinegar and baking soda.  I planted calendula and nasturtium seeds & transplanted woad and dyer's coreopsis, and put all houseplants out on the porch to acclimate to brighter sunlight.  This week, they'll be moved to their summer quarters.  Onions, parsley, celery, asparagus, broccoli, oregano were harvested, and lambs quarter was foraged twice.  Enough lambs quarter was blanched and frozen for three meals.  I used a portion of my amazon credit to watch Far From the Tree, which I really enjoyed.  A friend gifted me a large limb, chock full of usnea.  A new jar of tincture was started with it.  

I tried a new recipe for lentil shepherd's pie, made a double batch of anzac cookies, and froze most of them.  We both liked the shepherd's pie, but I realized afterwards that the ketchup contains vinegar, which is not allowed on my protocol.  Goodness, it can be a challenge some days, but the eczema is healing, so I'm sticking with it.  There's a medical medium ketchup recipe I need to try.  I made bean burritos for the first time since we haven't been eating dairy, with plant versions of sour cream and cheddar.  We both agreed the sour cream didn't taste like much.  I thought the shredded cheddar was OK, but J did not.  Of course, I've been eating plant based cheese off and on for a couple of years.  Sadly, I didn't think to check the cheddar ingredients, and it had turmeric in it, which put J in a bad state for several hours.  So, it looks like there will be no homemade burritos in our near future.  I did find tortillas made with almond flour, which I thought were good.  I know I can make GF tortillas, but on many days, adding that to the rest of my dinner chores seems a little overwhelming.  I made Mexican quinoa to go with them, which used our onion and a jar of our canned tomatoes.  

When J checked on the status online for our a/c unit on order since October, he found they had cancelled it without even letting us know.  Thankfully, he has since been promised one from a company he's done business with for years, for somewhere between $200-$300 more, on Monday.  With the scarcity of items these days, we'll take it.  Though I lived here without a/c before for ten years, I learned central NC is a bit too hot and humid for me to want to do it again.  We got some much needed rain, and the asparagus in the new bed is starting to sprout.  There were over 20 sprouts up on Sunday.  While in town to get groceries on Friday, I picked up two books at the library, and dropped one off.  I purchased some more of the $2.99/# cherries, which is the cheapest I've seen.  The only other ones I've seen were $6.99/#.  The recipe for the plant based broccoli mac & cheese mentioned last week was requested, so here it is.  Have a wonderful week, friends.

Broccoli Mac & Cheese- Medical Medium

Ingredients:

12 oz elbow shaped GF pasta

2 c cashews

2 tbs lemon juice

2 cloves garlic

1 large date

1 1/2 c water

1 tsp sea salt

1 tsp chili powder

3 c broccoli, lightly steamed

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Prepare pasta according to directions on package.  In a blender, combine cashews, lemon juice, garlic, date, sea salt, and chili powder.  Blend while streaming in water until smooth.  Stir together pasta and sauce until well mixed.  Add in broccoli and stir to combine.  Pour pasta into an 8x8 inch baking pan, and bake for 15 mins. until just beginning to turn golden brown on the edges.  Enjoy!

Bean Poles & Lambs Quarter

I was up & out early this morning to work in the garden. It's supposed to be 94 today. Joseph wants to plant okra soon, & the garden bed was full of some lovely Lamb's Quarters. I harvested them & ended up with quite a lot after cleaning. I should have plenty to make a couple of quiches, & then some. Lamb's Quarters is one of my favorite wild plants; definitely worth a try if it's not one you're familiar with. Use it any way you would spinach. Joseph recently put up a trellis for our beans. His trellises always look like works of art to me. The picture doesn't quite capture it, with the bean tendrils reaching to the sky this morning. What a pleasure it was to work in the morning cool with birdsong to accompany me.