I bought a dozen ears of corn for six bucks from the St. Paul Farmers’ Market. I first visited the market in June, and now more things are in season. The new arrivals seemed to be cucumbers, carrots, zucchinis, and peppers. I’m looking forward to the melons.
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I used 2x8x10 foot pine lumber to make a 4x4 foot bed and a 4x8 foot bed. I needed the boards cut in half to make 4 foot sections, but I wasn’t going to pay the store a dollar for each cut. The next best thing was to hope they’d fit in the back seat of my car. My backseat windows roll down only half-way. So I used some clothes to cushion the lumber that was now diagonal in my backseat and resting on my window. About three feet of board was sticking out of my window, but the cops I passed didn’t seem to mind. I also bought 3 1/2” deck screws and a small drill bit to pre-drill some holes.
I measured and cut the boards with a regular hand saw, and then screwed the boards together with the drill. I will say this design is rather rickety, so be careful when moving them to your garden bed. Now if I owned this property, the wood would be cedar and the bed design would be a little more elaborate, but in the end they all work the same way.
Next spring I hope to add another 4x4 foot bed to the left of the 4x8 bed, where that flower bed is now. Then I’ll have three planting areas for veggies, edible flowers and herbs.
Wood chip mulch was on sale at $1.99 a bag. Unfortunately, I had to buy most of my dirt. I found bags of manure/compost at Wal-Mart for $1.34 each, and then found 40-pound bags of topsoil at the hardware store for .99 each. I’d say those are pretty good deals, but nothing is better than free. In the spring, St. Paul has composting sites where you can get compost and dirt for free, but it’s all gone this time of year. So before you buy dirt, check around to see if there’s any free dirt where you live. Or make your own by visiting some local barns. Manure helped my family get 8-foot tomato plants one year.
A few things to know:
Don’t use treated lumber for gardens. They can leach toxins into your soil and into what you’re eating.
You never truly know what’s in city soil. So if you’re unsure about your area, raised beds are a good bet to avoid whatever lies underneath. If you want to be really safe, get your soil tested.
If you can afford it, use cedar to make your raised beds. They’ll last longer and look great for far longer than pine.
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Here's a simple recipe.
1 Wash the greens in a sink filled with cold water. Drain greens and wash a second time. Drain greens and cut away any heavy stems. Cut leaves into bite-sized pieces. Set aside.
2 In a large skillet or 3-qt saucepan, cook bacon until lightly browned on medium heat (or heat 1 Tbs of bacon fat). Add onions, cook over medium heat 5 to 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until onions soften and start to brown. Stir in garlic. Add water to the hot pan, stirring to loosen any particles from bottom of pan. Stir in sugar and red pepper. Bring mixture to a boil.
3 Add the beet greens, gently toss in the onion mixture so the greens are well coated. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 5-15 minutes until the greens are tender. Stir in vinegar. (For kale or collard greens continue cooking additional 20 to 25 minutes or until desired tenderness.)
Serves 4.
Read more!Well, my blog has been neglected for a few weeks, as I was moving. It was time to move closer to the city to avoid 40+ minutes on the road every day. But it was also certainly time move from a dreary apartment that faces North. That means no sun at winter, so the small apartment feels even smaller.
Luckily I found a nice upper unit in an old Victorian in St. Paul. Now it only take me 8 minutes to get to work. It already feels like a home here, and the landlords are letting me garden in the backyard. I’ve already made some raised beds and planted a fall garden, so I’ll post those up soon.
The little forested area and park near my apartment is more productive than one might think. There's wild columbines along the trail, and stinging nettle (edible), and I even found some morels this spring at the edge of a grassy park area.
But my favorite time of year is when the blackcaps ripen, which are also at the edge between grass and forest. They aren't much, but it's just enough for the breakfast bowl in the morning. It seems the bushes are less productive with each passing year, but hopefully they'll rebound on their own.
There's also a raspberry bush mixed in, but I haven't spotted it yet this year.
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Applebees may have some mediocre food, but their Maple Butter Blondie is pretty good. It's not a normal blondie, however, it has a cake-like texture, topped with vanilla ice cream and a creamy maple sauce. Chopped walnuts are sprinkled about for good measure.
If you're like me, you wouldn't mind having seconds. So why not make it at home and you'll be on your way to a real sugar coma.
So I mixed and matched a few recipes to come up with a cake-like blondie, with a light colored sauce. I’d say the sauce is spot on. But the blondie isn’t exactly like Applebees’ quite yet, but it’s pretty good.
Ingredients:
1 ½ sticks butter (12 Tbs.) melted
3/4 c. granulated sugar
4 large eggs
1 Tbs. vanilla extract
2 ½ c. flour
1 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
1 c. chopped pecans or walnuts
1 c. white chocolate chips
Maple Sauce
1 c. cream
½ c. white chocolate chips
¼ c. granulated sugar
1/4 tsp. maple extract
1 c. sour cream
Scoop of vanilla ice cream
Directions
For Sauce
To Assemble
Tightly cover any left-over blondies.
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This is on a hill overlooking Saint Paul, Minnesota. There was quite a crowd, and one kid near us seemed to enjoy it. He clapped wildly at every little spark in the sky.
I do wonder why organic products cost more...Aren't they saving money by not buying pesticides?
"100 Percent Organic" products must show an ingredient list, the name and address of the handler (bottler, distributor, importer, manufacturer, packer, processor) of the finished product, and the name and seal of the organic certifier. These products should contain no chemicals, additives, synthetics, pesticides or genetically engineered substances.
"USDA Organic" products must contain at least 95 percent organic ingredients. The five percent non-organic ingredients could include additives or synthetics if they are on an approved list. The label must contain a list that identifies the organic, as well as the non-organic, ingredients in the product, and the name of the organic certifier.
"Made With Organic" products must contain at least 70 percent organic ingredients. The label must contain a list that identifies the organic, as well as the non-organic, ingredients in the product, along with the name of the organic certifier.
If a product contains less than 70 percent organic ingredients, it cannot use the word "organic" on the packaging or display panel, and the only place an organic claim can be made is on the ingredient label.
from Washington Post
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So when I spotted beets for $1 who could pass that deal? I love beets. They're really, really earthy with a unique flavor. I wanted to make something light and summery with them, so I decided on pickled beets. Don't forget to save the greens, they're great with some bacon and onion.
1 Remove greens from beets, save for future use (see beet greens recipe). Cut beets to uniform sizes so they will cook evenly. Steam or boil around 30 minutes or until done. (Alternatively, you can roast them by wrapping them whole in foil and cooking them in a 350°F oven for about an hour.) A fork easily inserted into the beet will tell you if the beets are done or not.
2 Drain the beets, rinsing them in cold water. Use your fingers to slip the peels off of the beets. The peels should come off easily. Discard the peels. Slice the beets.
3 Make the vinaigrette by combining the cider vinegar, sugar, olive oil, and dry mustard. Whisk ingredients together with a fork. The dry mustard will help to emulsify the vinaigrette. Adjust to taste. Add salt and pepper to taste. Combine beets and vinaigrette in a bowl and allow to marinate for a half hour at room temperature.
Serves four.
from Simply Recipes
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When I saw rhubarb at the St. Paul Farmers' Market, I knew I had to get some. I recently had rhubarb shortcake at a local restaurant so I though I'd try it at home.
Almost any shortcake recipe will do, but this is the one I used. I will say the recipe for the rhubarb is pretty much perfect. A nice tart and sweet rhubarb taste, with only sugar and a little butter. Yum!
Ingredients:
-Shortcake
-Rhubarb
Also, lightly sweetened whipped cream
Preheat oven to 425°F with rack in middle.
Lightly butter a baking sheet.
Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Stir in cream just until a dough forms. Gather dough into a ball and gently knead together once or twice on a lightly floured surface.
Roll or pat out dough into a 6-inch square (about 1/2 inch thick). Trim edges with a floured knife and cut into 4 squares. Brush tops with cream and sprinkle with Sugar in the Raw. Bake on baking sheet until golden, 15 to 20 minutes, then transfer biscuits to a rack to cool.
While biscuits bake, cook rhubarb with granulated sugar and butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until fruit is very tender and falling apart, about 10 minutes.
Stir together cornstarch, then add to rhubarb mixture and simmer, stirring, until mixture is slightly thickened, 1 to 2 minutes.
Split biscuits, then sandwich rhubarb and whipped cream inside them.
Remember, the leaves of the Rhubarb plant are poisonous, although you'd have to eat a lot.
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I was also surprised by a pea plant with a unique mutation. It has purple flowers!!!
I did a little research online to see what was up, but then I cam across purple-podded peas. I want to grow those!
It was my first trip to a Farmer's Market and the one in downtown St. Paul did not disappoint. It was busy and you definitely knew what was in season. Nearly all the vegetable stands had potatoes, tomatoes, peas, broccoli, cauliflower, and beets. Almost everything there was picked that morning. You could tell the potatoes were fresh, as they're paper-thin skins were peeling. Obviously they were freshly dug up. And can you believe one bunch of beets was just one dollar?
I'll be going back and I can't wait for peppers, corn and melons to start showing up.
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The nougat and caramel is perfect. The caramel cubes usually only show up around Halloween, so you can just use the caramel bits that are on shelves year-round and put them on scale to measure 14oz (you'll need two bags). The milk chocolate chips are really sweet in this little dessert so I would imagine you could do half semi-sweet or even dark chocolate for that matter.
Ingredients:
For the first layer
1 cup milk chocolate chips
1/4 cup butterscotch chips
1/4 cup peanut butter
For the second layer
4 tablespoons butter
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup evaporated milk
1 1/2 cups marshmallow creme
1/4 cup peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups chopped salted peanuts
For the third layer
14 ounce package caramel cubes
1/4 cup heavy cream
For the fourth layer
1 cup milk chocolate chips
1/4 cup butterscotch chips
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
To make the first layer
In a small saucepan over low heat, add milk chocolate chips, butterscotch chips and peanut butter. Stir often until completely melted and smooth. Pour mixture into the bottom of a 9 x 13" baking pan lightly coated with nonstick spray. Using an off-set spatula, spread the mixture to an even layer and place in the refrigerator until set.
To make the second layer
In a medium heavy saucepan, melt butter over medium-high heat. Mix in sugar and evaporated milk. Once it comes to a boil, let cook 5 minutes while stirring. Remove from the heat and quickly stir in marshmallow creme, peanut butter and vanilla. Stir in peanuts. Pour over the set chocolate layer and use an off-set spatula to gently spread mixture in an even layer. Place in the refrigerator until set.
To make the third layer
Place the unwrapped caramel cubes and heavy cream in a medium saucepan. Place over low heat and stir until the mixture has completely melted and is smooth. Pour in the pan and quickly spread to an even layer with an off-set spatula. Place in the refrigerator until set.
To make the fourth layer
In a small saucepan over low heat, add milk chocolate chips, butterscotch chips and peanut butter. Stir often until completely melted and smooth. Pour over the third layer and use an off-set spatula to spread to an even layer. Place in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour before cutting into squares.
