Dwarf Elberta
Out of the three new fruit trees, only the Dwarf Elberta has managed to hold onto its fruit. A wicked windstorm knocked off every apricot. And, the White Princess peach is growing profusely. Though, it lost all of the fruit buds shortly after planting.
Dwarf Elberta Peaches
We might have as many as a dozen home grown peaches the first year…
Fingers Crossed!
Bonfire Peach
Will the gorgeous burgundy fruit be edible?
It’s a mystery.
(But, we might find out this year if the half a dozen or so remaining fruit can stand the heat.)
The First Roma Tomatoes of the season!
(about a dozen green tomatoes to date)
One Blurry Eggplant Blossom
This is what happens when you take a photo “blind”. Holding the camera at ground height, shooting strait up, and wishing for the best… this was the result. Predictably, this shot won’t be winning any awards… except for worst shot of the day.
Costoluto Genovese
Looking good… so far.
Silver Thyme & Greek Oregano Going Wild
Sage Looks Good
Black Mission Fig with Over 18 inches of New Growth
This black mission fig is knocking out the other two. Full sun and diligent watering seems to be the magic formula. The two black mission trees planted simultaneously (but, relying on mother nature for their water) have only grown about 5 inches per stalk. They’re both healthy… just growing significantly slower.
Everything else is growing nicely and at a steady pace. But, no buds yet.
(Update: We just noticed a handful of buds on our Mr Stripey tomato plants this morning.)
Biscotti con Pignoli
In our house, these are devoured at light speed. And, snack time nibbles quickly turn into meals after a cookie or two too many. So… Fair warning! Be prepared to spend some extra time on the treadmill after baking these little beauties.
Biscotti con Pignoli
makes 40-45
1 cup butter, unsalted
2 cups 10x sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon almond extract
1/2 cup whole milk
4 cups AP flour
1 cup blanched almonds, finely ground
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup pine nuts, or as needed
Cream butter, sugar, egg, and extracts. Set aside.
Sift flour, salt, and baking powder in a small bowl. Then, add 1/3 flour mixture to creamed mixture. Combine. Add 1/4 cup milk and another 1/3 flour mixture. Combine. Add remaining milk and flour mixture. Stir briefly to combine.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Place pine nuts in a shallow bowl. Roll dough into walnut-sized balls. Then, roll in pine nuts. Gently pat nuts into cookies and place on parchment lined baking sheet. Fill baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes, or until cookies are light golden at the edges. Allow to cool on baking sheet at least 15 minutes.
Dust with powdered sugar, if desired.
The queen’s cookie…
For breakfast with a cappuccino, for dessert with an espresso, or just eaten as a mid-day treat, these simple cookies satisfy without feeling overly decadent.
Biscotti di Regina
makes 45-50
1 cup butter, unsalted
2 cups 10X sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 large egg
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup whole milk
5 cups AP flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 cup fresh seasame seeds
In a large bowl, cream butter, sugar, egg and vanilla extract. Set aside.
Sift flour, baking powder, and salt. Pour 1/3 flour mixture into creamed mixture. Briefly combine. Add sour cream. Add another 1/3 flour mixture. Briefly combine. Add milk. Then, fold in remaining flour. Use the minimum number of strokes possible to incorporate flour.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Roll dough into walnut-sized balls or finger shaped logs. Place sesame seeds in a shallow bowl. Roll each cookie in sesame seeds. Place on parchment lined cookie sheets and bake at 375 degrees F for 15-18 minutes or until a delicate golden color touch the edges of each cookie.
One Large Carton of Strawberries
Washed, Cleaned, & Halved
5 Stalks of Rhubarb, Washed & Diced
If there was a hard part, that’s it. With about 15 minutes of prep and 5-10 minutes of stove watching, you end up with a mountain of strawberry compote. This sweet-tart compote makes a perfect topping for yogurt, oatmeal, pound cake or a buttered biscuit.
Strawberry Rhubarb Compote
makes one large casserole
1 large carton of strawberries, cleaned and halved
5 stalks rhubarb, cleaned and diced
1/2 cup sugar, or to taste
1 Tablespoon cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
In a large dutch oven, place strawberries and rhubarb. In a small bowl, combine sugar, cornstarch and cinnamon. Pour sugar mixture over stawberry and rhubarb. Place dutch oven over a moderate heat and bring to a simmer. Gently stir, allowing the strawberries to render their juices. But, do so carefully to prevent crushing them.
When mixture comes to a gentle simmer, taste it. Add additional sugar, if needed.
When rhubarb is tender, remove compote from the heat. Serve warm over pound cake, ice cream or yogurt. (Allow remaining compote to cool and refrigerate.)
I love samosas. But, I don’t always want the guilt of the deep fried wrapper. That’s when I turn the filling into a warm salad. The samosa filling is perfect for this. It’s got a ton of flavor and it’s filling enough to satisfy as a meal.
Warm Samosa Stuffin’ Salad
4-6 yukon gold potatoes, diced, boiled and drained
3 cups fresh peas, blanched
2 Vidalia onions
2-3 Tablespoons butter, cut into a fine dice
1 1/2 teaspoons Garam Masala
1 teaspoon turmeric, ground
1/2 teaspoon coriander, ground
1/2 teaspoon ginger, ground
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/2 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
1/2 teaspoon cumin, ground
1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
juice of one lemon, or to taste
After draining boiled potatoes, immediately add onions, green peas and butter. Toss well to combine. Add all spices and gently toss to combine. Then, drizzle in the juice of one lemon. Give one final toss.
Plate salad and garnish with freshly chopped cilantro.
TWO SALADS — One Savory, One Sweet
Watermelon, Mint & Basil
1/2 of one small seedless watermelon, cubed
1 small bunch mint, leaves only
1 small bunch basil, leaves only
juice of one lemon
2 Tablespoons olive oil, or to taste
Salt & pepper, to taste
Plate cubes of watermelon. Scatter mint and basil leaves on top. In a small bowl, combine lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Drizzle over the salad immediately before serving.
Watermelon, Goat Cheese & Honey
watermelon cut into triangular wedges
goat cheese, crumbled
4 Tablespoons honey
juice of one orange
Place watermelon wedges on serving plates. Serve two to three small wedges per person. Crumble goat cheese on top. Juice 1/2 an orange into a small bowl. Add honey and stir to combine. The sauce should be a syrupy consistency.
(If too thick, add juice from the remaining orange half.)
Drizzle honey mixture over watermelon and goat cheese. Serve immediately.
Garnish with mint leaves, if desired.
Ramps
The flavor is one part wild leek and one part young spring onion with a touch of spicy raw garlic for interest. Then, the tops add their own grassy, herby quality that hints of spinach. There’s so much going on here in the flavor department. It would be a crime to hide it. To take advantage of the biting freshness of these baby ramps, we went super simple.
Omelette with Ramps
makes 2 omelettes
4 eggs
Two handfuls of ramps, well-cleaned
splash of water
a few dabs of butter
pinch of salt
Briefly saute ramps in butter. Handle them gently to keep the stems and leaves intact. Immediately, remove them from the heat and slide them onto a plate. Divide them into two portions.
(One portion for each omelette)
Then, follow Julia’s instructions:
Julia’s Omelette Tutorial
Kentucky Derby Rose
My Kentucky Derby roses are in gorgeous full bloom. This year they’re competing with Mister Lincoln for red rose perfection. They might give the Kentucky Derby a run for its money. But, we already know the true winner.
Final Garden Addition:
2 Wild Italian Mint
2 Italian Genovese Tomatoes (Costoluto Genovese)
2 Gypsy Peppers
4 Cayenne
1 Japanese Ichiban Eggplant
Garlic Chives
(The same Kentucky Derby rose — 5 days ago)
It’s Sangria Season!
If it’s warm outside and it’s a holiday, chances are good sangria will be gracing our table. We enjoy a number of varieties. But, this simple version of sangria ranks as one of our all-time favorites.
Black Raspberry Sangria
1 bottle red wine
2 cups black raspberry juice
1 cup brandy
1/2 cup Grand Marnier
Pour everything into one large ice-filled pitcher. Stir gently.
Garnish glasses with strawberries and/or raspberries.
When I was a little girl, I found the elderly lady living next door to my grandmother fascinating. Her name was Rose and she was the original owner of her rustic wooden cottage fully equipped with a real wood burning stove. That cottage was surrounded by countless fruit trees, herbs, vegetables and an assortment of edible flowers. Almost everything in her yard was edible. Rose was always outside fussing with her garden. She loved teaching me how to pick fresh fruit and harvest her small vegetable beds. She encouraged my grandmother to plant dozens of trees in her own yard. Growing up, we watched those trees grow. When I was 6 years, I personally grew my own watermelon from a seed. And, by the time I was 10, we could pick fresh fruit off of 3 kinds of mango trees, avocado trees, grapefruit trees, lemon trees, two mamey sapote trees and one pomelo tree. That poor pomelo was our favorite underdog. Like the longshot that wins your heart, we fought to keep that poor thing alive over the years.
My grandmother grew dozens of fruit trees, wild berry bushes and pineapples. One of the later additions was another favorite. It was a much-loved star fruit tree. We loved it’s fruit. Picked young, it’s puckery tart. If it’s allowed to ripen, it turns sugary sweet and a beautifully deep shade of orange.
When Rose died, I was still quite young. And, I struggled with the concept of death. But, my family kept her spirit alive by caring for all of those trees. As long as those trees were alive, I knew Rose was watching… from somewhere.
Not everyone has the luxury of space for a garden. But, anyone can cook. And, cooking is another great way to keep the memory of those we love alive. Rose was the only person we ever knew who made this old-fashioned thing called Old Sour. It was odd, but, it served a purpose. It kept lemon juice usable until the next season. Old timers like Rose would make dozens of bottles and let them age on the shelf. The older the better, she’d say. How funny… and perfectly ironic to remember Rose, the sweet old lady that lived next door, with her recipe for old sour.
This one’s for you Rose.
Rose’s Old Sour
1 bucket of lemons (Or, key limes)
1 Tablespoon salt
Place 1 Tablespoon of salt into a sterile pitcher. Juice the lemons into your pitcher over a strainer. When you have approximately 2 cups of lemon juice, stir well. Pour into a sterile wine bottle or vinegar bottle. Seal with a new cork. Then, let it sit for at least 48 hours or up to two weeks before using.
(We store ours in the fridge. But, Rose used to store hers in the pantry for speedy aging.)
If you have lemons to spare, make a second bottle with one small Scotch bonnet pepper. Clean the pepper carefully and cut off the stem. Drop the Scotch bonnet pepper into your bottle whole. Then, add your salted lemon juice.
Drizzle over fish before grilling, broiling or frying. Or, use as you would malt vinegar on fried fish and chips.
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