Harvest and Preservation

Adam with a bowl full of tomatoes he picked from our back yard garden.

This week we have seen a change in weather. It started out fairly sunny and warm and then we have gotten some rain, wind and cooler temperatures in the past few days. It starting to really look like fall around here. However, with the late gardening season we are still working on harvesting and preserving some things from the garden as they ripen and mature.

Although I am happy that we finally got a nice, warm summer I am glad that fall is here. I love the cozy feeling that comes with harvesting and enjoying the summer's bounty. This past week we have had many adventures here in the suburbs, in the country and out on the Oregon coast. We have been enjoying the best this area has to offer and we are so lucky to live here!

Suburban Garden:

Since I have been very busy this week canning pears the only thing that we did in the garden was to pick tomatoes. One day when I came to pick up Adam from preschool he asked me about the tomatoes in the school garden. He asked "Are they ready yet?" I said that some of them were ready but they were not ours. I did say that we had some tomato plants in our garden and we could pick those. So, later on that afternoon we took our bowls out and picked tomatoes. It was great fun! Adam even said "This is so much fun!" He really enjoyed picking lots of tomatoes and seeing which ones were ripe. He loves to take a big bite out of the tomatoes too! Yum! I was so happy that we already had such a great harvest from only 5 plants! I was amazed that everything did so well despite the fact that I had almost completely ignored most of the garden and yard in the past few weeks because of being so busy with canning.

A big bowl full of tomatoes from our garden.

Adam with a tomato he just picked out of the garden.

Country Garden:

Last Friday we visited the country garden again and many vegetables and fruits are getting ready to harvest. Because of the rain we had the previous weekend many of the cornstalks had fallen down because they got so tall and had a hard time in all of the rain and wind. However, there are still so many great things to harvest and with any luck we will be able to harvest some corn in the next few days. As you can see from the photos below many of the vegetables in the garden have small yields but many more like the tomatoes and grapes will give us a lot to harvest and preserve. My mom has been doing a lot of canning and drying lately. She has canned and dried over 50 pounds of tomatoes so far as well as dried large quart bags full of pears. Later on in the season I will post the totals of all of the canned/frozen vegetables and fruits we have preserved. It is a lot of work to do but well worth it when we think of how well we will be eating this winter!

Also on this lovely Friday Adam got a chance to "drive" the tractor by himself by steering the wheel. Luckily the tractor goes very slowly so Grandpa Dale walked alongside Adam and corrected his steering along the way. Adam was so thrilled to be able to drive the tractor almost by himself! He also got to take a very short ride on Grandpa Dale's motorcycle down the driveway and back slowly- what a thrill for him! He said that it was "the best ride ever" just like the tractor ride!

Adam walking through the "corn forest" in the country garden.

A small cauliflower forming inside the plant.

Small brussels sprouts forming on the branches of the plant.

A large winter squash forming on the vine.

A bell pepper.

Green beans ready to harvest.

I love the look of these heirloom tomatoes on the vine.

Some lovely grapes that we will use to make delicious juice.

An amazing and beautiful head of cabbage.

Some sweet green grapes that are almost ready.

Adam eating grapes from the vine. He ate a whole bunch by himself!

A beautifully shaped old apple tree on the edge of the orchard. These apples make great cider!

Apples on the old tree. They are almost ready to harvest!

Grandpa Dale and Adam on Grandpa's motorcycle.

Adam "driving" the tractor with Grandpa Dale by his side in the orchard.

Adam was so proud to be able to steer the tractor himself.

A Trip to Cannon Beach:

Me with Adam and Paul near the tide pools at Cannon Beach.

The weekend before last we took a trip to the coast with some friends of ours. We rented a house together in the Cannon Beach area. Although it was sunny on Friday, Saturday and Sunday were rainy, cold and windy. We still made the most of it as Adam loves to go into the ocean and doesn't seem to mind the cold. One of the days we all headed out to the tide pools and saw sea stars, sea anemones and mussels. It was so magical!

Griffin and Adam on the train.

We also rode the scenic coastal railroad from Rockaway Beach to Garibaldi and back. Both Adam and our friend's son Griffin really enjoyed the train.

Paul with Adam in the ocean. Adam loves the waves!

Every day, rain or shine Adam loved to go into the ocean waves. He does not seem to mind the cold and really loves the water. I can imagine him doing lots of water sports as soon as he is able to swim! It is a wonder and a delight for me to see how fearless Adam is and how much he enjoys everything!

Spiced Ginger Pears:

A jar of the spiced ginger pears that I canned.

This canning season I wanted to can pears but I got bored with the thought of plain canned pears. So, I came up with this spiced pears recipe that is so delicious! These pears are great with breakfast or spooned over vanilla ice cream! Yum!

Spiced Ginger Pears:

This recipes yields around 2 quarts of pears.

12 cups pears- peeled, cored and chopped into small pieces
-lemon juice
1/2 cup chopped candied ginger
1 cinnamon stick
1/2 cup brown sugar

As you cut the pears place them in a dutch oven or cooking pot. Pour lemon juice over the pears as you cut them and stir them occasionally so that they don't brown. Once you have all of your chopped pears done, add the cinnamon stick, brown sugar and candied ginger to the pot. Stir it thoroughly and cook on the stove on medium heat until it bubbles and simmers. Ladle the pears into hot sterilized jars and seal. Process the jars in a boiling hot water bath for 15 minutes. Enjoy!


Making a Lantern:

Adam with some of the materials to make his lantern.

Last Friday Adam's preschool The Creative Children's Center had a lantern walk at a local park in the evening. A few days before we made the lantern at home. Adam loved cutting the paper, ribbons and fabric to decorate the soda bottle lantern. He also really loved dipping a brush in a glue/water mixture to glue the decorations to the lantern. Here are some photos of the process:

Adam cutting out paper to decorate the lantern while Paul looks on.

Adam ready to glue a piece of paper.

The finished lantern. Later we added a handle and put a small flashlight inside.


Paul and Adam on the lantern walk at Rood Bridge Park.

Sour Cream Whole Wheat Bread:

A loaf of the sour cream whole wheat bread.

Last week I was almost out of bread so I decided to make another different type of bread from the book I have by James Beard "Beard on Bread." I love this bread because it is very soft and has a great flavor. I changed the recipe a bit because I only had 1 cup of sour cream so I put in 1 cup of whole milk yogurt to go with it. Also, I substituted whole wheat flour for half of the flour in the recipe to make it healthier. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons yeast
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 cup warm water
2 cups sour cream (or 1 cup sour cream + 1 cup whole milk yogurt)
1 tablespoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 to 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 cups whole wheat flour

1. Combine the yeast, sugar, and water in a small bowl and allow to proof for 5 minutes.

2. Put the sour cream, salt, and soda in a mixing bowl. Add the yeast mixture.

3. Then add 4 cups of the flours, cup by cup, to make a very wet, sticky dough, beating hard with a wooden spoon after each addition.

4. Scrape the dough out onto a floured board. Lift the dough up and fold it over. Then, move the dough clockwise and repeat the folding process until the dough is not as sticky and can be worked with your hands. Add a little flour if needed to prevent sticking but do not add too much. This process will take about 10 minutes.

5. Place the dough into a clean, oiled bowl and let rise until doubled in bulk- about 2 hours. Punch down the dough.

6. Then, divide dough into 2 equal pieces and form into loaves. Place into greased 9x5 loaf pans. Cover and let rise until doubled in bulk.

7. Heat your oven to 375F. Bake the loaves for 30-35 minutes, or until the loaves sound hollow when tapped on the top and the bottom.

8. Let the loaves cool thoroughly before slicing.

Enjoy!


Note: I should have let the dough rise more in the pans before baking the loaves so they didn't rise as much as I would have liked. I was in a hurry that day- but the bread is still delicious!


Spiced Pumpkin Carrot Cupcakes:

Last Friday for Adam's preschool's lantern walk I made these cupcakes to share with the families after the walk. They were a big hit and I was glad everyone enjoyed them!

Spiced pumpkin carrot cupcakes with cream cheese icing.

Spiced Pumpkin Carrot Cupcakes or Layer Cake:

I found out about this recipe from my husband Paul who saw it made by Ben Starr on Master Chef. I made this cake to try it out this summer and we really liked it. It also makes excellent cupcakes. This recipe makes about 18 cupcakes or a 3 layer cake with 9 inch cake pans. Enjoy!

Wet Ingredients:

2 sticks butter, softened (do NOT use margarine)

1 ½ cups granulated sugar

½ cup brown sugar

3 large egg yolks

1 ¼ cups pumpkin puree

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups grated carrots

Dry Ingredients:

2 ½ cups all purpose flour (I use unbleached and I prefer King Arthur flour)

4 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 tablespoons ground cinnamon

1 tablespoon ginger

1 tablespoon ground cardamom

¼ teaspoon each nutmeg, allspice, cloves

1 teaspoon salt

Fold In:

6 egg whites

½ teaspoon cream of tartar

Frosting Ingredients:

1 8oz package cream cheese (room temperature)

1 stick softened butter

2-3 cups powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1. 1. Grease your muffin tins with pan spray if making the cupcakes or line them with muffin papers. I also like to grease the muffin papers as well. If you are making the layer cake spray the bottom of the pan with pan spray then fit the bottom of each pan with a parchment paper circle and then grease the entire pan with pan spray. After that flour the pans by putting around a tablespoon of flour into each pan then then shaking out the excess into the sink.

2. 2. Preheat your oven to 325F.

3. 3. Beat the softened butter in an electric mixer until it is light and creamy.

4. 4. Add the granulated sugar and the brown sugar to the butter. Beat on medium speed for 3-5 minutes until it is light and fluffy.

5. Add the egg yolks to the mixture and beat for 3 more minutes.

6inAdd the pumpkin puree and vanilla and beat for 3 more minutes.

7. Fold in the grated carrots by hand or beat at a very low speed to incorporate them.

8. In a separate bowl combine with a whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, nutmeg, allspice, cloves and salt.

9. Sift the dry ingredients through a sifter and add them to the wet ingredients in the mixer. Mix on the slowest speed until combined.

10. In a separate bowl or in a clean mixing bowl beat the 6 egg whites and the cream of tartar until stiff peaks are formed. Start out at a very high speed but slow down to a lower speed once the egg whites change from a yellow color to a very white color. Once the egg whites reach the stiff peak consistency gently fold in 1/3 of them into the batter by hand using a rubber spatula. Then, add the rest of the egg whites into the batter until no more white streaks show.

11. Divide the batter evenly among the muffin tins/cups or cake pans. Bake the cake layers for about 30 minutes at 325F. Bake the cupcakes for around 20-25 minutes at 325F. Check the cakes with a toothpick- when it comes out clean without any batter clinging to it the cakes are done.

12. Remove from the oven and cool in the pans for 15 minutes. Then dump upside down (gently!) onto a cooling rack to cool completely. If you are making the layer cake you may want to freeze the layers for about 45 minutes after they are fully cooled to room temperature. This will make them easier to frost and assemble.

13. Meanwhile, make the cream cheese frosting:

Frosting Ingredients:

1 8oz package cream cheese (room temperature)

1 stick softened butter

3-4 cups powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1. Cream together the cream cheese and butter with a hand or stand mixer on high speed until it’s light and fluffy.

2. Then slowly begin to add the powdered sugar 1 cup at a time until it is fully incorporated and the frosting begins to thicken up.

3. Add the vanilla. Beat on slow speed until the vanilla begins to get mixed in, then beat on the highest speed possible for 2 minutes to ensure a light and fluffy frosting.

To frost cupcakes:

I like to just add a swirl of the cream cheese icing in the center of the cupcake using a decorating tube filled with frosting. Then, I sprinkle large sugar crystals (like turbinado sugar) on top. Or, you may frost the entire top of the cupcake if you wish.

To frost a layer cake:

1. Place 1 layer of cake on a cake plate or stand- place it so the flat side/bottom faces up. Frost this side.

2. Add the second layer and repeat.

3. Add the final layer and then frost the sides and top of the cake. If the frosting is uneven or not smooth I like to decorate the cake with something like coconut or nuts to cover it up and add some interest. You could also add some frosting swirls or other decorations.

Souffleed Macaroni and Cheese:

I made this dish the other night for dinner alongside a large portion of steamed green beans from the country garden and some broccoli. It was delicious!

Souffleed Macaroni and Cheese hot out of the oven!

This is a recipe that I enjoy making in the fall and winter. It is a satisfying and comforting dish to serve alongside a large serving of steamed veggies or a salad! This recipe is one that I clipped from Gourmet magazine when it was still being published. This recipe can also be doubled to make a 13x9 casserole size.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups scalded milk
1 cup soft bread crumbs (you can also use whole wheat bread to add some whole grain)
1 1/2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
1 cup cooked macaroni (I used whole wheat shell pasta)
3 large eggs, separated
1/4 cup diced red bell pepper
3 tablespoons chopped onions
3/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons melted butter


-Pour hot milk over the soft bread crumbs; add cheese. Cover and let stand until the cheese melts. Add macaroni. Combine and add beaten egg yolks, bell peppers, onion, salt and melted butter.

-Beat egg whites until stiff but not dry and fold into mixture. Pour into a buttered 1 1/2 quart casserole dish. Bake at 350F until puffed and golden, about 35 minutes.

Enjoy the beginning of the fall season and have a great week! Next week I'll return with gardening news, recipes and more!

Hope Springs Eternal

This pastoral setting is right next to the country garden.

Last Friday my Mom and I had a wonderfully sunny and productive day in the country garden. It brought us hope for this year's gardening season and hope for the future in general. Here's the latest from both gardens:

Country Garden:

Last Friday since it was a nice, sunny day (it was in the mid-seventies by late afternoon) we did a lot of weeding, hoeing and planting of our cooler weather crops. We started out weeding and preparing the soil in the corner where there are 4-5 rhubarb plants that are really thriving this year! It'll be nice to make our first pie from our own rhubarb soon!

A lovely, healthy patch of rhubarb in the country garden.

There, we decided to create wide rows of cabbage and broccoli. Next to the fence we planted some more peas. Later on we planted some onions in this area as well. The varieties we planted include: Mammoth Red Rock Cabbage, Danish Ballhead Cabbage, Yellow of Parma Onions and Thompson Broccoli.

A view of the wonderfully prepared country garden this spring.

As my Mom planted seeds I worked on weeding and hoeing other areas including areas around the boysenberries. Sometimes I would give large clods of dirt to the chickens because they contained worms that they were more than happy to eat!

Adam in the garden near his tractor- wrapped up in towels.

While we were busy working in the garden Adam busied himself with a solar radio! He had the best time and sat in the sun very contented! Later in the afternoon he had fun wrapping himself in beach towels and then checking out the tiller, etc.

One of the very healthy raspberry plants.

Also, we checked out the progress on the raspberries, boysenberries and blueberries and it looks like they are going to have lots of berries this year!

A view of one of the blueberry bushes.

Delicious! I'm sure Adam will enjoy eating them straight off of the vines and bushes!

The boysenberries.

Later on in the weekend here's the report my Mom gave of their progress in the garden and yard:

"I put some kale and chard over by the peas and garden fence, where you did that weeding on Friday.

I did go ahead and plant carrots, parsnips, and radishes in the space between the boysenberries and the raspberries. That was the best place it seemed, as the soil is loose with no clumps at all. The parsnips in particular need that.

I made some short rows where Adam was sitting and playing with the radio on Friday. I planted a wide row of beets there, and then as I had some seeds of Brussels sprouts and cauliflower left from last year, I put those in a row alongside the beets. I also added some rows of turnips, rutabagas, and lettuce there.

I also chopped weeds among the raspberries and gooseberries, and got the blackberries out of the fence area on both sides of the fence on the end where the gooseberries are. There is still more to be done on weeding next to the fence, but the thistles and blackberries are at least chopped out of that area.

Dad worked down in the gully just north of the orchard. He burned a pile of branches, and also burned Scotch Broom and blackberries that he removed. He is continuing some of that today.

While I have been walking around between the garden and the gully, I noticed some wildflowers - bunch berry - that I have not seen here for years. They aren't in bloom and are rather sparse, but they are there. I am going to put little sticks by them to help Dad and Stuart see where to avoid mowing. I think they got overwhelmed with all of the blackberries, so maybe now some of the native plants can come back. It is my cherished hope. "

As you can see by my Mom's progress a lot has been done! It is a constant battle between the blackberries and the wildflowers and native plants- but by mowing and keeping after the blackberries many lovely native plants are coming back! It is wonderful! My Mom let me know that she has finished planting all of the cool weather crops so we will be ready in 3 weeks or so to plant the warmer weather crops such as tomatoes, basil, peppers and corn.

Suburban Garden:

My husband Paul and I did some yard work on Saturday before it started raining again. It seems like in the spring there is never more than one sunny day in a row, so if it isn't raining, it's time to hurry up and do yard work!

So, Paul trimmed back the rhododendrens close to the house, put more paving stones around the edge of the lawn, and hauled a lot of mulch to the back yard to put into the flower beds. He also mowed the front lawn. It looks really nice out front now! I also was able to edge and mulch the rhododendren/hydrangea bed in the front yard late last week.

Another view of the side yard garden with a few more flowers.

Also, on Saturday I planted a few more flowers in the side yard because it looked a bit sparse. I planted some more begonias and a few dwarf dahlias as well. I love the way it looks- so bright and cheery! I still hope someday soon the neighbors will chop up the wood next to the side yard and put it away- it would really make the yard look much nicer.

I bought 2 new herb plants at the Beaverton Farmer's Market to put in my garden. I bought a "perpetual basil" and a sage plant. They go nicely in the garden and will add to my kitchen garden. I also got my Walla Walla onions and lettuce seeds planted in my raised bed garden.

A view of our raised bed garden and back yard. We've made a lot of progress mulching the flower beds and edging the lawn with the paving stones.

Today I continued to spread mulch on the flower beds in the back yard. I had to run inside because it started to rain. However, there is only a small pile left and I am nearly finished with that job! Hooray!

In closing I'd like to leave you with a quote I thought was very important that I read in a speech by Pat Mooney- the co-founder of ETC Group in Ottowa Canada that he made to a group of Seed Savers Exchange members:

"Who's going to help us survive climate change? It's going to be the peasants, the heirloom breeders, the ones like you, who are taking care of the plant. The companies can't do it, they can't even imagine doing it, and they don't know how to do it.......So who is going to save us? Who is going to feed us? It's the peasant system. The people who love gardens, who love their land, who love their neighbors. "- Pat Mooney

I love this quote because it is so full of hope. When all is changing around us- we can do something positive by planting a garden, a flower bed, a pot on a balcony. I think that all of the people put together who work to preserve heirloom varieties and work to save plants that are important to them and that they love to grow, eat and share will help us in the coming years. I know that I love the land, my garden and my family, friends and neighbors. I want to do my part by having my suburban garden and also helping out in the country garden to make this land healthy and a better place for all.

The Apple of My Eye

It has been a while since we have written about our garden because we have taken small vacations to the forest and the coast. However, we are back now to tell you all about our early harvests, preserving ventures and how are garden is growing.


Last Friday morning- August 6, 2010 I brought Adam out to visit the garden and orchard here at my parent's place and we decided to pick apples so that we would be able to make applesauce. The orchard did not do well this year due to our very wet and cold spring and early summer. The only tree that really produced anything was the Transparent Apple tree. Wanting to make the most of what we had, my Dad cut two large branches out of the top of the tree for us to harvest apples off of them and also to prune the tree and let more light in. Adam loved learning how to "polish" and apple on his shirt to clean it before he ate it and also had fun eating a small apple while we picked ours. We ended up picking three large buckets of apples off of one branch! One of the buckets of apples is pictured above. I took those apples home and so far out of one bucket I have made 5 quarts and 2 pints of applesauce! I plan on making more applesauce and some spiced apple butter this week with the rest.


This Tuesday, August 10th, 2010- my Dad Dale's birthday- I came out again to visit, take my parents out to lunch and work in the garden. In the morning we took a tour of the garden to see what progress had been made. It has been fairly cold these past few days- very unusual for August. It has been in the 60's in the mornings which is difficult for our garden plants- especially for the tomatoes and peppers. But, as you can see above, many tomatoes are forming on the vines.


Despite the cooler weather many plants are doing quite well and continue to grow. Our cabbages are starting to form in the centers. They look so pretty with their deep purple color.

Also, many tomatoes are starting to form and most of our tomato plants are very large. There are two or three varieties with tomatoes on them already- a good sign!


Our basil (pictured above) is smelling so good and is growing quite nicely in big bunches. Our lettuce, beets, carrots and kale are also coming along. Everything is a bit smaller than it would be had we been able to plant it earlier in the season and had we had a warmer spring and summer- but all in all things are doing well. Our beans are also flowering- many with pretty purple and red flowers!

The squash are really starting to bloom and look very healthy- so we have high hopes of harvesting many of them in the fall.


Also, our grapes are really starting to get bigger and hopefully later on we'll be able to make some delicious grape juice!


Luckily, even though our orchard only produced one kind of apple this year and no pears, plums or cherries- we will have plenty of wild blackberries. Adam sure had fun picking his own with Grandma's help as you can see in the picture below!


We are so thankful that we'll have plenty of berries to freeze and also we plan on making some juice and syrup from them. We will harvest as many as we can!


Suburban Garden Report:

My little suburban garden is doing quite well! The rhubarb continues to grow very well- I need to harvest some soon to freeze and perhaps make some preserves out of. Also, we are getting a few strawberries to eat almost daily- which is delicious and fun!


Our pumpkins are doing great! There are four large pumpkins on the vines and they are starting to turn yellow/orange! They are so pretty and keep getting bigger. My sweet potato plants in the same raised bed planter have grown a bit but probably don't like the cooler weather we've been having!


In another raised bed where I have some very young blueberry bushes all of the sudden a mystery melon or squash plant came up! It looks very healthy and has been growing a lot. It'll be interesting to see what becomes of it! I'm guessing it grew out of something in some of the compost that we put in that planter. Amazing!

Happy Gardening...a post about baking/food will be coming later on!