Squash and kale soup? I think I want to get sausage to put in it. Something like this. Maybe a fennel and bean soup?
Though, also, fennel and lentils was really good in the spring.
And let’s just make fennel pesto with the fronds. Can be mixed with yogurt for a dip, and you know how I feel about dips these days. (I want them all the time.)
We pulled the peas, and planted beans to take over the tent. Two volunbeans, four from the soup pack. Harvested the last of the spring planted radish and turnips. I’m debating if we plant something else short there, or wait for the cucumber and strawberry to spread as they grow.
The beans we planted (two weeks ago?), have all popped up. The chard keeps getting thinned, so even though it’s growing, I feel like we might not be totally overwhelmed. Nevermind how loaded the bike was before we left.
I checked the internet’s horticulture wisdom and realized we needed to prune all of our tomatoes – it’s an indeterminate year.
Meals to make to celebrate summer
Internet browsing brought me to a newsletter with a series from Pandemic Part I. There’s this salad that looks great for cleaning out bits and ends. I made it last week and it was a hit. Not sure it’s calling me again so soon, but wanting to save.
It’s been so long since we made smashed cucumber salad. I miss it. We are making it this week. (I spied the first baby cucumber fruiting today. Maybe we’ll have some of our own to harvest.)
We just tossed fennel pesto that had gone moldy. So we can make some again. But learn from our mistakes and FREEZE it. Also, toss fennel on a salad of lettuces + peaches + toasted pecans.
How to use this week’s beet greens? (The beets will keep. Fine dice and roasted. Sliced on pizza. I’m not worried about them.) And what about the supply of chard? Last week brought a quiche with a mix of parm, cheddar, and gouda. Another quiche, but this time with chevre sounds potential. Honestly, it’s been a bit since we had pizza. That sounds kinda good. So does having it with pasta in a tomato sauce.
Last thought, if we have extra cucumbers, maybe this salad but with fennel.
Love,
Sarah
PS The wedge salad was as good as I dreamed and makes me want to get iceberg lettuce again. The toppings we used–roasted beets, toasted nuts, green onions, parsley, blue cheese dressing–feel so similar to my autumnal salads. But those are served with kale and that makes all the difference.
Sometime last week, I took the fennel stems, chopped them up, and put them in brine with a few sprigs of rosemary, replenishing our fridge supply of pickled fennel. On Memorial Day, I pulled out our apple stock bag from the freezer, tossed in the cherry pits we’d stashed in there too. Ended up with one batch of apple scrap jelly from the juice. Then I took the solids, pulled the cranberries from the back of the fridge, and now we have a chutney. Last night, I made Artichoke Relish that I’m labeling “Relish the Sun ’23.” That (plus a giant batch of sunchoke burgers assembled last week, now stocking the freezer) used up our sunchokes for the season.
New Saturday. New starts. We’ve added Gomphrena flowers and parsley and dill. Brought the cilantro home. Pulled some more calendula and passed them to another gardener to transplant. (By the way, the ones we transplanted to our house look great now that we’ve gotten some rain. I mean, look at that picture. Don’t you agree?) We came home and made a lunch of lettuce and turnips and thinned rainbow chard that were freshly picked.
I made a fennel pesto from the fronds that we ate on our sunchoke burgers. It was good. And worked really well thinned with yogurt and lemon juice as a salad dressing. Since we’re looking at a lot of lettuce and turnip and radish salads, maybe try making more of that.
Collards, huh. I kinda want to make the Lee Brother’s collard grilled cheese sandwich, but their recipe calls for way more collards than we have. Still, I might end up going that way with them.
Though, alternatively, I keep having a sense memory of a dish that involved some sort of greens rolled up. Spirals of greens. I think, maybe, it might possibly be the shanu chaats from Hut-K in Ann Arbor. Described as “Spiced crushed chickpeas rolled in colocasia leaves surrounded w/ mixture of baked multigrain papdi, topped w/ mixture of potatoes, peas & chickpea, hut-k special sauces & garnished w/ chickpea flour savories. Allergy information: contains wheat, chickpeas. Vegan.” (The restaurant is closed. I do not trust the internet to save this information for me.) I’m wondering how I can go from that to a collards dish.
STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESS UPDATE! I searched for colocasia and got a recipe for colocasia pinwheels. Which is getting absurdly close to my spiraly memory. Maybe this can happen after all.
Otherwise, we need to cook some of these greens down. Serve with beans and be done for a day.
Not a meal! But, I do want to try collecting and drying some of our calendula this season. Especially from in front of the house, it should be easy to get to. We have Resina Calendula, which is especially high in resin which is good for making the salves and oils and what have you. Apparently.
A week ago, not long after we’d picked up our lettuce and bok choy for the week, some neighborhood friends texted. They’d gotten a CSA and now had a fridge full of greens that would surely go bad before they ate them all. Would we like some?
So, I came back home with a bag full of chard and kale and fennel and I don’t even remember what else. I suggested asking around to find someone to split the share for the rest of the season. And also sent an email with a few of our favorite ways to cook up greens, when salad won’t go through them quickly enough. I have a feeling we’ll be needing these in the coming weeks, so for easier searching.
Turmeric black pepper stir fry – Okay, not vegetarian as written. We sub the chicken for tofu and asparagus for greens. or green beans.
Braised cabbage and glass noodles – They have some other cabbage and glass noodle recipes that we also use. Dried mushrooms are a kitchen staple for us now. Also, this is one that we haven’t tried with other greens.
Steamed greens and tofu in a glaze – In case you have a health struggles and suddenly go on extra low-fat watch, but are still allowed sugar. But really, I’ve used this one for years. Usually with brown rice.
Sweet potato, kale, and quinoa fritters – Maybe more in the fall when sweet potatoes are in abundance. definitely served on top of salad, using even more greens 😉
Tacos! – Cannot vouch for this recipe. I read the list above to you and you said tacos were missing.
Enfrijodlas – Ooooh. I do like this recipe though. And would totally stuff them like enchiladas, but with wilted greens
We bought starts on Saturday. Put them in the ground on Sunday. When we arrived, I was surprised at how green our plot already was. The radishes and turnips (pictured) were thriving–we left with a shopping bag full. The lettuce was actually forming. The calendula row from last year was quickly becoming thick with plants, so we’ve thinned and tried replanting at home. One edamame was actually recognizable. The peas were tall enough to think about training them on their tent poles. I think we have cosmos volunteering, but who knows, maybe those sprouts are actually weeds.
Beyond the greens
Look, I picked up extra fennel from the swap box before we got fennel from the neighbors. We’ve already had fennel with braised lentils. Twice. And turnip yogurt poppy salad with fennel fronds as our herb. I’m eyeing this fennel and bean casserole. Planning to pickle up some stems (because we’ve actually used up the previous jars). Contemplating a fennel pesto vs fennel fritter.
We have yet to make lettuce soup, but it has been mentionedpreviously. This might be the week for it. (Especially since the lettuce from yesterday’s box hasn’t made it to the refrigerator yet….)
The leaves have (mostly) fallen. The hard frost has arrived. And the single bronze dahlia bloom from the plant outside has been cut and brought inside.
Today’s Box
Cranberries
Goldrush Apples
Granny Smith Apples
Carnival Squash
Celery
Fennel
Green Cabbage
Onions
Things in the fridge and counter
Pears
Apples
Carrot (but not their greens)
Celery
Radicchio
Lettuce
Green beefsteak tomatoes, but baby-sized
Roma tomatoes, mix of green and reddening
Sweet Dumpling Squash
Stripetti Squash
Potatoes (purple and gold)
Garden Finale
Green tomatoes! Ours and ones other people had put in the compost *gasp*
Basil
Dahlias and marigolds and cosmos (gather seeds as we go!)
The cabbage is gorgeous. It will also keep. Let’s use the few outermost leaves that are falling off for a salad now. Stir fry?
Time to make some apple date chutney, adapted for the freezer bags of apple and pear cores and cranberries that had been in the fridge for far, far too long. And apple scrap jelly.
More of the Six Seasons celery salads. With apples! And dates! And nuts!
Stuff the stripetti squash this week. Top with the leftovers from the cauliflower steaks last week. (That topping was so good. I can’t wait to make it again.)
It’s been month with you doing the bulk of kitchen duty and me being too otherwise occupied to menu plan in advance. And, spoilers, I’m guessing that’ll hold for the next month too.
We’ll hang out in the air conditioning–letting you take quick trips to the garden and I’ll do a stroll around the neighborhood in the breaks we manage. Now is the time to let friends come visit us (instead of trying to get to them). To spend time together relaxing (as best we can). And to eat whatever you make (or order)!
Predicted for the Next Box
Celery
Slicing Cucumbers
Sweet Fresh Onions
Yellow Patty Pan Squash
Red Seedless Watermelon
Yellow Peaches
Things I think are in the fridge
Blueberries (farmer’s market)
Cantaloupe
Watermelon
Fennel
Cranberries
Greens: Stirfry mix, Napa Cabbage, Lettuce
Black radishes, Purple Daikon radishes
Potatoes: Sweet
Jerusalem Artichokes
Growing in the Garden
Edamame
Dahlias
Basil
Tomatillas (maybe ripening soon?)
Tomatoes should start to come in this month
Peppers? What are the peppers doing?
Garlic? How’s it looking? Will I make it to the garden again anytime soon to see for myself?
Open Preserves
Preserved eggplant
Lacto-fermented green cherry tomatoes
Lacto-fermented blueberry jalapeno hot sauce
Pickled banana peppers with oregano, basil, and black pepper
Meals that you can maybe make in the coming days (slash weeks)
Salad with blueberries and cucumbers. Lettuce and shredded beets and blue cheese and walnuts. Watermelon, feta, and basil. Cantaloupe, fresh mozz, and basil. The celery salads from Six Seasons.
Fennel and Kale Pasta from the greens cookbook I checked out of the library. Turn the leftovers into a frittata/spaghetti pancake by adding egg, cheese, and raisins.
Spring rolls to eat salad in another form.
Agua fresca with watermelon or cantaloupe
Smoothies with all the fruits. (Just don’t dehydrate them and try to rehydrate….)
Welcome to fall. The watermelon have disappeared and the squash have arrived.
So John,
On Monday evening, I told a friend there was a 30% chance we’d end up buying a house by the end of the year. After a tour on Tuesday, I had our odds up to 50%–pretty likely actually. At least until we talked to our agent again today and decided not to write up an offer after all. Even in this market, 18% annual interest is a lot. Especially when it was just bought two years ago.
I’m thankful for working with an expert who tells us not to buy a place that’s overpriced. Or another place that will be awful to try to sell. Or that has more deferred maintenance than the price suggests.
I’m thankful that we have the flexibility to stay. Even if I never expected the housing search to take a year. Or if it did it was because we were losing bids. Not that we weren’t putting in offers. Nevermind winning bids and then failing inspections.
For now, I’m putting our chances of 2021 homebuying at 29%. The listings posted today weren’t inspiring. That’s okay. We’ll keep looking.
In This Week’s Box
Honeycrisp Apples
Kiwiberries
Arugula
Butternut Squash
Cilantro
Fennel
Mixed Yummy Peppers
Purple Fingerling Potatoes
Sweet Onions
Habanada Peppers
Garden Potential
Starfish pepper
Paprika
Jalapenos
Lombok peppers if we want them
Few tomatillos
Volunbeans (let ’em dry!)
Last of the Roma tomatoes?
Vorlon tomato
Dahlias
Still in the Fridge
Cucumber
Figs
Greens: Butterhead Lettuce
Peppers: Banana
Squash: Delicata, Red Kabocha, Acorn
Sweet Potatoes
Fingerling Potatoes
Herbs: None
Celery
Sunchokes
Open Preserves
Preserved eggplant
Quince jelly
Dill pickle
Lacto-fermented & Lacto-fermenting green cherry tomatoes
Lacto-fermented blueberry jalapeno hot sauce
Pickled red onion
Radish kimchi
Sunchoke relish
Quince jelly
Kicky cranapple chutney
Peach jam
Apple butter
Quince jelly
Veggie stock
Probably still more uninventoried
Starting points
I’d forgotten the cucumber. We should use the cucumber! It’s the last cucumber from the garden. Classic cucumber, onion, and yogurt side?
Lots of green veggies, with hints of yellows and golds. And then there’s the blueberries.
Hi John,
This weekend we took our picnic to the local fireworks display. We found a spot on the grass, spread out a blanket, unloaded our bikes, and took off our masks. In a crowd. It felt normal and weird and like the kind of thing that shouldn’t be noteworthy but it absolutely is. I felt mostly safe? Mostly because we were outside. And because blankets make easy boundaries and everyone was still giving each other a bit more space than we would have two years ago.
It was a better viewing experience than two years ago, when we tried watching from the apartment’s roof. And better than last year when we watched the show as reflected in the windows of the grocery store across the street while eating sausage with JerusalemArtichokeRelish by our window.
I confess to mixed feelings about fireworks. They’re pretty and can be fun to watch. They’re loud and keep me up and we don’t even have pets or small children or PTSD to have extra reasons to hate them. The environmentalist side of me will be glad when they’re gone and not adding to fire risk or traumatizing birds. And there’s still the awesomeness of sitting with your group, part of a larger crowd, all looking up together and saying, “Wow.”
In This Week’s Box
Blueberries
Yellow Peaches
Celery
Dill
Fennel
Green Savoy Cabbage
Green Zucchini
Pickling Cucumbers
White Spring Onions
Yellow Wax Beans
Garden Potential
Occasional ground cherry
Red onions
Basil! Thai or lime or purple or Italian
Some apricots and blackberries from the communal area (I even snuck some into the photo.)
Still in the Fridge
Cherries
Herbs: Fennel, Dill
Greens: Dandelion, Cabbage, Lacinato Kale
Radish: Red and French Breakfast
Baby Hakurei Turnip
Onions: white and red
Gold Zucchini
Beets
Sunchokes
Considering the options
Pickling cucumbers + dill = Probably time to try making pickles. There’s just three cucumbers, so I pulled out Joy of Cooking and went with a recipe from there. They’ll be curing in the fridge, ready to eat in a week’s time.
Dandelion greens and white beans from Cool Beans. They’ve been here for two weeks. They need to get used. If we don’t feel like eating the dish, I bet it’d be a good one for dehydrating for a future backpacking trip.
I expect we’ll do more of the Six Seasons celery salads. They’re quick and don’t require heat and right now both of those are winning propositions.
Peanut, tofu, and wax beans! That’s my first thought. But then I’m also remembering the Smitten Kitchen salad with green beans and fennel and red onions. And wouldn’t you know that I tossed the last of the garden plot’s inherited onions in the brine yesterday. We’ll get more green beans for the tofu dish in a week or two. I spied some on our volunbeans earlier today.
Zucchini pasta? The zucchini pie/pizza/quiche thing from Simply in Season?
Do we want to make more of the sunchoke burgers? Or use them on pizza with the zucchini?
Flower and baby pepper!
I’m not sure what I’m feeling with the cabbage and kale right now. They feel mostly too heavy for the salads I want right now (though it hasn’t stopped their appearing with chickpeas and parm for a meal or two over the past week). I don’t really want the soups that I associate with them. Maybe spring rolls? Maybe in a stir-fry? Maybe I should think more about grain bowls? I bet that beet yogurt would be pretty on a bowl.
Planning Inside The Box 