Wholesome Wednesdays: Cucumbers

I LOVE LOVE LOVE fresh cucumbers.

They might be one of my favorite things to snack on, and are definitely one of my favorite veggies to grow. They can be a little finicky - you have to keep them well watered, always a bit moist, and up off the hot ground. But if you treat 'em right, they are top producers of tasty, portable, summery veg. I can get a bit tired of cucumbers by the end of the season, cuz really = what can you really do with cucumbers other than snacking on them or adding them to salads?? A lot of things actually, these are some of the dishes/preparations i make with my cukes:

• Cucumber salad - cucumbers, balsalmic, olive oil, seasonings, and any other veggies you might want to throw in
• Tzaziki sauce - cucumbers with yogurt and seasonings
• Pickles, vinegar or fermented
• Cucumber buttermilk soup
• Cucumber tea sandwiches with cream cheese
• Gazpacho soup

One of my favorite cucumber snacks is actually as simple as slicing up the cuke, plating it, sprinkling on some salt, then drizzling all the slices with Sriracha sauce. Mmmmmmmmmm.

So, what's the big deal about cucumbers? They're not only edible: you see them listed in various beauty products and cleansers. Cucumbers are great diet foods: you can pile up a plate of cucumber slices and eat to your heart's content with zero guilt: they're 95% water! This website has some great information and recipes for cucumbers. Cukes are as good for the skin as they are on our tastebuds.

The World's Healthiest Foods website has some great things to say (as always) about our cucumber friends:

The flesh of cucumbers is primarily composed of water but also contains ascorbic acid (vitamin C) and caffeic acid, both of which help soothe skin irritations and reduce swelling. Cucumbers'hard skin is rich in fiber and contains a variety of beneficial minerals including silica, potassium and magnesium.

Cucumbers are a very good source of the vitamins C and the mineral molybdenum. They are also a good source of vitamin A, potassium, manganese, folate, dietary fiber and magnesium and contain the important mineral silica.  

The silica in cucumber is an essential component of healthy connective tissue, which includes muscles, tendons, ligaments, cartilage, and bone. Cucumber juice is often recommended as a source of silica to improve the complexion and health of the skin, plus cucumber's high water content makes it naturally hydrating—a must for glowing skin. Cucumbers are also used topically for various types of skin problems, including swelling under the eyes and sunburn.          -WHFoods.com

Cucumbers are a great source of fiber, can help reduce blood pressure, and are good for the skin - so why aren't you eating a cucumber right now???  Here's the nutritional breakdown:

And again - high in sugar. I'm starting to think all fruits/veggies are 'high in sugar.' I think 'high' must be relative.

Tomorrow i'll be posting some novel cucumber uses outside of the food/beauty realm. I received an interesting email a few weeks ago with all sorts of crazy sounding cucumber uses. I'll test them out and let you know what i find out: i'm all for utilizing my garden's produce to the best of its abilities!

What is your favorite thing to do with your cucumbers?

I Am NOT Pleased

A. My face and arms look like i've been attacked by fire ants or bees. What was the culprit you ask? Beans. A whole mess of bean plants. My pole beans were out of control, unproductive, and in generally irritating. So i pulled them all out with the help of my pup by my side, and suffered nasty rash as a repercussion. Beans, corn, cucumbers: all are sticky with evil fuzz on their leaves that i'm quite allergic to. Who says plants don't fight back?

B. My very favorite tomato plant in the garden is being attacked. Not sure of the culprit of this thieving, but it's either squirrels or more likely birds. I was walking in the backyard the other day only to have a huge, gorgeous green tomato plopped at my feet with half of itself missing. No you didn't! Then this morning i found another at the base of a tree, another in a crook of a branch in the same tree, and several dropped to the ground around the plant.  No wonder i've harvested so few blushing tomatoes off this plant - nasties are beating me to it!

!

Unacceptable indeed! Sadly, i tossed my bird netting last year after some sad run ins with lizards being caught in the mesh. All i have is some old window screen, some christmas ribbon, and a gumption to shoot me some marauding bird! I may have to make a trip to the hardware store to buy more supplies, as i do NOT want to lose all my crop of favoritest tomatoes to nasty thieving local birds.

 

What are your strategies for protecting your tomatoes from "the Enemy"?

Chicken and Rice Casserole, a la Miranda

What's more homey sounding than chicken and rice casserole? It's the classic housewife, prepare ahead, easy to cook, low fuss, ready to eat when you get back from church meal. It's also my Gramma Vivian's specialty. This is NOT my gramma's casserole!

I did some research, found some recipes i liked to get the cooking time and temperature figured out, then did some serious 'flare' adding. I used ripe ingredients from the garden, and spices and herbs that suit our pallete. I served it his and hers style - his on a big plate with a breast of chicken and lots of rice, hers on a little plate with chicken and a little rice. Delicious! And even better, SO EASY! Which is a good thing when you have a new puppy laying around looking so freakin' cute you couldn't possibly spend too much time cooking.
The ingredients were chopped and prepped in about the time the oven took to preheat.

• 1 cup rice, i used saffron
• 3 medium sized chicken breasts
• 3 small hot peppers
• 1 large onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• Sprig lemon thyme
• 2 bay laves
• Pinch dried basil and oregano
• 1 pint turkey stock (about 9 ounces of very rich stock/gelatin plus white wine and water to fill the pint or cup)
• 2 cups water
• Seasonings: allspice, salt, pepper, turmeric, smoked paprika

Place the rice in a casserole dish. Sprinkle chopped veggies evenly on top. Coat chicken on both sides with remaining seasonings, place on top of rice and cover all with the liquid. Cover well with foil and bake for about 1 hour 15 minutes up to 1.5 hours, until it's all bubbly and the rice is cooked and chicken is up to temp: 180.

Serve with a side of something green for a more complete meal. Peas would be great, or green beans. My stupid green bean plants aren't giving me any fruit though, so this is all we got. Very tasty, and great leftover too.

Cheese added as a bonus :)
What's your favorite easy meal?

Veggie Burgers on Natural Buns

As part of the Foodbuzz Tastemaker Program, I received several packages of Nature's Pride buns to sample and review. I've got only good things to say about these, and they definitely meet within my "miranda friendly" food parameters.  The ingredient lists are short and containing all real food elements. The calories are low compared to must buns. The fiber is high, and they're really delicious. I like these whole wheat ones best - but the white hoagie rolls pretty much rock as well - especially when slathered with garlic infused olive oil and baked into garlic bread rolls of awesomeness.

Anyhoo, i paired these wheat buns with homemade veggie burgers and they turned out scrumptious. I think the buns taste best warm, but they're also good for big pb j sandwiches as is.  Amounts are approximate.

Homemade Veggie Burgers - makes 6-8 burgers, may be frozen after cooking.

• Home cooked black beans and lentils - 1.5 Cups
• Whole wheat flour- 1/2 Cup
• Chopped veggies: corn, onions, carrot, jalapeno, green tomato, garlic, basil - 1.5 Cups
• Ground nuts and seeds: sunflower, walnuts, flax, hemp - heaping 1/2 Cup
• Dried herbs: salt, pepper, oregano, chilly powder, cumin, turmeric - to taste

Mash the beans together, add the veggies, nuts and seasonings and mix together well. Add flour a bit at a time until you get a thickish mushy texture: not dry, but not wet. Thicker than refried beans. Dollup onto a parchment lined sheet and bake 15 minutes each side at 375.

His and Hers:

Served with a side of kimchee and some of that jalapeno/garlic sauce i came up with. Fit for a Summer night.

Gardening Tip: Dealing with Leaf Footed Bugs

I hate them. HATE. I hate how they destroy my beautiful tomatoes. I hate how they look. I hate how they smell. Who do i hate?

Leaf Footed (Stink) Bugs. 

Image Copyright © 2006 sashajade

  They are nasty animals that like to suck the life out of our lovely plants. Their nasty proboscis nose/tongue/mouth part stabs into lovely fruits like lemons, tomatoes, peppers, legumes and sucks out the good stuff. What i'm left with is red tomatoes covered in dimply green/dry spots- sometimes completely dried out on the inside. It is both lame and not tasty.  This is another reason that i pick my tomatoes right at blush - get them inside in the safety of the house! Once you've learned to identify the culprit - do all you can to destroy them, or else they will try and destroy you! 

(Note: i don't spray for bugs. Occasionally i use Neem for squash borers and DE for slugs etc. These guys make me WANT to resort to spray - but it really doesn't work that great anyway. And who wants to have to WASH their tomatoes before you eat them? not me.)

This is what they look like as babies:

Copyright © 2007 Doug Smith

 Copyright © 2006 The Longs

Copyright © 2007 absolutneef 

They are most easily identified as being clusters of tiny red nasties. Assassin bugs look a bit similar and are good guys - so don't kill them. Their babies are more solitary - so it's the cluster of red bug that's the good giveaway on who to kill. The long egg chain is also a good giveaway. Assassin bug eggs are more like clusters:

Copyright © 2010 Rich Kelly

There are several kinds of assassin bugs - lots of kinds actually. Here's one of the guys from my garden:

Learn to identify the bugs in your garden: it's super fun, and it's important to know who are the good guys and who are the bad. All bugs, of course, have their place in the ecosystem - but one of the other reasons i hate the leaf footers - nobody likes to eat them! They're just too nasty! They're like the Klingons or Borg of the bug world (woops, just outed myself as a Trekky) Chickens won't eat them. The turtle won't eat them. Wild birds don't even seem to go for 'em. So, you ask - how do i combat these nasties without spray?

A. Vacuum cleaner

B. Cup of soapy water

These are my tried and true methods. A: I used to have an old vacuum cleaner, the canister type with a long hose. We'd plug it into the extension cord, my hubby would hold it and i would direct the hose. Yes, my neighbors think i'm crazy. A shop vac would work great for this.  B: Cup of water works great, but you have to catch the bugs. Luckily, they usually drop down when disturbed so if you can get the cup of soapy (just enough soap to break the tension of the water surface) water underneath the bug you can tap it from the top and it will fall in and drown. Mwa hahahaha. Problem with this method is that they can also just fly away. Vastly irritating. That and you end up with gross smelling cups of dead bugs all over the garden, well i do at least - perhaps i should learn the joys of TIDYING up after myself?

Hope these tips help fellow frustrated gardeners. What pest is the bane of your existence?

Images courtesy of Bugguide.

Wholesome Wednesdays: Pembroke Welsh Corgi

Haha, not really! In lieu of posting my usual Wednesday post, i instead post a welcome to the family to
Pocket Rommel, the newest addition to our homestead. She'll be an inside/outside friend, a future herder of goats (we hope) and a great little hiking partner.

 "Mom really needs to get me some better toys"

Presently she's reminding me that i haven't cleaned under my desk in quite some time and there are plenty of scraps of paper to chew on. Woopsy - much to do for me: need to mow and clean up the back yard, pull some weeds, fix a gap in the fence, and buy some supplies. And here i thought i was mostly prepared.... nope! Plenty more to do, for the next 14 years.

Now if only the backyard weren't filled with fire ants and killer mosquitoes. Sigh.

Sundried Tomatos: How To

So easy!  Last year i dried my tomatoes in a slow oven (200 for 4+ hours). This year i'm harnessing the Texas heat, and the hatchback of my car.

Simply pick tomatoes, wash tomatoes, dry tomatoes.

Cut tomatoes in half or in quarters (or smaller if using larger tomatoes - i'm using Porter Improved) and scrape out the wet and seeds.

Lay tomatoes out on a lightly sprayed cookie sheet. Option to sprinkle with salt, pepper, cayenne, basil - i just did salt and cayenne. Put out in the sun! Easy as that. I put mine out at about noon and took them out at about 4 the next day.

Crispy, but not singed, with a few a little soft still. Just how i like it! I store mine in a jar in the fridge - but if you get them completely dry you could keep in the cupboard, or you can store in oil.

Delicious! Toss on salads, sandwiches, pasta, or right in your mouth.

Soup for Summer: Cucumber/Buttermilk with Potato

Happy Solstice, everyone!

I just can't get enough cucumbers - but some other people would like to do more with them than just eat them sliced with salt or hot sauce. I guess that i'm one of those people on occasion. I made butter on Friday and had buttermilk leftover to use. My M.I.L. mentioned cucumber soup the other day - i'd never heard of such a thing, other than gazpacho.  I guessed that buttermilk and cucumbers would pair nicely, and indeed they did. Here's what i came up with:

• 1 potato with skin (may remove for lighter color and less texture), chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2+ cloves garlic, chopped (don't have to chop finely as all will be blended before serving)
• 2 lemon cucumbers - could use any variety of cucumber. You may wish to remove seeds.
• Buttermilk - i had about 3/4 of a pint - could use up to a pint or as little as 1 cup depending how much stock you use
• Turkey/Chicken/Vegetable stock - about one cup. I used frozen ice cubes
• Splash of white wine and water - only a very little wine or milk may separate.
• Dried oregano, cayenne, salt, pepper, turmeric
• Fresh lemon basil - one small bunch

Put potato, onion, garlic, dried herbs, stock, wine and water in a small pot and boil/simmer until potatoes are soft enough to poke the side of a fork through.
Blend cooked potato mixture, with liquid, in 2 or 3 batches in a blender - be careful not to overflow, and allow steam to escape to prevent explosion. In last batch add the chopped cucumbers and fresh basil. May sub mint for lemon basil, but i think mint is nasty. Add any more dried herbs and salt to taste.
Add buttermilk and stir all together. Place in fridge to chill. You may also serve this warm - it's good either way. And if you're feeling fancy add garnish of basil leaves, garlic chives or scallions.

Serves 4 servings of one large bowl each, 2 glutinous servings of 2 bowls each, or 8 servings as appetizers or side dishes.

Yogurt Results!

One thing I look forward to in my life is goats: the breeding, honing, loving, and milking of Kinder goats. One of the things about raising and milking goats that i look forward to is making my own cheese and yogurt on a regular basis.

Before i get into the success or failure of my yogurt attempt, i just want to mention the starter: You can make yogurt with a few tablespoons of already made yogurt, or with freeze dried bacteria starter stuff available from various cheesemaking supply stores like this.  So i made yogurt - i should use some of it to make a new batch within a week. Alas, i only buy milk every 2 weeks so i'll have to start again. Could i use the yogurt as starter if it has been frozen? I don't know - can i? Since we don't eat a ton of yogurt, i will be turning about half of it into frozen yogurt 'pops' for delicious hot afternoon protein snacks. The rest will be used up in recipes over the course of the next week, or just frozen for later use. I'll report on the tastiness of the post frozen regular yogurt later on.

And now: the results:

I would say this was somewhat of a blend between fail and success. The result is a tasty, sliiightly tangy, sliiiightly thick milky substance. The vanilla tastes like vanilla. The plain tastes like plain - they all taste more like thick and creamy milk than yogurt. I took Erin's advice and did not incubate in my car. I put the box filled with quarts and fleece in the driveway. I am wishing i had left them in the car - it was only 93-95 outside yesterday, i think the car would have been closer to 115, the recommended temp for incubation.
I am now faced with a question, or rather a few questions:

1. How am i sure this is safe to eat?
2. Is the lack of thickness a fine product for consumption? i know that homemade and bulgarian yogurts are both thinner than the store stuff - and the longer you ferment the tangier you get - but is there an amount of tangy that is required to be sure it's safe to eat?
3. Will the cultures be killed if frozen? I plan on freezing about half the yogurt to eat frozen and to save for next week.
4. Would it be better to risk overheating/killing the culture, or to risk underheating and creating some kind of 'danger zone' bacteria filled milk substance?

Fermentation is a strange art. It's essentially 'making things go bad' in order to make them store longer or have more health benefits. But how do you REALLY know if it's fermented to the point of healthful, or fermented to the point of sick-making?

Next time i'll try heating pads, the oven, or maybe a yogurt maker, or maybe i'll try the inside of the car again. But next time i'll be trying out pints or just 2 quarts so that i'm sure not to waste at least half a gallon.

Do you have any awesome yogurt making tips to help those of us newbies on our way to greater success?

Summer Milk Project

Yogurt Yogurt Yogurt!

I like yogurt, though i really don't purchase it very often. It's great in smoothies, with cucumbers, with berries, with cereal, turned into cheese. Whatever you want to do with it, yogurt is both tangy and healthy. We all need to boost those good bacterias in our bodies - especially if you eat meat or refined/ processed things - the natural balance in your bod needs some help. Eat some yogurt! Sadly, there are plenty of 'yogurt' products in the stores that are chock full of sugar and that don't really have good living stuff in them due to pasteurization. Sure, Pasteur did us some favors by eliminating the chances of disease in our mass produced food industries.... but he also started us on a path of sterilility that just ain't natural, ya hear?

I only drink raw milk when i drink milk. Someone recently told me that 'raw milk is illegal.' Well, in a way you could say it is - the FDA doesn't look too kindly on all that bacteria. But good bacteria is good for you, and if the cows are healthy and milked cleanly  raw milk is the bestest. One day soon i'll be milking my own goats and will be absolutely sure of their cleanliness, but until then i make yogurt with milk from happy grass fed jersey cows.

I've never made yogurt before, and i don't have a yogurt maker - so today i'll be experimenting with the aid of some helpful websites. I will try two quarts with the heating pad method, and two quarts outside in the sun with maybe some time spent in my hot car. For a starter i am using locally made White Mountain Bulgarian style yogurt (a bit runnier than some, and VERY tangy). I removed the cream from the milk to make butter and am left with milk that is something like 2-8%.

Heat the milk. Cool the milk. Add the culture. Shake. Jar. Nestle. Here are bettter details. And more instructions  here.  I certainly wouldn't mind using a yogurt maker (anyone wanna give me theirs? kidding.....or not) but using what i have on hand is that much more sustainable. With my handy meat thermometer in hand, the experiment is on! 

Stay tuned for my results....

New Dress

Patterns? I don't need no stinking patterns! Probably would have gone more more smoothly if i'd had one though.
Two sheets, one 99 cents the other $3.99 - with plenty more left over for more dresses/skirts and other projects.
Here's my new little dress. Apologies for the REALLY crappy photos. My husband needs to clean his mirror.

It's a shorty, but covers the essential regions even in a graceful bend to tie the shoelaces or pick weeds - still, will probably require undergarments to stay within the parameters of society. Ha.

My seams are quite sturdy - a change from the clothes i made as a teenager, and i learned a lot from my mistakes and 'not so great' areas for next time. It's very light and shear. Not a ton of shape to it, but it fits rather flatteringly. Very comfortable and perfect for summer. Now i just need to buy some elastic thread so i can try out the shirring technique.

Wholesome Wednesdays: Capsicum!

Jalapenos, serranos, poblanos OH MY! I love me some hot peppers. My baby loves him some hot peppers. My parents ---- nope, they can't take the heat so i have to cook 'gringo style' when they're around. The rest of the time: my recipes are loaded up with garlic, onions, and of course HOT PEPPERS!

 Note: The curse of the cayenne continues! This is the plant i bought to replace my wilted cayenne. Notice anything un-cayenney about it? Everything! At least they're spicy - they ripen to orange and have good heat. Anyone have any idea what type of pepper this is?

Peppers (bell and hot) are part of the nighshade family that contains tomatoes, eggplant, potatoes and a few others. When gardening, try and rotate these crops biannually, not planting nightshades in the same place for 2 years. How i wish i could: my garden is quite small and although i can move planting locations by a few feet, i rarely get a good rotation. One day, one day........    I lost a lot of tomatoes and a habanero to some kind of wilt last year and my Rutgers succumbed to what i'm pretty sure is Fusarium Wilt this year. With careful watering (too wet promotes nasty bacteria and rot) and better drainage (planted in raised beds, pots, and near the edges of my large garden) most the plants seem to be faring alright.

One more gardening tip and a note on arthritis: if you like your peppers hot and mean, you need to be mean to them. You may see your plants withering in the hot afternoon sun - don't water! Let them suffer! If, however, they're still wilted and sad the next morning - take pity on them and water - a good DEEP water. Then hold off for a while. I water my peppers about once or twice a week - my whole garden except the cukes get the same treatment - but the peppers i'm especially mean to. If you expose the plants to some stress, you'll get hotter peppers. Peppers are also hungry beasts, so give them plenty of organic fertilizer, especially at bloom set -not too much nitrogen or you'll get pretty plants with no peppers, pick a fertilizer like Flower Power or Buds and Blooms to promote fruit set.

Nightshades and Arthritis: Many people who already suffer arthritis will find their aches made worse after eating members of the nightshade family. But don't resign yourself to a life without tomatoes and peppers! Their benefits, including delicious flavor, are too numerous. Instead, consider preparing your nightshades without their skins. This isn't quite as easy with tomatoes (though when cooking down simply place the whole or halved tomato in the pot and heat until the skin is easily removed, then blend for a sauce or puree) but peppers can be skinned quite easily. Simply roast the pepper and wipe off the skin. This can be done in an oven, directly on a gas stove burner, or outside on the grill. Turn the pepper occasionally to blacken all of the skin, place pepper in a paper bag until cooled then simply wipe the skin right off - easy as pie! and easy on the joints.

Finally - the nutritional content of peppers. I have long known that hot peppers are great for the metabolism, heart health, and wink wink - the libido. Here's what else they have in store for our health:

Read this great article on the many health benefits of hot peppers and the Capsaicin that makes them spicy. Here are some quotes i found most interesting:

Capsaicin, the hot pepper’s natural heat-causing component, has been proven to kill cancer cells, prevent sinus infections, serve as an anti-inflammatory agent, provide gastric relief and produce fat oxidation.

It retains the unique ability to provoke prostate cancer cell suicide, repress joint pain, block pro-inflammatory chain reactions in the blood and reduce nerve fiber swelling in the brain.

Look at all this vitamin C:

Sugar, shmugar. I had a hard time searching for 'hot peppers' in general, so this screen shot may not be totally accurate, and i'm sure not all peppers from serranos to habaneros are alike. But i say here yee here yee to hot peppers in every meal!

I ground up some jalapenos into a delicious sauce last night, as you can see we liked it a lot and there's not much left. I will be developing my own 'secret recipe' of this sauce so i apologize for no details. If you're local - check out Taco Deli's green sauce. It is delicious, but beware of heart burn. I hope to perfect my own variation over the course of the summer.