Central Texas Veggie Garden Update: November

I almost have harvestable broccoli! Holy cow, how cool is that? I planted my first round of broccoli transplants in early September and they're showing signs of crowns. I fertilized with a nitrogen fertilizer when they were about 9 inches tall, and then the other day with Flower Power to promote the development of their crowns. That's how i do most of my veggies - nitrogen once they've put on some height and need greening power, and Flower Power (high middle number) when showing signs of flowering and setting fruit. For long season plants like tomatoes and cukes i will redo the Flower Power fertilizing every month or so, plus seaweed in their water  or compost side dressing for a little extra vigor at any time i please.

I planted some more transplants and seeds last weekend:

• Radish
• Carrot
• Broccoli Raab
• Chamomile (seeds and transplant)
• Kale (seeds and transplant)
• Broccoli (transplant)
• Chard (transplant)
• Lettuce
• Pansies and Calendula for some edible/medicinal pretty 

Baby radishes peeking out

 I must admit: the past few years i have diligently laid out my gardens on graph paper, taken detailed notes of every seed and transplant planted and when, watering schedules, fertilization, all a gardener's work entails. This season I'm beign more indiscriminate in my record keeping. I try and water germinating beds every morning and the large gardens twice a week. I'm tucking seeds and seedlings into bare patches as they come available. I harvest what's ripe and carefully watch the weather to see if a freeze may be imminent. Peppers and tomatoes are still filling lots of space so i've been cramming my brassicas into tight spots and tucking seeds in the crannies as i see fit. My companion planting methods have gone out the window for hte most part and it's fun to see so much green slammed into so small a space. We'll see if my 'tuck it where there's space' method works out for me... at the very least i'll have plenty of green matter to choose from, whether it does well or not. ha.

When does one harvest kohlrabi? I dunno, this is my first year.

Meyer Lemons starting to turn yellow. It's the time of year to watch for below 40 degree weather. I'll have to figure out some way to get this now massive potted plant into the house for winter.

The cucumbers continue to give me big old fruit, my tomatoes are heavily laden with green globes of optimism that i have to hunt for amongst their bushy limbs, and all my pepper plants are busting at the stem: many batches of hot sauce are being simmered and preparing to age, get strained, bottled and processed. I'm putting peppers into everything right now and will freeze what i don't turn into hot sauce, muffins, or jam. I'm preparing to save the seeds of my favorite tomato plant and will be mulching the garlic areas as soon as i see a few more little garlic sprouts peeking up. They aren't as happy this year as they've been in past years which may be due to my skipping a layer of turkey compost on top of the seeded beds. Live and learn.

Early Wonder beets, desperately needing to be thinned. I'm waiting for the greens to get a little bigger to use in a sautee or pickle crock

Happy cayennes ready to be sauced or dried

Who's that hiding in the grass?

Three lovely Homestead tomatoes!

 This is a fun time of year - harvest of the fall/winter crops is imminent, some summer bounty is holding on til the last second, and the garden is teeming with new and old life in a more controlled manner than the crazy tomato forests of mid summer. Plus it's nice outside! Get out there and enjoy your garden, it doesn't get much better than this in Austin gardening.

Wholesome Wednesdays: Bulgar Wheat

I've been eating a lot of bulgar wheat lately, all due to a happy accident. I used to be rather diligent about setting out a jar of grains to soak overnight to be made into hot cereal in the morning. I've been busy in the studio lately and not moving around a ton, so homemade yogurt has been my preferred breakfast. However, a few months ago i set out some bulgar wheat in a jar missing its rubber seal. The next morning i had fluffy, perfectly moist but still rather dry grain: tabouli!

Tabouli is so easy to make, now that i know all i have to do is add some warm water to the dry grain and wait an hour or so. I am notorious for hating mint with a passion, so as is the norm around here: Miranda's tabouli is her own thing, not the traditional chopped mint and bulgar grains. I usually pick whatever fresh herbs i have growing and toss in any other ripe veggies as well. The usual suspects are garlic chives, lemon basil, hot peppers and maybe some kaffir lime. The last week or so has been a resurgence of summer veggies: tomatoes and cucumbers coming out my ears! I'm loving it. And i've been doing some new things with my bounty. Instead of gazpacho or cucumber salsa, i mix up the chopped veggies and herbs with a bit of bulgar wheat. Much like my veggie and orzo salad, this salad is much healthier because the bulgar has a ton of protein and fiber, unlike its pasta counterpart. I tossed together what i had on hand yesterday, including a giant 1 pound cucumber! This Marketmore cuke hid from me and grew to hugeness, and yet wasn't bitter at all! Thank you cool night temperatures!

• Chopped cucumber
• Chopped tomatoes
• Finely diced jalapeno (drought = hot hot hot!)
• Diced fresh cilantro
• Diced Smoked Tillamook Cheddar
• Dried and ground kaffir leaves
• Salt and pepper
• Cumin and chilly powder
• Splash vinegar
• Handful bulgar grains

So - how about that nutritional content? One serving of bulgar wheat has a whopping 8 grams of dietary fiber (33%) and 6 grams of protein. Bulgar is very high in vitamin and mineral content due to the lack of over processing. Bulgar is essentially just whole wheat with all its goodies in a more easily prepared and eaten form: it's been steamed and dried already which cuts down on prep time in your kitchen. All that fiber is great for keeping the ole' system working and the high protein content and relatively complete amino acid structure fills the protein gaps without the need for a ton of meat or tofu. Much better than useless pasta!

Get your hands on some bulgar today, and while you're at it look at the nutrition labels on the bulk bins of all the various grains: bulgar, cracked wheat, barley, etc: i think you'll find the bulgar has some of the best specs with the lowest calorie damage.

What's your favorite bulgar dish?

Warm Chickpeas and Cool Cucumbers - Vegetarian Recipe

The cucumbers keep on giving, and i keep on eating them. Tonight i paired some warm chickpeas (garbanzo beans) with some cool cucumbers and fresh herbs to create a delightful juxtaposition.

Warm:

• Garbanzo beans, soaked for a few hours, about 1 cup or so
• Fresh kaffir lime leaf, crushed
• 1-2 garlic cloves
• Chilly powder
• Salt (added near end)
• Handful of Matt's Wild cherry tomatoes (or one small regular tomato diced)
• Drizzle olive oil

Bring beans to a boil with rest of the ingredients, covering and simmering until beans are soft. Once soft, uncover and CAREFULLY cook off the water. It's nice to get a little toasting at the bottom of the pan, but you don't want to accidentally char them into burnt crisps. (yes, i've done that) Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt.


Cool:

• Several cucumbers, diced
• Bunch lemon basil
• Drizzle balsamic and red wine vinegar
• Salt

Mix the chopped veg and herb with vinegars and salt. Refrigerate until serving.

Serve with the cool on the bottom and the warm on the top/side. Such a great flavor combination of warm and rich and earthy, plus cool and tangy and bright.  I tried to get a good review quote from the husband, but he says i'm putting him on the spot. Needless to say, he really liked it :)
And with all the fiber in both the cukes and the chickpeas - we were pleasantly satisfied. (Until i busted out the popcorn air popper during Saturday Night Live).

Easy Gazpacho

Okay, I know i promised the cucumber experiments today - but this having a puppy around, having intense thunderstorms going off all around your house, makes for plans that are a little less closely adhered to. Soon, i promise.

Back to gazpacho: I think i made this batch a little too spicy. Woopsy - that's what happens when you underestimate the power of your homegrown jalapenos.

This is a very versatile and easy recipe, just throw in largely chopped veg, blend in a blender or food processor, chill and serve. I served ours with yummy garlic rolls. There are a million ways to make gazpacho - i prefer to take the complication out of it (including the bread and tons of olive oil) and just make a soup that's basically salsa with cucumbers. Just go with it, throw whatever you have on hand in and make it your own.

 

Veggie ingredients pictured above

Easy Gazpacho

serves 2-4

• Cucumbers
• Tomatoes
• Jalapenos/bell peppers
• Basil - genovese and lemon
• Lemon thyme
• Purslane
• Salt, turmeric powder
• Splash balsamic, tiny drizzle olive oil
• 2 small multiplying onion bulbs  (not pictured)
• 2 cloves garlic (not pictured)

 I garnished with some sweet sundried tomatoes and of course delicious garlic bread (my secret recipe) using those natural hoagie rolls i mentioned a few posts ago. The husband got one and a half rolls, i got a half plus a nibble - so yummy! The soup was indeed fiery hot, but the bread helped take the edge off.

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?