Category Archives: veggie gardens

GREEN IS GOLD IN THE GARDEN

The vegetable gardens this season have become a mixed bag of problems and prodigious produce. Colorado potato beetles have turned up and devoured one of our tomato plants. The words ewww and ick came out of me several times. However, other plants are a goldmine of green for the kitchen.

072515 mammoth basil

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GILDING LILIES

Condiments, relishes and sauces can make or break a well prepared dish. A tasty addition to anything from simple scrambled eggs to a perfectly broiled steak can take a meal from ho-hum to sublime.

062714 raven lobster roll

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PULLING JEWELS FROM THE EARTH: BEETS

Some of the most beautiful things in the world start out covered in mud and soil. You have to get your hands dirty to get to the best bits, but it is worth it. 061514 farmers market beetsIf you aren’t growing beets in your garden this year, no worries, that’s what the farmers markets are there for. 062214 golden beets

Look past the dustiness and the huge green leaves. Don’t throw the leaves out though, they are full of vitamins and delicious to saute in oil with garlic.

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FRENCH SUMMER SALAD GETS CHOPPED

061714 greenbeans   Do you see what I see? Doing a bit of a happy dance because I beat the deer to the first crop of green beans. Everything tastes better when it is fresh from the garden. Crisp, delicious and so versatile, green beans are one of my favorite vegetables.

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GROW IT, COOK IT, EAT IT…RHUBARB 101

Friends with benefits, a catch phrase from a different generation perhaps. I have a collection of cookbooks and recipes and in reality friends with culinary benefits. One such friend recently taught me about the delights of rhubarb, a vegetable I’d never tasted before.

rhubarb101 2

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