Growing an All You Can Eat Salad Bar

So much extra space on my double lot!

I moved us out to Roslyn last year for a variety of reasons, the biggest one was to be more self-sufficient and independent of financial constraints. Living in Seattle was doable with two tech incomes but after my late husband passed away and I was laid off, spending $3,000 a month on a mortgage felt obscene.

My two kids and I didn't need a house that big and I'd rather live in a smaller house on more usable land. Living in such an expensive area with horrible traffic and homelessness was becoming less appealing. And, since both my kids were homeschooling and I (up until the lay off) was telecommuting, I couldn't justify staying in Seattle any longer.

Since we've moved, my daughter started attending the local alternative high school and my son started his first job working in a local restaurant and graduates high school this spring. I walked away from the tech world and have been doing some part-time work in town for the bookstore/coffee shop. Both my son and I walk to work - I think I've filled up my gas tank three times since we moved here. The change in all of us has been quite huge given the strain that we've lived under for so many years, dealing with the specter of cancer. I don't believe we would have thrived as much if we continued living in Seattle.

Berry and asparagus patch

Moving to a mountain town has given us a vastly different environment with months on end of snow, but it is melting out and it feels like spring is coming fast! Along that vein I've brushed off the seed catalogs and we've started building and planning out what is to become what I hope to be a garden that will feed us through the spring, summer and fall and, with careful planning, freezing and canning, through the winter as well. Eventually I'd like chickens again, but we'll see about that.

This last week we started building out the beds and I purchased my favorite varietals of thornless raspberries and blackberries and some blueberries. I also picked up some purple asparagus and a number of different potato seed. My seed stock is complete and my biggest challenges at this point are:

1. Learning the new environment, microclimates in my yard and growing season (it's super short)
2. Dealing with different pests (bug, bird and mammalian)
3. Figuring out what grows well here and what doesn't (I'll have some experimental garden sections going)
4. Building out the rest of the garden
5. Determining how much coal in your garden beds is a bad thing (we live in an old coal mining town)

I'll keep trying to post on what we're doing and building. I'm hoping to address the coronavirus aspect of things in a near future post, especially given the fact we live in a state with things shutting down quickly. I'm dusting off my Adapting in Place hat and will share what we're doing along those lines as well.

It's hard to see what's going on in the pictures - I'll be posting more close up ones so you can tell what I'm doing a little better. I generally post more stuff on Facebook and Instagram than I do here, but I'll try to be more consistent.

Ash on my apples - harvesting food after a wildfire

Light ash fall - just the beginning!

With all the fires in Western Washington (and in other parts of the country where it's far worse), we are getting some ash fall in Seattle. Nothing like ye olde Mt. St. Helens eruption days, but still. Enough ash to make it look like a light snowfall.

It didn't exactly dawn on me initially, but now I'm wondering what's the best way to rinse the ash off my backyard fruits and vegetables? Some things will be easier to rinse off, like zucchini and tomatoes, but sticky fruits like blackberries and herbs like Italian flat leaf parsley might be more of a challenge.

I can wait for some rain before worrying about harvesting the apples. I guess when it comes down to it, it's not exactly any more harmful than grilling vegetables over a wood fire, but it will add an unwanted grittiness to foods harvested in areas in wildfire country.

For those of you in harder hit areas of the country with lots of ash fall from wildfires - what are you going to do to get the ash off your harvested fruits and vegetables?

Collard Greens Gratin. With Bacon. And Cornbread.

Collard greens gratin

We're getting to that time of year where the collard greens I over-planted decide they want to produce more than we can possibly and reasonably eat (apparently four plants is too much for two people and the kids aren't interested). So, what is one to do? Turn those giant leaves into a meal, that's what.

I occasionally pick up this magazine called Southern Cast Iron (where I got this recipe from) which, I hate to admit, I really love. It pairs cast iron with a lot of garden-centric meals that tend to be not so much on the lighter end of the spectrum. But, then again, pork fat is good for you, right?!

Anyway, this recipe is a great combination of lots of collard greens, onions, garlic, milk, cheese and a little bacon. Oh, and some cornbread. Which really seals the deal for me. You cook it on the stove top in a cast iron skillet, but it gets baked in the oven for a really amazing, golden, crunchy finish. It's a nice alternative to the standard sauteed greens and it's a meal in itself.

If you're looking for an inexpensive cast iron skillet, we love our 12 inch Lodge pre-seasoned skillet that we use not only for making things like this, but for making cornbread as well.

Ingredients

1. 11⁄2 pounds chopped collard greens, stems removed
2. 6 slices thick-cut bacon, cut into 2-inch pieces
3. 1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced
4. 3 cloves garlic, minced
5. 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
6. 2 cups whole milk
7. 1 cup shredded sharp white Cheddar cheese, divided
8. 1 teaspoon kosher salt
9. 1⁄2 teaspoon ground mustard
10. 1⁄8 teaspoon crushed red pepper
11. 1⁄2 cup crumbled cornbread

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400°.
2. Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil over high heat. Add collard greens; cook for 4 minutes. Immediately drain, and rinse with cold water. Drain again; squeeze dry.
3. In a 10-inch cast-iron skillet, cook bacon over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon; let drain on paper towels, reserving drippings in skillet.
4. Add onion and garlic to skillet. Cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 15 minutes. Stir in flour; cook for 1 minute. Gradually stir in milk; cook, stirring constantly, until thickened, about 5 minutes. Add 3⁄4 cup cheese, salt, mustard, and red pepper. Add collard greens, stirring until combined. Top with bacon, cornbread, and remaining 1⁄4 cup cheese.
5. Bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes.

What's your favorite way to cook greens?

*Warning - this post contains a link to an affiliate program that might make me money, wherein I use said $ for giveaways and suchlike.

Post-Windstorm Harvest and Prepping for the Storm

Well, the windstorm predicted for the Pacific Northwest didn't turn out to be nearly as bad as originally forecast for our area, thank goodness. At the very least, it was a good reminder on how to be prepared for a long-term power outage.

Our big problem is that everything in our house runs on electricity. So, if the power goes out, we are relegated to cooking outside and we don't exactly have a great heating source (except the fireplace). We generally don't have much wood on-hand because we don't use the fireplace very often and I honestly can't remember the last time we lost power. It's been at least 20 years.

Fortunately, it's not very cold this time of year and we're sort of used to Freezing our Buns Off. Additionally, we have a lot of down blankets and other warm and woolies to tide us over. I can always strap Paco to the inside of my wool sweater. He might not like it for very long, but at least I'll be warm.

I was mostly concerned of losing electricity because we have 50+ pounds of salmon in our chest freezer that my brother brought back from a recent fishing trip up in Alaska. We were trying to figure out how to keep that packed with ice. Again, since we don't generally lose power, even in the bad windstorms around here, I can't say a whole lot of planning went in to trying to curb that concern. Plus, salmon party!

Anyway, on to the trees... I was afraid some of my fruit trees weren't going to make it, but fortunately, they all survived unharmed. (I have a few new ones I'll post about shortly.)

I surveyed the backyard this morning and everything was in order. I also managed to harvest a few things:

• some of the last of the blackberries
• a few raspberries
• the last of the green beans
• a big bowl of green tomatoes
• carrots

I'm hoping the tomatoes will ripen inside but, if not, I'll figure out something else to do with them.

The Swiss chard, spinach, green onions, collard greens and beets are still trucking along, but not enough of them to harvest at this point in time. The garlic and fava beans are starting to come up, which is always very exciting!

How's the weather in your neck of the woods?

Top 8 Ways to Preserve the Fall Harvest

Every year we go through the same routine - what to do with all those pumpkins, apples, green tomatoes and corn!

So, to keep a handy reference all in one spot, here are my favorite 8 ways to use up the fall harvest!

1. Processing sugar pie pumpkins - How to roast, process and freeze all those lovely pumpkins that you either grew or are buying from the farmers market, farm stand or grocery store.

2. Corn preservation methods compared: I compare different corn preservation methods and let you know how they all turn out.

3. What to do with all those apples: From canning, drying, freezing to making drinks, they're covered in this post.

4. How to ripen green tomatoes: From storing them wrapped in newspaper in a box to putting them in a paper bag, what's your favorite method of ripening green tomatoes?

5. Saucy apples: My favorite apple sauce recipe.

6. Hard apple cider: A link to how to make hard apple cider.

7. Preserving food for the winter: This post has my favorite method for drying apples.

8. Grilled pumpkin with rosemary and sea salt: This recipe is up over on my mostly neglected food blog (and at Mother Earth News). It's one of my favorite things to do with pumpkin.

What's your favorite fall harvest recipe or activity?

Fall Garden Roundup 2016

Our fall garden is plugging along quite nicely. If anything, I'm getting a little tired of growing food and am itching for the garden to go to bed for the year. I'm looking forward to a winter's rest and where I can ignore the weeding and maintenance for a while.

But, I still have a lot of vegetables coming our way. We're still getting a lot of green beans, lettuce, green onions, collards and the occasional tomato and cucumber. I've got a handful of raspberries and a lot of blackberries still on the plants.

I've just finished my last plantings of the year - I put in the garlic and fava beans last week. I am, however, debating throwing some shallots in as well but that will depend on whether I get around to it.

Here's everything that's currently growing/producing:

• Blackberries
• Raspberries
• Tomatoes
• Cucumbers
• Basil
• Swiss chard
• Pac choi
• Green onions
• Carrots
• Radishes
• Rattlesnake pole beans
• French green beans
• Collards
• Parsley
• Russian kale
• Broccoli
• Romaine
• Red lettuce
• Beets
• Chives
• Oregano
• Thyme
• Rosemary
• Sage
• Fava beans
• Garlic

I planted a few new fun fruit trees this year, but that will have to wait for another post!

Are you done gardening for the year or do you still have fruits and vegetables growing in your garden?

What's growing In the garden - May 2015

I have gotten a really late start in planting my food garden this year, but I'm finally making some progress after a few weeks of weeding and planning. I know it's always fun to see what other people have growing, so I thought I'd compile a full list for you.

So, to make a long story short, here's what I've got planted and growing so far in my Seattle urban backyard:

Fruit
Sweet cherries
Pie cherries
Columnar apples - Golden Sentinel and Scarlet Sentinel
Mini dwarf Honeycrisp apple
Pear - 2 varieties: I finally have my first pear this year (damn rust)
Blueberries
Raspberries
Blackberries - I pulled out one bush as I get waaaay too many berries every summer
Pineberries - kind of like white strawberries that taste like pineapples
Strawberries
Plums - Hollywood
Grapes - 3 varietals - not great for eating, but good for jelly!
Rhubarb
Arbequina olive
Lime (indoors)

Vegetables
Onions
Leeks
Garlic
Green onions
Green lettuce
Red lettuce
Green beans
Shelling peas
Collard greens
Sweet corn
Yellow summer squash
Cucumbers
Asparagus

Herbs
Rosemary
Oregano
Lavender
Thyme
Italian flatleaf parsley
Cilantro
Sage
Chives
Bay

Other
Chickens (2) - my old ladies are still producing about a half dozen eggs a week

To be planted / transplanted this weekend
Carrots
Pumpkins
Corn
Tomatoes
Basil
Peppers
Watermelon
Cantaloupe


Phew! I think that's it. I still have a 4' x 4' raised bed of space to do some more planting in a few weeks. How is your garden going so far this year? Anything producing yet or is it still too cold?

August Garden Porn - Raised Bed Edition

The other day I created a list of all the stuff I've currently got growing in the garden (as of August 2014) and I claimed that I'd post some pictures. I took a bunch of photos yesterday afternoon, but photo editing them is taking freaking forever, so I've decided to post them in chunks. Therefore, today's post includes the 8 (eight) 4' x 4' raised beds in the backyard (minus the strawberries, cause there's not much to look at there).

I apologize for the floating row covers. The birds have been eating down my seedlings and I'm also trying to keep the cabbage moths off of some things. You'll have to trust me that there's stuff growing under there. I love you people, but not enough to fiddle around with unpinning and repinning this crap. Also, I tend to plant things in quadrants so it should be easy to follow. There are a couple things in the surrounding borders listed as well.

So, without further ado... starting from East to West in my yard (sunniest to shadiest):

Clockwise from top left: rutabaga, beets, cucumbers, beets

Clockwise from top left: carrots, kale, parsnips, lettuce, carrots

Clockwise from top left: cabbage, Italian parsley, pac choi, green onions

Clockwise from top left: green beans, parsnips, shelling peas, more peas

Clockwise from top left: onions, leeks, green beans, more beans

Clockwise from top left: cilantro, radishes, lettuce, green onions (tucked in)

Clockwise from top left: broccoli, brussels sprouts, more sprouts, more broccoli

Next time I'll post the experimental garden spot, chicken coop, long raised beds and greenhouse pictures. And, then! I'll do a satellite shot showing where all this is in relation to my yard. Because you just can't get enough garden porn, I always say!

Life in the Garden - August 2014

Since I post a little here and there about what I've got growing on our urban farmstead, I thought it would be helpful to give you a run down of everything I've got growing, foodwise, on our less than 1/10th of an acre in Seattle.

Fruits:
Blackberries
Raspberries
Blueberries
Strawberries
Apples
Pears (haven't yet produced anything)
Cherries
Plums
Grapes
Figs (don't really produce anything)
Lime (indoor)

Vegetables:
Asparagus
Rhubarb
Artichoke
Leeks
Green Onions
Brussels Sprouts
Green Beans
Shelling Peas
Onions
Radishes
Lettuce
Pac Choi
Parsnips
Carrots
Beets
Rutabaga
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Swiss Chard
Slicing Cucumbers
Tomatoes
Pumpkins
Bell peppers
Hot peppers

Herbs/Flowers:
Basil
Rosemary
Lavender
Sage
Chocolate Mint
Oregano
Italian Flat Leaf Parsley
Cilantro
Thyme
Black Oil Sunflowers
Calendula
Lemon Verbena
Echinacea
Tea

Eggs:
3 Chickens

I think that's it! I'm sure I'm forgetting something. When I get around to it I'll either take some more pictures or make a video tour, showing what's what.

Fall Vegetable Gardening: What to Plant in August

What to plant now for eating in the Fall

Around the Pacific Northwest, planting for a fall vegetable garden really needs to be done by mid to late July, however there are still some edibles you can plant now for some tasty fall eating.

I've had a couple conversations with friends and neighbors in the last week about what to plant now to keep their garden growing so I figured I'd make a post on what to plant in August for a fall garden.

I know it's the middle of summer and even thinking about planting for fall food crops in the middle of all the beans, cucumbers and tomatoes sounds insane but, if you're like me, and you wait until the end of August or early September to get around to it, you'll be too late. So, consider this a friendly reminder!

This is kind of it, for the most part. The only other things I'll be putting in the ground over the next few months will be more lettuce. And garlic and fava beans for next year.

Before you get too far along, now's also a good time to add some organic fertilizer to your already established edibles to keep them going.

And remember, since it's so warm and dry in August (even in rainy Seattle), you'll want to make sure you keep any transplants or seeds well watered.

Plant from starts (still available in some nurseries):

• broccoli
• cabbage
• cauliflower
• brussels sprouts
• kale
• green onions

Plant from seed:

• lettuce
• spinach
• radishes
• arugula
• pac choi/bok choy

It's probably too late at this point, but I'm still sowing:

• parnsips
• turnips
• beets
• rutabaga

What are you planting now for a fall garden in your neck of the woods? I love hearing about who's growing what in other areas of the country. One of my Facebook readers from California is playing around with papaya starts!