FALL Gardening

Many gardeners do not even consider fall gardening because of the winter frosts that might make an early appearance.  On the contrary, fall gardening will result in excellent vegetables and will extend crops long after spring planted plants are finished.  Vegetables produced from fall gardening are sometimes sweeter and milder than those growing in the summer and offer a brand new taste to the same old veggies.

Gardener Gardening (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

What you choose to grow during your fall gardening will depend on your available space and what you like to eat, just like spring plants.  Even the crops that enjoy the heat, such as tomatoes, sweet potatoes, okra, and peppers, will produce until frosts hit, which can be pretty late in the year in southern areas.  However, there are some plants that will quit towards the end of summer like snap-beans, summer squash, and cucumbers.  If these vegetables are planted around the middle of the summer they can be harvested until the first frosts as well.  Hardy, tough vegetables will grow until the temperature is as low as 20 degrees, but those that aren’t as strong will only be able to grow through light frosts.  Remember that if you have root and tuber plants and the tops are killed by a freeze the edible part can be saved if a large amount of mulch is used.

When fall gardening, make sure and pick the vegetables with the shortest growing season so they can be full grown and harvested before the frost arrives.  Most seed packages will be labeled “early season”, or you can find the seeds boasting the fewest days to maturity.  You may want to go after your seeds for fall gardening in spring or early summer; they are usually not kept in stock towards the end of summer.  If they are stored in a cool and dry location they will keep until you are ready to plant.

In order to know exactly when the best time to start fall gardening, you must know about when the first hard frost will hit your area.  One of the best ways to tell this is by a Farmer’s Almanac.  They will give you exact dates and are rarely wrong.  You will also need to know exactly how long it is going to take your plants to mature.

To get your soil ready for fall gardening you must first remove any leftover spring/summer crops and weeds.  Crops leftover from the last season can end up spreading bacteria and disease if left in the garden.  Spread a couple of inches of compost or mulch over the garden area to increase the nutrients, however, if spring plants were fertilized heavily it may not need much if any.  Till the top layer of soil wet it down, and let it sit for about 12-24 hours.  Once this has been done, you are ready to start planting.

Many gardeners will run from fall gardening so they don’t have to deal with frosts, but if tough, sturdy vegetables are planted they can withstand a few touches of frost and give you some wonderful tasting produce.  Fall gardening gives you the chance to enjoy your vegetable garden for at least a little bit more time.

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Kitchen Mysteries: The FONDUE Pot

One of the biggest unsolved mysteries of the kitchen is the fondue pot. Fondue pots are a popular bridal registry item and they are often given as housewarming gifts. But by the time the thank you cards have been sent, the fondue pot has usually disappeared never to be heard from again. They wind up in the back of a closet or in the attic or some are even re-gifted. Why does everyone want a fondue pot but no one ever gets around to making fondue?

Swiss fondue (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Fondue is easy to make. Sure there are some recipes that require sautéing vegetables or marinating meat overnight and some use exotic ingredients that you won’t find at the supermarket. Those types of recipes taste great but they are the reason that your fondue pot is gathering dust instead of being used.

The key to getting used out of your fondue pot is to pick very simple recipes that are easy to make such as the recipes listed below. One is a basic cheese fondue that substitutes regular Swiss Cheese for the more expensive and harder to find Gruyere cheese. The 2nd recipe is Mocha Fondue, a must try a recipe for coffee and chocolate lovers. Once again this is a recipe with basic ingredients and easy instructions.

Swiss Fondue

2 cups dry White Wine

1 Garlic Clove

1 lb Swiss Cheese

3 tbsp Flour

1 tbsp Lemon Juice

1/4 tsp White Pepper

Salt to taste

Nutmeg to taste

Rub the inside of the fondue pot with the garlic clove and add clove to pot

Heat up the White Wine & Lemon Juice on medium-low heat - should be hot but do not boil

Mix Flour and Cheese in a bowl

Slowly add cheese mixture while stirring

Add remainder of ingredients while stirring

Optional: Add a splash of Kirsch or Blackberry Brandy

To Dip: Italian bread cut into cubes, vegetables, flatbread

Mocha Fondue

8 oz Semisweet Chocolate

1/2 cup Hot Espresso or Coffee

3 tbsp Granulated Sugar

2 tbsp Butter

1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract

Chop chocolate into small pieces and set aside

Heat espresso and sugar in fondue pot on low heat

Slowly add chocolate and butter while stirring

Add Vanilla

Optional: Add a splash of Irish Cream

To Dip: Angel Food Cake, Apple Slices, Bananas, Strawberries, Pound Cake, Pretzels, Pineapple Chunks, Marshmallows

Fondue can be easy to make and it’s definitely fun. The key is to use simple recipes so that you can spend your time enjoying fondue and not worrying about getting a complicated recipe right. Isn’t it time that your fondue pot became a permanent fixture on your countertop. You can free up some room for it by moving the crock pot into the closet.

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Herbs & Spices: Valerian - Valeriana officinalis

Herbs & Spices: Valerian - Valeriana officinalis -  Picture: Pixabay

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BARBEQUING: An American Tradition

No matter if it is the 4th of July, or just another day in the summer, chances are someone in your area is barbequing. Barbequing has become a standard American tradition for families. The reason as clear as to why, not only does the food that comes from barbequing have a taste that is unmatched by other cooking methods, but barbequing presents a reason for families to gather together. Some of my most memorial experiences happened outdoors at one of my families many get-togethers.

Photo: Wikimedia

Planning A Barbeque

First, no barbeque would be complete without guests and proper outdoors weather. Plan ahead of time, checking with your potential guests for scheduling conflicts and issues. Finding a date and time that is suitable for everyone should not be too hard as long as you everyone enough advanced notice. Alternatively, be sure to check the weather for that type of year. If you live in a climate that cannot be predicted, then you may want to have a backup plan just in case unusual weather comes. You cannot predict things like rain and thunderstorms ahead of time, but you can make sure that you hold you barbeque during the time of year that will be pleasant to your guests. A barbeque in cold weather may hold more negative memories of trying to keep warm rather than good memories of family and friends.

Barbequing has been around since early cavemen figured out that food tasted great after being cooked on an open fire. Perhaps one of the main memories attached to a family barbeque is what was on the menu that day. Barbequing opens a whole array of types of foods available. The type of foods you serve should largely depend on your crowd and the event in which you are celebrating. With the wide range of possibilities, you are sure to find at least a few items that will please your crowd.

Make sure that you prepare ahead for your barbeque. 12 to 24 hours before you plan on beginning the party, make sure to thaw, prepare, and marinate the meat you will be cooking. Once you have the meat stored away, soaking up the marinate, then you must start thinking about what types of side dishes you will be having. If you want a complete tradition barbeque, you may want to stick with traditional sizes. Traditional barbeque sides include potatoes and potato salad, baked beans, and coleslaw. Your traditional condiment bar should include pickles, relish, and onions. These foods are typically severed at barbeques because they are easy to prepare and store until the event happens. You may want to cook other items, but any barbeque is complete with just the items listed above.

A themed barbeque may present more opportunities to hold a festive event. With a themed event, you can splurge on the atmosphere and decorations. Matching tablecloths, napkins, and plates can be found at any local store. You can also match your décor to the party. For example, a luau could simply be creative colored utensils, leis, and Tiki torches, all of which are extremely cheap. You can even reuse the Tiki torches later!

Your party area should be set up before the guest arrives. It only takes a few minutes to get everything ready, but the reaction you get from your arriving guests may make you feel like you were preparing and decorating all day. Depending on the situation, you may or may not want to have the food already cooking on the grill. The smell will surely be inviting if you start cooking ahead!

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AVOCADO 101: How to Pick, Store and Handle the Perfect Fruit

Avocados. They're not just for guacamole anymore. Delicious Hass avocados add great taste, lively color and a creamy texture to ordinary dishes, making them extraordinary. From pizza to salads to sandwiches, avocados add that little something special to your recipes. Knowing how to properly select, handle and store your avocados will ensure that they add the perfect pizzazz to your meal every time. 

Avocados (Persea americana) Français : Avocats (Persea americana)
(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Selecting your avocados

• When choosing your avocados, look for delicious Hass avocados. They are known for their creamy texture, have a distinctive bumpy skin and are available year-round.
• To determine the ripeness of a Hass avocado, gently squeeze the fruit-a ripe fruit will yield to gentle pressure. Hass avocados will also turn dark green to black as they ripen.
• If you are buying avocados for future use, purchase firm fruit.
• Avoid fruit with external blemishes.

Ripening 

• To ripen a Hass avocado, place the fruit in a paper bag with an apple for two to three days at room temperature (apples accelerate the process by giving off ethylene gas, a ripening agent).

Storing

• Ripe avocados can be stored in a refrigerator or freezer for later use. 
• Mash the avocado, adding 1/2 tsp. of lemon juice per 1/2 mashed avocado to prevent discoloration.
• Lay plastic wrap directly on the surface of the mixture before covering. 
• You can refrigerate the mixture for up to two days or store in the freezer for up to two months.

Handling

• Like all fruit, wash the avocado before cutting.
• Cut the avocado lengthwise around the seed.
• Twist the halves in opposite directions to separate.
• Slip a spoon between the seed and the fruit and work the seed out.
• Slip a spoon between the skin and the fruit and scoop away from the peel.

Once you've selected and prepared your Hass avocados, try them in this quick, easy recipe.

Turkey and Avocado - Sandwich Wedges

1 round flat sourdough bread loaf
2 large Hass avocados, peeled and seeded, divided
3 Tbsp. salsa
3 (6 by 11/2-inch) strips roasted red pepper
1 pound thinly sliced smoked turkey
3 thin red onion slices, separated into rings
3 pepper jack cheese slices
2 romaine lettuce leaves

Instructions:

Cut a circle out of the top of the bread; tear out the inside of the bread in the bottom section to make a shell. Mash one avocado and mix with salsa; spread over the bottom of the bread. Layer pepper strips, onions, cheese and half the turkey inside the bread. Slice the remaining avocado and place on top of the cheese. Top with lettuce and remaining turkey. Replace the bread top and press down firmly to compress ingredients. Wrap tightly and refrigerate until ready to serve. Cut into wedges just before serving.

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Make WIND CHIMES A Part Of Your Garden Yard Décor

You can make your landscape design sing in harmony with nature by using wind chimes that have been perfectly tuned to audible perfection. It doesn’t matter what type of unique home décor you have, or what your landscape and garden yard décor is -- a wind chime will add charm, and can create a subtle sense of feng shui mystique.

Crow Wood, Burton Agnes Giant wind chime on the sculpture trail
 through Crow Wood at Burton Agnes Hall.
(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

A set of properly tuned wind chimes blends in with the forces of nature to create a sense of balance compatible to the feng shui philosophy. The rich notes and soul-stirring ambiance produced as the wind greets the clapper or striker, sends a sweet, haunting melody vibrating through each pipe. A sense of calm and tranquility washes over every ear.

You can purchase wind chimes online. Available in a variety of styles and sizes, in price ranges to please every pocketbook. A wind chime is a perfect choice for anniversary gifts that will touch the heart and symbolize marital harmony, and bliss. They also make great personalized housewarming gifts, sure to delight the recipient.

Enhance your garden with their song. Though pleasing to the ear, the activity of wind chimes dancing in the breeze is a good deterrent for feather and fur marauders.

Tuned with precision, the different lengths and diameters of tubular pipes create a different set of tones, each of which harmonizes with the other. Some wind chimes are reminiscent of church bells, while others carry tones that echo the spirit of nature and hint of the exotic.

Those knowledgeable in music are especially appreciative of precision tuned wind chimes. Place two smaller ones at opposite ends of a garden on fence posts, or a larger one centered in the middle, hanging from a shepherd’s crook. Select an area for the wind chime that will enhance the sense of peace and calm and mingle with the natural sounds of nature, helping to mute unwanted background noise that clutters the mind, such as traffic and barking dogs.

With May fast approaching, tuned wind chimes also make perfect gifts for Mother’s Day. It will enhance her garden, and bring tranquility to her yard. And she’ll have you to thank for it!

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Related articles

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• Guided Gardens: Beautiful Wooden Pathways(builddirect.com)

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Cooking INDIAN FOOD at Home - Where to Start?

If you read an article about, you’ll know that my first experiences of the dish were of the generic variety which the British invariably cooked and ate when living abroad a few decades ago.  You’ll also know that I then discovered “real” Indian cookery and decided that as I couldn’t afford to eat out that much, I needed to learn how to cook the stuff myself.

The Best of Indian Food - Photo: Wikimedia

My first stop then was a local bookshop, where the choice of books on Indian cookery was somewhat limited.  However, I struck luckily and discovered a book called Indian Cookery by Madhur Jaffrey - what a find.  Written in simple language but with lovely descriptive text and recommendations on what to serve with what, it was just what I had been looking for.

There was a stumbling block, however, which was the endless list of spices, seasonings and flavourings in the front of the book.  I didn’t know where to start - I’d heard of quite a lot of them, having watched a few TV programmes on Indian cooking but, “help” I thought,  “buying that many all at once is going to cost a fortune”.  If you’re thinking the same, don’t panic.  Check in your store cupboard.  You probably already have some of the items you will need.  For example, look for black peppercorns, bay leaves, chilli powder (if you’re already a fan of chilli con carne), ground ginger, nutmeg, cloves and cinnamon if you bake cakes or apple pies.

Maybe you’ll find mustard seeds if you do your own pickling and sesame seeds if you make rolls or cook Chinese food.  That only leaves a few basic ingredients which appear in a lot of Indian recipes - cumin, coriander, turmeric and cardamom.  Often you need ground cumin and coriander but if you buy the whole spices, you can grind them as necessary (and they keep longer that way too).

The other thing I did was to choose a fairly simple recipe to start with and I just bought the spices I needed for that.  The next time I want to cook an Indian meal, I chose another recipe with similar ingredients so I had to just buy a couple more things.  Soon enough I built up a whole store cupboard of the things I needed and it didn’t have had such a drastic effect on my wallet.

Then there was no stopping me - I even know some recipes by heart now and you can do the same if you want to.

You don’t need special equipment for Indian cookery, although I wouldn’t be without my electric coffee grinder (to grind spices) and it’s nice (but not necessary) to have the traditional dishes to serve your meal in.  Other than that, you need a bit of patience and it’s fun to cook with a friend so that you can share the chopping and grinding or have someone read the recipe out to you step by step so you don’t go wrong in the middle.

The flavours are great, a curry evening is really sociable, so go on, give it a try.

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