Hey BABY!

Today I am making chicken stock. I did not have enough carrots for the recipe so, I decided to prematurely pull up some baby carrots from my garden. They are TINY and ADORABLE! I cannot wait to see the rest of the crop when they are full grown! Note the root bear bottle cap placed in the picture for scale.

Sunny and Simple Pesto Ideas

There's nothing like fresh pesto on steaming pasta or as part of a delicious pizza! Also, you cannot beat pesto as a bread or veggie dip that is brimming with garden yumminess. The beauty of pesto is that you can eat it fresh or freeze it in small serving sizes. My mother and I often whip up enough pesto for the present meal as well as enough to fill the cubes of an ice cube tray. Once pesto is frozen in cubes, it can be popped out and transferred to another storage container. Presto, you now have pesto frozen in single serving amounts and you can thaw as needed!

Here is a basic pesto recipe:

1/4 cup nuts (walnuts, pine nuts, sunflower seeds, etc.)

2 cups packed chopped raw herbs/greens (basil, kale, parsley, cilantro, etc. Best if only one type is selected)

1/2 cup grated hard cheese (Parmesan, Romano)

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons lemon juice (or other citrus)

1/2 teaspoon sea salt (regular salt may be used, but sea salt tastes WAY better)

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Pulse all ingredients in a food processor or blender until smooth. DONE and done. Serve and enjoy!

Whole Foods recently published the following pesto combos:

Classic: pine nuts + basil + Parmesan

Sunny: sunflower kernels + parsley + Ramano

Omega-3: walnuts + kale + Manchego

Southwest: pumpkin seeds + cilantro + Vella Dry Jack

Vegan: cashews + arugula + 1/4 cup nutritional yeast

Babies Fighting the Cold

My garden babies are fighting hard to make it despite the very cold and rainy weather. Someone should call the clouds and let them know it's June... time to give us some sun!!!

Hot House

Currently being germinated for open field planting:

Muskmelon Cantaloupe: Hearts of Gold (75 days)
Winter Squash: Early Butternut (80 days)
Watermelon: Moon & Stars (95 days)
Winter Squash: Table Gold Acorn (95-110 days)
Pumpkin: Howden (110 days)

My Local Market

I love that there is a fresh Farmer's Market located near my neighborhood! The King location of the Portland Farmer's Market is open Sundays from 10:00 am until 2:00 pm. The market runs May 2 until October 31. This is my first year to enjoy this particular farmer's market. Thus far, we've been able to score some really great eggs, cheese, and plant starts. Thanks to the vendors for bringing such delicious treats up here to the Northeast!

Just in the Ground:

I have no re-potted my peonies, azaleas, hydrangea, gerbera daisies, lavender, rosemary, some native grasses, nasturtium, cosmos and snap dragons.

I added chard and kale to my greens garden. All accomplished during a very short rain break :)

I also prepped my melon bed and started with a few strawberry plants and two pumpkin plants. I am hoping to grow my pumpkins for our Thanksgiving pumpkin pie!

Cukes Need Water, Mellons Don't

I just learned a valuable lesson while reading The Encyclopedia of Country Living by Carla Emery. Namely, that direct watering cools of the heat needing melons and slows down growth. Carla says "If you live in a marginal climate for melons and want to help them along, don't water them - or water only around the edge of the hill, not on the plants." Meanwhile, cucumbers need plenty of water during their growing season. I was planning to create a "creepy viney" section of my yard for pumpkins, melons, winter squash, and cucumbers. After reading her garden veggie section, I plan to move the cukes to a section with other plants that I will water often once the rain stops. Thanks Carla!