Happy Summer!

Hello zucchini, tomatoes, eggplant, and pepeprs. Hello summer!

 Cucumbers are coming.

Beans are growing.

The romas are here. Can't wait for fresh sauce.

And breakfast tacos.

I have zucchini on the brain:
stuffed zucchini
zucchini lasagna
zucchini bread
zucchini lakes
zucchini tortilla espanola.

What are you doing with all your zucchini?

Father's Day Breakfast Hash

I had to work in the afternoon on Father's Day, so I asked my husband what he wanted for brunch. "Hash," he said. And so it was.

We had some lovely little organic potatoes that we like to halve or quarter and then roast until they're creamy on inside and toasty on the outside. I think it's really important to buy potatoes organic, just for the flavor. I also had some radishes and new onions from the farmer's market.

This guy was helping me. I think he's going to be a chef when he grows up. He loves to take all my cookbooks off the shelf.

Chop all the veggies, toss with salt, pepper, olive oil, and some crushed red pepper flakes.

Roast in the oven at 425F for 45 minutes-1 hour, until everything is soft and robust.

Meanwhile, fry up some bacon and poach some eggs. Don't forget the coffee.

Father's Day Breakfast Hash
serves four

8-12 small organic potatoes, halved or quartered
1 bunch radishes, halved or quartered
2 small new onions, quartered
1 bell pepper, sliced thin
2-3 small carrots, peeled and chopped into thick coins
a few tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper
red pepper flakes
1-2 eggs per person
2-3 slices of bacon per person
a handful of scallions and fresh herbs or greens
parmesan cheese

Preheat the oven to 425F. Prepare the potatoes, radishes, onions, bell pepper, and carrots, and toss in a baking dish with olive oil, salt, pepper, and the red pepper flakes. Place in the oven and roast for 45 minutes-1 hour, until everything is tender and the flavors are concentrated.

Meanwhile, fry the bacon to your liking and poach the eggs.

Here is how I poach eggs:
Heat a large saute pan with a few inches of water to almost simmering. You want to see bubbles on the bottom and steam coming off the water, but no active bubbling. Add a glug of white vinegar. This will help the whites stick together. One at a time, crack the eggs into a small bowl to make sure the yolk stays intact. Use a spoon to create a whirlpool in the nearly simmering water and slide the egg in. I cook 4 eggs at a time in my 12 inch saute pan. Poach for 2-3 minutes, until the whites are cooked and the yolks still runny.

When you're ready to dish up, mound the potato hash in the center of the plate, top with 2-3 slices of bacon, 1-2 poached eggs, a sprinkle of scallions and basil, and a shower of fresh grated parmesan cheese.

Surprisingly Delicious Use-Up-All-The-Zucchini Spaghetti

It is the beginning of June. Already we have a glut of zucchini. I harvested these from our Eight-Ball zucchini plant over the last couple of days, and there's a lot more coming. I am always on the lookout for zucchini recipes.

This recipe I picked up on my travels in Sorrento, Italy. I am not a huge zucchini lover, and when we made it in my cooking class at Mami Camilla's, I was doubtful I would like it much. But there's magic in Italian cooking. This recipe is so simple: zucchini, olive oil, parmesan, basil, salt, pepper, but the product is much more than the sum of its parts. Cooking the zucchini down until it is a soft, saucy mush brings out the natural buttery, nuttiness of the squash. Good parmesan, pecorino, and basil elevate this dish to a summer favorite. And, best of all, it is a fantastic answer to the gardener's dilemma of, "What to do with all that squash?" This sauce is best with fresh pasta, but dried will do.

Surprisingly Delicious Use-Up-All-The-Zucchini Spaghetti

6-7 medium zucchini, sliced in thin coins
a fearless pour of good olive oil
salt and black pepper, be generous
a large handful grated parmesan reggiano
a smaller handful grated pecorino romano
a small bunch basil leaves, chopped or sliced
1 pound spaghetti

Put a large pot of water on to boil.
Put a saute pan on medium heat, and add a good pour of olive oil. You want to cover the bottom of the pan, probably half a cup or so.
Slice the zucchini into thin rounds and add to the hot oil. Salt generously so the water will come out and evaporate off. Fry the zucchini until soft and lightly browned, about 20 minutes.
When the water is boiling, salt the water generously, add the pasta and follow the package instructions.
While things are cooking, grate the cheeses and chop the basil.
When the spaghetti is al dente, reserve a mug full of pasta water, then drain.
Add the spaghetti, cheese, and basil to the saute pan with the zucchini. Toss well. Add pasta water to create a creamy sauce. Salt and pepper to taste.


Buon appetito! 

Linked to: From the Farm Blog Hop, Independence Days Challenge, Tuned-In Tuesday Blog Hop

What's happening in the garden in June?

 

 The first tomatoes are ripening. 

 

 The coreopsis is blooming.

 The tomatoes have already overgrown their cages.

 We're eating little eight-ball zucchini squash. So far we're keeping up.

How I'm Protecting Basil from Slugs without Chemicals

We love our basil, strawberries, and other tender, green, leafy things. So do the slugs and snails! I am having good luck with the copper tape you can buy at the nursery in the pest control section: just wrap it around the flower pot so no slimy critters can cross. I think the tape cost about $7 for 15 feet, so that will get costly if you have large pots to line.

So, I looked in the plumbing secion. I wanted something copper and round to place around the stem of my plants, and I found copper plumber's tape, which costs $3 for 10 feet on amazon, and you use much less.

I just cut off a piece about 6 inches long, fashioned it into a circle, tied it together with garden twine, and set it on the soil around the base of my plant.

We'll see how this works over the season, but I feel clever and hopeful.

How do you protect your garden from slimy pests?

What's happening in the garden in May?

We are anticipating a bumper crop this year. The garden is growing and looking healthy. We do have a slug problem, I just need to go on some midnight slug hunting trips. Come by for a meal or some tomatoes.

Cherokee purple, Tye Dye, and a zucchini plant are all setting fruit in barrel number one.

This is the Eight-Ball zucchini. I pulled out the roma tomato that was in this barrel, and now it is taking over. We'll probably be harvesting the first zucchini in 2 weeks or so. I should really learn how to cook the squash blossoms, because aren't those everyone's favorite part of the squash season?

What's happening in the garden? April.

The tomatoes are growing and growing. On the left are Cherokee Purple and Tye-Dye. The roma-type tomato on the right isn't doing so well--its leaves are brown and crinkly and its growth is stunted. It must have a disease, but I don't know what or what to do about it. I may just pull it out and plant something else. The romas didn't grow last year, either. You can see the zucchini squash in front. They are grown from seed and you can see they have some true leaves.

This is the Brandywine Yellow, and next to it is a cucumber start and a little basil plant. I haven't had much luck with basil in the past, but this year I plan to religiously prune those precious, delicious little leaves.

Here we have the carniverous San Francisco Fog, and Early Girl on the right. The San Francisco Fog is setting fruit already.

The first strawberries are ripe.

Happy spring.

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What's happening in the garden?

It's March, I know. A little early for tomatoes, even in California. But it's spring now! And the weather is so fair. Today I did some work in the garden.

Considering the good news for Monsanto this week, I'm thinking that the more food we can eat from our back yard, the better. I'd like to get four more wine barrels so that I can plant beans and peppers.

Here we have the first tomato vines. Cherokee purple, Tye Dye, and San Marzano. These three are planted with some aspirin tabs, a crushed egg shell, a handful of tomato fertilizer, and some root fungi stuff.

Next is Brandywine Yellow, San Francisco Fog, and Early Girl. I planted the San Francisco Fog on top of a fish head left over from dinner. It must be a carniverous plant because it's already growing like crazy.

The pepper on the left is a Cute Stuff Red, and on the right is a Fresno Chile. The flowers are ranunculus and anemone.