Tomato Harvest

October 23rd and still not a frost!  The raspberries are still ripening, the greens are going strong, and even the basil hasn't given up completely! 
When setting aside the last of the tomatoes, make sure they are free of any blemishes or breaks in the skin, the green ones have begun to lightened up, and the skin is firm and shiny.  No matter how pretty they may be, if the skin is a bit dull, into the compost it goes. 
The last couple canning seasons have been especially busy.  Instead of peeling the tomatoes and canning them whole, I have taken to liquefying them in the Vitamix, bringing them to a simmer for a couple minutes then processing them for 10 minutes.  It is SO much quicker! 
Kale, swiss chard, spinach, carrots, beets, parsnips: a few of the things worth planting to keep the harvest season going late into the fall.  Consider a simple cold frame to extend the season even farther. 
I pray your gardening is satisfying and delicious, whether it is a basil plant on your windowsill or a vegetable garden large enough to feed your whole family.
Have a joyous and blessed day!

ground Almonds, Flax Seeds, and Sesame Seeds

There are several recipes on this site calling for ground nuts and seeds.  The above photo will show you what consistency to shoot for.  Shown here are almonds, flax seeds, and sesame seeds respectively.  The beauty of grinding the sesame seeds to this degree makes their nutrients more available than the whole seeds, but with a milder flavor than Tahiti. In this manner, these little nutrient power houses can be added to recipes without the dominant flavor of Tahiti (AKA sesame seed butter.)
For review:  freeze the seeds.  Place 3/4 cup at a time in a powerful blender such as a Vitamix and close the lid.  Grind on high for 15-20 seconds.  Remove from base, stir up, and repeat, being careful not to over grind past finely ground.  (Freezing the seeds keeps their oils  from getting too hot when ground. This is especially important when grinding flax seeds.)
Have a joyous and blessed day!

Fruit and Veggie Refresher

This dessert has a very light, refreshing taste, and the Agar powder does a nice job of gelling it.  It arose from fond thoughts of a gelatin salad my Mom made years ago that had a weird combination of ingredients that tasted great together.  As it was one of my favorites, so began the experimenting to replicate the recipe, albeit a healthier version.  This photo doesn't do it justice. The actual color and texture are quite attractive.  If you have family members that may not eat some of the ingredients if identified, the mixture may be chopped finer for camouflage.  It will produce a more homogeneous flavor, but is still good.

Fruit and Veggie Refresher

2/3 cup pineapple juice
3/4 cup crushed pineapple, drained
1/2 cup chopped green cabbage
1/2 cup diced celery (or a bit less)
2 T maple syrup
2 tsp fresh lime juice

3/4 cup 100% orange juice
1 3/4 tsp  agar powder

-Place the first six ingredients in a blender.  Pulse on medium until veggies are 1/4"-1/8" in diameter. (This  will only take a few seconds.)
-Pour into a medium sized bowl.
-Pour the orange juice into a small cooking pot and bring to a very low simmer.
-Whisk in the agar powder and cook whisking constantly for one minute.
-Stir into the above mixture, pour into an 8" x 8" baking dish.
-Cool 5-10 minutes, cover, and chill in the fridge a minimum of six hours, and serve.  This will keep in the  fridge for several days.


-Although 1 3/4 tsp of agar powder sets this to a nice consistency, if you plan to leave this out of the fridge for more than a few minutes (but not more than an hour,) increase the agar powder to 2 tsp.
-Apple juice was tried in place of the OJ, but produced too mild a flavor.  Replacing the OJ with more pineapple juice might be good.  When tried I will let you know on this blog.
Have a joyous and blessed day!

Oatmeal Walnut Cookies

 With their pleasing texture and flavor, these cookies are a new favorite!  The nutrient dense ingredients not only will fuel your body well, they satisfy ones sweet tooth, and keep away those hunger pangs for several hours.  (Using parchment paper and letting the cookies set before removing  from the cookie sheet are crucial steps to remember.) 

Oatmeal Walnut Cookies

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

1 cup xv coconut oil, softened

1 cup maple syrup

1 tsp vanilla  (1 1/2 tsp for real vanilla lovers)

1 tsp chia seeds, soaked in 2 T water for a minimum of one hour

1 cup almond flour

1/4 cup ground flax seeds

1/4 tsp whole salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp  guar gum powder

5 cups quick oats

1 cup chopped walnuts

1/2-3/4 cup raisins (optional)

-Blend the first four ingredients in a stationery mixer. (A hand held one would work too of course.)   

-Mix together the next five ingredients in a separate bowl, then gradually pour into the blender bowl on low speed.Once completely incorporated, beat on medium to high speed 3-4 minutes until smooth and creamy.  -Turn the mixture back to low and add the oats one cup at a time until all are just blended.  

-Add in the walnuts, then the raisins if desired.  Let the dough rest for 5-20 minutes, until a moist but dense consistency.  

-Line your cookie sheets with parchment paper.  

-Spoon the dough out at least 2" apart in roughly 1 1/2" clumps, and flatten with a fork (dipped in ice water to keep from sticking) to approximately  3/8" thick, and 2 1/4" wide.  

-Bake: 350 F for 8-12 minutes, until center springs back when lightly touched and edges are lightly browned.  -Place cookie sheet on cooling rack for 3-5 minutes for cookies to set, then carefully transfer cookies to cooling rack to cool and set completely.  

-Store in an air tight container: they will keep several days. If the weather is very hot, store in the fridge.

-Liquid coconut oil was tried too, but 3/4-1 cup additional oats needed to be added, which produced a drier cookie, not the moist cookie produced with soft xvco and less oats.  

-The 30-40 cookies this makes have been eaten right up, so I have not tried freezing any yet, but assume they would freeze just fine.  

Enjoy!

Thimbleberry Shake

Wow, August went by very quickly.  This beautiful purple color above comes from this years thimble berries (aka blackberries.)  Also incuded was  almond milk, chia seeds, possibly half an avocado to make a creamier texture, and a little honey or maple syrup if you like a sweeter shake. The  latest addition to fruit shakes is a tablespoon or so of Tropical Traditions coconut cream concentrate, for a little extra sweetness and creaminess also.  The earlier season black raspberries (aka black caps) picked a little unripe are still delicious, but a little tart.  Thimble berries picked when fully ripe are delicious also, but if picked before their time are REALLY tart!  I remind myself when picking, walk by faith, not by sight:  God will bring good out of even bad situations in our lives, as we love Him, and love and care for His children. We only see what's happening this moment, not the full picture that is unfolding.  Off the track a bit-  the thimble berries may look ripe, but unless they fall off from the slightest touch, they aren't ripe yet.
There are two different kinds of plants: ones with thorns, and the newer thornless varieties.  On the traditional plants, the thorns are extremely hard and sharp, but the flavor of the berries is worth it.  They also tolerate the cold temperatures here in western New York State well.  The thornless variety has a flavor I don't personally care for, but others don't notice a difference, and still others prefer them.  They are wonderful to maintain and pick though, but the canes don't survive the winter quite as well.  We lose between 20 and 100% of the canes each year here. A few years back, after several years in a row of total cane loss,  I stood in front of that patch and said, "if there is no fruit next year I'm digging you up and planting blueberries here."  The next summer we had a good crop.  Talking to your plants does work!  (I'm sure we just had a milder winter finally.)  I confess, I do talk to the plants sometime while weeding, in a nicer way.  And then there was the conversations with the chipmunk a couple years ago who was causing so much trouble and even built a den under the garden between the bigger veggies.  He (or she) would pop out of the hole and look at me weeding.  I would chastise him for eating my veggies and remind him there were many other things to eat elsewhere.  He sat up, looked at me, and in a rather unpleasant tone scolded me for being in HIS garden!  We had this exchange several times that summer!
The variety with thorns we grow is Illini.  The thornless variety is Triple Crown.  I recommend trying the actual berries you choose to plant if at all possible.
Have a joyous and blessed day!

Sauted Lambs Quarters

When I tasted Lamb's Quarters for the first time this past fall I was an immediate fan.  They taste like spinach but heartier.  This spring and summer I have left the ones growing around the garden to get big enough to eat.  One in particular was a good three feet tall and a couple feet wide before removing the leaves.  The more mature leaves have a stronger, but good flavor eaten raw, and delicious steamed with fresh garlic, drizzled with a little xv olive oil and whole salt, as shown in the photo above.  The leaves are denser and drier than spinach, causing considerably less shrinkage when cooked. The young ones are a nice addition to salads, or for a quick snack when working outside.
Going wild can be delicious, but please remember to only eat wild plants you can identify with 100% assurance.
Happy foraging!

Just a quick note:  When a recipe here calls for pitted dates, it refers to dates which are already pitted when purchased.  They are generally about half the size of a whole, un-pitted medjool date.