Garden Update

It's hard to believe that summer is winding down into fall. Part of the reason for my seasonal discombobulation is that many of the summer plants are just now hitting their stride. Although we still have many more green tomatoes on the plants than ripe tomatoes harvested to date, we did get 35 pounds of tomatoes last week and 41 pounds (and counting!) this week, so that's a nice change. Our peppers have also come on strong this week.

The summer squashes are starting to wind down, falling victim to the often-inevitable powderly mildew on the leaves. I've learned that a baking soda/soap spray can be helpful, but I think it would be better as a preventative (as we did with our garlic/pepper/soap spray on the kale this year), so we'll try to get ahead of the mildew next year. Also, much of our corn fell victim to some crafty raccoons, which is very disappointing.

In the past few weeks we've done our fall planting, with new crops of kale, beets, turnips, arugula, peas, and lettuce going into the ground. It will be exciting to return to these cool-weather veggies before winter hits. Once we've finished harvesting the gardens we'll still have work ahead of us. We plan on moving the beds to take advantage of our clover cover cropping, and wintering-over some veggies for next spring. It feels a little crazy that it's already time to plan for next year, but nature is relentless!

Veggie Treats

Red Kuri squash, a small winter squash. It can be roasted, sliced/peeled and sauteed, or baked.

Listada de Gandia eggplant.

Decorative gourds. These were "volunteers" that sprouted up out of the compost.

Chinese Five Color peppers - just one color so far! Super hot.

Recipe: Mint and Sage

This week we have an abundance of mint and sage. Both have very distinct flavors that can completely change the taste of a dish.

My favorite use for mint is as a topping for vanilla ice cream. It's also great in mojitos, and can be chopped in any mediterranean grain dishes (like cous cous).

Deborah Madison uses both mint and basil in this Chilled Tropical Melon Soup recipe. Canteloupe is in season right now - try to get a Rocky Ford melon!

I think that sage goes well in eggs and with potatoes. Bon Appetit has a Sage and Honey Skillet Cornbread recipe that features sage in an unusual way.

Recipe: Beets by Deborah Madison

Both of these recipes were taken from "Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone" by the incomparable Deborah Madison.

Five Minute Beets

4 medium beets

1 tablespoon butter

Salt and fresh ground pepper

Fresh lemon juice or vinegar to taste

2 tablespoons chopped parsley, tarragon, dill or other herb

Grate beets into coarse shreds. Melt the butter in a skillet, add the beets, and toss them with 1/2 tsp salt and pepper to taste. Add 1/4 cup water, then cover the pan and cook over medium heat until the beets are tender. Remove the lid and raise the heat to boil off any excess water. Taste for salt, season with a little lemon juice or vinegar - balsamic or red wine is good - and toss with the herbs. If you don't mind the shocking color, you can stir in a tablespoon of yogurt or sour cream, always a good addition to beets.

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Vinegared Beets Nested in Their Greens

Deborah says that this recipe is perfect for small garden beets.

8 small beets

2-3 tsps butter or olive oil

Salt and freshly ground pepper

1 tsp balsamic or sherry vinegar

Remove the greens, scrub the beets, and steam until tender, 15 to 30 minutes. Peel and set aside. Steam the greens until tender, about 5 minutes, then toss with half the butter and season with salt and pepper. Arrange the greens in a nest on a plate. In another pan, heat the beets with the remaining butter. Add the vinegar and shake the pan until it evaporates. Spoon the beets into the center of the greens and serve.

Veggie Treats

Here are some of the veggies that are starting to appear in the gardens...

Squashes: Costata Romanesco zucchini, yellow straightneck squash, Tondo Scuro zucchini, Red Kuri winter squash.

Beans: Kentucky Wonder (green), Royal Purple Pod, Dragon Tongue (purple and white).

Cucumbers: Boston Pickling, Lemon, White Wonder, Bushy Pickling, Poona Kheera.