Juicing from the Garden - with the toddler!

Today's presents from the garden

Still lots of cucumbers  which are perfect in juice when we have too many!

They just give so so much juice.

Note the heirloom purple dragon carrots!

fun and very tasty!

 heirloom Bassano beets

I almost thought I'd mistaken and planted turnips there...

 but they are sweet like a beet!

Sweet morning smiles!!

 I'm glad we also planted regular beets cuz I really like the purple juice they make!

Beets are a good liver tonic, but only use one or two in a juice. 

bringin in the treasures!

Attie loves helping make juice.
Right from harvesting the veggies to pouring the finished juice into her cup.

I love doing it with her.

 Its fun, she's fully capable and then there's no kid whining at your knees... 

and it helps with her loving to drink it too   :0)

My personal Juicing tips:

- Apples and carrots are necessary
- beets make a good color
- add something green for health
- cucumbers + watermelon give loads of juice
- juice gets your insides moving. like Now.

clean up
- do it immediately after - makes it MUch easier.
- or at least rinse everything out asap.
- pour the juice  (thru a sieve if preferred) into another vessel and wash out the juice catcher immediately
- I scrape all the produce mush into the mush catcher and then fill it with water for the compost, which needs water anyways and makes it easier to clean the mush catcher!

and most of all:



** put ice in your juice!

yummm and health!




Do you have any essential juicing tips?

first spinach salad of the year!!

yes!  I brought it in,

 washed it and

ATE IT!!!

It tasted like the good freshest,  localest,  sun filled, dirt infused food that I have missed all year!

thank the good godess of greenery!

 its on...

This is whats up around here!

The reason the patch is so big already is because it was fall planted. 

I just shook the dried up seedy pods all over the place! 

How well it worked 

:0)

A lettuce mix in this container...

maybe it will be ready for the first harvest in a week or so!

Amish Snap peas!   They are supposed to get really large but still crunchy and tastey.

Our new strawberry patch!

wahooo. we're gonna need some netting to ward off all the birds who ate my strawb's last year.

Of these guys, we were lucky. 

We've been eating fresh tomatoes for a couple months now!

I grew them in the greenhouse that I work at.

Brokenshell Greenhouse.

That is where i have been the last couple months!

Sorry for being a terrible blogger!

I am gonna have more time soon.

and a lot to write about!

WELCOME growing season!





What's Up around your garden or farm???


feel free to leave a link to your post or just a comment!!



grandma's borsht recipe!

 There's a time in the season where your garden gives you all the ingredients for Borsht!

My Grandmother, of Russian decent, has passed down THE recipe.

  

It is possibly my favorite recipe...

ANd here it is for you!

Its vegetarian and can easily be vegan as well by substituting.

Cabbage Borsht

 5-7 potatoes                         1 can stewed tomatoes

 5-10 carrots                          (or 5 medium sized tomatoes blended)

 1 onion                                 1 can chicken stock (or veggie)

 1/2 cabbage                          1-3 tbsp dill (fresh garden is BEST)

 3 tbsp butter                         1 cup of cream

Cut potatoes and carrots into bigger than bite sized pieces and boil in a large pot.    Chop cabbage and onion quite fine and fry in butter until browned.      Add tomatoes to frying pan.  Remove potatoes and carrots before they are too soft.     Mash/blend Half of the potatoes. Then mix everything together in the big pot.    Add the cream and Dill (fresh is the best!) Simmer for a while and then enjoy!

 Choppie chop!

 

 

 

Blending the potatoes with a bit of water and the boullion cube: 

 Freshest dill

Here's how I do my tomatoes:

then add to the cabbage and onions

(this step smells wonderful)

 

now blend all the ingredients.

finished product.  yum! 
with some nice whole grain bread and butter...


To make BEET borscht: 

-boil whole beets for 15 mins to remove skins

- grate

- add to soup in the final stages 

- bring to a boil and then simmer for at least 15 mins

-don't boil too long or they will loose their color!

 

(Listening to Lucinda Williams - Concrete and Barbwire)

healthy tasty zucchini patties

This time of year is the one where you might be wondering:
"what the *^$% am I going to do with all this Zuchinni?!?!"

well here's one fantastic idea. these puppies are so dang tastey and full of nutrition!


the recipe comes from my hometown's cookbook :
" Buchanan Centennial Cookbook 1907-2007"
its my "good old cookbook that you consult for almost everything"

then I added and changed a couple things in the name of protein

here it is, get a pen.

Zuchinni Patties

1c. flour (i used half organic white and half spelt)
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 c. margerine or oil (I used olive oil)
1 c. grated cheddar cheese
(a vegan option is Daiya vegan cheese -or any vegan cheese, but I LOVE daiya cheese!)
1/2 c. grated onion
2 c. grated zucchini
1 c. smashed chick peas
( my addition. if you do not use this, put one more cup zucchini)
2 free run eggs, well beaten
2-3 cloves garlic, crushed (optional)

Sift flour, baking powder and salt; cut in margarine. Mix remaining ingredients. Heat oil in skillet. Place mixture by tablespoonfuls into hot oil and fry until golden brown on medium.

we dipped ours in plain yogurt. ketchup is always good too!
I fed this to three kids under the age of 4 today and they all gobbled it up happily!


what are you doing with your zucchini?!