Spring Break locavore style

Spring break is here and with that comes a change in my routine ...well at least for a week. Just like every parent we have to think of things to do during that week. For our family it is a chance to do one of the things we enjoy most ...cooking . So my husband and I are home this week and we have brought out the recipie books and magazines to find ways to incorporate all the wonderful things we grow in our garden . This is a great oppurtunity to teach the boys how to cook by letting them loose in the kitchen with a recipie and a little supervision. It occupies thier time and helps them take responsibility for answering that question all parents hear far too much during vacation....What are we going to eat???!!!

During this break Micah my 17 yo is learning to make pasta . So far it is going great. Last night we had Beef Stogonauff with homemade eggnoodles and lemon parsley gremolata accompanied by fresh spring salad (from the garden ) and Italian lemon pie. Yum

Tonight is Ravioli stuffed with a meat or cheese which will be seasoned with ingrediants from the garden and tomato sauce made with the last of the homegrown tomatoes from last falls harvest. Our accompanying dish will be sauteed spinich.

Now that I have made you hungry here are some of the recipies

Lemon parsley gremolata

lemon peel from 1 whole lemon ( yellow only)use vegtable peeler then chop finely
1/4 cup frimly packed fine chopped italian parsley
4 garlic cloves finely chopped
mix together
Serving suggestion
Toss with 3 cups of cooked pasta, 2 tablspoons of olive oil, 1/2tsp kosher salt and 1/4 cup parmesian cheese

serve over any stewed beef or lamb

Sauteed spinach

1 Tbsp minced garlic
1/2tsp redpepper flakes
2 Tbsp olive oil
4 heads of spinch about 1 lb
1Tbsp balsamic vinager
1/4tsp of kosher salt
Sautee farlic and pepper flakes in oil in a large saute pan for 1 minute over medium hear.
Add spinach in batches cooking about 1 minute before adding next batch. Using tongs turn the spinach allowing it to wilt Oce wilted season with salt and finish with balsamic vinager.

Hope you have a great week and eat well.

stress or starvation

The lack of rain has been a serious issue in Texas for several months. I have been forced to change the way that I do things in the garden as a result of it. I am not a big fan of watering but in order to make a harvest out of the investments that i have made in out land in Kurten I have been watering 2 x a week. . Its not easy to water 3/4 of an acre . I have had to build irrigation using 1/2 inch pvc pipe sections about 20 feet long with 4 sprinkler heads and a hose connection . I have built a total of 10 of these so far . and I move them around the garden. I have also started using the system used by the A&M system digging trenches between my rows and running water down the trenches in order to water the roots of the plants. It takes a long time to dig a trench 100 feet long 5 x in one afternoon.

The stress of ]all this work is exhausting but my efforts are paying off and the plants are growning. But of course not like they could be if

if it would just rain.

This drought has really made me think about how reliant we all have become on the modern water sources we have available . Im not sure what i would have done 100 years ago if i was trying to grow food for my family with a shallow well or if I was really lucky a tank to get water from. I guess we would have been really hungry. I would really like it if any of you old timers out there could tell me how your parents or grandparents would get through times of drought like we are having now.

Have a great week. I think it is going to rain on SAturday.... . Vicki