Gardening & Urban Farming Changed My Life

 

           A Recent Harvest from our Garden

                       

There are a lot of reasons for taking up this way of life, hobby, or some might say, obsession called Urban Farming.  One thing that most of us probably don't think of as we get started are the ways in which becoming a dedicated grower, in an urban setting, will be life changing.

A true farmer of any type knows that the work of growing has to be built into the rhythms of one's life. At its best and most rewarding, it is not something that is secondary to daily life. Growing, especially growing food, really brings a sense of peace, but only when the work, the cycles, and the challenges of the effort are naturally blended into everyday life.

For some of us, the building of an urban farm has been life changing. I found that the more I read and researched; the more classes I took; and the more I picked the brains of accomplished growers, the more I realized that there were other aspects of the way that we were living that didn't fit if I was really taking this seriously.  I am a city dweller.  I will always be a city dweller.  I love to visit rural areas.  But my heart and my lifestyle - what I am at my roots - will always be about living in the city. That said, I don't believe that the quality of life that comes with living a sustainable, environmentally conscious life - and yes, getting your hands in the dirt - has to be reserved for non-city folks.  The changes that took place just seemed to naturally occur over time, and so far, they have all seemed to make very good sense.

For example, when I started getting serious about growing some of our food, it did not take long before I started composting. The garbage disposal in our kitchen was permanently turned off.  I am now looking into installing a rain barrel to collect all of that good water that comes off of our roof during even a minor rain.  When we finally completed installing the growing areas for food, herbs, cutting and perennial gardens, and put some comfortable seating and a string of lights in the garden, we started spending more time outside in the warm - and even the hot - weather.  I began to see how much better I  - and my bones  - felt not spending most of my life in air conditioning. Combining that positive payoff with our (quite) diminished energy bills and our lessened guilt at the use of scarce resources, we decided we would no longer use the central air conditioning (and haven't for three years now).  The unit sits on the side of our house, with some good strong slats of wood on it, it makes the perfect potting table!

With more reading and learning and listening, I realized how our lives were often driven by managing our stuff.  A lot of that stuff were things that we didn't use or need.  We are still in the long process of de-cluttering.  As we grow in this simplification effort, we are trying hard to hold to the rule of, "If something comes in, something goes out".  Like so many households, at this point, we are stepping back and analyzing what we really need to live comfortably, sustainably and consciously.  We have also tried to embrace the practices of locavore living. We eat mostly local, seasonal, and humanely raised, chemical-free food. We try to shop locally for almost everything, not just food.  For example, my long held practice of buying books online has changed to buying and ordering books through our local, independently owned bookstore.  Our efforts are not always 100% perfect but we're doing pretty well. Yes, the extra virgin olive oil came from a co-op in Italy, but the eggs and the flour used to make the pasta came from producers less than 100 miles from our home in Philadelphia!

So, as I learned and began to see my spouse and I as more than just "city dwellers" or "homeowners", these new directions pointed us - happily - in the direction of Urban Homesteading.  An urban homestead is defined, at least partially, as follows:

1.  A homestead produces at least some of the food consumed by the house;

2.  A homestead seeks to engage daily in resource reduction and the use of alternative energy sources;

3.  The principles of "Repair, Repurpose, and Recycle" are central to the homesteader's daily life;

4.  Neighborhood is very important to homesteading and to living sustainably. Sharing tools, labor, and working together to better the immediate neighborhood are a serious value of the homesteading effort and should be a serious consideration for all urban dwellers;and,

5.  Homesteaders devote considerable time to food preservation such as canning, drying, and freezing.  Others learn related skills such as fermenting and cheese making.  In our area, a number of "food swapping" events occur on a regular basis. 

In some ways, urban homesteading is about taking a step backward, trying to live a more simple, purposeful life, a life in which we learn to do more for ourselves; become more self sufficient, and become more of an active member of our community.  I believe strongly that it is a healthier lifestyle as well.  There is a lot more to know - and we are definitely still learning - about urban homesteading and living sustainably.  Like growing food and gardening, it is an ongoing learning process. And, like those processes, applying the principles of urban homesteading feeds the soul, because it helps us to be active participants in some important aspects of our daily lives. 

Taking part in serious urban growing changed my daily life and the way I view the place I hold in my immediate world.  I am a grateful recipient of these changes, and I can't wait to see what new lessons and experiences are right around the corner!

Beating the Heat: No Cook Cucumber Soup

These last few days - yet another "heat wave" - are a challenge to our eating habits.  We need to and should lighten up our intake.   Our systems are craving cold - but still we want delicious and satisfying.  And, if you are anything like me, if it involves firing up the oven, forget about it!

We grow cucumbers every year and we love them.  At some point we start harvesting earlier and start putting up our pickles, but at this time of year, we love to use the bigger cucumbers in recipes.  Here's a delicious, satisfying, and "no - cook" soup.  Do give it 24 hours in your 'fridge to really get a bang from the melding of all of the delicious flavors.

    This becomes . . . .

    This!

Recipe:  No Cook Cucumber Yogurt Soup

Ingredients

About two pounds of cucumbers, halved, seeded and chopped (the skins have flavor and nutrients, leave them on).

One and one half cups of good whole milk yogurt (preferably greek yogurt)

note: Use full fat yogurt.  Remember when you use low fat or no fat, you are adding sugar to the recipe.

Three Tablespoons of fresh lemon juice

One chopped shallot

One garlic clove

1/3 cup loosely packed fresh dill

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley - italian flat leaf is best - if it's fresh, the stems will add great flavor

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

salt and white pepper

For service:  More extra virgin olive oil and thinly sliced radishes or red onion.

Technique

Put all of the ingredients in a blender and blend until really smooth

Add salt and white pepper to taste - you can use freshly ground black pepper if you don't have white.

Cover and put the blend in the refrigerator for 8 hours minimum and preferably overnight

For Service

Check seasonings and add a swirl of extra virgin olive oil, some finely sliced radishes or finely sliced red onion to each bowl.

Enjoy! 

The Old Man and The Dill

    Lots 'O Dill

Our neighbor across the street shows up around this time every year with tons of Dill.  His Dad (The Old Man) maintained a pretty nice vegetable garden in the lot behind their house for nearly 50 years, and the Dill always comes back in droves.   For awhile after the Old Man's passing, other things came back too.  The Son would bring us enormous zucchini - we all know that they are pretty useless, but I never had the heart to tell him that he may want to look for them a tad earlier.  And, for awhile, he'd bring us a few cucumbers or a volunteer tomato.  The Son is not interested in gardening and actually shows disdain for it.  I think because his Dad devoted so much spare time to it, but that's just my hunch.

The Old Man has been gone for nearly 10 years now. We still miss him sitting out on his stoop, telling us all sorts of tales of the "old neighborhood" and neighbors long gone. I have stored away every story I can. I treasure those kinds of chats with the folks who were here in those old South Philly days.

And so, the Dill delivery every year continues. However, this year - for the first time ever - the son pulled the Dill out by the roots!  I usually get a big bunch of cut branches, which make no mistake, I am thrilled to get.  We have used the Old Man's Dill in our pickles for years.  But for some reason, when I went to the door this year, there he was with huge stalks of Dill with big fat root systems intact. 

His usual question:  "Can you use this?".  My usual answer:  "You bet!". 

I sat outside this morning, cleaning the branches of the dill.  Some I will freeze, some I will dry - as usual.  I kept coming back to three good sized stalks with really nice, well established root systems, and I kept talking myself out of planting one more thing, of setting up one more garden "experiment" to fret over.  Too late.  The Old Man won.  So here are the three stalks which I have trimmed and planted.  I have also for the first time decided to harvest some seeds.

    The Dill Experiment

Maybe he's been sending me messages all of these years.  Or maybe there is just something inherently wonderful about growing dill from his long ago loved plants here, across the street, in our garden.  Maybe someone else will do the same in the years to come.  Who knows?  Everything happens for a reason, right?  

The Best Asparagus Cheese Tart Ever

Ok, I've been bombed with requests for the recipe for the Asparagus Tart.  Thanks All!   This is one of those recipes that seems relatively complicated and gets easier over repeated making.  And you will be making it a lot if you love asparagus.  There are rarely leftovers, even for two the tart only lasts about two days in our house.  It is also a great breakfast dish!  If you have questions, please ask.  As I said, the more you make it, the easier it will be to make it.  A good thing!  So, here it is.

Recipe:  Asparagus and Gruyere Tart

Note:  The work in this recipe is with the pastry dough.  Of course that is what makes it so delicious!

"Black Pepper and Sour Cream Pastry Dough"

Ingredients for a 13 inch tart shell

2 1/4 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon kosher salt

3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper - or more, if you like a peppery dough.  I use at least a teaspoon.

3/4 teaspoon of sugar

10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) of cold, unsalted butter, cut into bits

1/3 cup of cold shortening

3 tablespoons of sour cream

3 tablespoons of ice water

Technique for making the tart shell

Blend together the flour, salt, pepper. sugar, butter and shortening with your fingertips or a pastry blender until most of the mixture resembles coarse meal with the remainder in small (roughly pea sized) lumps.

Stir together the sour cream and the ice water, then stir the mixture into the dough until it is incorporated.

Gather the dough into a ball.

Lightly flour your board and flatten the dough ball into a 6 inch square.  Then roll the dough out into a roughly 18 by 6 inch rectangle and fold the dough into thirds - this is like the way you would fold a letter to put it into an envelope (when we used to write letters, that is).

Turn the dough so an open ended side is nearest you, then roll the dough out again into an 18 by 6 inch rectangle.  Fold into thirds again.

**Remember to keep dusting your board with flour.  This is a rich dough.**

Repeat rolling and folding one more time - for a total of three times; wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill for at least an hour.  We have chilled it overnight and it's fine.

Roll out the chilled dough onto a floured surface into a 15 1/2 inch round.  Transfer the dough to your tart pan (or pizza pan, I use a large tart pan).

Trim the edge enough to make it even all around and then pinch to form a 1/2 inch high, double thick side.  Prick the bottom of the shell all over with a fork (called "docking") and chill again until firm - at least 30 minutes.  

Note:  the leftover dough from the edges can be rolled out and cut into small squares, sprinkled with some salt and more pepper if you want (I do!).  Bake until they are slightly crispy and then take them out and let them sit for a few minutes.  They are wonderful, tasty crackers!  I am thinking about just making the dough soon so that I can make a big batch of crackers.

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees

Take your chilled dough out of the refrigerator and line the shell with foil.

Fill the foil lined shell with pie weights or beans or rice or whatever you use.  Don't forget the foil!  I did that once - it's not pretty picking all of those beans out of that semi - cooked dough!

Bake the shell until the sides are firm, about 20 minutes. 

Remove the foil and the weights and bake about 10 minutes more, until you get a golden color.

Remove the shell from the oven and let it cool.  

While the shell is cooling, you can prepare the filling.

Ingredients for Tart Filling

3 pounds of asparagus trimmed to about 5 1/2 inches and peeled

1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt, plus additional for sprinkling

1 cup of heavy cream

2 large eggs

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1 - 1 1/2 cups of finely grated Gruyere (depends on how cheesy you like it; we like it cheesy!)

Technique for making the filling

I put the asparagus in a large flat pan of salted, boiling water for just about 30 seconds  - until you see a nice green color.  

As soon as you have the color you want, get them IMMEDIATELY into another pan of ice water.

Drain the asparagus well and pat dry.

Whisk together the cream, eggs, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and the nutmeg.

Season the mixture with freshly ground black pepper

Note:  If you use a Tart pan, I suggest that you put the pan on a cookie sheet.  Tart pans have removable bottoms and sometimes you get some seepage of the filling before it starts cooking and coming together.

Pour the custart mixture evenly into the tart shell.

Sprinkle the custard with two thirds of the grated cheese, then arrange the asparagus spears in the custart, tips out like the spokes of a wheel.

Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top.

Bake until the custard is set - about 20 minutes.

When the custard is set, Broil the tart about 2 - 3 inches from the heat until golden.  About 1 - 2 minutes.

Enjoy!

Peg Bigley's Amazing Marinated Turkey Breast

Two Boneless Turkey Breasts 

I got so many requests for the recipe when I posted this gorgeous shot, so here it is!  This is a great buffet, summer holiday or winter holiday menu item!  It is served cold, it's delicious and juicy and the sauce is so good you want to eat it by itself!  

Ingedients (for one Turkey Breast)

One 3 1/2 to 4 pound boneless turkey breast (you may have to order this from your favorite poultry farmer).  If you are cooking for a crowd and use two breasts, simply double the ingredients.

For the Marinade

1/2 cup of dry white wine

1/4 cup of soy sauce

1/4 cup of sesame oil

3 tablespoons of lemon juice - fresh please

1 teaspoon of dried thyme

For the Sauce

2 1/2 cups of goodmayonnaise

5 tablespoons lime juice - fresh please

2 1/2 tablespoons seeded, chopped jalepeno 

1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce

3 - 4 cloves of minced garlic

2 1/2 teaspoons of dijon mustard

3 cups of fresh corriander (cilantro) chopped fin

Technique

Mix the marinade contents together and put the marinade and the breast into a large ziplock bag.  Marinate overnight.

Remove the breast from the bag, dispose of the marinade and put the turkey into a large roasting pan

Put the turkey under the broiler until the top is nice and brown - stay with it!

After browning the breast, bake it at 350 degrees for about 50 - 60 minutes

While the breast is in the oven. make the sauce by mixing together all of the sauce ingredients.  

When the turkey is done, refrigerate it and serve it cold.

Note:  You can either slice the turkey or for a buffet and ease of eating, you can cut it into chunks and have toothpicks at the ready. Have plenty of the dipping sauce out - it is always a big hit!

Learning at The Philly Farm and Food Fest 2014

What a wonderful experience the Fest continues to be!  This year, the Fest's third year, was the largest.  More exhibitors and lots more attendees.  Walking around the huge halls, sampling all sorts of delicious tid bits, and of course buying some of the same, was pure joy.

In addition, there were those great, spontaneous conversations with other attendees. Frequently, as I stood on line waiting for a sample, someone next to me, who already had theirs would more often than not turn to me and whoever else was nearby and comment on what they had just popped into their mouth.  And not just, "yum" or "good" or "I don't like that" but rather a layered comment offering comparisons to similar foods or what they would use it for and make with it.  You get the idea.  The Fest fills an enormous convention space with people who love to eat, who care about what they eat as well as how their food is raised/grown/made, who want to get to know the folks who produce what they eat, and are, in addition, always looking to learn more.

We were lucky to be able to get seats at the "Shellfish Salon".  Of course, my first thought was, "Oh, an oyster tasting.  What could be better?".  And yes, there was a tasting, but there was also a lot of great information that the presenters at the Salon shared with us.   Cape May Salts (oysters) have always been much loved in my home.   They are grown in the waters off of Cape May.  And they were harvested out of existence in the late 20th century.  Thanks to the efforts of a coalition of scientists and folks in the fishing and seafood business, they were brought back.  They are delicious, briny oysters - and they are local!  We had the opportunity to slurp a number of Cape May Salts, and other types of oysters from this area, and ask questions, meet the farmers, and hear lot of interesting facts. 

Fun Facts re: Oysters and Clams

"Farming" shell fish is the way to go.  The French have been doing this for generations.  Oysters and clams fit the growing and harvesting techniques central to aqua-farming so well because the way they eat is actually a filtering process.  The oysters eat, the water gets cleaned, and we consumers get delicious shellfish.  It is a wonderful win/win process.

The waterways of the Delaware Bay and off of Cape May are now rated Class A.  This means they are pristine.  These waterways have come back better than ever.  A fabulous thing to hear.

Merroir - a French term and my favorite new word. Recall that the word Terroir refers to the unique flavors and qualities that a growing region imparts on the grapes, and thus the wine, from the area.  It's also a term used by coffee growers and chocolatiers.  The marine environment, the Merroir, likewise affects the flavor of oysters and clams in much the same way.  All of the oysters that grow along our area of the East Coast are the same species of oyster.  The different conditions that they grow in are what contributes to their different textures and tastes.  Their merroir. 

And one, immensly disturbing fact:  over 90% of the seafood consumed in the U.S. annually is imported!  We have wonderful waters around us; we have some delicious shellfish and fish; and yet, rather than pay for this high quality and healthy food, Americans eat seafood from all over the world and not the U.S.!  This applies to the individual consumer and to the restaurant business and retail seafood businesses as well.  I like to say, "Know where your food comes from". In the case of seafood and fish, it is immensly important to do so. And if you live in the Philadelphia Tri-State area, check out, not only the oysters, scallops and clams, but the wonderful fish that run in our waters:  Bluefish, Fluke, Haddock, Butterfish. Weakies,  . . . it is really a very long list!

Other great finds at the Fest included Beet Kavas.  I had a tasting shot, iced cold, and was immediatley hooked.  It's briny with a back taste of delicious beets.  It is very good for you, apparently, which is great because I find myself pouring myself cold shots throughout the day!  Fermentation is a process that I am hoping to learn more about in the coming year.  Many fremented items have significant health benefits, and are delicious.

Pictured above with the Kvass are the oils of Susquehanna Mills Company in Montoursville, PA.  They produce all organic, non-GMO Canola and Sunflower Seed oils.  The oils are delicious, local and processed naturally, and again, no GMOs.  As I make my own mayonaisse, and use canola oil a great deal, I was thrilled to meet these folks and purchase the oils.  We are hoping that their oils will be available soon in our local retailers. 

And, of course there were lots of producers whom we have come to know at the Fest - with products that are must haves for us.  For example, Obis Black Garlic - if you try it, you will be changed forever (if you are a garlic lover of course).  Beechwood Orchards who provide us with wonderful apples, pears, apple and pear ciders and the like through our Fair Food Farmstand.  Also in attendance was Birchrun Hills Cheeses and proprietor Sue who we have come to know well and who produces some of our favorite delicious Pennsylvania cheeses.  The Caputos from out near Harrisburg PA were handing out samples of their wonderful Mozzarella and Ricotta. The Caputos sell frozen curds so that you can make your own mozzarella at home!  We attended one class - and a fabulous producers' dinner - with them, and are still learning, but we are getting better!

I could go on, and I just may in subsequent posts, but as must be obvious, not only was the Fest great and entertaining and informative, but so are the Food Times we find ourselves living in right now.  What a joy to have all of these wonderful things happening in the food world - and how lucky are we to be living in such abundance.  Get to know the folks who farm, produce, raise and/or make your foods.  You'll be glad you did!

Happy Passover.  Happy Easter.  Happy Spring.

Winter's Toll: What We Lost

As we have been cleaning up the gardens and the planting and growing areas over the past week or so, the first things we had to deal with were the fatalities from the unusually brutal winter.  As locals know, the past few winters in the Philadelphia area have been very mild.  This one just past, along with nearly six feet of snow, presented us with temperatures that dropped and stayed down.  Most morning walks with the dogs were completed in single digit temperatures. Along with ourselves, our garden took a beating, that's for sure.

For me, the most painful aspect of that "beating" is the age and longevity of those plantings that are no longer part of our garden.

Our nearly 20 year old Delaware White Azalea is gone.  Also our big Rosemary plant - we called her, "Rose, Senior" based on the 20 some years she was with us - is gone.  A tall, potted evergreen that came to us a number of years ago as a tiny Christmas plant did not make it. The big sage plant that was already in the ground when we bought the house over 18 years ago and was moved to our then new Herb Garden was merely a clump of dead wood when the snow finally melted away.  

It's not all doom and gloom of course.  Our bulbs are happily pushing through. Our garlic chives - toughest plants ever - are back and growing like mad already. Every morning there are more seedlings poking through all over the place. The sorrel making a comeback and the cole crops and early things that we planted in the cold frame are doing fine.

What I think speaks to the soul of us who "play in the dirt" is how attached to those lost plants it seems that I was.  This is reflected most clearly by the fact that I've yet to remove any of those that didn't make it through the Winter of 2014.  I know I have to - they're dead, I need the pots or planting areas, and they look pretty bad, being dead and all. And yet I continue to find reasons to do other things and leave the dearly departed where they, well, departed.

I'll deal with them, just not yet.  I need a little bit more time.

Quick Recipe Tip

Parsnip Chips

These are delicious by themselves and wonderful with hummus and other dips.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Wash, peel, and slice a parsnip into thin - very thin if you like - slices.  In a bowl, mix together grapeseed or any other neutral oil, some granulated garlic, a bit of smoked hot paprika and kosher salt. Toss the slices in this mixture until well coated and spread them out on a cookie sheet in a single layer.  

Keep an eye on them.  They should be crispy after 8 - 10 minutes.  

When you take them out of the oven, let them sit for a minute of two before serving. 

Good and good for you!  Enjoy.