Monday Morning Progress.

Here's a couple photos from this morning's pre-work garden session. I started pulling up the cover crop.




I didn't do anything to the clover and it took off over the winter. This bed had the poorest growth last year and I'm hoping the cover crop will help with that. Legumes have nitrogen fixing nodules on their roots that help put nutrients back in the soil and increase the soil fertility. They also help keep weeds down and naturally fluff the soil with their fibrous roots to make my job come spring a little easier.

The kale has started to flower. That means I'll get to save seeds soon. Good thing, I think I'm out.

Weekday Bread.

The all day bread rise the other day worked. I turned on the oven as soon as I got home and we had fresh-out-of-the-oven whole wheat Italian feather bread to go with our pasta dinner, arugula salad from the garden on the side, of course.

Early rise baking.

It's starting to get lighter earlier in the mornings. I have a really hard time getting out of bed before the sun comes up, something I should remedy if I want to focus more on agricultural pursuits. I was able to get up a little early this morning and had time to start a loaf of bread for dinner tonight. It's a quick loaf normally; it only takes one rise of about an hour. I left it in the fridge this morning though so that hour-long rise can take all day. Hopefully when I get home tonight I can turn on the oven and have fresh homemade bread within the hour.




And, Mike, if you are reading this, sorry I left doughy dishes in the sink. I didn't get up early enough to do the dishes too. Oops.

On the last day of March, Year Two.

Last year on the last day of March I posted several pictures from around the ranch. Here's year two.

**This is a couple days late in posting, but the pictures were taken on March 31st.**

Overwintered garlic and shallots:

Overwintered arugula. We've been having one or two arugula salads a week lately. Arugula + gargonzola + balsamic vinegar = yum.

Overwintered lettuce. Still making a comeback! We can try out a lettuce salad in another week or so.

Radish sprouts. Last year at this time we were already done with the first radish harvest.

New growth starting on the raspberries:

Pea sprouts:

Bolting kale. I'm hoping to harvest seeds soon. We'll get maybe one more harvest of leaves from these guys. There are spring kale sprouts coming up as well, but there will probably a month long gap between the two.

Bifur found me in the garden. He wanted to help. Or he wanted pets. It's hard to tell.

Green Chile Pie.

One of the "extra-curricular" activities at my work is a company cookbook. Ideas are being solicited from employees to make a cookbook with recipes, entertaining and etiquette tips and original artwork. My submission is a simple recipe, but delicious. My mom used to make it now and again and it's just melt-in-your-mouth quiche awesomeness. I give you: Green Chile Pie.

1 1/2 cup shredded Monterrey Jack Cheese
4 eggs
1 1/2 cup Milk (or 2 cups half and half)
2 cans whole green chiles (or fresh if you are so lucky)
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
cilantro to garnish

Take the whole green chiles and slice them open. Fan them out in the bottom of a pie pan to make a "crust" of green chiles.




Layer the cheese into the pie pan.




In a bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, salt and pepper.

Pour the egg mixture evenly over the pie pan.





Bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes.

Garnish with cilantro if you've got it.

Busy.

We were busy in the garden this weekend. I'll post pictures soon. The little starts in the window are starting to get bigger and there are some sprouts outside too - peas, radishes, onions and kale! On the agenda this weekend was:

-Starting tomato seeds
-Sowing more radishes and spinach (two rows of each)
-Pruning the raspberry vines
-Buying seed potatoes
-Planting two grape vines
-A little weeding

Next up on the agenda in the coming few weeks:

-Transplanting broccoli starts outside
-Sowing beets and onions outside
-Making potato towers and planting the seed potatoes
-Building a proper raspberry trellis
-Weeding beds around berry bushes and rosemary. Insert edging to make it look nice!

The busy season is fast approaching. I'm feeling much more relaxed and confident about the things I planted last year like broccoli and peas. But I'm stressing out about things I haven't done before like grapes and potatoes. I guess it's all a learning experience and if something doesn't turn out well this year, I'll do it better next.

El Cheapo Banana Bread.

No, I didn't find a miracle banana bread recipe that uses less ingredients and costs pennies. I did, however, find a giant bowl of overripe bananas in my workplace lunchroom that were on their way out the door.




I spared six the fate of the landfill and made some banana bread with a free main ingredient. I went with Banana Banana Bread from allrecipes. I've made it a few times and it's good and banana-y.





I woke up an hour early this morning and made it before work. I felt so accomplished before I even left the house. I had already baked bread, done the dishes, put out the compost and watered the seedlings. I wish more days were like that.