September Harvests

This week the skeptic in me was proved wrong. For the past couple of years Doug has been itching to grow corn in our garden. Every other year space was a big issue. Now that we have our own "squat-stead" he finally got his wish. Now I've heard stories about organically grown corn and half expected ears measuring the size of my pinkey finger with dozens of worms holes. So when we picked our first ears for dinner this week I was absolutely amazed to see that it was perfect.


The proud gardener














While not as sweet as some corn we've eaten in the past, the whole "from garden to table in less than 20 minutes" thing was more than worth it.














A sample from that day's harvest














On a separate note I tried a new bread recipe yesterday. You make a large batch of it and store the remaining dough in the fridge for up to two weeks. At any point, cut off a piece and bake it for some of the most amazing bread ever. I used half unbleached all-purpose flour and half bread flour. Made it a bit chewier which I love! Here's the link: http://www.motherearthnews.com/Real-Food/Artisan-Bread-In-Five-Minutes-A-Day.aspx

Also made a spectaculor beet and spinach salad with feta:

4 large beets

6 Tablespoons olive oil

2 Tablespoons honey

2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar

1 large garlic clove

2 Tablespoons fresh oregano leaves or 2 teaspoons dried
1-1/2 tsp Dijon mustard

1 small red onion, diced small

Fresh salad greens, enough to make a nice bed on a large platter

3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese (cow's milk feta is milder than sheep's milk)

1/3 cup chopped toasted walnuts

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Cut the tops off the beets, leaving 2 inches of the stems. Wrap beets in foil. Roast until tender, about 1 hour. Cool, peel and slice the beets. (Ormicrowave without foil).


While beets are roasting, you can roast the walnuts and make up the salad dressing. I put the walnuts in a toaster oven, at around 250 degrees for about 10-15 minutes (if you do it in too hot an oven, the walnuts can burn). To prepare the dressing, blend oil, honey, vinegar, garlic, oregano and mustard in blender until thick. Season with salt and pepper.

Wash and dry salad greens, and keep them fresh in the fridge until you're ready to assemble the salad. Arrange the greens on a serving platter. Top with sliced beets, feta, walnuts and red onion. Spoon dressing over.


Even Althea can't resist fresh baked bread. This was how she sat all during dinner.