Container Gardening: Peppers

I just wanted to take this blog to show off my fabulous container garden, following specifically the life of the pepper plants, from this summer.
(These photos are also on my Facebook page at www.facebook.com/srdphotographs, or by following the post below. Feel free to like, comment, and share the photos!)

container gardening over the years
Posted by SRD photography on Monday, May 12, 2014

May 27 - Re-potting the plants I purchased from Early Bird Farm.

June 12 - Already so many little peppers!

June 21 - Growing fast.

July 21 - Finally starting to change color!

July 28 - Just about ripe.

August 6 - First pepper harvest; ready to eat!!

And more to come! I absolutely love growing my own food.

Zucchini Banana Muffins

[This post is typed in pink in support of October being Breast Cancer Awareness Month.]

Last summer I couldn't pin enough new zucchini recipes to keep up with my zucchini plants. This summer, I was getting zucchini from my sister, since my plants didn't do well at all. This is a wonderful recipe that I pinned from Jessica at "How Sweet It Is". Her blog is absolutely gorgeous, full of pictures that I don't even think to take when I'm baking (and I love taking pictures of food)!

This is my second time making these delicious, healthy muffins and I ended up adapting the recipe a bit this batch. I did some substitutions and additions and they came out great. I'm sharing the recipe that I ended up baking and the one picture I took.

But seriously, check out Jessica's blog and tasty pictures!
Whole Wheat Zucchini Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins | How Sweet It Is

If I were to put all the main ingredients in the title of this recipe, I would have to call them:
Whole Wheat Zucchini Banana Applesauce Walnut Chocolate Chip Muffins.

     3 c. whole wheat flour
     1 c. all purpose flour
     2 tsp. baking soda
     1/2 tsp. cinnamon
     1/2 tsp. salt
     
     2 large eggs
     2/3 c. packed brown sugar
     2/3 c. milk 
     1 Tbsp. vanilla extract 
     1/2 c. butter, softened (one stick)

     1 1/2 c. zucchini, grated (do not squeeze dry)
     2 small-medium bananas, mashed
     1 c. applesauce

     1 c. crushed walnuts
     1 c. chocolate chips

Mix the first 5 dry ingredients together and set aside.
In a large bowl, beat eggs and brown sugar until smooth. Add in milk, vanilla, and butter; mix until smooth. Stir in zucchini, bananas, and applesauce. Slowly, mix in the dry ingredients. Then add desired amount of walnuts and/or chocolate chips.

The zucchini and fruit measurements are an approximation of what I mixed in. If the batter appears thick or clumpy (mine did the first time I made it because I had packed the zucchini too much in the measuring cup), you can add more applesauce or milk til you see the right consistency. Applesauce is often used as a substitute for oil, so it will make the muffins more moist. If it seems too 'soupy' add a little more flour.

Line muffin tins with liners and fill about 2/3 - 3/4 full with batter.
Bake at 350°F for about 17 minutes or until golden brown and toothpick comes out clean.
Let muffins cool completely before eating.

These muffins make a quick, healthy breakfast. The recipe made about 30  muffins and I froze most of them so I can just grab a couple on my way to work when I don't have time for anything else.

Play with the ingredients to find what you like best - I've made similar muffins that also had carrots and raisins in them and couldn't believe how amazing they were packed with healthy foods! If you want some more zucchini recipes, check out my pinterest board "Eat It!"

Container Gardening

I remember many summers spent planting seeds, weeding, and enjoying the delicious taste of fresh, home-grown produce.
I think I've mentioned that my Mom home schooled all five of us kids for several years. She was always looking for different ways we could learn things, so school was kind of year-round. We didn't always have the book work, but she liked being able to use things (like gardening) to share with the State how and what we were learning.
I remember we had a couple of areas around the garage to plant, but the space wasn't very large and my Dad didn't have the time (or maybe he didn't want to) to dig up more of our just acre-sized yard. Our neighbors had a larger garden area and after Mr. Mustico passed, his wife was more than happy to let us use it. Those summers, my favorite things to grow were corn and beans!

Since I've been moved out for a while (and my family stopped gardening years ago), I was missing the lettuce that was always ready to be cut and eaten. Last year, I decided that I really wanted to try growing some veggies, but I didn't want to ask my landlord if I could dig up the yard... I started reading all about container gardens and decided that was exactly what I would do!

I already had an old, slightly broken trunk that I could repurpose and I could almost see the lettuce growing in it.
I also planted tomatoes and zucchini. For the zucchini, I used some boxes that I had left over from moving and painted them to hide "Captain Crunch."
Although the tomatoes didn't do as well as I'd hoped, the zucchini produced enough for me to share with several people!

This year, I was excited to get planting again. I still had the trunk from last year, and my sister found me another trunk at a garage sale (I'm still looking for more!). I knew I wanted the same three veggies, but maybe with the extra trunk, I could do more.
I asked my dad to help me create chicken-wire-bottoms that wouldn't fall through, like last year. And for the smaller trunk, he drilled holes in the bottom to allow drainage.

I then lined the chicken-wire-bottom with newspaper so that the dirt wouldn't fall through and water could still drain. And filled the trunks with dirt. The large trunk used two 40 lb. bags of potting soil; the smaller trunk was about one and a half bags.

I didn't really want to paint cardboard boxes again; and while they worked well last summer, the clean-up was a bit of a mess. So, I decided to use the large trunk to hold both zucchini plants and planted the salad mix in something a little smaller - after summer clearance is a great time to buy planters if you don't have them already!

Ok, so here's a "before" picture of where I put all the plants...

so many weeds and what's that mess of bricks the previous tenants left?

I wanted to make this area a little nicer, but was hesitant after my last attempt when planting tiger lilies. Once I started pulling out the bricks, I realized there was great dirt there - a perfect spot to easily plant tomatoes!

I've read several from several sources that marigolds near tomato plants helps with a variety of things; so I've got four tomato plants and marigolds on either side of them. We'll see if they do better than last year.
I haven't decided what to plant in the small trunk yet...
Do you think I should try green beans? peppers? carrots??
I even have more small containers that I could probably use. As someone else said, container gardening is addicting - I don't want to get into too much. I know that my biggest struggle last year was watering, but this year I have a hose hooked up and it should make it a lot easier than filling the watering can inside several times for one watering cycle!

Being still new to this, it is definitely a learning process, but it's such a great excuse to be outside every day that I'm able to find much more patience. And watching a zucchini turn from a flower to the size of my 11-year-old nephew's calf is a pretty awesome thing!

  

Thanksgiving Treats

Happy Thanksgiving!

Above are some adorable turkey sugar cookies that I made for a Thanksgiving treat using an egg-shaped cookie cutter and a glass. The different flavored candy corn make perfect "feathers," but last year I used Reese's Pieces and thought they were just as fun.
Making sugar cookies during the holidays is one of my favorite things; and I wanted to share some of my other favorite  holiday recipes with you for this season. (Note: the following three recipes can be found at wegmans.com, but here they are slightly altered in the way that I make them.)

Cider-Glazed Carrots

Oh yumminess! This is an easy fall favorite - and doesn't that roasting turkey just make your mouth water? If you like apple cider and carrots, you'll love this recipe!

Ingredients

   2 lbs Baby Carrots
   2 Tbsp Wegmans Basting Oil
   2 cups Apple Cider
   1 Tbsp Clover Honey
   1 Tbsp Wegmans Lemon-Dill
          Finishing Butter
   Salt and pepper to taste
Yields 4 cups.
Preheat oven to 450°F.
Cut baby carrots in half on a bias. Toss with basting oil in large bowl and season with salt and pepper. Place (in a single layer) on baking sheet and roast for 20 minutes, or longer until desired tenderness.
Glaze
While the carrots are roasting, add cider and honey to large skillet on MEDIUM-HIGH, stirring to blend. Bring to a boil. Cook, stirring about 10 minutes, until liquid is a syrupy consistency and mixture has reduced by about half. Remove from heat. Stir in lemon-dill butter until melted.
Mix with carrots until evenly coated.

Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Bacon

Everything is better with bacon, right? As delicious as the potatoes on the left look, that's not what I'm talking about; you can find that recipe here. I also think fresh shredded parm sprinkled on top of veggies makes a world of difference in taste.

Ingredients
   6 slices Applewood Smoked Bacon, cut in 1-inch pieces 
   2 lbs Brussels sprouts, trimmed and quartered 
   3 Tbsp Wegmans Basting Oil Salt and pepper to taste
Yields 8 servings.
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Toss Brussels sprouts with basting oil and season with salt and pepper. Place (in a single layer) on baking sheet and roast for about 30 minutes.
While Brussels sprouts are roasting, cook bacon.
Add bacon to the Brussels sprouts and roast another 10 minutes.
Sprinkle with shredded Parmesan cheese, as desired.

Yam Gratin with Gruyere

I don't have my own picture for this recipe, but here is Wegmans': 

I recommend using at least 1 cup of cheese for this recipe, but I have definitely used more than that before and even mixed cheeses. Gruyere with fresh Parm. is perfect if you're like me and don't like too much "swiss" flavor.

Ingredients

   3 lbs yams, peeled
   2 cups (16 fl oz) Heavy Cream
   1 cup Shredded Gruyere
   1 tsp salt
Yields 6 cups.
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Stir together heavy cream and salt in large bowl. Using a mandoline, slice yams into large bowl, coating slices with cream mixture.
Spray 9x9 baking dish with nonstick spray and place on a cookie sheet to catch overflow during baking.
Layer yams and cheese in baking dish. Pour any remaining yam-cream mixture over top.
Bake, uncovered, on center rack of oven for approximately 1 hour and 45 minutes or until desired tenderness. About every 30 minutes press spatula against top layer to allow liquid to flow over "crust." Remove from oven and let rest for 15 minutes.


That's all for today! I want to get over to my dad's and see what he's got cooking. If you want to see some of my other favorite 'side' dishes, check out my pinterest board 'veggipes.'

Hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving this year!

Tomato Sauce

A little background before I tell you all about my homemade tomato sauce...

   Throughout elementary school, I was home schooled by my Mom. I didn't just have a semester or class of Home Ec., I was learning it all the time. My Mom taught me how to cross-stitch, sew, cook, and bake all at a young age. I remember making lunches for myself and my four siblings before I was 7 years old! I also remember the first dinner I made for my family all on my own - Italian meatballs from scratch with a box of spaghetti and a jar of sauce. I was so proud of those meatballs.

Apple picking circa 1993/'94.

I remember gardening a variety of vegetables in the summers, picking apples every fall, then participating in a whole day of canning - mostly tomatoes and applesauce. Now I wish I could remember how to do it, but all I can remember is a giant pot full of steaming hot water and trying not to get splashed as I placed jars in and pulled them out with a regular pair of tongs.

The season for apple picking and canning is just about finished for the year, but now is a great time for some delicious homemade sauce! (Maybe you've got the tomatoes already canned for just that.)

My favorite jarred tomato sauce to buy is Ragú® Chunky Garden Combination, so I decided to make my own version.
I had some fresh garden tomatoes from a co-worker, but I bought the rest of the veggies from my local Wegmans. I just picked my favorites to roast together - peppers, sweet onions, carrots and zucchini (I've also used asparagus tips and eggplant). I like to small dice everything so it's not a super chunky sauce. Drizzle with Wegmans' Basting Oil, or just oil and seasoning, and they are ready to roast. Since they take about 40-50 minutes to roast (at 400° F), I did this first and then started the sauce.
Ok, I guess I remember a little more from canning - stewing the tomatoes. To start the sauce, plop the whole tomatoes into boiling water for a few seconds, once you pull them back out the skin almost slides right off; of course they are really hot, so be careful!
I then took a hand masher and mashed the peeled tomatoes in a new pot, added canned tomato paste and brought it to a simmer, mashing occasionally. After a while, I had a fairly smooth sauce, and was able to spoon out the cores of the tomatoes that wouldn't mash.
I continued to let it simmer while adding my favorite seasonings to taste.

Once the veggies were done roasting, I stirred them into the pot of sauce. I kept it warm on a low burner a while longer to let the flavors of the veggies soak in until I had a delicious sauce!
Can't you almost smell the sauce?

I ended up freezing some of it in small containers (like I said I don't remember how to can; maybe I should learn how...). Then I could thaw just what I'd need for a dinner.
My favorite pairing: some sweet Italian sausage, crumbled, with bowtie or angel hair pasta. Yummy, warm, comfort food.