FOOD and gardening
Apr. 29th, 2011 09:05 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
apple_pathwaysI know it's spring and time to move onto spring vegetables, but there were some yummy-looking leeks in the grocery store the other day, and I couldn't resist! So here's a quick recipe:
Leek, New Potato, and Kale Bake
Ingredients
Instructions
Clean the leeks. I like to cut off most of the tough, green, fibrous tops and then slice them in half lengthwise. Rinse out the dirt between the leaves, and slice into 1/2" strips.
Heat 1-2 Tbs butter in a pan. (I always do about half butter, half olive oil. The butter tends to cook away pretty quickly, and the oil keeps everything sauteeing without adding too much saturated fat.) Add the leeks and the nutmeg, and sautee about 5 minutes.
Add the potatoes and the sliced garlic, and season with salt and pepper. Cook until the garlic softens, about 3-4 minutes. Add the milk and bring to a simmer. You really only need just enough milk to about halfway cover the veggies. Add the chopped kale, and stir until it wilts.
Pour the veggie/milk mixture into a casserole dish. Top with shredded cheese and bread crumbs, and bake in a 350 degree oven until the potatoes are cooked through, about 30 minutes.
Tomorrow, for my friend's graduation BBQ, I'm making an orzo pasta salad with marinated veggies. They had some GORGEOUS-looking eggplants at the grocery store: deep purple, and cream and purple-striped ones. I also bought some zucchini, yellow summer squash, a red bell pepper, cherry tomatoes, and some marinated olives and feta cheese. I think I'm going to add some oregano from the herb garden. What I can't decide is this: should I cook the veggies? How is eggplant raw? My instinct is to roast the veggies, but: before or after I marinate them? Hmm...conundrums.
(Good lord, is this journal boring! If it's not me complaining, it's me wittering on about food! When do I get my Old Lady badge?)
It was a beautiful sunny day, and I spent the afternoon puttering around in the garden. The cat accompanied me, and spent her time pretending to be a street-savvy Wild Animal. She very nearly went after a bumblebee who was working the hyacinths, but wisely decided he was out of her league.
I then went inside, and re-potted some of the seedlings I'd started that were getting too big for the starter trays. Remember the baby pictures I posted of my seedlings? Well, look at my pumpkins now:
THEY ARE READY TO TAKE OVER THE WORLD!
I also have a FANMIX up at![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
sherlockmas. Check it out, and feel free to point and laugh at my taste in Angsty Chick Music. :P
In conclusion, SPRING IS FINALLY HERE! OMG, LOOK:
Now THAT'S what I'm talkin' 'bout! Happy weekend, everyone. xx :D
And now, to work on the latest Music Battle Challenge from![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
evilhippo. This one is FIENDISHLY DIFFICULT: I must tell a story through my song choices, without repeating any artists!
Leek, New Potato, and Kale Bake
Ingredients
- Two medium leeks
- About a pound of red new potatoes, sliced thin.
- 3-4 cloves of garlic, sliced
- Some kale - chopped (I'm sorry: I suck at measuring!)
- Butter
- Olive oil
- Nutmeg - about 1/2 tsp?
- salt and pepper
- Milk (1/2 to 1 cup)
- CHEESE! (I used smoked gouda. It was AWESOME!)
- Bread crumbs
Instructions
Clean the leeks. I like to cut off most of the tough, green, fibrous tops and then slice them in half lengthwise. Rinse out the dirt between the leaves, and slice into 1/2" strips.
Heat 1-2 Tbs butter in a pan. (I always do about half butter, half olive oil. The butter tends to cook away pretty quickly, and the oil keeps everything sauteeing without adding too much saturated fat.) Add the leeks and the nutmeg, and sautee about 5 minutes.
Add the potatoes and the sliced garlic, and season with salt and pepper. Cook until the garlic softens, about 3-4 minutes. Add the milk and bring to a simmer. You really only need just enough milk to about halfway cover the veggies. Add the chopped kale, and stir until it wilts.
Pour the veggie/milk mixture into a casserole dish. Top with shredded cheese and bread crumbs, and bake in a 350 degree oven until the potatoes are cooked through, about 30 minutes.
Tomorrow, for my friend's graduation BBQ, I'm making an orzo pasta salad with marinated veggies. They had some GORGEOUS-looking eggplants at the grocery store: deep purple, and cream and purple-striped ones. I also bought some zucchini, yellow summer squash, a red bell pepper, cherry tomatoes, and some marinated olives and feta cheese. I think I'm going to add some oregano from the herb garden. What I can't decide is this: should I cook the veggies? How is eggplant raw? My instinct is to roast the veggies, but: before or after I marinate them? Hmm...conundrums.
(Good lord, is this journal boring! If it's not me complaining, it's me wittering on about food! When do I get my Old Lady badge?)
It was a beautiful sunny day, and I spent the afternoon puttering around in the garden. The cat accompanied me, and spent her time pretending to be a street-savvy Wild Animal. She very nearly went after a bumblebee who was working the hyacinths, but wisely decided he was out of her league.
I then went inside, and re-potted some of the seedlings I'd started that were getting too big for the starter trays. Remember the baby pictures I posted of my seedlings? Well, look at my pumpkins now:
 |
 |
THEY ARE READY TO TAKE OVER THE WORLD!
I also have a FANMIX up at
sherlockmas. Check it out, and feel free to point and laugh at my taste in Angsty Chick Music. :P In conclusion, SPRING IS FINALLY HERE! OMG, LOOK:
Now THAT'S what I'm talkin' 'bout! Happy weekend, everyone. xx :D
And now, to work on the latest Music Battle Challenge from
evilhippo. This one is FIENDISHLY DIFFICULT: I must tell a story through my song choices, without repeating any artists!![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2011-04-30 01:55 am (UTC)2. I would marinate and then roast the veggies. I don't like eggplant much when it's raw, but when it's marinated and lightly seared it's very delicious.
3. Your garden is coming along splendidly! I need to get stakes and move my tomatoes before they outgrow their box.
4. Hooraaaaay spring! I should get some pictures of the dogwoods in my neighborhood. The neighborhood itself is called "Dogwood Ridge," so they are everywhere, and this year they are finally getting big and beautiful, outgrowing that awkward baby tree stage.
no subject
Date: 2011-04-30 02:01 am (UTC)POST PICS OF YOUR TOMATOES SOON! I love garden pics. ♥ I just moved the tomatoes I started into larger peat pots. In addition the varities my mother has started, I'm growing a strain developed by Heinz that's supposed to be especially good for canning. I love the smell of tomato plants! Am I crazy to want it in some kind of cologne?
Oh, dogwoods!!! ♥ I love them. We have a couple in our backyard, but they're still rather young, and not even close to blooming yet. PLEASE DO post pics, so I can drool in anticipation!
no subject
Date: 2011-04-30 02:08 am (UTC)Will do. I need to find the cord that lets my camera exchange with my computer so I can have better quality pics than last time. What strain is that? I'm doing beefsteak and my mom's fiance is doing some kind I've never heard of before... I'm not sure which I'll prefer. But I do understand your love for their smell. When I was a very little kid I used to sit in front of the fridge and cry for tomatoes and cheese. I could live on tomato and cheese sandwiches forever and be pretty happy about it.
Dogwoods are my favorite kind of tree. I especially love the pink ones, but I love how all the colors look when they bloom. Will definitely get some pics for you!
no subject
Date: 2011-04-30 03:43 am (UTC)I'm using a similar marinade: extra virgin olive oil, white balsamic vinegar, and italian herbs.
As far as I know, the special canning variety I'm growing is called Heinz tomato! (That's how it was identified on the site I bought it from: Pinetree Garden Seeds.) My mother's favorite variety is called Big Mama: they're a plum tomato, but HUGE! Awesome for sauce. Plum tomatoes have fewer seeds and more flesh, which is good for making sauces, but most varities are small, which make them tedious to peel and prepare for cooking. Since this variety is so big, you don't have to peel so many.
Mmm, tomatoes and cheese! ♥ My dear, we are kindred spirits! (Just throw a couple leaves of basil on that sandwich!)
I can't wait for the dogwoods to bloom here! Right now, it's just the forsythia and a few magnolia trees.