Back at home after most of the summer on the coast, I am now blanching and freezing veggies from my in-laws’ garden. Chard and zucchini. The chard is a welcome addition to my chilli recipe, as well as the deer lentil soup that I make regularly in winter. The zucchini does an amazing job of fibre-ing up chilli, shepherd’s pie and other soups.
I have mentioned blanching before but I wanted to share my storage technique which I just came up with. Instead of using medium ziplock bags for each portion, I decided to get away from the plastic and wrap 2-cup portions of chard and zucchini in parchment paper. I fold the parchment around the 2-cup portions and once wrapped nicely, place them in a large labelled ziplock. Thus, the ziplock stays clean and I much prefer my freezer food to rest on parchment paper. This is going to greatly reduce my use of ziplock bags, yet I still have the large freezer-weight ziplock to protect the food. As I work to de-plastic my lifestyle, I still want to have convenience and I think this technique will be useful.
Happy fall preserving everyone! (The next level up is canning – we will see!)
I’ve been making this soup often. I feel like I am rallying the troops as I take all the veggies out of the fridge to start cooking. Napa cabbage is a new addition I have made and turns out this veggie is high in vitamin C – a good winter soup veggie. I can eat this soup most days in winter and make a batch about once a week. It is good for lunch or dinner and I feel good knowing I am getting my veggie requirements.
I am going to make this soup for a friend this weekend. It ticks so many boxes: veggies (including 2 cruciferous veggies), minerals from homemade chicken stock/bone broth, and protein from the lentils. Enjoy the last stage of winter – prime soup-eating season. I am proud to say I created this soup. I am really happy with it and I hope others give it a go. There is no nicer way to eat healthfully in winter than with a delicious veggie-filled soup.
Ingredients:
3 tbs pure olive oil
2-3 cups chopped napa cabbage/Chinese cabbage
1 large yellow onion, chopped
2 cups chopped parsley
½ fennel bulb, fine chop
6 large white mushrooms, chopped
1 medium cauliflower, chopped
1 cup chopped celery
2-4 tsp pepper (2 tsp to start, then adjust to taste)
2-3 tsp salt (start with 2 tsp, then adjust to taste)
2 tbs cumin
1 tbs coriander
1 tsp curry powder
½ can full fat coconut milk
1.5 cups well-rinsed red lentils (lentils can have a chalky flavour if they are not rinsed. Do not skip this step.)
8-10 cups homemade* chicken broth, made with the carcass of a Pemberton-raised roast chicken (use 10 cups for a thinner soup)
Method:
Sauté all veggies including parsley. The process takes a while. You want a nicely caramelised batch of veggies. Do not continue until the veggies are at a point where you would enjoy eating them as a cooked side dish.
Add spices and 2 tsp each of salt and pepper.
Add chicken stock, lentils and coconut milk.
Bring to boil, then simmer on low heat for 20 minutes.
Taste the soup. Adjust salt and pepper.
When you are satisfied with spicing, blend the soup in batches in a high-powered blender.
Enjoy!
*Homemade stock makes all the difference. See my previous soup posts on tracedelements.com for recipe for homemade chicken stock. I store the stock in clear 3-cup Ziploc twist-lid containers. I like these as you can see what is inside and, unlike most other storage containers for the freezer, the lids on these ones don’t fall off! (this is not a paid endorsement but I would be interested in this kind of thing!!)
Here is a photo of what my pot looks like with soup stock simmering. My chicken carcass is in there along with all my veggie ends and a quarter cup of peppercorns. This is a good one to two week supply of stock. I often use stock to reheat leftovers on the stove. It heats everything more evenly and adds flavour!
Lately I’m having a hard time drawing the line between what should get more attention: my new Le Creuset Dutch oven or planning out my garden for next year. What to cook vs what to plant. Either way both schools of thought provide me with a constant mind game and humor my co-workers. Not to mention, a day wandering through the Van Duesen Gardens, tackling Julia Child’s ‘Beef Bourguignon’, absorbing the concepts I’ve been studying in an ‘Intro to Landscape Design’ course and an evening with Stevie (MF’in) Nicks – basically, my mind has been on overload.
Stimulation: it’s a blessing and a curse.
The Internet was slow as molasses for Cyber Monday sales as people consumed their lives away. It’s also made my normal routine of scouring through sites for new recipes to cook during the week near impossible. So, I decided to kick it old school and take to my graph paper, apply some new design techniques and start planning out my garden. Nothing like thinking in colour on a grey day: Julia Child inspirations can wait… lasagna is on the menu tonight and that recipe is engraved in my mind.
The process for me starts by making a list of what I loved and what did well, knowing full well that next year might bring completely different growing conditions. But I don’t dwell on that. Just like I’m not dwelling on the fact that last year we were shredding deep snow at this time and this year it’s warm and wet with the lowest base we’ve seen in years. Gross – but c’est la vie.
The second list I make is what’s sucked or I just don’t want to grow anymore. This is largely based on the fact that I can get it from someone local like Laughing Crow Organics or Helmer’s or without sacrificing my own garden space. Supporting our local farmers is equally as important in the grand equation and should not be left out!
The third list is the experimental list AKA: my favourite.
The other lists include; herbs, flowers and things that grow on the deck. This list will change and grow which is part of the glory of working in pencil.
Second step of the layout plan is to draft your garden space on paper, preferably graph (enter a hint of obsession here), to somewhat of an exact scale in 2D form and trace the outline with permanent marker. Then the fun begins – what grew where and where do they go next: the power of rotation.
Be sure to sharpen your HB2 pencil and prepare your eraser for this stage. Start plopping your veggies, flowers and herbs in as you see fit. Ideas will come and go as fast as you think them and are on to the next. And to be completely honest, by the time you go to plant they’ve probably changed but hey, remember, it’s just as much fun to colour outside of the lines as within.
Third step… sit and wait. It’s winter – the ground is frozen, you can’t plant shit but somehow your kale still seems to grow; roll with it. Pour yourself a tasty beverage, dream up new ideas, play around with your design, your ideas and aspirations. No thought is too small or unachievable. Remember, I started my current garden with nothing but a “green house”.
To obsess over what you want to grow and eat is a healthy, sustainable step in the right direction – you just have to be willing to try.
It’s the most wonderful time of the year – or at least it’s MY favourite time of the year.
Colours start to pop as the foliage begins its natural, beautiful progression to death and my appreciation for the warmth of the sun on my back is revived. Praise arises for the rainy days as reason to stay in, make soup and stock the freezer with food. Then there is also the rush of the game to see who gets to the fruit trees first – me or the bears. I go to bed with an extra blanket but leave the windows wide open while the coyote’s howl echoes through the night. Of course the dusting of snow on Mount Currie gets me pretty excited too! And, most importantly, my garden is still delivering the goods.
This time of the year, I also sit back and think about my garden; what worked, what I want to do more of and what I can do away with next year. Journaling for the win: do it, do it now. So, what I thought I would do is share some of my favourite photos of the summer complete with commentary.
First up is purple daikon radish. I pickled the shit out of these guys while in season. When a vegetable randomly forms heart shape upon cutting into it you really can’t help loving it. More will be planted in my garden next year, their spicy flavour is beyond delicious.
Melons. Who doesn’t love a good melon. Previously I had tried watermelon but with little success there, this year I tried cantaloupe. Gave it a sunnier spot and was rewarded big time. Go figure: #shadowruffruff loved it too… juicy and flavourful beyond both our expectations!
I have mentioned that kohlrabi was the undisputed heavy-weight champion in my garden but my Borage babes blew my mind; turns out they’re MASSIVE! They helped pollinate my butternut squash and many other things in my garden, plus the flowers were delicious in salads. This year I trained my squash to grow along the fence in hopes it would take up less space overall. As it turns out this move was a game changer. I will incorporate this method next year as well, perhaps to even shade something that requires less sun. And for the bee’s sake, borage will forever be in my garden regardless of the space it takes up.
You know you’ve made it to the big time when your whole pasta sauce has been sourced from your backyard… I mean it’s SO good you want to share but really not really. Last season was the first year where I grew my own Roma tomatoes, celery, carrots, garlic, onions, basil, rosemary, thyme, oregano and cayenne peppers. I basically vowed from then on this was the way forward every year; always plant enough to make sauce for Dbot. I will also openly admit I have a love affair with fried green tomatoes served with soft poached eggs – you would too, if you’ve had it. Never underestimate the power of a green tomato.
Does your cilantro bolt like crazy in the heat of the summer even if you’re giving it shade from the hot afternoon sun? No problem. Let them bolt and go to flower. The coriander seeds born from the delicate white flowers will produce the best ground version of this spice you’ve ever had. I guarantee you’ll start to plant cilantro just to let it go to seed!
Fall is also the time when members of the brassica family shine. I remember being amazed when I learned how Brussel sprouts grew, so they became a yearly addition to my garden (just be sure to give them plenty of space). New this year was Savoy cabbage grown from seed and it’s sure to make my cabbage rolls go from A+ to A++. Another tip for cabbage is to space out their planting times then you don’t end up with a whole bunch at the same time even though they keep quite well.
Flowers… I will plant way more flowers in my garden next year both perennials and annuals. Some of my perennials are ready to split which benefits both the plant and my wallet. Plus, having fresh cut blooms in my house just makes me smile.
I feel like I could carry on for a long time but as I write the weeds are still growing and they sure aren’t picking themselves! So I’ll just leave you with this last photo that I call, “The Mushroom that had all the Thyme in the World”. #dadjoke #sorrynotsorry
Mother Nature is neat. She gives and she takes: it comes down to how we choose react to each facet in our open relationship with her that matters. Seems odd to me that we’re becoming more accepting the smoke shows each summer and that the map of BC resembles the Lite-Brite I used to play with as a kid. Yet, there are still folks out there that say climate change isn’t real.
This is only one of the reasons why I feel so strongly about the importance of growing our own food, saving seeds, choosing local and preserving. By teaching people easier ways to manage what they grow we can prepare for any surprises thrown at us, have a taste of summer all winter long and make difference.
We are so lucky to live in a valley rich in good dirt for growing and farmers that know how to use it. Every time I pedal out the meadows for a meander I am in awe of the beautiful fields full of vegetables. The Slow Food Cycle that is hosted here every August come rain, shine or smoke is great for educating us on who grows what and other local goods available. Every year there are new and exciting vendors showing us what’s possible if you experiment a little in your backyard. But it’s in these simple connections where the subconscious is fueled with ideas and relationships are forged.
So buy a big bag of carrots from Helmer’s, buy a bag of pickling cucumbers from Laughing Crow, go to the garlic festival this weekend, fill your growlers up at the breweries, stop at the food stands on the side of the road, heck, why not just join the Pemberton Food and Farm Facebook page to see who has surplus of fruit and veggies and take full advantage. Stock your freezer, stock your pantry and feel good about where your food has come from. You can definitely believe if it’s come from anywhere in this valley it’s grown with love and that my friends will leave the best taste in your mouth.
I am grateful that I love to garden (and seem to be good at it) and have the want to share my knowledge and I am so in love with this community… and, I am very grateful for Hazy IPAs on hazy days.
Sounds like a potential math write up but you’re wrong. (I would never do that to you or myself.) I will quickly remind you that I did well in said subject thanks to my dad but generally I don’t care for it… for the most part I’m a pocket calculator gal. So, let’s explore the awesomeness of rotation in a few other ways through a couple quick examples: the wheels on my bike rotate and take me to all sorts of cool places, my car takes me to work so I can afford a bike to take me to all these cool places and well, we all take a trip around the sun every year (whether we want to accept that it results in aging is a whole other conversation).
Regardless on how you define rotation, the point is – it’s good: a chance to roll past the old and explore the new. Now, let’s apply this mentality to our garden.
When I moved into our current location all that existed was a greenhouse for garden space. From what I could tell the only items that had been planted in there were tomatoes, peppers, basil and cucumbers (basically, all the standard greenhouse lovers). However. Over the last couple years I began to realize that the greenhouse location was kind of shady due to the rise of the surrounding cottonwoods and things weren’t thriving as well as they should be.
Then spider mites appeared last year… they even attacked my marigolds. I mean come on: marigolds! They are supposed to be the shit – indestructible. This led me to realize that change was mandatory. So, down came the plastic walls of the greenhouse late-ish last summer and a ton of Sea to Sky Soils compost added in the fall.
Long story short what I’m trying to get across is that planting the same thing time and time again in the same zone is no bueno. Enter the rotation factor here.
There is a simple crop rotation scheme that follows; legumes-greens-roots-fruit. Of course there are tons of don’ts and cans and “rules” that apply to make it not so simple. For instance: potatoes are considered a root and tomatoes are fruit but because they are from the same family they shouldn’t follow each other, they could harbor similar disease and pest problems for the next crop. AND THEN, if you add in the companion planting aspect it can get real strange. Here is a simple plan I came up with for an assignment that demonstrates what a 6 crop rotation could look like.
My “greenhouse” is now the greenest it’s ever been thanks to my decision to open it up and plant a bunch of greens, roots and legumes. But I think the thing to remember is that well, any rotation is better then none and adding organic matter into your beds is a surefire way to add nutrients back in and no future plant is going to disagree to that.
Stay thirsty for garden experimentation my friends!
AKA Mr. Moran, Randal John, Miracs or simply – dad.
My green thumb has been inherited through a long line of amazing gardeners. I am just barely starting to scratch the surface of my mom’s flower power, but I’ve been in deep with my dad’s veggie garden sense for longer then my subconscious knows. Most likely my conception is the root of my problem, this gardening obsession of mine.
RJ, as he’s known to most, is a “retired” teacher: one of the best. His forte is math; a subject I grew up hating, which inevitably led to a few tears at the kitchen table over algebraic equations. Overall I did well at. It’s also not a coincidence that my initials are 3 M’s. He is full of dad jokes, he is an athlete, he is highly involved in the community, he landscapes on Lake of the Woods with his other “retired” friends during the summer and he’s always up for a good time.
When it comes to gardening dad is a full experimenter.
Like father, like daughter.
Since being gifted a pocket calculator or I mean cell phone, RJ’s “we’ll see” experimental attitude has become even more evident and I love it every bit of it. (Small back-story; dad used to drill my brother, our friends and I with math problems because a calculator in our pocket was something we’d never have… so, this is a big HA! told you so moment that I’m taking full advantage of.) Really there is too much awesomeness to share and well… perhaps it’s best we keep some family secrets but allow me to enlighten you with a couple excerpts from text messages complete with photos.
“Trying something new grinding egg shells and coffee grounds putting them in the tomato holes.”
“Also tried some with an egg in the hole. Keeping track of which ones got what.”
“Planted some corn and am experimenting with Epson salts on every second row – again, we’ll see…”
“And finally my parsnips from last year that I leave in all winter – so yummy!!!”
Of course, there are the show-off photos. Dad and I have been firing pictures back and forth of what we’re growing and what’s ready to eat regularly. Rj’s last photo was of what he collected for a TRUE garden salad for dinner, claiming that icicle radishes might be his favourite at the moment but he’d like to try growing the spicy purple daikon variety I‘ve got in my plot. I’ve even been able to share video walkthroughs of my garden. Basically, we each get to live what’s in our respective gardens in a matter of seconds even though we are 2,427km away from each other: technology is very cool.
RJ’s TRUE garden salad
Perhaps the best part of RJ’s massive garden is that it’s always open for foraging to neighbors and friends. Growing more then he and mom can eat really goes to show that when you’re passionate about something and you can share it with others you get the best of both worlds.
I already know that I’ll have a lot of vegetables to share this summer as I have planted more than two of us can eat, but I’m happy to carry on this family tradition out west.
There are essentially a couple groups you would’ve fallen into this past weekend: camping, working or planting your garden (ideally a combo). No doubt in my younger years I was way more into packing the truck with a tent, sleeping material, coolers full of beer, sausages, buns, ketchup, cans of beans and chips – lots of chips – and getting the hell outta of Dodge. Now as I age “gracefully” my focus has changed or maybe temporarily wandered and there is also that work thing. The exception is chips; there will always be lots of chips.
But let’s focus on gardening… What is it about the May long weekend, no matter where you are in Canada, it’s viewed as “the time to plant your garden”? Surely it’s some sort of phenomenon or maybe a myth.
Firstly, I’d like to draw your attention to a key fact. Our growing zone here in Pemberton is radically different from that of my family in Kenora, Ontario and those in Nova Scotia and Newfoundland. Yet, we all assume it’s totally kosher to plant tomatoes and basically everything else outside the same weekend. We can all also agree that one of our garden’s biggest nemeses is frost. So really, by accepting this planting time frame we are all pretty much assuming that frost is off the plate as of May long weekend. Hereby committing our plants to a life outside producing us a bountiful harvest.
It’s as if the universe is giving us a chance to all exist on the same plane for a mere moment in time; I’ll take it.
Here in Pemberton the mercury levels on our thermometers have been reading higher then normal for May. Which has made it easy to get crazy and just start sowing things. And, of course, I am all for this and 100% participated. It speaks to that whole experimental element in gardening that I love. You just have to be ready to face the fact that some things may not survive. Like a game of Monopoly; sometime you pass go and collect $200 and sometime you go to jail. I’m willing to bet the vegetables that prefer the cooler growing season of spring are probably wondering this year like the rest of us why it’s July’ing in May.
Early direct sow experiment with Borage… Status: alive & thriving. Stoked to have this gem in my garden this season.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining about the sunshine and the extra early lake dips but I am hot and bothered that my garden already needs to be watered twice a day… I genuinely miss Spring – She was super cool.
I am not a scientist (although my current course on soils may turn me into one). Nor am I a psychologist; at best I’d classify myself as a horticulturalist. There is one thing I have come to acknowledge more then ever over the last few weeks… my dog’s intuition is more on point then most people I know. She came with the name Shadow and it suits her to a T – LITERALLY.
So, allow me to introduce you to #shadowruffruff.
(Need a laugh? Follow this Hosta lover’s hashtag on Instagram for guaranteed good times.)
Here’s the skinny. Shadow was surrendered to the SPCA in Prince George where her puppy life was basically non-existent; she was quickly moved to the West Vancouver division for rehabilitation. We fell in love with her photo on their website and promptly pinned it down Hwy 99 from Squamish to meet the then 2½ year old Black Lab x Boarder Collie. Instantly we knew she’d be a perfect fit for us and she’s been melting hearts ever since.
She is not stick or ball obsessed (thankfully). She didn’t swim until she was 4 and it’s only because there was a duck to chase. Her ability to find food and crumb around is so good she should be paid for cleaning the floor. She is extremely smart and loves to tell stories. She took up minnowing at age 10 and has been a pro field mouser for years. She is nearing 13 now and still loves to come on biking, ski touring and hiking adventures. She is showing minimal signs of slowing down. Maybe she’s stubborn like me. Grey hairs you ask? Nope. Only a few visible on her chin but most are hidden on the bottom of her paws. A lady never tells or really shows her age.
You might be wondering how this plays into gardening but be worried not for this hound loves veggies as much as the rest of us. When I crack my container snack vegetables she’s usually at my feet before the lid is off. I have to pack extra knowing she’ll eat half of what I brought. But don’t try to feed her kale unless it’s been massaged because she’ll look at you like you’re crazy! Smart dog. You have to watch her around the blueberry bushes, raspberries, strawberries and cherry tomatoes; anything at her level is fair game. She is a phenomenal forager. And, of course, all the thinned out carrots rightfully belong to her dirt and all.
Since my bike crash I have been tripping over her even more times then I can count. A friend gave her the nickname “Underfoot” for good reason. I have been spending most of my time in my garden healing my concussed brain because that’s what feels good and Shadow has been there every step of the way. Therapy dog. Keeping the cats out, barking at the deer and warning me when the bears are close long before I actually see them. Again, her intuition is impeccable on all levels. She is the keeper of my garden, paid in full with vegetables.
Besides, someone has to test out the fresh raked dirt to ensure its level.
It would not be an exaggeration to say that I love all the seasons. Apologies if anyone finds this level of optimism off-putting, I have been told it can be a bit much. I think farming demands it: to anticipate each season’s arrival, to enjoy the process, and to be thrilled to see one go in order to welcome what comes next.
Spring is all about smells. After a winter of snow and soup and spreadsheets about farm planning and field layouts and budgets, it is so nice to smell dirt. Or “soil”, depending who you ask. I did not grow up on a farm and only started to dabble in it as a profession within the past decade, so the novelty of spring has not yet worn off. I hope that it never does.
This will be the third growing season of Four Beat Farm here in the meadows, and I would be lying if I said that I felt ready for it. But that’s the great part about farming and growing food—often the best option (the only option?) is to jump in before you are ready, because nature does not wait, and if you procrastinate too long to till or plant or weed or water or harvest then it may be another 365+ days before you can realistically try your hand at growing that particular crop again.
Right now, spring smells like freshly turned earth, compost, and sweaty horses who, along with their farmer, had a pretty quiet winter. Call it lazy, call it restful, either way the sudden workload of April can be a shock to the system. Thank goodness for variety. For every hour that is spent moving fresh manure into the greenhouse to keep it heated on cold nights, there are taxes to finish, cultivators that still haven’t been repaired, onion seedlings that need haircuts, and horses that appreciate an afternoon head scratch as their muscles rest after morning fieldwork.
When it comes to fieldwork, plowing with horses is slower than with a tractor, no arguments there. Our ever-improving farming systems for 3ish acres of certified organic vegetable seem to be functioning adequately throughout the summer season with the two horses at hand, often called a “team”. When people want to talk about it (or even when they don’t), I can and do enthusiastically chatter on that there are many jobs on the farm that horses do on par or better than I have seen done with a tractor. This is without even getting into the added benefits of having two 1600lb colleagues who eat local fuel, constantly produce compost, and bring a level of determination and sass to the field that I have yet to see in a combustion engine.
For this year’s planned spring tillage, however, which will allow for better crop rotation and attention to soil health, our current two horses are fully employed and could easily share the workload with two more given our short and intense growing season here in the valley. So, as in past years, we as a farm leave the option open to phone one of our many generous neighbours to bring in some extra horsepower for big jobs.
On a practical level, getting a few hours of custom tractor work here and there feels more efficient than feeding and caring two extra animals who are only going to work for a few weeks out of the year. I drawn parallels with fellow small farmers who might choose to rent heavy machinery for excavation projects, or how it can make sense to have a small car for your family and borrow a neighbour’s pickup truck when you need to bring home a few loads of compost to kick off the gardening season.
When weighing the options, I have to remind myself that we are a young farm that is in the business of growing food for our community, and that there are many ways to best do this. That said, if someone in the valley has a well-trained team of draft horses I can borrow to spell mine for a few days when their shoulders get sore, feel free to drive up the valley and drop by.
Our place is the one with plow lines that are not entirely straight, horses that still have their winter coats, and a hoophouse bursting with onion plants that are already dreaming of farmer’s markets at the community barn downtown.
Traced Elements 