Peony Power

Sunday was so sweltering here in the Northwest Corner of Connecticut that I decided to cut all my blooming peony flowers from their bushes. I figured they’d last longer and be more appreciated in the cool of the indoors. If I was to leave them in the heat all day they for sure would have perished, gone to petals on the ground before anyone else even knew they had existed. I left the tightly closed buds for a second round of picking and added some allium as filler to complete the big bouquet. Three days later, and they are still looking fine, filling our house with the most wonderful peony fragrance.

and closer still…

i love these flowers!

Baby Bella Pasta (with fresh garlic!)

As promised, here’s my portabella pasta, very simple, and very yum. Remember the fresh, fresh young garlic pictured in my Home Sweet Home post? That’s what I’m using here but it could just be regular old cloves too. You will need:

Garlic
Pasta (any kind!)
Baby Bellas
Spinach
Milk
Flour
Butter
Salt & Pepper
Fresh Parm (optional)

Boil the water for the pasta, and depending on varietal, time cooking so it’s about done with the sauce which may take approx. 12 min? In a deep fry pan drizzle olive oil and heat on medium. Chop the white ends off the garlic into chunks. Finely chop the green tops and save for later.

In a sauce pan start the simple white sauce. This will lube things up. Melt 2 tablespoons butter over low heat. Once melted, stir in two tablespoons flour. Add salt and pepper to taste (if your not sure go real easy, you can always add more after the fact.) All mixed?? Add one cup cold milk and stir constantly cooking slowly and lowly until smooth and thickish.

If you are good at multitasking, you can start this simultaneously….Once that fry pan from before has heated all it’s olive oil, throw in whites of garlic and keep half an eyeball that way to toss as needed so as not to burn. Meanwhile shop the babies into whatever bite sized pieces are comfortable to you. same with spinach, or leave whole as desired. Toss it in the fry pan and stir occasionally. Salt and pepper, daahhlings.

I bet your pasta is done by now. Drain it. Throw everything in there and sprinkle with that Parmesan if so desired. Take those garlic greens and throw ‘em in the mix raw. Toss it all around. Serve it up.

I planted seeds today.

FALLS VILLAGE: It’s a little later than any other year I’ve ever planted from seeds. I was thinking maybe it’s because now that gardening is my job, my own grounds fall to the wayside. Although, I am certain I adore what I do for a living, because all I want to do when I get home is all the same stuff I was doing at work all day, except with a cocktail in hand, digging it hard outside in the sunshine till it all goes away and I can’t see what I’m doing. And that’s what I do. It must be love.

Home Sweet Home

I am delighted to be back in Falls Village where my bulbs are blooming! One of the first things I did upon my arrival back east was to pick fresh flowers for every room in the house. Here is what I scrounged up from all my glorious spring blooms… I am so pleased with the results of my fall plantings!

And garlic! with plenty of more plants to cut too! stay tuned for the delicious portabella pasta i made with that garlic, and more hot shots of what’s been blooming around my compound these days. You’ll be impressed.

PARTY TONIGHT! BYO Drinking Jar!

GREENPOINT, BROOKLYN! I know I posted about this already, but I’m just so very excited and wish I could be there. Tonight, April 4th, 7pm, 218 India, Hayseeds’s Big City Farm Supply Grand Opening Party! Bring Your Own Drinking Jar or you’ll miss out on all of the delicious beverages from Breuckelen Distilling, The Drink, Brouwerij Lane, and Red Jacket Orchards. Hope you’ll put a few down for me!

A Few Spots Left

HEY BROOKLYN! There are a few memberships left for sale at the wonderful Southside CSA. I would recommend it to everyone.  Remember my first taste of the CSA scene, documented right here: CSA all the way? I was hooked! If you’re not quite sure what you’ll do with it all, check out my farewell to Brooklyn feature GRILL CITY. It may seem like a big upfront investment, but if you do the math I think you will see how worth it is. And it’s fun too!

Winter Creations

COLORADO: Here’s a picture from my new office. Best seat in the house. I love snow. I just discovered this artist who does too it seems, Sonja Hinrichsen. I really appreciate her approach and it turns out she’s interested in “living off the land” too… Yes, you can eat them: http://sonjahinrichsen.wordpress.com/living-of-the-land/. I like it.

Here Comes Hayseed’s

http://bigcityfarmsupply.com/

Good Work

http://www.good.is/post/good-works-administration

Mother of Millions Abandons Babies For Colorado

I left my babies on February 28th to find some real snow in the great state of Colorado. I know they are in good hands and I can’t wait to see how big they’ve gotten when I return in April!



It’s not too late to start your own seeds! Here’s a pretty good HOW TO article from Mother Earth News: http://www.motherearthnews.com/organic-gardening/seed-starting-zm0z12fmzsto.aspx