Spinach Luck

A friend and I thought it was pretty special when we saw this 3-leaf spinach leaf in one of my pots.

Herbalicious

Here's proof that ANYBODY can grow at least some of their own food. If I can do it, anybody can do it. It's my first year attempting to grow tomato plants, vegetables, and herbs which are in pots. These herbs were recently harvested from the small ground garden. Really, give it a try it's a lot of fun and satisfying to eat what you grew yourself. I use these garden herbs in all my cooking. Well, except for the catnip.

Make That Change (Rosé)

Are you interested in what Dr. King said and thought during his short yet influential lifetime? The Papers of Martin Luther King, Jr.: Volume III: Birth of a New Age, December 1955-December 1956 will intrigue. (you can buy it from the Amazon link on the right). I was reminded about this book during Michael Jackson’s memorial where I heard one of the passages:

Whatever your life’s work is, do it well. Even if it does not fall in the category of one of the so-called big professions, do it well. As one college president said, A man should do his job so well that the living, the dead, and the unborn could do it no better. If it falls your lot to be a street sweeper, sweep streets like Michelangelo painted pictures, like Shakespeare wrote poetry, like Beethoven composed music; sweep streets so well that all the host of Heaven and Earth will have no pause and say, Here lived a great street sweeper, who swept his job well.

I hadn’t intended on watching the memorial but I grew up on MJs music and his service brought back memories. As were billions of other viewers, I was urged to look at the person in the mirror and ask her to change her ways. The memorial spoke some powerful message to me. One was Don’t Hesitate. Create!

Have done some photographing and harvesting flowers, took care of a flat tire, spoke with a client, collected driftwood for a fire meditation, harvested an abundance of herbs, made some marketing pieces, and am preparing to finish a batch of limoncello and make some canned pineapple jam. Don't Hesitate.

A couple'a quick n easies:

Dehydrated potatoes with homemade compound butter (sundried tomatoes, garden herbs)
Garden lettuce and mint leaf salad with homemade apricot vinaigrette

Marinated chicken (in the pot, left; ready to eat right) cooked in herb-infused olive oil and a lot of dried garden mint, fresh rosemary, ground pepper
(The uncooked marinade was just some soy sauce, sugar, and powdered ginger. The chicken marinated for half a day. Simmered in a small wok)

**The astringent nature of the Dante Reserve 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon went REALLY well with this meal**



Pasta (cooked)
Sauce: saute together pesto diluted with water, herb-infused olive oil, thinly sliced smoked sausage, grape tomatoes, ground pepper, salt, chopped baby asparagus, chopped mushrooms (in the pot, left; ready to eat, right)

 **I had a glass of Paradiso del Sol's Rose Rosé Paradiso with this. It was alright but this hearty pasta could have used a mild-bodied red**

While You're Waiting On Yourself, Plant Something

“Be Yourself, Everyone Else is Already Taken” - Oscar Wilde

Well said Oscar. A gallon of wisdom stuffed into a quart jar. I empathize with so many of my friends who are feeling frustrated or anxious about wanting to connect with a job or profession that’s more fulfilling. Money for the sake of money doesn’t seem as popular right now. Most people I know and meet want more balance. They’re not willing to do stuff like sleep at the office, or spend all day at work then work all night from home, or take abuses from management. High Five! I’ve chosen not to work with rude or disrespectful clients anymore. I’ve put up with some really appalling behavior from clients in the name of possible production awards but wasn’t what I was about so I decided, if I was going to be happy doing this work, I was going to have to be myself. Being me isn’t always easy because I have a strong craving for artistic expression but haven’t found IT. I hear the calling. Wait up, I can't see you but I can hear you. Keep talking till I get there.

I started a small potted plant garden on the deck where I’m learning to grow a variety of tomatoes, herbs, garlic, and potatoes. I feel like an urban sustenance micro-farmer. It’s been a surprise to learn how excited I get watching my little ones grow up. I’m very protective of my pots. When I see leaves wilting I feel bad and rush to the hose. I’m so happy for the harvest. I give them food and water and care and they give me food and a really good feeling. I bought a bunch of tomato plants from a fellow down the road and they’re all kicking ass except for the Yellow Pear tom. It never grew and the stalk began to rot. What to do? I’ve never grown tomatoes before. I asked a couple people then decided to go it on my own. I named this plant Cinderella. I cut the stalk at a healthy point, set it in a glass of water with some fertilizer in it, and set the glass back inside the pot where it lived with two other tomato plants. After a week Cinderella had sprouted roots from the stalk (right) so I planted it in a fresh pot. Cinderella wants to live! and I’m going to do my best to help.

Before Cinderella’s surgery, I found my first tomato on my very first tomato plant. I was so crazy excited, I named this Green Grape tom Hubie (left).

My wine glass was empty tonight but I'll share the following simple recipe in honor of Cinderella and Hubie. Btw, tomatoes pair well with Grüner Veltliners and I'll start drinking and talking about Grüners this week.

Stem 10 Green Grape toms and cut them in half lengthwise. Load each tom half up with ½ teaspoon of fresh chèvre. Sprinkle with fresh-ground black or white pepper to your own personal taste. Green Grape toms are heirlooms (cross of Yellow Pear and Evergreen) are sweet, juicy and have an acidity that goes really well with creamy cheeses and other rich fillings. Experiment and share what you come up with.