Gotta have flowers among the veggies

I've decided I like to have flowers among my produce when gardening.  There's a lot of practicality to gardening but I also need the visually appealing beauty of the flowers.  Of course flowers are vital to producing anything and also attractive to pollinators and other beneficials.  So I make sure there's room to plant marigolds, zinnias, and nasturtiums with my veggies.  Nasturtiums are tasty and nutritious, too!  And are  supposed to improve the flavor of tomatoes.

Kale Recipes

My kale has been doing fabulous in my garden! It doesn't mind the few freezes we've had and basically planted it and forgot about it!  What an easy vegetable!

I think it's beautiful to behold - almost like purple peacock feathers- but that doesn't mean my family equates that with good eating. 

  Here's what WebMD says about kale:

"One cup of kale contains 36 calories, 5 grams of fiber, and 15% of the daily requirement of calcium and vitamin B6 (pyridoxine), 40% of magnesium, 180% of vitamin A, 200% of vitamin C, and 1,020% of vitamin K. It is also a good source of minerals copper, potassium, iron, manganese, and phosphorus. Kale’s health benefits are primarily linked to the high concentration and excellent source of antioxidant vitamins A, C, and K -- and sulphur-containing phytonutrients. 

"Carotenoids and flavonoids are the specific types of antioxidants associated with many of the anti-cancer health benefits. Kale is also rich in the eye-health promoting lutein and zeaxanthin compounds. Beyond antioxidants, the fiber content of cruciferous kale binds bile acids and helps lower blood cholesterol levels and reduce the risk of heart disease, especially when kale is cooked instead of raw." 

Reason enough to try to sneak in to our diet more often!  So I've been experimenting and found some good recipes to use with our kale.

Kale Chips

I've seen lots of recipes for this but basically...

1. Wash the leaves.  Then strip them off the stem and tear into 3 inch pieces.  

2. Place the pieces on a cookie sheet in a single layer.  Drizzle olive oil over the leaves and toss to coast lightly.  

3.  Sprinkle kosher salt or experiment with other spices.  We tried nutritional yeast which gave it a cheesy flavor my family loves! 

4.  Put the pan in an oven set at 250 degrees for 15 minutes.  Turn and then cook for 25 more minutes.

Enjoy!  These were good- not comparable to potato chips- but good.

Orecchiette with Kale, Chickpeas and Sausage

from Williams Sonoma "Cooking from the Farmer's Market"

1 lb orecchiette or shells

1 T olive oil

1 t minced garlic

1/2 t red pepper flakes

1/2 c chicken broth

2 bunches kale, stems removed and leaves cut into 1" pieces

salt and pepper, to taste

3/4  lb sausage, slice to 1/2" thick

1 1/2 c canned chickpeas, rinsed and drained

1/4 c grated parmesan cheese

Boil pasta and cook al dente, 10-12 min.  Reserve 1 c of cooking water and drain the pasta.  While pasta is cooking in a large frying pan over medium heat, warm the olive oil.  Add garlic, red pepper and saute until fragrant, about 1 min.  Stir in broth, kale and a pinch of salt.  Raise the heat to high, cover pan and cook until kale begins to wilt, 1-2 minutes.  Continue cooking until the leaves are tender and the liquid has evaporated, 3-4 minutes more.  Stir in chickpeas and cook until heated through, about 2 minutes.  Add pasta to kale and stir to combine.  Stir in 1/2 c of pasta water to moisten mixture, adding more if needed.  Transfer the pasta to a serving dish and sprinkle with cheese.

I really liked this.  Kale pairs well with sausage.  My family liked it just fine, too.  

Zuppa Toscana

1 lb ground Italian sausage

1 1/2 t crushed red pepper

1 large diced white onion

4 T bacon pieces

2 t crushed garlic

10 c water

5 cubes chicken bouillon

1 c half and half

4 large potatoes

1/4 bunch of kale (I used atleast a whole bunch & it was still great!)

Saute Italian sausage and crushed red pepper in a large pot.  Drain excess fat.  Set aside.  In the same pan, saute bacon, onions and garlic over low-medium heat for approximately 15 minutes or until the onions are soft.  Add chicken bouillon and water to the pot and heat until it starts to boil.  Add the sliced potatoes and cook until soft, about half an hour. Add the half and half and just cook until thoroughly heated.  Stir in the sausage and the kale, let all heat through and serve.  

Yummmmy!

Fall Garden

There are two things that I especially love to take pictures of :  my kids and my garden.  I'm not comfortable with putting my kids out on the world wide web but here's some of what is growing in my garden right now...

Broccoli

Bell Peppers

Swiss Chard Bright Lights

Sugar Snap Peas

Turnips popping up

Peppermint

Purple Kale

Gypsy Peppers

Cherry tomatoes

Green onions, collard greens, broccoli rabe, & cauliflower

Every day I love to check on how my garden is doing.  And I'm not ashamed to admit that sometimes I talk to my plants, encouraging them and the beneficial insects that reside there.  Gardening is very therapeutic for me!  I wish I could live out on the land and have room to grow all my own fruits and veggies.  I know it would be a lot of hard work and maybe I would get tired of it but I love to get my hands in the dirt.  And there's nothing quite like the satisfaction of eating something that we grew in our garden.  That may sound a bit cannibalistic but it's true!

One great thing about living in zone 9a of the deep South is that Fall is an AWESOME time to garden!  There aren't as many greedy bugs, the heat and humidity are way lower and the sun is still shining bea-u-tifully!  And this year our garden seems to have done especially well.

As a family we planted a lot of our fall plants for Family Home Evening.  (For those who have never heard of this, we set aside every Monday night to do things only as a family and we usually have a treat, lesson, and game or activity.  This is a program we have been taught to do by prophets of our church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints.)  Planting is usually the fun part.  Weeding is not always on my kids' list of favorite chores.  But they have willingly helped with watering and keeping an eye out for the bad bugs to pick off and we all pray that our garden will do well and God has blessed us!