a little split pea soup for the day off.
“How does your garden grow?”
Well…the squash went crazy! I had to pull most of them out yesterday since they were encroaching on my tomato and herb space. My sunflowers are growing like weeds too!
"‘Now, my dears,’ said old Mrs. Rabbit one morning, ‘you may go into the fields or down the lane, but don’t go into Mr. McGregor’s garden: your Father had an accident there; he was put in a pie by Mrs. McGregor."
The Tale of Peter Rabbit, by Beatrix Potter
My first veggies are on their way! We just got some of the pipes to make our Cloche…so stay tuned for that. These have done well just on their own - although I had to spray Liquid Fence around the garden perimeter because of the deer. Darn deer.
We are having a nice easter today.
What the heck is a Cloche?
Well…it’s this thing that you can make that acts sort of like a greenhouse. My mother told me about this and at first I thought we was crazy, but as always she was right…it’s a very cool thing! You make it out of pipes and a sheet of plastic covering an existing garden and you can plant seedlings or veggies in there a bit earlier than you normally would. Or, that’s what they say. I’m thinking about planting some things this week - and get a head start on some beans and cucumbers.
We will see how it turns out. I already have some lettuce, spinach and snow peas sprouting!
Also, don’t get confused with the name…it is Cloche as in “garden”…not the Cloche as in this hat….which is also called a Cloche.
Tulips!
I planted about 200 tulip bulbs this spring and had a horrible time keeping the deer away at first. The first buds that came up in early April they ate them all!! Luckily, I still had some red, orange, and purple tulips further in the ground and they are in full bloom now. I’m very excited.
Happy Spring!
a little foray into my ceramic days in seattle. photos courtesy of Barb Dunshee at bdpottery.com where I took classes - WONDERFUL teacher and talented artist.
also a nod to my itch to do something muddy…perhaps in a few weeks I will try some painting again. anyway - thanks Barbara for the memories!
I also used the chicken for this veggie/chicken soup.
Jay wanted some White Bean Chicken Chili…which I didn’t exactly (a) have everything for (b) know how to make it ….so, I made something up here.
Onions, butter, garlic, carrots, chicken stock. Then I threw some of the cherry tomatoes we had in here, plus 1 can of white kidney beans. Add some oregano, cumin, red pepper flakes and…..well, I’m pretty sure you could call this White Bean Chicken…soup. It doesn’t really have that “chili” vibe…but I think it’s still pretty good.
So, this recipe didn’t have much to do with my ingredients, but I was using the chicken and pie crust anyway. The recipe is an old standby from Betty Crocker (NOT the one with Cream of Mush soup and bisquick) and is super easy - especially with pre-made pie crusts. (Eep!! shock I know….) I usually make my own crust for fruit pies but also like to have some pre-made ones on hand. SO since I was thawing them anyway for the quiche, I decided to use 1 crust for the quiche bottom, and then the other crust I divided into two, and placed on top of two smaller half portions of chicken pot pie.
I recently have been putting just the top crust on to save on time and calories. I also use 2% milk instead of cream in this one too and it works fine. You basically make a roux for the sauce, after you saute the onions in the butter. Then add chicken stock and milk, and veggies and let it get thick. It always turns out great….and Jay LOVES it.
I froze one of the pies before cooking it, so I’ll have to let you know if that actually works!!
