Rushing Spring

         Seeing the newly opened, seasonal, garden center at the local Thriftway made me think of our early years on Orcas.
         Coming from here in the Willamette Valley, and eager for Spring, I really didn’t appreciate the differences in climate. According to all the gardening books, the San Juans were still a solid “Zone 8”, just like Portland. Tax day was the last frost date I was used to, and often it was safe to plant hardy annuals even sooner. With that in mind, I started my first island garden.
         It was late February, the weekend of the annual salmon derby. Pat was out on the water with his fishing buddies, and I was left with a beautiful faux-spring day ahead of me. With visions of bluebells and petunias, I drove to the nursery in town. Instead of the row upon row of bedding plants that I expected to see, there were bare-root shrubs and not much else. I spoke to the lady in charge, and she patiently explained that there were no less than 18(!) separate microclimates on Orcas, and she didn’t stock annuals until the first week of May…but I was welcome to order anything I wanted.
         Undeterred, I went to the hardware store. They’re part of a chain, so they carry what the mainland suppliers send them. I bought a flat of primroses and one of violas. Turns out it was too early for petunias even by Ace Hardware standards. I rushed home to prep my flowerbeds. By the time the fishermen came home, I had everything planted, and protected from the deer. It really looked like spring had come early.
         Unfortunately, the beautiful day was followed by a night with a clear sky. As the sun went down, so did the temperature. In the morning, I was reminded that Violas are also known as “pansies”. Every one had succumbed to the frost. The primroses were wilted, but recovered as the day warmed up. Fair enough. I waited until May to buy more bedding plants.
         You would think that taught me a lesson, but no. The following year, I managed to hold out until the middle of March. Then a string of unseasonably warm days got the better of me. I’d been reading about cool weather crops, and decided it was time to set out the cabbage and broccoli. I had started these from seed, (too early) and they were already getting to big for their pots. The plants had been growing in the unheated utility room, so I didn’t think the temperature shock would be too great. After a day of hardening off, I planted my little treasures. They did beautifully…for eight days. Then on the day of the Vernal Equinox...laughingly known as the first day of spring…it froze hard, then it snowed. So much for cool weather crops.
         The late April night I found myself shivering in the dark garden, covering my tomato cages with plastic bags, I admitted defeat. I realized that spring in the islands just couldn’t be rushed.
         Now, back in the valley, I'm still in a hurry for spring, but it's not so hard to wait until mid-April. At least I'm relatively certain that it won't snow. 
 
 *****

        I like to make this recipe when the garden is in full production, but there’s really no reason to wait. You can use pretty much any vegetables, as long as you get varied textures and colors. It’s the salsa that’s important. The smokiness of the peppers is what makes this dish. I served these to my teenage sons, and neither noticed the absence of meat.

Chipotle Veggie Wraps         A vegetarian entrée

8 Whole wheat Tortillas
2 tbs. corn oil
1 ea. red, yellow & green bell pepper, sliced
1 med. onion, cut into thin wedges
Other veggies (mushrooms, zucchini, etc.) to equal 2 cups
1 lb. pkg. tofu, cut into strips
½ tsp. each cumin and chili powder
1½ cups Chipotle salsa
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Shredded lettuce
Sour cream for garnish

Heat oil to medium high in heavy skillet. Add peppers and onions. Cook until tender.
Add remaining vegetables and cook to desired tenderness.

Reduce heat to medium. Season tofu with chili powder and cumin. Add to skillet along with the salsa. Simmer until heated through.

Wrap in warmed tortillas and top with lettuce, cheese and sour cream.

 

After the Storm

         It's always interesting to me how quickly late summer heat turns to fall rain in this part of the country. It can be in the high eighties one day, and near freezing the next. The storm that signaled the end of September dumped record amounts of rain, took out the air-conditioner at work, and flattened what was left of the garden. When the rain slowed, and the flooding receded, Laura and I surveyed the mess. There were still plenty of tomatoes on the bush, mostly green, but enough were pinkish-orange and worthy of salvage. A good sized cucumber, and a partly red bell pepper rounded out the last harvest. We picked what was there and retreated to the warmth of the house, and a pot of veggie soup.
        Today I finally got around to clearing up the rest of the garden. I pulled up spent plants and retired them to the yard debris bin to be picked up later this week. The wire tomato cages were in better shape than I'd hoped, considering the way they looked. Only the legs were bent at a near 45 degree angle, easily fixed. It only took a little time to have the plot back to pre-garden condition. Standing back to look at the bare patch of earth made me a bit sad. Only six months until next garden season.
         The day of the rainstorm I was lucky enough to experience a new zucchini dish. Tasty little morsels baked in mini muffin tins...zucchini tots! I haven't had the chance to try making them myself, since we've had no more fruit on the squished plant. I might actually have to BUY a zuke or two, just so I could make these at home. I think the grandkids will love them!

Zucchini Tots
Makes about 2 dozen

Preheat oven to 400f

4 cups grated zucchini
3 large eggs
1/4 cup finely diced onion
3/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese
3/4 cup seasoned bread crumbs
salt and pepper to taste

Spray mini muffin tins with oil. Grate the zucchini onto a clean dish towel. Roll up and wring out all the excess water. In a medium bowl, combine all the ingredients and mix well. Fill each muffin cup to the top, pressing down firmly. Bake at 400f for 16 to 18 minutes or until golden brown and crispy. Use a plastic spatula to loosen tots from pan.

 

Homegrown Tomatoes

            It had been more years than I care to admit since I was able to grow a really good tomato...until now. The cool sea air on Orcas was not conducive to ripening tomatoes, not to mention the deer. I had to pick everything pretty much as soon as it was remotely red...or it was gone. We have "suburban deer" here, we see them in the yard occasionally, but so far all we have lost are some strawberry leaves. I think the rest of the garden is too close to the house for the deer to feel secure.
            We planted our garden with lovely organic starts, also benefitting Jordan's school. At first Laura and the kids were sure that the cucumber was going to die. The little plant was wilted every evening. I assured them that it would be ok. To make sure of it, I cut the bottom off a Mt. Dew bottle and sunk it upside down beside the cuke. By filling it with water a time or two a day, we made sure that the water got down to the roots. So far we have harvested 3 nice sized cucumbers, with many more little pickles growing on the trellised vine.
             The bell peppers are also coming along nicely, having already picked a nice red one. Zucchini too, after many years of failure on the island.
             It's the tomatoes, however of which I am the most proud. We are having a bumper crop. The cherries are coming in clusters sweet as candy. Connor and Jordan eat them as soon as they're ripe, warm from the sun, straight from the bush. Even the beefsteak, traditionally a long season fruit, is ripening now. I've never had luck with beefsteaks, even here in Portland. There is something to be said for the new organic hybrids.
            To quote the song "there's just two things that money can't buy...and that's true love and homegrown tomatoes."
     
Simple Greek Salad

2 or 3 perfectly ripe tomatoes, seeded and cut into chunks
1 large cucumber, cubed
1 small jar pitted Kalamata olives
1 small sweet onion, coarsely chopped

Combine all the veggies. Toss with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Serve chilled.

Garden Fever

According to the calendar, yesterday was the first day of spring. The black clouds and pouring rain would argue with that. It just stands to remind me that it's really early yet. The sunny days of last week had me all ready to get the garden going. I should know better, from experience. The last frost date in our climate zone is mid-April. Unless you have a greenhouse or other plastic cover, the tender plants will get nipped.

Last year I helped my grandkids plant their first garden. Their new home came with two 1'x1'x6' planter boxes. They were empty, clean and ready for use. They were also in back of the house on the fenced in patio. Being fresh from the deer wars on Orcas, and having seen actual deer in the front yard, this seemed to be a bonus. What I didn't take into account was that the large oak trees lining the driveway would grow leaves. Jordan, 6 1/2 at the time, and Connor, 3, chose the crop. They requested a salad garden: lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers and carrots. No problem. I explained about having to wait for things to grow and ripen. They were both very excited to get things planted. A field trip to Home Depot bought us the "three s's": seeds, starts and steer manure.

Under supervision, Jordan and Connor helped place the Early Girl and Sweet Million tomato plants into one box. The space in between held the carrots. Hard for small fingers to control, the seed packet  was mostly dumped and then spread around. Pretty much the same for the butter lettuce and Romaine. Oh, well, I thought. We can always thin. A lovely Marketmore cuke nestled in the corner next to the greens. A couple of wire cages over the tomatoes and we were done. Nothing left to do now but water and wait.

 Jordan lost interest first. Connor hung in there with me, faithfully following with his little orange watering can, being the first to notice the little green sprouts of carrot. Jordan got back on board when she saw the first tiny green tomato. After that it was a daily ritual, to check for ripeness. But I'm getting way ahead of myself.

We planted in late March, on a gorgeous Saturday afternoon. The plants we purchased were large, gallon pot size. Those should be tough enough to withstand a bit of cold, right? Nope. The tomatoes did all right, but the cucumber succumbed to frost bite rather quickly. I'd also forgotten about slugs. The unprotected lettuce was eaten as quickly as it grew. Not wanting to disappoint the children, I replaced the cuke with a zucchini plant, since the nursery was out of cucumbers. The plant flourished, but produced no fruit.

Both tomato plants produced large quantities of lovely green globes, but even in the lovely, sunny, rain-free days of last summer they were very slow to ripen. Those pesky leaves were blocking the sun for most of the day. Even so, the kids were thrilled to eat sweet cherry tomatoes warm from the bush, even if there were only two at a time. The carrots were sweet and tender, but no larger around than a pencil, and about an inch long at best. The lack of proper thinning was to blame. Connor in particular didn't care. It was all about the pickin' for him.

This winter, I noticed that the front flower bed has nothing in it, aside from some daffodil and tulip bulbs. With southern exposure, there is full sunlight about ten hours a day. So, the plan is to put the sun-loving crops, tomatoes, cucumbers and maybe a zucchini out there. The empty space around the rose bush can hold herbs. All I have to do is be patient enough to wait out the cold. That, and invest in some slug deterrent.

CAESAR SALAD
1 or 2 cloves of garlic, depending on strength
1 large, fresh egg
1 tbsp. anchovy paste
1 small lemon, juiced
Extra virgin olive oil

Croutons
1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese
Romaine lettuce

Peel garlic and place in food chopper or blender. Add egg. Add anchovy paste and lemon juice.  Blend until smooth. Pour in olive oil to double the quantity. (About 1/2 cup) Blend again. Toss with lettuce. Top with parmesan cheese and croutons. Serve immediately in a chilled bowl.

Too Much Zucchini?

                Nearly all zucchini growers have had the problem of over-abundance. It's just a fact of life. They grow so fast, and the succulent young stage passes so quickly that it's hard to stay ahead. No matter, the older ones can be turned into bread or relish, or frozen for later use. There's always enough to go around, and we're more than happy to share with our friends. But, when the neighbors start ducking around the corner to avoid us, I know we've reached saturation. During spring gardening time, it's easy to get carried away, and plant waaaaay too much. After a lot of years with too much zucchini,  I finally wised up, and decided to grow just one hill of it. We still had plenty, and I became more popular in the neighborhood.

            Now, incredibly, I don't have enough. Since we moved to the island, I've never had a decent crop. I tried more fertilizer, and less. More water. Less water. More sun, more shade. I've asked for and followed the advice of local gardeners, and I'm still baffled, and unsuccessful. With my tail between my legs, I've actually had to ask people for their excess, just so I could make relish. I've even resorted to buying some at the store. It's embarrassing to admit that you can't grow zucchini.

            For those fortunate enough to be less zucchini-challenged, here are a couple of ways to use some of the bounty...c'mon, you know you'll have too much.   

        

Zucchini Relish 

Makes 7 pints

Grind and let stand overnight:
10 cups zucchini                                               

4 cups onions

5 tbsp. salt

Next morning, drain and rinse in cold water.

In large pan, combine with:

1 each, red and green bell pepper, ground

2 ¼ cup cider vinegar                                       

3 ½ cup sugar

1 tsp. nutmeg               

1 tsp. dry mustard

1 tsp. turmeric 
                 

Boil together until relish darkens, stirring constantly, about 20 - 25 minutes. Fill jars while boiling hot and screw on appropriate rings and lids.
 
Process in hot water bath 10 minutes. Remove and allow jars to cool out of any draft. Listen for the "pop" of the lids sealing. Check for seal when completely cool, at least 12 hours. Refrigerate or re-process with new lids any that did not seal. Refrigerate after opening.

********
 Zucchini Pancakes  Savory, not sweet!

Heat oven to 300F

4 medium zucchini

2 tbsp. grated onion

1 large egg, beaten

1 tbsp. mayonnaise

½ tsp. mixed Italian seasonings

salt and pepper to taste

1 tsp. baking powder sifted with 2 tbsp. flour

3 tbsp. oil with 1 tbsp. butter for frying,

Seasoned tomato sauce or pre-made spaghetti sauce

Parmesan cheese

 Grate zucchini (if the skin is tender enough to puncture with your fingernail, leave it on, otherwise, peel). A food processor or electric grater really speeds up the process. Place in a colander and allow to drain  for about 30 minutes, shaking several times. Pat dry between paper towels. In a large bowl, combine first four ingredients. Add seasonings and stir well. Blend in flour mixture, adding more flour as needed until a soft batter is formed.

Heat oil and butter in a heavy skillet on medium-high. Scoop batter by ¼ cup and drop carefully into the hot oil. (In a 12" skillet I do 4 at a time.) Fry until slightly set, turn and flatten with the back of a spatula. Continue cooking, turning as needed, until brown on both sides. Remove to lightly greased baking sheet in oven to keep warm and cook thru. Keep in single layer. Repeat with remaining batter.

Serve topped with tomato sauce and parmesan  cheese.

Seasoned Tomato Sauce:

1 - 15 oz. can tomato sauce

½ tsp. sugar

¼ tsp. granulated garlic

dash each of dried basil flakes, marjoram, and oregano

Combine and heat  through.