Powdery Mildew and How I Could Have Killed My Neighbor's Koi

Snap peas are in full effect (actually snow peas: I bought seeds from a small seed business in Old Town asking for sugar snap peas and apparently they thought it was find to give me snow peas instead.  Bummed out a bit about it.  Sadly I doubt I'll ever buy seeds there again.).   My dad and I constructed my first excellent trellis from nails, old wood and string.  Awesome.  Planted my peas.  It is lovely.  Then.... attack of the powdery mildew.
Being the quasi-hippie that I am, I googled how to kill powdery mildew with essential oils.  My search led me to believe that misting the leaves with clove oil diluted in water was my solution.  I had clove oil in my stash, so i was ready to go!
As I'm happily spraying away and enjoying the smell of cloves in the evening and thinking to myself how clever I was, my neighbor arrives home.  Now, I live in an apartment and my garden is only 6 feet from  my neighbor's very cool koi pond.  It is in one of those barrels that frats use to keep their natty ice cold on a hot day, so not a very large koi pond.  But it is very nice to look at and adds a lovely fountain sound just outside my bedroom window.
I was promptly informed by my neighbor that clove oil kills fish! Great.  I was in the process of misting clove oil only feet away from innocent fish that could easily be euthanized.   Seriously, who knew?  I'd have been less likely to kill the fish from round-up pesticides.
Luckily I hadn't used all that much and after all I wasn't actually administering the concoction to the fish water.  However, had I used the spray every day, there is a good chance I could have damaged his fish.
Lesson Learned: no playing with essential oils when there are fish nearby!
So, I still have powdery mildew taking over my peas.  sad.

Handmade Custom Pottery for Nespresso

So, people who own the Nespresso maker are obsessed with their machines.  All those commercials with Salma trying to sell the machine using her mass sex appeal are no joke.  For folks who like this stuff, it is probably on the same level for them.  Case in point would be by BF who lives for his Nespresso.  His milk frother just malfunctioned and stopped working, and he is bummed out big time!  I really wonder how many of these drinks he makes on a daily basis.   

He got his machine as a gift, it is the one that doesn't have the extra little latch that pulls out to place the cup on to catch the espresso as it drips, it is the one with the built in non moveable little shelf.  Unfortunately the little shelf was too small to fit any of his mugs, so for the last year or so, he just uses those cute little hard plastic disposable cups that he gets every time he restocks his pods at Bloomingdales.  Though I am glad those single use cups are getting so much use, there really had to be a better option.  These little cups are my answer to the problem.  I brought the plastic cup to my pottery class and threw a set of mugs to mimic the look of the little plastic cups and to fit perfectly in the Nespresso. 

Dehydrated Pineapple & Tomatoes

Just one pineapple will fill up my Excalibur dehydrator. Dehydrated pineapple is basically candy it is so sweet and delicious. My self control is nothing standing up to these treats. The tomatoes were getting so ripe, I dried them too. I intend to grind them up to a nice powder for seasoning, but they are just so pretty I thought I'd admire them for a bit first.

Banana Muffins with Coconut Oil

Banana bread is no doubt one if my favorite sweets.  Sometimes I want that banana bread flavor but I don't want to wait an hour for a loaf to cook, and sometimes I want something between a cupcake and banana bread.  So I am in search for a go-to banana muffin recipe. 
I tried this one out this morning and think it is an approachable and respectable recipe. 

Preheat Oven: 350 degrees
Combine: 1 1/2 cups flour, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/3 cup coconut oil, 1/2 cup sugar, dash of nutmeg, 1 tablespoon coconut milk (milk, almond milk, water, would all work), 1 egg, and 3 mashed ripe bananas.  Mix wet ingredients and fold in the dry.  Mix until dry ingredients are moistened.  Fill your cupcake tin (use liners or do greasing of the dish) 3/4 full.  You will have a dozen muffins (or a dozen plus 1 as I did).
Bake: 20-25 minutes
 
Enjoy!

Sprouted Lentil Fritters

In the last six months I've learned how to sprout lentils. LOVE LOVE LOVE! They are a bit crunchy and at the same time taste like a lentil meets a plant.  Perfect with some olive oil and garlic.   Makes a great addition to salads and can take center stage in a dish.  LOVE.  As is always the case, I sprout way too many for me to eat in a week.  This last sprouting session gave me so many sprouts, I ate them for days and gave a bunch to my mom and froze a bunch of them (haven't defrosted them yet, so not sure how they will hold up).  Still as the week wore on, I needed to find a way to eat them in a different way because I was getting tired of the same lentil salad.
Thus the Sprouted Lentil Fritter/Burger

Ingredients:
1 cup sprouted lentils
1/2 cup cooked bulgur
1/2 egg
2 crackers, crushed, I used ak mak wheat crackers-- or bread crumbs or panko
salt/pepper/cayenne pepper
1/2 onion, chopped
1/2 carrot, chopped
2 cloves garlic
olive oil
pan frying oil (I used grape seed)
herbs (optional)
1/4 shredded cheese (optional)

Directions:
Sautee onions and carrots until onions are translucent.  Let cool while you prepare the rest.  In a food processor, process the lentils, bulgur, 1/2 egg, crushed crackers, herbs (if using-- I used chives and sage), garlic cloves, a couple tablespoons olive oil, cheese, and cooled onion carrot mix.   Pulse a few times until mixture is still a bit chunky, but much of it is mushy. 
Line a baking sheet with a couple layers of paper towels or paper bags and paper towels.  Form the mush into patties (I did them smaller, like little fritters but I can do larger like veggie burgers) and set on the paper towels to soak up some moisture.  After all the patties are formed place another couple of layers of paper towels on top.  Refrigerate for at least 15 minutes to let the excess water come out. 
Heat oil in a frying pan to cook up your patties.  I used less oil, and added more as needed for the different batches I had to do in my small pan.  How much oil is up to you depending on how fritter-like you'd prefer your patties.  More oil, more fritter-like.
Now, when the oil is nice and hot, place as many patties as fit in your pan so they don't over lap.  Adjust the heat to medium high.  When you notice the sides of the patties starting to cook (like a pancake) flip your fritter.  Try to flip only once to lessen the chance it will break.  Place on a piece of paper bag to sop up any extra oil and serve immediately.

I like to eat this along side a salad to give a nice fullness to the meal, or also as a slider with normal veggie burger fixings.  I imagine this will be lovely made with sauteed mushrooms added, so I will put that on my list of things to try with this recipe.

Yogurt Based Key Lime Pie

Kinda Healthy (Key) Lime Pie Recipe with Yogurt

I love this recipe! It is a bit tangy from the yogurt, has probiotics, calcium, and protein.  So, all those good ingredients really cancel out the can of condensed milk, right?

Ingredients:
1 can sweetened condensed milk
2-3 cups plain yogurt
2/3 cup key lime juice or you can use part lemon part lime (key limes are best but regular ones do great as well)
Zest from 2 limes
1 packet plain gelatin
1 bottom pie crust (graham cracker works well)

Directions:
Sprinkle gelatin over juice and let stand for a few minutes.  Meanwhile, in another bowl mix the yogurt, condensed milk, and zest.  Microwave the juice and gelatin mixture for about 45 seconds. Mix well until gelatin is dissolved.  Once dissolved, slowly pour the gelatin mixture into the yogurt mixture until well mixed. 
Pour into pie shell.  Chill for several hours, or until set.  Enjoy!

Adventures in Seed Saving!

Red Lettuce, Green Lettuce,
Red Bunching Onions, and Chives

There are two things I love most: Volunteer plants and Free Seeds!  Yes, yes, seeds are not very expensive, a two dollar packet of seeds will probably not break the bank.  However, I don't ever want just one kind of seed.   I want a whole variety of seeds.  That $2 can quickly turn into $20.

So, harvesting your own seeds can save money.  Additionally, you'll find yourself with way too many seeds, so sharing is a must!  Even better, swapping seeds with another enthusiast is a great way to gather a variety of seeds.

Things to keep in mind:

1. Forget about saving hybrid or GMO-type seeds.  The following crop will be unreliable.
2. Conducting a quick Internet search before you start collecting may save you loads of time and effort-- just to make sure you are not wasting time.  For example, some plants like parsley take two years before seeds will emerge.  Others, like tomatoes may need a few of extra steps before the seeds will be ready to store.
3. Some seeds are edible, so if you get more than you'd ever plant, consider eating them.  (Think winter squash)
4. Seeds will fall off the plant, into your garden, and will grow.  Remember, that when you let your plants go to seed, they have mechanisms built in to spread those seeds and create new plants.  So, if you let a plant go to seed, you will inevitably get seeds in your soil.  They may start growing! If you are not a fan of volunteer plants, you may have a bit more weeding to do.  (Those seedlings are usually edible, at least).

Here are a few examples of seeds I have successfully saved and re-grown:

Chives:  

I love growing chives.  They are so easy to grow, their flowers are tasty, and it so easy to collect seeds.  Another way to propagate chives is by division.  Back to the seeds.  The seeds come from the light purple flowers that frequently emerge from the plant.  Just a few flowers will give you plenty of seeds, so feel free to eat most of the flowers! You can see my post about making chive blossom vinegar here.  Leave the flowers on the chive plant until they look dry and dead.  When the seeds are ready for harvesting, you will see them emerging from the dead flowers.  They are black and nugget like and the size of a pencil tip (smaller than a peppercorn, but still large enough to pick up with your fingers).  Cut off the dead bloom with as little movement as possible (the seeds will start falling out with movement) and tap the dead flower over a sheet of paper, a bowl, etc.  You may use your fingers to loosen the seeds.  At this point, I like to place the seeds out in the sun or at least on the counter for a day or two to let any little bugs escape and to make sure seeds are completely dry.  The seeds are ready for storage.  I place them in mini zip close bags- they kind meant for pills.  Use them in the next year.

Bunching Onion/Scallions/Green Onions: 

Same directions as the chives, however, the blossoms are not delightful to eat.  The seed collecting procedure is the same.

Lettuce:  

Anyone who has ever grown lettuce knows that tell tale sign of the lettuce bolting.  Bolting is the term used to describe a plant that starts to shoot out a tall stalk and produce flowers.  It happens particularly when your spring plants start to feel the summer heat.  If you want to eat this plant for dinner, you had better harvest asap because bolting is detrimental to the taste of the plant.  On the other hand, if you want to collect the seeds, let that lettuce bolt away.  It will be ugly.  The bolting is ugly, the flowers are ugly.  Deal with it if you want the seeds.  Let that plant bolt.  Let the flowers die.  You will see cottony looking flowers as the flower dries out.  You can pinch the feathery flowers off and you will see little oblong shaped dark brown things at the end of the feathery petals.  Those are the seeds.  Let those seeds dry out a bit, try to remove as much of the feathery petals as possible and bag those seeds.  I have a volunteer green leaf lettuce making its presence known as I type.

Parsley:  

Parsley is much like lettuce and chives.  The plant will shoot out flowers.  You let them die on the plant, carefully remove the flower, and tap out the seeds.  Remember, though, parsley will not set seeds until its second year in the garden.  They will give you so many seeds, you will not know what to do.  I have had so many volunteer parsley plants cropping up in crazy places in my garden.