This morning's garden fare: gangly green beans, lush lettuces, nutty broccoli and potatoes that will taste of butter. All organic. This is incredible. Most incredible. Instead of fearing for my health on this 84 cent-a-day diet, I'm excited. Come to Freeman House, I want to yell to people sitting in the drive-thru. The eating's great!
Today I'm thinking of some sort of Potato and Tarragon Cake. I saw this yesterday in Fran Ward's Food For Friends, one of my favorite cookbooks. (And seriously, they have it on Amazon right now for about a dollar. Go grab you one.) Trouble is, there's no recipe for this dish. Do you have one? No? Guess I'll have to make one up. Yep, I'm thinking a Potato and Tarragon Cake with a side of steamed broccoli. Or maybe a side of salad with raw, crunchy green beans. Maybe I'll wash it all down with sun tea with a sprig of mint. Yeah. That sounds perfect.
It looks as though this may be typical of the gardening offerings for this week, at least until the squash, zucchini, cucumbers, okra and tomatoes ripen up. Then I'll have so much I'll be sending food to your house, canned into jars and glowing back at you like colors from a stained glass window.
Wouldn't it be cool... yeah, I'm thinking it would be fun... if I journal my meals here and offer recipes to go along with the meals I dream up. Wouldn't it? That way if you have your own little garden plot or get to the farmer's market or grocery, you'll have even more ideas of what to do with all that beautiful produce. I'll try to get right on that.
Okay. Yesterday, June 2 - oatmeal with fresh plums and honey (I traded peppers for plums with my friend Shelley); and garden pizza (homemade crust, pizza sauce, spinach, garlic, onions and broccoli from the garden, and fresh mozzarella). It was superb:
I think I'm going to call this my little Garden Grocery Game, or 'How to Eat on 84 Cents a Day'. If you have a garden. And if, like me, you're broke, hungry and a smidge crazy....
29 comments:
can you miss someone you don't know? in this case, i have. so glad you're back, at least here and there. you just bring such refreshing perspective. i so enjoy reading about your world. it allows me to be transported, if only for a few minutes a day.
thank you for inspiring in ways you'll never know.
I love the game, the name and recipes to come! Yummo!
ooh, I miss the garden of my childhood...you are so right, bringing in fresh veggies, ripe from the field is so amazing! The country heart still beats inside the heart of this suburban mom...hmmmm, I will need to figure a way to bring the farmer girl back!...keep the inspiration coming!
So far, so good!! I WANT that pizza!
BEAUTIFUL photos and I love the new banner. 84 cents/day is an exciting challenge, especially when told through an honest-to-goodness perspective, which I am so looking forward to reading from you. Your garden sounds amazing.
Your home grown veggies look delectable. There's nothing better than home grown veggies. I only wish I had more space to grow EVERYTHING!! lol
I'm going to have to read your blog AFTER I eat my supper because your images and talk makes me hungry!! :-)
LindaSonia
Yummy! I love veggie pizza. It's fun a nd healthy and our kids love it too!
This sounds so good. I'm doing the same game with my desserts. I'm experimenting with rhubarb. I've got tons of it. Make cake just came out of the oven, and I can tell by the smell, that I won this game! Kathi
You are inspiring my to cook better and utilize my local farm more! :)
Mmmm... that pizza looks delicious! I'll be looking forward to your recipes this month. I'm sure they'll be delicious... and so healthy and nutritious! Yum! :)
I am looking foward to all the new recipes and ideas. That pizza looks fantastic!
The cookbook idea sounds like a winner to me....
Great game! I would join in, except my sad attempt at a garden isn't going so well; something has been eating my broccoli and lettuce. But I will really enjoy reading all about your garden adventures!
So, so glad you are back!
I am out of town right now, but you have inspired me to 'use up' what I have on hand- plus expand my garden
Enjoyed visiting,
Laura
You know Brin, this not only sounds really delicious, it is about the healthiest diet around! I would love it if you journaled this day by day. It would be a great inspiration to me and many others:>)
Brin,
I am so glad you are back and blogging! I missed you. I had been re-reading your old posts to buoy me up during my own struggles and then one day you were back! I think that was definitely a God thang!!!
Thanks,
Martha
I think it's a great idea to share your recipes during this experiment/adventure. I've had to start a low carb diet and have really enjoyed new things like grilled asparagus and mashed cauliflower. I'm looking forward to your creations.
Glad to see you are able to use the garden for yourself and eat off of what you have. Love the new pic up top of your blog page.
I had been looking wistfully at your blog link of late, wondering how you were doing. Lo and behold, when I clicked on it this evening, THERE YOU WERE! BRIN'S BACK!
As for dear Laura, I read the whole series to my children, three (!) times. We LOVED the books, and even visited her homes in Kansas, Minnesota, South Dakota, and Missouri. It is so awesome to visit where she lived. I highly recommend it.
So glad to be able to read you again, Brin. God bless you, and hugs to Millie!
I found your blog once you had decided to finish, and read bunches of your archives and feel like you're a old friend somehow. I'm so glad you're back! Hope the garden and 84 cent diet works out great!
Brin, My granddaughter and I are going to bake your Lemon Balm shortbread tonight. She's 6 years old and loves to pick the lemon balm in my yard, so we will make something with it this time!
The pizza looks delish. I live in an apartment, but I'd love to have a garden like this. How cool to walk outside and pick out your fresh veggies for dinner :-)
Sigh.
I have really missed this!
Potato cakes sound delicious. We make them with mashed potatoes. Use about a cup of mashed potatoes, a little chopped onion and an egg. Mix together and drop by large spoonfuls (which you then flatten) into hot oil. So good! You could use grated raw potatoes as well. My mom picks wild plants and uses them in her meals-that takes a lot of education though, and I don't know nearly as much as she does. I should learn more..
Glad to see you're back!!
In a couple weeks I hope to join you in the garden grocery game. Not quite enough food out there yet, unless I eat the weeds too. Soon, however, there will be a plethora of blackberries.
I am thrilled that you are back. Lovin' it!! We had fresh-from-the-garden zucchini! Nothing fancy, justed steamed. I have a tiny garden with tomatoes, melons, bell pepper, artichokes and cukes (and,of course, the zucchini)
I don't think you're crazy at all. I think you're fabulous! Eating from your garden? You make me wish I had one now. Love the header picture too. You rock my girl! xxoo
Love your closing line! I'm enjoying hearing what you're eating too. My hubby has a small garden and I just think of it as his "hobby", not a money saving opportunity. Thanks for opening my eyes.
I hope you will continue to journal about your garden diet. I'm lovin' this idea. And recipes would be very welcomed! We have a very small garden and access to a tremendous local farmers market. I'd love to try something like this, if I could get my hubby and son (the meat eaters and junk food junkies) to buy into it. But hey, I'm the one buying the groceries, right? ;)
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