Snowpeas and Chicken Involtini

Made another tasty meal the other night. It was basically chicken stuffed with prosciutto ham, provolone cheese and fresh basil from the garden. I pounded out the chicken until it was a uniform flatness. I then sprinkled it with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Then layered the ham, the cheese and then the basil. I rolled them up and secured them with a toothpick and grilled! It was a fairly easy, super tasty dinner.
I love going out to the garden and snacking on the sugar snap and snow peas. I discovered Edamame hummus from Trader Joe's recently and I can't get enough of it- soo good to dip fresh veggies in!

Lots to share

First of all, I harvested some Swiss chard the other day and made the most amazing meal from it: Sauteed Polenta cakes with Portabella Ragu on a bed of sauteed Swiss chard.

Really interesting article from the backyard gardener in the news journal the other morning. I like this woman because her articles are helpful to the backyard gardener like me!

http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20100624/LIFE0402/6240329/1091/LIFE04/Scorched+earth+accelerates+harvests++pest+count


I must have lucked out in the lettuce department because mine isn't bitter or bolting but it is in a partially sunny spot and I have been watering the garden everyday like clockwork. Tomatoes are coming out in droves, I have been harvesting the heck out of the peas and lettuce. The beans and cucs are just starting to take off. I built a cool net contraption with the help of a neighbor. Originally I was going to buy some stakes and use some of my leftover fencing but when the guy at Always the Garden recommended this nylon netting I took him up on it. Works great so far. The cucs and cantaloupes are climbing it like mad. Perks of the netting are that it is reusable every year, won't break down and holds up to 60lbs of fruit and veggies.

Discovery Vegetables

Wow, it is so cool to see how much growth the garden has undergone in the past couple of months. Tonight I added a handful of fresh snow peas and a sprinkle of cilantro to our Thai Coconut Shrimp dish.
The coolest part about having a garden is watching the flowers bloom and then eventually turn to fruit. The peas are coming out in droves. The pepper and bean plants have tons of flowers but no fruit yet. The chard and lettuces are ready for harvest. The cucs, cantaloupe, squashes and watermelon need a bit more time although you can see they are looking for somewhere to climb and have flowers. My goal is to get out to Always the Garden tomorrow and get some more tomato cages and some stakes so I can build something for the cucs and melons to climb on. (They are "bush" varieties but they are looking like they need a lot of room to climb)

Orion actually ate a raw snow pea this morning and liked it so I think my experiment is turning out well. The kids were having fun digging in the beds and tasting the dirt.

I have a project in the works where I am taking pictures of my neighbor's gardens. I hope to highlight how gardening can be as easy or elaborate as the gardener wants. I have talked to neighbors who simply throw a few seeds in the ground and watch what happens to people who meticulously sow their seeds indoors during the Winter for transplant at just the right time to their beds in the Spring. The two green pepper plants are from the neighbor who sowed them indoors.

Brandywine Buzz

A friend of mine who works at the Y sent me this link. It is chock full of fun things to do this summer presented in a fun, witty way. Check er out:

http://brandywinebuzz.com/

Breakthrough! (sortof Shrek 4)

I am happy to report that last Wednesday I bribed Orion into eating some fresh lettuce from the garden. Yes, it took a DVD purchase but I think we are headed in the right direction. I keep offering it, one of these days he will eat fresh veggies because he wants to, not because he will get Shrek 4.

In the meantime here is a pretty killer black bean salad recipe I created last week. It is full of lean protein and high in fiber. It is great on any freshly grilled fish. I used Tilapia. The cilantro used was fresh from my garden.

Black Bean Mango Salad
2 cups black beans
2 kinda ripe bananas, still a bit green, peeled and diced
1 mango, peeled and diced
1/2 small red onion finely diced
1 jalapeno, seeded and finely diced
juice of 1 lime
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 cup good quality olive oil
In a large bowl mix all ingredients, cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Backyard Composting Class

I am going to take this class at Bellevue State Park in July.

Introduction to Backyard Composting

• DATE: Saturday, July 24, 2010
• TIME: 9:30 – 10:30 a.m.

Learn how to build and care for an environmentally-friendly compost pile and how to begin your own vermi-composting bin with Master Composter and Master Gardener Hetty Francke. This popular program will include a tour of Bellevue State Park’s Compost Demonstration Site, handouts to help you begin composting at home, a power point presentation of compost demonstrations sites in delaware, and a question-and-answer period. Compost bins will be available for $20 each. For adults and families. Pre-register no later than 4 p.m. on Friday, July 23. Meet at the Arts Center. Free program