Merry Christmas Everyone! We had a southwest inspired dinner

We had Christmas dinner a little early in order to have yummy leftovers all week. It was a beautiful balmy day outside. Perfect for barbecuing the turkey - and quite a climate change from last year. Our menu was derived from the November 2008 issue of Sunset magazine. My favorite issue of all time. We have now successfully eaten every single recipe out of it.

We started off the food frenzy with fresh salad greens topped with roasted beets and fresh carrots - all from the yard. I made a dressing out of fresh squeezed orange juice, rice vinegar and olive oil. It was so pretty!

The bird was gorgeous. It was basted with a chile orange glaze that set the tone for my Tex-Mex inspired theme. I had juiced a bunch of lemons the day before and saved the lemon rinds. I put them into the cavity along with some rosemary and sage. The smell was heavenly.

I made Cornbread Chorizo stuffing to go with it (cooked separately.) I was reluctant to try this one because my previous attempts with cornbread dressing resulted in mush. However, this one seemed to have the right combination of dry and wet ingredients and turned out perfectly. The cornbread offset the spiciness of the chorizo and it was just gorgeous to look at.

Last night I prepared the Cranberry Meyer lemon relish, and I must say, it's the best I have ever had. It was so simple to make; it's just cranberries and Meyer lemons (courtesy of the Master Gardener trees.) It really complemented the citrus infused turkey.

The Chipotle Corn Mashed Potatoes were interesting too. I was afraid the chilies would send Ed over the edge, but the potatoes offset the heat nicely. This recipe calls for roasting fresh ears of corns and then cutting the kernels off. I didn't want to spend the money so I used canned corn. I "roasted" them atop the stove in a little olive oil. The combination was great and beat out the garlic potatoes I usually make.

Dessert was a deep-dish apple pie that we love this time of year. Cranberries are one of the ingredients and it makes for such a pretty pie. This recipe features a crumble topping so I threw in some pecans to make it more southern.


It was a great meal. My only regret is that none of you were here to share it with us. I have given you links to all the recipes. Try a few of them and think of me!

The tomatoes say that winter is here

Uh oh. Freezing temperatures arrived last week and I wasn't ready. I'll admit that my Oregon DNA sniffed when the weather folks forecasted freezing temperatures over night. After all, it was in the 50's during the day and I'm still remembering that hot summer we had. But freeze it did.

The thing about the weather here is that it may have dipped down to freezing, but it doesn't park there like it does in the north. A quick freeze and then it's back up to pleasant fall temperatures. Of course my thin-blooded husband was in long johns, but I was still in sandals and short sleeves.

It was enough to K-O the summer vegetables. The tomatoes (and they were just starting to blush nicely), the summer squash, the cucumbers, and the beans - all mush. I saved a few pieces of fruit, but most of them were already starting to rot by the time I got home. My citrus trees weren't happy either - but I didn't lose any. It was enough of a wake-up call that I covered my trees for the next few nights until the frigid weather relented. Next year I will be prepared and will cover my vegetable beds with a plastic tunnel at night. Hopefully that will prevent the kills and provide a little more warmth during the day so things will ripen faster. I am determined to have vine-ripened tomatoes on Christmas day. And why not? I'm the girl who was going to grow lettuce in Alaska!

I Am A Walking Bug Snack

I have discovered that being a hot sweaty woman here in Central Texas doesn't attract cowboys. Instead, I am a walking all-you-can-eat cafeteria for every blood sucking or biting insect within five counties.

What really irks me though, is that I never catch them munching on me. It's only at two in the morning that the welts start to itch and the rashes crawl up my shins. I get up in the morning and am raw from scratching.

It's probably karmic pay back for gloating about my yard. All my hard work (which is why I am hot and sweaty) is really starting to pay off. I got ten flats of Texas Sedge planted this week, plus installed my two Yaupon Holly trees (latin name illex vomitoria - click on the link and read why it is named this. Pretty funny.) Both plants are natives that are drought tolerant and really pretty to look at. I also added some milk weed and fennel for the butterflies to lay eggs on. Next time all those Monarchs fly by my house they are going to want to stop and leave me some caterpillars! I also planted basil (in November, it felt completely wrong) and some winter savory to flavor my black eyed pea dishes next summer.

My garden is still growing like crazy. I am feeding five people, not including Ed and I, with the greens that I planted. I keep harvesting them and you can't even tell I've touched them. They must grow at least an inch a day. It is amazing.

Yep, things going well out in the yard. Now excuse me, I have to go scratch.

My Garden Is Going Nuts!

If you look closely at this photo, you can see that my kumquat is blushing and nearly ready to pick! How exciting is that?

I traveled to Oregon last week to visit family. Flying in over the Siskiyous the fall colors were just amazing. I drove through the Willamette Valley and the vineyards and blueberry fields were on fire with yellows and reds. Gorgeous. I also stopped by Territorial Seeds and got almost everything on my spring planting list. But as I observed things starting to wind down in preparation for an Oregon winter, here in Austin things are just getting started.

The hot days have given way to cooler day and night time temperatures that are perfect for growing vegetables. Even though we have had a couple of rain storms that tried to beat everything in the ground, my plants are growing before my eyes. We are eating salad greens and spinach. The summer squash will be ready this week. The beans and cucumbers are blooming and we are just now starting to get ripe tomatoes.

It is so nice to eat fresh produce again and not be limited by what's on sale at the grocery store! Ed and I now "shop" in the yard every day. Many times we just stand next to one of the boxes and graze like deer. We've considered leaving the salad dressing bottle in the raised bed, but figured that's pushing the fresh food thing a little too far. One must be civilized after all. I'll have to figure out a way to store the napkins...

The First Harvest From Austin

I am happy to announce that the first produce has been harvested (and consumed) from the Austin yard.

It is so gratifying for me to be able to go outside, pick stuff, then bring it into the house and prepare a meal. What is especially delightful about this first harvest is that I've grown things I've never grown before, and prepared a recipe I've only enjoyed in a restaurant. A first-first-first! Wow.

Many of you know that Ed and I are nuts about Asian food (and Asians, you know who you are.) I am especially fond of hot and sour soup. There was a restaurant in Portland across the street from where I worked at Far West that had a really cheap lunch special featuring the soup. It was so hot that it made me sweat - but the flavor, oh the flavor. Unfortunately Mr Chens closed and I have never been able to find another hot and sour that was as good.

That is, until I moved to Austin. There is an Asian restaurant just a few blocks from our house. It is run by a really nice couple with the most adorable 1 year old twin girls. They serve mostly Japanese and Thai food plus the husband is an amazing sushi chef. I ordered the hot and sour soup the first time I went there and fell in love. It's the Thai version with that amazing lime flavor. It is because of that soup that I snatched up my kaffir lime tree when I saw it in the nursery, and then later added some key limes. I've put those trees on my bricked in patio where they get lots of heat and won't get frost bitten this winter. I also added lemon grass to my herb garden.

I've been noticing that I had two limes that appeared to be ripe. I surfed the net and found this recipe, and it seemed to have the same ingredients as the soup I enjoy at the restaurant. We stopped by the local Asian market while out doing errands today and got a really great deal on shrimp ($2.99 a pound!) Suddenly I was in the soup business.

I went out to the back patio and harvested two of the limes. (I wore my tropical shirt for the full effect.) I snipped off two leaves from my kaffir lime (which is grown only for it's leaves - when you crush them in your hands it almost makes your eyes water.) I have two key lime trees to produce fruit for me and grabbed two little globes that looked ripe.

After that I ran out into the rain and cut off some lemon grass. It was great to be able to harvest the stalks and then trim them into the compost bin. Suddenly my life became normal again after all this change we have been through since moving from Oregon in March.

The soup was easy to make. The scent from the chopped up lemon grass was amazing. I've never had any that I bought at the store smell nearly as good.

My key limes were juicy and easy to squeeze - again, much better than anything I've bought. The house took on a wonderful aroma as the soup was simmering.

The shrimp was thrown in at the end and cooked until pink. I ladled the hot mixture over chopped cilantro to serve. The recipe makes four helpings but Ed and I managed to clean out the pot. Gluttony is a terrible thing but I think we'll just overlook it this time. It is so great to eat out of the yard again -- surely that allows for a little indulgence?

Why I Garden

The storm of controversy on twitter over comments being made about Generation Y and why they don't garden has made me reflect on my own journey with dirt. I had no interest in gardening when I was in my early twenties. It was just one more chore for me to do that interfered with my entertainment agenda. I didn't start digging in the yard until I moved to a large city.

It was in Portland that I discovered how connected I am with the earth and how terrible it is to be separated from it. Living in an apartment suddenly made me feel trapped and devalued. My stressful job pushed on me and I had no outlet from which to re-energize. Luckily my friend Jess didn't live too far away, so I gardened in his yard. I finally got my own little weedy patch when Ed and I got married.

But why do I garden? I've discovered that it isn't because there is a definite outcome, like flowers or food, although that is nice. It's not because I think it's the right thing to do or because I need an exercise program. It's not because I am competing with anyone. And it's not because I'm trying to prove to Mom that her lazy daughter can accomplish something. It's because it is a process and a journey that touches my very core. I garden because it is so infinitely satisfying to be outside and smelling the flowers. I love watching the birds and insects that take advantage of my handiwork. The garden is not something I can ever control, so I must accept things as they are and just do my best. Success or failure is part of the process, not a judgement of who I am. Even if I do puff up in pride over an exceptional blossom or vegetable. Nature is so sublime and wonderful, I'm so thankful to be a part of it.

Right now I am listening to the rain after coming in from a morning of ditch digging. The water that runs off the top of the ground is gathering in my trenches and soaking into the ground as designed. The white beacons of yucca blossoms are swaying slightly in the breeze on this gray day. A little bird has taken refuge in the rose bush. This is why I garden.

Summer Squash has been planted. That's so weird.

That's right. I just planted summer squash. Every fiber in my body is screaming at me. Stop! What are you doing!?!?!? WINTER IS COMING!

Not in hot and sweaty Texas. According to the extension service, I should get a nice little crop in before it freezes. I also planted beans and lemon cucumbers. Just to feel a little like normal, I planted greens, carrots, and beets. I resisted the advice to also plant that last crop of sweet corn.

Everything has perked up after that rain we had and the wildflowers are blooming again. We've cooled off from those 100 degree days so everyone is back outside and visiting with the neighbors. I'm back outdoors digging ditches to slow down run-off when we get those huge down pours. It is so strange to me to be thinking of what I need to grow right now instead of planning what I need to start shutting down.

I'm not sure my Oregon born and bred DNA can handle this - except that my lemons are almost ripe. Okay, I'm liken' this new climate!

Rain comes to Central Texas

Finally! It is 75 degrees and I can go outside again.

We have had a week of rain here in Austin and it has cooled things off. So much so that my peas have sprouted.

The most important thing though, is that my tank is full! It is even overflowing. I went outside today and had to dig my trench to slow the water from running into the neighbor's yard. I plan on filling it with mulch to soak up and hold the moisture for the grapes that will be planted and terraced on the berm. I got soaking wet because it was too hot to don rain gear. The funny thing is that I would have gotten just as waterlogged had I been working in the hot sun. I think I prefer rainwater to sweat.

Toughing up the Turf

It is finally time to start planting my new lawn. Be gone with you water-greedy St Augustine grass! There's a tougher act coming to town that will leave you in the literal dust - sedges.

Sedges (Carex spp.) are wonderful plants. They are perennials that resemble grass, but don't have the heavy growing requirements that many of our grasses are bred to demand. The sedge I chose for my front yard is a native Texan that is able to grow in shade with limited water. I have interplanted it with some variegated liriope that I moved from a flower bed. The combination of dark green and the white margins of the liriope should be pretty amazing. I might throw in some red Oxalis lasiandra just to punch it up a bit. If I do it right it will look like one of Grandma Clemmy's or Linda's quilts.

The best thing about it is that it will look great all year round and I won't have to mow it, fertilize it, edge it, thatch it, rake it, aerate it, water it, or procrastinate about it. I can walk all over it, park my lawn chair on it, spill beer on it, and generally sit and wave at the neighbors as they slog it out in the heat slaving over their lawn. Oh yeah, I'm likin' this sedge more and more.