101 Gardening Secrets The Experts Never Tell You I like to use natural top soil to start my garden seedlings in. I usually don't use potting soil because it generally does not produce the results I want. I usually fill a large, deep baking pan I have with top soil and bake it for thirty minutes at 350 degrees. This sanitizes the soil and makes sure that no weeds or grass come up in your soil. I fill my trays up with my potting soil and then I plant my seeds. I cover each seedling with a clear plastic cup that I wash and reuse. If you want to root a plant or cutting in water, add a aspirin or two to the water. If you plant your seeds outdoors sprinkle flavored powdered gelatin in the soil with the seeds. Transplanting Tomatoes Or Pepper Plants When planting any type of tomato or pepper plant, pinch off all but the top leaves of the plant. Then carefully fill the hole with dirt and pack the dirt down tight. The Lint From Your Dryer You can shred your daily newspaper and add the shredded paper to your compost bin. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.
Christmas Spiced Parsnip Cake The first time I heard about parsnip cake was only a month ago. I did a photo job for a Swedish bakery and they wanted a photo of a parsnip cake as it, apparently, is a classic Swedish dessert. I have lived in Sweden my entire life and baked countless amounts of cakes but never encountered it before, so I am not sure I would go as far as calling it a Swedish classic. It is however wildly delicious and a very pleasant way to incorporate more vegetables in your life. Perhaps we can make it a future classic? The parsnip cake is cousin with the carrot cake but the parsnips add some very unique mild root tones along with the traditionally sweet taste and moist consistency. Since Christmas is coming up, we spiced the cake with warm tones like ginger, cinnamon and clove that go perfectly with the flavour from the roots. This cake was included in the Christmas update of our Green Kitchen app that we released earlier this week. Spiced Parsnip CakeServes 8 This recipe is gluten free. PS!
Shiitake Mushroom Logs | Frühlingskabine Micro-Farm We are finally, finally getting our “Herb and ‘Shroom Garden” going. And when I say finally, I mean FINALLY. I have been working so hard to get the main garden planted (and reading fiction novels which is quite un-characteristic for this non-fiction bookworm) that I have been struggling to get the Herb and ‘Shroom Garden going. And as part of that goal, I have finished half of the one hundred (yeah… that’s not a typo) inoculated plugs I ordered. Making your own mushroom logs is this easy: Well, one, you need some 4-6″ diameter hardwood logs. Two, you will need some sort of power/electric drill with a 5/16″ drill bit. First, drill holes about 2″ inches deep in a diamond pattern along your log. Next, you will hammer in one dowel per hole. The last step is to wax the top of the dowel filled holes in the log so that they are sealed. Now we just have to stack the logs so that they are not touching the soil and tap our feet as we wait six months to a year for our mushrooms. Like this:
SK Edible Flowers, How to choose Edible Flowers, Eatable Flowers, Edible Flower Chart, List of Edible Flowers, Incredible Edible Flowers Edible flowers are the new rage in haute cuisine Photo of edible flowers picked in Linda's garden in July (lavender, thyme, dill, cilantro, day lily, squash blossom, Nasturtiums, chives, and basil). After falling out of favor for many years, cooking and garnishing with flowers is back in vogue once again. Flower cookery has been traced back to Roman times, and to the Chinese, Middle Eastern, and Indian cultures. Edible flowers were especially popularin the Victorian era during Queen Victoria's reign. Today, many restaurant chefs and innovative home cooks garnish their entrees with flower blossoms for a touch of elegance. One very important thing that you need to remember is that not every flower is edible. In fact, sampling some flowers can make you very, very sick. You also should NEVER use pesticides or other chemicals on any part of any plant that produces blossoms you plan to eat. Never harvest flowers growing by the roadside. How To Choose Edible Flowers - Edible Flower Chart: Directions:
All You Need to Know About Champagne for New Year's Eve and Beyond No matter when you pop a bottle of Champagne, it feels like a party. Champagne, not mere sparkling wine, is the stuff of Hollywood legend, of romance and of celebrations both big and small. Biggie rapped about it, Marilyn Monroe bathed in it and F. Scott Fitzgerald famously argued that there's no such thing as having too much of it. Indeed, there's something magical about a splurge-worthy bottle of bubbly, and during the holidays, there's often no better thing to gift or get. To make the buying process an effervescent affair, we asked some experts for their sparkling suggestions. ① Champagne is expensive for a reason, so budget accordingly." But some styles are less expensive than others. So how much should you spend? If you want to spend a little more, moving past the $55 mark will give you access to vintage Champagnes and premium, multi-vintage bottlings. Corks and cages Need a cheat sheet? The labels will sometimes help to indicate the blend as well.
Overwintering Stevia Plants It’s getting cold here in the —time to bring in the stevia plants before our first hard freeze. As far north as USDA plant hardiness zone 8, stevia plants can usually survive winter in the field. The tops might die back, but the roots can survive as long as the ground does not freeze. I harvested my stevia plants more than a month ago, in September, leaving stubs of 4 to 5 inches in length. The plants might survive in a sunny window. It’s also possible to overwinter stevia roots by packing them in moist soil or peat moss and placing them in a basement or root cellar where it stays cool, but not below freezing. 50 Healthy Holiday Side Dishes We’re jettisoning into the holiday season, and aside from spending valuable time with family, holidays are all about side dishes. Family. Side dishes. That’s it. Plus pie. Since I’m a lady (vicious lie) who tries to keep side dishes mayo-free somewhat healthy, I find it can be difficult each year to decide on a menu that’s not get-out-of-town indulgent, yet is still pleasing to guests. Here they are: Butternut Squash and Sage Risotto from Jan’s Sushi Bar Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes from Climbing Grier Mountain Chipotle Butternut Squash and White Bean Dip from Coffee & Quinoa Cranberry Apple Sweet Potato Hash from Now You’re Cookin’ Southwestern Stuffed Spaghetti Squash from The Comfort of Cooking Jalapeno Cheddar Corn Muffins (gluten free) from My Living Nutrition Crispy Kale Salad with Couscous, Grilled Chicken, and Pomegranate Seeds from Halfbaked Harvest Healthy Chipotle Chicken Sweet Potato Skins from Halfbaked Harvest Green Beans with Lemon-Almond Pesto from Oh My Veggies
Move lemon grass to warm quarters for winter Vern Nelson/Special to The Oregonian Many readers tell me they love lemon grass (Cymbopogon citratus) for its intense lemon flavor and light fragrance. Now they're worried about how to overwinter these frost-tender plants. I started one of my lemon grass plants this spring from unrooted pieces I bought at an Asian market. Vern Nelson/Special to The OregonianTrim leaves to about 6 inches tall. • Round up some black plastic pots and fill them half full of fresh potting soil to save time later. • Lemon grass needs more watering than most plants in winter. • Whether your plants are in the ground or pots, they'll need a haircut: Trim the leaves to about 6 inches tall. Vern Nelson/Special to The OregonianSlice the crown into clumps for replanting. • Gently lift the plant from the ground or pot and set it on a potting bench or other convenient work surface. • Drape the roots over the soil or center the root ball in the pot. • Put pots on saucers and set them in a bright window.
Porchetta Recipe on Food52 Cooking is more fun with friends. Find your friends who are already on Food52, and invite others who aren't to join. Let's GoLearn more Join Our Community Follow amazing home cooks. Sign Up ♥ 66 + Save ▴ If you like it, save it! Save and organize all of the stuff you love in one place. Got it! If you like something… Click the heart, it's called favoriting. Author Notes: Hot, aromatic, slow-cooked pork with lots of crispy cracklings, sliced thick and stuffed into a plain bread roll, was the market-day treat of my childhood—but it's just as delicious as the centerpiece roast in a holiday feast. Traditionally, porchetta is made from a whole (up to 300-pound) boned-out pig, or the loin wrapped in the belly. Makes 6 servings This recipe is a Community Pick! More Great Recipes: Entrees|Pork|Fennel|Olive Oil Topics: Holidays, Meat, Winter 💬 View Comments (19) Share this Recipe Tweet this Recipe
the tricky matter of when to harvest garlic TIMING IS EVERYTHING, THEY SAY, AND WITH GARLIC HARVEST that’s especially true. But since the crop is hidden underground, how do you know when this edible Allium is ready—when it’s just the right moment to insure a well-formed head that will also store well through the winter and beyond? Like fortune-telling, it’s all in reading the leaves, apparently. When to harvest garlic–and how. Don’t let its relatives mislead you. With garlic, though, waiting until all the leaves go brown will promote overripe bulbs whose cloves are starting to separate from one another, and the resulting un-tight heads won’t store as long. Most “experts” say to harvest when several of the lower leaves go brown, but five or six up top are still green—and depending on the weather, this typically happens here in late July. Other factors that affect the timing of garlic harvest besides the weather, is what kind of garlic you planted. I make it all sounds like a lot to ponder, but garlic is easy to grow. Related
Grain-Free Sage and Pecan Stuffing If you live in the United States you are probably well-aware that the holidays are upon us. Most of us are planning our menus for next week and frantically trying to get to the grocery store before all the decent yams are snatched up. If you have food allergies, dietary restrictions, or have been embarking on a grain-free lifestyle like me, you might be worried about what will take the place of stuffing at your holiday table this year. Don’t worry, I got you covered. Remember that tutorial on How to Make Grain-Free Cauliflower Rice? P.S. Now let’s talk about a few other options for that Thanksgiving meal, shall we? Nothing goes better with this grain-free sage and pecan stuffing than Garlicky Mashed Cauliflower and Parsnips. And of course you need something delicious to pour over all that mashed cauliflower and parsnips! You can’t have a holiday table without something beautiful, green, and healthy. Let’s not forget drinks. Grain-Free Sage and Pecan Stuffing Author: Sonnet Recipe type: Side