Stylicious Purple Pesto

Pesto keeps well in the fridge for up to a week and what better to make with our last harvest of basil & parsley in Southwestern Ontario. 

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of pine nuts
• 1.5 cups of extra virgin olive oil
• 6 cloves of garlic
• 3 cups of purple or green basil
• 2 cups of parsley
• 1 tsp of pepper
• A pinch of salt
• 1/3 of a cup of lemon juice or chicken/veggie stock
• 1 cup of Parmesan cheese

Directions:

• Toast Pine Nuts until golden brown (approx. 5 minutes on med-low).
• Heat oil and garlic on low for 15 minutes.
• Place all ingredients into food processor and pulse until paste forms.
• Serve over any meats including chicken, red meat, fish, pork, etc.

Enjoy!

Garlic Scapes

If you have garlic growing in your garden, this is the time of year that 'garlic scapes' are in season if you are in south western Ontario or in a similar climate.  Garlic scapes are the flower shoots coming out of the garlic foliage   They are very flavourful, nutritious, and a great addition to any stir fry.  Garlic scapes have a sharp onion flavour with a hint of garlic.  As with garlic and onions, the sharpness will decrease towards sweetness the longer they are cooked.  Here is a simple, nutritious, organic side dish for you and your family to enjoy these in-season treats:

Ingredients:

1) 8 garlic scapes (discard flower head and cut into 2" pieces)
2) 1 cup of Brown Rice (or Quinoa or Couscous)
3) 5 thin stalks of Rhubarb (Cut into 2" pieces)
4) 20 asparagus (Cut into 2" pieces)
5) 1 small onion (minced)
6) 1 tsp. of lemon zest
7) 2 tsp. of lemon juice
8) 2-3 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
9) 2 tbsp of agave (or honey)
10) A pinch of salt and pepper
11) 1 tsp of thyme
12) 1/4 cup of toasted pine nuts

Directions:

1) Prepare rice as per directions
2) In a mixing bowl - combine garlic scapes, rhubarb, asparagus, onion, lemon zest, lemon juice, oil, agave, salt & pepper, and thyme.  Saute for 6-8 minutes.
3) Toast pine nuts
4) Combine all ingredients with brown rice and top with toasted pine nuts.

Services 4

How to plan & plant a veggie garden

This is the time of year to get your veggies planted.  Normally I would have planted mine a couple weeks earlier however, I wanted to plan the harvest time for when my fruit trees are bearing fruit so everything is ready at one time for my preserves this fall.  Here are a couple of tips to get your veggie garden planned and planted:

1) Start with good organic soil.  You can even use the soil from your compost.
2) Mound the soil up to ensure proper drainage.
3) Veggies need a minimum of 6 hours of day light so plan your garden accordingly.
4) Plant larger plants to the east and/or to the back of your garden so they don't block the smaller plants from the sunlight.
5) Plant smaller plants to the west and/or to the front of your garden.
6) Plant veggies at least 12" apart for proper growth and the ability to weed throughout the growing season.
7) Put a tomato cage over your tomato plants early so they can grow comfortably within the cage.  It's a lot easier to do early on vs. when the tomato plants are larger.
8) Water every 2-3 days.
9) Be sure to pinch your tomato suckers as they grow to ensure all the energy heads to the fruit and look out for our future blog on "tomato suckers".
10) Break up egg shells at the base of veggies, especially your tomato plants for nutrients through the growing season.

With these steps you will be well on your way to a healthy veggie garden and within months, you will have numerous/organic veggies at your finger tips.
Happy Gardening!