Refrigerator pickles recipe

4-6 good sized pickling cucumbers

4-6 cloves garlic peeled and chopped

2 tbsp dill weed

1 tbsp black pepper corns

3 cups water

6 tbsp distilled white vinegar with tarragon (you can use plain white)

3 tbsp of kosher salt

Pot 

Large glass or plastic bowl or canning jars

Large plate

1) In a pot boil together water, vinegar, and salt for about 5 minutes (all salt dissolved) and cool completely. 

2) Slice cucumbers as desired (I did some spears and a few slices). Put in bowl (do not use metal)

3) Pour cooled brine over the cukes, and cover with plate so that it pushes cucumbers under brine, and place in fridge for 3-7 days. (I saw one recipe that put the cucumbers in canning jars then poured brine over top and placed lids on them.I will be doing this next time to prevent spills in my fridge)

4) I placed my 3 day pickles in canning jars next time I will skip bowl and do this first.

God's work: making pickles

   Cucumbers have not done well in my garden, which is a shame because my entire family adores them. 

   Recently we were delighted to receive a big bag of home grown cukes. 

   They were beautiful on the outside. however we were saddened by the first bite as they were so bitter we could not eat them raw. 

   I have never made pickles before, and I had little hope that pickling something that was already bitter would make it taste better, but decided it was worth a try at making refrigerator pickles before condemning the fruit to the compost pile.

   I searched for a recipe, and ended up making my own which I will post at bottom.  The recipes I looked at said to wait 3-7 days and the pickles would be ready. Today was the third day, so I decided to do a taste test to see how they were progressing....they were fantastic!  

   I was pondering this amazing transformation and it occurred to me that this is like what God does for us. He takes our bitter parts, the ones that we think cannot be of use to anyone, and he transforms them into something amazing that is worthy of sharing!

Here is the link to the recipe as promised

http://richlynourished.blogspot.com/2013/08/refrigerator-pickles-recipe.html?m=1

Sugar baby watermelons

My family loves watermelon! But you might be surprised to know that watermelon is more than just a sweet watery summer treat. Watermelon contains the largest known source of lycopene, even more than tomatoes, as well as a healthy dose of Vitamins A, C, and B6.  These nutrients may provide protection from prostate cancer as well as boost your immunity, dental, vision, and brain healthy. This is my second year to attempt growing my own in the form of the icebox variety sugar baby. Last year I purchased one plant on a whim, it never did we'll and I thought it was due to late planting. This year I selected three very healthy plants, but while remaining healthy they are not growing at all. Upon doing some research I discovered that this variety loves hot weather, here in Texas we have plenty of that, so my next guess after reading they are heavy feeders, is that my soil must not be sufficient. I found an online tip about using almost ready compost to provide both heat and nutrients. Since my plants are already in ground I had to modify a bit. I dug the soil from around each plant, put in the compost and covered with the displaced soil. I am trying to use as little commercial product as possible, but if no results from this experiment in 1-2 weeks then I will use some fertilizer.

Bugs in the lettuce update

Soapy water sprayed in leaves and down in between them worked great on the aphids nesting in my salad bowl lettuce. It works quickly, and so far I have only seen a few more which I sprayed right away. I also sprayed plants that did not have the bugs visibly on them, but had been munched on, and so far I am not seeing new damage just came back from weeks vacation and here is my lettuce.

Zucchini

I have discovered that I love zucchini! My past  experience with zucchini was a mushy side vegetable with very little flavor, and so I have never liked it before. I decided to try a recipe a few months ago that had zucchini in it (basically a thick beef stew made with hamburger meat and vegetables) I really liked it especially the zucchini. I noticed the vegetable had soaked up the flavor, and as small cubes did not get overly mushy. I then decided to try it in chicken noodle soup as a substitute for celery (I am allergic to celery) delicious again! I decided I had to plant some this year. Here is a photo of a blooming plant. These plants are reported to have large leaves and take up lots of room, I plan to experiment with trellising a few, and letting a few have the run of the bed and spill over the side of garden box if needed. I want to try making lasagna will long slices of zucchini replacing the noodles.

Rosemary and bush beans

Last year I planted 6 squares of bush beans (9 plants per square). The plants were very pretty, but every time there were blossoms, the next day I would go out and they would be gone I decided something had to be eating them, but never saw what. This year I planted the last of my seeds, between a late freeze and the dog digging, I only ended up with 6 plants, which I transplanted so they would all be in the same square.  I read that rosemary is a good companion plant  for your beans.  I had a small rosemary in another part of the garden, and it was not growing well, so I moved it into the plot of beans.  The result is good, both types of plants are now thriving.

Rosemary shown here, has a huge range of culinary, medicinal, and beauty uses. One thing I want to try this year is making  skewers from the stalks. 

My bush bean plants are no where near as bushy and green as last year, and with so few plants I do not expect a large crop but I am excited to see a few baby beans growing as you can see in the picture above.

The set up....

We began our project in late May 2012Finished 4'x4' raised bed with square feet marked off with twine ready for planting. We started with three of these.

Getting the beds ready was a family project. It took 4 large bags of garden soil per bed.

The girls were eager to help plant. We used seeds and starter plants.

Introduction

Hi,

Last year with rising food costs, and my two daughters growing into vegetable lovers, I decided it was finally time to stop talking and actually create the long desired raised bed garden. I did a little Internet research and looked at both homemade and store bought versions. I decided it would be cheap and easy to make my own by having Home depot cut boards for me and getting my husband to help me nail them together into squares. The dirt actually cost more than all the other supplies put together. I have since heard that there is a local place you can buy soil by the truck load for a much cheaper price, but I don't have a truck, so for now I have to get it in the plastic bags.  I started with three four by four beds, and researched square foot gardening and companion planting which are the two methods I am most interested in. Last year we had a very small crop due to our late start, but we did get some tomato, jalapeño, a very delicious cantaloupe, and a lot of herbs. The garden is off to a great start this year, and my following posts will be about creating the beds last year, and then skip into this years garden experience. I will also be adding tips and recipes as I go. 

Enjoy!

Bugs in the lettuce...good or bad?

I went to the garden to harvest some lettuce leaves for our hamburgers the other day and one of the plants was crawling with a large number of small bugs.

These tiny little bugs look like spiders and  so they creep me out. I don't want to rid the garden of beneficial insects, so I went Internet searching, i can't find the exact bug, but I think they are aphids or spider mites.  They definitely do not look like any of the listed "good bugs" even though I have seen no plant damage to the lettuce. I do have damage to nearby plants so I am going to try and get rid of these creepy crawlers using biodegradable soap and water first. I found this link on-line that has a bunch of bug remedies for natural growing practice.

http://tlc.howstuffworks.com/home/homemade-organic-gardening-sprays.htm

Nasturtium growing in the garden

Nasturtium leafs and flowers are both edible, and the plant is reported to have a peppery flavor (I have not tried it yet). The leaves are full of vitamins, and eating them helps improve digestion and kidney issues.

Nasturtium does not like to be overwatered, ir fertilized, so next year I may try these in pots set around the garden perimeter, for better results. The blossoms are very pretty, I have only had a few blooms so far. The pungent odor of the plant is said to repel many insects that would like to eat my produce, especially aphids, so I planted seed in random spots throughout the garden. I have one in the lettuce, yet my lettuce has become a home to some sort of insect.