Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Garden Greens and a Pickled Egg


It's so exciting to eat fresh, green things from your own garden again. I feel so rich when I sit down to a plate that looks like this. And it all came from thinning my seedlings. I hate pulling seedings, unless I know that I'm going to eat them. These are from a mixed asian greens, arugula, and little baby radishes. There are slices of non-local fennel that I couldn't resist putting in, there-by sullying my hyper-local fare. It's okay by me. The sweet anise went well with the spicy bite of the rest of the greens. Topped with extra-virgin olive oil (I'm a little heavy-handed on that), salt, pepper and a pickled egg (courtesy of my chickens, and pickled in my carrot daikon brine). It was pouring while I ate it, and now the sun has broken out and the sort of crummy mood I was in is now lifting. Thank you sun!

And how's this for a mood-lifter? My first bunch of rhubarb laying amidst the passel of herbs I have waiting to go in a bed. This is from last week and is already steeping in what will become rhubarb liqueur. Sort of crazy that I didn't make jam from it, but that liqueur had me dazzled! I can't wait to pull more because there are tons of rhubarb-y things to make!



N.B. Those stumpy things are scallions that I stuck in some dirt. I've read about this in a bunch of places, but I finally did it with inspiration from Brooklyn Forager. It's amazing how fast these guys grow! And you just need a pot of dirt, really. It's a great gardening experiment for kids as you can see results daily. (Though, I'd warrant that adults like to see daily results, too.)

14 comments:

  1. I'm going to go make a salad right this minute! Beautiful photo. And talented chickens, to lay such eggs. It's raining here again. Sigh.

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  2. God that salad looks awesome! I can't wait till my chicks start laying!
    And rhubarb booze!? YUM. I should try that! Are you going to post your recipe? Or will you tell me? =)

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  3. Shae- I am SO sorry about the rain. Just two days of it was enough to get me down.

    Meg - I'm so excited for your girls! And oh yes, I will post the rhubarb liqueur, but there should be a link to it in this post (my hyperlink color is dull; I should change it so you can see that it's a link!) Make it!

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  4. So nice to see someone making the same rhubarb liqueur on the other side of the country! Let me know how it works out for you. And how adorable is that eensy radish? Eee!

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  5. Ah, now I see the link. Oops. Yum. I am in Oregon where I can buy grain alcohol (can't buy it in Washington) and I was already thinking of getting some for upcoming booze making. Now I definitely will!

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  6. Pickled egg! Never had it before. Would love to try it.

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  7. Deena - Aren't they cute?? And how can I not be enthralled by your rhubarb liqueur? I can't wait to put it in a dainty glass and sip it! I'll let you know how it goes.

    Meg - Yay! You know, full disclosure, I used vodka. Didn't want to bother looking for grain alcohol. But maybe I should know if it's legal or not in my state? And where it might be procured? Hmm.

    Ellie - Pickled eggs are delish and easy. Pop a few in brine once you've eaten all the pickles. I'd let them sit a day, but they can go a month. Yum!

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  8. High-proof vodka is pretty close to grain alcohol. My grandfather used to soak plums in it, and we still have a few jars. It's good.

    I'm not getting the scallion thing- if you have scallions why do you cut the greens off to grow new greens? Do they divide or something?

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  9. were your greens in a cold frame?? i'm happy for you! but jealous! my paws are itching...i need to plant something! (i head up to the berks tomorrow but it snowed there today!)

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  10. That looks so tasty!! I wish I could eat that salad for lunch right now! I also love hearing about what's happening in your garden:)
    -E

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  11. I'm so glad you tried the scallions! Ours are growing new shoots and I've been using them in salads already. An update post will come. Good luck!

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  12. Peter - I figured vodka was fine. The scallion thing is this: I bought scallions, used the greens and cut off the bulb part. Then stuck them in the dirt. They grow new greens and apparently, I can continue to cut them down and they will re-grow. Or so they say! Fun, but I'd rather have all those nice ramps that you have!

    Tigress - No cold frame. I have a good southern exposure. I heard about the snow!! It's been so cold! But you'll have plenty to do, I bet. Like start plucking all of your rhubarb!

    Yummy Supper - Thanks! I would have been glad to share it!

    Kristin - It's amazing how fast they grow!!

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  13. Oh yes, this one is for me...all of it, even the heavy handed use of good olive oil.

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  14. Denise - I can't help myself with the olive oil; glad you're there with me!

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