Another Artichoke Meal, Harvested By Madi And Ryan...And A New Recipe!

Recipe: Roasted Heirloom Cauliflower


The cauliflower I used for this recipe is a mixture of Purple Cape and Cheddar varieties. I got these at the Santa Monica Farmer's Market, but we scored some Purple Cape seeds from Seed Savers Exchange, and we have baby plants growing in the garden. These varieties of cauliflower are so delicious. It's not the steamed white stuff from the 70s, that's for sure! And what kid doesn't love eating yellow and purple veggies?

Cauliflower Heads, broken up into florets
Olive Oil
Kosher Salt
Fresh Ground Pepper
Lemon Juice

Preheat the oven to 425. Toss cauliflower florets with olive oil, a sprinkling of salt, some pepper, and squeeze lemon juice over the whole thing. Roast for about 20-30 minutes, until slightly blackend.

ENJOY!!

XXO
Yvette

More Thoughts On Saving Seeds...

This tomato plant came from seeds that Fred saved from last year's tomatoes by cutting a tomato in half, squirting the seeds onto a paper towel, letting it dry out, and then storing it in the garage (cool and dark), in a bag. So simple. Now we have a half a dozen Purple Cherokee plants! This practice is not only efficient and simple, but it has a deep hand in protecting the diversity of edible plant life on the planet. If you think this is waxing too poetic, just read the following article in Vanity Fair this month about Monsanto's Harvest Of Fear, which already un-feeds the world with its genetically modified terminator seeds (these are seeds that are manufactured to produce a sterile crop, thereby disallowing farmers to save seeds for the following year, thus forcing them to buy more seeds), toxic pesticides (buy any Roundup lately? If so, you're killing the fish!) and then tell me if small acts like this aren't of supreme importance! We've already started to see signs of impending mass-starvation due to farmers turning away from staples and onto corn for bio-fuels, raising the prices of rice and wheat so high that rural, third world folks will no longer be able to buy food. Now they're after milk as well.

If you're reading this and you want to know more, a new documentary was aired in March on French television (ARTE – French-German cultural tv channel) by French journalist and filmmaker Marie-Monique Robin, The World According To Monsanto, a documentary that most Americans won’t ever see. The gigantic biotech corporation is threatening to destroy the agricultural biodiversity which has served mankind for thousands of years. Please watch it. You'll be rushing to plant some tomatoes.

XXO
Yvette

BoDeeToes

My dear friend and forever pal Annick turned me onto the incredible non-profit organization, Seed Savers Exchange. We've been ordering their fantastic heirloom seeds, and using their planting guides, which are a must!

Last weekend, we planted potatoes with the help of this LINK!
I can't wait to dig them up and cook them!




Exploring the Seed Savers site has really peaked my interest in the idea and importance of preserving the diversity of the foods we eat. It becomes extremely political, especially if one takes into account the race to corporatize the very essence of farming by GMO'ing as many crops as possible. This was a huge impetus to start this garden, as neither Fred nor myself wishes to put the Mind of Monsanto into our mouths. This year, Fred is growing Purple Cherokee tomatoes from seeds he saved from last year's plants. It is incredibly satisfying, and truly completes elegance of the plant-eat-compost circle.

The whole subject of saving seeds borders on the apocalyptic, if you really research and consider what is going on with our food supply. It is such a huge issue that the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) have created an organization called The Global Crop Diversity Trust, which is basically a giant seed vault in the Arctic, designed to protect the world's seed supplies in the event of global catastrophe.

To find out more about the The Global Crop Diversity Trust's Arctic Seed Vault, watch the 60 Minutes story on their homepage.

XXO
Yvette

Pretty

Our wisteria plant is going crazy this year. I've never seen it so filled with flowers (and bees and hummingbirds!). I had to take some photos of it just cause it's so pretty...





What kind of bird is that?


XXO Yvette

Artichoke Recipe!!!

Last July, we planted several 4" artichoke plants (Green Globe and Purple Sicilian). The plants are now about 5' by 3' and are producing tons of little artichokes. Baby artichokes are so tender that other than the outer leaves, you can practically eat the entire thing!

Cook (kudos to Celeste for this recipe!!):
Prepare the artichokes by snipping off any thorns on the tops of the outer leaves.
Steam the artichokes for about 20 minutes (ours are pretty small (see photos), so if you have larger ones, steam them longer)
Cut the artichokes in half, lengthwise, and scoop out the choke.
Drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with kosher salt and fresh ground pepper.
Put on the grill for about 3-4 minutes and serve.

Dip:
Chop fresh herbs and mix with mayonnaise (lately I've been using fresh tarragon and chives). Squeeze some lemon juice in, add fresh ground black pepper to taste, mix and serve...

PS. Don't forget to compost the waste!



XXO Yvette

Defiant Gardens

When we (read Yvette) originally planned the garden we were thinking of it a great way to save water, enhance the neighborhood, know our food and it's contents, and reduce our involvement in the corporate food chain. I think I can safely say that we've been successful on all points and more become apparent every day. The one thing we tacitly knew was that in one way or another there was a sense of defiance involved. From snubbing the big-box retailers to breaking from the preconception of the suburban front yard.

As we've all seen over the last 7 years 1 month and 28 days, things don't look very good around here. Tainted meat, vanishing fish stocks, genetically modified everything, a divisive social and political climate, Hummers, etc. You get the point. It is with this background noise that we all live and breathe. It is with this background in a more extreme form that incredible human moments can occur. And more specifically, so can gardens. 

I happened across the internet extension of a book entitled Defiant Gardens: Making Gardens in Wartime by Kenneth Helphand. Mr. Helphand describes Defiant Gardens as those created in difficult times and possess the ability to adapt to those circumstances. He continues to state, "...they can also be viewed from other dimensions as sites of assertion and affirmation." I couldn't agree more. The focus of the book are gardens related to wars in the first half of the twentieth century. The web site acts as a continuation by incorporating gardens from Vietnam, prisons, Afganistan, and Iraq. Be sure to look at the letters from G.I.s and the articles about the Japanese-American internment camps.

Link > Defiant Gardens

Hayground Organic Gardening

Meet Jimmy Williams, owner of Hayground Organic Gardening (he's the one with the blue t-shirt in the photo)! I have been buying seedlings from him this year. He has an outpost at the Santa Monica Farmer's Market on Wednesdays and Saturdays at Third and Arizona. He is an organic farmer, who, with his family, grows their infamous veggies and herbs at their Hollywood Hills Bungalow. They have all sorts of heirloom varieties. Their Goose Creek Tomato is particularly interesting and has an amazing history! These plants have been passed down for generations since Jimmy’s great grandmother came from the Caribbean as a slave, she smuggled the seeds in her pocket and planted them in Goosecreek, South Carolina. I will be planting one in the next few weeks!

XXO Yvette