Starting to think about Root Cellars

In terms of keeping our harvest as long as we can, 

we used to do a lot of freezing.

We experimented with different sized veggies and what would thaw out better.

We learned what froze well and what certainly did not.

One day, a pipe in our basement exploded over our large chest freezer.

That was the end of freezing that year.

We lost so much stuff...it was heartbreaking.

But like most things in life - I chose this sad event to be a learning experience.

How can we save our harvest in other ways?

Last year was an experiment in air drying and preserving.

We have dried some veggies and lots of herbs.

We dried seeds for planting next year.

We put stuff in jars too!

Pickled jalapenos, dill pickles, beans, salsa, wild leeks, 

ramps pesto, strawberry jam, mint jelly and maple syrup.

Ever since the freezer died, I've had my mind focused on root cellars.

The idea of storing things with no electricity.

What a concept!!!

View from the roadside

Across the street from our house there was a lot for sale.

It used to have a small home that fell into disrepair.

The western border of the property has a steep incline.

Built right into the side of the incline is an old rocky root cellar.

I have passed by this structure for a few years now, but decided to take a closer look. 

The above shot looks straight into the cellar, showing both sides and the back.

The structure has long been unused.

It is missing its roof and door.

I imagine what it must have looked like way back when.

Can you see the bright green moss?

It grows off of the sand or mud that was inserted between the rocks.

The above image shows how the original builders of this root cellar used preexisting rock.

See the big one at the bottom of the wall?

I wouldn't want to have moved that one!

See that swirl in the middle?

I imagine there was a piece of wood supporting whatever roof was on this structure.

The sand hardened over time and stayed long after the wood rotted.

I don't think this design is necessarily the best concept for a root cellar.

That being said, someone obviously used it at one time.

Since it is still there (for the most part), I'm going to say the design was very sturdy!

WINTER HOMEWORK:

I'm going to start some research on the best home made root cellars 

so that we too can enjoy zero carbon footprint food storage.

In terms of our home, there are a few places I thought would make good cellars.

Over the last few years...I have been monitoring each area.

Upon further inspection, the temperature and moisture levels fluctuate a little too much for my liking.

Perhaps an exterior food storage option is the way to go?

Only time will tell...

What is your favorite method of storing your food?

Seed Saving...a first for Us!

Let me just start off by saying we are

an experimental family.

We dabble, we attempt.

Occasionally we have a success!

Normally that's just the result of trial and error.

Often a lot of error.

I like the idea of saving seeds.

I really had no idea where to begin.

To be honest, the whole concept seemed too big to grasp.

It was intimidating.

Husband and I started researching on the web...

in newspaper articles and books.

We took it one seed at a time.

Each plant requires a different plan.

Some plans are as easy as separating seed pod from plant 

and then drying the seeds.

Other plants require a much more thought out process.

Ches was much more ambitious than I was this past year.

He decided to try tomato seeds.

Tomatoes keep their seeds in a gooey substance that actually inhibits the seeds from growing!

You have to force the seeds to germinate by making them start to mold.

Separate seeds from fruit and place in a mason jar.

Fill partially with water and place a porous cloth (or in this case coffee filter)

and secure with elastic band.

Let seeds stand in liquid for a week and then a mold will form on the surface of the water.

When ready to dry the seeds, remove from scummy water and discard the mold.

Dry seeds as per normal.

I'll be sure to let you know if this well researched method pays off in the spring...

All in all we did a great job last year in seed saving.

Peas, jalapenos, broccoli seeds, white corn kernels, purple, yellow and green beans.

Other jars in the above image show dried herbs (not seeds) like lavender, thyme and oregano.

Very important spices in our household!

The lavender is used for tea and respiratory ailments.

The thyme and oregano are staples in our cooking.

We even dried chunks of jalapeno flesh (the red stuff on the right)

...still haven't used it for anything...

but you never know...

We have a couple of black walnut seeds from a past neighbour's yard.

We also have a couple of peach and plum pits (the wild plums I wrote about previously)...

I finally found some rose hips in Pres-Quile Provincial Park in Brighton.

I dried them for tea making purposes...they contain obscene amounts of vitamin C.

The above picture shows something we never did before...

Broccoli seeds!

They form a bizarre little pod with tons of small black seeds inside.

We dried the pods on the screens,

then removed the seeds by hand.

See how small the pods are???

The seeds are totally tiny!

We've never let a broccoli go to seed before..so this past year was a treat.

I'm sure as the seasons go on,

we'll learn more about seed saving.

This past year was more fluky than anything intentional.

I feel it is important to be able to save your own seeds.

Food self sufficiency becomes more and more important as our 

food supply continues to let us down in terms of safety.

Speaking of seeds!

I plan on bringing the some of my seeds to the seed swap on Mar 4th in Tamworth.

The Tamworth and Erinsville Grassroots Growers Assoc.

is holding a special event and expert talk

featuring local celebrities like 

Karen ten Cate of Bumblerock farm, 

John Wise of Wiseacres organic farm in Centreville 

and Brian Burt of Burt's Greenhouses!

Nothing gets me going more than gardening talk in the middle of winter!!!!

Plus we'll be planting our "tropical" seeds this week...like tomatoes and peppers.

Backyard Discoveries: Wood Sorrel & Black Haw

I love foraging.

One of the many reasons why I love foraging so much is the feeling of discovery!

You walk by the same bush or plant everyday...

then one day you find out it is edible and it actually tastes GREAT!

This year we have identified 2 new plants.

Wood Sorrel and Black Haw.

Wood Sorell

My little man Owen tried the Wood Sorrel (Oxalis acetosella), loved the lemony taste, then became the local wood sorrel guy...picking lots and sharing it with everyone from family to classmates to bus drivers.

The other find was Black Haw.

This plant was a bit trickier.

I had to do lots of reading and waiting for the berries to ripen to be sure we had made a proper identification. 

Unripened Black Haw on tree

The tree itself doesn't look like much.

We found one with some berries on it close to Owen's Hobbit hole.

I put chicken wire around the base until we could figure out what it was exactly.

As the cooler weather came along, the greenish berries turned redish (as shown above)

After a while the berries would turn blackish blue.

If you didn't pick them soon enough (or the birds didn't get them), they would wither on the tree and fall (shown below).

After we had successfully identified this wee tree (the one by the Hobbit hole was only 3 feet tall),

we were struck by how many other Black Haw trees we had way in the back!

Some of those trees were over 12 feet tall!!!

Luckily for my husband (who is already tall, but not THAT tall), the tree trunk was thin and bendy enough he could pull down a branch and pick it from the ground.

The raw berries are not what I would call a "good trail nibble".

They have a skin and a seed, once you get rid of both, there is not a lot left.

The seed reminded me of a watermelon seed, long, oval, flat and brown.

"Wildman" Steve Brill discusses them in his book "Identifying & Harvesting Edible and Medicinal Plants in Wild (and not so wild) Places"

Black Haw berries with stems attached

Black Haw (Viburnum prunifolium) is also known as sweet haw, blackhaw or stag bush.

It's in the Viburnum family...also in the family are high bush cranberries.

Black Haw is described as having a date-like texture.

So, to us, that meant only one thing...

BLACK HAW SQUARES!

Black Haw berries, all washed up and sorted

We picked and cleaned 6 cups of berries.

For your reference, that produced about 2 1/2 cups of filling.

I searched Google for recipes and was stuck on one called "Ooey Gooey Date Squares".

We followed all the steps as listed, but I added 1/4 cup more brown sugar
and a dash more lemon juice than stated in the recipe.

Part way through the "boiling down process" I started to get anxious.
What if this turns out to taste like crap?
What if I wasted all of these ingredients for nothing?
What if nobody eats it?
I started to panic...

That's when I learned THE LESSON BLACK HAW TAUGHT ME:
That's what cooking is all about.
You experiment with a new ingredient or a new recipe.
You push your own boundaries...your own comfort zone.
Once I reminded myself of that simple fact...I began to relax.

We lost our square baking dish years ago, so in this case, we substituted a pie dish.
I pressed in the base with my hands, trying to make sure it was nice and even throughout.
Husband poured in the Black Haw filling and I smoothed it around.
I sprinkled the topping afterwards and baked as per the instructions.

Once the baking was done, the Black Haw filling wasn't quite firm enough.
When I poked the top, the filling was more like pudding than filling.
We placed it in the fridge for a day or so to give the filling a chance to solidify.

The finished product with a sprig of mint!

This recipe was great!  I'm not one for date squares, but the taste of the Black Haw

was so different!

The flavour was light and almost perfumed in a floral sort of way.

The texture was somewhere between date square filling and blueberry pie filling.

I was most surprised that Owen liked the squares...

A LOT.

He's already asking for more...

and is disappointed that we won't make another batch until next fall.

Because we were trying a new recipe, we didn't want to go overboard with the picking.

We wanted to try it out without picking the trees bare.

Leave some for the wildlife!

Another reason we didn't pick a ton of berries, was because we had no idea how to store the Black Haw.  

If anyone has any suggestions, please let me know!!!

I suppose we could have frozen the filling but what about canning?

WARNING:  Black Haw contains salicin, a chemical relative of aspirin. Those who are allergic to that substance should not use Black Haw.

What have you foraged lately?

Anyone have a favorite fall wild edible?

Adventure Time - The Search for Plums

Ever have an real adventure?

The kind you need a treasure map to go on?

Well, one fell into my lap on the a few weeks ago.

I heard a rumour there was a plum tree

only a few miles down the road from my house.

I was intrigued...to say the least...

Problem was, there was no map.

Only a verbal description (that was rough at best)

of the general location.

As the story goes:  

"Just down from yer in-laws house, 

there used to be a lane way with an old freezer at the end for garbage.

On the west side of the road, there is an apple tree.

Behind it is the plum tree."

I became determined to find this mystery plum tree, 

growing in the wild, completely unsuspecting.

I spent a couple of days driving by the general area slowly....but no apple trees to be found!  

I figured the only way to find this mystery plum tree would be on foot.

So one day, I jumped in the car and drove to the area where I suspected said lane way existed.

It was a bright, sunny day with a cool breeze.

The fall colours still hiding, for the most part.

There was some evidence that the cold nights have been having an effect.

The red on this small branch was fiery!

The end of summer brings with it some pretty interesting shades and textures.

I love the bloated and puffy cattail!

Even makes my nemesis goldenrod look beautiful...

One of the things I love about this region is the 

abundance of beautiful rocks and minerals.

At this point in the adventure, I had walked south down the road away from the lane way.

I walked until I figured far enough to no longer be "just down from".

I had not spotted anything that looked like an apple tree.

(which, this time of year, should be dripping with fruit)

I was beginning to lose faith that I would find the mystery tree.

I stopped to take a breath.

I could see my car parked just in the lane way entrance.

*Sigh*

My heart sank.  Is this really where the adventure ends?

That's when I happened to glance beside me for a moment.

I spotted an odd rock formation.

Something clicked...rocks don't pile themselves!

I approached.

At this point I was feeling like an anthropologist, 

creeping around an ancient settlement.

I had discovered the foundations of an old homestead.

Two distinct sections of foundation.

I could just imagine the root cellar.

Trees were growing up in the middle of the rock-walled rooms.

Satisfied I had discovered something, I turned to leave.

Only to notice something else.

Not quite a path, it wasn't worn down.

More like the grass was pushed aside by something...

and it lead me over the hill and away from the road.

I was following the pathway towards a view of a small pond.

That's when I heard buzzing...LOTS of buzzing.

I looked up and saw it.

THE PLUM TREE!!!

There were not many plums left on this tree.

Most had been plucked by deer or sucked dry by bees.

The longer I stood there...the more bee work I was able to observe.

I took my husband by later on that day only to notice how fast those bees really work!

Above is a picture of the plums as I observed them earlier in the day.

By the time I came back (approx 4 hrs later), this bunch was almost gone!

The plum on the far left has a bee on the side...gives you an idea of the size of the bees.

I managed to grab one lower hanging plum.

I gotta be honest...not really a fan of plums that I get in stores.

The skin in tough and bitter...inside the flesh seems mealy and tart.

These plums were different.

They were tender, juicy and sweeter than I could imagine.

Definitely worth the trek!

The lower branches had this dark protruding growth.

I'll have to do some research on it.

Just before leaving this glorious find, I glanced down and saw the bees leave behind the pits.

Some were nice and dry already.

Those bees sure do pick their fruit clean!

I brought home 5 pits to start plum trees of my own.

Until then, I will take great pleasure in hiking to our wild plum tree next August & September.

(I'll be sure to bring a small step ladder or a cherry picker too!)

5 Days of Work Food - Challenge COMPLETE!

5 days have come and gone...that went fast!

So here is a quick recap on the meals I brought with me to work:

DAY 1:

Creamy Pasta with spinach and zucchini from the garden
Plain greek yoghurt with frozen raspberries (from picking) & blueberries (from road stand)
and local honey
chopped veggies sticks - celery, carrots, sweet yellow peppers, cherry tomatoes and cukes from the garden
a grocery store apple and ivanhoe cheese curd - white!

************

DAY 2:

Spinach salad with sliced turkey slices, cherry tomatoes, cukes, sweet yellow peppers and diced Wilton cheddar cheese

Home made balsamic salad dressing

a grocery store apple

Veggie sticks - celery and carrots

Mexican oatmeal - quick oats, cinnamon, nutmeg, chili powder, brown sugar

************

DAY 3:

Turkey-Pumpkin Chili with 2 johnny cake muffins (cornbread) in reused ziplock bag

Spinach salad with cukes, cherry tomatoes, sweet orange peppers, onions and walnuts served with homemade balsamic dressing.

Maple cinnamon oatmeal with chopped almonds and apples.

************

Day 4:

Leftover Sheppard's Pie

Veggie sticks (carrots, cukes, peppers, celery)

1 whole orange, sectioned

small (reused) ziplock bag of Tostitos chips with 1/4 cup homemade salsa

************

DAY 5:

TAKE OUT DAY!!!
(I thought I would treat myself and,
in the process, show you what I eat for fast food)

Sushi lunch combo B

Added BONUS:  It's across the street from my work - so I can walk there!

How's that for balancing the high carbon foot print sushi?!

I could have remixed any of the elements from the week's lunches to make a fifth lunch.

It wouldn't have been that hard, once I had all of the stuff on hand.

************

I tried to make a bunch of healthy snacks using stuff from the garden and pantry
for 5 whole days.
I tried to make sure I had plenty of protein (but not enough for a construction worker),
decreased my salt intake (by making home made stuff, stead of packaged),
bring stuff I could snack on throughout the day that was both sweet and savoury (to satisfy both cravings),
to eat the rainbow each day,
to reduce my waste by using and washing the same packaging...
and I think I succeeded!



So how did you do with the challenge?

FOOD CHALLENGE! Can you do it?

A few months ago, I read an article on line boasting "A Whole Day of Eating Clean!".

I was intrigued, at first.

I'm always up for new ideas.

You never know when you'll find one, so with an open mind, I read on...

Only to be disappointed.

I read about a young lady who works for one of the online news outlets.

She vowed to document her meals for one day to show how easy it is to eat healthy, clean food.

There were several things that bothered me about this article.

1 - while she was eating "clean", she was not necessarily eating healthy.

2 - some of her choices seemed off...like baby carrots in lieu of actual carrots.

3 - her options seemed bland and boring.

4 - she only documented one day.

Why only one day?

I mean, anyone can walk the walk for one business day.
Here's my opportunity to talk the talk for 5 days!

And while I'm not documenting a whole day of food, it will be a picture of the food I take to work.

Here's a bit of background on my work:

I take 911 calls for ambulances and dispatch ambulances for a very large, populated area

- I work 12 hr shifts (day and/or night)

- I sit for all of those 12 hrs

- Its a very high stress job - emotional eating is a not so much a past time rather than a job requirement.

I am committed to taking a picture of the healthy food I bring for my 12 hrs for 5 days.

I will try to:

• make sure I had plenty of protein (but not enough for a construction worker)
• limit carbohydrate intake (but not remove it completely)
• decreased my salt intake (by making home made stuff, instead of packaged)
• bring stuff I could snack on throughout the day that was both sweet and savory (to satisfy both cravings)
• to eat the rainbow each day
• to reduce my waste by using and washing the same packaging

*************

Part of this commitment is to show how it actually is easy.

No tying yourself to the kitchen for days...

I'll even add in a bonus!  I'll show you the work I do to prepare the 5 days in advance.

I will make a blog post with a summary of the 5 days, as well.

Anyone want to join me?

Post your work food on my Facebook page or group starting next Monday Sept 16th...I'll do the same.

***  I feel like there could be a PRIZE for your stellar efforts ***

Keeping the Kitchen Cool...

It's not much of a news flash to state...the weather is HOT...

Ok...yeah...we knew that already, thank you, Mrs State the Obvious!

Lately I've been posting food pics on Facebook dedicated to keeping cool and not heating up your kitchen.

I thought I would explore this concept a little deeper.

I find it difficult to consider preparing food in weather like this.

The thought of turning on a stove or even a toaster oven makes me cringe.

Especially when it feels like you're melting...

I have posted pics of a variety of salads with a plethora of taste sensations.

...but one can only eat so many salads...

(and I am most certainly a salad FREAK)

So to the grill I go!  We have been BBQ-ing a lot lately.

Even if you live in an apartment that does not allow BBQ-ing, you can most likely find a public park in your area that will allow you to bring grills or coleman stoves.

Check your local by-laws on that one...

When Hurricane Sandy was about to arrive, we made propane and water our first priority.

(we already have a food store in our basement and a fireplace,

so we didn't have to worry about food and heat)

At the time, the storm kind of missed us...so we were sitting one a propane surplus!

We have been experimenting with grilling stuff like peppers, watermelon, peaches and plums.

As well as the usual suspects like steak, burgers, sausages and even a roast!

We also tried our hand at grilling corn on the cob.

Emeril Lagasse swears by it...not that I follow the trendy eating crowd, mind you.

Ches soaked the cobs whole for approximately 1 hr, but the longer you can wait, the better.

He BBQ'd the cobs and we ate them on a 

separate, blazing hot night where the house was sitting at 31 degrees Celsius.

Whatever we grill, I like to grill a large quantity and reserve some for later use.

The pictures included in this post show a dinner we had outside by the firepit one evening.

(A fire?!?!  I know, we still have a fire on occassion to keep the evening bugs at bay,

but only when there is no fire ban)

We BBQ'd burgers and topped them with fresh picked garden lettuce, Old Cheddar cheese from Wilton and previously grilled red peppers.

Complete the meal with cold cervesas and s'mores for dessert.

The grilled peppers gave the burgers a wonderfully different taste, almost sweet.

Like a gourmet burger served in a high end restaurant.

Another way to consume leftover grilled peppers is to use them in a grown up grilled cheese sandwich!

I layer cheese, spinach, cheese, onions and tomatoes, more cheese, the grilled peppers (kept in large pieces) and finally a layer of cheese...muahaha!

Press between 2 pieces of bread buttered on the outside and fry in a frying pan.

**********************

In case anyone was wondering how to make a traditional s'more:

-toast a marshmallow

-press toasted marshmallow between 2 graham crackers and a piece of chocolate.

There are variations and substitutions...but we like to keep it old school.

Also, in case anyone was wondering...the top picture shows our roasting tree...

Anyone how ever toasted a marshmallow or wienie on the campfire will be familiar with a roasting stick...

but our version is a TREE...complete with enough "branches" that you can literally roast a whole meal.

(or a million marshmallows...give or take)

Check out my Facebook page or group for more recipes to keep you

and your kitchen as cool as possible these days.

Take care everyone!

Helping out helps everyone...

I'm pretty sure I've already mentioned this before...but we don't really have a full garden this year.

In the meantime, we are committed to helping out my mother in law with her garden!

She just lives around the corner, so its not an inconvenient endeavour.

I have to say, it's great to get my hands back in the dirt and taking care of blooming plants.

She planted cabbages, herbs, carrots, beets, beans, peas, pumpkins and cukes.

There are also tomatoes of various varieties.

Our mother in law is a busy lady and always has loads of stuff on the go.

She returns the favour by offering up some of the surplus veggies as well as bringing us the odd bucket of compost!

Owen checked to make sure the apple trees are still strong...

Helping out has so many benefits:

-healthy outdoor exercise!  (my legs are killing me)

-aiding another's desire to grow their own food is never a bad thing.

-pooling your resources is a wise endeavour.

-if you don't want to dig up your own property but still want home grown organic foods, helping someone else could supply you with that extra food!

-make a deal with your gardening neighbours, food for work!

-building relationships with your gardening buddies.

-takes the load off of someone who is busy.

-builds good karma!

and last but not least...you can still get the opportunity to get in the garden...even if it isn't yours!!!