Blueberries, yay!

[altivo]

Since I did all the animal chores yesterday while Gary was at a Civil War re-enactment event, he was kind enough to offer to do my share today.. I took him up on it, and used the time for gardening and cooking. Did some weeding and cultivation of stuff already planted, then put in some other crops for fall harvest, including beets, chard, mustard greens, and arugula. I also discovered that blueberries and red raspberries were ripe and ready to pick. A lot more of them than I expected, in fact, nearly a quart.

I happened to look up from the garden a couple of times to notice what looked like honeybees buzzing around some wild grapevines near the fence. This seemed odd because we've been seeing very few honeybees, in part due to the widespread incidence of CCD here in the midwest. Finally I got up to investigate, only to discover that they weren't bees at all. They were Japanese beetles. Ugh. I haven't seen so many of them in one place before. They were eating the grape leaves, about which I don't care really. But when I went to pick blueberries, I discovered that they've been eating some of the blueberries as well. That I definitely find objectionable. I won't spray anything on food plants, but I may "treat" that grapevine.

Blueberries and raspberries from the garden, along with rhubarb from a friend's garden and apples from the freezer went into a bumbleberry pie when I got back into the house. That particular combination is one we really like. To be accurate, it should also include blackberries but those are not yet ripe.

Dinner ended up consisting of boneless chicken breast marinated and grilled over charcoal, served with blueberry salsa and a tossed salad of fresh romaine, tomatoes, and Vidalia onion combined with spinach-filled tortellini pasta. We had red wine. I know, you're supposed to have white with chicken but we like red, so tough. I also made blueberry iced tea.

The blueberry salsa was a new idea, based on several versions from the internet, and it was spectacularly good. I had actually bought blueberries at the supermarket yesterday specifically for this purpose (they were on sale this week) so I used those in the salsa and kept our own for the pie and to have in muffins later this week. Don't make faces at me. Blueberry salsa is really, really good. It's also good for you (full of "anti-oxidants".)

It contains fresh blueberries (some chopped up, some whole,) sweet red pepper, chopped sweet onion (I used Vidalia, but a sweet red would add more color,) a minced up jalapeño, minced cilantro leaves, fresh squeezed lime juice, and a little salt and pepper. It's purple, not my favorite color as some of you know, but I forgive it. After all, I like grapes and eggplant. It was deliciously zesty with tortilla chips and went very well with the grilled chicken. I'm sure it would work with pork too, or even just drizzled over beans and rice. The blueberries lend sweetness and fragrance and actually blend well with the onion and the hot pepper.

We weren't the only ones to have a "gourmet" dinner, I guess. It's not unusual to see signs of mice in the dead of winter here, but we've not had them in summer before. However, while I was cooking, I just happened to glance over at a stack of measuring cups by the sink and... there was a mouse sitting on top of it watching me. I calmly reached over and picked up the top measuring cup by the handle. The mouse stayed with it, and I eased my way toward the door to toss him out. About half way there, he decided to bail and leapt to the floor, landing right in front of the cat. "Well, that's the end of you, mousie," I thought. The cat remained still, and stared at it. I guess mice that fall from the sky are suspect. Sarah the Polish elkhound, unfortunately, has no such scruples and never misses a thing. She was there in a flash, grabbed Mr. Mouse, and dashed out the dog door. By the time I got to the door, she was (ugh) chewing vigorously so I think that was the end of mouse number one.

Number one? Yes, there was another. While we were eating, the cat woke up and dashed into the corner behind a side table. There was a brief scuffle, and he emerged with a second mouse in his mouth. Gary jumped up and grabbed him, carrying him to the door and putting him out, still holding said mouse tightly. We figure that one became cat dinner. I feel only slightly sorry for the mice. I don't bother them outdoors, but I don't like them in the house. When they come into a house that has two active cats and two active dogs, they make a serious error of judgement.

Gonna be pretty stiff tomorrow from all the stooping and bending, I'm sure. But we really, really enjoy fresh stuff from the garden, so it's worthwhile.

Comments

Pointed use of icon

[atomicat.livejournal.com]

Cat brought one upstairs this eve, Gracie promptly grabbed it from her and it was down in one gulp. Lesson to kitty: Gracie is a pig! Don't show off next time, just eat the damn thing.

All that chat of fresh food from the soil reminds me of what life is really all about. Everyone should have to till the soil and garden for a year to gain an appreciation of what they eat and all things regarding.

Re: Pointed use of icon

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Yes, I think it would be good for a lot of people to have to rediscover where food really comes from and what's involved in producing, preparing, and preserving it.

[alexfvance.livejournal.com]

I know I don't often leave comments, but I do so love reading your journal entries. I'm a city boy through and through, heart and kidneys, I'm all about automation and abstraction... Your stories are humbling, in a way. A reminder of how illusory city priorities can be. Thank you for keeping it up!

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Nice to hear from you, and I'm glad to know you enjoy my meanderings. City folks do get disconnected from some of these realities, and I'm not sure that's a good thing at all. When I say something political, I get a lot of comments, but these daily summaries usually don't seem to attract much interest, so I'm never sure if anyone is reading. Thanks.

[soanos.livejournal.com]

That blueberry salsa sounds nice. Maybe I should give it a try. Got a recipe at hoof? :)

I wish I could have a garden. But alas, living in an apartment block makes it impossible. Also, loneliness makes it feel pointless. I miss my partner.

I really should get a cat, but I have decided to wait until I get a place more suitable for animal friends.

[altivo.livejournal.com]

This one is pretty close to what I did. I don't think you need nearly that much salt though. A quarter to a half that amount of salt, and otherwise it will be fine.

You can use other fruits in much the same combination. Ripe peaches, for instance, or mango, will work. Choose something that has elements of both sweet and tart at the same time. The salsa can be used with traditional Mexican dishes, or as a sauce with meat or fish, as a dressing for greens or vegetables, or just eaten with chips.

[soanos.livejournal.com]

Hmm... Looks nice. I will need to write it down and see what happens. Might be difficult to get a fresh jalapeno here tho.

Any I agree, looks like way too much salt to me, too.

[altivo.livejournal.com]

I used a frozen pepper because we don't have fresh ones yet this year. You could use any kind of medium hot pepper, actually. This idea came out of a conversation with herefox last week and he was going to use chipotle. Whatever you like and can get should work OK.

[soanos.livejournal.com]

I made a beef stew last night. It was nice, and you can just leave it stew/simmer after you have done the preparation and do other stuff. :P

Ingredients:
400 grams of beef cut in cubes or strips
an onion
some olive oil to brown off the meat with onion
a leek
a courgette
a clove of garlic
2 small potatoes
2 carrots
1/4 of a small-ish swede
a stick of celery.
a stock cube
1/4 vegetable stock cube
1/2 tsp of salt
some black pepper
1 tsp chervil
1 tsp basil
½ tsp oregano
3 tbsp tomato puré
water

Cube all the vegetables in a small-ish chunks.
Brown beef off in a pot with some oil and onion.
Add the herbs and spices and the stock cube.
Stir in for a little bit, but don't incinerate the herbs.
Chuck in the vegetables and add tomato puré.
Add boiling or cold water, just covering the ingredients.
Stir thoroughly.
Cover and stew on low heat (just needs to simmer gently) for 2 to 3 hours.

Serve with crusty bread.

A chicken variation is the same, except with less herbs and no tomato puré. And the beef stock cube gets substituted with a chicken equivalent.

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Sounds good. I giggle whenever I see a reference to "Swedes" as vegetables. We call them rutabaga here, so "Swede" makes me think of some big blond Viking type in a helmet. How do you find a smallish one? And cutting him into quarters sounds messy and unpleasant to say the least.

[soanos.livejournal.com]

Well, it doesn't need to be a huge one, I was thinking of one about he size of a fist when holding a baseball.

But yes, the swede probabl y has had it's name from our western neighbours. It is easy to mix the two up tho. They are very similar in many ways. :)
Oh, did I mention most finns have something against the swedes (the blonde Viking type things with helmets).

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Oh, definitely. It was the British who called it a swede, I'm sure (short for "Swedish turnip".)

Garrison Keillor used to tell this Swedish joke:

It seems that a Swedish farmer got a little to enthusiastic in celebrating Midsummer, and drank too much. His wife got irritated when bedtime finally came around and kicked him out. So he wandered out into the farmyard, looking at the stars in the twilight sky and thinking how beautiful they were. Since he wasn't looking where he was going, he walked into the fence around the pig pen and fell right over it into the mud.

A huge sow was lying there in the mud, surprised at his sudden interest. He put his arm around her shoulders and asked her if she were Swedish.

As if affronted by his apparent affection, the pig stood up and walked briskly away, shaking her head and snorting the single word "Norsk!" at him.

[altivo.livejournal.com]

By the way, even if you have just a window sill that faces south, you can grow some nice edibles in pots or trays. Cherry tomatoes, sweet basil, leaf lettuces, and most any garden plant that is of modest size can be grown that way.

[soanos.livejournal.com]

Well, sun only shines on my balcony from 5 AM to 7 AM and after that it will be in shadow of other houses and trees. I doubt I can grow anything here really. :\

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Salad greens will grow. They need some sun, but the kind that filters through the trees is adequate. Or try some shade loving flowers like impatiens. They'll give you a lot of color with just a little effort.

[wolfgrowl.livejournal.com]

Yum. Sounds good and healthy too!

Healthy cooking is great (and fun) and just takes that extra bit of preparation time and creativity.

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Unfortunately more and more people are considering cooking to be somehow beneath them and just something that no one who is anyone would bother to do. It's no wonder we have an obesity epidemic. They're all living off sugary, greasy fast food and no vegetable fiber at all.