Summer is all about the quick crafts...

I haven't posted a "using what I have to make what I need" post in a while...and today, I have two very quick and easy projects for you.  Really quick.  I'm talking less than 20 minutes for both projects.

First up, my husband is doing a 100km walk this weekend as a fundraiser for Oxfam.  I know...crazy.  He asked me if we happened to have a reusable bag with a drawstring that he could use instead of using ziplocs for his trail mix.  The snack bags the kids and I use are a little too small, so of course I had to quickly whip one up:)  I used a piece of water resistant nylon left over from the rain coats I made for the boys a few years back (would you believe for two years there were no boys raincoats to be found in the city...just princessy ones and then huge ones for men).  I just cut a rectangle, serged one long edge (the edge that is going to be sewn down for the drawstring).  Folded it in half and then serged the remaining side and the bottom and switched to my sewing machine to sew a tube for the drawstring (which happens to be a shoelace actually).  Easy Peasy, lemon squeezy...

...which leads me to my second project.  Lemon sachets.

This is the very last bit of a pair of pyjama pants that my sister wasn't using any more.  The rest has been used up here and there through the years.  Just serged up two little pouches...didn't even sew in the ends or anything...

Two days ago, S asked me if I could make him lemon scented sachets instead of the lavender or mint, or bug repellent ones I usually make (he loves all things lemon).  Funny enough, just last week I had harvested some lemon balm and lemon thyme thinking to do the exact same thing because I knew he would love them.

So all I had to do was take the leaves off the stems, stuff the bags, and then sew them shut.  I added some mint just because, but when you squeeze it, you definitely smell the lemon first and foremost.

Tuesday morning, I will link up with Keep Calm Craft On over at Frontier Dreams.  I haven't been in a little while, and Thursday is Stash Bash over at Crunchy Catholic Momma 
and Needle and thREAD at In the Heart of my Home

PS.  I just hang bundles of  the mint and the lemon balm to dry, and the lemon thyme I lay out on a screen.

Weekends in the garden.

I love weekends that we don't have anything big planned.  Weekends where we can do a little of this and a little of that, but aren't rushed to do any of it.

I had time to harvest a little something for dinner.  These potatoes are the first from the garden row, not the tower.  So far, they are looking good.  Nothing beats potatoes dug up an hour before you eat them.

The experimental potato tower looks good.  I just have to wonder if there are any potatoes in there.

Something has trampled N's popcorn patch.  I was going to rip out the ones that look like the were ripped right out, but I left them, and today...a few have straightened back up by themselves.  I am going to give them a week and see how they look.  

Our HUGE blueberry harvest.  They were tasty for sure.  I can't wait for a few years from now when I can get a bucket full.  

And lastly, I need your help.  I think I would like to prepare some echinacae tea for N for the winter (N loves herbal tea when he is sick...especially when he has the croup)...Do I dry the petals, or the leaves, or both?  Has anybody made their own before?

What are you harvesting?

Full Disclosure

I have a problem...with sugar.  I try to eat healthy food most of the time, and I really try to feed my kids healthy food most of the time, but sometimes I fall off the wagon.  Last night, for my before bed snack, I ate a huge kaiser bun (white flour) with some of that "fake me out Nutella that is made with white chocolate and hazelnut spread swirled together", with corn chips on the side, followed by two large juice berry candies.

How's that for full disclosure now?  Healthy, no?

 I am also a bit scatter brained in the garden...I will be completely honest today.  I don't label things because I always think I will remember what I planted.  After all, I don't have a farm, just my back yard.  However, sometimes I forget what went into that little space where I just pulled out the "----fill in the blank of whatever is just finished---".  Can anyone tell me what this is up in the photo?  Romaine Lettuce? I think it has to be either lettuce or Swiss Chard (and as I have only planted chard once, I am not sure I could recognize it).  I am eliminating spinach because I think spinach leaves are darker and pointier.  Anyone want to hazard a guess?


AND...last night, after dinner, I sat down to read "for a bit".  I didn't wash the dinner dishes.  I didn't clean the bathroom.  I didn't work on any of the bazillion unfinished projects I have laying around.  When S asked me to play "Spy Alley" with them, I said "Nope, I'm reading" (even though I told myself I would spend more "fun time" with the boys this summer) and I stayed on the sofa for 3 hours to finish my book!

In case you are wondering, it was The boy who loved Anne Frank.  It was fantastic!  I kept having to remind myself that it was fiction.  It is the story of what Peter's life might have been like had he survived.  I would highly recommend it to any adult.  Teens probably should read it but really I think it is for adults.  It is intense, as it should be.  I think there should be more books written from the point of view of survivors (I'm talking about civilians here) and their everyday life during and after the war.  The real struggles, not shmoosy love stories---you know, so as not to romanticize the horrors they went through.  I have read a few books about children who survived World War II and the recurring theme always seems to be starvation.  In the relative luxury we live in, I can't even imagine what near starvation must be like.  In fact, every time the boys tell me they are starving, I always, ALWAYS, say "you are hungry, you are NOT starving".  I do tend to shelter them to some extent, but they do need to know that there are (and have been) people who actually are starving, and not everybody has it quite so easy as they do. 

A hodge podge of thoughts there, but there you have it.

Fake Smock Dress Progress

Do you know how hard it is to capture a dragon in the morning before heading off to work?  Let me tell you, it's not too easy!

S went on a class trip to Canada's Wonderland (an amusement park) before school let out for the summer.  He wanted to bring something home for N as a surprise, because he's awesome like that.  This dragon head was his pick.  You see, I would have looked at it and this is what would have gone through my head:
"N would really like that.  How long will he use it?  Does he NEED it?  No. Will he get enough use out of it to make it worth the cost?  Where on earth will he keep it?  What will he do with it when he's done with it?"  And then I would have left it there.

S looked at it and thought: "N would LOVE that".  So he bought it.  And N does indeed love it.  I guess that's what makes brothers so awesome.

Now, N was in bed when S brought it home.  And the next morning, 5 minutes after he had it, they noticed a seam coming apart.  He brought it home on June 14th, and I finally fixed it last night.  Finally!  Now my questions is...why, oh why, can't things be made with a little care so as not to disappoint a child?

On the crafting front...I have finally made some progress on my "fake smock" dress.  The first part of the dress "how to" can be found here.

I have finished sewing the "tubes" for the elastics to go through.  My dress has 16 tubes, so I cut 16 pieces of elastic and attached a safety pin to the end of each.

I don't know how to share the directions for this part.  Basically, my hips are the widest part I had to worry about (as I am *ahem* not very top heavy shall we say?) and I plan on stepping into the dress to pull it on.  Basically, I measured my hips with a fabric tape measure (mine was between 37 and 38 so I called it 38 - it's hard to find the widest point).  Then I held one end of the elastic at the tip of the tape measure and pulled it until it was the hip measurement.  Then I let it unstretch (it happened to be 18" when not stretched out, but it seems to me to be very stretchy elastic).  Then I added 2" so that it wouldn't be too tight going on...I don't want to rip anything after all.  Then I checked if it would be too loose on the "bodice" let's call it...I don't like clothes that is too tight, but it was all good.  If your biggest measurement is the chest measurement (not my case) then you would probably want to reverse those instructions.

Now, just feed your elastics through the tubes one by one.

Pin the two ends of the elastic together once you have it all the way through the tube.  I also pinned the elastic to the flap that will cover the openings (after I had one of the safety pins sucked right into the tube and had to fish it back out again).

This is what it looked like after 3 elastics.  I have a ways to go yet, but that's as far as I got last night.  I will update again when it is done.

On the reading front...I am reading "The FARM Chicks in the Kitchen" which has recipes, stories, and crafts all mixed together.  I kind of like it for just reading with breakfast and lunch and  the like.  I have bookmarked a few recipes to try (one being an apple puff pancake).
I am also reading "The boy who loved Anne Frank".  It is a fiction about what Peter's life could have been like had he survived (apparently, they have records of everyone in the house except Peter).  I'm not very far into it, but so far, I think it will be fantastic.

And now the link ups:
Needle and thREAD over at In the Heart of my Home
Stash Bash at Crunchy Catholic Momma
Creative Friday at Natural Suburbia on Friday, obviously.

Slow Living - June

I'll be joining up with Slow Living Essentials with this month's slow living post.  It's a very interesting series if anyone wants to come along for the ride.

 Nourish:  Make and bake as much as possible from scratch. Ditch overpackaged, overprocessed convenience foods and opt for 'real' food instead. Share favourite links/recipes/tips from the month here.

I stopped buying prepackage granola bars and snacks about two years ago.  For a while, I was making granola bars at home, but sometimes you want something a little different, right?

 In a saucepan, combine 1/2 cup sugar, 6 tbsp cocoa powder, 1/2 cup butter, and 1/2 cup milk.  Bring to a boil, add 1/2 tsp vanilla extract and remove from heat.  Add 1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut and 3 cups rolled oats.  Mix well, roll into balls (makes about 3 1/2 dozen) and refrigerate.  I would love to give credit where credit is due, but this is something we have been eating since we were little kids and the recipe card is handwritten...so I have no idea where it came from.

Totally easy, totally tasty, and gluten free too if you need that.  I might add these to our Christmas cookie tray this year but for the summer, they make a quick and easy grab and go kind of snack.

I have also made Delicious Raspberry Sorbet and it was so easy I plan to try out currant and black raspberry versions as well.

  Prepare:Stockpile and preserve. Freeze extra meals or excess garden/market produce. Bottle/can, dehydrate or pickle foods to enjoy when they are not in season.

We bought a 1/4 pig for our freezer from the Sunday farmer's market and so far, what we have tried of it has been delicious.  We will definitely order plenty to stock up the freezer before they close at the end of the summer.

In the meantime, I have been preserving the harvest...drying herbs and canning. 

So far I have preserved 2 small jars of spring onions (pickled), 3 jars of rhubarb strawberry preserves (find that post here), 3 small jars of currant juice (post over here), 3 jars of nearly seedless raspberry jam and I have a variety of berries in the freezer just waiting to be turned into something.

 
 Reduce:  Cut down on household waste by re-using, re-purposing and repairing. A ladder into a strawberry planter? A sheet into a dress? Share ideas and project links here, allowing others to be inspired.

Always a work in progress at our house.  This month, I decided that in order to free up some mason jars for canning (rather than buying some more) I should just transfer the dried herbs and bulk snacks into glass jars from store bought items (like nutella...one of our weaknesses, and pickles and such).  This frees up the mason jars for this summer's planned canning sessions and I don't have to recycle all those glass jars.

 Green: Start (or continue!) using homemade cleaners, body products and basic herbal remedies. The options are endless, the savings huge and the health benefits enormous.

I rode my bike to work 13 out of 18 days.  A little better than last month.  I have also biked to the market every time except the day I had to pick up the 1/4 pig (I can't fit a 1/4 pig in my two baskets!)  We biked and walked to the library, the drug store, the book store.  In fact, one of our cars (yes, we have two) only left the driveway maybe 5 or 6 times all month.

 Grow: plant/harvest. What's growing this month? What's being eaten from the garden? Herbs in a pot, sprouts on a windowsill or and entire fruit/vegetable garden -opt for what fits space and time constraints.  

Still enjoying something from the garden every day.  Mostly berries this month, but the vegetables are coming along nicely.  We had our fill of peas, but I will be planting some more once a row frees up.  

 Incidentally, these are radish seed pods.  I didn't know until a few weeks ago that they were edible.  Since I keep trying to plant radishes, but have very little success, I figured I would try to let them go to seed and see how they are.  Delicious.  So far we have only eaten a few fresh from the garden, and some tossed into pasta salad, but I see some experimenting in our future.

 
 Create:  To fill a need or feed the soul. Create for ourselves or for others. Create something as simple as a handmade gift tag or something as extravagant as a fine knit shawl. Share project details and any new skills learnt here.

Let's see...this month I have started a dress...haven't finished it.
Started a scarf...still in progress.
Started a hat, for a gift...about halfway done.
I thought I finished a pair of slippers, but I'm pretty sure I will have to go back, rip out the toes, and make them a little longer. 

Discover:   Feed the mind by reading texts relevant to current interests. Trawl libraries, second hand shops or local book shops to find titles that fill the need. Share titles/authors of what is being read this month.

For this part, I am mostly just going through my cookbooks as things ripen in the garden to see what else I can do with my harvest.  We have tried raspberry sorbet and strawberry rhubarb preserve as new additions to our seasonal eating.
Mostly, my new "discoveries" have come from reading other blogs.  I am truly enjoying 
Barn Hop at Homestead Revival - I learn something every single week there.
Carnival of Home Preserving over at Laura Williams' Musings - a blog I have just discovered so I have only participated twice so far, but several people are sharing their canning, freezing, drying ideas.

 Enhance:  Community: Possibilities include supporting local growers & producers, help out at a local school/kindergarten, barter or foodswap, joining a playgroup or forming a walking or craft group.

Let's see...this month, I spent  a day helping out at the city wide track and field meet that is held just next to the boy's school.  Every year, we do a barbecue and sell juice, pop, chips, and freezies (all healthy choices, right?) to raise money for the playground equipment we are hoping to install shortly.  The school is one of the few in the city that has "special needs" so we have been saving to build some accessible playground equipment that can be used by all of the kids...including those in wheel chairs, who right now have nothing to play on.  We are almost there.

 See the #8 in white in the middle there?   That's S.  They ran all the groups at the same time and then divided them up by age.  He won first in his category for the 1500m.

As usual, I am trying to buy as much as possible from the farmer's market to support them.  
Oh, and at the beginning of the month, I bought some plants from "Return the Landscape", a group in town here that is trying to put naturalized, native plants back in the parks instead of constantly cultivating, watering, and spraying things that really don't want to grow here.   

 

Enjoy:   Life! Embrace moments with friends and family. Marking the seasons, celebrations and new arrivals are all cause for enjoyment. Share a moment to be remembered from the month here.

 With the school year coming to a close, we are trying to find activities that we can enjoy as a family...spur of the moment activities that we can choose to do when the inspiration strikes.  We have made several trips to our local animal farm (which for some reason is actually called the "Children's Farm" which strikes  me as being very odd indeed) to see the new arrivals.

 This little guy, Jaxon, is just 5 days old in the picture.  He was very very entertaining!  He kept trying to jump on his mother, and would jump about a foot in the air to step from the grass to the cement, even though there is only about an inch different in height. 

Preparing for winter...in June

 I am always looking for new home remedies to try rather than buying over the counter medications filled with strange ingredients (not to mention I have strange reactions to said over the counter medications and usually can only take a 6 year old's dose of children's medicine - if even that).  Last year, I was thrilled to find out that currant juice can be used for sore throats.  I tried it and it worked like magic.  And I just happen to have currant bushes in my yard.  The problem...what do you do in the winter when the currant bushes are sleeping?  The answer - I hope...preserve the juice!

 Basically I just boiled the currants until most of the colour was gone from the berries and put them through a sieve.  Last year, I mixed the black and red currants, but this year I used only the red because I am wanting to use the black ones in a mixed berry jam.  Unfortunately, after I made the juice, I read that it is actually the black currants that are more effective for treating sore throats...I will have to wait and see what happens.

 I tried to squeeze as much juice out as possible using a cheesecloth, but I have to admit, I ran out of patience.

 Then I just poured the juice into hot sterilized jars.  The pH of berries is probably low enough that I didn't need to actually do anything further BUT if you are making currant jelly or jam, I believe you have to put the jars in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes, so I did that with the juice just to be safe.

I used small jars because really, I am hoping that the sore throats won't last that long.  You take one tablespoon at a time as often as needed (because it is, after all, just juice).  Last year, I found that it was effective much much  longer than the kids' lozenges I usually use when I am desperate.  The three jars above is the whole yield from my bushes this year.  Next year, I am hoping the bushes will yield a little more (as they will be older) and I will again mix the black berries with the red ones to go a little farther (and ...if it is actually the case that they are more effective, then I guess that is the smart thing to do).

Note: refrigerate the jars after opening...the cold helps the sore throat too.

Anyone else have a good home remedy I can try?

Linking up with Laura William's Musings for Carnival of Home Preserving
                                                                    Wildcrafting Wednesday at Mind Body and Sole

Raspberry sorbet

 A few days ago, I had decided that after the raspberries were done, I would rip most of the raspberry canes to plant something else next year.  They take up a lot of space (probably about 200 square feet) that could be used for growing veggies, and we weren't really using them up very much. 

In previous years (2009 above) I had a helper to pick them...this year, no one seems to be interested.  So I was picking them - because they are there - but I still had a bag full in the freezer from last year.

The other day, I picked just over a pound of them.  So I looked up a recipe to use them up.

Enter...Raspberry Sorbet....da da da DAAAA!

So super easy, fast, and oh my word...so so so good.
Note: even if you have to buy the raspberries...this is probably still worth it, it is just that good.
One pound fresh raspberries, rinsed...put them through a food processor until they are nice and liquidy and then put them through a sieve.

 Add 1 1/4 cups water and 6 tbsp honey.
Stir

Put in a freezer proof container with a lid on it, in the freezer for about 7 hours

 Enjoy!  The full recipe along with many others is in the cook's garden by Canadian Gardening.
I am really starting to quite like this book.  There are sections on all kinds of fruits and vegetables as the season progresses.  How to grow, harvest, and a handful of recipes for each fruit/vegetable.  I love just looking through it to kind of get ready for what is coming up next.  And, to be honest, I like that it is a Canadian book, because it isn't full of all kinds of things I just can't grow here.

Oh, and in case you were wondering...this recipe has earned the raspberry canes a reprieve.  They will be staying for a while longer yet!

I'll be linking this up with Frontier Dreams for Keep Calm Craft On because it's kinda crafty food                                        Homestead Revival's barn hop #67
                                      Wildcraft Wednesday over at Mind Body and Sole

Preserving the Harvest - Round 1

I have realized that if I am going to eat something from my garden every day this year...then that means throughout the growing season, I will have to preserve something every day as well to make up for the days nothing is growing.  If I really stretch it, I could count the growing season as being May to October - and only because I planted greens for the spring and jerusalem artichokes and brussel sprouts for the fall along with a few root veg.

Strawberry and Rhubarb Preserves

I'm not so sure about this one.

The idea was great, but I don't know what to expect with the finished product.  The recipe is from "The Joy Of Cooking" which I normally love, but I have never used the canning section.

The recipe starts out with rhubarb and sugar...

 This is half of the sugar...I wanted to stop here...but it was my first try, and I am told you have to follow canning recipes exactly in order for them to be safe.  So I continued...

This is all of the sugar.  Um...what?  Can this be right?

So I cooked it up like it said...and added:

...the strawberries.

Then it said to simmer it until thick, about 15 minutes.  Well, I simmered it for about 40-45 minutes and it never got thick.  It was thicker than when I started, but it never thickened.  Now nowhere did it say to add gelatin.  Not in the recipe, not in the preserves section it said to read first.  So I don't know if I was supposed to add some or not.  I got three jars of the preserves and a little bit in a third jar that is in the fridge.  I didn't have time to check it this morning.  I am hoping that it thickened up a bit overnight in the fridge.  Otherwise, I guess it will be a "sauce" for the winter...maybe on oatmeal???  Come to think of it, that sounds delicious.

So, here is my question of the day...if you could have only ONE canning cookbook...what would it be?

Gonna go link up to the Carnival of Home Canning over at Laura William's Musings, and while I'm there, maybe I will learn something.

I'm back

I'm back...more or less.  I have been unwell.  We all have been at my house.  Nothing drastic.  One had the croup (again), one had something laryngitis-ish...then we all had colds and coughs.  Not a huge deal, but I still have been having a hard time.  I used to have bronchial asthma, and once in a while, when I get a bad cold, I struggle.  If I try to do too much,  I start wheezing and have to sit down or lie down again. Oh, and I can only take a 6 year old's dose of kid's medicine if I get really bad (and only if I am "supervised") because I have weird reactions to medicine.  I try to use herbal teas and stuff in stead, but sometimes it just doesn't cut it.

So, only the bare minimum has been getting done...and sometimes not even that.  But today, I can share pictures I took before we all got sick.  I'm going to do all things fiber to catch up all at once:

I have one batch of the alpaca fiber (that I bought at an open house) washed up and have started brushing it out.  I think I might look into getting a miniature drum carder as it is slow going with the method I am currently using.  It is hard on the wrists and elbows...or I am just not doing it right.  I have promised N that his bag will be washed next...and then HE can brush out his.

A few weeks ago I bought this delicious fiber from Andrea's etsy shop.  Andrea from Wisdom Begins in Wonder is the hostess of Fiber Arts Fridays, just in case you have missed that.  And I spun it up into this beauty...

 

I will be knitting this up into a hat for myself...oh yes I will!  But first, I have to finish a few projects that are already on the needles.

And, just to document my progress for my own self...

 The yarn on the left is the second last that I spun, and the yarn on the right is this last batch.  Progress!

I have four ounces of the white spun up and ready to dye and after I do the other 4, I will be doing another plant dye.  I have already picked it out, and it is bookmarked in the book on my bookshelf, but I forget what I picked.  I will share for sure once it comes out of the dye bath...but honestly that is still probably weeks away.

And this is something I am very pleased with the way it turned out.  Remember that white cotton that I dyed hoping to make a self striping yarn?  It is working.  In fact it is working very very well!  

And...a totally unrelated picture, but this is part of what is keeping me away from crafting and from the computer:

It is berry season.  I don't get a whole lot at once, but I do have to pick them and clean them every day and what we don't eat goes into the freezer to be "turned into something" once I have enough.  I will be trying my hand at jam in the next few weeks.  Wish me luck!

Linking up with Fiber Arts Friday at Wisdom begins in Wonder and Creative Friday at Natural Suburbia and also to the new to me Saturday and Sunday Sharing on  The Handmade Homemaker.

Eat what you Grow/Grow what you Eat - June edition

I am one month in, officially, to my Eat what you Grow / Grow what you eat challenge.

I think I should explain my situation a bit to those who are new here.  I don't live on a homestead.  I live in the city.  Our entire property is 75' x 125' ( 9375 square feet).  On that, we have our house, a garage, a shed, a firepit, a seating area, and a driveway.  We have a large maple tree that shades out a section of the back yard, and our neighbours have a HUGE maple tree that also shades out an area of the back yard (hence the firepit and shed).  Half of our front yard is shade because of the city's maple tree planted on the boulevard.  And, our house is on the north side of the street, which means that our house and garage actually shade a portion of the back yard.  So, in the space that is left, maybe around 5000 square feet, I am endeavoring to grow enough food to eat something that I grew every day for a year.

Edited:  it would be about 5000square feet if I was able to use every single bit of it.  So far, I have not been able to dig up the boulevard, so that is maybe 800 or 900 square feet.  Some of it is unusable as there are too many tree roots to dig around (so I planted a meadow there) and some is planted with "landscaping shrubs" around the house...to fit in with the neighbours.  So really, it is less than 4000 square feet.  I think I will measure for next month to see what it is exactly.

I am going to record what we ate from the yard in the last month.  This is more for my records than anything else (you know, to keep me honest, but also so that I can look back next year and see what I need to change) so feel free to skip ahead if you want.

What we are eating:

Keep in mind here that it is the beginning of the season (our last frost date is May 24), so the pickin's were slim in May.

May 15 - sorrel on our burgers

May 16 - made some parsley pesto and spread it on our subs.

May 17 - fresh rhubarb dipped in sugar

May 18 - some more fresh rhubarb dipped in sugar

May 19 - fresh mint tea

May 20 - mint iced tea and a handful of thyme, basil, and oregano in our spaghetti sauce

May 21 - salad greens and pea shoots mixed in with some romaine from the market

May 22 - a bowl full of pak choy to go with our home made sushi night I need to plant more pak choy / bok choy next year as all that I planted got used up in one meal.

May 23 - mint and lemon balm iced tea in the lunches

May 24 - salad greens with pea shoots and also some parsley pesto on noodles I need to plant a wider variety of salad greens next year as the same two over and over gets a little redundant.

May 25 - some more salad greens and parsley pesto noodles packed with my lunch

May 26 - mint iced tea popsicles made by N

May 27 - herbs in our spaghetti sauce

May 28 -salad green, green onions and salsa made from last year's garden in our tacos, mint tea popsicles and exactly 7 strawberries

May 29 - onions and green onions mixed into the stir fry

May 30 - a huge batch of kale and also some of last year's frozen strawberries mixed into some rice pudding

May 31 - rhubarb strawberry compote I will be making more of this next year as it was super delicious!  I have already planted more rhubarb.  

Strawberry Rhubarb Compote:  I used equal parts strawberries and rhubarb, a bit of sugar to taste, a little water in the bottom of the pot to stop it from burning before it cooks down.  Cook it gently until it is soft enough to mash up with a vegetable masher, mash, then simmer it until it is the desired consistency.  This is good plain, with yogourt, or with ice cream too.

June 1 - lettuce on our sandwiches and more delicious strawberry rhubarb compote

June 2 - last year's frozen raspberries in pancakes and last year's salsa with nachos

June 3 - salad - 2 kinds of lettuce, pea shoots and strawberries

June 4 - herbs in the spaghetti and strawberries for dessert

June 5 - salsa with nachos again

June 6 - strawberries for dessert and more mint iced tea

June 7 - a huge heap of kale and chard and also strawberries in the school lunches.  This is the first time I have ever had chard.  Plant more next year.

June 8 - strawberries in lunches and herbs, onions and lettuce in our dinner

June 9 - strawberry shortcake

June 10 - herbs in our pasta salad

June 11 - salad with radishes, peas, 2 lettuces and also strawberries

June 12 - strawberries in lunches and also some more salsa

June 13 - you guessed it...strawberries, but also a handful of the first raspberries of the season and a whole bowl of peas with supper

June 14 - strawberries in the lunches.

I have to say that strawberries is what I have the most of at this time of year.  I have the ever bearing kind so I get a large colander full, about every 2 days for weeks, rather than a whole bunch all at once.  

The other item in abundance is the mint, specifically, but also other herbs.  I didn't actually list it all the time, but I would say we are having mint iced tea more often than we are NOT having it.  It has cut down on the amount of frozen juice concentrate that we buy, which also has cut down on the garbage as only 2 kinds are recyclable.

What we are preserving:
To help me get through the winter on this challenge, so far I have:

-dried plenty of mint, oregano, thyme, sage, parsley (I hang them in my dining room until they are dry, and then I will pack them into mason jars)
-I have 2 milk sleeves packed with strawberries in the freezer with which I plan to make jam, once I have assured myself that we will have enough frozen strawberries for a couple of dinners
-I have pulled out my electric dehydrator and have tried drying a few things I have never done before: green onions that I think will be great in soups, herbs in the dehydrator (usually I just hang them to dry) and I sliced up a couple of strawberries to dehydrate but they shrank away to almost nothing so I think I will try again with some bigger pieces.
-I have 2 half-pint jars of pickled spring onions
-I have made a small jar of chive blossom vinegar which I intend to use in the winter for salad dressing
-I have enough frozen parsley pesto to make one more side dish of pesto pasta.
-I am freezing the red and black currents (I am getting a handful or so a day) until I have enough to make some current juice for sore throats this winter.

These are the pickled onions, the dehydrated green onions and the mint that went through the dehydrator.

What I need to do for next year:
-Plant a wider variety of lettuces and spring greens.  I did try to plant a few things out under row covers but the seeds didn't take.  I think they were eaten by critters.  I want to try to start them indoors early next year, and plant them out in row covers when they are a little more established.
-Hopefully, next year, I will have a little more preserved to get me through the month of May.
-Make sure I have dried a variety of herbs to make tea blends.

How others are getting involved:
Even though I set this challenge for my own self, I encourage others to try to grow a little something too.
My dear sister who lives in the big T.O. (Toronto Ontario) has planted out her whole balcony with edibles this year and has been kind enough to forward me some pictures of her new plantings:

Her significant other built the planters from reclaimed wood from houses he has worked on and the planters that are plastic are made from recycled material, as are the glass lanterns.  These pictures were taken when everything was newly planted, so next month, when I update mine, maybe I can share her progress.  I keep saying that I live in the city, but really, my sister lives in The City!  So you see, you can grow a little something anywhere!

I really do hope some of you will share what you have been eating and growing.  Either leave a comment with a link to a post, or just leave a comment with a list or a tip or whatever you wish to help encourage others along.  Any little bit, right?

Gonna link this one up to barn hop #66 at Homestead Revival.