Cucumbers...Zucchini...Beans! A true veggie bombardment.

Every winter, I order seeds.  This I am sure comes as no surprise to any of you.  I typically give the plants away, and keep a variety for myself.  I like to experiment with different types, varieties, shapes and colors.  This year, I decided to try Turkish orange eggplant, Hungarian cheese peppers, and Romanian Gold Beans of Bacau.  I also choose all time favorites such as Roma, and cherry tomatoes, Blue Lake Beans, and Chicago Pickling cucumbers.

My garden this year is all about new discoveries.  I have more space to work with, more sun, less tree roots, and better soil.  I dug three extra beds this spring, in order to house my veggies, and knowing how I like to over crowd my plants (thinning seedlings is not one of my strong suits) I vowed to give everything enough space...even the tomatoes...sort of.  

I planted about 6 zucchini seeds, spaced nicely apart.  Then I planted three thin rows of cucumbers, a pickling variety and a regular cucumber.  I made two areas for my beans and peas to climb, sowing purple, yellow wax, bush, pole and the beans of Bacau, in designated areas.  They filled in nicely, each producing abundantly at a different time.

And then, I accidentally watered two packets of cucumber seeds...and instead of drying them out, or discarding them...I planted them.

So this is pretty much what it looks like every day at my house....

and this.......

and now this......

Needless to say, I have stopped picking cucumbers for the time being....

What does one do with all of these cucumbers you ask...I made pickles.  Lots and lots of pickles.  In fact I should be making pickles right now.  

 

The true fact of the matter is that this mass quantity of cucumbers has brought with it, the opportunity for me to experiment with various types of pickle making and pickle recipes.  I have tried garlic dill pickles,  hamburger dill pickles, and bread and butter pickles.  

At one point, at the height of my pickling frenzy, with some brine to spare, I began pickling the string beans.

 

  I also decided to make Tzatziki Sauce.  Cucumber, dill, mint, yogurt, garlic and lemon. Yum!

Ok so now moving on the other veggies...Zucchini.  One night I decided to make a dish that I used to order at restaurants in Italy, Fritto Misto.  Often served on brown paper, this crave-worthy dish is usually made up of a variety of fried veggies and seafood.  

I decided that I would fry some zucchini flowers, along with zucchini, and string beans in a light batter that I usually use for the zucchini flowers.  Not sure how the beans would turn out ( even as I added them to the oil) I was surprised to find that they cooked so quickly and were incredibly tender while still a little crunchy.  This dish made a perfect side for the main course...and I made zucchini parmigiana with the leftovers!

( Please note the wrapped up cucumber in the background...they are everywhere!)

And this leaves us with the beans.  Oh the beans.  Producing wonderfully, I have purple, yellow wax, green, and Gold of Bacau.  Typically I like to blanch the beans in salted water, and toss them with olive oil, fresh mint, garlic, salt and pepper, and add a little splash of vinegar at the end.  This is one of my favorite summertime side dishes.  This year however, because of the shear abundance of beans, I wanted to try something different.

The Gold of Bacau, heirloom Romanian Pole Beans, are tender and light, but I had never cooked them alone.  So in order to highlight and understand their true flavor, I isolated them, and decided to make these beans in a tomato basil sauce.

I prepared the beans by blanching them lightly in salted water, while in another pan, sauteing a few  lightly smashed garlic cloves in olive oil, salt, and pepper.  Once the beans were ready, I added them to the garlic to saute, and then added Italian Cherry Tomatoes.  These tomatoes are so sweet and fresh, they make a delicious sauce.  I finished the dish with some purple basil leaves from my garden. 

The beans came out so tender and full of flavor that they almost could be used as a substitute for a pasta dish.  This is one recipe that I will add to my list of summertime favorites!

Stay tuned for more updates from the garden...as the tomatoes and peppers are finally beginning to make an appearance...

Backyard Exploring- The Seasons in Wildflowers

This spring marked the first that I have spent on my new property.  With so many new things to discover and learn about the different corners of my garden, I was delighted to find a whole world of native wild flowers and plants growing amongst a tangled and seemingly overgrown patch of woodland.

In the early spring my lawn was sprinkled with little clumps of purple violets winding their way down to the creek's edge.  I traced them in the grass like I was searching for a lost piece of jewelry, and made my way to a fenced area along the creek where the previous owners' chickens once resided.
 

Crossing the creek which was freely flowing from the springtime melt, I discovered an exciting variety of natural wildflowers and woodland plants.  This wonderful surprise was beginning to add new personality to the wooded area that I had only seen in winter, and late summer last year. 

Little treasures dotted the forest, and taking care not to step on them, I made my way around, perking up with a glimmer of a smile at each new sighting.  

One day, a sea of pink and white fragrant phlox, filled the forest across from the creek like dots of a Monet painting.

 Once June arrived, I began to notice a strong floral fragrance in the air as I worked in the garden.  As always, when I notice something like this, I look up into the trees to try to identify the source.  It's usually some type of magnolia or flowering tree that I have never seen before.  After some investigation, I noticed that the honeysuckles were in full bloom.   I have always loved their sweet smell, and carefully extracting the nectar from the little flowers as a child.  There is a vine draped over the fence right near the vegetable garden and the smell fills the air as I stake my tomatoes and train my beans.  I made my way back into the woods, and noticed a shrub that looked very much like privet.  It was blooming with such an intoxicating fragrance that I had to cut some and bring it on to my patio.  The smell permeated the air everywhere, and behind it were notes of wild roses.

 I also have been keeping an eye out for plants that I can introduce into the landscape, as a sort of experiment.  Attaining a balance between natural, wild, and cultivated gardening is exciting.  I don't know what the summer holds, but I will be looking out for new surprises! 

Here is one of my first experiments!

 

Food, Wine, Cheese....The Tastes of Northern Italy in 5 Parts...Mangia!

Part One:  The Vineyards, a Festival of Tortellini, Cherries and Amarone Risotto.

We arrived at the Borgo San Donino- Selva Capuzza, just a short drive outside of Verona, surrounded by rows of grapevines, brightly colored oleander, fig trees, and tall tall cypress trees pointing up towards the blue sky.  The Mountains of Lake Garda stood proudly in the distance.  

During all of my trips to the different regions of Italy over the years, I had become very familiar with the wonderful food, wine, oil, fresh produce, gelato, pasta, meats, cheeses, soups, pastries, coffee.... yes I could of course keep going... 

But never had the focus of a trip been solely on the food and wine alone.  This was what this week in Northern Italy would be about and it was not only delicious, but very, very informative. 

 

We were greeted each morning with this lovely breakfast table, complete with espresso, blood orange juice, peach nectar, fresh strawberries and pastries. 

Early in our week, we went on a day long excursion to the small town of Borghetto for a lunch, a lesson in tortellini making, and to see the annual Festo del Nodo d'Amore (The Festival of the Knot of Love or the Tortellino).  This festival takes place each year in June, and is dedicated to the little knot shaped pasta.  4,000 people sit for a tortellini dinner at one long table that runs along the length of the old bridge in town.

 When we arrived in the outskirts of historic Borghetto, we walked down a small modern residential street, where people swept their sidewalks and greeted us with "Buon Giorno."  Plastic water bottles were lined up outside of homes, so that neighbors could water plants while the owners were away.

We were greeted at the end of the street by a friendly dog, and one of the family members who run the Pastificio al Re del Tortellino, a small tortellino shop.

We were shown into the kitchen, where the ingredients that are used to make the meat filling were on display, and then down to the enclosed area where they make each tortellino by hand.  I was surprised to find out that mortadella was included in the meat mixture, and that the ingredients were left to simmer for about 6 hours to develop the flavor.

We washed up and were invited to make a few tortellini of our own.

After making tortellini, we were invited across the courtyard to the family's house, where they served us an incredible lunch.  The first course was the meat tortellini tossed with a little butter and grana padano cheese...oh my....The filling was light and flavorful, almost resembling a cheese filling.  I had a second little helping of these, not knowing what would be next on the menu. 

The second course was basil and ricotta torelloni in a fresh tomato sauce.  The ingredients were incredibly simple, but the flavors were complex.  Each little knot was so fluffy that they melted in my mouth.

The third course, was pumpkin, chocolate, amaretti tortellini in a light butter and cheese sauce.  On my ever growing list of the best things that I have ever eaten, these were the perfect blend of sweet and savory.  The tortellini with pumpkin filling at the center, was half chocolate pasta dough and half a dough that had a subtle taste of amaretti cookies (little almond cookies that are great crushed on desserts and used on certain pasta dishes).

The chocolate pumpkin pasta was for sale in their storefront, and oh how I wished that I could take these home!

At their wonderful little shop, I bought a Mostarda di Pere, which is a sweet and spicy condiment that is great on cheese.  Pears or Apples are caramelized into a sticky jelly and combined with mustard powder for a really interesting and zingy flavor combination. 

After lunch we ventured north about an hour to Marano di Valpolicella, east of Lake Garda.  As we climbed higher and higher up the hills, the thousands of terraced vineyards became apparent.  Lines of grapes were drawn all along the hillsides, each supported by a stone wall beneath.  The vines rolled with the shape of the hills, tracing the landscape with the mark of the agricultural importance of the region.  High above the world below stood the small, family operated,  Giuseppe Lonardi Winery. 

We toured the winery, the aging tanks, and barrels.  The aging rooms that housed the oak casks were filled with the pungent perfume of aging and fermenting grapes.

Meeting the family, and hearing about the process, introduced a whole new life and story to the wine in the bottle.  Winemaking is a dedicated art form, a process of preparation, growth, transformation, aging, and production, all tied together by a strong tradition of family and history.

I began to see in this process, the true marriage of nature and culture, as each season and aspect of production is subject to annual weather and soil, conditions in each region.  There seemed to be a respect for the land and a command of it at the same time.

After the tour, we went to a nearby restaurant up on the hill above for a tasting and dinner.

After the day of tortellini, it was hard to believe that we would be eating again, and boy was I in for a surprise!

We tasted numerous red wines, including the winery's Valpolicella Classico, Privilegia, Amarone, and a sweet wine called Recioto.  I learned that the production of fresh cherries was prevalent in the region, and began to see a relationship between the tastes in the wines and this distinct flavor. 

After our tasting, we were invited into the kitchen where we watched the chef prepare polenta over a  wood fire of grape vines, which would be served with sauteed rosemary mushrooms.  The flavor of this polenta was truly unreal.  The distinct smokey flavor of the grape vine wood was apparent, and the pairing with the mushrooms and wine made my tastebuds sing.  

Next, we were presented with Amarone risotto, cooked in a savory broth and generous amount of Valpolicella wine.  It's aroma and creamieness, with just a sprinkle of cheese was like nothing I have ever tasted.  It truly elevated the wine, taking the ingredient, with all of it's complexity and flavor, and making it the shine.  

I couldn't help but think of the respect for the ingredient itself in this dish, considering all of the steps, process, and work that had gone into making the wine, and then incorporating in to this one amazing little plate of rice.  

The dish was followed by tender lamb cooked in wine, with a side of grilled smokey polenta, and a few potatoes.

Finally some of the sweet Recioto wine, a cherry torte, and coffee of course ended the meal.

I could have left Italy after this day a happy, happy woman, but there would be so much more to come...