Columbus Day

Love him or hate him, there can be no argument that Christopher Columbus' voyages changed the world map and the way people eat. Without the age of discovery unleashed by his travels, peppers, tomatoes, potatoes, corn and chocolate would have remained locked in the New World for years, decades or centuries to come.

Try to imagine German, Irish or other European cuisines without potatoes. What would many cuisines of the world be like without peppers, both sweet and spicy? And would you want to live in a world where the Italians had never encountered the tomato? So if you can't celebrate Columbus for the man he was, you can celebrate the food diversity his voyages triggered in the rest of the world.

A Pizza The Good Life

All good things come to those who wait and now we're in a month that was definitely worth waiting for, National Pizza Month. And while we can't grow mozzarella, pepperoni, ham or sausage in our gardens(sigh), we can grow herbs and veggies that make a homemade pizza all the more special because they add fresh flavors that can only be found in produce that was harvested just a few minutes ago.

So go ahead and grow basil and tomatoes. Make that homemade pizza sauce. Shred yellow summer squash or zucchini. Drain them, squeeze out the excess liquid and sprinkle them  generously over your creation. Put on some young tender spinach. Add homegrown onions and peppers if you like, raw or sauteed. And you can even include roasted homegrown garlic if you have a mind to.

The variations of pizza are endless. And you'll need far more than one month to explore them. So get started now and enjoy! Mangia! Mangia!

Sumptuous And Simple Summer Vegetable Recipe

When the tomatoes and summer squash are producing faster than you seem to be able to keep up with, it pays to have a simple recipe or two handy to use the abundance that Mother Nature has given you. Here is one of my favorites.

Summer Vegetable Medley

• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 lb. yellow summer squash, sliced
• 1 large or two medium tomatoes, cut into wedges
• 1 bunch of green onions, sliced
• 1 large bell or 3 to 4 regular sized banana peppers, seeded and cut into chunks
• 1 tsp salt or 1 tsp non-salt seasoning mix
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp black pepper 

Heat oil in large skillet. Saute squash for a couple of minutes then add the pepper chunks. After a couple of minutes more add the green onions. When the other vegetables are tender, add  the sugar, salt/non-salt seasoning, pepper and tomato wedges and stir well. Lower the heat and cover the skillet. Simmer for 10 to 12 minutes more  stirring occasionally. Season to taste and then serve. This is great over white rice!

Pecks O' Peppers

I love peppers in a way that I can't describe. They truly are a vegetable I'd never want to live without. But, why oh why did Mother Nature make a tropical plant that is so slow growing? The anticipation is enough to kill you. And here in zone 5 we can't even think about putting peppers out overnight until the end of May. Oh well, one does what one can with what one has.

Groundhog Wars- Part Deux

In the never ending struggle to thwart the ever present woodchucks, my best friends have become large, discarded, plastic trash receptacles and discarded plastic storage bins. When combined, they make great high rise containers that keep the fruits of my labor beyond the reach of the relatives of Punxsutawney Phil. In the photographs above pepper plants, basil and a container tomato plant have found a happy home.

Of course, I can't do this with all of my  plants, but every little bit helps.

Poor Man's Raised Bed

Pepper Patch September 2012

Pepper Patch June 2012

This is my pepper patch for this year. I would call it a raised bed except for the fact that I don't think the frame is quite as high as the ones you would purchase in a store. In fact, it's only eight inches high. It is the inside frame from the bottom of a piece of furniture that was at the end of its life. So I thought I would repurpose some of it. As you can see, it may be near the end of its life as the wind, rain and sun have certainly taken their toll and caused one side of the frame to collapse. This didn't have any effect on the peppers though. The jalapeños, pizza and sweet pepper plants are all doing just fine. And the hot, dry summer has given the jalapeños an extra kick that makes them extra delicious.