My Love Affair with Kale Continues

Kale Chips

So my new thing, besides *finally* learning to bake kale chips without burning them, is eating kale raw. I’m obsessed. I’m a Kale evangelist. I should be this fervent as a Christian. Seriously.

I bring my kale salad around saying “wanna try some?”

And today (actually about a month ago, as that is when [...]

Rainy Saturday…

window spots

You may thank me, drought-striken Minnesotans, for this unexpected, unforecasted rainy Saturday.

Why?

Because I started washing windows yesterday. Because it always rains the day after I wash windows. Inexplicably. Without fail. I don’t actually believe that, and yet… it hasn’t rained for something like 75 days, I wash windows yesterday and even though the [...]

Picking Raspberries is Never Lonely

fall harvest raspberries

I confess: I don’t actually mind picking raspberries even though I pretend that is it a huge ordeal (It is.). That it takes a really long time. (It does.) And that I have tons of other pressing things to do. (I do.)

But.

If you happen to be listening to a good book on [...]

The Second Laziest Way to Preserve Your Tomatoes

How to peel and freeze fresh tomatoes

Hi Everyone, just a short break in the Road Warriors “action.” I’ve been told by my “best” friend that the trip log is a little “boring” this year. I mean, I’d like to tell you there was another car wreck or a speeding ticket. Another huge fight and four more blown tires, but there simply [...]

The Good News Is: I Am Not Dead

morels

And that’s about the only good news.

I’d love to rant and rave about all KINDS of blog posts that I have written in my head as I go from one crisis to another, always 7-19 minutes late for everything, but I don’t have time. Charlie has to ref in about 30 minutes, Morgan has [...]

My Potato Patch: A Retrospect

really? where's the garden fork?

I know it’s been a while.

I know.

Let’s put that behind us and move on to greener pastures.

Or dead ones.

The potato patch, to be specific.

Potatoes are a cash crop and worth the effort.

[No, not really.]

Potatoes grown in the garden are amazingly different from their supermarket counterparts and worth the [...]

How much of a good thing is too much?

Brandywine and Fourth of July variety tomatoes

Garden Tomatoes.

Can you ever have too many?

Yes and no, is what I say. Yes, if you are buried under mounds of work and untended-to yard and garden chores. No, if you have all the time in the world. Like my kids seem to have…

nevermind.

I am told it is a bad [...]

Stop the Insanity!

coming in with my daily load of asparagus

(Insanity as in asparagus.)

As I was working in the garden this weekend —  planting almost the remainder of the seeds — it occurred to me that the date was June 5th. Or 6th. I’m still not sure of the date because Charlie was using my watch this weekend to referee a soccer game [...]

How I Spent My Birthday

Sage is looking good

(the most important day of the year.)

We, in Minnesota, are in the midst of about the worst Spring ever. Rain, snow, frost, wind and more rain. It hasn’t been the best environment to garden in.

It. Has. Been. Dismal.

But on the most important day of the year, the sun shone. All day.

[...]

With Silver Bells and Cockle Shells

asparagus grows 3 inches in 7 hours

And Asparagus Stalks All Over the Messy Row.

Mary, Mary would have a hard time with this stage of the garden. Let me illustrate:

9 am:

4 pm:

And finally, at 9 pm, right before I picked it:

And, no, I didn’t touch the ruler all day. Isn’t that amazing? I [...]