Recipe #2 "Beet Kvass"

This drink is made from Beets, harvested from our own MHC student garden.

The beverage has an interesting taste, and nourishing properties.

Equipment

• half gallon jar
• vegetable peeler
• knife
• cutting board 

Ingredients

• 3 medium or 2 large beets
• 1/4 cup whey (optional)
• 1 TBS sea salt
• filtered water

Preparation:

Peeled the beats and coarsely chopped about (not too small). Place the chopped beats, whey, and salt in the jar. Add filter water to fill the jar. 

Keep at the room temperature for 2 days before transfering to the refrigerator. 

Ready to drink.

Enjoy the drink

Love and Peace
:) Lobsang
P.S - next recipe coming up will be kimchi

Recipe #1 Curry Okra

Today, during the farmers' market, we were selling okra and some other vegetables. Some people came up to us and asked, "How do you cook okra?". I explained to them verbally, on how I cook okra.
So, after the farmers' market, which ended at 6pm, I was thinking what to cook for dinner.  I was like, "Why not cook an okra dish and put it on the blog, this way people can refer to the blog when cooking okra dish. And also we will be selling okra next farmers' week". So, after I made this decision, I cooked okra for dinner and here are the pictures I took, while cooking.
Just to let you know, okra goes well with potato, so I cooked with potato

Ingredients:
Okra
Potato
Oil
Onion
Tomato
Salt
Black Pepper
All purpose Seasoning
Crushed Red Pepper (Optional)
Curry(Optional)
Paprika (Optional)
Pan to cook in

Step by Step cooking
1. First pour some oil in a pan and heat it up

2. Put onion on top.  Wait till it turn little brown and put tomato on it. Sprinkle some salt on top.

 3. After that add, black pepper.

Then stir together.

4.  Put potato on top, and then add spices (all purpose seasoning, paprika, curry). If you want hot, add red crushed pepper. 

 stir it.

Then add some water

5. Put the lid on and let it cook for some time, till potatoes are about done or almost done. (try tasting the potato to see if its done or can be done by poking at the potato by fork/knife. If easily penetrates the potatoes, then its done)
6. Okra, shaped like:

 not too thick

 put it in the pan

Cover it with lid

 cook like that for couple of mins. 

 stir it together.

 taste it. (to see, if anything is missing/enough, especially salt)

 Here is a picture of my dinner:

Love and Peace

:) Lobsang

Edible Forest Gardens

There is a practice of growing and gardening that is captivating many people today, growing an edible forest garden.  However, this is neither a newly developed technique nor something even created by man.  These sorts of gardens mimic patterns of natural forest succession, providing appropriate shade and sun availability to a wide variety of plants, and growing into gardens with canopy structures resemblant of forests.  If humans choose to plant a perennial, edible garden that mimics this natural structure they are simply utilizing the design to benefit themselves (and definitely their health and their wallet!).

The edible forest garden Lobsang, Shristi, and I visited in Holyoke, MA, is called Food Forest Farm.  The property is owned and run by two passionate, eager-to-share guys named Eric Toensmeier and Jonathan Bates and boasts more than 200 varieties of perennial and self-seeding plants.  Eric, the author of Perennial Vegetables and co-author of Edible Forest Gardens (with Dave Jacke), and Jonathan, who offers site design consultations and a variety of workshops, were both so enjoyable and accessible to talk to about their visions for their designs.

"We've pretty much achieved what our original goal was, which was EATING FOR FUN, handfuls at a time as we walk through the garden." - Jonathan Bates

Edible plants, even the weeds!  Seriously!

Wild amaranth.  The leaves are edible and would be cooked similar to beet greens.  The seeds can be harvested and popped - like popcorn!

Hardiness zones of 1 (polar) -12 (tropical) classify where certain plants will be able to grow (based on heat, sunlight, resource requirements, and more).  There is a zone 8 in front of the house at Food Forest Farm, formed by the micro-climate between the asphalt of the driveway and the front porch of the house, which is similar to a zone you would find in Georgia!  Hearty banana plants, figs, eggplant, and sweet potato were some plants growing in that zone.

There is a greenhouse currently under construction and it will mimic a tropical zone.  It will feature avocado, plantain, and banana plants, in addition to an underground worm composting site.  The airflow will be maintained using passive cooling techniques (a draft will occur naturally from mesh windows at the bottom of the greenhouse and exit through vents near the top) and heat will be maintained using smart insulation designs (super insulation, use of granite in building which will attract and store heat, storing water used for plants in black bins to attract heat).  

Raised beds with a covercrop of cow pea to the left; vermicompost trenches in the middle; granite to maintain temperature used as building material; eventual garden beds to the right.

< < The worm compost (vermicompost) trenches!  When it rains they will overflow and provide nutrients to the bases of the raised beds around them, which will provide nutrients to the avocado, banana, and plantain plants!

It was extremely thought-provoking to visit Eric and Jonathan at their home and see the simplicity and ease with which they managed what could be an overwhelming project.  I was most impressed with the multi-faceted functions of the greenhouse and their complete understanding of how many processes could overlap and intersect to create one homogenous circuit within the structure.

In addition to the greenhouse and garden, Jonathan sells the overflow of plants he cultivates from his nursery.  This generates a tidy income, approximately 1/4-1/3 of his current total income.  Folks who want to learn about efficient greenhouse design and help with the project at Food Forest Farm can also pay to participate in a workshop and get hands-on experience with construction, covercropping, planting, and design.  These two forms of income are something Jonathan and Eric say they never even anticipated or thought of when they began developing their patch of weedy land in Holyoke, MA, years ago.  It has obviously helped them sustain their passion, however, and has become an important part of the process.

I hope to visit Food Forest Farm again sometime in the future.  Jonathan informed me of the Permaculture FEAST (for ecological and social transformation) design certificate course that will happen from September to December 2012 in Northampton, MA.  For more information on the design course, visit this site.

 "In permaculture we seek to mimic the patterns nature has to offer, like the use of the spiral in our gardens." - Jonathan Bates

Stay with us the next few days as we post about our individual experiences at The NOFA (Northeast Organic Farming Association) Summer Conference!

Peace, love, and gardening,
Allison

A New Entry

F.U.N

I tell them I am gardening 

''F.u.n'' they respond  

as they imagine 

me walking up to the aroma of blooming flowers

red and yellow

roses

daffodils

turn on the sprinklers and watch them blossom... all summer long.

Little do they know. 

Little do they know what it takes

to grow squash from seeds

beans while bunnies

devour on our efforts

and raise toasts of our sweat

Little do they know

the taste of drought

the feel of burning soil

and of losing lettuce to land

I tell my friends that I am gardening

and that it is s.o m.u.c.h f.u.n

But little do they know.

After two hours of driving to Dracut and one hour of wondering up and down a Bridge Street, we finally figured our way out to New Entry. We made it to our first farm visit last Thursday. Thanx to Adu who looked after our tent in the Framer's Market and sold almost everything we had and Ruby who pushed us to leave South Hadley for good.
New Entry is a sustainable farming project that began in 1998 to help immigrants and refugees  to develop commercial farming opportunities. The project entails providing local farmers with information, recourses, training and technical assistance so that they can grow local healthy food and sell them to consumers though the Community Supported Agriculture Program (CSA).
Unfortunately, we missed the tour to a water spinach farm owned and tended by an immigrant from Combodia. We visited three farms. The owners were all full time workers and grew produce as a side business. You dont have to be a farmer to grow a garden! It was encouraging to see how the farmers were so supportive of each other in terms of sharing each others issues and learning from one another to avoid the same problems. They emphasized on the need to plan early on time along with the need to make strategical marketing or business decisions. We also learned a couple of ways to improve our garden. Rule one. Wash your hands before starting. Who knew we had to sanitize our hands before working with dirt. Well..now we know. For the most part, they used tarps over the soil in order to keep the weed down and it seemed to work very well. This also requires a drip irrigation system. So it is might have to stick with mulching with hay. Besides, considering it is relatively small garden, hay only seems like a better option for us. Tim, who is having a hard time dealing with weeds at this point, suggested that the paths be reasonably wide and that the weeds should be knocked down while small. We can't agree more.
Lobsang liked the fact that they have someone (Matt) who regularly checks on the farms on a scientific basis, analyses the situation and suggests ways to improve. Matt is their speaker of trees, like Russ is ours.
Allison seemed interested in how New Entry Sustainable Farming Project differs from the Student Garden Project here at Mount Holyoke, in that the farmers there work for years, which gives them the chance to learn from their previous years and make changes in the coming years.

Glimpses of the New Entry Farms

It has been a fantastic week. We sold beets, cucumbers, basil and spinach in the farmer's market last week and will have more tomorrow.

Blooming Zinnias and Sunflowers are adding to the aesthetic appeal of the garden.

We also visited Food Forest Farm on Friday. Allison will tell us more about it in the next post.

Cheers
Shristi

How the garden grows!

Our garden may not be growing with silver bells and cockle shells, but it sure is growing tall with okra, beets, broccoli, lettuce, beans, and tomatoes!  We have also recently planted some summer squash that was started in the Talcott Greenhouse and should be ready to eat by mid-August!

 Beautiful baby tomatoes after the rain.

Okra!

 The tomatoes need even more support as the plants continue to grow!

Shristi has had great success with her cucumbers.  Already we have harvested three and used them in a salad, alongside some lettuce, spinach, and basil from the garden!  Her trellises, which Lobsang and I both helped her put up, not only add aesthetically to the garden but will provide the cucumbers space to climb so they are not competing so heavily for ground space.

 Early signs of a cucumber.

 Lobsang is also constructing trellises to support her watermelon, which have sprawled all along her beds!  They too need extra space to grow.  She is currently deciding how she will put them up.

 My, could it be, a baby watermelon?!

Shristi's beautiful trellises and cucumbers, here shown in the plot amended with Barstow's composted cow manure...

 ...and here in the plot amended with compost made at the student garden!

My plots are doing well, also.  I have six extremely healthy, productive basil plants that provide me more than basil than I can consume!  My spinach is also ready to harvest and eat daily, and my sunflowers and zinnias add beautiful bursts of yellow and red to the garden!  The pumpkin patch and squash patches are growing heartily, as well, and their yellow trumpet-like flowers signify the plants that will soon emerge!

The tomatoes have been peeking out for the past week or so and are hanging heavy on the plants.  Now we just wait for them to ripen and we can pick them to sell and snack on!  We will also be weighing them and measuring their size to provide data to the ecology class in the fall 2012 semester.

As far as using our produce, I have made pasta dishes, salads, and garlic scape pesto that include various ingredients from our garden and from a friend's workplace, Gardening the Community in Springfield, MA.  You can check their blog out and MHC student Jessie Orozco's addition to their movement here!

I prepared Pasta Carbonara a la Vegetariana for some friends a few weeks back.  Pasta carbonara is usually prepared with pancetta, an Italian cured cut of pork, but pork is not something I consume, so I prepared it without.  Here is the recipe (a personal interpretation!):

* one package pasta (I used whole wheat spaghetti, but linguini or fettucini would be DELISH)
* salt
* olive oil
* 2 tablespoons butter or margarine
* 1+ tablespoon flour
* 2-3 cups fresh spinach
* one handful fresh basil (or more if you love it!)
* two cloves garlic
* 1/3 to 1/2 cups milk (I used soy milk because I don't consume dairy.  2% is a good milk to use.  Mixing half 2% with half light or heavy cream will make the dish much creamier.)
* one egg (white and yolk)
* salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

* Bring a large pot of water with 1/2 tsp salt to a rolling boil.  Once boiling, add the pasta and about 2 tbsp olive oil to prevent pasta from sticking.  Cook ~10 minutes or until desired consistency (I love it al dente).
* In a large pan or skillet, begin to melt 2 tbsp butter on medium heat.  Once melted and starting to simmer, quickly stir in 1+ tbsp flour.  This will create a thick roux.
* As soon as the butter and flour are combined, add the milk (soy, regular, or cream) and stir until no chunks remain.  Reduce to low heat and allow slowly reach a light simmer.
* In a separate pan, heat about 2 tbsp olive oil over medium heat.  Once hot, add spinach and basil.  Allow to cook for a few minutes and then add garlic.  After about 45 seconds, add about a teaspoon of water.  (The water will disperse throughout the pan and keep your veggies from crisping up.)
* By this time, your pasta should be cooked.  Transfer pasta from pot of water to the pan with the milk sauce and increase the heat to medium.  NOTE: Do NOT include pasta water in the mix.  If some is on the pasta and makes it into the pan, that is fine, but do not dump whole pot of pasta+water into cream sauce.  I recommend using tongs or a pronged pasta scoop to transfer the pasta.
* Mix the pasta around the skillet with tongs until completely coated in sauce.  It should be simmering at this point in time.
* Create a small well in the pasta so the bottom of the skillet is visible.  Crack the egg into well mix the pasta thoroughly with the tongs until no gooey whites are left and the egg appears to be cooked (it should be mixed throughout, not just cooking in the middle of the pan!).  This is ESSENTIAL in achieving the creamy consistency of the dish!
* Lastly, add the veggies into the pasta.  Give them a quick turn and then plate your pasta!  Add some fresh-cracked pepper and sea salt on top -- a sprinkle of each will do! This dish is great with some garlic or Italian bread and a salad on the side.

(google images)

Buen provecho!

Tomorrow we have the farmers market and a visit to Dracut, MA to visit the New Entry Sustainable Farming Project!  Check their site out here and look out for pics of the farmers market and the farm visit next week!

Peace, love, and happy cooking!
Allison