~ For people who are passionate about respecting the earth, walking in nature, observing wildlife, local diet, making do, repurposing, organic gardening, foraging for wild plants and fungi, natural health, scrumptious healthy cooking, renovations, DIY, crafting, raising children simply and mindfully, taking time for stillness, and living in harmony with the seasons.
Caramelized onions are so easy to make and they only require three ingredients: onions, a bit of olive oil and time.
Start by thinly slicing your onions- use a red or a yellow onion. I like to make a larger batch with about four onions, which fit into my pan nicely.
Heat two tablespoons of the olive oil (for four onions) in a pan on medium heat. Add the onions and cook uncovered, stiring frequently until the onions are translucent. At this point turn the heat down to medium low and continue to slowly cook, stirring frequently. At this point the natural sugars in the onion will begin to caramelize, turning the onions a deep brown color. Watch the onions carefully so that they do not burn. As they onions darken I turn down the heat even more and allow them to cook until they are dark brown and ‘dry’ looking. Overall this takes about 45 minutes to an hour. I like to caramelize onions when I know that I’ll be in the kitchen doing something else for a while. That way I am in no rush. Caramelized onions are a great example of ‘slow food’ and they are well worth the time.
Serve over poached eggs, with pasta, roast vegetables, on any meat dish, over pizza, or with any mushroom dish.
Store the caramelized onions in a sealed container in the fridge. Enjoy!
The last time I posted on the raised bed garden was back in May after it was just built. It was so exciting to see my vision of a circular Medicine Wheel raised bed garden come true! Next summer I will add a second row of triangular boxes and begin incorporating elements of the Medicine Wheel.
I planted potatoes, peppers, a variety of onions, leeks and garlic, broccoli, brussels sprouts, kale, Swiss chard, red and green cabbage, kohl rabbi, tomatoes and a number of herbs.
A week and a half ago, the garden looked like this:
Brussels sprouts…
Leeks, onions and garlic…Red cabbage…
These raised beds have been very little work so far this season. I haven’t had to water yet as we have been receiving plenty of rain. I have only weeded a few times and there were only a few small weeds to pull. My main job so far has been keeping the slugs off of the brassicas. I have been picking them off by hand and then sprinkling diatomacious earth on the plants (which dehydrates and kills the slugs as they travel over it). This works very well until the rain washes it off and I have to reapply. Tonight I will sprinkle some woods ash around the plants and then put out a few half-filled trays of beer (the slugs apparently drown themselves in it while heartily singing pub songs). I will also put out small aluminum tart trays with a slice of cucumber in it (apparently the slugs hate the smell of the chemical reaction between the aluminum and the cucumber which drives them to drink the beer conveniently located nearby). I’ll let you know whether I am successful this year. Last year by mid-summer I had a lovely row of green cabbage one day and just the naked spines of the plants after a week of rain (and my neglect). This year I would like to enjoy the brassicas myself, thank you very much!
There are so many flavor combinations and ways to make a frittata! For an extra sizzle of salt, try adding chopped bacon or prosciutto ham. Fresh herbs, such as basil, oregano or parsley add a nice tangy layer of flavor. Also, instead of the peppers you can add 1 cup of chopped spinach, Swiss chard or beet greens. A wonderful, heart breakfast or served as an appetizer with a glass of white wine.
Mushroom and Pepper Frittata
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
4 organic, free-range eggs
half a red onion, diced
half a red pepper, diced
half a yellow pepper, diced
half a small zucchini, diced
8 shitake mushrooms, diced
¼ cup parmesan cheese, grated
2 tablespoons fresh chives, finely chopped, for garnish
salt and pepper, to taste
Preheat oven on the broil setting.
In a medium bowl, add the eggs, salt and pepper and beat lightly with a fork. Set aside.
Heat the olive oil in an oven-proof nonstick skillet and sauté the onions on medium heat until they are translucent. Add the peppers, zucchini and mushrooms and continue to cook for 5 minutes. Pour the egg mixture over top, cover and cook for 5 minutes, (the top will still be a bit runny and uncooked). Sprinkle the cheese over the frittata and then put the skillet into the oven and broil until the top is fully cooked and the cheese is beginning to brown.
Slide onto a plate, garnish with the chives and serve immediately. Enjoy!
Here we are at the end of October and I am still harvesting herbs and vegetables from the garden and greenhouse. The picture above features the heirloom tomatoes and peppers that I grew in the greenhouse all summer. I thought I would have been done weeks ago but there was just so much to do and with the reasonably mild temperatures (until this week) I was able to take my time in getting everything in.
I now have all of the onions (Spanish, yellow and red), leeks, potatoes, squash, peppers and tomatoes in.
I also harvested parsley, dill seed and coriander seed (they are just drying out a bit more so I will do a separate post on them). Tomorrow I will harvest the basil in the greenhouse and make a batch of pesto. I still have garlic, carrots, more beets, some hardy swiss chard and a few more cold-tolerant herbs left to harvest and then I will be done for the season. Wow! What an amazing first year!
And what do you think I did at the end of a long, cold and windy day of harvesting…?
I spent this lovely, windy afternoon in the garden harvesting potatoes (red, Yukon gold and banana), beets, spaghetti squash, pumpkins, acorn squash and onions. The wilderness surrounding the garden was breathtaking… The leaves on the surrounding aspen poplars have turned bright yellow and they almost seemed to vibrate against today’s clear blue sky. My sweet peas are finally in full fragrant bloom and the sunflowers swayed and danced in the wind…
Despite the back-breaking labor of digging potatoes, I always enjoy the process. The simple turning of the soil to reveal these tasty treasures always reminds me of an Easter Egg hunt, where one never knows what will be revealed under the black earth…
This Yukon Gold wins the prize both for size and most interesting shape…!!!
A small mountain of banana potatoes…
Another prize-winner for interesting shape, this time in the tomato category…
I harvested only two tomato plants today. Only twelve more to go! (What was I thinking planting all of these???) I hauled three wheel barrels full of ‘spent plants’ a bit of a distance to my compost pile (behind the chicken coop, still in progress) where they will decompose and be dug into the garden soil next spring to nourish next years garden vegetables…
It was a wonderful, productive and satisfying day. I still have much more to harvest but I think that today’s labor was a very good start!
I would like to show you the vegetable garden. When we bought the cabin last fall it was just a little postage stamp of a plot with some potatoes left behind. We dug these up in October and they lasted us until March.
By November, the land was covered in snow and I spent the winter planning my garden, making endless lists and researching ‘deer- and rabbit-resistant gardening’. In May, my wonderful neighbor, K, came over with her tractor and tilled the soil for me, enlarging the garden into it’s current size. The soil is good in this spot and I was told that years ago this used to be a large garden.
Once tilled, I mapped out a Medicine Wheel design using mulch for the pathways. I added some plants and sowed some seeds. Then I spent an afternoon pounding in large stakes for the fence. My budget was very limited so I used what I could find on the land. I also found some rusty barbed wire fencing in large rolls around the property. I carefully unwound these and wrapped these around the poles, using wire to fasten it to the stakes. I did two rows of fencing, one on top of the other and wired these together. This was tricky as I did this on my own, holding the fence in place with my head while wiring the fencing together with needle nose pliers and being careful not to get scratched with the rusty wire…
I choose a Medicine Wheel design as I wanted to be intentional in my creation of a garden. This place would be set aside as a quiet place for contemplation, a source of nourishment and healing. For some reason, stepping into a circular garden invokes a feeling of reverence and quiet power.
Both the design and use of sacred space are processes that draw on both the conscious and unconscious levels of mind and spirit. We learn as we create and we change as we garden. Let the process inform you spirit. ~Peg Streep
The circle has four quadrants (which were further subdivided into pie-shaped plots) set to the cardinal directions (north, east, south and west). Each direction has a corresponding element (earth, air, fire and water). The center of the circle is a place of concentrated ‘power’ and peace. At the door of the garden is a pile of stones found previously buried in the soil. Visitors are invited to take a stone, envision a prayer or request, wish or blessing, and imagine that they are putting it into the stone. Then they can place the stone in the center bowl. As I spend time each day working in the garden, I meditate, contemplate and pray. I sing songs, I laugh, I dance, I express gratitude for the earth’s abundance. I imagine this good energy being absorbed into the growing plants.
The creation of sacred space- how we set apart and arrange a certain spot and imbue it with reverent feelings… draws us closer to nature and affirms our personal ties with the earth. Medicine Wheel gardens are places for celebrating and teaching. Some go to the Medicine Wheel garden for vision quests, prayer and personal renewal. Others see it as a place to gather together for drumming, fire ceremonies and singing. -E.Barrie Kavasch
The above shot was just taken today. I love spending time in the garden and taking care of it never feels like a chore. I feel the earth supporting my body as I kneel to work, I listen to the wind and the birds, I feel the sun and sometimes rain on my skin and all of this brings me deep contentment. Today, it was a very hot and sunny day. Here are a few more shots of things growing in the garden…
I am noticing lots of green and yellow in the pictures but very little red. I do have red beets and radishes and red lettuce and potatoes; and soon will also have red peppers, chili peppers and loads of tomatoes, if only we would get more warmer weather. In fact, everything is behind this year due to the cool, wet summer. Perhaps we will have a hot late summer/autumn in time for harvest?
This season marks phase one in the Medicine Wheel garden design. Next year, I will add raised beds and incorporate the four elements into each quadrant (a bowl of stones for earth, prayer flags and wind chimes for air, a small fire bowl for fire, and a bird bath for water). In the meantime, we have a few months of harvest ahead of us. I will show you more pictures of the garden as the summer progresses.
Lucy and I spent most of the day in the garden. Not too long ago, whenever Lucy was outside of the cabin, I would have to keep her on a long rope (attached to a dog run) as she had a tendency to run down the road without looking back. Every time she did this, the theme song from that 1980’s television program, The Littlest Hobo would play through my mind: “There’s a voice that keeps on calling me…. Down the road that’s where I want to be…!!!” Of course, I would then have to spend precious time chasing after her and bringing her back to the cabin. It seems, however, that Lucy finally understands the boundaries of home and as of three weeks ago, I have had her ‘off the rope’ (unless she’s outside by herself). On our hikes, she was always off-leash from the beginning and she stayed close to me, it was just at home that she would wander.
Lucy has become a different dog with her new freedom. She is more relaxed and happier, which makes me more relaxed and happier. She isn’t quite perfect yet, as she did start running down the road the other day, chasing after a black lab who was chasing a jogger. But she came right back as soon as I called her. And just last week some hikers followed the trail to our private residence and Lucy ran just to our property line and barked at them as they headed back to the main trail.
With Lucy off the rope, gardening is even more of a pleasure. Before, I would tie her to a tree near where I was working and she would be confined to a small area. Now she simply follows me freely out back to the large vegetable garden and spends time exploring the woods but staying so close by that I can hear her dog tags jingling. Then she joins me in the garden, lying as close as she can get to me. Today, she napped in the parsley. After her snooze, she will wander around, eating blades of grass, drinking water from the birdbath and sniffing around in the potatoes and the herbs. Because I am often on my hands and knees as I weed the garden, I am fair game for kisses and she gave me lots of sugar today. I love when she kisses me because the first four months that she came to stay, she was very serious and somber, never played and rarely gave kisses. She is still very choosy about who she kisses (and how often) so when she gives me a kiss I know that I am truly loved and that she is deeply happy. It is even better when she kisses me in the garden as the fur on her face is often scented with dill or fennel or cilantro.
After a few hours of quiet gardening, Lucy will often have a sudden burst of energy. She will get up and start acting crazy, running wildly in circles. Today, she attacked an onion, growling and pulling it out of the ground. Then she pulled out another one so I decided I had better give her a play break before she harvested my whole onion crop! As I got up, she came to me smiling (she had lovely onion breath) and we left the fenced in garden to the lawn area where I joined her, running around wildly with one of my gardening gloves. Then I threw it as hard as I could and Lucy went after it, seizing it and shaking it roughly. Then she ran in circles, around and around the lawn, throwing the glove up in the air and catching it, taunting me and daring me to come get it, then growling fiercely whenever I tried. We wrestled over that glove for about 20 minutes until my stomach hurt from laughing. Then we settled down, both of us panting, and I pet her for a few minutes before heading back to work.
After that break, I happily got in another hour of weeding when I suddenly realized that Lucy had been very quiet. I wondered what she was up to. I knew that she was in the potato patch, but doing what? I went over to her and found a large hole right in the middle of the red potato patch with about eight beautiful little potatoes dug up from the soil. I had to laugh because that is exactly what I wanted for supper. She even got the type of potato I wanted. I picked up the little potatoes, the two onions that she previously harvested, and grabbed myself some Swiss chard to go along with it. Once inside, I washed the vegetables and simply cooked everything in one pan, adding olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper and a few herbs. It was delicious! “Lucy’s harvest”. That is what I had for dinner tonight.
Here is my little gardener, exhausted after a hard day’s work.
Start by thinly slicing your onions- use a red or a yellow onion. I like to make a larger batch with about four onions, which fit into my pan nicely.
cabinorganic 