Taking a Break from Vacation Pictures

Jon, once again, has outdone himself planting the vegetable garden. The weather was unseasonably warm in April and he got a little ahead of himself getting everything in the ground. Then in typical Minnesota fashion, we had a cold snap in May, topped off by a week or so of rain. Consequently, some of the bean and the squash seeds rotted and therefore had to be replanted as did the Rainbow Swiss Chard. A squirrel or some darn varmint really took a liking to one of the tomato plants. It looked as though something was using it as a springboard. Needless to say, we’ve had to replace that one plant three times.

We have six different tomato and five different sweet pepper varieties, as well as various squash and cucumber varieties. I’m looking forward to making lots of tomato paste and pepper relish come August.

The beans are coming in nicely. We cannot wait for that first tender harvest to blanch then sauté with fresh garlic and olive oil.

The garlic scapes are about ready to harvest as well. I’m thinking I’ll sauté these then add them to a frittata. Generally, garlic is harvested in July, but with all the warm weather, we may be digging up the bulbs before then. I probably should ask the Garlic Man at the Saint Paul Farmer’s Market what he thinks the garlic harvest will be this year.

The first crop of French radishes has been harvested. Wash and trim, then slice them into fourths halfway down the center. Place in ice water for about an hour or so. When ready to eat, remove them from the water and shake off to dry. Have a small dish of your best sea salt and butter ready to go. Spread a little butter on the end of the radish and dip in salt. These are delicious with an aperitif!