Red is the new orange (Cosmic Purple)
Spectacular Onions from Seed
For the first time, this year's onions from seed were spectacular — uniformly big, beautiful and delicious.
We chose intermediate day varieties: Walla Walla (a large, sweet white) and Rossa di Milano (a large heart-shaped red), both from High Mowing Organic Seeds.
We started the seed indoors under lights on March 7th, then transplanted the seedlings into small six-packs three weeks later and planted them in the garden on May 2 (8 weeks after seeding).
The soil was well prepared with compost, manure and organic fertilizer, and the seedlings were planted on 6" centers. (We did not trim the seedlings, as recommended by High Mowing, to increase their size.)
The plants were kept well watered and weeded throughout the growing season, and side-dressed with sifted compost at least once during the summer.
Our first harvest was on July 25th (140 days after seeding, 112 days after planting). These onions have been providing a solid harvest for over a month.
We couldn't be more pleased!
Using Up Many Vegetables at Once
I made this for dinner last night, and it was yummy. I managed to use up my red cabbage and beets, plus onions, carrots, and garlic from the garden, and thyme and dill from my backyard herb garden. This is from the newish Cooks Illustrated Complete Vegetarian Cookbook.
Beet and Wheat Berry Soup with Dill Cream
Serves 6
Soup
2/3 cup wheat berries (not the quick cooking or precooked kind), rinsed
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 onions, chopped fine
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon fresh thyme or 1/2 teaspoon dried
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
8 cups vegetable broth
3 cups water
1 1/2 cups shredded red cabbage
1 pound beets, trimmed, peeled, and shredded
1 small carrot, peeled and shredded
1 bay leaf
Salt and pepper
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
Dill Cream
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup minced fresh dill
1/2 teaspoon salt
1. For the Soup: Toast wheat berries in dutch oven over medium heat, stirring often, until fragrant and beginning to darken, about 5 minutes; transfer to bowl.
2. Heat oil in now-empty pot over medium heat until shimmering. Stir in onions and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic and thyme and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in tomato paste and cayenne and cook until darkened slightly, about 2 minutes.
3. Stir in broth and water, scraping up any browned bits. Stir in toasted wheat berries, cabbage, beets, carrot, bay leaf and 3/4 teaspoon pepper, and bring to boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer until wheat berries are tender but still chewy and vegetables are tender, 45 minutes to 1 1/4 hours.
4. For the Dill Cream: Meanwhile, combine all ingredients in bowl.
5. Off heat, discard bay leaf, and stir in vinegar and 1 teaspoon salt. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste. Top individual portions with dill cream and serve.
2015 Lettuce report
Our lettuce plot has been producing well. We've had some prolonged hot weather recently, but have managed to maintain a continuous supply (see our Perpetual Lettuce post).
This year's new heat-tolerant green leaf variety – Nevada (lower left in photo) is a keeper. We began with Black Seeded Simpson in the spring, but transitioned to Nevada as the season progressed.
Some recent photos
Sometimes we get busy at the garden and forget to share our photos on the journal. The photos below were taken by Paula Herman, who sent them to me. Enjoy!
