HEARTY, SUMMERTIME POTATO SALAD

July has reached its last week and temperatures are rising. With all the heat, “regular meals” just don’t entice. That’s when, for me at least, I begin to think of (did I say crave?) how good chilled potato salad is.  And what I have in mind is a truly hearty potato salad.

While picnics are the main reasons that we prepare potato salad - and as a side dish at that - I like to make mine almost whole meal-sized  – filled with cooked and fresh veggies along with a tangy dressing.  

Since there are a lot of fresh produce offerings at this time of year, I let the season - and what's growing in my small summer garden - suggest some fresh things to fill out the salad with. And that includes right now – besides the potatoes, cooked carrots and nopales, some fresh uncooked green onions and baby spinach. The uncooked greens make for a kicky garnish. Here, I pulled it all together with a mustard vinaigrette and opted for fresh squeezed lemon juice instead of vinegar..

So, take a look at this recipe. I’m sure you’ll agree that it's sure to be a summertime crowd pleaser.

I'd better put away some of this before I eat the whole bowl full.

Ingredients

2 pounds small new potatoes, scrubbed and boiled in skins in salted water

1/2 pound peeled carrots cooked in the potato water

1/2 pound cooked and drained nopales or could be cooked green beans as an option

2 cups lightly packed fresh baby spinach, chopped

1/2 cup chopped green onions

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

2 teaspoons mustard – regular or Dijon

2 tablespoons of olive oil

2 tablespoons of mayonnaise – can be the eggless variety if you want

Smoked paprika powder to sprinkle on top

Instructions

In a large saucepan half filled with water, boil whole small potatoes and carrots.

Boil over medium heat until potatoes and carrots are easily pierced by a fork, about 8 minutes.

Hand peel the cooked potatoes (or not if you want). 

When cooked, reserve ¼ cup cooking water, then drain and cool.

Boil the nopales or green beans separately - until tender. Rinse the nopales. Let cool.   

Transfer potatoes, carrots, and nopales  to a large mixing bowl. Then add the chopped spinach and green onions.

   

Blend together with a fork olive oil, lemon juice, mustard, and mayo. Thin the dressing out a bit with some of the reserved cooking water.

Drizzle the veggies with the dressing and mix well.  Let set for at least 15 minutes, tossing it once or twice. 

Notes
If you want to increase the protein in this dish, top it with egg slices, seeds or nuts. I used pepitas (squash seeds - found in almost any store in the Southwest).

Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve immediately, or cover and refrigerate until you're ready to serve. While best eaten the same day, it can be kept covered for a couple of days in the refrigerator.  

Try it right away to beat the mid-summer heat. I think you’ll agree that this is one super fresh-tasting salad – and much superior to the monotonous usual potato salad most often served up in homes, cookouts, and potlucks.

TIME OF YEAR TO PLANT A SALAD GARDEN

It’s the end of February and for many of us in the Deep South and Southwest, the heart turns to love - lovely visions - of beautiful veggies growing right outside our doors. That’s just where I am right now. My house doesn't have a lot of space around it but that doesn’t keep me from dreaming about a garden and pursuing those dreams – on a small scale, of course. Also, I’ll be taking care of the garden myself. So, I want to plant just a few kinds of veggies and those that are hardy enough to have a high probability of success. That’s why, at this time, I’m contenting myself with a salad garden.

As of today, I’ve chosen six veggie items for my salad and salsa garden along with marigolds to go on the perimeter to chase away unwanted insects. This is going to be a four-foot, square garden design. Come May, it’s going to be packed – Hopeful Hazel that I am - with loads of fresh salad goodies. And, when I think of a delicious fresh salad, there are some vegetables that I definitely want on my summer table. Small as it is, the size of this garden is large enough to provide a good amount of ingredients for many green, summer salads and salsas.

Here’s what I’m planting in my garden.

Seeds now but a promise of salad bounty all summer long.

Jalapeno pepper plants
Tomato plants
Mixed lettuce plants
Red radishes
Green onions
Cilantro
Marigold plants

As you can see in the photo, all the seeds are of USDA organic and I’ve bought a huge bag of organic soil to plant them in. I found it all at a BIG-BOX Hardware Store. Is it all I could want in a salad garden? Well, of course, not. I’d love to also have green peppers, squash, cucumbers and more herbs. But for space and time reasons, I’ll settle on what I believe is enough - for now.

The area for my garden is very limited, just a strip of yard on the side of the house. So, it will be only one bed about four feet square. And that’s small enough that I won’t have to lean or crawl very far to work the garden. I’m also being very selective about the kinds of veggies I’ve chosen. These veggies require little space so when they produce, they’ll fit in a compact area. The garden will be beside a high wooden fence that will help shade the plants for part of the day, a plus for our usual high temperatures beginning in May. There won’t be any need of industrial fertilizers either. I’ve purchased plenty of organic soil and I’ve started my compost pile at the end of the back yard.

Don’t just dream. Plant that garden.
I hope the plans for my new salad garden start you daydreaming about the possibility of planting  your own veggies this spring. You don’t have to have so much space in your yard – a small salad garden like mine is a good way to begin. Even if you are an apartment dweller, you can have pots of veggie plants on your patio or in window boxes that get a lot of afternoon sun. Also, for some, it may be possible to go together with family or neighbors and plant a community garden on a larger plot of land.

The research and money for planting and maintaining a small garden are minimal. A bigger challenge will be the hours needed to take care of it. When you have your own garden, you need to take good care of the plants, watering, weeding, and looking out for pests. But, if you start out small, you shouldn’t have any overwhelming problems. The rewards are many. You’ll save a lot of money on food costs and the veggies you harvest will be healthier for your family than what you buy at the store. You’ll feel even prouder of yourself, when you use organic gardening methods, compost for fertilizer, and flowers in the same beds to repel unwanted insects. And there are important social benefits of gardening, too – you’ll be able to share your bounty.

Update March 1, 2015
Seeds are now planted in pots. The wait begins for the little seedlings to appear. I've planted a lot more than I can use - if all come up. so. I'll probably have little seedlings to share with friends and neighbors.

Related posts http://grandmasusansalmanac.blogspot.com/2012/08/bound-to-get-raves-summer-vegetable.html
http://grandmasusansalmanac.blogspot.com/2011/04/collect-rain-water-for-garden-use-and.html
http://grandmasusansalmanac.blogspot.com/2011/05/pickling-treasured-way-to-process.html

GOING VEGAN - ALL THE WAY OR SOMETHING LESS THAN THAT.

Just a few months ago, I decided to adopt a vegan diet. Now, I’d read quite a bit on the subject and already considered myself a vegetarian – that for many years. But, at the time, I was still eating eggs, dairy, and some fish. So, to motivate myself for change,  I read books and watched documentaries that told me about all the wonderful benefits of the vegan diet. These sources emphasized that I would have more energy, lose some weight, and that my general health and skin tone would be better. All that sounded great. And, important for me, was the moral part – being kind to animals, living sustainably, and eating in an Earth-friendly way.

And so it began, there I was going VEGAN (or trying to go about it) – but still fussing around including a bit of cheese, some eggs and once a week fish in my diet. So, I launched my vegan adventure after that (and now, at this posting) having cut out all dairy and still eating 2 eggs a week and fish, once a week. (See note below.) And, unwilling to eat only at home, I’m not able to rule out occasional small amounts of eggs or dairy in breads and pastries, purchased in the street. On that score, for my general sanity,  I follow the: “Don’t Ask” policy.

Happily, it turns out that vegan meal planning is a lot easier than I thought, and there are quite a few  benefits. And some advantages have appeared that I only hoped to see when I began this challenge. The first was a change for the better in my skin that had been oily with a touch of acne. (Yes, even old ladies like me sometimes have skin problems.) It seems that kicking the dairy habit helped improve my skin. The next benefit I discovered was that I never have indigestion and can sleep for longer amounts of time in the night without waking up. For me, that’s a real plus because I often felt tired in the morning after too many internal wake up calls at night. Also I've lost a few pounds. The weight loss is slow but I have reason to think that it will steadily go down. This turns out to be the answer to a prayer – having been somewhat overweight for a good part of my adult life. And my blood pressure has moved from occasional pre-hypertensive into the solid normal range.

One thing that kept me from trying this sort of diet before was a fear of not getting full. I’m happy to say that's not an issue, as I now eat fairly tasty meals in the same quantity that I ate before.  It turns out that the vegan diet is a culinary adventure. And I get to experiment with meal planning, figuring out how to change over old recipes to conform to the vegan challenge. So, it wasn't so much like giving up something as it was the happy discovery of a new foods and food combinations.

Vegan diet is healthy

So, all  in all, changing to a vegan diet seems to open up a whole new level of health for many people - and now for me. This results from consuming more vitamins and minerals, more fiber, and fewer toxins.  Many of these same benefits are available to vegetarians but the vegan lifestyle seems to be even better – since the dairy and eggs are also often the cause allergies and general inflammation in the body.

Here are some of the improvements that have been documented.
- Mood improvements
 - Symptom relief of psoriasis and other skin ailments
 - Reduced incidence of adult diabetes
 - Lower risk of cataract development
 - Reduced risk of cardiovascular disease
 - Lower cholesterol levels
 - Less risk of stroke and obesity

Now, what about eating out?

As I began my vegan quest, I wondered if it was even possible for vegans to go to restaurants. Now, I know from personal experience that it is possible.  That is, of course, if you don’t obsess on the possibility of consuming tiny amounts of animal products that lie hidden away in otherwise vegan appearing menu items.

And you can always ask the chef – via the waiter – to make some changes in the food items so that the end result will be animal and dairy free. And it helps to plan ahead and look up the restaurant menu online or call restaurants for options. If all else fails, ask if they have any vegetarian entrees or get creative with sides.

Sometimes vegetarian menu items can be made vegan quite easily by just replacing the butter for oil and leaving off the cheese. And there are almost always green salads and baked potatoes on the menu. You can ask for olive oil instead of butter.

Above all, don’t sweat it too much. Some restaurants are going to be less than veggie-friendly. So, it’s best to focus on the experience itself – the pleasing ambiance and, hopefully, good flavors. Make your best choices and relax. It’s not going to make a huge difference in the great scheme of things.

So what about a part-time vegan option?

If you’re still not sure that you ready for the total switch, you can become a VEGAN PART-TIMER. That allows for an easy transition that lessens the amount of animal products you eat. And, maybe after that, you'll convince yourself that being a vegan is a worthwhile venture.

Give it a try. Vegan part-timing is something like Meatless Mondays - only you do it more thoughtfully and for more days of the week. That still leaves you with a couple of days  (say, weekends) to eat other things you want.

Anyway, you've got a lot of vegan choices, what with:
Meat alternatives: usually tofu, quinoa, beans, grains in general, and nuts.
Drinks: milk alternatives, veggie/fruit juices, tea, coffee, and water.
Fats: Flax seed oil, extra virgin olive oil and coconut oil.
Vegetables: most all. Soybeans, black eyed peas, artichokes, potatoes, beets are all high in iron, a mineral that tends to be low in a strict vegan diet.
Fruits: most all.

Try taking a break from your usual meat and dairy over-reliance. Begin by cutting out meat and dairy from your meals a few times a week and see how it goes. You’ll do yourself a favor as you lessen your risk for some dangerous diseases and disabilities. Also, you’ll reduce your fat intake, and that should help you shed a few pounds without the effort and effects of unhealthy crash or fad diets. With the part-time vegan diet, you’ll be pleasantly surprised by how much better you feel and know that you’re doing a pro-animal protection and Earth-friendly thing.

A day’s menu
Here’s my menu today. I’m quite content eating meals like these. And I don’t feel like I’m dieting at all.

A good tasting and filling vegan lunch.

Breakfast

Small grapefruit, organic raisin bran with  small banana and a handful of walnuts with coconut milk, a thick slice of toasted bread with soy-base cheese substitute and coffee.

Lunch (shown in the picture):

Corn fritters (a little soy flour adds some more protein), nopales and greens salad, boiled potatoes with margarine, and tea.

Dinner
White rice, mixed veggie entree with lentils, a bread slice, and a glass of water.

Snacks

Piece of vegan coffee cake, a few nuts, and cultured coconut yogurt with fruit.

Note: I guess I'm still, at this posting, a vegan wannabee. My downfall is sush/maki - something that I still like to eat once a week. For me, part of the joy of maki involves fish. Also, about once a week, I eat out for breakfast, and, in those moments of weakness, I usually order eggs or waffles.

SPROUTS SHOULD BE PART OF YOUR SURVIVAL KITCHEN

There’s one necessity that most people haven’t thought about for their survival kitchen. It’s the need for "fresh foods" to accompany all that canned and dried food that they’re storing. It’s not easy to stow away the amount of fresh fruits and vegetables that can give you the living enzymes and vitamins that you need. That’s where sprout growing, an easy skill to learn, can be a life saver in a food shortage crisis.

As you probably appreciate, in a time of emergency, it will be extremely difficult to buy fresh produce at any price. Your own garden will be your best bet at that time. But crises don’t happen on anybody’s schedule, and that may mean months to be able to grow and harvest produce. Also, a lot of us just don’t have the garden space and skills and would have a steep learning curve to get through. That could mean hard times without fresh, nutrient-dense foods.

Well, fortunately for all of us, homemade sprouts provide vitamins, minerals and fiber, necessary for good health.

SPROUTS ARE SO EASY TO GROW.

What you’ll love about sprouts
First, you don’t need a lot of space to grow them. A small space on a table or a windowsill will do fine for growing several pounds of sprouts, and they can be harvested every single week.

And sprouts are so simple to grow that you don’t have to have grown anything before – not even a house plant.

What’s more, they don’t need light to grow, mature really fast, and their growing season is any time that you plant the seeds. So, you don’t have to wait 2-3 months before you harvest – like in a garden. Amazingly enough, you can have ready-to-eat sprouts in 2-4 days! Obviously they’re 100% organic. There’s no way that pesticides or any other harmful chemicals can get into what you’re eating.

You can purchase beans, lentils, alfalfa, sunflower, and other sorts of sprouting seeds at your local health food store. These seeds can last for 2-4 years on the shelf. When you’re ready to plant them, read the instructions on the seed packet. The seeds have to be the eating kind and not the ones for planting. Some seeds used for planting have been sprayed with chemicals. Once you know what you’re doing, you’ll be able to sprout most any dried bean that you have on your pantry shelf.

Here’s the general way that sprouting’s done. You put the sprout seeds into a jar and add water to it. Let the seeds soak for a couple of hours. Then, simply drain out all excess water, turn the jar upside-down and let the sprouts grow.

Every six to eight hours, open the lid, add water, swish the seeds around, thoroughly drain the jar, and replace the lid. Keep the jar upside-down in a storage container under the sink or in a closet. Correct drainage prevents the growth of mold.

How can I eat these sprouts?
Sprouts, like all vegetables, are much more flavorful and nutritious if eaten raw. But, then again, it’s not wrong to cook sprouts, if you prefer them that way.

The best part is that you can eat sprouts with most anything. Add them to salads, sandwiches, and soups. Bake them with your bread or puree them into dips. Here’s a list of possibilities:

Garnishes
Stir fry accompaniment
Bean sprout hummus
In salads
In quesadillas
On pizza
In soup
On sandwiches

Recipe for a curried mashed potato, tomato, and sprout sandwich
Ingredients
2 slices whole wheat or any whole grain bread (best if lightly toasted)
Slightly mashed potatoes, seasoned with a bit olive oil, lemon juice, garlic salt and curry powder
Fresh or canned tomatoes, drained of liquid
Fresh or chopped green chili peppers, optional
Pinch of sea salt (Always use a minimum of salt. See related post below.)
Pinch of black pepper
Slices of red onions
1/3 cup alfalfa or lentil sprouts, rinsed and drained

Directions
- Spread a slice of bread with potato mixture and some tomato.
- Top with sprouts and onion slice.
- Top other slice with choice of chili peppers, mustard, mayonnaise, or soft tofu
- Press the top and bottom together a bit and keep the sandwich chilled until time to serve.

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BOUND TO GET RAVES: SUMMER VEGGIE SALSA

One of the best things about summer is the long list of fresh, in-season fruits and vegetables. And they’re all there waiting for us to make them up into some of the tastiest dishes on the planet. One such dish that you has to be on your plate this summer is salsa. Maybe you’re already something of a salsa maker, and, then, you’ll want to compare my recipe with yours. But, then again, you may have  been hesitant to make salsa, thinking that it’s something hard to do. Forget that! Nobody needs to go to Mexican cooking school to become a salsa expert.

grilled foods and salsa - summer weather winners

Salsa is the Spanish word for  "sauce". But this tasty side dish can be either uncooked (salsa cruda) or cooked (salsa cocida). Both kinds are served cold. The mix of taste is a real delight.  - fresh fruits and vegetables combined with lime juice, cilantro (also known as coriander), onions, and jalapeno peppers.

You can’t go wrong with fresh salsa making

It’s the incredibly delicious, acidic and spicy taste of the salsa that shouts out “summer.” Whatever varieties of tomatoes you have on hand, or combinations thereof, you can combine them all in salsa. Mixing colors is good, too, - yellow tomatoes, tiny cherry and grape tomatoes, put together in one bowl look great. You can also use your choice of other fresh garden treats, depending on your taste. I’ll mention a few of those later.

Salsas are among the most versatile condiments, adding color and flavor to your meals. They can be served with just about anything that you can grill – meats, fish, or thick slices of fleshy veggies such as eggplant or squash. Not planning to grill?  Well, they make great toppers for all kinds of foods - hot dogs and burgers, baked potatoes, corn on the cob, etc. And, you can’t overlook the all-time favorite snack food of tortilla chips and salsa. It’s equally good with baked pita chips. And these snack foods can be substituted for bread and butter at any meal.

You can't get it wrong with this recipe. Nutrition-wise, they’ve got you covered with antioxidants, fiber and vitamins. So, feel free to try out your own variations. Just be sure to use the freshest veggies you can find. 

Summer Veggie Salsa
Ingredients
2 cups chopped tomatoes
1 small, chopped jalapeno (or ½ tsp. of chili powder - for those who shy away from the really spicy stuff.)
Juice of 1 lime
1 or 2 Tbs. olive oil (or none at all, if you want to pare down the calories)
1/4 bunch fresh cilantro, finely chopped
Small  onion, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
Optional: clove of garlic, minced

Instructions
O.K.  Here’s where you can get creative. Depending on what you have on hand, you can add other chopped fruits or veggies, including mangos, hard apples, cucumbers, or sweet peppers. And when you add avocados to the mix, you've got guacamole. It's that simple.

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and toss gently. Cover and refrigerate for about 1 hour to blend the flavors.Want more acidic zing? Then add 1 to 2 tablespoons of mild vinegar or even tequila.

This recipe takes only minutes, and you’ll be out of the kitchen in a jiffy. So, enjoy summer salsa at the next meal. Or don’t even wait and start snacking as soon as it’s made. If you have any leftover salsa, cover it tightly and refrigerate. By far, salsa is best the first day but extras can usually make it for a second day.

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THE THREE SISTER (SUMMERTIME) SALAD WILL BE A BIG HIT AT YOUR NEXT PICNIC OR BARBECUE.

Warm weather, fresh food, and outdoor suppers are things we look forward to in summer. And who's not looking around for more great recipes for picnics and backyard suppers that take advantage of seasonal bounty? (As always, Grandma promises you only nourishing, no-nonsense recipes, and this is another one of them.)

Three Sisters salads are good for you.

Here’s a hearty summertime salad that includes a lot of crisp summer veggies. It follows the Native American tradition of growing the “Three Sisters” - corn, squash and beans - together and many times dishing them up, all combined. Recipes based on the “three sisters” have a lot of vitamins, fiber and protein. They are great to accompany any main picnic or barbecue dish and, along with wheat bread or tortillas, can also be the main course of a simple, at-home supper.
So, use up some of the produce in your garden or visit your local farmers market to buy the crunchy, garden fresh ingredients for this salad. You can substitute lentils or any other small bean for the black beans. Any variation that you come up with is sure to make a tasty dish.

Three Sisters Summertime Salad
Ingredients
2 cups cooked corn (fresh cut, canned or frozen), drained
1 cup cooked or canned black beans, drained
1/2 cup thin-sliced zucchini squash
1/4 cup finely chopped onion (green onions are best)
3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons lime or lemon juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons of sour cream (could also be soft tofu)
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin or chili powder
Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions
Make sure all ingredients are at room temperature or slightly chilled. Combine corn, black beans, squash, onion, and cilantro in a serving bowl. For dressing, mix together lime juice, oil, sour cream or tofu, cumin, salt, and pepper. Add to the salad and toss. Cover and refrigerate for several hours. Serve on top of lettuce or fresh spinach. For a festive touch, place a circle of grape or cherry tomatoes all around the edges of the serving dish. This recipe makes 6 - 8 generous servings.

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PICKLING, A TREASURED WAY TO PROCESS VEGGIE ABUNDANCE

Some pickled dishes - What they are and why you should make them.
It's getting close to summer, officially. That means that a lot of us will soon have bumper crops of certain vegetables, and the question often comes up: "Is there something that I can do with all these cucumbers, beans, peppers, etc.? Even, for those of us without a super-garden production, we sometimes have too many vegetables left in the fridge at the end of week. No one wants to throw them out, of course.

Jonathan Bloom in his book, “American Wasteland: How America Throws Away Nearly Half of Its Food” (2010), estimates that a quarter of the food that’s brought into U.S. kitchens is scraped off plates, uneaten after meals or never even served up and sent directly to the trash. The idea of wasting so much food really troubles me, especially when current headlines are predicting a world of increasing food costs and shortages. So, this post is about something that you can do - when you don't know what to do - with all those extra veggies. In the spirit of: ‘When you have too many lemons, make lemonade”, there is this variation:” When you have too many vegetables, make pickles.”

Pickles and relishes are briny and vinegary, seasoned vegetables. Vinegar is the miracle ingredient that acts as a preservative. Olive oil does the same thing. Pickling has been a means of preserving and flavoring vegetables, surely dating back to prehistoric times. Archeological evidence indicates the ancient Mesopotamians pickled, and pickles are mentioned in the Old Testament. And history books tell that European explorers to America carried pickles with them on the ships. Pickled vegetables were the means by which 15th-century sailors saved themselves from scurvy and, in the early colonies, they were among the first food items to be produced commercially.

In some other countries, they’re known as giardiniera, ensalada de legumbres en escabeche, chutneys, misodzuke, etc. While there may be variation and even disagreement over procedures, all of these dishes are about the same - a mix of marinated vegetables.  Served traditionally as embellishments for roast meats and beans, nowadays, pickled vegetables  are considered to be great combined with salad greens, side dishes in themselves, or healthy snacks when served up with a few crackers. When pickled as as colorful vegetable medleys, they are decorative, too, and are well accepted on buffet tables along with more “elegant” foods.

So, now we come to two topics that are worthy of note: piccalilli and chow-chow. These are regional names, at least in Appalachia, for vinegary vegetables with spices.  Both chow chow and piccalilli are vegetable mixtures that can include a mix of cauliflower, peppers, onion, cabbage, green beans, etc., along with spices, all depending on the cook’s preference or veggie surplus at the moment. WV, my home state, has long had its own regional food variety – Appalachian or Southern Mountain style. To the best of my memory, the WV choice among garnishes was piccalilli. It's made with several different coarsely chopped veggies and almost always has cauliflower or cabbage. On the other hand, what we called chow-chow was certainly known, but seems, at least in my experience, to have been more popular in the Deep South. Chow chow is a relish with a base of chopped green tomatoes. It may also include onions, bell peppers, and other vegetables, and is usually more finely chopped than piccalilli. While not exactly similar, the terms, piccalilli and chow-chow, are sometimes used interchangeably.

My early memories of eating pickled veggies
Now, my close family was all city folk, and the veggies to make our pickled dishes – and a lot of our prepared garnishes, too - were “imported" from farms where my great uncles and aunts continued to live on. And we sometimes had pickled veggies, usually piccalilli, on the table. It was served on the side of a plate. But as a small child, I found pickled foods to be too vinegary for me. Some years later, entering preadolescence, I developed a taste for piccalilli. Actually, I liked it a lot and could have eaten it with every meal, but that didn't happen, at least not for more than a day or so, because my family also liked and ate quantities of it. (For whatever reasons, I never really liked the versions of chow-chow that I was served, with all due apologies to chow-chow fans.)

Also back then, when I was growing up, we usually had the Sunday family dinner at my Dad’s mother’s house. We called her Mawmaw. As often as not, at these meals, Mawmaw served the family - with 10 or more "regulars" in attendance - two or more different meats and four or more side dishes, including pickled dishes, besides rolls, cornbread, several desserts, etc. (It was an eating marathon, and most of the adults, at least, had the expanded waistlines to show for it.) I believe she made most of the pickled dishes herself, but maybe she also had a supply of jars from our “still on the farm” relatives. Piccalilli, chow-chow, pickled beets and pickled eggs were all highly praised traditions at her house.

We sometimes had these same garnishes at our house, too, but other than pickled beets, I don't remember Mom making them. It was Dad who brought them in. I guess Mawmaw shared with us occasionally.  At home, sometimes pickled vegetables were served at breakfast time with biscuits and sausage or bacon gravy – what our family called “poor man’s” gravy.  At lunch or dinner, too, they were sometimes served with pinto beans and cornbread. While few of our home-served meals could be described as elegant, the presence of piccalilli or chow chow gave the meals a certain spirit of abundance - at least that’s what it seemed to me as a child.

Other early memories of eating pickled veggies were at large gatherings and picnics in the summer time. At least once a year, we traveled 20 or more miles, "up the river" to a park or church grounds where we met with 40 or more family members – most of whom I hardly knew. Also, back then, the best cooks were known for their “secret” recipes for piccalilli and chow-chow, and there were even competitions for these foods at county fairs. They also sold quart bottles of them at the fairgrounds and gave away samples to anyone who came by. I often reminisce about the large-scale picnics and county fairs of my childhood and, of course, the foods that we enjoyed at these events. It brings back some wonderful memories!

Would you like to make some piccalilli?
Now, maybe you remember those old-fashioned pickled vegetables from traditional recipes, and some of you probably still prepare them. But other people never really liked eating them because they were too vinegary - also, sometimes too salty. But here’s good news. There are other ways of making piccalilli, at least, that taste great and aren’t so acid or briny. So, if you still haven’t already learned to love pickled veggies, try out this recipe. I bet that you and your family will love this side dish as much as my husband and I do.

The pickled veggies recipe I’m talking about here is a “quickie” one that can be eaten after two days. Some people might argue that these aren't technically pickles because they aren’t particularly salty and don’t have a shelf life of an entire year. But, they are a version of the same that doesn’t call for the fuss of standard canning procedures. And this piccalilli is a nice balance of crunchy, sour and a touch of sweetness. And when salad greens would long be eaten up  - or heaven forbid, thrown out - these pickled vegetables are still at their best – lasting in the fridge for up to a month. These pickled veggies along with a slab of good bread, a bowl of beans (and maybe some farmers' cheese) make for a complete meal. 

Piccalilli, A Lighter Version
Veggies, chopped coarsely
2 carrots, peeled
1 celery stalk
3 c. cauliflower
1 sweet pepper, red or green
2 c. zucchini or yellow squashes
1 red onion (better sliced than chopped)

Pickling liquid
2 garlic cloves, sliced
1 c. apple cider vinegar
1 c. dry white wine
¼ c. olive oil
1/2 c. water
3 tps brown sugar
2 tsp salt
4 peppercorns
1 tsp dry dill weed
½ tsp mustard seed
2 jalapenos (seeds removed) or 2 banana peppers

Place the pickling ingredients in a 1-gallon stainless steel or enameled pot and bring the pot to a boil. Boil for 15 minutes. Strain the liquid and return to pot. Keep the liquid boiling and add successively: carrots and celery, cauliflower, peppers, onion slices and squash, leaving 2-3 minutes between additions of each vegetable. When you consider all the veggies to be lightly cooked, - still crisp and crunchy, rather than limp and rubbery - remove them from liquid and let them cool at room temperature. Once cooled, put the vegetables in a sterilized, 1-gallon glass pickle or olive jar. Fill the jar with the - now also cooled - pickling liquid. Cover with a sterilized lid and refrigerate for 2 days before eating. Keep it refrigerated for up to a month -  I’m fairly sure that your prized piccalilli will disappear a lot faster than that.

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GREEN GARDENS: GOOD FOR FAMILIES AND FOR THE ENVIRONMENT

Small-scale farms, over the centuries - if not millennia, have been the basis of family subsistence and sometimes provided farmers with additional seasonal earnings. But, over the past 100 years, more and more small farms have given way to large-scale agro-business. The principle that guides agro-business is the maximization of all (or nearly all) available agricultural resources for the purpose of generating profits. Agro-business depends primarily on monoculture, and the outcome of large-scale monoculture has been massive soil erosion, overuse of fertilizers and pesticides, and toxic waste in our waterways. While agro-business has been efficient in filling up our supermarkets, much of the food that's produced is of poor quality, having lost part of its nutrients and flavor in its long journey to the family table.

Over and over again, agro-business, by its practices, has ignored the health and well being of local communities and harshly damaged eco-systems. Worse yet, it has all but strangled traditional farming efforts. Now, very few farm families are able to make enough money to sustain their costs and turn over even the smallest income, and only a small fraction of the U.S. population lives in rural areas. This is a sad story and our government (and those of a lot of other countries, too) has done little or nothing to stop this process.

Today, most family farms have been turned into sub-developments and commercial centers, and almost everyone, excepting the rich, has been forced off rural lands. With no small-scale farming, a large majority of the population has to work for wages in businesses or receives government money - either in some direct capacity or as a dependent on government aid. Food has become "something" that you buy in the supermarket.

But, with the recent emphasis on “doing more with less” (money, that is), families have found that, even in the cities, they can turn some of their efforts  into farming resources that produce family.  All this can be (and mostly has been) done without the need for large investments. And, just about anyone, who hopes for a greener world, should consider family gardening as a clear reflection of their personal values in areas such as better nutrition, family solidarity, greening of living space, saving money, and sustaining eco-systems. What’s more, family gardens can be decorative additions to the home when they include a mix of beautiful flowers along with the veggies.

Whether you have a lot, a little, or no yard at all, you can come up with a way to grow some food. The satisfaction of seeing green plants grow and the good taste of homegrown food will be well worth the cost and work involved. So, if you have space, time and money for a good-sized family garden, by all means go for it. And, for the majority of us who are (almost)  gardening novices and facing what we once thought were insuperable limitations, the good news is that we can also succeed using non-traditional ways of gardening. What’s important is that more families follow green garden principles. And, if enough people do green gardening, not only will their individual families benefit, but their combined efforts can contribute to healthier ecosystems.

WAYS TO DO SMALL-SCALE GREEN GARDENING
Containers
Don’t let limited garden space keep you from growing vegetables in containers. Small patches of yard, patios, and even rooftops can be sites for container gardening. It’s fairly easy to do this kind of gardening with a minimum of equipment, and many different kinds of vegetables can be grown in pots. You can be pretty much imaginative with the types of containers. Recycled containers of all shapes and sizes can be used, and they are a greener alternative than buying a lot of new pots. Just be sure that all containers are washed clean and deep enough to grow the crops you plan to sow. Even old tires can be used if you line the tires with heavy weight plastic to prevent possible toxicity. Here a list of some popular veggies that are easy to grow in containers.

Green onions - Choose mild-flavored varieties and sow small bulbs anytime from March to July. Thin out the seedlings to 1-inch spacing. Harvest them when the bulbs are about 3/4 inch in diameter.

Lettuce - The loose leaf varieties are the best in containers. Plant the seeds 3 inches apart and don’t overwater them while they’re germinating. Use good potting soil and water them with a low-volume sprayer (rather than hosing them down). When the leaves are the size that you want, pluck off the outer ones in just the quantity that you need for the day. This stimulates more leaf growth. You can continue to plant seeds in emptied spaces every 2 weeks or so. That way you’ll be harvesting for several months.

Green beans – Opt for beans that grow into bushy plants with red, white or pink flowers. French green beans are a favorite. Their pods are 4-6 inches long. Sow the seeds in early June. They need to be planted about 2 inches deep and use stakes to provide the stems with support. Some of the climbing varieties can be 5 feet tall, so they'll need a solid support. Pick the pods when they are about 4 inches long.

Tomatoes - With the price of fresh veggies as high as it is, you'll be glad to have a good supply of salad-size tomatoes almost the entire summer. The best small container tomatoes are compact plants that don’t require pruning and the bushy varieties are good  because they don't require staking.There are also great cherry varieties that have bright colors and a delicious flavor.  Standard tomatoes will need larger pots with at least 3 cubic feet of soil. Tomatoes are best when grown in a sheltered and sunny spot. Insert a stake or a wire tomato cage in the pot at the time of planting. Stems can be tied to the support as needed.

Cucumbers - These veggies can be climbers or ramblers. They need a lot of water and like a sunny location. Choose the smooth skins ones unless you plan to make pickles. Sow them in tubs, placing 3 seeds 1-inch deep and a few inches apart. You can do this any time in late spring or early summer. Thin them out to leave only the strongest seedlings and cut them off with a sharp knife when they're about 8 inches long. 

Herbs - It's really easy to grow herbs in pots, and they make attractive additions for porches, front lawns, and sunny kitchen windows. Their root system is very shallow  so they can grow in almost any container.  Most herbs do best with at least 6 hours of daily sun, but if you live someplace with near triple-digit temperatures, you’ll need to shade your herb container gardens from the afternoon rays. Also, herbs grow better in potting soil and most don’t need any extra fertilizer. Drainage holes are a must to prevent root rot. Just be sure to sow your herbs in separate pots or combine them with others that require similar levels of watering. Popular herbs for container gardening include rosemary, thyme, cilantro, parsley, sage, and mint.

Raised beds
Raised beds are freestanding structures typically made from wood, stone or concrete filled with soil and compost.  Like containers, beds can be placed on concrete slabs or rooftops and are excellent in small yards or anywhere there is poor soil.  They keep soil warmer, provide better drainage and require less maintenance than traditional gardens.

Most often, these "constructions" are rectangular, longer rather than wider, and about 3 feet in height. For comfort, your bed should be about 4 ft wide so you can reach from both sides. They can be any length you like, but most people choose to have them from 10 to 16 ft feet long. (In the small space I have in my yard, my raised beds are only 2.5 ft wide and about 8 feet long because they end up against walls on three sides. It's a sort of a hybrid raised bed/container garden .)

Raised beds can grow standard-sized plants and involve less back-breaking work than earth-level gardens and their soil warms up faster in spring allowing for earlier planting. The disadvantage of raised beds is that they dry out fast and require daily watering. With a north-south bed, you can use the sunny end as a hot slope for early crops and herbs while salad and other leafy crops can grow on the shadier end. Beds will have better drainage if you use a  mix of soil, compost and other growing materials.

Community and pirate gardens
If you really want to grow some veggies, but don't have even a square yard of patio space, you might look for some other people who want to work on a neighborhood or community garden. By sharing the costs and work with a bunch of people, you can have more varied and abundant crops. Of course, administrative questions, such as how the work will be done and how to divide the harvest, need to be established before starting up a cooperative venture. Beyond that, there are even those brave souls who garden on land that's not theirs, choosing empty lots, pieces of urban green, and even public park areas. This could be tricky in several ways besides being technically an illegal act. You'd have to find land that's not likely to be identified as pirated space or seen by other people who might take away your harvest. So, GrandmaS doesn't recommend pirated gardens. A better thing to do is to get permission or rent a space - doing this might be easier than you imagine.

GREEN GARDEN CHALLENGE
So, I hope you're now convinced that you can grow veggies (and/or flowers), someplace in your home or yard or elsewhere. And it's best if you can follow the green gardening principles listed below. But, if you think that all that’s a lot to do at once (or too costly), then just focus on a couple of projects right now. Later on, you might be able to do more. (Get started by doing an Internet research on some of these topics and select the ones that suit your gardening style and pocketbook.)

- Use recycled containers whenever possible instead of buying new ones.
- Compost your food and yard waste.
- Water wisely and use water conservation methods.
- Use a rain barrel in the months with adequate rainfall or create a rain garden for runoff from roofs and other overhangs.
- Use natural organic fertilizer and pesticides.
- Re-purpose and recycle your garden tools and equipment.
- Have a plan for freezing, canning or sharing your veggies with others should they appear in quantities greater than your immediate family needs.

Notes
For inspiration on green home gardening, see PathtoFreedom.com. This blog is the story of super-successful urban homesteaders who grow almost all of their own food and do lots of other major green activities at the same time. And they do all this on 1/10th of an acre!

GrandmaS' Almanac Calendar includes a list of gardening activities (taken from Farmers' Almanac) to do according to the phases of the moon. 

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LEARN HOW TO BE HEALTHY THE "NATURAL WAY"

Naturalistic practice is a system of personal care that concentrates on maintaining the body in a healthy condition. It’s sometimes referred to as natural healing, and those who follow it have more energy and fewer illnesses. Eating a well-balanced and nutritious diet is, of course, a part of any program for health. But natural healing goes beyond this. This kind of preventive program represents a "vitalistic" tradition and, whenever the body has illnesses, these same practices support the person's own healing capacity. By working with a person's vital force and respecting the natural healing processes, all kinds of ailments can be overcome without the use of Western medicines and surgery.

So, what are the bases of natural healing? (You’ll be happy to hear that no commercial products are necessary for this program, and that only dedication to a healthy lifestyle is the key to natural healing.)

Get outdoors and enjoy some sunshine everyday.
Just 10 to 15 minutes of sitting or walking in the sunshine gives us a lot of energy and helps keep our spirits high. If you don't live in a zone with temperatures warm enough to be outdoors for part of the year, make yourself a sun room or sit in a window when the sun comes in. This is particularly good to do when you eat your meals. By exposing your skin to sunlight, you'll get the necessary Vitamin D that your body must have for good health. While your outside, touch your bare hands to a large tree, and just simply breathe. All these actions help to "ground" or stabilize the energy of the body. Mother Nature has many ways to cure her children, but you have to connect with her to receive all the benefits.

Feet were meant to be bare (at least part of the time).
Try to go barefoot for an hour or more a day. Walk barefoot on grass or sand whenever there is an opportunity.  When conditions aren't right for being totally barefoot, wear (preferably all leather) sandals without socks for some hours of the day. Wash your feet with warm water before going to bed and rub them with a light oil.  Sleep at night without socks if the room temperature permits.

Eat a lot of fruits and vegetables.
The list is long, but here are some fruits and vegetables that are very nutritious. Raw foods are especially good for you, so plan to eat some raw fruit and a big salad everyday.
* Apples
* Asparagus
* Avocados
* Beets
* Broccoli
* Cabbage
* Carrots
* Cauliflower
* Celery
* Cilantro
* Cucumbers
* Garlic
* Green Beans
* Hot Peppers
* Kale (mustard greens, collards, dandelion greens, etc.)
* Lettuce
* Olives
* Radishes
* Sweet potatoes
* Wild or brown rice
(Don't eat a lot of tomatoes, white potatoes or mushrooms.)

Learn to enjoy simple meals.
Eat a whole grain cereal in the morning along with a fruit, and choose fruit that is grown locally or regionally. Eat a brothy vegetable soup for lunch, accompanied by a whole grain bread with a nut or bean topping. Eat whole grain rice with vegetables for dinner along with a green salad. Eggs, beans, nuts, and fresh (not aged) cheese, like farmers' and cottage cheese, can be added to the meals in small quantities. Try to eliminate all sugar from the diet except for honey and maple sugar (and use even those with moderation). Have a snack of fruit during the day. Apples, grapes and pears are great for vitamins and fiber.

Some other dietary tips.
Learn to add all kinds of herbs and spices to your meals to enhance what otherwise might make for bland and repetitious meals. Make sure you add some apple cider vinegar to all soups and salads. Drink a lot of water and other liquids during the day – especially when you get up in the morning and throughout the day. Too many liquids in the evening can disturb your nightime sleep with extra trips to the toilet. Eat your evening meal before 7 pm.

Say a blessing before your meals.
Take a minute and hold your hands over your plate to thank God for your food and ask that the food be used for your own good and for you to be able to help those around you. Ask for God's mercy on others who are hungry, sick, or afraid.

Practice gentle or moderate exercise for 30 minutes everyday.
All healthy exercise and fitness activities, including walking, yoga, dancing, running and other sports, help your heart rate, increase your oxygen intake, improve circulation, and pump up your lymph (infection-fighting) system. And, working up a sweat is one of the best ways to rid your body of toxins. The endorphins and other happy hormones that you feel after a good exercise session are guarantees that the energy is flowing through your whole system.

Do a "Chinese pat-down" in the morning.
First thing in morning, before or after a shower, pat-down all your body with the flat of your hand or with a loose fist. Start at the feet and pat all the parts that you can reach all the way up to you head. This will stimulate all your vital points, giving you extra energy and better immunity. This can take several minutes. If you don’t have time to do a full pat-down, try a shorter version. Do a pat-down with one hand, from waist to wrist and back on the outer part of the body.  Do this on both sides of the body for a couple of minutes. Then, take another minute or two for a pat-down with both hands (fists) around the lower back and sacrum area.

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