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<\/a><\/p>\nSpeckled romaine is my new favorite salad green.<\/p>\n
Because the kids think they are just eating a speckle, instead of a snail, when I fail to wash it well.\u00a0 And let’s face it, feeding my kids that extra bit of protein makes me the special parent that I am.<\/p>\n Never mind how enjoyable it is to harvest celery from the celery plant.\u00a0 Which I don’t think is actually called celery plant.<\/p>\n But a friend gave me a cutting a couple years ago and told me it tastes just like celery, but is a perennial, grows throughout winter (well, our<\/strong><\/em> winter) and summer, and doesn’t develop full stalks.\u00a0 So you can grow it year round, harvest it repeatedly, chop it easily, and the kids can’t try and pick it out like they often do with celery.\u00a0 Perhaps it’s only downfall is that it’s too narrow to spread it with peanut butter.\u00a0 Eh.<\/p>\n In May, we discovered bamboo shoots were available at the farmers’ market.\u00a0 Until the very moment we stumbled upon them at the market, we didn’t know they existed.\u00a0 But when the vendor told us a huge bundle was only a dollar (a dollar!!!<\/em><\/strong>), we snatched them up.<\/p>\n Turns out that once they are peeled,<\/p>\n shredded,<\/p>\n and sauteed with some spinach from the garden,<\/p>\n it made a side dish recipe that I should have tripled.\u00a0 Because one pan just wasn’t enough.<\/p>\n By the time pick-your-own strawberry season started and we were eating fresh grilled chicken strawberry salad,<\/p>\n and chocolate dipped strawberries for dessert,<\/p>\n we were remembering what the fruits of summer were like.<\/p>\n Then the first zucchini<\/p>\n and squash arrived.<\/p>\n Which combined with some homemade pesto using fresh basil from the herb garden made a delicious pasta dish.\u00a0 I’d show you the basil plant but all that’s left is stalks for the most part.\u00a0 I might have jumped the gun on harvesting the basil.<\/p>\n But at least there was some pesto left over.\u00a0 Until the basil recovers.<\/p>\n Now that it’s June and we’ve had the first taste of freshness, we are craving for all our meals to come straight from the garden.\u00a0 We are just waiting for the snap peas to fill out<\/p>\n because we really, really, really need to make this:<\/p>\n Head up the oil in a wok. Add the bacon and cook until just about crisp. Add the onion, stir fry a couple of minutes. Add snap peas and stir fry until bright green and crisp-tender. Add bamboo shoots, soy sauce and salt and pepper, and the chili oil, and take off the heat. <\/strong><\/p>\n But while I’m waiting on the snap peas, I never, ever look at these.\u00a0 Never.<\/p>\n After all, everyone knows a watched tomato never turns red.<\/p>\n And eyeballing the blackberries before they fill in is just an invitation to Japanese beetles.<\/p>\n Better to stay busy.\u00a0 Which is easy to do.\u00a0 ‘Cause when dinner comes from the garden it cuts down on the amount of time spent at the grocery store.\u00a0 And that, in turn, means more time for this:<\/p>\n Now if someone just knows a recipe for a snapping turtle that steals your hook and breaks your line, I’d love to have it.<\/p>\n Unless we catch 20 more of the 6 inch bass….<\/p>\n we’re gonna need a good turtle soup recipe.<\/p>\n Sometimes waiting is just the name of the game, people.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\nBamboo shoot and snap pea stir fry with bacon<\/h3>\n
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