Harvesting....Growing... Learning

Yesterday I shared about the berries that we have been picking, eating right off the bush, sharing with neighbors, freezing and of course baking into yummy treats....

This weekend we also harvested the garlic Dylan helped me plant in the fall...
I think it could have waited another week but seeing that we had a week of rain in the forecast I wanted to get it out of the ground... last year I left it a little too long. It has already made its way into soup and a baked tofu dish. So yummy.

The rest is drying in the wood shed. I love having it so much that we have plans to dedicate more garden space to garlic next year... bonus that the deer stay away from this crop!! Yay!

Our wonderful neighbor, who grew up a few doors down and now lives next to us in what was once her grandmother's house, brought us a lovely handful of mint from her father's garden... did you get all that...

We have been making mint tea from the mint she gave us last year to plant in the herb garden... this batch is getting dried... hopefully with this wet weather... for tea this winter. Anyone have any tips for drying herbs in high humidity?

My little gardener has decided to start measuring the growth of the potato plants... the one thing we planted in the garden... lets just say the rest of the garden, taken over by grass, is fallow this year...
Great fun!

On Monday I am starting the 30 Day Vegan online class offered by Heather over at Beauty that Moves. I am exited and looking forward to learning more about eating a plant based diet.

The inspiration?

Since moving here... and leaving behind our year-round farmer's market... two days a week... our diet has slowly become less and less healthy, to my standards. We have also made some wonderful friends who follow a vegan diet so we have been making more vegan snacks for when we get together with them. It has been fun to experiment.

I have a feeling... okay... I know that some members of this household will never be able to give up meat but my little gardener has decided to be a vegetarian and I have been thinking of joining him in that choice. I have followed a vegetarian diet in the past and it feels good to me.

It is always fun to experiment with food, I don't do it enough... I will keep you posted on the goodness that will be coming into and out of the kitchen.

Have you found any new recipes you are lovin' this summer?