Author Archives: Christy

Saving Carrot Seeds

Posted on July 29, 2014 by Christy

Carrots are fun to grow at home and if you’re lucky, some of them will bolt to seed at the end of the season. Then, if you grew an heirloom or open pollinated variety, you can save those carrot seeds. … Continue reading →

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Ratatouille, RatItalian-Style

Posted on July 24, 2014 by Christy

When I saw that Smitten Kitchen recreated the ratatouille recipe from Pixar’s animated film of the same name, I couldn’t resist making it. But there’s one caveat: I don’t care for peppers, which traditionally show up in this dish. So … Continue reading →

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Homemade Fruit Fly Traps

Posted on July 24, 2014 by Christy

They’re everywhere! Tiny, annoying fruit flies, that is. They’re trying to get into our tomatoes, peaches, nectarines, and plums. They’re even breeding in our compost bucket. What to do? Break out the big guns. The lowly fruit fly has a … Continue reading →

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Recipe: Homemade Tomato Sauce

Posted on July 16, 2014 by Christy

Italians believe that San Marzano tomatoes are the only tomatoes for making sauce. I’m Italian, and I’ve made sauce with just about any tomato I can get my hands on, but this year we grew San Marzano tomatoes for the … Continue reading →

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Harvesting Onions

Posted on July 15, 2014 by Christy

Onions take a long time to grow, but when it comes time for harvesting onions, it’s incredibly satisfying, and worth the wait. Here in Southern California we plant onions by seed in the fall, or by “sets” in spring.  By … Continue reading →

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Tomatoes, Tomatoes, Tomatoes

Posted on July 9, 2014 by Christy

It’s harvest time for tomatoes, whether they be determinate or indeterminate. These orbs of delight are the quintessential summer fruit and we’re picking them daily. We planted early this year (quite possibly a mistake since we now have blight…but then … Continue reading →

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Harvesting Black Dakota Popping Corn

Posted on July 8, 2014 by Christy

This spring we experimented with growing heirloom Black Dakota popping corn. It’s a beautiful, deep red, pointy popping corn that pops white. We couldn’t resist the opportunity to plant this ancestral corn and load up on one of our favorite … Continue reading →

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Recipe: Garden-Fresh Fruit Leather

Posted on July 2, 2014 by Christy

Preserving the harvest was never so fun as when making fruit leather. It’s simple and easy and is far better for you than the sugar-laden stuff you get from the store. Kids love it, and grown ups do it. Here’s … Continue reading →

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Recipe: Provolone & Leek Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Posted on July 1, 2014 by Christy

We’re up to our ears in leeks right now. We’ve made the giant vat of potato leek soup. We’ve dehydrated 3 jars worth of leeks for use in eggs and soups later on. Now what? Well, when we found this … Continue reading →

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Recipe: Indian Summer Succotash

Posted on June 18, 2014 by Christy

It’s zucchini time, and if your garden is “overproducing” zucchini like ours is, this one is for you. It’s a quick dish that takes 30 minutes or fewer, and uses home grown ingredients. Succotash is traditionally something that features corn … Continue reading →

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