Radish Salad on Crostini

One of my favorite springtime delicacies is radishes.  Don't roll your eyes at me, I'm not talking about those hulking spicy monsters that you find at the supermarket.  Oh no.  Radishes plucked early from the garden before they've developed too much heat are tender and mild with just the right amount of astringency. I planted my radish seeds late due to my bad case of Puppy Brain, as you all know.  But, yesterday, after laying soaker hoses in the Hazel Dell Community Garden, I was rewarded with fresh tiny radishes.  Thanks, Bobbi and Barbara!  

I took the radishes home, washed them, took a few quick pictures, and chopped them up...greens and all into a salad.  I dressed the radishes with a quick glug of good balsamic vinegar and olive oil. I added a pinch of kosher salt, a grind of pepper and then I stacked my radish salad on top of crostini (toasted baguette slices).  And My Pirate and I savored our springtime treat. 

Happy May Day! 

My Herb Garden and Ranch Dressing

I cook with herbs out of my garden, year round.  In fact, if I only had room to grow one thing, like in a sunny windowsill, I’d grow pots of herbs.  Herbs make food taste good.  Fresh homegrown herbs make food taste phenomenal with just a few snips of my scissors.  And it doesn’t hurt that a packet of seed or a small herb start is affordable and cheap when compared to the price of herbs in the supermarket. 

I keep herbs in a wine barrel on my back patio.

I’ve been growing my own herbs for 15 years.  I dabble and try new herbs, but I’ve found that I like to keep rosemary, bay, lovage, thyme, oregano, chives, garlic chives, parsley, pineapple mint, and chocolate mint on hand.  All of these can be grown in containers or in the ground.  I grow herbs in my Victory Garden, table garden, and in a wine barrel.  I encourage my neighbors to share my Victory Garden herbs because it helps keep my plants compact and healthy.

 

I just moved my herbs into the front bed of the Victory Garden.

My Pirate adores ranch dressing and not the cheap stuff.  So last year, I dabbled with making my own ranch dressing from scratch.  It was a revelation!  It was delicious, affordable, and easy to make. It’s creamy and rich when you use full fat ingredients, but the low fat version tastes great too.  I recommend letting it refrigerate for an hour for the flavors to meld together.  This is our basic recipe that we tweak to our hearts content.  Sometimes I add hot sauce, different herbs, lemon zest, or sherry vinegar.  Let your imagination run wild. 

Ranch Dressing

½ cup mayonnaise

½ cup sour cream

¼ cup buttermilk (approximately)

1 clove garlic, pressed or grated through micro-plane

3 T. finely chopped fresh chives

3 T. finely chopped fresh Italian parsley

Cayenne, salt and pepper

(Optional—My Pirate uses) ½ tsp. onion powder and ½ tsp. garlic salt

Combine.  Refrigerate for 1 hour before serving to allow flavors to combine. This holds for one week in the fridge, but our ranch dressing doesn’t usually last that long.  

Even Barnaby likes herbs.

Watering Dirt

I love the way that cars slow down and look at me when I’m watering my Victory Garden with freshly planted seeds.  The passengers look at me like I’ve lost my mind because I’m just standing there watering dirt.  I smile and wave them on and giggle at their expense.  Silly people. 

The peas are up.  And the potatoes, radishes, scarlet runner beans, and onions are safely tucked in.  Good seed popping weather is in the forecast and I feel a touch giddy.  In another week or two, I’m going to start planting my warm weather crops.  But for now, I get to focus on other tasks on my Spring To Do List and enjoy our puppy, Barnaby. 

     

  My Spring/Summer To Do List

• Spread compost
• Rent sod cutter and remove sod for new projects
• Build and install three new raised vegetable beds
• Pressure wash patios
• Paint concrete house foundation
• Paint garage door
• Clean garage

Barnaby loves spending time in the garden.  Good boy!

Puppy Brain

I feel discombobulated in my life right now because I have Puppy Brain.  It’s true.  No matter what I’m doing, I’m keeping an eye and ear focused on our puppy, Barnaby.  It doesn’t help that I still have Puppy Fever and sit cooing and cuddling him when I should be knocking out my spring chores like spreading compost. It pains me to leave him for more than two hours in his crate during the day.  (We’re crate training him.)

But, after slowly losing my beloved dog, Maya, to cancer for over a year (I still miss her so much!), I’m embracing all the small steps of a growing puppy.  Yesterday, right before heading off to the vet, Barnaby scratched at the patio door to go outside and go potty.  I cheered.  

At Companion Pet Clinic, Barnaby weighed in at 17 pounds at 8 weeks old.  He’s gained 6 ½ pounds since we brought him home. They took him in the back room, so the staff that saved his life could coo over him.  And out splashed that big Great Dane smile of his that he reserves for his special few. 

 

The Assistant is patiently teaching Barnaby about the finer things in life.

Like how to share a stick on a sunny afternoon.

Afterwards, we stretched out in the backyard to enjoy the beautiful afternoon.  Barnaby and Sadie shared a stick, rough housed, and walked the dog paths.  At one point, I thought that I had lost him, only to discover him sitting under my chair. 

But, even through this Puppy Brain of mine, I’m still working on my Victory Garden.  Last night, I cut seed potatoes up so they could callous overnight.  And I’m going to slip them into the ground when I’m done here.  I don’t know about you, but planting my vegetables and herbs thrills me to my primal core.  I’m one happy girl.   

Simple Beauty

I have been repeatedly asked about the beautiful tropical plant in my front yard.  The Tetrapanix always comes to mind, but no, it's the common rhubarb that is strutting it's stuff right now. Va-va-voom!

I bought this plant a couple of years ago for $2 from the Master Gardener Foundation Mother's Day Weekend Plant Sale. I love this plant sale!  I've attended it for the past 5 years.  There is a great selection of affordably priced plants and the proceeds go to fund local projects.  A win-win!  Many of the plants in my garden are from this sale.  I hope to see you there. 

Mother's Day Weekend Plant Sale

May 11   9 - 4 

May 12  10 - 3

78th Street Heritage Farm
1919 NE 78th Street
Vancouver, WA 98615
www.mgfcc.com