This has been the week of the poly tunnels. Someday I’d really like to have a greenhouse, but in the meantime, we’re making do with row sized tunnels. Last week I got the first one up on Friday night after work to help protect the winter brassicas (and get them to harvest size before April). Today I worked on the second and remembered to bring the camera outside with me. If you’re at all interested in building your own, check out the step by step review below.

This was the view first thing today. The first poly tunnel is over the row closest to the house, with the mature leeks in front of it. The empty row used to house the tomato jungle (which is that pile of dead vines in front) and was ready to prep for winter planting.

After some forking to loosen the soil down 8 inches or so, I spread a couple of pounds of organic fertilizer on the row (about 5 3 pounds for 145 square feet). Then I raked it in and smoothed out the bed so it would be ready for planting of starts and seeds.

Next I pounded in the stakes for the hoops. They’re made of 15″ pieces of 1-1/4″ PVC pipe that Mike salvaged from a job site. They’re spaced 32″ apart, for a total of 19′ under poly.

Then it’s time to put up the ribs or hoops. They’re made of alternating 8′ pieces of 1/2″ and 3/4″ PVC. The 3/4″ pieces are on the ends and the two center ribs to give the structure a bit more stability.

Since I’ll primarily have access from only the east (left) side this winter, it was easier to plant before I put the plastic on. The only thing that made it in today was the lettuce and swiss chard starts as I was multi-tasking and planting the end of this row with kale, garlic and leeks and ran out of time. Also going into the tunnel are seeds for scallions, radish and spinach, plus a couple of garlic seeds for pest prevention. That will all go in tomorrow.

Finally, just before beer, on went the poly. The pieces that I have are 15.5′ x 25′. You could easily do this with a piece that was 10′ wide, but when I bought mine I originally used it to cover the tomato jungle and needed the extra width. The plastic goes over the hoops and is secured with clips on the top and right side. The left side is held in place with rocks at the base of each hoop for easy access to tend and harvest. The common row between the two tunnels is secured with a couple of extra 4×4 posts from the barn and the remaining with more rocks. The brassica tunnel opens on the west (right) side for harvest access.

The two tunnels together give us 152 square feet of growing space this winter, more than enough to keep us in broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, chard, lettuce, radish, scallions and spinach. Plus, we’ve got some fall peas struggling to deliver, Brussels sprouts waiting to be eaten, leeks and carrots in ground storage and everything we’ve already harvested and preserved. I think we’ll be eating well this winter.

I’m excited to see how the poly tunnels work out for us as it would be nice to not be searching for a winter farmer’s market this year (closest I know of is in Seattle, a 40 mile drive).

___________________________________________________________

Have you signed up for the 08/09 Dark Days of Winter Eat Local Challenge yet?

Who’d have thought that I’d spend October working my way through more than a hundred pounds of tomatoes? Or that this would be the month when we’d finally be enjoying full plates of them with a splash of balsamic and a bit of salt and pepper? Not me.

It’s all tomatoes all the time around here. So far there’s been 17 quarts of diced tomatoes, 14.5 pints of tomato sauce and 3 pints of sun dried tomatoes. There’s another full pot of 25 pounds of tomatoes on the stove now, cooking down into sauce. And at least another 50 pounds in the garage.

In other news, we’ve been eating pretty locally, if not too fancy. Recent highlights have included omelets, butternut squash mac & cheese (yum!), pasta with fresh tomato sauce and last nights potato and leek gratin.

Of all of them, I think last night’s gratin was my favorite. I started with an Bon Appetite recipe and then modified it to fit what we had on hand. The only thing I’d change was the ratio of cream to chicken stock - I’d go 3:1 next time instead of 1:1. And really, it’s even better tonight than it was last night.

*****

Potato, Leek, Mushroom and Bacon Gratin
based on a Bon Appetite recipe

4 Tbs butter
4 slices bacon, cut into 1/2″ pieces
1 pound mushrooms, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 medium leeks, sliced thin
1.5 cups chicken stock (I’d decrease this to 1 cup)
1.5 cups cream (I’d up this to 2 1/4 cups)
3 pounds russet type potatoes, sliced thin
2 cups Gruyere cheese (shredded)

Cook the bacon in a saute pan until just crispy. Remove to a bowl. Add 1 tbs butter to bacon fat and then add mushrooms. Saute until soft and starting to turn color. Remove to bowl with bacon. Add 3 remaining tbs butter and add leeks. Saute until just starting to color and soft. Add garlic and cook 2 minutes longer. Add to bowl with bacon and mushrooms.

Combine stock and cream in another bowl.

Butter a 9″x9″ oven safe casserole or pan. Layer half of potatoes in bottom. Cover with mushroom mixture. Top with 1/2 of the cheese and a bit of salt and pepper. Add half of the cream/stock mixture. Layer in the rest of the potatoes and lightly salt and pepper. Top with remaining cheese. Pour over the remaining cream/stock.

Put in oven at 400 F and bake for 1 hour 20 minutes or until potatoes are soft and top is golden brown.

___________________________________________________________

Have you signed up for the 08/09 Dark Days of Winter Eat Local Challenge yet?

I can’t believe it’s that time again, time to start planning meals for the dark days of winter, and the second Dark Days of Winter Eat Local Challenge. It seems like just yesterday that I put the challenge out there for the first time, and I really can’t believe that it’s been more than 6 months since we finished up - where did the summer go?

As we finish out the October Eat Local Challenge, I hope you’ll join me for the Dark Days Challenge again this year. In the interest of shaking things up, I’d like to not only set for the “rules” but also ask for your input on some optional ideas. So keep reading if you’d like to take part (or are just considering it). The challenge will run from November 15 to March 15 and sign-up starts now!

The “Rules”:

1. Cook one meal a week featuring at least 90% local ingredients
2. You define local - the standard definitions range from 100, to 150 to 200 miles
3. Ingredients can be things you grew and preserved yourself, sourced from local farms and markets, or purchased at the store
4. Write about the meals you cook, your challenges finding ingredients, why you’re eating local or whatever else strikes your fancy for each recap. Photos are optional.
5. Include friends and family in your sourcing and eating as possible

The Options:

1. We can do either weekly or bi-weekly recaps, be sure to note your preference when you sign up
2. We could have themes for each recap timeframe or each month. I’m thinking things like cooking with squash, making pasta, finding one new ingredient/source, making a new-to-you dish, etc.
3. I’m going to need back-up for the recaps for times I’m swamped with work or out of town - last year I tried to do it all and that was a mistake!
4. Other ideas?

Signing up:
To make it easier for me to track who you are, where you are, and what you think about the options, I’ve created a sign-up page for this year’s challenge. Please submit it so I’ve got you on the list and also be sure to leave a comment here if you’d like!

As we get closer to the start date, I’ll be in touch with everyone with more details and where we end up on the options.

Looking forward to seeing what you eat and where you find it!

Where is our leadership in this time of crisis? Why is an unelected official calling most of the shots while our president of the past 8 years sits in the corner and tries to look serious?

In a perfect world, our leader, not Britain’s, would be the voice reassuring us. He would be out there reassuring the country and asking us to get ready for sacrifice and trust as we work our way back to solid ground.

Instead, the only person that sounds remotely presidential is the upstart that no one said would ever get elected. I guess we’ll just see, won’t we?

I kind of swore that I wouldn’t post anything else political as it seems to have affected my readership, but tonight as I drove to Portland for work I found myself listening to a replay of this speech on the radio. And I found myself nodding and feeling a bit of the despair and anxiety tugging at my soul lift. And I thought, why not.

If you’re still undecided on who to vote for (or even if you’re currently rooting for the other guy), you should take heart that if he is elected, we will be led by someone that can speak eloquently and inspiringly in a time of crisis. That can meet us in our darkest places and give us a guiding hand. That can start to bring us together with a common vision of not what it means to be a Democrat or a Republican or an Independent, but what it means to be an American in these times.

I know these are difficult times. I know folks are worried. But I also know this – we can steer ourselves out of this crisis. Because we are the United States of America. We are the country that has faced down war and depression; great challenges and great threats. And at each and every moment, we have risen to meet these challenges – not as Democrats, not as Republicans, but as Americans.

…..

I won’t pretend this will be easy or come without cost. We’ll have to set priorities as never before, and stick to them. That means pursuing investments in areas such as energy, education and health care that bear directly on our economic future, while deferring other things we can afford to do without. It means scouring the federal budget, line-by-line, ending programs that we don’t need and making the ones we do work more efficiently and cost less.

…..

This country and the dream it represents are being tested in a way that we haven’t seen in nearly a century. And future generations will judge ours by how we respond to this test. Will they say that this was a time when America lost its way and its purpose? When we allowed our own petty differences and broken politics to plunge this country into a dark and painful recession?

Or will they say that this was another one of those moments when America overcame? When we battled back from adversity by recognizing that common stake that we have in each other’s success?

This is one of those moments. I realize you’re cynical and fed up with politics. I understand that you’re disappointed and even angry with your leaders. You have every right to be. But despite all of this, I ask of you what’s been asked of the American people in times of trial and turmoil throughout our history. I ask you to believe – to believe in yourselves, in each other, and in the future we can build together.

Together, we cannot fail. Not now. Not when we have a crisis to solve and an economy to save. Not when there are so many Americans without jobs and without homes. Not when there are families who can’t afford to see a doctor, or send their child to college, or pay their bills at the end of the month. Not when there is a generation that is counting on us to give them the same opportunities and the same chances that we had for ourselves.

We can do this. Americans have done this before. Some of us had grandparents or parents who said maybe I can’t go to college but my child can; maybe I can’t have my own business but my child can. I may have to rent, but maybe my children will have a home they can call their own. I may not have a lot of money but maybe my child will run for Senate. I might live in a small village but maybe someday my son can be president of the United States of America.

Now it falls to us. Together, we cannot fail. Together, we can overcome the broken policies and divided politics of the last eight years. Together, we can renew an economy that rewards work and rebuilds the middle class. Together, we can create millions of new jobs, and deliver on the promise of health care you can afford and education that helps your kids compete. We can do this if we come together; if we have confidence in ourselves and each other; if we look beyond the darkness of the day to the bright light of hope that lies ahead. Together, we can change this country and change this world.

Full text. Video.

What? You don’t have squash squatting in your guest room?

That right there is our entire winter squash harvest - 23 spaghetti and 10 delicata - and none of them are ripe. Hopefully with El’s advice they’ll decide to ripen now that they’re comfortably ensconced in a warm, dry, south-facing bedroom.

I’m not positive these were almost ripe enough. But hey, if it doesn’t work out I’m sure the hens will enjoy them this winter…

Sorry about the bad color on this photo - the camera isn’t sure what to make of the hideous pink and mauve sponge painting left by the previous owner.

What’s your canning philosophy? It’s been interesting as I’ve been peering into other people’s pantries and cabinets to see what they preserve. And I’m wondering how and why we make the choices we do?

I’m of the keep my options open camp. By that I mean that I tend not to make anything elaborate to can, instead I can simple, mostly un-altered foods. Things that can be made into any number of dishes later.

I’ve never really thought about why that is until lunch on Friday when I was talking with a colleague. She asked what I can and then asked if it got boring to just have tomatoes and apples and peaches. And I launched into an explanation of how we rarely eat them straight from the jar. That peaches become ice cream topping and cobbler and flambe and marinade. That tomatoes become chile and pot roast and stew and pizza. That even applesauce can be lunch or warm on pork chops. And she said she’d never thought of it that way.

And frankly, neither had I. Mostly I’m just a bit lazy. If I decide now, for instance, that today’s 13.5 pints of tomato sauce will be Italian or pizza or Mexican or spicy, then I can’t change my mind later. If instead I just cook 25 pounds of tomatoes into sauce and can it with a bit of salt and lemon juice, I can make it into any of those things later.

Pickles are the one exception to that philosophy around here. But then again pickles require upfront commitment. Without it you’d just have vinegared cucumbers…

So, what’s your canning philosophy? Do you make plain preserves? Or do you make fancy concoctions? If it’s the latter than I’m super envious of your ability to commit. How do you decide what to make? Do you usually use it all each year?

Now I’m off to admire my pretty red jars of plain old tomato sauce…

What’s better than a field full of pumpkins? How about 3 little girls carving some on the lawn in front of our barn?

Today I had the distinct pleasure of going to the pumpkin patch with three little girls who had great fun picking out the perfect orange globe. Then we brought them back to the house and carved them.

Not all of us were so sure that it was actually fun…

Good thing the grownups could have a beer while we helped disembowel their pumpkins and a couple of testers from the garden.

Turns out we had 15 greenish orange pumpkins hiding in the garden. We carved two today, definitely not ripe. Half will now decorate the front porch, the rest will go in the back bedroom with the squash haul to try and ripen over the next couple of weeks.

What a beautiful fall day.