Friday, July 30, 2010

Day 201-209 LocalrootZ Project (July 23, 2010- July 31, 2010)

Uggggh ! So Im not sure what is going on... but the last 30 pictures from this weeks meals are not loading from camera to computer....maybe my ancient 10 year old digital camera has finally tired out.  Regardless this gives me a chance to spend a moment to write a bit about the pleasure of this growing season as well as the LocalrootZ Project as it stands right now and how the future is looking...

Ill start by saying that this has been the best season in my short existence as a gardener.  As most of you may already know, Cassi and I have two food growing projects that include a 10' x 10' plot down on Valley st. as well as a container garden on our rooftop deck in the west end of Portland, Maine.  On the rooftop we are growing about 10 different varieties of tomatoes (ida gold, burbank, black cherry, cherokee purple, san marzano, nepal, rutgers, red german, totem, silver fir) as well as about 8 or so pepper plants (marconi red, mohawk yellow, poblano, cayenne, habenero, amish fish), bright lights chard, broccoli, eggplant as well as a large variety of herbs...sage, basil, cilantro, anise hyssop, peppermint, parsley, etc.  We have munched down the lettuce and salad mix and what was left has bolted due to all these warm summer days, but we plan on reseeding the salad container when we get back from vacation...more on the vacation in a moment... As for the community plot, we have a half dozen sungolds and a half dozen brandywines ripening up nicely on their 6ft + vines.  I have been eating a couple handfuls of sungolds during my frequent early morning waterings that occur at least every other day on my early morning bicycle commute to work.  On a side note this weather has been great for biking however the frequency of flat tires that has plagued me this past week has left me with a blistered foot (after my 8 mile bicycle commute turned into an extended hike home from work) and a pile of tubes that need to be patched up... Back to the garden plot, we also have been harvesting large amounts of marketmore cukes and green zucchini as well as their blossoms.  I recently reseeded the kale bed with 2 varieties of beets as well as a few new rows of carrots for fall harvest.  I plan on replanting some peas in the coming weeks but need to construct a better support as the chain link fence proved to be a bit of a hassle due to the encroachment of the surrounding weeds and debris.  Im also planning on planting a new round of kale in containers with the intention of seeing how long I can keep them going into the winter months utilizing the coldframe that I constructed this past spring... freshharvested kale in January ? Maybe....

Another aspect of the LocalrootZ Project that has been occupying my time and keeping me away from my daily routine of this blog has been my art.  The creative juices have really been flowing as of late and I have stepped up my marketing skills with the hopes of pursuing a self employed lifestyle in the years to come.  I have recently started pedaling my prints at the Saturday farmes market in Deering Oaks Park and am very encouraged by the support and dialogue it has opened with farmers as well as the public in general.  I have had somewhat steady sales and the interest in my work and this project has been very encouraging and inspiring.  For example I worked out a trade with Daniel and Ginger of Freedom Farm, where I am going to make my way up to the farm at some point this summer/fall and paint a piece in which I am receiving a CSA share in return. WICKED!  I also am currently designing some work with the intentions of printing a series of t-shirts, tote bags and stickers and feel the added diversity will increase my sales.  I also have recently expanded my ability to sell work via the internet by setting up an Etsy store.  If your not familar with Etsy it is very similar to ebay, only the goods that are sold are strictly handmade and vintage items, "the world's most vibrant handmade marketplace" I think they describe themselves as...anyway if your at all interested you can check out my store by clicking the "Buy My Art..." tab above or simply follow this link !  Other art related news includes a collaboration with Cultivating Community on a small mural with a dinosaur artist named Danny.  Ill post some pics soon come....

As for the local diet...as you may have noticed the summer is proving to be very rewarding with garden delights however the steady flow of out of towner visits from old friends as well as a very hectic schedule has lead to some compromises along the way.  However that being said we are still dedicated to our project and have always kept our pledge to find 100% local sources for all our ingredients.  Our big cheating has come in beverages as well as an occasional luna bread or some Star East Middle Eastern bread that just goes so good with our "Curried Maine Veggies" which keeps getting better as things like fennel and eggplant become available to add to the mix!  I really wanna start baking some different breads myself but am procrastinating more and more and feel this fall will be the right time.  Im gonna need to start making pizza dough because Patriots season is a very guilty pleasure of mine and it is always accompanied by a pizza.  Plus with that being said our kitchen on the third floor of a 1800's house is HOT... I have a hard enough time turning on the burners never mind the oven !  As for this past weeks meals... we had our first stuffed peppers of the season.  Nice big green peppers from New Leaf Farm that I stuffed with a mix of browned and sauteed garlic, onions, poblano peppers, tomatoes, Lalibela Tempeh and some raw Colby I believe. Very yummy... I promise I will have pictures this week, once I get the camera situation figured out.  We have also got into the routine of making mint ice cream that is to die for on a warm night.  My process is simple I add a couple cups of mint/peppermint from the garden with a cup or so of raw milk and blend it for a minute or so in a food processor, from there I usually jar it for a couple hours and let it steep, the just before the ice cream maker gets ging I strain it through a wire mesh to get the plants mush out... add the mint infused milk to a cup of heavy cream, churn and EAT !  One other highlight I am recalling as I type this and dream of last weeks tastes was apples... yup thats right mid July and who got their hands on the first bushels of Organic Vista Bell apples, picked from the orchards of Ricker Hill in Turner.  We did, thanks Vicki for thinking of us !  Looking forward to another season of cider and apple crisp, not to mention my all time favorite breakfast when I arrive at work on my bike is a shiny apple cut into wedges. The snap the tartness the juices....mmmm I think Im gonna go grab one right now !

Thanks for dropping by... I will be updating this daily for the next eleven days.  Then Cassi and I will be going away to the other side of the country for 10 days...making stops in Seattle, Skagway & Juneau Alaska as well as Victoria, British Columbia !  Cant wait to eat SALMON !

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