A Natural Spider Repellent? That's Enough for Me to Give Osage Orange a Try

Osage orange, aka, hedge apple.

Hoosier Outsider recently posted an item on Facebook that, because I have more than a slight fear of spiders, immediately caught my attention.

He says the Osage orange, aka hedge apple is a spider repellent. Even if there is a slight hint of truth to this old farmer's tale, I'm willing to give it a try.

The process is that you place Osage oranges -- which are also squirrel magnets -- in each room that you want to be spider free.

I'm thinking anywhere my head rests, or in the dark recesses of my closet where I only reach after making a lot of commotion.

For the skeptics, I've already found my favorite quote. It comes from the Great Plains Nature Center, which has a nice description of Osage orange, including its history as a natural fence row.

GPNC hasn't found any evidence that osage orange actually repels insects or arachnids. But, the center notes, "One method that definitely works is to pick up the hedge apple and smash the offending bug with it."

That would do the trick.

What I Brought to the Table: Refreshing Tequila-Spiked Watermelon Soup

I was invited recently to a party at a friend's house.

She's a friend of a friend, who I almost feel like I've known longer because of her blog and because I see her from time to time on the Mommy Train, the after-the-bell train to the Loop from Oak Park.

Her blog is Marketing Mommy, so when I saw the invite to an in-home party sponsored by Sauza Tequila, I knew that there could be a post to come about the whole House Party, Inc., concept. [And here it is!]

I'm intrigued by this whole hyper-direct marketing and will be interested to learn more about whether companies are successful marketing their products by sponsoring these relatively small gatherings inside homes. [BTW, thanks Alma for scrapping the suggested drink recipe for Sauza Rita (w/light beer & high fructose corn syrup-rich frozen limeade concentrate). Your version hit the spot.]

But the big benefit for me - besides getting a chance to meet some moms who live near me and blog about subjects in my interest area - is that Marketing Mommy asked us to bring a Mexican inspired appetizer.

As I've mentioned this week, I'm swimming in veggies, including an overabundance of watermelon. That alone takes up a lot of fridge real estate. So when I was looking for interesting appetizers to bring, I immediately focused on this Food Network one for tequila-spiked watermelon soup.

I was dubious about the whole watermelon soup business. But, um, Alma didn't have to twist my arm to go to a tequila-sponsored party. So let's just say a tequila-spiked watermelon soup seemed right up my alley. In the spirit of the evening, I deviated from my regular brand purchase and opted for Sauza Silver, which was actually less expensive and tasted smooth.

Here's the bottom line: This recipe is going onto my favorites list. It's more of a watermelon margarita though, at least the way I liked it best.

I wasn't a big fan of the whipped cream addition. I preferred it, as pictured, served in a pretty honey & salt-rimmed glass with mint garnish.

I've seen recipes almost identical to this that call for straining the watermelon puree. I think that's unnecessary, especially because this is also served with diced watermelon. It could be even prettier if the diced watermelon was yellow or orange.

Suggestion: Serve as an alternative to a mimosa or bloody Mary for brunch.

Heirlooms Galore, More Carrots, Beets, Lettuce & Melon

I wasn't expecting to get lettuce this late in the season, but I'm so happy that's one thing I can cross off my shopping this this week after picking up our CSA share yesterday.

I didn't waste any time sauteing the lush beet greens either.

I served those alongside some skillet chicken and, with a little vino, it felt like a gourmet meal. Always a treat midweek.

Here's what else we have from Sandhill Organics to cook up and share this weekend:

• Watermelons ( Tipi Produce in Evansville, WI)
• Fresh Basil
• Red Beets (greens already eaten)
• Carrots
• Romano Beans
• Green Onions
• Lettuce
• Beefsteak Tomatoes
• Yellow "Taxi" Tomatoes
• "Juliet" Grape Tomatoes
• Assorted Heirloom Tomatoes

I'm thinking we may mix up an heirloom salsa tomorrow (with some Irving Garden cukes for crunch) for a pre-supper snack and probably just have simple tomato/mayo/salt sandwiches on toasted bread for lunches. Or maybe even for breakfast.

Fluffy's New Crib

I still get a lot of judgey looks and comments when people find out I've banished our pet guinea pig to the garage.

But I know he's happier out there. He's a pretty happy-go-lucky little guy anyway. And he's seemed even more laid back since we moved him from the constant contact of our house...where he was aggravating the iFarmer's asthma...to the garage.

I wasn't sure what could make him happier, until a few days ago. That's when Fluffy's new tricked-out home arrived, in dozens of pieces, from Cumfy Pets (which also has some nice looking backyard chicken houses, btw).

Thankfully, while I was doing garden maintenance and grocery shopping, Sim put the whole thing together. 

It's amazing: Two levels, with an exercise ramp and a closed-off portion that's like a luxury, darkened condo for our cavey.

Comfy Pets even threw in an exterior liner that will shield the whole apartment from the elements. I imagine I'll put that on soon when it looks like rain.

When it starts to get really cold, I may have to come up with another solution, like adding a heating device so he won't get too cold. (I know that's what some people do for outdoor rabbits and to keep water from freezing in chicken hutches).

For now, Fluffy's mansion is conveniently on the back porch, where we can get him out and play with him on the deck or let him run around in the grass.

Anyone Want Some Garden-Fresh Produce?

Here's what I learned today from the Irving Schoolyard Garden:

Squash plants are prickly and sharp as knives. Or at least their leaves can be as sharp as razor thin paper.

I know this because my fingers are have little slits all over them. I didn't even know it was happening until I felt the sting a little later.

But for my troubles, I got basket loads of delicata squash, cucumbers, muskmelon, a red onion, a shoot of broccoli that's starting to flower, and enough green beans to feed a couple families.

All this during a CSA week. We pick up our box tomorrow. I'm expecting a load of tomatoes, basil, melon, beets, onions and carrots. Oh, and did I mention that I'm working the Oak Park Farmers Market this weekend?

This overabundance of veggies has me in a sharing mood. I'm tempted to bring bags full of cukes and squash to school tomorrow and just hand them out.

Or maybe I'll do that after school on Friday when the bell rings.

Egg Recall Has Me Hunting for a Local Egg Supplier

Photo credit: FDA Release

There's no doubt this massive egg recall (last I saw the number of suspect eggs reached half a billion) is going to cause some folks who were on the fence to jump at the chance to raise their own backyard chickens.

What better way to know the source of your eggs?

Just driving down the street yesterday, I saw a backyard coop going up in a yard about half the size of mine. 

And I expect our local farmers will be seeing increased demand for eggs that aren't from large factory farms. I'll be at the Oak Park Farmers Market this weekend and I'll be asking egg vendors if they're experiencing any egg shortages since the Aug. 13 Wright County Egg/Hillandale recall.

There are thousands of news articles about the recall, especially as new brand names are added to the watch list. And in the mix, I've seen a few that have focused on local farmers and markets, assuring the public that their eggs are safe, that their chickens are regularly tested and their operations are clean.

I'm glad this disaster, hopefully one without fatalities, will shine a light on good practices at the same time it reveals the perils of too much consolidation.

The Washington Post is reporting that just "192 large egg companies own about 95 percent of laying hens in this country."

That's down from from 2,500 in 1987!

"I don't think people have any idea when they see all these brand names in the stores that so many are coming from the same place," Patty Lovera, assistant director of Food and Water Watch, a food safety organization, told the Post. "It raises the stakes -- if one company is doing something wrong, it affects a lot of food."

A lot of food indeed: 500 million eggs recalled and 1,300 people sickened.

But is all this enough to move me to construct a chicken house where my backyard swing sits?

I've long considered housing two or three hens right there. But truthfully, after getting a guinea pig and gecko this year, I'm not sure I can manage yet another animal - or three - to care for. And I'm not sure I want to be tripping over chickens when we're playing soccer or catch.

Plus, I have no illusions about what it takes to keep chickens clean and healthy. They're a lot of work and need more time than I have these days.

Still, this recall has me even more inclined to buy my eggs local, from small farmers who put a premium on keeping their animals and environment as clean and healthy as possible.

Shake It, Make It Ice Cream in a Bag

Ice cream and strawberries.

A few years ago for my son's birthday, we came across this entertaining and tasty kid-friendly activity: Homemade ice cream in a bag. I'm not sure we've tried it again, until Saturday.

We gathered all the fixins to do this at our block party over the weekend. There are very few ingredients in the finished bowl - half & half, sugar and vanilla.

Yet it takes quite a bit of work for each single scoop: about five minutes of shaking to be more precise. That didn't deter many of the kids who participated. They seemed to enjoy the experience and learning how to make their own ice cream. For an extra treat, I even broke out the last bit of frozen strawberries from The Farm this spring. Wow. Those sure held up nicely in the freezer.

Afternoon game of ice cream toss.

My whole household, however, missed out completely. I was too busy helping others shake up their frozen treats. Sim, who ducked out to go to the 2nd Annual Oak Park Microbrew Review (sold out this year!), and the kids, who were way too busy playing with their new neighbor friends, also missed out.

So we shook up our ice cream for our after-lunch treat on Sunday.

Find a good basic recipe and instructions here at Kaboose. You can see from the photos that we're wearing gloves and oven mitts. The bag with ice and rock salt gets coooold, even for adult hands. The gloves are recommended. So is doing this on a hot day as a way to really cool off.

Watermelon Salad with Feta, Crispy Prosciutto & Italian Parsley

A few weeks ago at the Meat & Music party we went to, I sampled this delicious summer salad featuring watermelon, mint and crispy prosciutto. I would never have thought to pair these three. But the sweet watermelon, refreshing mint and salty prosciutto turned out to be taste-bud pleasing combo.

I got a Real Simple recipe from Peas 4 Dinner. But for our block party yesterday, I wanted to steer clear of the peanuts because there are so many kids on our block. Plus, our guinea pig Fluffy has eaten most of the mint from our backyard. So I improvised after reading several recipes, including a few that included feta.

Watermelon Salad With Feta, Crispy Prosciutto & Italian Parsley

Seedless watermelon cut in chunks

1 cup crumbled feta

1 cup crispy prosciutto, broken into pieces

1/4 cup rough chopped Italian parsley 

Bake prosciutto in single layer on baking sheet at 400-degrees until crispy, about 7-10 minutes, let cool; Cut up watermelon and place in large serving bowl. Just before serving, combine all ingredients and gently toss to combine ingredients. Note: I had a pretty big watermelon so I only ended up using about half of it for this salad.

The watermelon is so juicy, there's no need for dressing. If I was preparing this for individual servings, I could see including a balsamic dressing. I saw some recipes that called for an optional balsamic reduction. That would definitely add a richness to the dish. But it's plenty flavorful without it.

Sea Turtle Update: 87% of Eggs Hatched

Good news from the Folly Beach sea turtle watch team.

Loggerhead turtle leaving her nest on Folly Beach. Photo by the iFarmer

The loggerhead sea turtle Sim and my niece saw while we were on vacation in South Carolina on June 23 is now a proud momma of some 116 babies.

She'd laid 134 eggs in a nest that South Carolina Aquarium staff and volunteers moved to a safer spot in the dune. The digging up and re-burying the eggs is what I got to witness.

From what is being reported at FollyTurtles.com, an 87 percent hatch rate is pretty good, especially for a nest that size.

I hope the little sugars made it safely to the water. The Folly Beach team reported the hatchlings on Aug. 13.

Nana's Thai Green Curry

Several people asked me recently for my mother's Thai Green Curry recipe. 

We love making this, especially when the weather gets cooler.

But I got a craving for it the other day, so we cooked up a big pot. 

We polished off the entire thing within three days. I think Sim even had it for breakfast once.

Here's the basic recipe, though I have to admit that we alter it slightly almost every time we make it:

1 pound dark meat chicken

1 tbls sesame oil

Mae Ploy (or other good) coconut milk (1 lg can, 19 oz) [We use two 15 oz cans.]

Green curry paste 2 or more tbls

Chicken stock  (about a quart of double stock) [We use about 5-6 cups of homemade chicken, turkey or vegetable stock.]

Red bell pepper, julienned

Large can (15 oz) bamboo shoots [Two smaller cans do the trick too.]

2 tbls brown sugar

3 tbls fish sauce 

Zucchini or Japanese eggplant, cut in chunks [2 large or 3-4 small zukes.]

3-4 Lemon leaves

Jalapeno peppers [Two for a medium heat. More for extra spicy.]

Fresh basil, one package, stemmed [Thai basil is the best.]

1 tbls lime juice

2 tbls cilantro, stemmed

Rice

Broil chicken (bone in) undercook, cool chicken and add bones to stock. Use everything, including drippings from broiler in stock.

Remove meat from chicken and cut in bite sized pieces. Set aside. [Sometimes we shortcut by using frozen stock and broiled boneless dark meat. We strain and skip the drippings to reduce the fat.]

In large pot, add sesame oil, one-fourth can coconut milk and green curry paste cook for a few minutes. Add stock, red pepper, bamboo shoots, brown sugar, fish sauce and zucchini. Simmer until zucchini and meat are completely cooked.

Add lemon leaves and jalapeno. Simmer a few minutes. Add basil and lime juice at the last minute.

Serve over rice with cilantro as garnish on top.

Note: If you make a big batch to freeze, be sure to separate out the zucchini and chicken before freezing. I've found that those don't make the transition.

Bon appetite!

Heirlooms, Peppers & Something Called Lacinato

It's our off week for Sandhill, but here's what our CSA partner family is getting this week:

• Kennebec (Baking) Potatoes
• Beefsteak Tomatoes
• Heirloom Tomatoes
• Red Onions
• White Onions
• Lacinato or Red Kale
• Leeks
• Sweet Peppers of Various Colors
• Poblano (Hot) Peppers
• Green Beans
• Eggplant
• Garlic Chives with Flower Buds
• Cucumbers 
• Basil
• ...And Maybe Some Zucchini

Heirlooms. Photo by Sandhill Organics

I'm jealous about the tomatoes. I still don't have enough sun in my backyard to really get tomatoes to go crazy. I did get a few this year and I have several that look like they want to grow. But it's getting late in the season, so I'm not sure what more we'll get.

I do have what appears to be a sick tree though. As much as I enjoy the shade, if it has to go, it has to go. And that'll open up my backyard to more direct sun...and possibly a shot at growing tomatoes next year.

Braised Romano Beans Have Me Dreaming of Italy

I'd been doing pretty good with using up our latest CSA share. At least that's what I thought until I realized we still had a whole bag of what I have learned are Romano beans, aka Italian green beans, which resemble green beans except they are longer, wider and flat like sugar snap peas.

Photo from Smitten Kitchen.

I didn't have time to pose a "What do I do with this?" question to my Cooking Away My CSA Google group, so I just did a few quick searches and opted for this recipe for Braised Romano Beans from Smitten Kitchen, largely because I tasted the beans raw and thought a long, slow simmer would be best.

Indeed, the slow cooking in a bunch of flavors I love - baby CSA carrots and red onions, backyard tomatoes and rosemary from my porch pots - turned out just right.

I also picked the recipe because I had all the ingredients - though I did swap a purple bell pepper for the celery, which I hardly ever have on hand.

I'd like to say my recipe turned out as picture perfect as the one photographed at Smitten Kitchen. But, not so much. It's probably a good thing I couldn't find my camera.

Because I had a burst of energy after feeling rotten most of the day, I went ahead and made the braised beans in advance. They're planned as a side dish for tomorrow night's Parmesan chicken. Now to find a good bread, maybe some wine and stories from the old country.

Purple Green Beans? One of Many Unexpected Delights from the Irving Garden

Purple-hulled green beans from the Irving Garden.

I got my first glimpse of purple-hulled green beans at tonight's Irving Garden gathering.

Wow those are beautiful. Although, from what I've read, they turn green when cooked.

I can tell you, from experience tonight, that they are plenty delicious raw.

I know this because several of us and our future farmkids got together with a few evening snacks to evaluate the garden and brainstorm some ideas for how to share the Fall bounty with the kids who selected the veggies that, in some cases, are overtaking the sidewalk that runs along all 20 grow boxes. A neighbor asked, only slightly joking, whether the imperialistic delicata squash would reach her backyard.

Those ever-advancing squash plants and deep purple beans were just a couple of the many unexpected delights from this year's planting. 

For the love of basil. Too bad this little girl isn't such a fan.

To share in the harvest with as many school families as possible, we're thinking it would be fun to do a stone soup party, sometime in mid-September, when the potatoes, carrots and onions will be good and plump.

We should also have a full load of squash by then. Plus, there may be some color on the pumpkins.

For tonight's gathering, we tried to have as much on the table from the garden as possible for an after-work tasting.

I made cucumber water (and chocolate zucchini muffins - though we didn't grow zukes in the Irving plots this year).

A taste of Irving Garden.

The head of this garden effort made a delightful pesto from the leafy bush-like basil plants. She also made cucumber sandwiches, cucumber salsa and fresh chopped cucumber and young broccoli from some of the classroom plots. As an extra special treat, another Irving Garden mom brought a jar of pickled Irving Garden cucumber and onions.

Cucumber sandwiches.

By now I'm betting you can tell that we had tremendous success with cucumbers this year. So much so that we're thinking we may scale back or find a way to get them to climb so they take up less horizontal space.

I'm looking forward to doing this again and seeing what ideas we get from the kids, teacher and parents when they see how wonderfully their gardens grew while they were out this summer.

Meet My Apprentice

My apprentice filling mini cupcake pan.

I thanked my daughter for being my baking assistant this afternoon and she corrected me:

"No momma. I'm your apprentice."

My apprentice indeed. She was all business with me while we whipped up a batch of zucchini muffins (cupcakes to the kids).  The recipe, complete with zesty orange, cream cheese frosting, is the best thing that I ever got out of my long-ago lapsed Cookie Magazine subscription.

Usually when my Future Farmgirl helps me in the kitchen, she's just in it for the mixing. Maybe she'll stick around or re-appear to be a taste tester when I make the icing. Of course, everyone's a mommy's helper when we pull the goodies from the oven.

This time though, my little apprentice wanted to be part of everything, from zesting the orange and lemon to carefully blending all the dry ingredients.

She even wanted to taste everything...raw.

Chillin out.

Here's what she learned: Flour, baking soda and baking chocolate do not taste good on their own. Neither, she was surprised to discover, does vanilla. She was more pleased with the flavor of plain cinnamon. But she wasn't asking for seconds.

I generally don't let her eat batter with raw eggs. But to keep the taste-test experience going, I let her check it out.

That removed any remaining skepticism that zucchini could be transformed into a dessert.

She wasn't as much of a fan of the cream cheese icing. So I just served hers topped with whipped cream and a few M&Ms for presentation.

Sage-Infused Cornbread

Cooking with fresh sage is pretty new to me.

It's in my spice cabinet -- dried -- but the fuzzy fresh leaves that came in my Sandhill share had me surfing for recipes.

I didn't get to this recipe for Sage and Honey Skillet Cornbread before the leaves started to brown. So I improvised and threw the best leaves into a little butter, sauteed them for a couple minutes, then covered them up with a batch of cornbread batter.

Besides making my house smell delicious, the sage-infused cornbread tasted great. It was a perfect compliment to the goulash Sim made (using up our last Ball jar of last-season tomatoes from The Farm).

In the Box this Week

Lots of fantastic veggies in from Sandhill Organics this week.

This is the first weekend in 7 weeks that I'm not driving to Indiana for a kid or teen shuttle.

So I'm looking forward to doing some good, regular weekend cooking.

I'm already starting to dream up some ways to use what's in this week's veggie box:

Muskmelon
Shallots
Carrots
Broccoli
Assorted Varieties of Tomatoes
Bell Peppers (assorted colors)
Curly or Italian Parsley
Swiss Chard
Romano Beans 
Fresh Thyme
Fresh Basil

Gimme S'more!

Alexa Lemley. Photo by the iFarmer.

Thanks to a Facebook status update from 240* Sweets - a delightful artisan marshmallow candy company run by the iFarmer's cousin - I learned that Aug. 10 was National S'mores Day.

In my perfect world we would have celebrated with some of the hand-made marshmallows from Alexa Lemley's company.

But since the 235-mile trek to Columbus, Ind., wasn't in the cards, I settled with a bag of Campfires, a box of graham crackers and a pack of Hershey bars for the folks at the office. I threw in one of my favorite twists on the s'more - a bag of York Peppermint Pattie's to substitute for the plain chocolate. It's a refreshingly minty alternative worth trying.

Then...today...we learned that Alexa and her specialty marshmallows would  be in our backyard at Oak Park's new Mid-Week Market.

I had some errands to run, but Sim picked up the kids and went right over - catching up with Alexa and leaving with sacks of handmade marshmallow treats.

The kids opted for chocolate chip marshmallows. For me? I got the maple-bacon-praline marshmallow bricks. Fantastic mix of sweet, salty and, well, everybody's favorite - bacon. They were too rich for me to eat more than one in a single sitting.

I may have to try them roasted and served with chocolate & graham crackers, just like the Girl Scouts supposedly did in the 1920s when the treat was invented.

As for the origin of the name s'more, I've not seen a definitive explanation. But one plausible theory is this: When the Scouts first made the treat, they screamed "Gimme some more, s'more, s'more!"

Protesters Target 4H, Really?

I couldn't let one more day pass without writing about these over-the-top protests at Glenview's Wagner Farm targeting a 4H group.

The first time I read about this in the Chicago Tribune, I did a double take. Really, someone is protesting animal auctions as animal cruelty?

For me, there is no clearer sign of how disconnected we've become from our food.

Here's the controversy. Animals raised on Wagner Farm, which is park district land, and tended to by the 4H Clovers may eventually be sold at auction. And many of those animals are sold for slaughter.

Here's where I'd like to point out - like many of the dismayed 4H folks have - it's a farm, not a zoo or an animal sanctuary. And if the concern is really that these animals are destined for factory farms, then work to find a more sustainable alternative. But protesting and pushing to have all animals moved to a sanctuary just makes no sense to me.

If Glenview residents want to see what a real working farm is all about, well, this is part of farming. It's the circle of life in living color.

The Tribune reports that preserving a real working farm for Chicago area residents to experience was precisely the reason Glenview's park district purchased the property in the late 1990s.  There's more on the history of Wagner Farm on the park district's website.

Photo from the Wagner Farm page on the Glenview Park District site.

'House Concert' Strums Mix of Best Neighbors Ever, Delicious Eats & Really Good Music

I'm not big into buying new music for my iPod. I usually get an iTunes giftcard and take months to use up all the credits.

But I'm having to load up the credits so I can get enough of the Dick Prall tunes I'm craving.

This morning I bought his song "Cornflakes" from his album Weightless and "Barely Moving" from the album fizzlebuzzie.

We saw Prall last week at our neighbor's thoroughly enjoyable Meat & Music backyard party that spanned two yards and pitch-in dishes from just about everyone who walked through the door. [My contribution was a husband who served up made-to-order margaritas.]

This was our first "house concert" and it was a blast. Prall, who can be found performing around Chicago at places like Schubas Tavern, told us he enjoys the house concert atmosphere. It's laid back and he has direct interaction with any guest who wants to chat. We recorded some of his show, but it would be a challenge to filter out the cicadas. On the hot, humid night of though, it was just a pleasant part of the back porch stage ambiance.

It's no surprise that I was drawn to "Cornflakes," which features Glen Phillips from one of my favorite bands, Toad the Wet Sprocket. Here's an in-studio version from YouTube:




Photo by the iFarmer with his new iPhone.