I ask you, what does it take to get a real English Scone in this country? Those hockey pucks that our stores and eateries have masquerading as scones are an insult.
Okay, I know. I’m sounding like a bit of a snob. And while there isn’t another snobby bone in my body– when it comes to scones, I just want the real thing.
Why? You ask.
Well, long long ago and far far away, back when I lived in England, … Read More
To Break Scape or Not to Break Scape?
That is the question no more.
When I first started growing garlic, I’d read that breaking the scapes (the flower stalks) off the garlic plants soon after they appeared would allow the bulbs to grow bigger (and so I’d always broken the scapes). Made sense, logically speaking; the energy that would be used to grow the scapes would then be forced down into the bulb. I wanted to test this logic for … Read More
I’m true to my mostly Italian Heritage; I can find a way to add garlic to nearly any meal. I’ve long gone through all my garlic bulbs, and am down to the dregs of my minced garlic (above left). I’ve got another month and a half before my garlic plants (above right) are ready to pull. With the help of my brothers and sister cleaning me out (they fight over my garlic), it doesn’t look like I’m gonna make it. … Read More
There’s something about the smell of freshly baked bread filling the house. Having grown up in a 300 year old house with a beehive oven in the walk-in fireplace, us kids grew up baking our own bread. It’s a holiday tradition the grandkids now carry on.
With a fireplace like this, how could you not bake bread?!
Here’s a better look at the beehive oven hidden behind the hanging pot.
First, we’d get a roaring fire going in there. When … Read More
I can pretty much do every gardening task I have with just these few tools: 1 EZ-Digger, 1 pair of good gloves, 1 Garden Scooter, and 1 pair Muck Boots. I like to keep it simple; no fuss, no muss. Okay, maybe 1 pair of good clippers or a pocket knife does come in handy every now and then.
I use the EZ-Digger in place of 10 other tools. Mine is a little chewed on the end of the handle … Read More
It’s a raw and rainy fall day here, in Upstate NY. I harvested the last from my french intensive garden. In another week, I’ll plant the garlic bulbs I dug up and dried back in July. The ones left anyway… My hardneck garlic has become legendary among family members for its flavor and sweetness, and they grab as much of it as they can.
Reflecting back on this gardening season, it was a mixed bag. A combination of too much … Read More
I started my first garden when I was twelve; I went out to the back field and dug myself up a quarter acre. I’ve rarely missed a summer since. I do some of my best thinking digging in the dirt.
This picture is of two of my garlic plants nuzzling each other. Aren’t they beautiful!… Read More
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