How to make Bamboo Garden Trellises (Cheap! Cheap!)

Our organic garden is growing nicely,

and we even had a salad (albeit, small)

of arugula and radish already.

We are trying to learn when to plant certain salad foods that will grow

and be ready to harvest at the same time as the other food that accompanies it.

We are doing that by planting a few seeds 
of each food each week, 
so that we can have fresh carrots, scallions, radishes, etc.,

when we want them.

Home gardening is an interesting learning process, 
that teaches us to fully rely on our Provider

for sun, rain, and the designed growth of each plant.

Our beans and tomatoes are getting tall.

They need trellises and some sort of support.

I stopped in our favorite store, Hobby Lobby,

and priced the iron trellises, 
since our garden is right outside our cafe', 

I wanted it to look pretty-ish, not chicken-wirey.

But, the least expensive trellis, with 50% off was $10.00.

NOT economical, I need 5 or 6 of them already.

Then, on a whim, I trekked inside Big Lots!

Here's what I found--on the left.

See the price?

See how many are in the bag?
The jute, from Lowe's, was only $2.00.

Big Lots also has the stakes in 6 foot lengths.

I may go back and get some of those, too.

A light went on inside my skull!
Revelation!
Epiphany!
Inspiration!


So, I did this.

Then this.

Then around a stake, and tucked in.

Then around the next stake, and tucked in.

Then around the next stake, and tucked in. 
And cut.
I made 8 of these.

Here are the beans, sad, lying on the soil.

And, after.
I think they are actually smiling.

I tied them to the trellis with more jute pieces.

Now the tomatoes.

In other areas of the garden beds, squash.

Carrots.

And radishes!

My, how far you've come!
How big you've grown!





I am yet again, partying with these chicks:


Chic on a Shoestring Budget -- Flaunt it Friday
Finding Fabulous -- Frugalicious Friday
My Romantic Home -- Show and Tell Friday
Fingerprints on the Fridge -- Feature Yourself Firday
Kojo Designs -- Friday Fun Finds
It's Fun To Craft -- Look at Me, I'm So Crafty!
It's a Hodgepodge Friday
Frugal & Fabulous Design -- Fab Friday

The Art Of French Cooking- Week 6 -Ratatouille

Click here to enter my Cottage Charm Giveaway. 

(Giveaway ends tonight-- Saturday, the 29th, at midnight EST)

This week, Miss S actually made Ratatouille,

while I was watching the movie.
Your eyes are fine--
that's just a glare down the center of our TV screen.

Ratatouille

[Eggplant Casserole--with tomatoes, onions, peppers and zucchini]

Ratatouille perfumes the kitchen with the essence of Provence and is certainly one of the great Mediterranean dishes. As it is strongly flavored, it is best when it accompanies plain roast or broiled beef or lamb, or plain roast, broiled, or sauteed chicken. Equally good hot or cold, it also makes a fine accompaniment to cold meats, or may be served as a cold hors d'oeuvre.

A really good ratatouille is not one of the quicker dishes to make, as each element is cooked separately before it is arranged in the casserole to partake of a brief communal simmer. This recipe is the only one we know of which produces a ratatouille in which each vegetable retains its own shape and character. Happily, a ratatouille may be cooked completely the day before it is to be served, and it seems to gain in flavor when reheated.

• 1 lb. eggplant
• 1 lb. zucchini
• A 3 quart mixing bowl
• 1 tsp. salt
• 10-12-inch skillet
• 4 TBSP. Olive oil, more if needed
• 1/2 lb. (about 1 1/2 cups) thinly sliced yellow onions
• 2 (about 1 cup) sliced green bell peppers
• 2 cloves mashed garlic
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 lb. firm, ripe, red tomatoes, peeled, seeded and juiced
• 2 1/2 quart oven-proof casserole dish with lid
• 3 TBSP minced parsley

Peel eggplant and cut into lengthwise slices 3/8" thick/3" long/1" wide.

Slice ends off zucchini and cut zucchini into slices 

the same size as eggplant.

Place vegetables into bowl and toss with salt.

Let stand 30 minutes. Drain and dry slices.

One layer at a time, saute' the eggplant, then zucchini in hot oil 

for one minute on each side to brown lightly. 

Remove to a side dish.

In the same skillet, cook the onions and peppers, 

slowly for 10 minutes, until tender, not browned. 

Stir in garlic and salt and pepper to taste.

To peel tomatoes, hold tomatoes in boiling water for 10 seconds.

Tomato skin loosens,

and is peeled off easily.

Set oven to 450 degrees.
Cut peeled tomatoes in half crosswise, not through the stem.
Squeeze each half gently to extract the seeds and juices.

Slice tomato pulp into 3/8" strips, lay them over the onions/peppers. 
Cover skillet and cook over low for 5 minutes.
Uncover and raise heat and boil until juice has almost entirely evaporated.

Layer amounts in thirds into the casserole dish: 
tomato mixture
then
parsley
then
eggplant/zucchini.
Repeat twice more, top with parsley.

Cover casserole, and bake for 15 minutes.
Set aside, uncovered until ready to serve,
or let cool, refrigerate and serve cold.

Review:

We had high expectations from this dish.
After all, a movie had been named after it!


We anticipated tasting this famous Provence fare.


Miss S prepared this dish, 
and it took her almost the whole length of the movie to make.
So, we figured, with something that took this long,
it was bound to be good.


The scents of onion, garlic and parsley wafted throughout our home,
our tummies growled and our mouths watered.
We could NOT wait till it came out of the oven.


We all sat down, 
placed our hands together and gave thanks,
placed our napkins on our laps,
placed a forkful of French happiness to our lips.


We were not happy.
In fact, we were disappointed.
The recipe had been followed exactly, 
so we know it wasn't Miss S' fault.


This dish was boring, 
it tasted like Fajita veggies that someone 
forgot to put the cumin and chicken in.


Maybe we are too Americanized (what else would we be, right)?
But we decided that we wouldn't make this ever again.
I am sorry if I am hurting any of my European home maker friends' feelings,
especially if you love the dish!


We are veggie lovers,
but maybe not this combination of veggies.

We give this:

*

out of

* * * * *

Till next Saturday,

Bon Appetit, y'all!

Organic Garden Update--or, If You Give Mouse a Cookie

When Mark came home with a bag of dirt, seeds and starter pots, 

this gardening project seemed easy enough. 

But then, you see, what had happened was:

Do y'all know the story of what happens when you give a mouse a cookie?

If not, here it is in a nutshell:

A generous boy shares a cookie with a hungry mouse, 

which led him to ask for a glass of milk, 

for which he'll certainly need a straw, 

not to mention a napkin, 

and a mirror to check for a milk mustache, 

which will only lead to him noticing that he needs a haircut. 

It is the beginning of a chain of events 

that keeps the boy busy all day long, 

and might keep him busy for days to come.

My hubby is the Mouse. 

The bag of dirt, seeds and starter pots is the cookie.

Here's our version of the story, called:

If You Give a Man Some Seeds

If you give a man some seeds, he will wish to plant and water them.

  

When the plants have begun to grow, 

the man will want to make a plan on where to put them.

He will want to make sure they all play nicely together, 

and make lots of friends

so he plans the neighborhood.

Then he will want to build the neighborhood.

Which means a trip to Lowe's--one of the Man's favorite stores 

(okay, mine, too).

While in the Lowe's, the Man finds the lumber 

and has it cut by another Man in a red vest.

Well, the lumber must match the deck, so the Man 

goes to the Paint counter and buys stain to color the lumber.

The Man has to get the stain onto the lumber somehow, 

so he also gets 2 new, shiny brushes.

The lumber must stay together somehow, 

so he goes to the Screw Dept. and finds the screws he needs.

Then, the Man remembers he has no proper sawhorses

on which to place the lumber while staining it, 

and puts those on his cart.

Next, the man remembers that he has no way to store the sawhorses 

to keep them neat and tidy, so he puts a

Gladiator Garage track and some hooks on the cart.

A $30 bag turns into a $240 cart:

Then, the Man takes all this stuff home, 
and using his handy dandy new sawhorses and shiny, new brushes
stains the outside of the lumber.

Then the Man builds the neighborhoods for the plants.

(This is 2 of 3 of them).

Then he:

and then he:

Then the Man takes another trip to Lowe's,
remember this is one of his favorite stores?
And makes three trips with 30 bags of Organic Soil each time.
Breaking our Home Owner's Association rules 
about driving on the lawn,
he drives the car around to the beds.
(Okay, I told him it was okay to break the rules--
I am the Chairwoman of the Architectural Committee,
and we can break the rules if we don't get caught).


Oh, Look! 
Evidence:

Then the Man, spreads out all the dirt for only one of the beds today:

The plants wait to move in, because the Man is too tired to 
plant them today.

They do get planted, don't worry, but that is another book, entirely.