Spring has sprungIt’s that time again. The internet is going nuts over ramps. Apparently they’re delicious and In some areas they are rather controversial. I’ve never had one, nor do I recall having seen any. I suppose if I did, I’d dig one up out of curiosity. But honestly, I’m equally happy with the earliest bounty that my garden provides… Continue reading
Summer has spoiled us. It’s been balmy, downright cool at times. The abundance of fruits and vegetables has been dizzying, and we’ve done our best to enjoy all that we can.
I love salsaTomato salsa is great. There is decent stuff available in jars year round, and in late summer I love making my own. But fruit salsas are special. Sure, some stores sell mango or pineapple variations, but they aren’t the same as pieces of fresh fruit, heaped on a chip or served alongside sausage or halloumi style cheese (check out my cherry basil salsa from last year).
Not being in school, there are no Valentine boxes to hang from desks, no cutesy cards (or glut of candy) to buy for classmates, no counting to see who got more… My husband and I similarly haven’t ever done much to mark the occasion. I think one year, while we were dating, I made him a huge heart shaped chocolate chip cookie. LOL Continue reading
A jubilee of cherriesHave I mentioned how much I love cherry season? Oh yeah, I did, here. It’s still going strong, and I’ve been indulging as much as I can. I bought a basket on the weekend from a farm nearer the lake, north of here. It still amazes me how the micro-climates around the peninsula can produce such variety in the same fruits (not to mention some incredible wines). These cherries are super dark, and very juicy, but smaller than the ones that we bought west of here. They are still delicious, though. Continue reading
To understand how happy I am that cherry season is here, you need to know what happened last year in Niagara. Last spring, actually. We experienced weather in March that was beyond balmy. It was downright warm. So warm that we planted radishes and peas and harvested both before we normally would have planted them. So warm that the trees were tricked into budding early. Too early. An unfortunate hard frost came through and wiped out the local cherry crop, along with a lot of the other tree fruits. Cherries were hardest hit, though. We managed a meagre basket, found early one morning at the market, and that was the beginning, middle and end of cherry season for 2012. Continue reading
My Edible Journey 