Warwick really wants me to give YOU an update on the garden.

He says it’s been 5 weeks since I started the garden, and about 6 or so weeks until we begin to pull out plants to make room for the fall garden, so this would be the halfway point if  x+y = z+d – 646.  He’s a bit of a braniac.  I nodded off somewhere between 5 weeks and E=mc2 .

Okay, he’s probably right, so here goes.  This shouldn’t take long, being that I am the laziest person to ever call themselves a gardener, as well as the most delinquent.

This is what my garden looks like today.  Very, very pretty. And slightly crowded.  Because, well, I am too LAZY to plan it out properly.

I still haven’t harvested much, because I started so late.  Many of the plants are just starting to bloom. The tomato plants have plenty of flowers and green tomatoes, which should prove to be a bountiful in the coming weeks.

Two days ago, I planted an Eggplant, because it just didn’t seem crowded enough. And well, I like the color purple.

Don’t mind the weed in the background.

The cucumber plants are growing bezerko crazyheads, because I DID NOT LISTEN TO MY MOTHER AND PLANT DWARF CUCUMBER. And now I’m not sure if the vines are going to strangle my children in their sleep.

Oooooh, oh, oh.  And look at the Okra.

Did you know they are a member of the Hibiscus family. Lovely. But, as far as I can tell the flowers only open early in the morning. By late morning, they are closed.  Kinda like me.  Which is unfortunate, if you have seen what I look like in the morning. 

And I would be remiss, not to mention the squash. Today, I’m picking my very first summer squash, EVER,  IN MY ENTIRE LIFE. 

Look how big and pretty and yellow it is.  Doesn’t it just make you smile?

My stevia plant is trippin’, but I’ll tell you about that another day.

Some flea type bugs were attacking my okra, moving into my tomatoes, and looking very seductively at my arugula.  So I had to zap it with Sevin Spray. My mom said I should have rinsed all the plants off daily with a mixture of water and a little dish soap, to make the leaves slippery so the bugs wouldn’t be able to stick to the leaves.  But REMEMBER: I’m lazy.  No can do moms.

Oh, and I had to mulch under the squash, because it rained and rained, and the baby squash started to rot. So. . . . .my mom said to mulch.  Honestly, why doesn’t she just come down here and do it for me?  No really, why?

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This recipe reminds me of sunshine and summertime.  The corn and the peas together serve as an excellent source of protein.  You won’t even miss the meat. Well, maybe you will. But, you’ll still like it.

Corn and Pea Risotto

Ingredients:

3 1/2 cups of Chicken or Vegetable Broth
2 TB of oil
1 onion, chopped
1 cup Arborio Rice
1/2 cup apple juice
2-3 Ears of corn (enough for 1 cup)
1 cup of frozen peas
1/4 cup of grated Parmesan Cheese

Directions:

1. In a medium sized sauce pan, heat broth until a simmer, and keep warm.
2.  In another medium saucepan, add oil and heat on medium-high until warm.  Add onion, and cook until soft, about 5 minutes.
3. Add rice, and cook for another 2 minutes.
4. Add apple juice and cook until absorbed, stirring constantly.
5.  Once the rice has absorbed the apple juice, add 1/2 cup of broth stirring continuously until all the broth has been absorbed.
6. Continue to add remaining broth, 1/2 cup at a time following the directions in step 5 until all the broth has been used and rice is al dente. Be sure to stir continuously, so that your rice is creamy and it does not stick. This should take about 20 minutes.
7. Add the corn and peas and cook 2 minutes or until tender.
8. Finally, add the Parmesan cheese, and season with salt and pepper if desired.