When I have time on my hands...I'm usually in the kitchen! Insomnia turns me into a productive homemaker...I baked, cleaned the house, re-organized the kitchen, did some gardening, laundry...and took a long walk with the dogs in the woods. It turned into a nice day and last night I actually slept ELEVEN glorious hours! :)
After I made the bread yesterday, I started on some pizza dough. My plan was to make a bunch of it so it would be all ready when we wanted pizza...but of course I got a craving! I had leftover thick-crust dough from Pizza-Ghetti night and a leftover green pepper so I made our version of an all-dressed pizza with ham and green olives too. I had some Feta to use up so I made a three-cheese pizza with Feta, Parm and Mozz. The third one is one of our favourites: Prosciutto (which I also had to use up), apricot jam and leftover Blue cheese which actually froze very well from last month! We had a little of each one for dinner, and we'll have lunches for a few days!! I actually made 2 more portions of pizza dough for the freezer too.
And I did it, I got rid of those nasty peat pots that I have come to dislike so much! :) I now have:
- Basil, parsley, cilantro, oregano, thyme, chives
- Spinach, Buttercrunch lettuce, beets, spring onions, cherry tomatoes, regular tomatoes, Roma tomatoes, garden peas and 2 pots of pumpkins...plus of course my lemon tree.
...all sitting in the sunny window! In about two weeks, I can start hardening them off and then in three weeks, most of these are destined for the garden.
I also started my radish and carrot seeds yesterday in big containers. I am still waiting on my mint, chamomile, (more) chives and rosemary that I'll start when I receive them - though I have no clue where they'll go...I have no more room in the window! I'll figure something out!
And for end of May I will plant these directly in containers outside:
- Cucumbers, ground cherries, orange peppers, green and yellow beans, and probably more of the lettuces.
- All of my flowers and ornamental grass
At that point, I'll have to see what's growing and what's not, figure out a successive planting schedule, get bigger containers for my window starters and start looking around for used windows for my winter cold frames. I'm really loving this! I'm going to spend May through to November outside I think! :)
This is a photo from last summer. Today it's overcast, so if I have the motivation, I'm going to head to the garden center and pick up some screening and 2 x 8's so that this week Alex and I can screen in my porch. We are going to make a screen door too. Last year, I just used what I could find and it was a pain to move that screen every time we wanted to go down the stairs! You see where my garden tools are? That is such a silly space, it's so narrow you can barely even walk there, but we can't screen it in because of the clothesline...I can move the garden tools, but I would still like access to that clothesline so I don't have to stand on my tip toes to reach it from the stairs...we thought about moving the clothesline, but it's in the perfect spot......so I'm thinking of a screened Dutch door kind of set up so I can open it and just use the clothesline when I need to...the hamster wheel is turning in my head!
I must make up some pizza bases and get them in the freezer ready for when the grandkids visit, I dont eat cheese so never had a pizza, Martin has one occasionally but usually when we have visitors
ReplyDeletethose pizzas look good. i told everyone here about pizzaghetti and now they want me to make it for them! i just made creton this morning!
ReplyDeleteHi Dawn! :) Too bad you don't eat cheese, pizza is so delicious, but I've made "Bianca" pizzas with just garlic-infused olive oil and some basil.
ReplyDeleteHi Joyce! Ooh, let me know if you make the pizza-ghetti, make sure to post it! :) I've had lots of creton, but I never made any, it's so yummy! Very popular here in Quebec too.
ReplyDelete11 hours!!!!! I am so jealous! :) In a good way of course...I wish I could sleep 11 hours. Heck I wish I could sleep more than 3 at a time...but good for you! I bet you felt like a million bucks today.
ReplyDeleteI went to the garden center today. I got 2 smaller clay pots and some buttercrunch lettuceg (great minds think alike) to go into those pots. They are now sitting happily if not a bit shocked in the little greenhouse.Bring on lots of lettuce!! I had a couple left over so I threw them into a smaller pot and left it on our patio table. If it gets too hot quickly I will bring it inside too. Our backyard faces east and south so it gets all the afternoon sun and it gets HOT. The garden center was busy today!
This morning I made a potato salad to go with our BBQ'd burgers tonight and a rice krispie date dessert. First time making this so you never know how these turn out.
Its nice here today, around 18 or so but the wind!! It just keeps blowing!
Have a great evening!
Dianna
Hi Dianna :))
ReplyDeleteBelieve it or not, I'm EXHAUSTED lol...I guess I got too much sleep. My body wants more...I got out to the garden center too, got everything for the porch and a new shovel that's a lot lighter for me, so maybe it'll be easier on my hands. It was busy there too.
I hope you take progressive photos of your lettuce in the greenhouse. I am really curious how that'll go, I told Alex about it and he bookmarked it in his "gift ideas" folder! It's just too cute a greenhouse! My backyard gets really hot too and I'll have to remember that when it comes to the spinach and lettuce, they don't like it too hot. Reminds me I need to figure out some kind of shade system for those two crops...I'll probably put those near my carrots and beets that like it cooler too. And the spring onions says on the package that high heat will make them bolt...there are so many nuances, but I'm loving learning!
Your dinner sounds like it'll be great. We should be barbecuing now since there are no bugs...I'll have to suggest that since Alex is the bbq-man of the family! :) Is your gas?
I think I mentioned the feral cats destroyed our gas bbq last year so we got a little charcoal one late last summer that we haven't used yet, but plan to this year.
Rice Krispie and date...sounds good! I hope it turns out like you like it! We got some strawberries the other day at the market, so tonight we'll have shortcakes probably.
Enjoy your Sunday!!! :)
I haven't used peat pots in a while as they are too expensive and then they kind of wick the moisture out of the pot. I just put dirt in big pots and then trowel the plants out of the pot when they go in the garden. You are gaining a lot of experience for when you guys get your own ground to plant in. I kind of learned on a small scale before we moved to the country.
ReplyDeleteThis is what life is supposed to be like! To have goals and enthusiasm and the energy to implement new ideas. And, of course, when you're doing something or planning for something that you really want to do, your energy level just sky-rockets!! I have a big smile on my face when I read these posts of yours. Even if somethings (insert "peat pots") don't pan out, it's all part of the learning curve and can give you more ideas for the future. You go, girl!
ReplyDeleteWow ... I love to follow your garden adventure :)
ReplyDeleteYour pizzas look delicious. Pizza would be nice now ...
The day was super hectic on our little farm. The baby arrived :)
Those pizzas look wonderful. I have to admit, I've been lazy lately with meals. It's raining here again, and it tends to make me lazy.
ReplyDeleteHi Gill :) Well, so far things are going well with my regular pots. I have some cilantro popping up. Those peat pots were evil!!! :) I was going to wait to do a big garden until we moved, but what you mentioned, learning and gaining a lot of experience, is what I wanted before we move and plant a permanent one. I want all of my plants to succeed! But this is for lessons too!
ReplyDeleteHi Mama Pea :)) Thank you!! :) I really am enjoying this whole process. I feel like a mother lol....I'm really babying all of these plants and I can't wait to get them outside. You have inspired me a lot, just so you know. I was so envious of all your potatoes and pumpkins last year when you posted about them, it got the ball rolling for me :)
ReplyDeleteThanks sis :)) The pizzas...I think besides seed-buying, pizza is another obsession/addiction. I can't stop! :) Oh, I can't wait to read about the little foal! (did I use the right word??)
ReplyDeleteHi Kristina :) I know how you feel, rainy days make me somewhat lazy too. Some days I'm on fire, but a day like today for example, it's near the freezing mark and raining so I'm not planning too much. I just want to drink coffee and watch movies! :)
ReplyDeleteHiya!
ReplyDeleteI will take pics of the greenhouse when I get home from work and send them your way! I think this is a great way to keep lettuce year round (away from my cats) and its a GREAT gift idea! *nudge, nudge, wink, wink Alex* :)
The rice krispie and date square was pretty good. The recipe called for 1 cup of sugar which I would never put in regardless, but I thought with the dates which makes it sweet I knocked it back even more and it was still quite sweet. So if I were to make it again I would knock that sugar right back.
Our BBQ is gas but I love charcoal BBQ's. Such an authentic flavor with those! Ours will be due for a new burner soon and I hope it won't break the bank. Still would be cheaper than a complete BBQ I suppose.
Happy Monday!
Hi Dianna :) I still can't get over how cute that greenhouse is...I wonder how many I could fit on my little shelves in the window this winter lol...
ReplyDeleteI'm glad the date squares worked out, I also tend to cut back sugar amounts.
I was hoping we could bring out the charcoal bbq this week, but there is so much rain in the forecast! It can wait another week :)
It's amazing how productive and creative those hamster wheels can be - especially when it's o'dark thirty in the morning! You are going to have such an awesome garden!! I like to think that there are some advantages to insomnia - it's how I come up with my best ideas. Not much else to do at 2:30 in the morning... :)
ReplyDeleteHi Susan :)) I'm extremely productive at all hours of the night!! I can't wait for the garden! I'm so excited and just sitting on my hands right now since it's cold and rainy...I need to just enjoy the moment of relaxation, there will be plenty of time outside this season!!
ReplyDeletethat screen reminds me of that magnetic screen door stuff they have, or the one made for the garage door ( i think)
ReplyDeleteHi Seeking Serenity :) I found that screen in the shed when we moved in here two years ago. It was an old dining shelter tent for a gazebo that wasn't there anymore. It was ripped to shreds in certain places, but I found use for it! :)
ReplyDelete