Watermelon Peach Avocado Salsa

Herb Shop porch, looking out on one part of the garden.

These two areas, above, are in and near the garden look and wonderfully cool, don't they? But like much of the U.S. today, it's sweltering hot. We've been above 100 degrees F. most of this week. Fireworks displays in most towns are cancelled due to fire dangers. It's bleak, pastures and lawns are just crispy sticks, ponds are dry. We're watering the garden here on a daily basis, trying to keep the plants alive and growing.

Here's hopefully a small bit of inspiration, a half watermelon filled with watermelon salsa. I made it to take to a picnic at our friends' house this evening. You might like to make this over the Independence Day holidays, too. Yes, it will look better surrounded with chips and other food, but I took the photo before I left for the party.

The flavors of sweet watermelon, crispy peppers, peaches and avocados go well together!

I'd like to say this recipe is from my book, Sensational Salsas from Apple to Zucchini, and I do have a really good watermelon salsa recipe there, but this one was inspired by the Avocado Association newsletter this week. I had to tinker with their recipe a bit to suit my tastes, so here's my revised recipe:

Watermelon, Peach and Avocado Salsa

1 half seedless watermelon, innards chopped and drained
2 whole avocados, peeled, seeded and chopped
1 small onion, chopped
2 peaches, peeled, seeded and chopped
1 small green bell pepper, chopped
1 small red bell pepper, chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, seeds and stem removed, chopped fine
2 cloves garlic, chopped fine
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
Juice of 2 limes
1/2 teaspoon salt

Mix and chill, then fill the scooped-out watermelon and take to the party with chips.

Muscadines growing on gazebo post.

The muscadines are ripe this week on the gazebo (some of the other varieties aren't ready yet). If you aren't familiar with muscadines, they're a Southern variety of grapes. Thirty three years ago when I moved here, our weather wouldn't have allowed muscadines to grow, but in that period of time, we have warmer winters and such plants thrive here. Muscadines do better in the Ozarks than many other grapes simply because they don't suffer from many of the grape diseases, fungus and the like. I never have to spray muscadines - I always had to spray regular grapes, and I like the flavor of these better. Muscadines have a lot more sugar, some varieties taste like a burst of grape jelly in your mouth!

Muscadines.

If you'd like more salsa recipes to help you keep cool in this miserable heat, order my book, Sensational Salsas. It's full of my recipes for such things as Banana Salsa (it's a favorite in my salsa workshops!), Watermelon Salsa with Black Pepper, Cantaloupe Salsa and many, many more - yes, even one for Zucchini!

The Salsa book is on sale this month when you buy Easy Dips Using Herbs, too. Here's the link to my website.

Stay out of the heat if you can, drink plenty of liquids, move slow and be safe. Happy gardening!

Lavender Cookies, Ginger Beet Cake

Lavender flowers give wonderful flavor to cookies. Even people who say they don't like all that "herby stuff" like these. They're easy to make - it only takes minutes. I use the food processor and unless you're a cookie purist, you'd never know that I used shortcuts and simple methods. Here's the recipe.


Jim's Lavender Cookies

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons cream of tartar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup additional sugar

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Combine 1/2 cup sugar and 3 Tablespoons dry lavender flowers in the food processor and pulse blend until the flowers are well chopped. Set aside.

Cream the butter and 1 cup of flour in the food processor until the sugar is well dissolved. Add the remaining ingredients, including the sugar-lavender mixture and pulse blend just until the dough is mixed.

Roll a heaping tablespoon full of the dough between your hands, then roll that in the reserved sugar and place about 2 inches apart on a lightly oiled baking sheet. Bake for 8-9 minutes, or until the edges begin to turn golden. Bake a minute longer if you like dryer cookies, or take out at the 8-9 min. mark for softer, chewier cookies.
Makes about 24 cookies.

Last year, in March, I was in Round Top, Texas for the herb festival at Festival Hill. They served Ginger Beet Cake - yes, made with beets, and it was a huge success. I asked for their permission to share the recipe here, and did so in last year's post. Here's my revised recipe with my own additions. This is a delicious cake and you will never guess it has beets in it!

Ginger Beet Cake. Not a crumb of this cake was left over!

Ginger Beet Cake

 You can make this cake ahead and freeze it for later. It requires no frosting,
just a dusting of powdered sugar if you wish, or leave that off and just
add whipped cream and a few bachelor's buttons!

1 15 oz. can of beets (not pickled, just plain, canned beets)
1 1/2 cups flour (I use 1 cup unbleached flour and 1/2 cup whole wheat flour)
2/3 cup vegetable oil
3 eggs, beaten
2 cups sugar (I use 1 1/2 cups granulated stevia or Truvia and 1/2 cup sugar)
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 teaspoons dry ginger
2 Tablespoons fresh grated ginger
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup nuts, chopped (I used pecans or walnuts)
3/4 cup coconut

Heat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a food processor, empty the entire can of beets, juice and all. Blend it well. Combine the rest of the ingredients except for the chopped nuts, mixing well. Fold in the chopped nuts. Pour into a 9 x 13, oiled and floured baking pan. Bake until a knife inserted comes out clean, about 25-30 minutes. Let cool. Serve with real whipped cream. People were going back for seconds, saying this couldn't possibly have beets in it.

No Cool Whip for this, use real whipped cream!

Herbal Luncheon

I ran across these from the year I spoke at the Frankenmuth Herb Society. What a great group, they titled it, "3 Days with Jim Long" and use my recipes for their luncheon. Here are some of those recipes.

Herbed Cheese

(serves 8-10 if using about 2 cubes per person)

The combination of the fresh herbs and cheese makes a delightful taste of spring flavors.

Herbs used:
1 sprig (about 8-10 inches long) Greek or Sicilian oregano, leaves removed, stem discarded
4-5 whole leaves Garlic Chives, cut in large pieces
2  4-inch sprigs Marjoram (remove the stem if tough and discard)
2  4-inch sprigs Thyme (remove the stems and discard them)
4 or 5 sprigs parsley, larger stems removed

Recipe:
2 pounds of  Farmer’s cheese, skim milk, Muenster or similar cheese, cut into 1 inch cubes
2 teaspoons cooking oil or olive oil

Herbs:
Place the coarsley cut-up Garlic Chives, Oregano Marjoram, Parsley and Thyme into a small food processor with the nuts and pulse-blend until the mixture is well chopped.

Mix the herb/nut mixture into the cubes of cheese with the oil, mixing enough to disperse the herbs over the cheese. Refrigerate over-night to let the herb flavors blend into the cheese. Serve 2 or 3 cubes with toothpicks at room temperature with good crackers and fresh vegetable garnish.

Main Course
Mexican-Mint Chicken Salad
 (serves 6-8)

Herbs used:
 All herbs are fresh only. Dried herbs will  not give a similar flavor as fresh. A sprig is a stem of herb, about 4 inches long. On most herbs, the leaves are stripped off and the stem discareded.
1 sprig, or about 6 leaves cut up, fresh Mexican mint marigold (Tagetes lucida)...or substitute 2 teaspoons freshly-chopped French tarragon but use the marigold if possible!)
4 leaves (about 2 teaspoons chopped) Garlic chives
1 bunch Chives, or about 4 tablespoons, chopped
1 sprig, about 1/2 teaspoon fresh Thyme, stem removed and discarded


Recipe:

4 large fresh or frozen boneless chicken breasts
2 cups diced fresh jimaca if available, or 1 sm. can diced water chestnuts, drained
2 cups canned pineapple chunks
1 tart apple (such as Granny Smith)
6 leaves Mexican Mint Marigold, chopped
4 leaves Garlic Chives, chopped or snipped
4 tablespoons Chives or 3-4 whole green onions, green and white both, chopped
2 cups Hellman’s real mayonaise
Salt to taste

Simmer the chicken breasts until tender, with 6--8 cups water in which you have added a rib of celery, an onion, cut up and 3 or 4 peeled, cut up carrots. Reserve the broth.
Cool chicken and dice in inch sized pieces. Add remaining ingredients and mix gently. Refrigerate a few hours before serving. (Note, if making this the night before, add the herbs a few hours before serving).
Serve on lettuce leaf with crackers on the side with fresh herb garnish.

Garnish could include carrot fan, parsley, radish, cherry tomato with whole leaves of garlic chives crossed over salad. Or, serve with a cup of soup and whole grain crackers.

This is an excellent soup to accompany the chicken salad and I especially like the surprsing combination of fresh flavors. It’s a beautiful creamy golden orange soup with a delightful summery flavor and uses up the chicken broth from cooking the chicken for the salad.

Ginger-Orange Carrot Soup

(recipe serves 6 as a side dish soup with salad; serve in small coffee cups).
2 tablespoons butter
1 large onion, chopped
5 cups chicken broth
1 tablespoon honey
1 1/2 pounds small baby carrots (or if using larger carrots, peeled and cut up)
1 heaping tablespoon tomato paste
2 tablespoons dry rice
1/2 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
Grated zest of 1 orange
1 cup fresh orange juice
1/2 cup (or slightly more) heavy whipping cream

In skillet saute the onion in the butter. Transfer the saute to a soup pot with the 5 cups of chicken stock, honey, baby carrots, tomato paste and rice. Bring to a boil and turn down to simmer and cook, covered for about 30 minutes or until rice is tender.
Transfer soup to a food processor and puree with the orange zest, ginger, cream and salt and pepper to taste. Puree well. Return the soup to a pot to keep it warm until serving but don’t let it boil. Taste and adjust seasonings. If too thick, add more chicken broth.

Blueberries.

Lemon Balm-Blueberry Cake (easy version)

Herbs used:
3 tablespoons freshly-chopped Lemon Balm leaves
2 leaves fresh Lemongrass (the leaf, not the bulb), snipped very fine with scissors....it’s important to snip with scissors, not expect the food processor to do it adequately. Don’t substitute dry lemongrass.)

Recipe:
1 package Duncan Hines or any similar brand Lemon Supreme cake mix

Combine the liquid ingredients called for on the box...usually 1 1/3 cup water and 1/3 cup oil. Put that liquid in a blender with:
3 tablespoons freshly-chopped Lemon Balm leaves and
2 leaves Lemongrass which have been snipped up with scissors. Pulse-blend until the herbs are fairly well pulverized. Add that to:
The dry cake mix and eggs, beating well and pour into two oiled, floured round 9 inch cake pans. Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.
Cool.
Slice the 2 layers of the cake to make 4 thin layers.

With cake slicer, slice each cake in half, making 4 small layers.

Lemon Balm.

Filling:
1 large package instant vanilla pudding
1 large (8 oz.) package cream cheese, softened to room temp.
3 cups milk

In food processor, pulse blend ingredients, then stir in by hand, one small carton Cool Whip. Fold together well and refrigerate for several hours (or overnight).

Spread about 1/2 inch layer between the first and second layers of cake. Place the second cake on that, and cover the next layer with the filling. Put a layer of fresh blueberries over that, add the third layer, repeat with filling and berries, then place the fourth layer on top. Cover it with filling and dot liberally with fresh blueberries.

Dessert option 2:
Pineapple-Verbena Sorbet

Herbs used:
Lemon Verbena leaves

Recipe:
1 can frozen pineapple juice concentrate, thawed but still cold
3 leaves fresh Lemon Verbena, partially cut up
2 juice cans cold water

In blender, place the Lemon Verbena leaves, pineapple juice concentrate and 1 can of cold water. Blend well until the leaves are completely pulverized. Add the remaining can of water and pour the mixture into a hand-cranked or electric sorbet mixer. Freeze until firm. Serve in previously-frozen bowls (I freeze the spoons, as well, the sorbet stays firmer that way)

Rose Petal Cake Recipe

The official Herb of the Year for 2012 is the Rose. For more information and recipes using roses, go my Herb of the Year blog: http://herboftheyear.blogspot.com

This is a revised version of my Rose Petal Cake from my How to Eat a Rose book. You're welcome to share the recipe, just give me credit, please.

Rose Petal Cake

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons butter
2 1/2 cups cake flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup milk
3 egg whites
1 tablespoon run or brandy (optional)
1/2 cup coarsely chopped fragrant rose petals
1/2 cup sliced raw almonds
2 teaspoons food grade rose water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Mix together the first 5 ingredients in a bowl. Then add the milk, egg whites and brandy or rum and mix well. Stir in the rose petals, almonds and rose water. Bake in 2 greased, floured 9 inch cake pans for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on wire racks.

Rose Icing

2 cups whipping cream
1/2 teaspoon rose water
14 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup powdered sugar
Drop of red food coloring
Petals from 3 fragrant pink or red roes
Candies rose petals, optional

Whip the whipping cream  until soft peaks form. Slowly add the powdered sugar, rose water and vanilla and continue beating until fully whipped. Spread between the two layers of the cake, then cover the cake with the remaining icing. Sprinkle with rose petals and candied rose petals. Refrigerate until ready to serve.


Here's an excellent source for food-grade (meaning edible) rose water. It's made in Fredericksbug, TX and you can order it by mail: urbanherbals.com

I offer this book to rose, herb and garden groups who want to sell it at a profit at their events and fundraisers. Call our office for wholesale prices. Minimum order is 6 books. Call the office: 417-779-5450 and Billie or Neva will be happy to take your order or answer any questions you have. Regular retail is $5.95.

You can see the book here, as well as on my YouTube video channel.

Rose Petal Cake

Ok, this isn't what the cake actually looks like. We ate the cake before I could get a photo!

This is a revised version of my Rose Petal Cake in the How to Eat a Rose book. You're welcome to share the recipe, just give me credit, please.

Rose Petal Cake

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons butter
2 1/2 cups cake flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup milk
3 egg whites
1 tablespoon run or brandy (optional)
1/2 cup coarsely chopped fragrant rose petals
1/2 cup sliced raw almonds
2 teaspoons food grade rose water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Mix together the first 5 ingredients in a bowl. Then add the milk, egg whites and brandy or rum and mix well. Stir in the rose petals, almonds and rose water. Bake in 2 greased, floured 9 inch cake pans for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on wire racks.

Rose Icing

2 cups whipping cream
1/2 teaspoon rose water
14 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup powdered sugar
Drop of red food coloring
Petals from 3 fragrant pink or red roes
Candies rose petals, optional

Whip the whipping cream  until soft peaks form. Slowly add the powdered sugar, rose water and vanilla and continue beating until fully whipped. Spread between the two layers of the cake, then cover the cake with the remaining icing. Sprinkle with rose petals and candied rose petals. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

From my book, How to Eat a Rose.

I offer this book to rose, herb and garden groups who want to sell it at a profit at their events and fundraisers. Call our office for wholesale prices. Minimum order is 6 books. Call the office: 417-779-5450 and Billie or Neva will be happy to take your order or answer any questions you have. Regular retail is $5.95.

You can see the book here, as well as on my YouTube video channel.

Crustless Quiche

Fresh spinach, greens and green onions from the cold frame.

Last night I looked in the cold frame for some ideas for supper. What I really wanted was turkey and dressing. That's about my favorite meal of the year, a turkey big enough to have lots and lots of leftovers. Turkey pot pie. Turkey sandwiches. Turkey hash. And finally, turkey soup from the bones.

But... it's not Thanksgiving yet and I wasn't going to cook a turkey just for supper for the 3 of us. So, back to the cold frame search. I chose a colander full of spinach, I had some ham in the refrigerator, I'd make a quiche. Barbara and Josh both like quiche.

One of my medicines (Cyclosporine), which is one of the anti-rejection drugs I have to take in order to keep my kidney, has pushed me to the border of type 2 diabetes. What that means, if you don't know about such things, is to get extra exercise and eat little or no white foods. Why white, you may wonder? White foods include bread, pasta, potatoes, rice, sugar, pastries, and yes, pie crust. I can eat a small amount, but the less I eat, the better for my health and quitting the anti-rejection drugs isn't an option. So I decided to make a no-crust quiche. I've done it before but I never write the recipe down. Maybe if I put it here, I'll remember for next time.

I started with 6 cups of fresh spinach leaves and put them in a glass bowl in the microwave. I pushed the "vegetables" button and let the microwave wilt the greens. While the microwave was doing its work I chopped a heaping tablespoon of onions and about half that amount of chives. Green onions work just as well. When the spinach was wilted, I drained the liquid and set it aside.

In a bowl I beat 4 eggs and added 1 large can of evaporated milk. I added a tablespoon of cooking sherry and about 1/4 teaspoon of hot sauce. Next I grated 1/2 cup cheddar cheese and mixed it in.

I preheated the oven to 350 degrees F. I have a favorite clay, deep dish pie pan from Hess Pottery (you may remember my earlier postings about them at the Reeds Spring Farmers Market; they've had national publicity for their perfect-baking pie pans) and sprayed it heavily with olive oi. I put a layer of already cooked and coarsely chopped bacon - 3 slices in all. On top of that I spread the wilted spinach leaves. I poured in the egg/milk and cheddar mixture and added 1 cup of diced ham and stirred in around slightly.

Tom Hess' pie plates bake perfectly on the bottom of the plate better than any others I've found.

The quiche baked for about 40 minutes then I checked to see if it was done by inserting a knife blade in the center. It needed to cook another 5 minutes, then I let it set for about 10 minutes while I got a salad ready - also from the cold frame.

And there it is, no crust quiche, easy and out of the garden. Here's the list of ingredients in case you missed them in the text:

See, it really doesn't need a crust.

No-Crust Ham and Spinach Quiche

6 cups fresh spinach, wilted and drained (or you can substitute 1 1/2 cups frozen, thawed and drained)
4 eggs
1 can evaporated milk
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
3 slices cooked and cut up bacon
1 cup diced ham
1 tablespoon cooking sherry or brandy
1/4 teaspoon any brand hot sauce
1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons green onions
Salt and pepper to taste

A pretty healthy dish. Spinach, onions and eggs, all came from right here on the farm.

Fish House Style Green Tomato Pickles

This week I've been picking as much of the garden produce as I can before a killing frost comes. We've had 2 light frosts but even the basil plants haven't been hurt much. Yet. After a summer of drought and heat and low tomato and pepper production, those plants have gone into high gear, trying to catch up on production.

Adam, who I have written about here many times, left us with a fabulous fall garden. Too bad he didn't get to enjoy such lushness during the summer when he was farming the garden and selling at local farmers markets. (Adam left in mid September to work on a farm in Maryland for the winter; that farm sells at the DuPont Circle farmers market the year around).

Ten pints of fish house green tomato pickles.

I've spent the day today, putting up some of the excess produce. With all the green tomatoes, I wanted to use the smaller ones for fish house green tomato pickles. They're a favorite in the catfish restaurants in the South and it's a great way to use up some of the tomatoes. Josh plans on making green tomato mincemeat, too, for pies this winter.

Tomatoes ripening in the window.

The larger green tomatoes will simply stay on the kitchen windowsill where they will slowly ripen over the few weeks. (I've used the wrap-in-newspaper method, which is a hassle, also the put-in-the-basement method, also a hassle to check every couple of days; on the windowsill, where I see the tomatoes every day, is the easiest and simplest and works just fine. Some years we have the last of our summer's ripe tomatoes on Christmas Day. However on the windowsill, the tomatoes ripen a lot faster).

You can use green tomatoes in any recipe that calls for ripe tomatoes, too.

Here's the recipe in case you want to use up your green tomatoes:

Catfish-House Green Tomato Pickles

2 quarts quartered green tomatoes
2 cups chopped onion - about two onions
1/3 cup chopped hot peppers
1/3 cup chopped sweet red bell peppers
2 (scant) cups sugar
2 1/2 Tablespoons salt
3 cups white vinegar
1 teaspoon celery seed
1/4 teaspoon yellow mustard seed

Combine ingredients in a large cooking pan and bring to a boil. Let simmer for about 5 minutes. Ladle into hot, sterile jars, wipe lip edge of jars, screw on hot, new jar rings and flats and lightly tighten. Place into a boiling water bath, with at least 1/2 inch of water above the jar lids. Bring to a boil and keep slowly boiling for 15 minutes (for pints). Remove and cool on a towel. Don't tinker with the lids, they will seal in a few minutes. Let cool overnight then label and store in the pantry. These are best after the flavors have matured, about 2 weeks or more.