It's Good to be Home

I was glad to find that my zucchini was still growing when I got home yesterday. The weather feels as though it's getting a bit chilly and the temperature is only getting up to the high 50's tomorrow. I think I'll place some fabric row cover on my zucchini plants for the next couple of days to keep them more comfortable. Today, I noticed that there are now several tiny female flowers developing on all four of my plants. Hopefully, there is still enough time left before our first frost for them to mature.

Stir-fried Noodles with Shrimp, Homegrown Tatsoi and Beets

Last Friday, I mentioned that I harvested one of my beets, which had been assaulted by one of our wild four-legged friends. Last night, I decided to make some quick stir-fired noodles with homegrown tatsoi, beets and beet greens. The young beet tasted delicious, earthy and sweet like any good beet should. I am very excited to begin harvesting the rest of them soon.

On Family and Tradition

Hi Everyone - For those of you who may not be aware, I'm now a contributing writer for Simple, Green, Frugal Co-op. If you have a chance, please take a moment to check out my first ever post for them (and leave a comment!). As always, I appreciate your support! Thanks!

"A Return to Tradition" - Simple, Green, Frugal Co-op (September 30, 2009)

(As posted on September 30, 2009)
I used to wonder what it was that had led me to become the gardener and, for lack of a better word, "foodie" that I am today. Why do I sniff and fondle all of my produce, wince at the newest processed food to hit the market, and notice that the supermarket shelves seem to contain more packaging then food these days? Why do I spend hours cultivating the soil in my yard, battle against insects and neighborhood wildlife, and dream of ways to extend my growing season? And why do I feel nothing but perfect contentment every time I visit a local farm, comb through the booths at my local farmer's market, and spend all day cooking up a traditional feast for my friends and family?

This year's fall garden

As I flipped through the yellowing pages of an old family photo album a few months ago, it struck me that I've become the consumer, gardener, cook (and to a certain extent, husband and parent) that I am now not because of what I've read in the Op-Ed section of the New York Times or seen depicted in a PETA hidden video. I am who I am because of how I was raised by my father. Glued to each page of this album were photos taken during countless food celebrations, fishing excursions, and farm visits that seem to span all of the years of my childhood. Then there were the many trips to Chinatown, outdoor produce markets, and botanical gardens - the sights and smells of which I can still recall vividly. Lastly, there were the photos taken of me and my four siblings playing in our father's wondrous urban vegetable garden, a now mystical place that I long to return to but never will.

A recent harvest of red globe radishes

As I took that trip down memory lane, I began to realize that over the years, I've slowly developed into a person that's a lot like my father in a way (though not nearly as brave). He was the quintessential Luddite, always insistent on doing things the traditional or what I used to consider the "old-fashioned" way. As a result, all family traditions were strictly observed and ceremoniously carried out. He was a modest person who would rather risk a stomach ache than let any food, good or bad, go to waste. By the same token, he was also someone who knew how to revel in a good meal and often ate and drank to excess. All of these things used to mystify me about my father until I grew to understand that he was of a generation that had witnessed and experienced true human suffering. After the Vietnam War, he saw our family through periods of famine, planned our death-defying escape from a Communist regime, kept us hopeful during our time at the refugee camps, and brought us to the United States in hopes of a better life. I soon realized that if I have had to endure hunger and the type of familial/cultural separation my father had experienced during his lifetime, matters of food and tradition would become all the more important to me as well.

An assortment of hardy winter crops

So as I consider the reasons why I strive to live a greener life, I find the ones closest to home to be the most compelling. While issues such as what's wrong with our agricultural industry, what deadly toxins might be lurking in our food, or what is lacking in our current energy policy are matters of urgency on a national and global scale, these things only drive me personally to a certain extent. Ultimately, I grow the vegetables I grow, cook the foods I cook, and live the way I do because I hope to preserve something that was handed down to me by my father many years ago - a tradition of growing one's own food, nurturing one's family, and celebrating one's culture.

A traditional recipe - autumn fruit pie

What are some of the reasons why YOU strive for a greener life?

Footnote - As a new contributor to the Co-op, I am excited to be able to share with our readers my personal experiences and endeavors at living a greener life. Those of you who've read my personal blog know that I am just beginning this journey of mine. Surely I will have my fair share of setbacks and failures and therefore will be writing purely from a non-guru perspective, which to me is the most honest and entertaining point of view to have. I've learned a great deal from other "green" bloggers and hope that I'll be able to inspire others in my own small way. Until next time!

Away From Home

My lone female zucchini flower bloomed this past weekend. During the past few days, I've been in upstate New York for work and am flying back home later on tonight. I am anxious to see what it will look like. I had wanted to pollinate it by hand but forgot to. Hopefully, it will fruit anyway. From what I've heard, a cold front is expected to move into New England later this week. It's funny how you find yourself worrying about your vegetable garden when you're away. Hopefully, the squirrels haven't devoured the rest of my beets. I'm glad to be going home.

First Fall Colors

The first fall colors have reached the garden, appearing on the leafy tips of a small maple tree we have in the backyard. It is a beautiful and yet sad sight to see - a signal that's it's time to pay closer attention to what's going on in your fall garden and to protect it from the declining weather. In the coming weeks, the floating row cover will be used more frequently, garlic will be planted, fall and winter crops will be mulched with straw, cold frames/plastic low tunnels will be constructed, fall crops will be harvested, etc. Summer might have ended but the gardening work continues. I am anxious to see how it will all come together before the arrival of our first snow.

Quick-Pickled Radishes

I love making this pickle. It's simple, quick and great for carrots, any kind of radish or cauliflower. Carrots and radishes are usually thinly sliced or julianned for this recipe, whereas cauliflower is broken up into small clusters. The pickle takes only 6 to 24 hours to steep and will last for up to a month in the fridge (depending on what vegetable you're using). It's traditionally Vietnamese and customarily served alongside salads, grilled meats and in sandwiches.

Here is a recipe for the brine. You can multiply the measurements to suit the amount of vegetable you're pickling. Also, I'm sure it would be good for other types of vegetables as well.

Quick-Pickle Brine Recipe:

2/3 cup of white vinegar
1/2 cup of lukewarm water
1/4 cup of sugar
1/2 teaspoon of Thai chili paste or chopped fresh chilies (optional)

Stir all ingredients together until the sugar dissolves. Add the vegetables and steep at room temperate for a couple of hours, then place in the fridge. Make sure that your vegetables are completely submerged in the brine.

Note: When pickling radishes, you sometimes get a powerful whiff of odor when you open the pickle jar or tub. This does not mean that the pickle has gone bad, but is due to a chemical reaction between the radish and vinegar. The smell will dissipate when the pickle is aired out for a few minutes.

This Week's Harvest

This past week, I harvest another big bowl of mesclun. It feels nice not having to buy lettuce from the supermarket. I also thinned my hakurei turnips and harvested a nice bunch of turnip greens. I've never had turnip greens before and will have to find a good recipe for them. The turnips themselves should be ready for harvest later on this week.


I also harvested the last of my tatsoi and pak choi sowed back in July. These were devoured by August pests and look pretty damaged but have tasted really good (trimmed up of course). In a couple of weeks, my late August sowing of pak choi and flowering brassica should be ready. I can't wait!


Finally, as posted earlier, I harvested the rest of my red altaglobe radishes. I gave most of them away and with the rest, I quick pickled. Recipe to follow.

Another Chill

It looks like the temperature will be dropping down into the upper 30s again tonight. Needless to say I will be gardening in the dark again, row cover in hand.

Houston, we have a squirrel problem!

Either this is the most aggressive cutworm on the planet or I have an even bigger problem on my hands. As I went about my usual stroll around the garden after work today, I noticed that the my backyard varmint had moved on to several beets that were planted around my broccoli. In broad daylight too! This is a brazen little fella. My guess is that one of the bunnies, squirrels or chipmunks that frequent our yard is responsible for this mess. But can a bunny really fit through a 2 x 4 inch mesh wire? To be on the safe side, I sprinkled some blood meal around my fence to deter them. But does anyone have any suggestions on how to deal with squirrels and/or chipmunks?! (Aside from a shotgun that is?)

P.S. The beet above is the same one photographed below. RATS! I ended up harvesting some beet greens today after all.

Fall Garden Photos and Update

From left: wild arugula, hakurei turnips, spinach, all lettuce mix.

My second planting of hakurei turnips is growing very quickly. I harvested a nice bunch of turnip greens the other day from my first planting, which should be ready within the next week. I'm very excited to try this variety. The wild arugula will hopefully become an ingredient in a winter salad mix within the next couple of months.


This planting of Johnny Selected Seed's All Lettuce Mix will be a nice change from the tangy mesclun we've been consuming.


After a month and a half of not doing much of anything, the fall peas are starting to flower. I would be thrilled by even a tiny harvest.

Most of my fall beets now have small bulbs. Hopefully within the next couple of weeks, they will really size up. The beet greens look fantastic right now but instead of harvesting some of them, I'd rather let them put all of their energy into growing bulbs.

Finally...what's this? Could this actually be a female zucchini flower? I took a chance when we moved into our new home back in late July by sowing these guys. Maybe we'll actually get a zucchini or two out of this (though we have been harvesting and enjoying the male flowers as well).

On a sadder note, some background varmint decided to chew off my broccoli plants at the base, just as they were making a serious go at growing again after being besieged by August pests. I found them this morning lying limp and lifeless. I will say it again, this reckless destruction is just plain rude! To whatever is responsible, at least eat what you take from me!

Homemade Seed Mat

Homemade seed mat of radishes spaced 2 inches apart.

Have you ever come across an idea that sounded a bit silly or even crazy at first, but then the more you thought about it, the more you realized how absolutely brilliant it is? In this case, it took me about 5 seconds to see the light of day. And I have to thank none other than Granny from Annie's Kitchen Garden for enlightening me.

This my friends is a homemade seed mat - my first and therefore a bit of an experiment. For me at least, the benefits of these mats seem endless. Here are just a few I can think of as I'm writing this:

• The obvious - thinning, or lack there of. Since you've perfectly spaced the seeds on the mat, you no longer have to spend time thinning your seedlings. Carrot growers rejoice!
• Eliminating waste - Since you no longer have to thin, you also get to keep more of what you sow. Seeds are becoming increasingly expensive these days and more gardeners are choosing to save seed. These mats allow you to maximize your seed usage.
• Aesthetics - The perfect spacing achieved by these mats gives your garden an ultra-neat look.
• Maximizing space - Seed mats allow you to maximize your available square footage by evenly spacing your plants according to their specific requirements. This is particularly important if you only have a limited amount of growing space in your garden, hoop house or cold frames.
• Regulating growth - Because your plants are evenly spaced, their overall growth becomes more regulated.
• Time and flexibility - You're sowing entire mats, which is a fraction of the time it takes to sow individual seeds. (Your back will thank you.) Also, it took me about 15 minutes to construct 3 mats while comfortably sitting at a table. This is the type of gardening I don't mind doing at 11 pm.
• Finally, cost - It costs next to nothing to make these mats and chances are, you already have the materials in your home. A six-row seeder costs $549.00.

Are you convinced yet? Or curious at least? Then click on this link to Granny's post on on how to construct these mats. I plan on testing these on various crops in my garden this fall and winter and will report my results. If you have any positive or negative experiences using seeds mats, or have any tips, please do share!

Radish Harvest

I harvested most of my red altaglobe radishes last night and ended up with a big bouquet of this humble vegetable. My mother-in-law, who's a major radish lover, was kind enough to play bride while I snapped this picture. These small red radishes are best when harvested the size of large marbles, any bigger and they become pithy and hot. The ones I picked last weekend were on the larger side and tasted hot. These were milder.

I have to admit that I'm not a huge fan of plain raw radishes and probably wouldn't snack on them whole like my mother-in-law does. Maybe sliced thin and dressed up in a salad would be better. Anyway, I sent her home with most of this haul and plan on quick-pickling the ones I kept.

I'm hoping to acquire a taste for radishes as they are very easy grow and quick to harvest. If not, I would probably grow them anyway and give most of them away. How do you like to eat YOUR radishes? I'd like to know what' I'm missing.

Question of the Day: Is Pressure Treated Wood an Option?

When constructing my raised beds and garden gate, I was faced with the dilemma of whether or not to use pressure treated wood. Like with many other modern-day inventions, it seems as though we're forced to weigh the benefits of convenience (or in this case, durability) against the potential safety and health risks involved. While I was aware that Arsenic was no longer being used in the process of treating the wood, I wasn't able to find any real consensus on whether or not the new preservatives, which might end up in our soil, were "safe". The best I could find was this post by Penn State Master Gardeners. And unless the rules have changed, it seems that the USDA still does not allow certified organic farmers to use pressure treated wood in their production beds.

I guess I wanted to get a sense of what other gardeners knew or felt about this particular subject. Do you use pressure treated wood in your vegetable garden?

Garden Update - Side Beds

What a beautiful fall weekend we had here in New England weather-wise. Overall, it was a productive one in the garden as well. I focused on tidying up the garden paths and preparing some side beds. About 50 percent of my plot has now been dug. I had also wanted to install some PVC hoops for my Agribon row cover as our first frost date is fast approaching but needless to say, it didn't happen. It looks like the weather is warming up this week so hopefully, I can get to it within the next couple of weeks without any major dramas at midnight.

For the side beds, I began by marking the boundaries with kitchen twine. Then came the hard part - overturning and breaking up the soil, which thankfully was grass and weed free for the most part. As I inspected the soil, I was glad to find a lot of earthworms. I've very impressed by the soil we have here in our yard - dark, crumbly and fresh smelling. However, I did end up finding quite a few large rocks and roots in this part of the garden. As a result, it took me much longer to prepare these beds compared to the ones I had done before.

Next I dug a slight trench along the border and laid down some tree trunks that we had lying around the yard. The prior owners had left them behind and since they are pine, are unsuitable for burning in our fireplace. I like being able to find a use for them. After the border was done, I removed as much grass and weeds as I could from the paths, leveled the surface with a garden rake, and then put down some cardboard to kill any remaining grass. Finally, I put a layer of straw on top of the cardboard for aesthetics.

Overall, I'm pretty happy with the results! What do you think?

Powdery Mildew on Zucchini

I first spotted the beginnings of powdery mildew on my fall zucchini a couple days ago. I knew I should have pulled the leaves but in the back of my head, I was hoping that the little bit that was there would not spread to other leaves. (Beginner's mistake.) I took a quick gander at them again today and it does appear to be spreading. I guess I'll have to remove the leaves now and hope for the best. Maybe I'll run out and get some copper spray. If anyone has any other suggestions, please let me know.


My 4 zucchini plants started flowering a couple of weeks ago. I still haven't gotten a female flower yet. If I don't get at least one zucchini out of this, I will be bitterly disappointed.

Gardener at Midnight

Like many of you out there, I like to stay up late sometimes and catch up on my blog reading. I stopped by Skippy's Vegetable Garden and read Kathy's post about tonight's frost warnings for certain areas of New England. I scurried back to my own blog, looked at the sidebar and noticed that the low for tonight was expected to be 39 degrees in my area. Panic or paranoia - whatever you want to call it set in and I soon found myself (at 11:30 pm to be precise) putting floating row cover over my entire garden, which I'm happy to say only took about 15 minutes. The star fruit and citrus trees also came inside. Luckily, we have a huge spotlight in the backyard so I was able to see what I was doing. (I'm sure the neighbors were thrilled.) Call it being overly dramatic but I REFUSE to underestimate mother nature this year.

Turnips Update

My Hakurei turnips are starting to form bulbs. I've never tried this variety before but have read that they are super sweet when grown in cooler weather (which it has been during the past couple of weeks). They are supposedly pretty hardy as well, being able to withstand temperatures approaching freezing. Also, they are best when harvested golf ball size and can either be eaten raw or lightly cooked. The turnip greens are supposed to be delicious as well. Hopefully they will bulb up quick so I can finally taste them!

Today's Harvest

This morning I went out into the garden and harvested some red globe radishes. As I pulled them up, I was glad to find that they were in pretty good condition - no insect damage whatsoever. I have to admit, I don't even remember the last time I ate a radish. They're not that high up on my list of favorite vegetables. I ended up giving this bunch to my sister-in-law who was visiting for the day.

Once washed, I was amazed by their color! Talk about in your face - they seemed to radiate a kind of natural florescence. I hope they end up tasting as good as they look. I am excepting a bigger harvest in this upcoming week.


I also harvested a BIG bowl of mesclun greens for lunch. Picked and then eaten within an hour - doesn't get much fresher than this. They were delicious! Spicy, lemony and almost wild tasting. I served them with some homemade quiche lorraine. I will definitely be growing this again next year. Even my 2 year old son liked it. (He won't go near cake, but he'll reach for this oddly enough.)


As you can see, I harvested about half of what I have growing in the garden. Hopefully, it will regrow quickly and I'll be able to get a couple more cuttings after this.

Throwing Caution to the Wind

Ok, this is seriously becoming "food week" at A Growing Tradition, but I just felt COMPELLED to write this post. I just did a quick wander through Calamity Anne's blog and came upon a post in which she asks, "Have you ever put anything in your mouth [at a dinner party or social gathering involving food that is], and that as soon as it hit your tongue you knew you made a HUGE mistake?" Why yes, Calamity Anne, yes I have. And the tale that she proceeds to tell is one so brilliant and funny that I feel as though I have to do everything in my power to have it read. I don't care what nationality you are, what socioeconomic class you come from, what political or religious affiliation you belong to, we've all experienced this. The question becomes, what did you do about?

It's been a very long time since I've laughed this hard. I read her post during lunch and literally choked on my takeout vegetable lo mein. I encourage whoever is reading this to click here and read Calamity Anne's story.

P.S., If anyone out there would like to share a similar experience, please do!

A Gift from the Sea

It wasn't my intention to write another "foodie" related essay this week. My blog is after all about gardening. But then again, it's also about tradition. So when fate intervened this week and presented me with an interesting topic to think about, one having nothing to do with gardening, I felt in a way compelled to write about it.

Here's the story: My spouse, Marc, is an attorney here in Massachusetts. He's built from the ground up his own practice specializing in immigration law. Marc works long hours, is often stressed to near his breaking point, but at the end of the day, enjoys being his own boss. He's developed strong relationships within the hardworking immigrant community near where we live, which includes many of his own clients. That being said, it wasn't a complete surprise that he phoned me at work Tuesday morning to say that there would be a 15-pound striped bass waiting for me at home. You see, one of his clients caught this big fella the night before off the coast of Gloucester (the setting for the book, "The Perfect Storm," for those of you not from this part of the world). As it was conveyed to me, the client was very grateful for all of the hard work that had been done on his behalf, was immensely proud of his latest catch and very much wanted Marc to have it. So how could he refuse such a gift? He couldn't.

Fish stock: what was left of our friend, celery,
carrots, onion, thyme and bay leaves

While it had not dawn on me at first, I soon realized how significant and meaningful this fish was to this client, and ultimately, to us. His was a culture that truly valued food. After all, how many of us take the time out to catch our next meal? I couldn't help but wonder, what better way is there to express your gratitude, praise or well wishes to someone else than by offering them the gift of your most prized food? Maybe if we'd been alive a few decades ago or were living in another part of the world, the answer would have been more blatantly obvious, especially if such an act came at the expense of feeding our own family. But alas, the finer and more traditional lessons of social etiquette are often overlooked in this day and age. I'll have to remind myself of this the next time a special occasion comes along and I find myself heading to the mall.

Pan-seared Striped Bass, Homegrown Pak Choi, Mushroom Risotto

After I arrived home from work, I opened the refrigerator door and came face to face literally with my next meal, something I'm embarrassed to admit I haven't had to do in a long time. Thankfully, he was already gutted and scaled by our benefactor, the prospect of having to do this was something I had been trying to psych myself up for all afternoon. And as I carved him up that night, I found myself thinking that what this kind client had done was something my dad (who was also an avid fisherman) would have done and did do so many times during his life. The only question remained, how do you fully appreciate such a gift? Simple. We gave Mr. Striped Bass the proper culinary treatment he deserved, shared him with our lovely next door neighbor, and toasted to the fisherman that caught him.

Gone too soon.

And if anyone has any ideas on what I can do with all of this fish stock, please let me know!

Pie: An American Tradition

The Egyptians may have invented pie in 2000 B.C., but it wasn't until a couple hundred years ago that Americans began transforming this culinary wonder into an art form (no offense to my British friends). A lot has changed since the first pilgrims landed in the new world, but our passion for pie has remained constant, which is why to this day no Thanksgiving feast would be complete without one (or 10). In my opinion, few things are more traditionally American than pie. And although this country was built upon many different cultures, it's really "the pie" that binds us. (Bad joke.)

That being said, I rarely have time to bake these days (which is sadly a phenomenon even more ubiquitous in America than pie). Between the longer work commute, new house, growing family and new garden, there leaves little time for much else let alone baking pies. However, I try to make an exception during this time of year. You see, the last of the summer peaches are quickly disappearing from farmer's market shelves while the early varieties of pears and apples are just showing up. Therefore, there's only a narrow window of opportunity to make the local (and best tasting) version of what I like to call my Autumn fruit pie, which highlights all three fruits. I've been making this pie for many years now and it still remains one of my all-time favorites. I hope you enjoy it too!


It's true what they say, a good pie recipe starts with a great crust. Here is one that has never let me down:

Perfect Pie Crust Recipe

2 1/2 cups of all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons of kosher salt
2/3 stick of unsalted butter (chilled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes)
3/4 cup of vegetable shortening (chilled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes)
1/2 cup of ice water

In a large shallow bowl, mix the flour and salt together. Using a pastry cutter/fork, incorporate the butter and shortening until the mixture resembles a coarse meal (you should still have rather large bits of butter and shortening when you're done). Slowly drizzle in the ice water and mix with a wooden spoon. Transfer the dough onto a floured work surface, and fold it together using your hands. The dough should come together easily but should not feel overly sticky. Cut the dough in half and shape into balls. Wrap each in cellophane and refrigerate for at least an hour.



Autumn Fruit Pie Filling Recipe

2 large peaches pealed, pitted and sliced
2 large pears pealed, cored and sliced
3-4 medium (or 3 large) apples pealed, cored and sliced
1 cup of blueberries or raspberries (fresh or frozen)
2/3 to 3/4 cup of sugar (depending on sweetness of fruit)
1 tablespoon of lemon juice
2-3 tablespoons of corn starch (depending on ripeness of fruit)
1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon of salt
grated zest of 1 small orange

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Mix all ingredients together with your hands until the sugar and cornstarch are thoroughly distributed. Remove the dough one at a time from the refrigerator and roll each into a circle about 1/8 inch thick. Lay the first crust into a 9-inch pie pan and fill with the fruit mixture. Beat together 1 egg and 1 tablespoon of milk and brush the edges of the crust with some of this mixture. Place the second crust on top and lightly press along the edge of the pie pan to seal the two layers. Cut the edges of the crusts to within 1/2 to 1 inch of the pie pan and then fold the edge of the top crust over and under the edge of the bottom crust, pressing lightly as you do so. Cut 3 slits onto the top crust (to vent steam), brush with more egg mixture and spinkle some sugar on top. Bake at 425 for the first 30 minutes, then lower to 350 for another 20-30 minutes until a skewer inserted into the pie pierces fruit that is cooked yet still slightly firm. Cool for at least 2 hours before serving.

Fall Garden Update and Tour

The zucchini plants are really sizing up. Hopefully one of these days I will get a female flower.

from left: flowering brassica, hakurei turnips, mesclun

from upper left: wild arugula, hakurei turnips, spinach, all lettuce mix

winter carrots

from left: tatsoi, easter egg radishes

The radishes should be ready to harvest this week.

The beets are beginning to bulb up.

The broccoli is starting to recover from August's pests.

The kaffir lime needs to be re-potted again.

And the meyer lemons still show no signs of ripening.