Spearmint Sun-Tea

                                          Spearmint

We have been growing spearmint, a perennial plant, in our garden for years.  We use it in a variety of drinks from mojitos to iced tea.  It is also a secret ingredient in the meatballs that my mother makes, a secret tradition passed down through generations of an Italian family we know.

We keep it in a semi-sunny spot, getting a good amount of afternoon sun and minimal watering from us.

Recipe: Spearmint Strawberry Sun-tea

Since we have had ridiculously hot weather and lots of sun, I decided to make a pitcher of sun-tea.  First I added four black tea bags, then some snipped spearmint and sliced strawberries into the pitcher.  Then I filled it with water and placed it in the sun with plastic wrap on top.  After a few hours, the tea is brewed.  Just add some ice and it's delicious!

                                                   Strawberry Spearmint Sun-tea

Try other add-ins as well: lemons, limes, basil, blueberries!

Cornish Game Hens

We were informed of their arrival with an early morning phone call from the post office in mid-April. Thirty-five chicks had arrived from McMurray Hatchery.  We delivered some of the chicks to other farming families and kept ten Cornish Game Hens for ourselves.  Cornish Game Hens are meat chickens which grow fat over just a few months.

Over the past couple months the birds have been fed constantly.  They are always hungry and eat crumbles all day long.  Eat, sleep, and sit is all they ever want to do.

Cornish Game Hens

Next weekend the chickens will be brought to a friend's farm in New Hampshire to be butchered and dressed. Updates to come.  

Herb-al Remedies

Sage


Easy to grow and a wonderful remedy to the sometimes bland potato. This recipie was found in the Cooking Light, June 2004 issue. I was probably inspired on a cold winter day....knowing I had frozen leaves of sage last fall.



Recipe: Oven Fries with Crisp Sage Leaves
Cut some potatoes lengthwise into slices, place in a bowl and drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Bake at 400 degrees in a single layer until golden brown on the bottom, about 40 minutes. Remove from oven. Coat sage leaves with the oil and salt leftover in the bowl. Working one potato slice at a time, lift up and place a sage leaf on the pan, and return the browned side of the potato on top of the sage leaf. Return to oven and bake for about 10 minutes. Once again, flip potaotes over, exposing the sage leaf and bake for 10 minutes more.

My sage plant overwintered very nicely....despite our long cold snowy winter ..or perhaps because of it.

Red and Ready Radishes!

Today on New Farm, we pulled up the first bunch of the radishes.  They are of the Sparkler White Tip variety, Latin Name:  Raphanus Sativus.  Their seeds went into the ground early spring planted in a raised bed in the backyard garden.  With lots of rain this spring, we got by without watering them too much.  Another bunch we pulled up were cracked and split down the middle, perhaps from too much water all at once? 

Nevertheless, these organic radishes will find their way into our salads for dinner tonight!

                                Sparkler White Tip Radishes