May 08

“Pick Your Own” Fruit Orchards…A Fun Time

Before being a Locavore was cool and consuming locally sourced food products was considered politically and environmentally correct, there was a time in American culture where harvesting fruit from your own fruit trees, picking fruit from an orchard or growing your own vegetables in a victory  / backyard garden was considered the norm and not the exception. Although I do not have a large back yard in Katy, TX, I do try and grow vegetables year round. As for fruit trees, I grow figs and grapes, but do not have enough room for a citrus tree. What I do enjoy is to go and pick fruit as they come into season. There is something very satisfying about picking fruit at a local “pick your own” orchard or through the generosity of friends who own a large tract of land with numerous fruit trees.

Peaches on a Tree

Ripe Peaches on a Tree

I remember waking up earlier than usual on select May – August weekend mornings as a child in Delaware to go and pick Strawberry, Blueberry, Blackberry, Raspberry, Peach, Plum and Cherry in New Jersey, Maryland and Pennsylvania. I may not have had the fondest memories of waking up early, but I do remember that it was always a fun family activity and we almost always had breakfast at a diner which was a special treat. Although I do not remember picking apples, I do know that going to the local orchard in the autumn to purchase a bushel of Stayman apples was and still is an annual event.

Peach Tree with Ripe Fruit

Peach Tree

Without doubt there are parts of the United States that are more prone and conducive to cultivating a wide range of fruits and vegetables that can be grown in one’s backyard or at a local orchard. It was not until a few years ago when I was firmly established in Katy, TX did I go on-line to see if and where there are any locations around Houston, TX where you can go and pick your own fruits or vegetables. I have found a few locations and have gone to pick Strawberries, Persimmons and Blackberries over the past few years. I really do enjoy going to these “pick your own” orchards. It is not about the price / pound for these businesses are rarely cheaper than the grocery stores, but it is about the ripeness and superior flavor of the fruit, the simple joy picking your fruit and the fun spent with family and friends in an outdoor activity that is simple where everyone participates and the means in which to support the local economy. There is no one single resource available that lists all of the “pick your own” orchards, fruit and vegetable farms available, but as always, the internet provides a great starting point. I have used the following website as a starting point in the past: PickYourOwn.Org.

Picked Peaches

Ripe Hand Picked Peaches in a 5 Gallon Bucket

In addition to a couple of locations located in the counties surrounding Houston, TX; friends of our own a tract of land north of the city. Nancy and Sam must have a dozen Peach trees in addition to Plum, Fig and Loquat trees. We recently went to their home for dinner and to pick to peaches that were ripe on the trees. We did not come even close to picking all of the peaches, but we did bring home the equivalent of twenty gallons of peaches. That is a lot of peaches. Aside from giving away some of the harvest, there was still in excess of twelve gallons of peaches. What does one do with that much fruit? Yesterday afternoon we peeled and diced seven gallons of peaches, yielding twenty-five cups of peach slices and juice. Eight cups were used to make Peach Jam yesterday afternoon and the remaining 17 cups of prepared Peaches being bagged and frozen. There is still five gallons of Peaches remaining to be processed. Some of these will be eaten fresh, other frozen whole and the bruised being, peeled and sliced. Aside from the jam that has been canned, there will be ice cream and sorbet to make, liqueur to steep, compote to be eaten and maybe even a peach pie to be baked.

Fresh Peaches

Hand Picked Fresh Ripe Peaches

Whether you pick a few pounds of fruits and vegetables to enjoy fresh or to go a little crazy and have to spend a little more time processing the fresh pickings, it is about having fun and experiencing an activity that was once considered normal and marked the passage of the seasons versus being an exception to everyday life. Fruits and vegetables ripen and are ready for picking for many months of the year, but the dates vary depending on what part of the country you live. The season for picking will last a couple of weeks and vary from year to year based upon the weather. It is best to check the locations website or call before going. Once you are on their mailing lists you will know when the fruit is ripening and be able to plan your excursion.

May 07

Light, fresh and tasty quesadillas recipe

I can’t remember where or when I had my first quesadilla (pronounced kesa-D-a), but to me it is the perfect example of a cheese sandwich. As with anything made of tortillas, a quesadilla is just one of the many ways of folding them into different foods and in the case of quesadillas, the tortilla is folded into a half-moon crescent, and the cheese inside sticks the two sides together.

In traditional Mexican quesadillas, they are usually made from corn masa tortillas filled primarily with queso Oaxaca, a type of stringy mozzarella like cheese. Other ingredients are sometimes added such as refried beans, avocado, meat and in certain parts of Mexico they use wheat flour tortillas instead of corn masa. In the South West USA, where you will find Tex-Mex food, quesadillas are predominantly made with flour tortillas, use cheddar cheese (or Monterey Jack) and more often than not have a variety of fillings added to them.

Cooked quesadillasMy favourite quesadilla recipe is made with avocado, prawn, sour cream, jalapeños and a little grated cheese. I prefer these over any other type, as the cheese is just used for sealing the quesadilla, not the main flavour, and this allows the freshness of the other ingredients to come forward. My method of cooking is slightly different from most that I have seen, in that I build the quesadilla before putting it in the pan, rather than building it in the pan. This allows me to quickly cook them for eager waiting mouths and gives me a chance to have one myself before they are all devoured. I have tried using corn tortillas, but you must heat the tortilla first otherwise it will split when you try and fold it.

Quesadilla Ingredients

Quesadilla Ingredients

Ingredients (for about 4 quesadillas)

  • 4 large burrito flour tortillas
  • 10 cooked large prawns, sliced length-ways in half to make them flatter
  • 1 avocado sliced
  • 20 jalapeños slices, pickled or fresh
  • Juice from half a lime
  • 2 heaped tbls of sour cream or Crème Fraiche
  • bunch of cilantro (fresh coriander), chopped
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper to season
Preparing a quesadilla

Preparing a quesadilla before cooking

Method
First mix together the sour cream, lime juice, cilantro, salt and pepper.  On a clean work surface lay out a tortilla, a spread a quarter of the sour cream mixture over half of it. Lay some prawns, avocado and jalapeños onto the sour cream. Be careful not to pile on the ingredients, otherwise you will have difficulty in keeping the quesadilla together. Sprinkle a little cheese around the edges of the sour cream half of the tortilla. Fold the tortilla in half and transfer to a medium hot skillet or griddle without oil. Cook on both sides for about a minute each, pressing down the edges to seal. Depending on the size of your skillet you may be able to fit two quesadillas at a time into it. Cut the quesadilla into 3 triangles and serve as is, or with some sour cream, guacamole or salsa.

Prawn and avocado quesadillas

Prawn and avocado quesadillas

May 06

Wine Tasting in Temecula Valley, CA

I can think of few adult-centered social activities that are more fun, interesting and allows oneself to learn something new all in the process of sampling alcohol. Over the years I have been to a few wineries in Pennsylvania, Georgia and even Lebanon. It was not until recently was I afforded the opportunity to visit a winery in California. On a recent trip to San Diego with friends we planned a visit to the wineries located in the Temecula Valley which is an hour north of the city (hour and a half south of Los Angeles).

Temecula Wine Country

View of the Temecula Valley, CA and Vineyards from the Faulkner Winery

Temecula Valley supports over 30 wineries on 35,000 acres of land a short distance from the Interstate 15 exit. What was most surprising was that once you exited the highway, you were immediately surrounded by a modern and clean version of suburbia. Aside from the relatively close distance to San Diego and Los Angeles, the wineries are apparently supporting the local economy very well. It requires less then 15 minutes to clear the suburbs and you are then transported to the wineries and vineyards themselves. The transformation from suburbia to wine country is quite surprising.

We had selected to first go to the Falkner Winery for no other reason that it was a winery that was on a list that we had reviewed prior to picking up the glossy brochures about the Temecula Valley from the hotel in San Diego. As we drove towards the Falkner Winery, we passed vineyards of varying ages with some of the vines thick with age. The wine server told us during our wine tasting that some of the wines were nearly forty years old. The location of the winery is beautiful, sitting on the top of the hill with breath taking views of the valley.

Sampling Wines at the Faulkner Winery

Wine Tasting at the Faulkner Winnery

The winery was crowded with tourists, some to taste the wines, others just to browse, while others were there to purchase wine or items from the gift shop. The process of wine tasting at the Falkner Winery was simple. You purchased a number of poker chips and were given a wine glass for your sampling.

There was quite a few wines available for tasting, ranging from dry to sweet, white, rose and red. I tried a variety of wines with the most notable being the 2007 Meritage – Bordeaux Style Red Wine and the 2006 Port. Both were very enjoyable and I was particularly partial to the Port. In the end I did not purchase any bottles of wine. I considered making a few purchases, but between the price and not having enough space in the luggage, I passed on purchasing a few bottles to bring home.

After the Falkner Winery we continued to drive through the valley, deciding where to stop next. Unfortunately, the valley was jammed with other like minded vehicles that day and after looking at how crowded the parking lots were for each winery we decided to head south back to San Diego. I would definitely go back to the Temecula Valley wineries, but would hope to be able to do it during the week the avoid the crowds.

Temecula Valley, CA Vineyard

Vineyard in the Temecula Valley, CA

May 05

Man Versus Bird: Growing Tomatoes In Houston

Tomatoe Pecked by a Bird

Nearly Ripe Tomato Pecked By A Bird

Tomato Plants Growing in a Raised Vegetable Bed

Tomato Plants in a Raised Vegetable Bed

Wood Frame with Stretched Netting To Protect Tomatoes from Birds

Gardener Versus Bird Cage To Protect Tomatoes

Plastic Cable Ties Securing Wood Frames of Tomato Cage

Plastic Cable Ties Securing Wood Frames of Tomato Cage

Vine Ripening Tomatoes

Tomatoes (Early Girl) Ripening on the Vine

My backyard is in an older suburb of Katy, TX with mature trees and must be paradise for birds. I hear and see birds every day, all year long. There are Blue Jays, Cardinals, Finches, migratory Hummingbirds Chickadees (my personal favorite), Doves, Mockingbirds, Woodpeckers and an occasional Hawk to name a few. I enjoy watching them at the bird feeders during the winter, yet one of these birds has proven to be my nemesis during the months of May and June when my tomatoes are ripening.

I have never actually seen the culprit and even accused the squirrels, but one of these birds loves to peck at my ripening tomatoes. I guess it could be worse if  they peck at all of the tomatoes, but no, they only peck at the tomatoes that are one or two days away from being perfectly vine ripened. Needless to say, what was fun to watch at the bird feeders in the winter becomes my mortal enemy during the tomato season.

The first year I grew tomatoes I had no idea who or what I was up against. I dangled shiny CD’s and aluminum foil to scare off the thieves but these modern day scarecrows did nothing to stop my soon to be perfectly ripe tomatoes from being partially eaten. I even draped a plastic netting over the tomato plants, but with no success. For a beginning gardener it was a very frustrating experience.

At the beginning of the second year I grew tomatoes I was none the wiser. I convinced myself that this thievery of my tomatoes was a one time occurrence. I was sadly mistaken. History was to repeat itself. I had never experienced this as a child with the garden my father grew every summer in Delaware.

Based upon my initial observations, I thought it must have been the color of the tomatoes that attracted the birds. However, with a few rare exceptions, the red bell and hot peppers grown are not subjected to these attacks. I then thought it must be that these feathered winged dinosaurs are seeking water. So I kept the bird bath full of water. The birds were grateful, but still pecked at the near ripe tomatoes. You know you are desperate, when you begin to devise a plan that will take money, time and effort to ensure that the tomatoes will ripen and be enjoyed by. My solution was to build a cage. Yes, that is right, I built a cage to be assembled around my tomato plants to keep the birds away from the tomatoes.

The cage is built using 1″ x 2″ treated lumber built as rectangular frames (connected with “L” brackets) with plastic netting stretched over the frames and secured with staples. There are five frames, with the two larger side frames having swinging doors attached. Initially I would assemble this cage using screws and metal plates to attach the frames together. I now find it easier to secure the frames together with plastic cable ties. I do however still attach the frames to the raised bed with brackets and screws.

Eight years later and with the exception of the first few tomatoes each season (purely because I procrastinate), I have been able to protect the ripening tomatoes from these feathered menaces of tomatoes. Despite the initial outlay for the cost of materials and a few minor repairs, these frames have lasted eight years and I expect to utilize them for many years to come. Is the effort worth the time to assemble, disassemble and store each year? Absolutely, for without this cage to keep out the birds, I would not be able to enjoy home grown tomatoes in Katy, TX. For those that have eaten a home grown tomato, there are few joys greater then a fresh picked tomato.

Ripe Tomatoes from the Garden

First Vine Ripened Tomatoes of the Season (Early May)

 

 

May 05

Cinco de Mayo

Cinco de Mayo

Cinco de Mayo

Today is Cinco de Mayo, where everyone in the US celebrates the day by pretending to be Mexican and drinking. It is a bit like St. Patrick’s day, but with Sombreros instead of Shamrocks and Tequila instead of Guinness.

Often mistaken, Cinco de Mayo is not Mexico’s Independence Day (Sept 16), but it is a celebration of the unlikely victory of the Mexican army against the French at Puebla on May 5 1862.

Why not celebrate with some enchiladas, tacos, margaritas and Dos Equis.