Easy Fish Tacos and Roasted Chicken

I love the Food Network, Cooking Channel, cookbooks, and food.  The Iron Chef competition makes gourmet cooking look fun and easy.  Bobby Flay makes some really good Southwest style food and his recipes are pretty easy to follow.  I have made his fish tacos in the past using one of his recipes.

One of my many outside "talents" is dish washing.  Not just dishes, but pots and pans.  I volunteer for a couple of different groups to do this since not many people like the job.  I wouldn't make a career out of it (again anyway), but attitude is everything and I don't mind taking on the task.  One of the groups I was for is the Sons of Norway.

This last week was the Sons of Norway Torsk dinner.  This is boiled cod, not the much maligned lutefisk.  There is a sign up sheet to purchase the leftovers, and I was able to score some of the leftover cod.  It is delicious to reheat and eat with a little melted butter.  I made some of it into easy fish tacos and here's how:

1/2 pound boiled cod

1 T Penzey's Arizona Dreaming seasoning OR

1 T Spice House Salt Free Southwest Seasoning

1 t dried cilantro (use fresh if you have it, I didn't)

juice of one small lime

Heat the cod and mix with the seasonings and lime juice

Serve on top of corn tortillas which I like to heat on a hot cast iron griddle until they blister on both sides (flip once).

Top with the following:

Shredded cabbage

finely sliced read onions

sliced avocado

salsa verde (I canned this so why not use it)

Marie's Creamy Chipoltle Ranch Dressing (in the produce section)

These were such an easy supper.  Most of the fresh ingredients I am fortunate enough to have close by with El Rey Grocery in the neighborhood.  The avocados were only 68 cents today.  The cabbage is a winter crop and only 38 cents a pound (and good for you).  Onions are also a storage crop.  I didn't buy fresh cilantro as I have my own cilantro in dehydrated for which is good enough for the season.  Limes are always cheap at El Rey, but I had juice some when they were 20 for $1 and froze it in cubes.

The Penzey family has their spice company right here in town so I am never lacking for a variety of blends.  Check them out on the web under Penzey Spice or The Spice House.  Same family, different stores, I shop both.  One is convenient to home.  The other is more customer orientated, and I can buy in quantities of my choosing from the jar-lined shelves.  Both sell on-line.

El Rey also had fresh, whole chickens on sale for 78 cents a pound.  I brought one home and seasoned it with my dried oregano, rosemary, sea salt, and fresh ground pepper.  I basted it with olive oil and lemon juice (also froze cubes of fresh squeezed).  An hour and one half later, I have a roasted chicken for tomorrow's eating.  This took me 5 minutes of prep time and saved a whole bunch from the store roasted birds that are soaked in mystery marinade.  Fine in a pinch, but I love the smell of roast chicken in the house.

With a little bit of effort, two meals were done in very little time.  Eating at home does not have to be hard.

Getting Ready For What Lies Ahead

It is either the snow storm raging outside my window, or the life-changing cup of coffee I bought a Sven's late this afternoon...but I am inspired to write,  I was feeling like nothing new was happening in my gardening life.  Today that has changed.
I filled my bird feeders after work and headed into the basement to fold the laundry I hung on the lines to dry this weekend.  When all the clothes were off the lines, my plants and the lights that keep them alive lit up the room.  Suddenly, it was no longer a dark, dreary afternoon.  Spring had come to life in the tending of my babies.
The onions are fully sprouted as well as a few viola seeds that I put in the middle of my two different onions.  I have them on a heat mat to keep them warmer.  I also boosted them up to within 6" of the light so they get enough to keep from stretching out.   I closed off the laundry/plant room entirely from the rest of the basement which has brought the temperature up into the mid 60's rather than low 50's I was reading on the thermometer by my plants.  I hope to have my husband hand a simple folding door at the entry which should help keep it nice and toasty during the germination period coming up soon.  The sheet is doing a pretty good job so far.
Next on my list of things to do is to sit down with my growing calendar and seed packets.  I will count back from mid to late May for germination times and get everything in line for seeding time.  Last year I made a separate chart and typed it all out.  This year, I am using one of my extra calendars that I got as a premium for ordering "stuff", and just jotting the seeding times right on a regular calendar.  I will keep hanging on the refrigerator as a regular reminder of my to-do list in the plant world.  
If you decide to organize yourself and do the same, just figure out what your last frost date and first frost date is (predicted) for your area.  The seed packets should have days to germinate as well as days to maturity on them, or in some cases, weeks to transplant.  If it is days to maturity, count back from your expected date of first frost in the fall.  If it is weeks to transplant, count back from date of anticipated last frost for spring.  This should be something you can find on the web with your county horticultural web site or zone maps.  I am not sure what standards they use in other countries, but the USDA (United States Dept of Agriculture) has zone maps that will answer that question for you.
It is also a good time to sit down with a garden map and think about where you are going to put seeds and plants into the ground this year.  In my case, I have shrubs and roots coming in addition to the seeds.  I am making a few new garden beds around the new patio which hasn't even been started, so planning will be key for making sure I keep space open as the later items arrive this spring.  I also printed out a more complete list of plants tolerant or highly intolerant of black walnut (Juglans).  This will be important in plotting out some of the new items I am testing this year.  A garden map, even if it is not to scale, will help to keep order to the chaos that is spring.  It will also help keep me from over-buying at the garden center and having no place to put in what I have spent good money on.
I have several other things to expend my caffeine high on, so I best move on to the next project.  How long does it take to rip an entire cd library to an mp3 player anyway??? 

Seeds-Second Round Ordering

I am up at 4:30 this morning because my brain cannot stay asleep, so I get up to make use of my brain while it is willing to work.

This morning's task is to pull the rest of my seed orders together and get them in the mail.  Yes, I could do them on line, but I love the process of writing them all down and putting them in the envelope.  My dad was the postmaster in our town, and my husband also works for the US Postal Service.  I feel some loyalty to keeping the tradition alive.  Gardening is a tradition with such deep roots (no pun intended).  It is only fitting that I acquire my seeds by the same method.

If you haven't read The Land Remembers by Ben Logan (a Wisconsin writer born and raised in our state), now is the time.  It is a great book about farming in the hilly part of our state near the Kickapoo River (love that name) during the 20's and 30's.  Ben's mother would sit down with her saved seed and the new seed catalog and plan the next year's harvest.  Ben was the youngest of four sons.  He was his mother's right-hand-man when it came to planting, harvesting and preserving their summer garden.  There are several great chapters on the process of growing and putting up food for the family.

This round of ordering has more to do with flowers than vegetables.  I sat down with my oldest daughter last week.  The two of us picked out some good possibilities for growing her wedding flowers.  She found that many things she found pretty have a seasonality to them and would not be available in early fall.  We have had conversations about locally grown and organic flowers before.  She has written articles for Veil magazine regarding such flower choices.  Yep, we have a real writer in the family.  Michelle has been always particularly good at expressing herself in the written word.  Four years of college, and she has made a career out of it.  I'm just the hobby writing hack in the family.

I am also making sure that I order some different types of flowering/ornamental kale.  The four plants I had in my rain garden last year were show-stoppers.  When everything else was fading the flowering kale was absolutely brilliant.  I am going to start this in my own basement this year so I can have some different varieties.

Now that I hear my husband moving around, it is time to get my seed order done.  See what happens when you sit down at the computer to research one little question??????

First seeds in, first seeds up

I got the onions and violas into a flat of starter mix last weekend.  This weekend they are pretty, green, little shoots. I also did two pots of micro greens and those are up as well. They need another set of leaves before I can use them, but they are growing quickly.
The basement has been staying on the cool side, less than 60 degrees on some checks.  I have closed off my propagation room to try and retain some of the furnace heat.  I also have the seed heating mat under the onions and domed lids over all the germination pots to keep them warm and moist.  So far, so good.  I talked to my husband about putting a folding door on this room so I can do the best job possible for keeping the room warm enough.  It is definitely colder this winter than it was last year.
The next seed order is ready to go.  I have to wait for pay day to send this one out.  Seeds always are signs of spring to me.

Mama said be nice, she was right.

Being nice to people while you are asking them for a favor seems like common sense.  Some people do not seem to have the idea that when they call to complain about a citation and/or fine they received (in a thinly veiled attempt to get the charges removed), they are essentially asking someone to do them a favor.  The smart person holds a well-mannered conversation, showing some amount of respect for the person who has the ability to help them get what they desire.
I am one of those people who gets these calls.  I have come across a lot of different people, with a lot of different reasons why they feel they are deserving of being the exception to the broken "rule".  Here is a list of things I recommend doing (or not doing) if you are one of those people looking for a little leniency:

• Be polite.  Don't yell, accuse, or point the finger if you were in the wrong.  Profanity will get you no where and will only help to increase your blood pressure...it also means I have my boss' permission to end the conversation and hang up.
• If you ask a question, listen for the answer.  I often times take the time to explain a policy, procedure, or circumstance just to have the caller keep going over the same thing again and again.  I can keep giving you the same answer, but it does neither of us any good if you don't listen.
• Be respectful of time.  I have learned not to make calls to close to the end of my day, because people don't know when it is time to end the call.  I have helped you all that I can and given you the information you need.  Now it is time for me to get back to work on other things.  I do not need to know the history of the neighborhood or why that neighbor is such a horrible person.  I can accomplish most of what is essential in 5 minutes.  Keeping me on the line for 15 or more is not a good use of my time or taxpayer dollars.  If the call starts becoming more of a social chat that has nothing to do with the service person on the other end, you are done with your business with them...say thank you and good-bye.
• Say thank you.  I say this again because it goes a long way with me.  I am more receptive to the person who appreciates that this is a part of my job that deserves some positive feedback.  
• Imagine yourself on the other end of your conversation.  If you are about to say something that you would be offended by DON'T SAY IT!  Think about what your own reaction would be and understand that this is what you may get in return for something you say.  Don't be surprised by the reaction you get if you still decide to open your mouth and let the words fly out.
• Understand that with budget cuts and reduced staffing, services are going to suffer.  I cover a lot of territory and have to do it in an 8 hour day.  I can't be everywhere and do everything for everyone.  Many times departments lose employees that are never replaced.  Their work is picked up by the remaining staff.  Eventually something has to give.
• You are not alone.  You got that notice to take care of a code violation, parking ticket, whatever.  You are not the only person who got one that day.  Yes, there are other people who could have gotten the same citation.  Refer back to the previous statement.  The cops can't stop every speeder, we can't catch every violation.  Thank you for understanding that.
• If services are important to you, let your elected officials know.  They are the ones who establish and approve budgets.  If they hear from enough people, it may make the difference between keeping or cutting.
• If you hate the rule/ordinance/code, call your elected official.  They are the ones that make them, we are the ones that enforce them.  You may also learn why this rule benefits you rather than being your burden to bear.
• If you want more services, be willing to pay for them.  Yes, your taxes and fees are more than you like, but if you like to have nice things you have to pay for them.  This may mean even more taxes and fees if you want more done.
• Finally, be nice.  Yep, I said it again because nice goes a long way to getting what you want.

First Seeds of Spring

My Jung Seeds came in the mail yesterday.  Today I sat in my sunny kitchen with new seeds, old seeds, and a cup of coffee.  An annual inventory of seeds is a must.  Usually I do this prior to the first order.  This year I took a quick look in my seed box and knew what was left without a written list to refer to while ordering.  I still have two more catalogs to order from, so anything I missed with Jung would go on Pine Tree Gardens or Select Seeds.  My daughter/bride-to-be and I will sit down with the last two for cut flower choices.
I thinned out the oldest of my varieties and put them in the Jung shipping box to take to work.  There is always someone willing to throw them in and see what happens.  I cleaned out the worst of them last year, so this year's discards will be a nice addition to someone else's garden plot.  

Some of the new seeds I look forward to getting in the garden:

BEANS!  I had a couple filet type beans last year and loved them!  Maxibel was one of them.  I have added Velour (purple) and Fortex (pole).

Onions - Going back to Copra to get a longer storing onion.  I have had luck with Alisa Craig and Sweet Spanish in the past.  Last year's hot weather may have had an effect on last fall's storage issues.  I had used most of the 30# in recipes for canning and also shared with my daughter and sister, so not too much onion flesh was lost to early sprouting.  I also am going to make sure I sun cure them at least two days.  I thought the intense heat may have been too harsh, but I think the sun is what is needed when curing onions for storage. Just putting them in the garage was not enough.  The new onion I want to try is Red Marble Cipolini.  Both will be seeded by the end of the week for mid-April planting.

Cabbage - A small hybrid of Pak Choi and a triple variety mix of small head cabbage (white, red and savoy).  I am going to do an early sow under lights to get these set in April for an early crop.  I am also going to use a cover of row cover to ward off flea beetles.

Radishes - Refreshed my French Breakfast seed supply (this will be in my garden every year) and also bought Red Meat aka 'Watermelon'.  This is a long keeper.  If you go to the grocery store, you will find it with turnips, parsnips, and other winter root vegetables.  It has been suggested that this is good in a stir fry.  If you have never cooked a radish, try it.  You will be surprised at the delicious transformation of this tangy root crop.

Cucumbers - Rocky Hybrid, a small snack size cuke that is parthenocarpic (all-male flowers).  This is what Jung's has to say about this type of plant:

Parthenocarpic cucumbers - Plant this type if you want to get seedless fruits without pollination. You can plant a single plant of this type and still get fruit. Many of these cultivars were developed for greenhouse culture where there are no bees or other pollinators available. However, the parthenocarpic varieties we offer and that are generally offered by other seed companies are suitable for outdoor planting in home gardens. 

I have a couple other cucumbers to try as well, but this is definitely the most unique one I have in my basket this year.

Peppers - Cajun Belle, sweet with a bit of heat. Ancho San Martin, sets a bit earlier with better production. I was disappointed with the inconsistencies of last year's ancho peppers, poor set and ancho pepper plants that weren't ancho peppers.  If you like a stuffed pepper dish with a South of the Border taste, ancho is your pepper.  Mucho Nacho Jalepeno promise to have a larger pepper with good set.  I let you know how much of these promises are delivered.  I am going to leave the farm market growers to provide me with regular green peppers this year.

When I get my flower order done, I will put in type my hopes and dreams for beauty in the garden.  This year I hope to add annual flower space around a patio in time for planting this spring.  I added a week of vacation on to my years of service.  Those five days are going to be taken as garden days this spring.  I always thought leaving the greenhouse and nursery would mean that I could now take mid-spring, warm weather vacations and it has.  I realized that breaking my garden chores up into single days would also be a good use of spring vacation.  I will see how much I get done with the extra time this year.  Here's to garden dreams!