Vegan Dish in 5 minutes: Summer Squash with Herbs

August 26, 2012 Ottawa, ON Canada

Scallop Squash - Sunburst Hybrid 2-3 inches long

 I was out gardening today for the day, and believe me, I am tired. I needed a 5 minute meal. So I went in the backyard and I picked the scallop squash. They are young and tender at 2-3 inches long, and I cook them like Zucchini.

I cut some onions and ginger and put some EVOO in the skillet. I toss the onion and ginger, and some diced tomato and cover it. I set the temperature to just below medium and I headed out in the backyard to get some herbs and greens. 

I was gone in the backyard for maybe 1-2 minutes. When I came in, I added the thinly sliced summer squash to the skillet and cover it again. I washed my herbs and greens.

Here is what is in my bowl of herbs and greens: beans, basella rubra, sweet potato leaves, lemon balm (Melissa offiicinalis), Orange mint, Golden Lemon Thyme, oregano, basil and that's right, marigold flowers. I just use the petals and throw out the center. I grow these marigold from seeds, so I am sure no pesticides are sprayed on them.

After washing my greens, I opened the skilled and stir the mix. The squash is cooked and I added the herbs and greens - I covered for another 1 minute.

Herbs and Greens added in the skillet

Cover for another 1 minutes. Optional (Add your salt and pepper!)


And my meal is ready!

My dinner - ready in 5 minutes, from vegetables grown in my backyard. Summmer 2012.

Where are the honeybees? ottawa city, ontario, canada

my impatiens balsamina is a honyebee magnet!
love it1

How to cook squash flowers, zucchini flowers and bittermelon leaves?

i thought i would share my grandmas old recipe. this is boiled chicken, with vegetable soup stock. once the chicken is cooked, about 7-10 minutes of boiling, add the herbs: basil, lemon thyme, lemon balm, oregano, and chives. I added the traditional filipino tinola: squash flowers, zucchine flowers, and bitter melon leaves. hope you like it.

Cultivate skin-soothing calendula - Canadian Gardening

 i always use marigold in my veggie garden to help me stop nematodes, fungi and other garden pest.

On top of that, it is also good for your skin and it is edible.

what more do you need from this plant from the humble plant who even survive until first frost? this year, I have them in pots, along with my container peppers, beside container okra. Amazing little plant, everyone should have it.

Container Garden: Growing Peanuts (Arachis hypogea) Ottawa City, Ontario...

Basella rubra (Malabar Spinach) Growing in Ottawa City, Ontario, Canada

How to save bitter melon seeds? Bitter gourd - Momordica charantia (Otta...

How to save bitter melon seeds? Bitter gourd - Momordica charantia (Otta...

Sweet Potato - Blackie (accidental harvesting)

august 15, 2012
ottawa city, ontario, canada

i knocked down the pot of my sweet potato blackie, and it was totally upside down. I got no choice but cut off the vine, put it in flower vase to have another sweet potato.

so, i have harvested 3 small tubers. the color is white.


we have a BBQ in the afternoon - and the color of the sweet potato is light yellow. the taste is really sweet, and i really love it. so I am hoping to harvest more sweet potato soon, around fall.

sweet potato blackie in a pot

3 small sweet potato tubers - light yellow when cook, very sweet.

harvest for the day - ready for the BBQ: eggplant, okra, young sweet potato leaves, mints, lemon thyme, lemon balm, oregano.

Container Garden: Pepper Little Blue(hot) and Pepper - Medusa(sweet) (O...

Growing Tomatoes in Pots: Container Gardening (Ottawa city, ontario, can...

Book: Edible Grdening, Any Size, Anywhere (William Moss)

august 15, 2012
ottawa city, ontario, canada


I got this book in the mail today, and I am very excited. I always way there must be a way to maximize yeild to my small backyard, so this is it! I will be reading, and reading this week, and I will get back to you on what tips and tricks I learned.

interested in getting to know william moss: https://www.facebook.com/williammosstv

and this book is available on amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Any-Size-Anywhere-Edible-Gardening/dp/1591865085/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1343682210&sr=8-1&keywords=any+size+anywhere+edible+gardening

Coleus 2012

The ugly coleus - pale brown with green edges were almost toss in the compost. However, I planted them along the fence as slug bait for my hosta. And guess what? - honeybees love them! Ugly Coleus rocks!

Coleus flower with a bee - can you see the bee?

august 12, 2012
ottawa city, ontario, canada
Coleus collection in my backyard.

Coleus Salmon Lace - nice big leaves to accent my Hosta Guacamole

 

Coleus Apple green and some Coleus Scarlet Wizard!

some garden pictures thriving after the heatwave, and loving the rain!

coleus collection - violet tri-color with some coleus velvet lime

A collection of  Coleus Velvet Lime

coleus collection in a pot

coleus-fishnet stockings

Coleus Giant exhibition - Palisandra

heirloom coleus

Container Garden: ginger (Zingiber officinale)

august 14, 2012
ottawa city, ontario, canada

in may, i mentioned that i toss in a chunk of moldy ginger in the pot. just plain garden dirt with soil, and i put it in a sunny corner.

so here is the video of my ginger and it has grown more than 1 foot.

Bush beans planted today

saturday, august 11, 2912.
ottawa city, ontario, canada


despite rain forecast, no rain here on my end of the city.

i went to goodlife for a body attack class - and it was fun!

then went home to my kiddos.

my kids went out in the backyard, with their bikes. I find time to deadhead flowers, and remove brown leaves. This to make sure that squirrels, snails, slugs have not cozy bed to nest on.

kieren napped at lunch time so i got time to work in the garden.
i removed the beans - all done, and plant seeds for second harvest. Really???? yeah - im not sure, but worth a try.
i also put the volunteer seedlings of tomato in bigger pots. I did not have the heart to pull em out, so I got tomatoes this year.

Did i mentioned last year that i won't plant tomatoes? Yes - i never did. but the volunteer seedlings were never pulled out! So, I am back with 5 or 6 pots of them? I hope these are cherry tomatoes, so I can get some for kids to harvest.

So, off to another work now, and hope it won't rain while I am biking out.

What have you been doing lately? 

bean harvest

miniature white cucumber and beans

kieren and karlina

beans climbing my backyard canopy

Loving the rain, trying to make a video.

so, here is the video of my bitter melon plant, and beans.

so, how is everyone's crop doing? I am very impress with my beans yield, not only I can pick it anytime I want, i have way more than what I need, and I have given some to neighbors.

beans and lots of beans

bittermelon (Momordica charantia)