Homemade Mayonnaise

I've been growing eggs from scratch for four years.  I've been thinking about making homemade mayonnaise from those eggs for nearly as long.  Well ... today was the day!  A lazy Saturday morning, whisk in hand, I tackled the art of emulsion.

Basic Mayonnaise Recipe
1 large egg yolk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon water
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 cup canola oil

Combine the yolk, salt, water, and lemon juice in a large bowl (the bigger the better, even for a small amount of oil).  Begin whisking the yolk mixture, then drizzle in a few drops of oil to establish the emulsion.  Whisking continuously, add the remaining oil in a thin stream.  The mixture should be thick enough to cling to your whisk.  Yield:  1 cup

Success!  But my whisking arm got so tired I had to enlist the help of Rouse the Spouse.  We switched off the whisking/pouring tasks.  What a team!  Next time I'll try a different emulsifying method -- a standing mixer, a food processor, a blender -- all will get the job done.  An immersion blender will make a very thick mayonnise, faster than the whisk, but also more susceptable to "break".  Oh boy, another kitchen gadget to add to the "must have" list.

Okra has sprouted!

Warm weather is needed for the okra to really take off.  While eagerly anticipating fresh okra, I'm certainly not in any hurry for the end of cool spring temps.  We could use some rain, though.

Blackberry Blossoms

It looks like a prolific crop this year!
Let's hope it rains at just the right time.

Squash babies survived last week's cold snap ...

... and are growing well!

Fava Beans

The fava beans are making beans. Now to figure out when to harvest. I hope soon ... I need a place to plant my tomatoes!

Summer Garden Taking Shape

As promised, yesterday was indeed a big work day in the garden!

I started in the herb garden.  Three sorrel plants had turned into five - definitely too much of a good thing!  I removed all but one to make space for new plants ... stevia, curry plant, thyme, and a volunteer dill that had sprouted in the mulch between raised beds.

I planted three varieties of bright yellow marigolds on the upper edge of the asparagus bed and under the gazing ball. They will bloom all summer, contributing color and fragrance to the garden, attracting lovely insects such as butterflies ... and beneficial insects such as ladybugs, lacewings, and parasitic wasps.  Marigolds are known to inhibit nematodes (tiny microscopic worms) that can damage the roots of plants - particularly tomatoes - by adding their own brand of toxins to the soil.

AND while this has not been scientifically proven, planting marigold borders around the garden may deter moles!  Pesky moles ... my most recent garden nemesis.  I recently noticed mole hills in the radishes and carrots.  It's always something.

I planted two rows of okra between the existing three rows of beets.

I planted a second variety of edamame, Midori Giant, 65-70 days to maturity, in between the sparse sugar snaps.

I finished the hot pepper patch.  It's complete with the following seedlings:

• 4 jalapenas
• 4 hot banana peppers
• 1 anaheim
• 2 big jim bells
• 1 mexi-bell

I planted three "Sweetheart" specialty hybrid pepper plants on the other side of the garden.  These are described as very sweet, 3-inch, heart-shaped, thick-walled, tender peppers - perfect for stuffing, pickling and eating fresh.  75 days to maturity.

I pulled up the wintered-over kale in two different beds.  Planted a row of jade bush beans in one, and half a bed of black-eyed peas in the other.  (The other half has already been planted in lima beans.)

I turned the dirt and removed big roots from the raised bed that gave me so much trouble last year, in the form of stunted beets and yellowed beans.  I planted arugula and radishes down the center and a row of rattlesnake pole beans down each side.

Loading up on plants ...

Today promises to be a big work day in the garden.  We got an early start this morning. Rouse the Spouse and I were joined by his dad, Noah, for a little out-of-town trip to Carrboro. First, we enjoyed a relaxed breakfast at Elmo's Diner. Then, we headed over to Southern States for some plant shopping. As one might expect on a gorgeous spring morning, the place was a zoo!

We loaded up on shrubs, perennials, and garden plants.  Rouse was looking for specimans to fill space in the new beds around the brick walkway as well as in the island behind the house ... azaleas, rhododendron, interesting flowering plants.  I was looking to add variety to the garden ... hot pepper plants, marigolds, interesting herbs.  Noah bought a citronella plant for Betty to pu on the patio.

On the way home, we stopped at B and L Supply, our local source for fill dirt and mulch, and purchased a beautifully shaped Japanese Maple.  We've been considering the idea for awhile.  When Rouse saw a nice selection of them at B and L we decided to grab one.   It will become the central feature of the big plant island just off the terrace and screened-in porch behind the house.

We've changed into working clothes.  Tools are assembled.  Let the planting begin!

New! Brick Walkway in the Landscape

Rouse and Andrew have been busy laying a brick walkway that leads from the terrace toward the workshop and garden. This has always been a problem area.  Grass would not grow there. An obvious path had been worn by countless trips to that part of the yard.

As part of the brick sidewalk project we have expanded the perennial beds on either side all the way to the edge of the walkway.  Fill dirt, new shrubs and plants, mulch ... it's been a piece of work!  But it already feels like a natural and inviting part of the yardscape.

Beans and Squash Direct Seeded

It's not April 15th yet, but I'm going to try to get a jump on some of my summer crops.  I especially want to get an early start on summer squash.  It seems to be the only way to beat the squash bugs, although I may try using lightweight row cover to keep them at bay this year.

Unfortunately, I've never been set up to raise my own seedlings.  We don't have a greenhouse, and I'm reluctant to start plants inside the house.  I simply don't have enough sunny indoor space.  As a result, my brain doesn't even think about it at the appropriate time ... which would've been 6 or 8 weeks ago!  So I'm seeding directly into the soil prior to the traditional frost date hoping Mother Nature will cooperate.  Here's what I put out there today:

I filled one empty raised bed with two varieties of summer squash:

• Summer Yellow Squash, Hybrid Gentry, 44 days to maturity
• Summer Zucchini, Hybrid Gurney's Pride II, 47 days to maturity

I'm anticipating the inevitable bolting of the kale, spinach, and lettuces in another raised bed.  Today I planted a row of asian yardlong beans right down the middle of the bed, and will have a row of bush beans on either side.  This afternoon I planted one half of one row of bush beans.  I'll add to that as the greens are harvested.

• Lek's Long Beans, 60 days to maturity
• Jade Bush Bean, 60 days to maturity

I planted one half bed in limas.  I'll fill up that entire bed with limas once all the kale is harvested.

• Lima Beans, "Fordhook", 75 days to maturity

I planted two rows of green soybeans, one row down each side of the bed where my sugar snaps are planted down the middle.  The peas demonstrated very poor germination this year.  I actually had more volunteer potato plants in that bed than I had fresh pea sprouts!  I moved the volunteer potatoes to an area adjacent to the potato beds.  It will be interesting to see if they survive and produce spuds.

• Edible Soybeans, "Butterbean", 90 days to maturity