Whiteley Creek Homestead

"salad bar" cold frame

Residing in one of the colder climates in the nation presents challenges, but not roadblocks. A cold frame provides a jump start on our plant hardiness zone 3 growing season in central Minnesota.  Growing up, Dick and I both learned from our parents that whatever you have, use what you've got. Whether it be finances, intelligence, a specific skill set that you've come by naturally or learned, or repurposing castoff items. So, that's exactly what Dick did.

To build the cold frame, Dick used a steel "catwalk" supported by cement blocks for the base. "Catwalks, which are also called elevated walkways, allow access between buildings and to elevated areas of equipment or machinery that need regular attention in a variety of industrial and manufacturing environments." (Source: www.steelesolutions.com) The catwalk came from a building used by the now defunct Hanna Mining Co. in Crosby, Minnesota, where Dick's father worked. Many years after his father's death, Dick was hired to demolish the building. His lifetime work, as owner of an excavating business, netted him many finds that grew rusty over the years, such as this catwalk, until the perfect use surfaced. After cutting off the handrails, he lined the catwalk with landscape plastic to prevent soil from falling through the diamond grid pattern and to allow water drainage. Next, he constructed a wooden frame and filled the box with soil to a depth of 7 inches, then he planted seeds of Cherry Belle and Watermelon Radishes, Nantes Scarlet Carrot, a colorful mixture of leaf lettuce, and Evergreen Bunching Onions. Covered with a skylight removed from our back porch ceiling and old paned windows, the captured daytime warmth is enough to carry the plants safely through the cool nighttime as April soon transitions into May. The waist high "salad bar" cold frame virtually eliminates back strain. And that's a very good thing, especially for aging backs!

coriander and cilantro

I store spices in my designated baking area. Herbs are in another cupboard close to where I make casseroles and soups. For nearly forty years, coriander had an alphabetically assigned position between cloves and cream of tartar in my baking ingredients cupboard because I had used it in recipes alongside cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg. However, in a Healthy Bison Chili that I made recently (click on link for recipe and see my tweaks at bottom of post), coriander teams up with chili powder, cumin, and cayenne pepper. I was confused. Is coriander considered a spice or an herb? I learned that the answer is both because two parts of the plant are used. The leaf, which resembles its cousin flat-leafed parsley, is the first stage of the plant's life cycle. It is called cilantro (sih-LAHN-troh) and it is used both fresh and dried. After the plant flowers and develops seeds, it is referred to as coriander. The seed, which is ground into a powder, is an essential ingredient in curry powder and Garam Masala. Every part of the plant, in varying stages of its growth, is edible including its root which may be used as a substitute for garlic. For the first time, my jar of coriander is making new friends in my herb cupboard positioned between chili powder and cumin. (L Photo: Iowa State University Extension and Outreach)

What is the flavor of coriander? Fine Cooking Magazine describes it as having "a warm, spicy-sweet scent and flavor that's slightly lemony, warm, and pine-y with a whiff of caraway." That pretty much covers the spice-herb spectrum, which may add to the confusion regarding whether it should be considered a spice or an herb.

*Changes I made when preparing the Healthy Bison Chili: 2 lbs 1 lb ground bison, 3 poblano peppers (I omitted), 6 tbsp 1 tbsp Mexican chili powder, one 14.5-ounce can whole fire-roasted tomatoes stewed tomatoes + ½ box fresh cherry tomatoes sliced in half + 1 c Knudsen’s Very Veggie Juice, one 15.5-ounce can white hominy (I omitted)

 

purple sweet potato

Although the soil's temperature in my central Minnesota zone 3 garden indicates that outdoor planting must wait a few weeks yet, I placed my seed potato order in mid-February. A few years ago, inspired by a purple sweet potato included in my weekly produce box and the pot of "Leek Butternut Squash and Sweet Potato Soup" that I prepared with them, I decided that I wanted to plant sweet potatoes... purple ones.

Purple sweet potatoes are grown in North Carolina. Ya gotta watch this YouTube video Stokes Purple Sweet Potato that tells how it all began and how the farmer got neighbors involved and saved their farms. He started the business after he retired. Heartwarming story on several levels. I wrote to him so he would know that his story was inspiring and I asked him if sweet potatoes would grow in Minnesota and did he sell seed potatoes to grow them. He wrote back to say that our growing season is too short. But, each year, I make sure to plant purple potatoes... ones with purple skin and purple flesh. No, they're not sweet potatoes, but I'm O.K. with that.

almond pulp muffins with cherries and chia

As I continue making almond milk, I keep generating more almond pulp. So my quest for recipes to use it up, goes on. Stored in the fridge, or freezer for longer term storage, nut pulp can easily become a baking staple. Today, I made muffins from The Muffin Myth Blog using nearly a 1:1 ratio of pulp and flour. For flour, I used some of each of the three kinds of homemade sprouted flour that I made recently (Emmer Grain, Kamut Wheat, and Spelt).

The muffins are moist, but not gooey or gummy, and so very tender.

Almond Pulp Muffins with Cherries and Chia

Makes 12 regular size muffins.

1 heaping cup (about 20) pitted and halved cherries (I had no fresh cherries, so I opened a can of Montmorency Cherries, but they were quite mushy. Fresh Bing Cherries, or thawed frozen dark sweet cherries would be best, I think.)

¼ cup unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled

1 cup packed almond pulp (homemade almond milk byproduct)

2 eggs

scant ½ cup honey (I used ¼ cup.)

1 tsp vanilla

¾ cup plain yogurt

1 tbsp chia seeds (I used 1 tbsp ground chia seeds.)

1 ½ cups whole wheat pastry flour (I used a mixture of homemade sprouted flour… ½ c Emmer Grain, ½ c Kamut Wheat, and ½ c Spelt.)

2 tsp baking powder

½ tsp baking soda

½ tsp salt

¼ cup slivered almonds (I used sliced because it’s what I had.)

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 12 standard muffin cups with muffin liners or squares of parchment paper. (I use a King Arthur Flour muffin pan, so the muffins slide out easily. No need for lining the muffin cups except for aesthetics.) Pit the cherries by slicing in half then twisting to separate the two halves. Remove pit with fingers. In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together melted butter, almond pulp, eggs, honey, vanilla, yogurt, and chia seeds. Set aside. In a smaller bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir the dry mixture into the wet just until combined but still a little lumpy. Fold the cherry halves into the batter, and spoon into the muffin tins. Sprinkle the tops with slivered (or sliced) almonds. Bake for 18-20 minutes until muffins are puffed and golden and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Let cool in the muffin tins for about 5 minutes, then transfer to wire cooling rack. Recipe by The Muffin Myth www.themuffinmyth.com