January 2023 Garden Journal Zone 7

This is not meant to be polished.  These are my notes.

Indoor:

1/1 planted peas, ghost peppers, eggplant some strange melons my son was interested in.  Placed on a grow mat under lights.  Red leaf romaine started

1/10 some of the peas are 3 inches, most are not up yet. Romain lettuce doing well.  Removed “green house” lid.  Placed closer to grow light to reduce legginess.

Started figs in the fall from clippings “borrowed” from a rogue tree in DC which blocked a sidewalk.  No progress.  Pulled the three clippings up, scraped the base, put in rooting mix and placed back in the soil.  Put pot on a heat mat.

Store bought parsley enjoying grow lights.  Basil looking sad.

Put sweet potatoes in water that were starting to produce slips

Outdoor gardens:

Some late bulbs put in

1/6 Progression planting garlic outdoors.  Started in September.  Put some out each week or so through January.

And took out my elephant ears and other tropical bulbs a little late 

1/7 - cut tops off milk jugs and planted yellow beets then covered with the jugs for mini greenhouses.

Working on cleaning up the greenhouse and replacing the sides.

1/11/23

Started peppers, parsley, cilantro, and basil.  Basil for indoor harvest.

Fig cuttings taken in November - one seems to be alive.  I need to pluck the greenage but it makes me happy today.  Maybe tomorrow we pluck.

The red Romain is making progress!

Planned:

Indoors:

Start:

Onions

Peppers

Lemons limes oranges 

Chives 

Scallions 

More peas

Outside 

Radish

Carrots

Clear debris 

Much paths

Spread manure 

Start new gardens

Build more beds

Fencing 

Cut back overgrown areas

Prune fruit trees

Mulch fruit trees 

Stake fruit trees

Update worm farm

Buy perlite and other supplies 

Cattle panels for garden?

French Onion Soup (can be pressure canned)

Completely homemade french onion soup is definitely a labor of love.  This recipe is adapted from the Ball Canning Recipe.

French Onion Soup (makes 4 quarts or 8 pints) 

1 tablespoons butter

~15-20 medium onions/4 pounds, thinly sliced

1 tablespoon salt

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 head of garlic

2 teaspoon dried thyme

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1/2 tablespoon brown sugar if needed to balance the flavor

1 cup wine or sherry - I used a combination of sweet sherry and pinot grigio

1 gallon (4 quarts) beef bone broth purchased or homemade 

Directions:

1. Make or gather your beef broth
2. Peel and thinly slice the onions (save peels in the freezer for your next broth)
3. Melt the butter in a large dutch oven or soup pot, then add the onions, salt and pepper - caramelize the onions  
1. Optional:  First cook overnight in a slow cooker then caramelize in a dutch oven or saute pan the next day.  This saves on active management time.
4. Mince and add the garlic (save peels for future broth)
5. Add the rest of the spices and saute for another minute
6. Add the wine/sherry and deglaze the pan
7. Add the beef broth and bring to a boil - reduce heat and cook for 15 minutes.
8. Enjoy immediately, freeze or pressure can for a shelf stable product.  Pressure canning instructions blow.  Stop here is you are going to can the soup and assemble when ready to eat.
9. Serving:  Ladle the hot soup into a bowl and put a toasted crouton, slice of toasted baguette, or slice of toasted bread on top of the soup.  Place a slice of your favorite cheese on top of the bread.  Grueyer is best but provolone, cheddar and swiss are also good.  Place the bowl under the broiler on top of a cookie sheet until the cheese is bubbly.  Garnish with fresh cracked pepper, a pinch of salt, some red pepper flakes or parsley.  

1. Pressure canning directions
1. Heat your jars in your pressure canner
2. Ladle hot soup into a hot jar, leaving 1-inch head space
3. Remove air bubbles
4. Wipe jar rim
5. Apply band and tighten fingertip tight
6. Place jar on rack in a pressure canner containing 2 inches of simmering water (or follow your canner manual). Repeat until all jars are filled
7. Place lid on canner and turn to locked position
8. Vent steam for 10 minutes. Place the counter weight or weighted gauge on vent; bring pressure to 10 pounds
9. Process pint jars for 60 minutes or quart jars for 1 hour 15 minutes
10. Turn off heat, let canner return to zero pressure, then let cool another 5 minutes.  Remove the lid
11. Cool jars in canner 10 minutes. Remove jars and cool
12. Test lids for seal after 24 hours.  Remove bands for storage
13. Sealed jars should be shelf stable for 12-18 months
14. When serving, heat the soup and follow the serving instructions above.

Mmmmm!!!!  Onions!!!!

Triple recipe - that's a lot of onions!  

 

The top onions are just browned from slow cooking for 10 hours.

The bottom onions are caramelized.  

Caramelizing the onions and adding sherry to deglaze.

Yummy French Onion Soup ready to heat and assemble!!!

Beef Bone Broth (good for fresh use, canning or freezing)

 

I use marrow bones plus veg/herb scraps I have saved in a freezer bag.  This makes the bone broth very inexpensive.  

Ingredients:

3-6 Marrow beef bones

1 Tablespoon Olive oil

1/4 Cup Apple cider vinegar

6 cups Onion peels (or whole onions cut in half)

1/4 Cup Garlic peels (or 1 whole garlic head)

1 Cups Carrots (can use peels and tops)

2 Cups Celery (can use scraps)

1 bunch parsley stems/scraps

1-3 Bay leaves

5-6 Pepper corns

2 gallons water

Process:

1. Optional:  Blanch bones in boiling water for 10-15 minutes and skim any scum that forms on the top.
2. Heat your oven to 450 degrees.  Place the marrow bones on a baking sheet and rub with olive oil.  Roast for 30 minutes, then toss and roast another 15-20 minutes.
3. Transfer bones to a large stockpot or slow cooker, add the rest of the ingredients.
4. Cook for 12-48 hours on a VERY low flame (stove top should be 12-24 hours, slow cooker can go longer) .  Be sure to check the water level and add more as needed.
5. Strain the solids and save the liquid.
6. Cool the liquid in the refrigerator until the solids form at the top.  Spoon of the tallow (fat).  This can be discarded or saved for cooking or soup making.  
7. Broth can be stored in the refrigerator for 5 days, frozen for 6 months or pressure canned.  Here is the process for pressure canning:  

Roasting the Bones

Everything working its magic in the slow cooker (electric roaster).

The nice color before everything was strained off.

Zone 7 February Gardening

A little February Fun!  2022