My Empire Of Rocky Soil Under Attack

Our first ever garlic is looking good.

This is it - my summer domain, my playpen, my 8X16 Empire of Rocky Soil. And, as it turns out, my giant litter box.

In the spring, while seeds of peas and beans and acorn squash and such were germinating, what I mostly harvested from my vast track of land, was kale from a second year plant (they are biannual), and cat poop.

Acorn squash flowers are big and bold.

Every morning I went out to collect some kale for a green smoothie (not a brown smoothie), I would also find a smelly gift from a neighbourhood feline. Maybe it was a bobcat, which are common in Nova Scotia, but rarely seen. Either way, poop is poop, and it does not belong where I am growing things to ingest.

While cat droppings contain nitrogen, phosphate and potash, which are all primary ingredients of organic fertilizers, they also contain organisms such as the toxoplasmosis protozoa, and that can make you sick. They are little toxic bombs, and they have to go.

Pole beans are climbing the tripod I made out of sticks from the forest.

I had to defend my borders. I crisscrossed sticks between the seedlings. I kept the soil wet. After reading that cats don't like strong smells where they do their business, I spread bits of orange peel. I didn't want to go to the nuclear option of sitting out all night with a spray bottle of ice cold water. Or giant cymbals.

It won't be long before fresh peas are on the menu.

The deposits dropped in number, but still continued, as did my ritual of cutting kale, then searching for land mines. What did work, in the end, was having the garden fill in. The cat (or cats) have been crowded out, and moved on to a better box somewhere else.

Beans are just flowering now.

Now I wait for the next interlopers, perhaps some hungry caterpillars, or cucumber beetles, or powdery mildew. While the cats have given me a chance to pause for a while, and let my defences down, I must stay alert in order to (organically) guard the food growing in my little rocky domain.

Plant A Garden

Grow food, not lawn. We could use about 8 more raised beds in our yard.
Thankfully, lawn care is included in our rent.

If you are asking yourself if you should plant a garden, the answer is always, YES. There is much enjoyment, wisdom and food to gain, and nothing to lose. Anywhere, any time, the answer is always - go ahead and plant.

Most years since Linda and I met, we have had a garden. We are by no means experts, and you will not read much in the way of gardening advice on our blog. But we will say, "Grow one!" without hesitation.

Nature is an amazingly abundant and magical force, and when nurtured in an organized (or even semi-organized or totally chaotic) manner, wonderful things happen. And since plants are survivors, even temporary neglect can work out, just in case you are worried it will be too much work.

This year we are growing plants new to us: garlic, cucumber, acorn squash, and onions from seed.

One year we were gardening with a partner. In theory, what was supposed to happen was that we prepared and planted in the spring, and she would tend things through the summer while we were away.

As it turned out, it was a case of "If you want the gods to laugh, make a plan". The fully planted garden was untended for several weeks, without additional watering, thinning, weeding and general tending.

Garlic scapes are starting to grow.

As it turned out, it didn't seem to matter that much - we still got wheelbarrow-fulls of food for us and our neighbours. Our garden partner was forgiven once we witnessed the out-of-control abundance that was created in that neglected patch of soil. Not the ideal situation, but not planting would have been a bigger mistake than our choice of garden buddy.

The good things that occur when you grow your own food happen both in the garden, and in your life. You do not need to be an expert, or a work-a-holic. Your garden will evolve to suit you, your skills, and your needs. You aren't just growing plants, you are growing a whole way of living.

Do as much, or as little as you wish, but by all means - plant a garden. Plant anything. Enjoy.

7 Dumpster Diving Tips

Dumpster Diving Tip #5 - Use your instincts, and your nose,  to decide what to take and what to leave.
(See more tips at bottom of post)

Some call it dumpster diving. Others call it shopping for free food, or preventing perfectly good nutrients from going to waste. However you look at it, dumpster diving takes a certain commitment  to ameliorating the crimes of capitalism.

It also takes a strong defiance towards the conventions of society. It is understood that paying full price for food (or anything) is better than buying it at a discount, or sourcing it free around back of the store after hours, or along the curb in your neighbourhood.

One is for winners, the other for the desperately down and out poor. How could it be that spending hard earned cash is the preferred option? There is no price better than free.

This weirdness is firmly in place even if the items being liberated are exactly the same as the stuff in the stores, which is often is. If you put items off the shelf next to those rescued from the garbage, most often you would not be able to tell the difference between them.

This goes for anything of use found in the garbage, and in my experience, one can find just about everything you might need in garbage bins. Over the years I have freed food, clothing, furniture, building resources, and more, from garbages and dumps. All free, my favourite price for anything.

If you can get food or other things cheaper, or for free, why wouldn't you?

The only reason one would pay for something that they could get for free is to purchase convenience and/or to save themselves the social shaming should they get "caught" liberating non-garbage from the garbage.

Garbage should consist only of bads, and never goods. Then the bads should be eliminated. It is possible to create a waste-free society. What if we took all the non-garbage, that does not belong in the dumpster in the first place, and took it instead to a Free Store?

Until that happens, or something like it that facilitates the re-consumption of discarded useful food, clothes, furniture, building materials, etc., dumpster diving may be required.

If you are considering liberating good, free stuff from behind your local restaurant, grocery distributor, or along the curb, here are some sensible tips that should help keep it safe and productive for all.

Happy dumpster diving, binning, foraging, skipping, and free shopping. Personally, I find it much more preferable, fun, satisfying and adventurous (and way less expensive) than visiting the shopping mall.

Seedy Saturday

Old buckets found in a midden on our property, holding radish seed pods.

This weekend has traditionally been the time to plant a garden in most of Canada. Climate change is altering that a bit, with spring weather often coming one or two weeks earlier than usual. Our garden was planted a week ago, so this weekend we are sitting back and watching it germinate. 

While we wait for that magical moment when sprouts reaching for the sun break out of the soil, we are enjoying watching the green and growing garlic sway and play in the wind. We also have a couple of last years kale plants that we are growing for a second season in order to harvest some seeds this fall. 

Mmmm. Seeds. Magical packages of potential. Food for stomach and soul.

A carton of seeds, anyone? Left to right - marigold, radish, summer savoury, cilantro.

Last fall I collected a bunch of different seeds beyond what we needed to save for this year. I kept them around because they were so beautiful that I didn't want to compost them right away. It doesn't seem right to dispose of seeds. 

Any seeds. Ever. 

Today's seed hoarders are tomorrow's seed stores. Plus seeds are all so unique and beautiful in their own right. And many can be eaten - beans, and peas, and squash seeds (lightly salted, and baked with a bit of olive oil) for example.

Come on seeds, we're cheering for you. 

Note: I shouldn't joke about seed hoarding since it could be a potentially harmful situation, like any other hoarding behaviour. See here for a Seed Hoarders Anonymous thread on a gardening website. 

When I visited there, I noticed there was an advertisement for seeds at the top of the page... probably not a good idea. But there are some amazing stories there if you want to quell the urge to buy a bunch of seeds you don't need or can't afford. Free seeds? Well, that's a different story. 

Late Fall Harvesting

Our garden December 14, 2016.

Last harvest.

Last harvest?

Changing Food Miles To Food Feet

Apples from the back yard, low food miles, great taste, and free.

How far your food travels has serious consequences for your health and the climate. People are rediscovering the benefits of buying local food. Better nutrition, less waste and a lower carbon footprint are the result.

At the grocery store I can buy apples from the far reaches of the world. Not only do they have outrageous food miles, but they are also very expensive. I don't want those apples.


I don't want apples from New Zealand (14,978 km/9306 miles)

I don't want apples from South Africa (12,142 km/7,545 miles).

I don't want apples from Chile (8957.64 km/5566.02 miles).

I don't want apples from British Columbia, Canada (4030.46 km/2504.41 miles).

I don't even want apples from the Annapolis Valley, Nova Scotia (58.72 km/36.49 miles).

No, all things considered, I want apples from my backyard.

Things taste better when you have harvested them with your own two hands.

This summer I found a beautifully laden apple tree a few minutes from my back door (about 500 m/1640 feet). Two days and two nice hikes later and I have a big sack of gleaned apples to store for the winter.

The only way it could be more local than that is if the apple tree was growing in the middle of my kitchen.

Since we started our garden this summer we have not bought kale, carrots, peas, beans, radishes, summer savoury, basil, or cilantro. Now I can add apples to my growing list of foods I have not had to buy from afar. We can get them from a-near instead.

Linda - queen of the apples that came all the way from a tree we can see from our window.

The next planned addition will be to plant some garlic this week so we can harvest our own next summer, and quit buying it from China... which is 10, 638 km/6610 miles away.

Our garlic will be growing 3 meters/15 feet from our front door.

We're changing food miles to food feet, which lowers our carbon footprint and adds nutrients and taste to our diet. It also feels extremely satisfying to break free of our reliance on Big Food, and grow and pick food with our own hands.

First Harvest

Radish greens come early, and make a tasty fresh salad. These were from thinning a row.

While our new raised bed got off to a slow start, we enjoyed our first harvest today - radish greens. Let the 5 Meter Diet begin in our Zone 7, southern Nova Scotia garden.

We have a row of radishes that is coming along nicely, and needed to be thinned. I experimented with a few and transplanted them to see if they would survive. Other thinnings I cut off at ground level and collected the greens for a salad.

The occasional small, crispy hot radish was eaten as well for the 'just picked freshness' experience. It is hard to beat the first radish of the year for the sheer impact it has on your very being. What a connection to your little spot on the earth. What a vegetable.

Radish is one of the earliest foods to mature in a veggie garden. All parts of this amazing food are edible. Previously, when we have grown radish, I had only eaten the most nutritious part, the root. Now I know that the greens make a nice crispy, slightly hot salad all on their own, and should never be discarded.

The seeds and flowers are also edible, and reports are that they are slightly hot tasting like the root. We may leave one or two plants to mature so we can see and eat the flowers and seeds. It is always one big green experiment.

Now we wait on the continued growth of the carrots, kale (red russian and curly leaf), chard, peas, beans, sunflowers, marigolds, beets, basil, summersavory, and cilantro. We probably have room for some discounted greenhouse plants, like squash. Or cucumber.

What a joy to nurture our own food out in the fresh air and sunshine. There are many health benefits to a garden before you even get to the eating stage. But the best part is the eating.

Goodbye to sprayed, wilted 6000 km veggies that have passed their best before date before they even reach the store, and hello to fresh produce I can watch growing from my kitchen window, and can harvest with my own two hands.

Our first harvest in a long while was very exciting, tasty, economical and nutritious. I hope your garden is thriving. Or if you don't have one, that you may get one soon.

Why wait? Food isn't getting any cheaper.

Top 10 Reasons I Garden

A re-used wood pallet project that might be nice to have for the garden.

While my new garden is a bit late, my enthusiasm is high for pioneering our residential soil situation. The soil in my area is a light brown sandy loam with a fair amount of stones. While it has some nice qualities, such as good drainage, it needs to be amended. But what doesn't need to be changed for the better these days?

Getting soil to where you want it takes time, so patience is a nice quality for the gardener (or activist) to possess.

Developing patience is one of the reasons I garden. There are many, many others.

Here are a few:

Top 10 Reasons I Garden

1. A garden can't be rushed, and therefore teaches patience.
2. Vegetables aren't getting any cheaper these days (up 12% over the past year in Canada)
3. Spending time in the garden means time away from electronic entertainments.
4. There is no substitute for connecting with nature, and experiencing the green fuse first hand.
5. My 8 x 16 raised bed will be much more diverse than the grass it replaces.
6. It is good exercise.
7. Gardening is a good excuse to get outside, like walking a dog. Except that you can't eat your dog.
8. Being out and visible in your garden connects you to your neighbourhood.
9. I like to freely share the garden's fresh food abundance with others.
10. Veggies from the garden are much more nutritious (and tasty) than the wilted stuff shipped from thousands of kilometres away.

I could probably think of ten more reasons to garden quite easily. But I will stop there. Those seeds won't plant themselves. Happy gardening. 

Gardens Make Good Neighbours

An 8 X 16 raised bed of infinite growing potential.

In my experience, gardens make good neighbours. I have met more of my neighbours, wherever I have lived, in the garden than anywhere else. All those gardens, and all those gardening neighbours, have left a positive and memorable impact on my life.

Now I can say the opposite is also true - neighbours make good gardens. It is the story of how we recently acquired an 8 X 16 raised bed garden next to our new home in Nova Scotia.

Earlier this spring I watched from my window as our neighbours, Ronnie and Peggy, built a raised bed garden next door. Recently when Peggy dropped by our home for a visit, we found out that the new garden was a birthday present for her sister.

Gardening with a view

Linda and I couldn't think of a better gift than a garden, and said so. That comment got the ball rolling, and confirmed for us once again that the bountiful universe works in mysterious ways. And sometimes it works quickly.

Within three days Ronnie and Peggy had an 8 X 16 raised bed finished right next to our house to match the one they built next door. Whoa! Is this a dream? It seems too good, but it is very true.

There it is. Yup - still there. Still. It's confirmed. We have a garden.

Right now we are growing infinite potential, but soon Ronnie will drive his tractor over with a few bucket loads of soil. And while we are a bit behind schedule for this growing season, it won't be long before we get this garden party started.

Gardens and neighbours, neighbours and gardens. The two go together so well. I can't wait to share our bounty with everyone.

More Corn Tortillas

Next time we make corn tortillas we are having enchiladas.

After my last post I had a request for the corn tortillas recipe that I use. I have posted this previously, but it is a wonderful recipe to repost. We use these tortillas for rice and bean burritos, and veggie enchiladas, fajitas, and quesadillas. We also eat them plain hot off the cast iron fry pan.

My recipe is based on one from the only cook book we own - Laurel's Kitchen.

Corn Tortillas

11/2 cups       water
1      cup        cornmeal
3      tbsp       butter
1      tsp         salt
11/4 cups      flour


Heat water to boiling and add 1/2 the butter. Add cornmeal slowly stirring to keep from clumping up. Cook on very low heat for 3 minutes, take off heat, then add the remaining butter and mix. Set aside to cool.

When cornmeal has cooled, add a bit of flour at a time and stir into the cornmeal. At this time I add the salt. Keep adding flour until you have a soft dough. Knead in the bowl with your hands until it forms a ball.

Knead ball of dough on floured counter top for 5 minutes. Roll into a tube and cut 12 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a ball and set aside. Cover with a tea towel.

Turn fry pan to medium high. With a rolling pin, roll dough flat to a diameter a bit smaller than your fry pan. Cook each tortilla for anywhere from 30 seconds to 2 minutes, then flip over and repeat. Do not overcook or tortillas will be brittle (good for tortilla chips if this happens). When tortilla starts getting brown spots it is time to take it out.

Place cooked tortillas between tea towels to keep them warm for serving. Left over tortillas can be frozen, but they are the best when fresh.


See our  refried bean recipe here.

Choosing Simplicity

First gleaned apples of the season sitting on my window sill.

You aren’t legally required to conform… yet. It’s only social pressure and expectations. You can rid yourself of all of it - your big house, your vehicle, and all the many things that are mostly unnecessary. You can quit your unwanted job, you can leave your career aspirations behind. You can choose to live simply.

You can live simply and do what you really want to do, despite the persistent myth that you need a high paying job to do so. You can leave the people that are pressuring you into a high stress, high consumption lifestyle. You can scrap your plan and everything you have been taught.

The list of things you can toss while living simply is endless. You can give up your $5.00 a cup morning coffee. You can give up eating out at restaurants and prepare affordable meals at home. You can eat the leftovers too, instead of throwing them in the garbage. You can give up habitual purchases and spend mindfully with intention. Spending less on the unnecessary means more money and time for what you really need.

You can have more time to do the things that you are passionate about, whatever that may be. More moments with your kids, tend a garden, paint, write a book. People don’t want that kind of freedom enough. Conforming seems easier. They are in thrall of the consumer illusion and visions of success. All the while the clock is ticking.

Life is short, and the nourishment of the soul that comes from living simply on your own terms is worth more than a bigger pay check, material wealth, or pleasing other people.

I have never met anyone who took the risk to choose simplicity, and regretted it. None. But I have met lots of folks who have regretted focusing too much on money and superficial success, and realized too late that there is so much more to life.

Save on Groceries: Check Your Bill

One of my favourite ways to save money on groceries is also one of the easiest - I check my bill. Then I check it again. I almost always end up finding a mistake in the store's favour.

I would estimate that about 75% of the time I am overcharged. I don't think it is some sort of dark, covert plan to increase corporate profits, just honest mistakes made by hard working cashiers.

Usually I steer my cart towards customer service and take a moment to go over my bill BEFORE I leave the store. The times I can't wait to get out of the store I check when I get home.

It has become a bit like a detective game, and playing Inspector helps me find pricey irregularities.

Regardless of whether I check right away, or come back later with a problem bill, the store is always 100% accommodating. Without fail the overcharge is refunded with a smile... so I can buy more food from them.

People make mistakes, but that doesn't mean that you should have to pay for them. Check your bill and save even more on your groceries.

Pantry Essentials

Before moving to the east coast I had never lived in a house with an actual pantry. Out here it is a part of the cooking/country kitchen culture. In the west - not so much.

When it comes to home cooking you have to recognize the power of the pantry. This missing element from all my previous kitchens is now the central focus of my cooking space. It contains everything I need to make all our food from scratch in one easily accessible location.

I prefer a real pantry to lots of hard to reach kitchen cupboards that you can't see into easily and that encourage food to hide from hungry searching fingers. In my last kitchen I reserved a bottom cupboard for our food stores, but it was very awkward to use, and taking inventory meant emptying it onto the kitchen floor.

Now when I throw my pantry doors open in a search for succulent sustenance my food can't run or hide - it's going down. I can easily see what I have, and what I need to get.

So what are the essentials? Lists will vary depending on personal preferences, but a basic one will look something like food education advocate Jamie Oliver's, give or take a few things.

I currently have 39 of the 62 essential items on his list, which works well for me.

62 Pantry Essentials

Whole grain mustard
Extra-virgin olive oil
Sesame oil
White wine vinegar
Bread flour
Whole wheat flour
Baking powder
Dried yeast
Superfine sugar
Brown sugar
Confectioner's sugar
Unsweetened cocoa powder
Chow mein noodles
Canned cannellini beans
Canned kidney beans
Canned tuna
Canned coconut milk
Anchovies
Quick-cook couscous
Basmati rice
Brown rice
Oatmeal
Honey
Maple syrup
Almonds/hazelnuts or mixed nuts
Mixed seeds
Chicken, vegetable and beef broth stock cubes
Jarred pesto
Ketchup
Tabasco sauce
Mayonnaise
Dijon mustard
English mustard
Olive oil
Canola oil
Red wine vinegar
Balsamic vinegar
All-purpose flour
Cornstarch
Dried pasta
Canned garbanzo beans
Canned tomatoes
Baking powder
Soy sauce
Worcestershire sauce
Plain crackers—unsalted saltines

SPICES
Ground cinnamon
Chile powder
Dried oregano
Ground cumin
Ground coriander
Curry powder
Smoked paprika
Five-spice powder
Sea salt
Black peppercorns
 
FROZEN STUFF
Peas
Sugar snap peas
Green beans
Sweet corn
Fruits
Raw shrimp

What? No pickles. Or peanut butter. Or Bragg. And shrimp is often raised in coastal areas that formerly contained precious mangrove forests. Other than that, it is a pretty reasonable non-exotic list that will allow one to make many basic yummy things.

And with a winter storm currently bearing down on us, our pantry becomes an important part of our emergency program. It is recommended that one has 3 days of food on hand for emergencies. With our pantry we could probably live comfortably for 3 weeks, with or without power.

With my pantry packed with the essentials, I am ready for 6 feet of snow. Or more. Bring it on.

Making Baked Samosas

Samosa dough with piles of spiced potato/pea/onion filling waiting for the next stage - sealing.

I've never met a samosa I didn't like. I can't get enough of these spicy global good food ambassadors.

Samosas are a popular (usually vegetarian) appetizer or snack in many areas of the world. These spicy fried or baked pastries are part of the local cuisines of India, Asia, the Arabian Peninsula, the Mediterranean, and Africa.

They can also be found in most other parts of the world now. But not, apparently, Nova Scotia. While on the road this summer we lived on store-bought samosas for the first part of our trip. When we hit the Maritimes the tasty snack disappeared from grocery store delis.

Edges are watered, squeezed, then crimped with a fork.

When I asked in my local grocery store the clerk did not know what a samosa was. Which is ok, I guess, because making baked samosas is a pretty straight forward process. And considering a store-bought samosa can cost from $1.50 to $3.00 each, it saves money as well.


And a baked samosa is healthier and less messy than its fried counterpart. They are good hot or cold, and can be frozen for a quick, yummy snack later.

Ready for baking at 375 degrees for 25 minutes.

Veggie Samosa Ingredients

Makes 10-12 pastries

For the dough:

2 cups of flour

3 heaping tablespoons of plain yogurt

3 tablespoons of oil

¾ teaspoon of salt

6-8 tablespoons of cold water



For the filling:

4 - 5 medium potatoes, diced and boiled

2 tablespoons of coriander seed

½ of a medium-sized onion, finely chopped

2 tablespoons of oil

½ teaspoon of turmeric

½ teaspoon of curry powder and/or garam masala

¾ teaspoon of salt

1 cup of frozen peas

Previous finished product made in Sooke, BC. Enjoy with sweet chili sauce, chutney
or mint sauce.

Make the samosa dough: 

In a large bowl, mix 2 cups of flour and ¾ teaspoon of salt. Mix in oil. Add yogurt and lightly mix. Add enough cold water to make a stiff dough.

Knead the dough in the bowl until it is soft and smooth; cover and let rest while you make the filling.

Make the samosa filling: 

Heat oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add coriander seeds and brown for 30 seconds, then add the onion and sauté, until soft. Add the turmeric, curry powder and salt and cook for another minute. Add the potato and cook the whole mixture for a few minutes more to incorporate the spices. Add 1 cup of frozen peas at the end; remove from heat and let cool.


Assemble the samosas: 

On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough until 1/8” thick. A yogurt tub lid is the right size to stamp out rounds of pastry. Re-roll and re-stamp any scraps until you have 10 rounds of pastry.

Place 2 heaping tablespoons of filling into the middle of each round (don’t worry if it seems too much, as the dough will stretch). Use a fingertip to smooth water on the edges of each pastry before pulling the dough around the filling and pinching closed.

Turn the samosa on its side and, using a fork, seal the edge.

Bake the samosas: 

Preheat your oven to 375°. Put the samosas edge up on a lightly grease cookie sheet and bake for 25 minute until lightly browned. Let cool on a rack for 20 minutes.

Eat the samosas.

These healthy snacks are good anywhere you happen to be in the world. Share if you have any left.

Homemade Corn Tortillas

You would have to go to Mexico to get corn tortillas this fresh.

One way I have been able to judge my health over the past few months of my lower back injury is by our diet. The better I feel, and the more I heal, the fresher our food gets. Lately things are getting good and fresh.

This is not only because I feel better mentally and have a desire to cook, but also because I can stand for longer periods of time.

It has been a long time since I have made any bread, but making corn tortillas today brought back all the reasons for making food from scratch.

First of all, I find prepared foods to be lacking in flavour and healthfulness. The foods I make myself are exactly the way I want them - succulent and wholesome.

Then there is the excessive packaging that comes with prepared foods, even if it is 'only' a can, jar, or plastic bag. Cooking at home is packaging and garbage free.

Finally, prepared foods cost a lot compared to home cooking using inexpensive basic ingredients. And preparing your own food can be fun and personally rewarding. I love to be able to create food I like in my own kitchen.

One of my favourite home made bread products is corn tortillas. My recipe is based on one from the only cook book we own - Laurel's Kitchen.

Corn Tortillas

11/2 cups       water
1      cup        cornmeal
3      tbsp       butter
1      tsp         salt
11/4 cups      flour

Heat water to boiling and add 1/2 the butter. Add cornmeal slowly stirring to keep from clumping up. Cook on very low heat for 3 minutes, take off heat, then add the remaining butter and mix. Set aside to cool.

When cornmeal has cooled, add a bit of flour at a time and stir into the cornmeal. At this time I add the salt. Keep adding flour until you have a soft dough. Knead in the bowl with your hands until it forms a ball.

Knead ball of dough on floured counter top for 5 minutes. Roll into a tube and cut 12 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a ball and set aside. Cover with a tea towel.

Turn fry pan to medium high. With a rolling pin, roll dough flat to a diameter a bit smaller than your fry pan. Cook each tortilla for anywhere from 30 seconds to 2 minutes, then flip over and repeat. Do not overcook or tortillas will be brittle (good for tortilla chips if this happens). When tortilla starts getting brown spots it is time to take it out.

Place cooked tortillas between tea towels to keep them warm for serving. Left over tortillas can be frozen.

We make refried bean and rice burritos and the occasional fish taco with our home made wraps. Sometimes we fill one with peanut butter and a banana for a breakfast wrap.

Unlike the store bought varieties, I can't get enough of these corn tortillas. 

Free And Almost Free Food

Apples gleaned on my daily walk show the free abundance of nature.

I can't think of many things better than free food. In my ideal world no one would have to pay for clean air, food, or water (or medical care, but that is another post for another day).

That is why I like a garden - it feels like free food even if you do have to buy seeds and equipment and work hard. Most gardeners will tell you that their garden is so prolific and abundant that you can't help but share the bounty freely with those lucky enough to be close by.

I can't count the number of times someone has stuffed a giant zucchini into my mailbox, or left a bunch of carrots on my doorstep when I lived with a hundred other simple living, garden growing folks in Sundance Housing Cooperative.

The closest we got to free garden bounty this year is when Linda's relatives visited from another part of Nova Scotia recently. They brought us a whole box of fresh veggies from their back yard garden which is obviously doing very well judging by the perfect cucumbers, carrots, peas and tomatoes that were gifted to us. I wish our local grocery store had produce as nice and fresh, never mind free.

But the grocery store I shop at does discount lots of good food by 50% when items are approaching their best before date. Included is produce that doesn't look perfect, but is otherwise fine. Since I am not ready for dumpster diving just yet, food reduced by half is as free as it gets at the store.

I have found a small source of local free food that is not dependent on far away relatives or discounting grocery workers.

On my daily walks I have been getting to know my area, and have discovered a lot of abandoned farm land. Most of the properties include apple trees with ripe apples beginning to fall in piles on the ground below. Every day I collect pockets full of beautiful apples still hanging from bending branches.

These trees amply reflect the abundance of nature. They are giving trees. Free food for anyone that walks by.

Chipotle Baked Beans

There are few dishes that can be made that are as easy, delicious, nutritious, and frugal as baked beans. And with evenings getting cooler, they are the perfect comfort food.

Linda and I recently had a beautiful afternoon cooking together and adapted a recipe we found here to make a nice spicy, tomatoey baked bean.

In order to make them vegetarian we replaced the bacon with extra smokey chipotle peppers, and the chicken broth with veggie broth.

Ingredients

1 chipotle pepper roughly chopped, more to taste
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1 can tomato paste
1/2 cup light brown sugar
2 tablespoons molasses
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 tablespoon vinegar
6 cups cooked white beans, or 3 (15-ounce) cans white beans rinsed and drained
1 cup veggie stock
Salt and pepper to taste


Method:

Preheat oven to 325°F.

Cook onions in oil until translucent and soft, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in tomato paste, sugar, molasses, chipotle pepper, mustard and vinegar until well combined and cook for 1 minute. Add beans, broth, salt and pepper and stir gently to combine.

Cover tightly with a lid or foil and bake for 1 hour. Remove lid, add more broth if needed to moisten beans and continue to bake, uncovered, until top is browned and bubbly, about 30 minutes more.

Nutritional Information:

Beans are good for you and your food budget. High fibre, low on the food chain. Eat with a slice of bread or other grain for full protein benefit.

Cut Own Hair... Again

Before - long hair, in the hospital and happy.

It seems like everything except real estate and gas is more expensive here in Nova Scotia. In order to stick to our budget we are going to have to do everything we were doing in British Columbia, and more. That means doing all our own cooking and baking (a bag of flour costs twice as much here) as well as anything else we can do ourselves. Like haircutting.

Yes, that nice 'before' photo is of me in the Digby hospital a few days ago. Linda is in the bed behind me. I was the patient (my back again), and Linda had to come with me because she could not stay at home alone and there was nowhere else for her to go.

As you can see it had been quite a while since my last home haircut.

After about 5 days I was released, but Linda could not come with me until we got some supports in place to make sure I did not hurt my back again. So, unfortunately, my sweety is still in the hospital while I am at home cleaning up and healing.

After being in the hospital I felt like I needed a major overhaul, so after a much-enjoyed long hot shower I got to work on my hair. This time I wanted to do more than just shave my head like last time.

Linda has always wanted to cut my hair short everywhere but the top, so that is what I tried to do. It took a long time, but eventually I got the results I wanted. I used a comb, electric hair clipper, a pair of sharp scissors, and a bit of tape to get the back trimmed evenly. It was fun, and it was free.

I visited Linda in the hospital after I finished and she approved, so I guess I did alright.

Tomorrow things will be more or less ready for her to come home. A few more items, such as an electric lift for doing transfers, will come later, but I can't wait any longer. I want my best friend here where she belongs.

Maybe she wants me to cut her hair, then we can use the money we save to buy a bag of flour so I can start baking again.

After - short hair, at home and happier. I will be happiest when Linda gets here tomorrow.

Vegetables You Can Grow In The Shade

Looking for something to plant in a less than ideal location? Here are 10 veggies to plant in shadier areas with at least 3 to 6 hours of sun per day.

Some of these can even be planted now to be harvested before the cold weather sets in, depending on your location. I know I am itching to get some seeds in the ground as soon as I can.

Get ready, get set, GROW!

Eating Ourselves And The Planet To Death

Bon Appetit?

We are eating ourselves and the planet to death. A new relationship with food is required.

Thai meditation teacher Ajaan Fuang is someone I have learned from when it comes to my relationship with food. He was known for his wise words on many subjects, including concepts surrounding food and eating.

After a trip to America, one of his students asked him if he had had a chance to eat pizza while he was there. He mentioned that he had, and that it was very good. This surprised one of his students who had gone along on the trip.

"You ate only two bites," the student said. "We thought you didn't like it."

"Two bites were enough to fill me up," Fuang answered. "Why would you want me to eat more?"

Once a woman who had been studying with him for a short while decided to prepare some food to give to him. Wanting to make sure it would be something he liked, she asked him straight out, "What kind of food do you like?"

I love his answer: "Food that's within reach."

Fuang was very familiar with the problems our stomachs get us into.

"We human beings have long tongues, he said. "You sit around and suddenly your tongue flicks out to sea: You want to eat seafood. Then it flicks around the world: You want to eat foreign cuisine.

He also knew the solution - "You have to train your tongue and shrink it down to size."

Even before eating became an entertainment for the masses he was advising anyone that would sincerely listen, "When you eat, keep your mind on your breath, and contemplate why you're eating. If you're eating simply for the taste of the food, then what you eat can harm you."

Training our tongues and shrinking them down to size will go a long way toward changing our relationship with food and restoring health on Earth. Besides, in these days of rapidly increasing food prices, who can actually afford to eat recreationally?