maize

the effects of earworm

what is up with this corn? delicious, yet a wee bit of rotting at the top. don't be fooled. this is frustrating, but still quite edible. our corn shall not be mourned against the likes of earworms!

some raw corn and sad thai basil laying low

just a quick chop off the top, after some shucking...

cooked, blanched, drying corn.

and, voila!  way too much corn

for one meal. 

that's ok, though. we plan on 

freezing most of this for wintertime meals.

and much more.

interested in storing your own corn? try out this link.  it's a cinch. which is great, b/c we'll be doing it for some time to come.

                                  

 

dinner party!

we love dinner parties. love love love 'em.  these days they are a rare occurrence with our toddler toting about. but we're hosting one tonight. and, with the summer crops in their peak, we find it a good opportunity to utilize our garden's bounty.
first, here's our table.  

colorful, huh? a tad bit overwhelming, which i like.
but here's conroy carrying it down stairs. you can't tell, but it's stuck.  he could take his hand off the table and it would stay put.  he spent more time contemplating and less time putting some elbow grease into it.

and here's our menu. 
starter:
steamed (toyha) edamame drizzled with tamari sauce



mealtime:
corn on the cob
delicata squash, mashed with some cinnamon and butter
this tomato & cucumber salad recipe (w/o parsley)
sage rice (not wise, but flavored)
baked chicken marinated in garlic, wine and balsamic dressing.


and vino, of course!

edamame, edamame

edamame is a wonderful earth product and tons of fun to say.  how could you go wrong? 
these young and lusty soybeans are high in fiber, heavy in protein, and just bursting with manganese and folate. so eat up folks, 'cause with some tamari sauce they're scrumptious. 

before you is the wonder-plant itself. bathe in its tender glory.

edamame on the stalk.

after we picked the pods from the stalk, they got a quick rinse,

sanitized edamame

then a gentle yet cleansing spa,

steaming hot edamame

followed by an awakening ice bath.  

keep 'em in the ice for the same amount of time you keep 'em in the spa. symmetry, friends. that's what it's all about. 
then we package them into their frozen death, only to be nibbled upon at our random luxury.  

shown are our tohya soybeans.  we made a 20 foot bed with 4 rows. so far we've harvested half of that bed.  it's yielded ~5 or 6 quarts (stored in freezer bags).  that's a lot. so i plan on trying out this edamame hummus recipe sometime this week.