There are very few foods that are as delicious as having fresh vegetables just picked from your garden or from the local farmer’s market. As I mentioned earlier in the week, growing your own foods such as fruits and vegetables, has amazing rewards. To preserve all the nutrients, flavor and color, freezing is the best way to go. Freezing allows you to take advantage of the quality and quantity of seasonal vegetables and have them on hand all year round.

Preparing the best quality frozen vegetables involves following certain procedures depending on the type, composition and texture of the produce.  Here are some steps to freezing your vegetables.

1. Choose the freshest young, tender vegetable possible:Peas, corn and starchy vegetables are best if slightly immature.
2. Wash vegetables in cold water;rinse with fresh water at least twice:Remove leaves and stems, don’t let vegetables soak–vitamins may be lost.
3. Sort or cut vegetables into similar sizes for efficient packaging:Use quart or gallon zip-loc freezer bags depending on your meal plans for the week.
4. Prepare and label freezer bags prior to beginning:note contents, portion sizes and use by date.
5. Pack freezer bags in portions for favorite recipes and meals.
6. Follow suggested freezing methods as shown below for best results.
7. Remove air and freeze immediately.

Preparation and Methods For Freezing:

There are different preparation and freezing methods for vegetables, each designed to preserve the best flavor and quality of the vegetable.

Raw-pack– Vegetables such as onions and green peppers that will be used primarily as seasonings in cooking can be frozen raw. Peeled and/or chopped vegetables and herbs can be packed directly in freezer bags, or frozen in ice cube trays, then packed in freezer bags.

Blanching– Briefly steaming or boiling your vegetables before freezing. Most vegetables are blanched before freezing, to stop the enzyme action that can cause spoilage. There are several blanching methods including: water blanch, steam blanch and microwave blanch. You can use whichever method you prefer.

Just remember, Care For Your Veggies; if your food is properly frozen, it will last months in your freezer.  In my future posts, I’ll share more on freezing methods and how to prepare your foods for freezing. This is a great starting point if your new to freezing your foods.

This is a fabulous, fresh, healthy side-dish or main dish salad that is perfect for lunch or dinner. Salads are now even easier with a wide selection of produce available at your local farmer’s market. Salads are very easy to make and if you don’t have the time or are not near a farmer’s market, the supermarket produce departments have made preparing them even easier.

Noel’s Turkey or Chicken Salad With Tropical Peanut Dressing

Ingredients: 

 Organic Baby Spring Mix or Romaine Lettuce
Cabagge, shredded (optional)
Fresh baked Turkey or Chicken, shredded or chopped
Red Bell Peppers
Carrots
Celery (optional)

Dressing:

1/3 cup Organic Peanut Butter
1 teaspoon apple cider
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1-2 Tablespoons Chili sauce
1 Tablespoon Agave syrup
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Directions:

• Chop vegetables, add to individual bowls filled with spring mix or romaine lettuce.
• Serve with 1 Tablespoon of dressing



Noel’s Quick Notes: Putting together an fresh healthy salad isn’t difficult, but you do need the right balance of ingredients. Here are 5 ingredients a salad should always have:

• Something green
• Something sweet
• Something crunchy
• Something tangy
• Something to dress with

Store any undressed leftover salad in the fridge covered with plastic wrap. It will keep for a day or two in the refrigerator.

Tonight, I’m serving hamburgers that have an added healthy twist–quickly pureed beans and spinach. If you use frozen spinach in this recipe, thaw it, then squeeze out the liquid before adding to the meat mixture. I’m serving the hamburgers on a toasted multi-seed roll, but they are delicious served alone or with a flavorful sauce such as tomato or mango chutney, which is available at many grocery stores or just simply make your own.

Veggie-Beef Burgers

Ingredients:

1 pound lean ground beef
1 cup spinach, finely chopped
1/2 to 3/4 cup garbanzo beans, cooked and mashed
1/2 medium onion, chopped
1 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
4 buns or rolls

Directions:

• Combine beef, spinach, gabanzo beans, onion, salt and pepper.
• Form into hamburge patties
• Cook patties for 10 minutes (medium-well)  in oven pre-heated to 350 degrees or on grill.
• Serve

Makes 4 servings

Preparation Time: 10 minutes

Cooking Time: 10 minutes

I hope you all enjoyed your Easter with family and friends! This week’s menu is inspired by our trip to Lowe’s Home and Garden and the Farmer’s Market over the weekend. With an abundance of fruits, vegetables and plants for the garden we picked up, this week’s menu will for certain be delicious! In the next few weeks, we’ll be getting the garden ready for planting all types of tomatoes, squash, fruit trees and more. Here are some meals that I’ll be trying out over the next few weeks using the freshest of ingredients:

Breakfast:

Quiche Lorraine, Orange juice
Berry French Toast Souffle, Maple Syrup
Lemon Berry Bread, Fruity Yogurt Granola Parfait
Good Start Riser, Strawberries, Yogurt Dip
Squash & Mushroom Frittata, Zucchini Muffins, Applesauce
Mandarin Orange Coffee Cake, Peach Granola Yogurt Parfait
Pineapple Zucchini Bread, Pineapple Rings & Cottage Cheese

Lunch:
Tequilla Lime Chicken Salad, Melon
Chicken Satay Wraps, Tangellos
Butternut Squash Soup, Rosemary Chicken Salad Sandwiches, Grapes
Chicken Walnut Spinach Salad, Raspberry Vinagrette
BBQ Burgers, Cole Slaw, Grapes
Turkey Chili, Cornbread, Apple

Dinner:
Citrus Lime Salmon or Chicken, Risotto, Rosemary Butternut Sqaush
Turkey Sausage Lasagna, Broccoli
Chicken or Cheese Chilliquiles, Beans, Creamy Squash
Butternut Squash Raviloi, Creamy Sage Marinara Sauce, Snap Peas
Parmesan-Crusted Tilapia or Lemon Oregano Chicken, Broccoli

Snacks:
String Cheese
Almonds
Tomato Slices, Cottage Cheese
Cheese & Crackers
Carrot Sticks, Ranch Dip
Trail Mix

We’ve been raising chickens for the past four years now. Raised strictly for their fresh eggs, they are a joy to have;especially if raised from chicks.  I love how they fit into the cycle of growing and life.  

Our Little Farm Is Growing

I just recently picked up a couple more roosters (Tony Hawk and Melbourne) who are brothers. They are silkie frizzle (Sizzles) and are quite a pair. They take turns crowing back and forth. This morning it started around 4am. If you’re someone who’s not used to the crowing in the early hours of the morning, this can ruffle your feathers. Personally, I don’t mind it. I get up early every morning, so it’s like having an alarm without the snooze button. To go along with them, I also picked up 8 more hens. They are around 6 weeks old. We haven’t named any of them yet, however one reminds me of Gonzo from the muppets.

Raising Chickens

The new chickens will be introduced to the rest of the flock within the next few days. The chicks will stay separated for awhile longer until they are big enough to defend themselves if needed. Newers chickens usually spend most of their day hiding in the corners and learning fairly quickly to run and move quick if passing by another chicken. Chickens really do have a pecking order and everytime another chicken(s) is added to the flock they need to re-establish this order! It kind of reminds me of watching a new kid in school. Which group approves you to hang out with them and not get picked on. I’m hoping they’ll fit in nicely with the rest. We’ll keep a close eye on them for a week or so until they become familier with their surroundings. This year, I’m not allowing them to “free range” as much because of the coyotes and raccoons.

So we will see what today brings…hopefully a great day for them all!!