Stir-Fry!

We only have one more gardening class.  I have had so much fun and have really enjoyed eating my veggies. 
In the garden this week I fertilized my peas and cabbages.  My sunflower just bloomed! 
Then I harvested more eggplant, zucchini, squash, and green pepper.  I also got to take home
some flowers in my waterbottle. 

I made stir-fry with my vegetables and had it with fish (cod). 

I sliced the vegetables and sauteed them on high with some vegetable oil. 
I like to have stir-fry with a Thai peanut sauce.

2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
cayenne pepper

Directions:

1) Combine above ingredients and stir until creamy. (It helps to soften the peanut butter in the microwave.).
2) Add sauce to the stir-fry during the last minute of cooking, stirring to coat food evenly.

Read more at: http://www.food.com/recipe/thai-peanut-stir-fry-sauce-38444?oc=linkback

Yummy veggies!

We didn't have class on Monday because of the Veteran's Day holiday.  I went to my garden on Wednesday morning, though.  I weeded and harvested!

          I harvested 4 zucchini, 3 cucumber, 2 sunburst squash, 2 eggplant, and 1 greenpepper!

Because I'm on a food-rotation diet I can not have many recipes and have very simple meals.  I sauteed my green pepper and made a yummy omelet!  With my zucchini I sauteed them as well and ate them with some avocado.

There are so many green tomatoes right now.  The flowers are looking great!
My sunflower hasn't budded yet, but probably next week.

First Edible Harvest

Today I weeded, fertilized, sprayed BT and Neem, AND harvested vegetables that I will be able to eat! I brought home one zucchini, one cucumber, two eggplant, and lots of green beans.

Tonight I ate my zucchini for dinner.  I cut the zucchini into rounds and sprinkled them with sea salt and broiled them for about 10 minutes.  Yummy!

 

This week because of Daylight Savings, we started working in our gardens at 4pm.  Then at 5pm we had a discussion outside concerning organic food and sustainability.   

I have heard those terms thrown around numerous times, but it was good to hear some good discussion about both of them.  

I think that sustainable agriculture is agriculture that is economical and that is done in a very environmentally healthy way, as to be able to continue for many years to come.  (http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ae429)

Organic food does not use GMOs and are "produced without using most conventional pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, or sewage sludge, and they are processed without using ionizing

 radiation" (http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/fe732).

Organic food have been given naturally derived pesticide, fungicide, and fertilizer.   You could use animal manure or fish emulsion instead of synthetic materials.  

Below are some of the standards that a farm has to abide to in order to be 

certified organic (http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/fe732):

1. Prior to certification, the land must be free of prohibited substances for three years.
2. A certifying agency annually inspects farm/processor operations.
3. Farmers and processors must keep detailed records of organic practices.
4. All farmers and handlers are required to maintain a written organic management plan.

The reason "organic" came to be is because consumers demanded it.  

I am not one of the consumers that demanded it.  I choose not to eat organic foods most of the time because of the expense.  And, until today, I have been wary to trust the labels... not sure if the labels meant they were really 100% organic or not.   Apparently, not all labeled organic foods are 100% organic. For me, I think if I was going put forth the money to buy organic, I would only buy the 100% organic foods (I guess an all-or-nothing approach). 

Following below is a description of the four general categories of multi-ingredient packaged organic products (http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/hs397) :

• 100% Organic = 100% of ingredients are certified organic, excluding salt and water.
• Certified Organic = 95% of ingredients are certified organic, excluding salt and water.
• Made with Organic Ingredients = At least 70% of ingredients are certified organic, excluding salt and water.
• No Label Claims = Less than 70% of ingredients are certified organic.