soaker hoses

burying the soaker hose in the garden. first, dig a trench. i bury the soaker hoses under an inch or two or dirt to help prolong their life. the garden is in full sun all day long and the sun is really harsh on the black hoses. they last longer when i bury them. and they water the roots instead of any part of the leaves and helps prevent diseases that way.


but dont dig up the peas...


push the hose in the trench. and go inside to take a nap and cool off. digging is hard work.


haul out all the garden frippery to help mark where the hose is buried so i dont stab it with the trowel when planting all my seedlings


push the soil over the soaker hose. then dig MORE trenching


bury the rest of that first soaker hose. shovel marks the end of the hose. go take another nap. bonus molly in the background laying in the sun.


dig and bury, dig and bury, working on the second soaker hose.


the third soaker hose.


i got a new froggy garden stake, isnt he cute! i pitched 6 old rusty garden stakes into the recycle bin.

preparing the second raised bed for blueberries

this raised bed has had lots of stuff dumped into it. i started two years ago with rocks at the bottom.


then i dumped in bucketfuls of weeds.


added shredded leaves from fall two years ago.


but after winter the shredded leaves sunk down nearly a foot.


and continued to sink/decompose


broken up sticks were added. and more shredded leaves from last year.


my stick pile was already 3 feet tall


but i had two wagonloads full of more sticks. the old maple and the ash tree drop lots of dead shit. i didnt want to haul it all to the county dump site for vegetation, so i broke the sticks up and dumped them in the raised bed. they'll break down eventually.


still had a good foot of shredded leaves on top of them from last fall (and a ton more below them from the fall before that).


shredded leaves, and bags of pine bark mulch. which is supposed to break down and help acidify the soil.


4 bags of mulch doesnt go very far. the mulch is also because blueberries like really loose soil. or so my brother told me.


4 enormous bags of peat moss, each bag was 2 cu. ft. but the raised bed is 12' x 4' so 8 cu. ft. doesnt go that far either. peat moss is supposed to help acidify the soil. there is also a big bag of sulfur mixed in there.

spinach artichoke ravioli bake

i made spiniach artichoke ravioli bake.

first i chopped up fresh spinach. this took the longest, but fresh spinach turns out to be SO much better than the frozen stuff.


it chops rather nicely if you stack the leaves up on top of each other, about 20 leaves at a time.


the recipe said baby spinach


and artichoke hearts.


they're so gross to cut up, but taste good.


add in a little pesto


mix the broth with the alfredo sauce


a bag of frozen ravioli


a layer of alfredo sauce, then a layer of the spinach artichoke mix


then spread out half the ravioli


more sauce. then another layer of spinach artichoke and another layer of ravioli, and the rest of the sauce.


after baking the allotted time, then top with cheese and put under the broiler for a few minutes


its only two layers of ravioli deep. but its good stuff!


theres this awesome stuff called pan lining paper. its aluminum foil on one side and parchment paper on the other. i lined the cake pan with it and when its empty i just throw it away and the pan is clean. i like this stuff! (careful under the broiler though). they sell it in the stores next to aluminum foil and parchment paper. its seriously awesome.
http://www.reynoldskitchens.com/products/pan-lining-paper/


i like this ravioli stuff too!


more leftovers! and it freezes well.


recipe for spinach and articihoke ravioli bake
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/335447872226484046/
http://www.thecookingjar.com/spinach-and-artichoke-ravioli-bake/

Ingredients
5 oz. fresh baby spinach, chopped
1 can (16 oz.) artichoke hearts, diced
2 tablespoons pesto
2 cups Alfredo sauce
¼ cup vegetable/chicken broth
25 oz. frozen ravioli
1 cup Italian cheese blend, shredded

Instructions
Combine spinach, artichoke and pesto and mix well
In a separate bowl, combine Alfredo sauce and broth
Spread 1/3 of the Alfredo sauce on the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish
Top with half the spinach mixture
Lay half the ravioli in a single layer over the spinach
Repeat layers once more
Finish up with the remaining 1/3 Alfredo sauce
Bake uncovered at 375 degrees for 30 minutes
Sprinkle with cheeses and broil at 450 degrees for 3-5 minutes

homemade basil pesto and pesto chicken

back in july of last year i harvested my own basil and ran it thru the food processor and froze it.
http://minnesotapears.blogspot.com/2015/07/basil-harvesting.html

i finally turned my basil into pesto. i thawed the frozen basil and oil ice cubes, and tossed everything in the food processor. it turned out good. i'm fairly certain i didnt use anywhere near as much oil as the store bought stuff has. my pesto was firmer, not as soupy as what i've bought in stores. i think that worked out well. and i used more pine nuts than the recipe said, 1 cup rather than the 1/3 or 2/3 suggested. i think it could have used more garlic (i used the pre-minced kind). i went with a full cup of grated parmesan. i used the store bought kind. maybe next time i make pesto i'll try grating some of the good stuff myself.

frozen shredded basil and oil made a few months ago, dumped in the food processor and thawed.


pine nuts


grated parmesan


minced garlic


voila! homemade pesto


two large chicken breasts. they werent of even thickness though.


so i did some slicing so that they were the same thickness all around, for even cooking. and added pesto.


spread out the pesto evenly


lots of leftover pesto


yummy tender chicken pesto


yucky pan to clean. most of the oil cooks out of the pesto, and is what makes the chicken so tender.


pesto and chicken in every bite


yay leftovers!



i cobbled it together based on these pesto recipes
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/335447872225048984/
http://cherishedbliss.com/classic-basil-pesto/

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/335447872225049039/
http://www.theyummylife.com/How_to_make_Pesto


baked pesto chicken recipe here
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/335447872220826236/
http://mommyofamonster.com/2014/01/baked-pesto-chicken.html

the big container in my fridge full of pesto leftovers needed to be squashed into the ice cube tray and frozen for easy portioning. (each ice cube measures 1 tablespoon). the internets say homemade pesto only keeps 5-7 days, otherwise you have to freeze it. so freezing it will be.




and into the freezer it goes!

greens, peas, and puzzes

the greens in the greenhouse are growing nicely


it snowed on the peas.


havent been doing too many puzzles lately