From seed to the table

This spring our family decided to get rid of the huge burn pile in our backyard, clean up the mess, use the rototiller until my dad was about to pass out, and then put in a garden. Its been an interesting process but fun none the less. My dad had a vision for all the vegetables we would have, and the exact place they should be planted. As the season progressed so did our vegetables (and the weeds!). Through the last week and a half, we have been happy to get at least 10 squash, 2 or 3 green peppers, 3 jalapenos, and 1 cucumber from our garden.

It seems our main concern is an overabundance of squash! We cut two squash at an angle into about 1/2" thick slices and then sprinkled the slices with "Mrs. Dash" and a bit of fresh basil, and then grilled them on the grill outside. I think they turned out a little mushy the first time (possibly from overcooking), but the second time we cut and grilled 3 squash and put them in freezer bags and froze them to enjoy later in the year. This batch was thicker, so I think they held up to the grill better and retained their flavor.

On one night when we were contemplating what to make with our squash I found this recipe for Creamy Pesto Shrimp. It turned out to be a pretty easy and tasty recipe which went well with sliced squash thrown in.

Ingredients:
1 pound linguine pasta
1/2 cup butter
2 cups heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/3 cup pesto
1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add linguine pasta, and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, or until al dente; drain.

2. In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Stir in cream, and season with pepper. Cook 6 to 8 minutes, stirring constantly.

3. Stir Parmesan cheese into cream sauce, stirring until thoroughly mixed. Blend in the pesto, and cook for 3 to 5 minutes, until thickened.

4. Stir in the shrimp, and cook until they turn pink, about 5 minutes. Serve over the hot linguine.


Step 4 is where I added the squash but the problem was I had to wait around while the squash cooked and then in turn overcooked the shrimp. So I highly suggest adding any vegetables before the shrimp, cook them about half way (still hard but fork is starting to slide in easier), and then add the shrimp.

Recipe Credit: Loretta Buffa
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Creamy-Pesto-Shrimp/Detail.aspx
Photo: Mika707


If your like my mom and me not too long ago you may be asking "But what the heck is Pesto?". Its a mixture mostly made from basil (which we also have an overambundance of!), olive oil, garlic, usually some type of nuts and seasonings. I found this recipe and it seemed to work well in our creamy sauce. I also liked this recipe because it called for almonds which are cheaper and easier to find then walnuts.

Easy Pesto

Ingredients:
1/4 cup almonds
3 cloves garlic
1 1/2 cups fresh basil leaves
1/2 cup olive oil
1 pinch ground nutmeg
salt and pepper to taste


Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). Place almonds on a cookie sheet, and bake for 10 minutes, or until lightly toasted.

2. In a food processor, combine toasted almonds, garlic, basil, olive oil, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Process until a coarse paste is formed.

We dont have a food processor so I just used our blender and that worked fine. This recipe seemed to have more liquid in it then normal in a pesto so I added just a few more leaves and basil and that evened it out.

This recipe makes more then you need for the Creamy Pesto Sauce so you may want to consider only making half of what it calls for, or you'll end up like me with a tupperware container of 1/2 c. of pesto that we won't probably use before it goes bad.

Recipe Credit: Rebecca Jane Thompson
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Easy-Pesto/Detail.aspx
Photo: Fit and Healthy Mom

When it comes to gardens, in the end we've realized they're a lot of work. The process of getting ready surpass the joy of freshly grown produce. If you have the time, and patience to put in a garden then go for it! Right now we're optimistic about doing it again next year but mostly because as my parents say we're enjoying the "fun part".