GARDEN SPRINKLES

For the past few days I've had the pleasure of taking a hand-lettering workshop through Skillshare with the talented Mary Kate McDevitt. We had to pick a quote, go through a series of warm-up exercises, then finally create a final hand-lettered composition. I created three, then plan to create a print with one of them. Let me know if you have a favorite.

You may wonder about the garden sprinkles. Sprinkles are those sweet details that you place throughout your garden to make it extra special.  These may include art, lighting, paint, furniture, wind chimes, etc.

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HERB PRINT

Making all that pesto inspired me to pull all my recent herb illustrations into one print. You can find out more about this print in my Etsy Shop.  I also have a digital version available here.

PESTO

As I've been drawing food the last few years I've become more brave in trying some classic recipes. One of these is pesto. I happened to be paging through a magazine one day and came across this recipe and was shocked with it's simplicity.

I actually had most of the ingredients tucked into my cabinets, garden and refrigerator. The missing ingredient, pine nuts, was given to me by a friend (after I traded some fresh strawberries with her). I hate to admit that even though I was growing basil in the garden, I really didn't appreciate it's lovely scent until I prepared it into pesto.

My first batch was amazing, so a few weeks later I made a larger batch, then froze it in ice cube trays.  I plan to use these throughout the winter and mix them into pasta, potatoes, spaghetti sauce and whatever else needs a little extra flavor.

PESTO

Ingredients
1/2 clove of garlic
1/4 cup of pine nuts
2 cups of fresh basil
1/4 cup of olive oil
1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper

Directions
In a food processor, finely chop 1/2 clove of garlic.
Add 1/4 cup of pine nuts and grind.
Add 2 cups of basil and process with 1/4 cup of olive oil.
Add 1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese and process to combine.
Season with salt and pepper.

This recipe is from Whole Living Magazine.  Their recipe is written in a more flexible format so you can mix in different herbs, nuts and cheese for different tastes.

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FREEZER PICKLES

I love cucumbers...and we do grow a lot each summer. Since we don't do canning I always fall back on a wonderful freezer pickle recipe shared by my mother-in-law. They are more sweet, than salty, but such a nice addition to hot dogs or hamburgers.

FREEZER PICKLES
4 cups of sliced cucumbers
2 cups of onions
4 teaspoons of salt
2 tablespoons of water
3/4 to 1 cup of sugar
1/2 cup of cider vinegar
1 teaspoon of dried dill

Mix cucumbers, onion, salt and water. Let stand two hours and drain (but do not rinse).

Add sugar, vinegar and dill.  Let stand.  Stir from time to time until sugar dissolves and liquid covers cucumbers.

Pack in glass or plastic jars with 1" head-space.  Freeze.

Makes four 1/2 pint jars.

While I was at Williams-Sonoma a few weeks ago, I found some beautiful Weck jars for my pickles. I don't freeze my pickles in these, but instead place them inside once they are thawed to store in the refrigerator. Shall I dare admit, that I enjoy looking at my sweet pickles in these lovely jars?

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WHAT WE'RE GROWING FOR EATS

Some of you may know that my husband is a fanatic vegetable gardener. He not only grows fruits and vegetables in our yard, but has more in an empy lot down the street...10,000 SF worth. Whew!

Someone asked me an innocent question the other day about what we were growing in our gardens.  I began answering without realizing I'd become breathless with the long list. I think he regretted asking too. 

Below are some of the fruits and vegetables my hard-working husband grew this year:

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LOVELY PEANUT BUTTER

Today's word is LOVE.  Oh, what is it about peanut butter that makes me love it so much?

THE YELLOW MEAL

Today's word as part of The August Break is YELLOW.  I originally thought of sharing some of my favorite yellow plants, but I just couldn't get this one special memory out of my head. When my daughter was four or five she loved mixing her macaroni and cheese with her corn, then proudly called it the yellow meal.  Oddly, a local restaurant now has a side dish with these two ingredients.  Maybe she was onto something.

BREAKFAST & AN AUGUST BREAK

As the summer winds down and I rush to get my last few projects complete I thought it would be fun to follow Susannah Conway's August Break exercise - at least for the beginning of August. She'll list one word a day and encourage everyone to post a photograph inspired by it. Most of my posts will be illustrations (for obvious reasons), though I might pop a photograph in here and there. To add an extra challenge I'll make sure every word ties back to either food or gardening. Some will be easy (like today), but I might have to stretch a few.

To start off, like on any good day, here is BREAKFAST. This is one of my favorite breakfast meals, shared by a lovely British friend. This is simply eggs on toast, then I added one of my favorite drinks...a strawberry smoothie (with fruit fresh from the garden).

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ANOTHER SET OF VEGETABLES

My last bit of diving into the past...my tagged vegetables (back in 2012).  I love the idea of scrapbooking, but never have the time to do it, so this is my attempt to add those cute little doo-dads on something.

These illustrations are also available on cards in my Etsy Shop. You can take a peek here.

Thanks for reminiscing with me!

A SET OF BERRIES

In early 2012 I created this set of berry illustrations. I must have been dreaming of sweetness in the midst of winter.

I've included these on a set of cards in my Etsy Shop too. You can take a peek here.

A SET OF HERBS

Here are some more illustrations from the past...a set of herbs that I eventually made into a poster. These are just a few from that collection back in 2011.

A SET OF VEGETABLES

I'll be away for a bit so decided to share some past artwork with you over the next few posts. Since we're in the bounty of summer these will focus on on vegetables, herbs and berries.

Below are a set of paintings I created on playing cards and vintage thesis paper back in 2011.

For those living in central Iowa, please visit me at the Garden Art Fair tomorrow (Sunday, July 14).  I'd love to see you! You can visit my Facebook page to grab a 1/2 off coupon too.

I also wanted to let you know that I've posted my free theme garden tutorial.  You can find out more about it here. Enjoy your weekend!

CORN DOG

I love corn dogs. I especially love the ease of eating them when given to my four-year-old. If I could only grow these in the garden and ramp up the health benefits.

You can find my state fair cards here.

CARAMEL APPLE

Though the sweet, sticky stuff is drizzled on top, this is one of the healthiest foods on a stick (though often a little messy to eat).

You can find my state fair cards here.

COTTON CANDY

I admit, I really don't like cotton candy, but it is pretty and a state fair staple. It couldn't be left out.

You can find my state fair cards here.

PORK CHOP ON A STICK

I've been wanting to create a new set of state fair cards, so asked my friends on Facebook for suggestions. There was an overwhelming response of foods on sticks, so over the next few days I'll highlight four of those.

I was compelled to start with pork chop on a stick since I just passed a food booth at our local fourth of July celebration selling these delicacies.

Oh, and happy Independence Day!

You can find my state fair cards here.

FREEZING THE GARDEN

I am thrilled to finally have our gardens popping with lots to eat! Our first harvests include strawberries, spinach, broccoli and lettuce. The first three are perfect for freezing to savor this winter. Each day I tuck a little more away in our big basement freezer.

FREEZING STRAWBERRIES
These are so simple. I just clean them, remove the greens, slice in half (or keep them whole), pop into a freezer bag, then into the freezer for winter. That's it! If you love strawberries and have a small space, I encourage you to grow a few plants. They do like to spread though, so make sure you contain them well.

FREEZING SPINACH
Pick leaves, clean them, and remove the stems. You can blanch spinach or simply place leaves and a little bit of water into a blender, then freeze in ice cube trays. I like to pop one spinach ice cube into a smoothie. You really don't taste it, but it adds lots of vitamins.

FREEZING BROCCOLI
Pick broccoli heads, clean and chop as desired. Soak them in a bowl of salted water for 30 minutes to remove any insects.  Blanch by placing in boiling water for three minutes, then directly place them in cold water.  Now you can pack them into freezer bags and place them into the freezer.

You can learn more about freezing and blanching foods at the National Center for Food Preservation. Enjoy!

RASPBERRIES IN A CUP

Such pretty fruit, should be served in a pretty cup.

SWEET LITTLE RASPBERRIES

As I celebrate the planting of our new raspberry shrubs it made me think of a trip my mother-in-law made last year with my husband's aunt.  They visited a raspberry farm and tasted several different cultivars of these pretty berries.  I didn't realize how many types there were...even yellow and orange ones!  I would have loved to try all those sweet little things.

RASPBERRIES IN A BOX

I am so excited! We planted our first raspberry shrubs!  Though it may take a couple of years to enjoy these sweet, red fruits - I'll attempt to be patient.  We'll just relish the strawberries we planted last year for now.