Wild Asparagus

Yesterday, my friend, Lou and I went wild asparagus picking at a huge open meadow that belongs to the Washington State Game Department. In this field, everyone does not have to ask permission to hunt for asparagus. In just over an hour we each got about ten pounds of fresh asparagus. This vegetable is not only a gourmet’s delight, but very healthful food loaded with health benefits. It is rich in carotene, selenium and vitamins. Hunting and picking asparagus take a lot walking and bending which is also a good exercise for the body. To lengthen shelf life stand asparagus in a bowl of water, cover with plastic and refrigerate right away. If you want to eat asparagus all year round, blanch them immediately, and wrap them in air tight plastic bag. They can be frozen for one year. Soon as I got home yesterday, I mixed sliced asparagus with cornmeal and flour and fry them in a few spoonfuls of olive oil. We had them for supper and they were very delightful to eat: crispy, juicy and tasty. I shared some to my friend, Ana, and the rest I will pickle for later use.

Lambsquarters

This plant is a relative of the pigweed. Both are edible. Lambsquarters like to grow in abandoned feedlots where the soil is very fertile. They grow quite tall, and they have large odd shape leaves. Pick the leaves when they are light green and tender, and prepare them just like spinach.

Raising Rabbits

Whether you want rabbits for pets or food, they are very easy to raise. They are a good source of cheap food. Their meat is very lean. They are inexpensive to raise as they are vegetarian. Rabbits eat alfalfa, clovers, and grass. They also like carrots, apples, lettuce, and any grain. In the summer time, you can find plenty of green feed for them just about anywhere. In the winter, you can feed them dry hay. To begin with, you need a doe and a buck. A single doe rabbit should have at least a hutch of three feet square. The buck rabbit must be kept separate from the doe at all times except only during breeding time which might only take five minutes. Rabbit’s pregnancy lasts only 30 days. You need to provide a nest box for the doe to have her young ones in it. Make sure it is an enclosed box with a hole on one end. Normally, a doe rabbit will have average of eight babies per litter. A doe can have two to three litters a year. Once the baby rabbits are big enough to eat food on their own, you can start weaning them. Put them all together in one big hutch. They are ready to butcher when they dress out three pounds.

Reward

After Mass yesterday, me and my fellow religious education teachers were awarded each with this bowl of beautiful flowers. It was the religious education coordinator’s way of saying thank you to us for our time and effort in teaching the children about the Catholic Faith and the Gospel. We did this every Wednesday night from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. from November to May. It is a very rewarding job. What a wonderful way to start the children’s lives knowing about God and what God wants us to be.

Neighbors Helping Neighbors

Last night Hubby and I attended a fund raising event. Three groups from our small town joined together to prepare and serve spaghetti meals. Donations of bake goods and other items were also brought for the auction. Money raised will go to help a family in need to pay medical expenses. The benefit dinner was well attended. About two hundred people came. They had the auction going while we were eating our meal. I noticed the people were very generous as most of the pies and cakes were sold from $40 to $50 dollars. There was a rocking horse I thought I might want to buy for my nephew, but that was sold for $350.00. A pellet of fireworks brought $450.00. There were many more items. I donated two homemade cherry pies from our home grown cherries. They look delicious and I thought, “these should bring a good price at the auction.” I was hoping that each would bring at least $20 a pie. Those two cherry pies were sold for $95.00. I was so happy knowing I also done my share to help my neighbor in need. Am sure they were able to raise thousands of dollars and that was great for a small town like ours considering were having a depressed economy.

Dandelions

These weedy composite plants having edible leaves and buds are very nutritious and delicious vegetables. Look for these wild plants around your yard especially in the spring time. Pick the very young plants when the buds are just starting to form, and you will enjoy their tender leaves and excellent tasting buds. Mix them with your salad greens or you can make the so called wilted dandelion. Wash dandelions thoroughly. Cut them up into bite size pieces. Put them in a large bowl. Fry some chopped bacons until they are crispy. Set aside. Discard some grease. Add few tablespoon of vinegar, few tablespoon brown sugar, salt and pepper to taste to the frying pan where you fried the bacon. Bring to a boil. Pour vinegar mixture while still hot into the bowl of dandelions; toss, then sprinkle with chopped hard boil eggs. Enjoy this super delicious dandelion salad.

Cherry Trees

Here in Okanogan Valley,Washington, cherry trees are blooming. This area; predominantly, was an apple country. So many acres are now being converted into cherry orchards. There are several different varieties that are being planted: bings, lamberts, lapins, sweethearts, rainiers, etc. The bing is one of the oldest variety, but it is still very popular. Today’s cherry trees are much smaller in size compared to cherry trees of the past. It makes it much easier for workers to pick the fruits. Also, trees are planted much closer and many more trees per acre. Cherries are sold locally and the rest are shipped overseas. This industry definitely helps our area as it provides jobs and add more revenues to our local economy.