Chickpeas, Valentine's Day & Daffadils!

We had chickpea sandwiches and homemade applesauce for lunch! 

 I got the chickpea sandwich recipe from the frugal cooking site 

that Vinnie's Veggies has. 

 The only thing different is that I added one of my canned dilly carrots

 chopped up!

I hated to smash the chickpeas up but found if I put them in the mini cusinart 

that it worked well. Try this recipe.  You will like it!  Healthy too!

1 can chickpeas, drained & save a little to add later if needed

2 T Mayo

2 tsp. mustard

1 T onion, finely minced

8 slices of bread

Mash chickpeas till pleasantly lumpy.  Mix in rest of ingre. 

Use about 1/4 cup mixture per sandwich. 4 servings

I went outdoors today to put my coffee grounds out and clean up the doggie do! 

 It was so nice out that it made me want to do some weeding!  Since I still have a

croupy cough I thought that might not be a good idea.  I did take a couple pictures

tho.  Here are the daffodils showing up.

 I thought this was an unusual looking piece of ice!  This is all that is left that looks

like winter but I know winter is not done with us yet!

Even Coco was enjoying some time outdoors!

When I came out to the kitchen Valentine's morning I found this on the table from my romantic creative husband!

He also made the pretty card and brought me a two toned rose the day before.  

Valentine's Eve was the night we became engaged 53 years ago.  Sounds like a

long time but sure has gone by so quickly!

We were privileged to go to Gracie's Kindergarten Valentine party!  What fun 

we both had!

She had different colored pencils for boys and girls and had to make sure she got

the right color in the right valentine bag or box!  Serious business!

This is my homemade laundry soap.  Does anyone else reading my blog make

their own laundry soap?

I am looking through another gardening book.  I tell myself "it won't be long"!

Report of Harvest or Not! and Food!

The snow is gone but it is still c-o-l-d!  I looked inside my cold frame today and things are still living but sure not growing!  Still hoping when it warms up that they will.

This lettuce was growing just under a plastic box.   It made it through the cold and snow also.  Happy about that!

I had two little carrots still growing in the cold frame so pulled one out today!  5/8 oz.  I think we would not have to worry about our weight if we had to live on what I grew during the winter months!!!!

We do not like "hot" things to eat.  I found a recipe for a mild taco mix so made some up.  Love mixes you can make up ahead to sit on  the shelf!  I will try it this week in some Taco Soup.

It is a good thing that in the winter I don't have to depend on things that I can grow fresh.  For our meal tonight I pulled chicken strata out of the freezer and there are pickled beets, freezer cold slaw and frozen squash to add to the meal.

Two of my favorite people (Coco thinks she is a person) enjoying a little together time before the gardening season starts!

  

No Harvest, Snow, Coffee grounds and Chimes!

I found some chimes smaller like these that I liked.  Yielded to temptation and went to get them!  We decided to get the larger ones!  Bigger is better, right!  And more expensive!  Brought them home and hung them up in the dining area just to make sure they were okay.  Realized they were much too large for the spot we wanted.  Took them back and the store was kind enough to exchange them for the smallest ones which were the original ones I had looked at!  Bigger is not always better!!!!

Here is a larger view.  They have words and sayings on them.

Winter is not done with Northeast Indiana yet!!!!

Picked up this gardening book from our Library on Inter-Library loan.  "Fresh Food From Small Spaces" by R. J. Ruppenthal.  So far I think it is a pretty good book for me.

And guess what these are!  Our morning coffee grounds!  Waiting for me to brave the snow and cold to be put on the garden or compost pile! You have to be a gardener to understand what us gardeners will do for better soil!!!

My "wonderful gardener" brought a little bit of beauty to me!  Just because I am me! (altho I think lots of times he probably wishes I was someone else)  The color of rose was just a little bit different and so pretty.  Called Hot Pink!!!!!

  

JUST SOME DIFFERENT THINGS!

I am trying to learn how to use the new scales I got for Christmas!  I   picked a few small greens this week and came up with 1/2 ounce!  I think I was wrong the last time I posted about using it!  I must have used kg instead of ounces.  So I had a little less than 1/2 pound then I guess.  I am looking forward to weighing lots of produce on it this summer that I grow in my garden! 

 The impatient gardener bought some new seeds at the local nursery!  These are the new seeds I hope to grow!  It was 14 degrees at 9a.m. here this morning so it might be awhile!

I made another pie.  Gotta keep that "wonderful gardener" happy you know!  It was a peach pie but the peaches were not from my tree.  I am trying to grow a peach tree but the tree died, the limb came out from just above the graft and has grown like crazy.  Looks like a tree now.  Wonder if I will ever get any peaches?  It had the peach leaf curl so hoping it doesn't have it this year.

I made up a couple meat loaves so that I would have some ahead in the freezer for meals.  I used the tomato juice in it from my own tomatoes.  Smile!

A new magazine came in the mail.  Everyone needs to take time to dream a little!

I do accomplish things once in awhile!  Here is fall table runner I finished making.  Forget that I started it a little over a year ago and decided lately to get it out and finish it!  Maybe it is a good thing that winter does come!

Here is my mindless knitting while we watch Downton Abbey!

RASPBERRY PIE AND OTHER THINGS!!

Raspberry Pie made from raspberries from our very own yard!!  I froze them last year.  It was very yummy.  We would not be able to afford to buy as many raspberries as we would like so it is so nice to have our own!

I bought some Bragg Organic Apple Cider Vinegar.  One lady mixes 2 tsp. of honey, 2 tsp. of Braggs Apple Cider Vinegar with 8 oz. of water.  Put this in the microwave for 1 minute and then stir to blend for a drink. I was doing it for awhile and need to get back to it.

I love my Berkey!!!!!  Does anyone else use a Berkey?

Our winter weather is back which is normal for this time of year in Northwest Indiana.  I know we need the moisture but I was spoiled by the few lovely days we were given.  We didn't get that much snow but it is colder than I like!

Oh well, I guess this gives us all time to have a cup-o-tea and do some armchair gardening!!  In case you need something to look at this site for the Ally Fowler garden videos are fun and help to pass the dreary days faster.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DedagQy_IGc&playnext=1&list=PLB3964BBA3DD052BC

Dare I post for Harvest Monday altho this is Friday!



 

 

 







 

I had planned to post this last Monday but my browser would not let me!  It is still not working correctly!  I wanted to try out my new scales I received for Christmas so I went out and picked some little lettuce and spinach leaves.  10oz worth!!!!  lol

 

"It" would not let me write between my pictures so sorry for the inconvenience plus mixed my pictures up.  So the carrots were not from my garden but a good buy I found at Aldi's so I made up some more dilly carrots.  I peeled the garlic to put in and had it sitting there and forgot to add it to the jars so guess I will have dilly carrots without the garlic!  Where was my brain???  This senior citizen business can be a real challenge at times!!!!!!

 

The picture above the carrots is a "music" picture frame that Aunt Joan sent to us.  Of course it has a picture in it of Gracie playing our piano!

 

The pictures of the "littles" are sitting on a new table runner I made.  Notice the different colored music notes in the material!  I would like to make a lap quilt to co-ordinate with it and have a music theme in the living room.

 

The picture of the bird feeder is just because there were some birds at it!!  Wish it attracted more different kinds of birds.  For now there are only sparrows and juncos.

 

The very first picture is a french apple pie that I made from the apple pie filling I had put in the freezer in the fall.  It tasted yummy and is long gone!  I will try to post this mess and hope it makes a little bit of sense!!!!!!  Thanks for your patience. 

 



 

Tasha Tudor and other things!

 

Is anyone a fan of Tasha Tudor????  What beautiful flowers in her yard!

 



 

I received new gardening gloves for Christmas!  Dream on.........

 

 

Also received a digital scale!  Now I will be able to weigh all that wonderful produce that I will hopefully grow!

 

 

My dilly carrots were all gone that I had canned earlier so canned up some more from some carrots that I had in the refrigerator!  Yum!

 

 

Make sure you take time to relax and a cup of tea before the yard work and gardening begins once again!!