Have you ever had a real berry?

What is a real berry? I am browsing the supermarket and I pick up a plastic container of strawberries. They are somewhat glossy, large and an average shade of red. The problem here folks is that these strawberries like many do not taste like real berries. The kind of berries you used to eat when you were a kid from your grandmothers backyard. The kind of berry that you can smell when you sit at the table and is so juicy and flavorful that you cannot help grab handfuls. These berries are not uniform in shape, they are not grotesquely large...but just the sight of them and you know they are organic, natural and REAL. Sure you can go to the farmer's market and ask for organic berries but to me there is nothing that beats rolling up your sleeves and picking them yourself. Berry picking season is now upon us. I highly recommend the trip to a u-pick farm with the family. Not only will you have fun plucking berries but you will eat your share right there on the spot. Picking is also great for future freezing (that is a note to all you morning shake fans who use frozen fruit and pay a fortune for it). My newly discovered passion of the last few years are Boysenberries and Marionberries and I cannot wait to pick them. While there are many U-pick farms around (you can find one in your area by going to pickyourown.org), the berry picking season is short (May-July for Strawberry, Boysenberry, Marionberry & Rasberry).

The little white puffs

We all hate weeds. I personally loathe them. They are wicked little things that make gardening so much more time consuming than it should be. One such weed that seems to pop up everywhere no matter how hard I try to keep it in check is the Dandelion. While many people think of the common dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) as a pesky weed, herbalists consider it a valuable herb with many culinary and medicinal uses. To most of us the display of those yellow flowers is just another sign that we have to put on our gloves and head outside for some much needed work. Having spent years complaining about this weed I have never fully looked at or considered it's beauty at certain times. I have recently (through my son) been appreciating and admiring the metamorphosis of the little white puff ball that accompanies this pesky and sometimes prickly plant. Upon close inspection (see photo) it is amazing to see the uniformity and perfection of nature as the flower turns into a delicate puff of seeds that are carried away...or in my house...blown away by an eager toddler. Now I understand why fields and fields of dandelion puffs can be the most fun afternoon for young eyes. I will continue to remove them from my flower beds and lawn but the artist in me has decided to let nature take its course (at least until my son moves on from his puff ball fascination).

Sorrel Soup?

For the last 4 seasons of growing I've been enchanted and annoyed at this huge green and abundant plant in my herb garden known as Sorrel. It was there when I moved in and for a while I had no idea what it was until my mother tasted it and excitedly pronounced that it was "Schevel". In Russia it turns out, this is a popular plant used to make a cold soup. So now I pick the leaves and take to my mother and let her have her fun making this soup. In the summer a good Sorrel plant will grow to be quite large and will bolt and flower. The best time to pick is in cooler weather when the leaves are younger and not as sour. Garden Sorrel is almost impossible to find in stores (just like another Russian favorite Black Radishes...more on those later) and so growing it is about the only option. The soup itself is an acquired taste and there are variations on the recipe depending on if you are in Russia, Ukraine, Poland or other parts of Eastern Europe. Below is my mother's recipe to try if one dares on a hot day.



In other news...lettuce bed is growing great. Too much rain for tomatoes (yellow leaves) and I've planted 6 different varieties. Seems like another late growing season for Portland. As of beginning of June there are no open roses which has Portlanders freaking out. My rose trellis had two roses on it last week that were open. SUN SUN where are you? I am hearing that the Portland rose gardens normally filled with freshly opened roses are bare and only buds abound. Horrible for the Rose Festival season. What is worse is that because of all the rain...cherry pickers across the NW are having a difficult time and worried that they will not have ripe cherries for peak 4th of July holiday. Even my strawberries are only flowering!!!

I cannot keep Jacob (my son) out of the garden. He has decided that he would like to remove the marigolds that were planted in the tomato beds and that dirt is very fun. If he could sit in it all day he would. Very excited about exposing him to how food grows and having him pick berries from our yard.

Revekka's simple Sorrel Soup (Scha-vel)

Ingredients:
Water
salt
bunch of fresh Sorrel leaves (you can combine with fresh spinach as well)
green onions
hard boiled eggs
fresh cucumber
sour cream

bring pot of water to a boil.
chop a bunch of fresh sorrel (you can also do 1/2 sorrel and 1/2 fresh spinach)
throw in boiling water, sprinkle a little salt into water.
boil for 5 minutes. Take off stove and let soup cool
Separately boil a few eggs till they are hard boiled (cool)
Once soup is cool (at least room temp), ladle it into a bowl,
add a Tblsp. of cold sour cream (or more if you want it more creamy)
chop 1 hard boiled egg, green onion, fresh cucumber all into the bowl and serve.
If you want the soup to be super cold them cool it in the fridge first.