Fruiting Pineapples

My pineapple top has rooted and now needs to be planted, which I’ll do today. You never knew you could grow a pineapple bush? Here’s how:

Twist the top off a fresh pineapple, don’t cut it. Let it dry out for 5 days or so.

Stick it in a glass of water, changing the H2O every 3-4 days. I put my cup in an east windowsill. It took a couple of weeks to start the roots, then I just left it in the cup for about another month I think. If your top doesn’t root, it may be too old—try another.

After it roots, pot it up. Eventually, a red bud is supposed to form containing over a hundred tiny flowers that open into velvety blue blooms, each lasting a day. Each spent flower bract then develops into one segment of the fruit.

But before the pineapple top will flower, I’ll have to put a bag over the pot with an apple, tied tight so no air escapes, for about 5 days, thus allowing the ethylene gas from the apple to force the pineapple to flower.

After the bag is removed, new leaves will form from the center of the plant and rows of pineapple fruit will begin growing at the bottom of the new leaves. It will be golden yellow and about 6 inches above the old plant on a stalk about ¼ inch thick. (Staking required.) And if the plant doesn’t flower, I’ll repeat the apple procedure.

I’ll keep you all posted how this project develops, but hopefully we’ll be eating fresh, ripened on the plant pineapple in about . . . 11 months or so, as (I believe) it takes about 9 months for a pineapple fruit to ripen. Can’t wait!!

Today Rowan ate:

banana

chocolate hemp milk

carrot salad: carrots, onions, celery, thyme, garlic, parsley, ACV, EVOO, maple syrup, braggs aminos, sea salt, cayenne, . . . . . ? (Going by memory here)

Mango coconut chutney: mango, apple, coconut, honey, cayenne, tumeric, salt, cinnamon, pepper, ????

raw cookies: hazelnut, coconut, hempseed, sesameseed, apple, raisin, goji, salt, cinnamon, honey

green smoothies—orange, apple, banana, spinach

fresh peas

blueberries

strawberries

~Rowan and Sharilyn

UPDATE: 7/13/2011 I have a small pineapple growing!!! yeah!

Bring On the Heat!

It’s been super humid-hot the last couple-few days and I’m loving it!! We (Rowan, Rich, and I) have been working outside tending to the lawn, the gardens, and the bugs. Peas went POW overnight. Sugar snaps are sooo sweet and crispy—not like what you get in the store. And Ro-Ro can’t get enough of the sweet pod peas. Every batch I’ve brought in she’s gobbled up, so I guess I won’t be freezing any!! Maybe I’ll plant a bunch more for a fall crop.

Most of the lettuces have bolted, so we’ve had salads, wraps, and green smoothies. What I won’t be able to use up right away is being frozen for smoothies later. Carrots are ready and Ro munches one every time she’s out to the garden. Green beans have a ways to go yet, which is good because I’m still looking for some raw green bean recipes. Anyone know a good one?? Send it and I’ll post it. Parsley’s growin’ well and I look forward to fall harvest and Jinjee and Storm’s tabuli recipe which is one of my favorites.

Rowan’s been in her kiddie pool every day---and mommy’s joined her a couple times as well!! She’s so funny to watch as she tries to squirt me with water from the rubber duckie’s bottom—but get’s it turned the wrong way and squirts herself instead! LOL . . . but she’s learning fast. She also discovered that mommy screams and daddy runs away when she squirts the coooold water from the hose at them. Giggle, giggle, giggle says Rowan.

I made a batch of what have you cookies. Started with the hazelnut pulp leftover from milk and just kept adding. They have: nut pulp, juice and pulp from 3 oranges, cinnamon, raw honey, vanilla, flax seed, black sesame seed, chia seed, hemp seed, and coconut flakes. I can’t wait to taste them as the batter was super yummy. Rowan helped and it was all I could do to keep the spoon and her fingers out of her mouth, then out of the dough again! It’s not like cookies that are baked, so germs that won’t get destroyed in an oven are not wanted in the dough.

Today Rowan ate:
lots of green smoothie—a full blender, as she couldn’t get enough.
two salads—red leaf lettuce, onion, and carrot pulp
lots of peas
a carrot from the garden
hazelnut banana milk with flax oil, vanilla, and sea salt
¼ of a huge watermelon
the rest of the cookies I made on father’s day—about 7 cookies

Enjoy your evening!
~Rowan and Sharilyn

Dad’s Day

Happy Dad’s Day to all the dads I know!!! Rowan and I have been busy getting a couple gifts together for Rich. We (I) put together a shadow box to remember Bo, Rich’s dog (a.k.a. his ‘son’) who passed away a couple years ago. Twelve great years with a best friend that always loves to see you, even when you’re crabby. We miss you Bo!!
Rowan and I are also planning on making dinner for pops, of his choosing.
We had inquired about a lawn mower listed in the classifieds and yesterday went to inspect. OMG. Suffice to say, we came home with a verrrrry clean, excellently conditioned Troy-Built w/ instruction manual still in the plastic folder for a song. As we drove home, I noticed the slight smell of gas, oil, and cut grass mixed together and immediately thought of my dad and all the summers working together mowing lawns. Strangely enough, it’s one of the best smells in the world to me, kinda like fishy hands in 50 First Dates.

Here’s some things I love about my dad:
He’s largely responsible for my love of plants and gardens; landscaping and chocolate; garage sale-ing and campfires.
He’s goofy.
He’s sentimental.
He’s strong enough to turn his life around from a crazy downward spiral into a positive and upstanding existence.
He’s entrepreneurial enough to start his own business, again and again trying new ideas/professions.
He inspires me to seek out my dreams and try new thoughts, new foods, new paths, and to get up and brush myself off and try again.
He can’t hardly stand keeping a surprise a secret, the way he flutters around until the reveal is so funny!! Just like a four-year-old!!!
Some of his words of wisdom that I’ve adopted include “Everything in moderation,” and “When you think you have it bad just remember that someone out there has is worse,” and “If you fall flat on your face, at least you know you had the courage to try,” and “Do your best.” Or something to those effects.
If I ever need a pick-me-up, my dad’s always there with encouragement.

When I think of my dad I conjure up:
his clock that has the coil and hammer in the back
blue spruce trees
crossword puzzles
odd smells
dad singing loudly and off key while perched on a lawn mower
wiggling feet propped up in a recliner
spices, spices, spices
spaghetti sauce, spare ribs, and butter pecan ice cream
volumes of scholarly books
garage sales
tinkering/fixing things with paint, oil, or grease, or anything that smells along those lines
going out in a boat. Any boat—rowboat, pontoon, motorboat.
watching dad rototill the garden, then making holes for seeds with a stick and helping to plant all the babies
Gee Farms
Japanese maples
Lily of the Valley bells “ringing”

Happy Father’s Day Dad! I love you!!! xoxoxo

Rowan’s menu plan for the day:
green smoothie—fresh parsley, kelp, orange, apple, banana, coconut water
mangos
hemp or nutmilk w/ flax oil, sea salt, honey
mix salad with fresh what-have-yous from the garden
avocado w/ chia
flax ka-krs
cashew ‘cheese’cake with strawberries, blueberries, coconut, date-pecan crust
cantaloupe
anything else she might want

Enjoy your day! Call your dad or spend a few minutes thinking about or remembering him!!

~Sharilyn

Naked Chocolate

I LOVE getting stuff in the mail. Today was doubly great, because I received a pound of organic vanilla beans from the organic vanilla bean company and the book Naked Chocolate by David Wolfe and Shazzie. I can’t wait to digest both.
I’ve been on a raw chocolate kick I guess you could say. You see, ever since the reception of the bag of Chocolate Bliss and the afore said consequent Happy Energy Buzz, I’ve wondered if it was just the raw chocolate or the combo of all the other super ingredients. And since I’ve had raw cacao beans—2 large bags—for the last year or so that I didn’t know exactly what to do with (and because I’m out of the Bliss already!!!), I figured I’d try to make a chocolate shake with mainly the raw cacao beans, even though it’s a bit grainy. (I only have a regular blender.) But, blend for a couple minutes, add ice, and it turns into a milk shake thick enough that you hardly notice the grainyness. And since I also have quite a few “super” ingredients that I’ve had for forever and not quite known what to do with, into the shake they go. Today’s super shake was super packed since I went to the store yesterday and totally stocked up on every kind of nut and seed that was raw that I could find. Normally I wouldn’t blend more than one or two nuts together, but I figured what the hell. Plus, I overstocked from the bulk bins a bit and couldn’t quite fit everything into the containers I had at home.

Today’s Super Chocolaty Super Good For You Shake:
raw cacao
hazelnuts
pecans
macadamia nuts
cashews
brazil nuts
hemp seeds
pumpkin seeds
black sesame seeds
maca root powder
tahini
goji berries
golden berries
carob
coconut
coconut oil
agave
honey
maple syrup
vanilla
sea salt
flax oil

Wow. Didn’t realize how much stuff was in there. Think I got it all. Blended the nuts and berries, strained it, added the sweetners and oils and salt and vanilla. Oh, and saved the pulp, added some flax seeds (ground) some coconut flakes and some soaked oat grouts, a little agave and vanilla, and made cookies for Rowan, which she loved. And mom loves that a cookie (or three) can be a healthy and filling on-the-go meal. Basically it’s a raw protein bar in the shape of a cookie that my baby loves!!

Today Rowan ate:
green smoothie w/ mixed greens, carrots, apples, bananas, kelp, orange, strawberry
raw chocolate ‘elixir’
more ‘elixir’ (actually she wouldn’t leave my shake alone and drank half my glass when I wasn’t looking!! - - AFTER finishing her own glass!!!!!)
fresh sugar snap peas from the garden
more smoothie
fresh carrot, asparagus, and more peas from the garden
raw cacao-oat-coconut cookies
apple slices

~~Rowan and Sharilyn

Why Not to Drink Milk

Check out this link--http://www.notmilk.com/kradjian.html for an interesting read, then to the home page http://www.notmilk.com/ for some info-surfing "fun." Perhaps some of the brainwashed "Milk is necessary, milk is good for you" crap will wash away. Oh, and here's an FYI for you: In the early '50s, the USDA created the four basic food groups in which food industry representatives like cattlemen and dairy farmers were integral in developing. Ever look at the bottom of the food pyramid? It says, "Brought to you by the American Dairy Association." Things that make you go "Hmmmmm." But don't take my word for it. Do your own research--and break away from the brainwashed millions.

Enough ranting. Have a fruity day!!

~Sharilyn

How does your garden grow?

Here’s a pic of the garden, and one of the four foot square beds, which is planted in 16 individual square feet. In this photo there are 16 varies lettuce plants, 32 onions, radishs, 2 collard plants, 3 kale plants, 9 arugula plants, a mix of 16 parsley and cilantro plants, 4 marigolds, and 1 green cabbage plant. Tiny little plot, huge amount of food. :o}

Salad anyone? My spinach bolted w/ in a day and I didn’t catch it, so I pulled all of it out and stripped the leaves to freeze for smoothies. I decided that the other lettuces couldn’t be far behind, so I harvested quite a few leaves off each plant: arugula, dandelion, red leaf, some curly leafed, simpson bibb, and a couple others that I can’t think the name of. To that I added fresh asparagus, radishes, and green onions, and some tomatoes, avos, and sunny seeds from the store. There’s a two day salad there—for at least 2 people!!

Later, Rich helped me did a long bed for all the squash babies that need a homes. 13 plants!! We'll be in squash heaven. Oh, and Rowan helped too. She would get mad if we didn’t leave clods of excavated sod for her to put on the tarp. She was so funny about it!! And she would say ‘Thank you’ whenever we left a clump for her.

Tristen is off to his dad’s for 3 weeks, then home for a short visit, and back again for 2 more weeks. Though Rowan and Rich are here, the house seems empty at night. The ghosts have also been more active of late. Wonder if they miss him too.

Here’s Ro-Ro’s menu for yesterday:

Green smoothie w/ spinach, apples, bananas, kelp

cherry tomatoes with chia seeds

Chocolate Bliss shake

banana

salad as described above w/ ACV dressing (apple cider vinegar, raw honey, extra-virgin olive oil)

leftover smoothie

dried coconut and blueberries

more salad

~~~Sharilyn and Rowan