Less Noise, More Green: August 2015

Friday, August 28, 2015

Less Noise, More Green on Social Media





















You may have noticed a new tab at the top of the page. Less Noise, More Green is now on Instagram. I've been playing with the application for a couple of weeks and feel confident enough with it now to encourage you to follow me! I'm still working on taking a decent picture with my phone but all life is a work in progress, right?

Less Noise, More Green is also on Facebook and Pinterest if you would like to follow me there as well. Just click on the tabs at the top of the page and it will take you right to there.

Facebook has changed how followers see content from pages. If you do not interact with a page, after a while Facebook will stop showing you posts from that page in your news feed. If you enjoy getting my Facebook posts, please "like", comment or click through posts every once in a while so Facebook will keep showing them to you. If you haven't seen anything from me on Facebook in a while, that could be why. If you visit my Facebook home page and interact with a post, you should start seeing Less Noise, More Green posts again.

As always, thank you so much for visiting me and for supporting me on social media. It makes my day when someone leaves a comment or likes a post.

Have a great weekend!

Sue

Thursday, August 27, 2015

Jalapeno and Cheddar Zucchini Fritters

Jalapeno and Cheddar Zucchini Fritters Recipe

Zucchini fritters are exactly what you need to make when the summer squash shows no sign of stopping. This recipe uses a full pound and a half of squash which will put a good dent in the green and yellow pile on the kitchen counter. The fritters freeze well so double or triple the recipe and make your kitchen a zucchini free zone, at least for a day or two!

Monday, August 24, 2015

How To Root Strawberry Runners


How to Root Strawberry Runners
Contact with the soil will encourage the development of roots
The cheapest way to add to the plants in your garden is to help your existing plants reproduce. You can do this by saving the seeds as they mature on your plants or by propagating - taking cuttings and rooting them. Strawberry plants are one of the easiest plants to propagate because many varieties send out runners that produce baby plants. All you have to do is help these babies produce roots, then plant them wherever you want.  I say more free berries, please!


Friday, August 21, 2015

This week, green beans are only ninety-nine cents a pound

Harvest, lessnoise-moregreen.com

Pulling, picking, snipping and digging. Harvesting home grown produce is physical work. After forty-five minutes of bending over picking bush green beans, while the early morning sun rose behind me, I slowly straightened up and felt the sweat run down my tightening back. I had been working for a couple of hours and I was ready to stop.

Wednesday, August 19, 2015

From my kitchen: Spicy Green Beans, Pesto and Balsamic Strawberries


Basil Pesto Recipe

Meals become really simple when the weather is as hot and humid as it is right now in Rhode Island. By the time I'm done preserving the day's harvest, I don't have much energy left for cooking supper! Much of the food coming out of my kitchen this week is inspired by my newly cured garlic crop, including the following recipes for Spicy Green Beans, and Pesto. Balsamic Strawberries are an easy dessert and a good way to use up less than perfect berries which is mostly what I am harvesting at this time of year.

Monday, August 17, 2015

Edible Landscaping: replacing annual Batchelor's Buttons



Edible Landscaping: replacing spent annual batchelor's Buttons
 My edible landscape is going through another transition. A significant number of annual edible flowers need to be pulled but their removal will leave holes (OK, craters) in my design. I've been putting off doing this clean up task because I couldn't decide what I wanted to do with the empty space. I think I now have a plan.

Friday, August 14, 2015

Overnight oats: recipes for summer and fall


Overnight Oats: Recipes for summer and fall
There is nothing complicated or revolutionary about overnight oats. The concept is very trendy right now here in the US but muesli has always been a staple in the Europeans diet. This doesn't make them any less delicious! I eat overnight oats for breakfast at least a couple of times a week, especially in the warmer months. The dish takes no time to prepare (as long as you remember to do it before you go to bed) and creamy soft oats make the perfect medium for seasonal eating.

Wednesday, August 12, 2015

The comfort of a garden during a time of change

Vegetable Garden, Less noise,More Green


There is a sense of change in the air around here. I'm not just talking about the change of season, which with the cooler evenings and mornings we've been experiencing lately seems to want to happen early this year. I'm talking about family milestone changes. All of my clan is feeling it and as we navigate through these changes, the rhythms and predictability of the garden are providing some solid ground for me to stand on.

Monday, August 10, 2015

From My Kitchen: soups, frittata, alpine strawberries, blue potatoes and pickles

Frittata and Blue Adirondack potato home fries

As we move into mid-August, the garden is groaning under the weight of all that needs to be picked, eaten, and preserved. My harvests are getting larger but seeing my kitchen island covered with homegrown produce- well, that never gets old. Here are some of the meals and preserves I've been making along with recipe links.

Wednesday, August 5, 2015

Edible Flower and Soft Cheese Appetizer

Edible Flower and Soft Cheese Appetizer

I'm always looking for new ways to cook with  the edible flowers growing in my gardens and this appetizer is a quick and elegant way to use them. Try serving these at your next summer party and they will be sure to spark lots of conversation!