Strawberries in the ground — Cooking peppers from the freezer

I LOVE strawberries! And, I have a pretty good record of growing them. The bunnies also have a VERY good track record of eating them. This year I hope to foil the bunnies with my new deer and bunny proof fence!

Foiling the wildlife!

Last May I ordered a seven foot high deer proof fence from Deer Busters. As the monster truck rumbled into the neighborhood to deliver it, I wondered if I’d done the right thing. I always liked the way the garden flows into the yard and the yard transitions to the creek bank and the water. However, after three years of harvesting pretty much nothing from my garden, I decided I either had to give up growing food, or give my plants a fighting chance.

It took three people a good two days to get the fence up but because of it, I now have 50 strawberry plants in the ground.

Planting time

I purchased 25 June bearing strawberries and 25 ever bearing strawberries bare root from Stark Bros. Before planting, I pulled back the pine straw covering the beds and added some vermiculite and compost to the soil. In went my strawberries about 10 inches apart. Then a light covering of pine straw went back overtop to mulch.

For my area, they went in mid-February. That seems really early but Strawberries are actually cold hardy. My garden zone is 7B and getting warmer all the time it seems. The berries I bought are rated for zones 3 to zone 8.

Now I wait. You are supposed to clip off the strawberry blooms the first year to help the plants put their energy into growing strong. I will try but I don’t know if I have the patience. I did read that if you clip the flowers from the ever bearing plants in June and July, you can harvest the berries produced from then on.

Veggies make beautiful late winter flowers

While I wait with impatience for Spring to arrive, I can still enjoy the beauty of the garden.

This is the last of the Pak Choi I planted last fall and harvested all winter. I like to let one or two of these stay in the ground to see what their flowers look like.

Some of these plants have such pretty flowers, it’s a wonder we don’t grow them as ornamentals! Broccoli in particular is gorgeous. Covered with tiny yellow blooms.

Harvesting the freezer

I also have a bounty of things in the freezer to use from last summer’s harvest — including a gallon bag, almost full of assorted peppers.

I pulled out some Trinidad Perfume and Chile Lombok to chop up for an omelette.

First I sautéed some onion, then added the peppers.

When they were soft, I removed them from the pan, wiped it out and added two eggs that I had whisked. After the edge of the omelette had set, I took a silicon spatula and went around the edges, tilting the pan so that the liquid eggs on top could slide underneath and speed up the cooking.

When that was done, I put a loose lid over the top of the eggs to get the top set before the bottom burned.

I had half of a roasted delicata squash left over and when I scraped it out of the shell, it was a paste consistency. I spread that over the omelette and added some vegan cheese.

The sweetness of the squash and the mellowness of the cheese, smoothed out the heat from the peppers.

Finally my sautéed onion and pepper went in, the folded the omelette and it was time to eat!

A hint of summer heat for my end of winter Sunday brunch.

Pepper Omelette

• Two eggs
• 2 tsp. water or milk
• 1/4 cup diced onion
• 1/4 cup diced bell pepper
• 2 Tbs. diced hot pepper (use your judgement on the level of heat)
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 tsp. of thyme
• 1 Tbs. roasted winter squash
• 2Tbs. vegan cheese (or more to taste)

Chop the onion and peppers and add them with the seasoning to a little olive oil and sauté in over medium heat. When they are soft (about 5 minutes) remove from pan. Wipe out pan. Whisk eggs with a little bit of water or milk. Add a small amount of oil to the clean pan and return to heat. When the pan is warm, pour in the beaten eggs. When the edge is set, use a rubber spatula to slide under the edge and tilt the skillet so the uncooked egg runs underneath the set edge. Move around the edge of the pan until all the liquid egg has been transferred to the underside of the omelette. Cover with a lid for a minute or so to help set the top. All the squash and the cheese. Cover again for a minute or so to soften the cheese. Add back the peppers and fold the omelette.

Notes: I just happened to have some left over delicata squash to use up and I liked the flavor with the hot peppers. The omelette would be just as good without it. You could also use just bell peppers for a zero heat experience. My hot peppers were about medium for my taste buds but I know some would find this too hot and others too mild so make it your way!!