Saturday, February 26, 2011

Bags and Brussel Sprouts.......

unlikely combination right?  well i finished another grocery bag and yesterday was 'out and about', going to our semi-local farmer's market... well not exactly since a goodly portion of their produce is brought in from california, mexico and other points far south... i took my beautiful bag with me and filled it up.. i'm happy, they hold a lot of groceries and look pretty, had no distress with the weight of the produce... all good i'd say...

as for the brussel sprouts i've found a very very good reason to grow more and protect them better from the deer.... at $8.13 a kilogram i'll not be buying many more from the produce section of anywhere..... the brussel sprouts do very well overwintering here and in the spring  the stalks produce lovely tasty new spring greens and if you  haven't eaten all of the sprouts you also have those ... not bad i'd say... and did i buy some? Yes.... sigh.. why? you might ask ...because turkey just is NOT the same without brussel sprouts and cranberry sauce... we are going to have a family dinner next weekend and the turkey has been in daughter's freezer.. time to cook it up and make a batch of turkey broth with the carcass...i've now used up all my canned turkey broth and am needing more...

this winter i truly fell off the veggie wagon and have been eating a fair bit of meat/poultry and fish... not sure why, but i figure if i'm craving it i most likely missing something in my diet... i'm gradually cutting back more and more on the meat department and trying to get back on the veggie/beans/rice wagon... wish me luck!!

am going to have to grow more green/purple beans this year too since i've managed to use almost all my canned beans that i did up... i canned them because i had them and a lot of carrot leftovers and i'm a touch quirky about letting the bounty rot on the compost heap... i'm not much of a canned string bean and or carrot lover but i've used them in a lot of soups and stews and i have to admit they were a good addition..

and here comes the 'rant'... i shall be good, honest!! this link is from Mother Earth News so i'm going to 'assume' that it's pretty correct... it's an article on certain company that isn't on the up and up on their 'organic' status...... as for me IF i could find a supplier of local goats milk i'd be there like a dirty shirt.. but once again.. not allowed to buy it raw and no place local that i know of..... the milk police at work you know... the milk police, the egg police, the slaughter house police .... oh wait... here's a link to an article about how our meat has to be processed.... it is an older article but still rings true.. many small farmers literally gave up and once again many of us are forced into buying meat that is processed in large facilities.....

here on Vancouver Island there is a movement from local small farmers to break into the market, as it is now it's a very small portion of what is offered in larger grocery stores... 
rant over..... back to reality....
since gas went up another 10 cents a litre... $1.23 a litre ..... i shall be home much more..so a sewing i shall go.. until i can 'sow' in the garden!!!

7 comments:

Out on the prairie said...

They sell goats milk here with a not fit for human consumption since it doesn't pasteurize I hear.A lot of humankids with lactose allergy can drink it.I babysat one and you get a lot of milk.Brussel sprouts are the most nutricious of the cole crops.I didn't know they would overwinter, I like one frost before I pick them, it makes them sweeter.Roundabout has an owl design on her bags today.If you don't read her, click my profile and it will list blogs i read.

Roasted Garlicious said...

u can buy in the grocery store, so they must have some process they use... i'd be one of those human kids ;) when i was young my aunt and uncle always let me drink their goats milk but i can't tolerate cows milk... i love brussels sprouts.. here it doesn't usually get that cold, so they do overwinter.. not sure how cold it gets where you are... i went to Roundabout's site, very cute bags.. :D thanks

Mr. H. said...

We are so very lucky to have a lady just down the street that sells us raw cow milk "pets only" of course. Boy would I love to try goat milk though...never have but I bet I would love it. We are excited to try a dwarf variety of brussel sprouts in the garden this year that is supposed to be a short season variety, I'm so excited...doesn't take much.:) Good luck with your new dietary plans.

Mrs. Mac said...

I see a sign all the time nearby that says 'fresh goat' milk for sale. I've always wanted to get some .. of course .. for my 'pets' .. er .. kids .. That's great to know how well the brussel sprouts overwinter .. and put forth spring greens .. will have to try them in the garden .. enjoy the turkey dinner .. sounds yummy!

Geno said...

We have been buying raw cows milk for about five months now from a local family. Not only is it yummy but it is cheaper than buying "organic" at the store. And the yogurt it makes is very nice.

Roasted Garlicious said...

Mr. H, Mrs. Mac and Geno.. i'm thirsty!! some goats give better tasting milk than others, i would think it is whatever they are feeding them, but i'm basically i'm clueless..and in my estimation must be drunk icy cold.. served with cookies!!!

Out on the prairie ...i checked on pasturization and it's pretty easy, heat to a certain temp..keep at that temp for 30 sec... cool quickly..

as for the brussels sprouts.. yumm a dwarf one would be good to have since i don't have much room... my only 'bah humbug' for them is they are the greatest aphid collectors i know of ....

Year Round Vegetable Gardener said...

When I was a child in the 80's, my mother used to have to wait an hour in line (every 2 weeks) to get a few bottles of goat's milk for my younger sister.. often, she came away empty handed, as there was not enough supply for the local demand. Today, you can buy it any day of the week at numerous organic markets - so glad times have changed!

We also love to grow brussels sprouts - as you mentioned the deer love them too! I need a better fence this year.. it's my main garden addition once the ground thaws.. or, if the ground thaws! it's cold out there! :)