American Enchiladas

I was looking at my recipe page, and noticed that it's woefully imbalanced, as in mostly deserts! So here is a favorite, one dish main course that is tasty and easy to make.

It's enchiladas, but these are definitely not authentic Mexican. I found the recipe when I lived in Texas, but it doesn't even qualify as Tex-Mex. However, even folks who don't care for Mexican food usually like this. The directions here are for a full recipe. The photos show only a half batch, because that suits the two of us just fine.

The original recipe was called "Turkey Enchiladas," because it called for ground turkey. Nowadays I use whatever I have on hand, which can also mean loads of vegetables for a vegetarian version (portobello mushroom enchiladas are tasty). Other modifications are noted below.

American Enchiladas

1 pound ground meat (I used grass fed ground pork)
1 small onion, chopped
1 pkg taco seasoning (I used fajita marinade)
2 cans cream of mushroom soup
1/2 small carton sour cream (I used yogurt in this batch)
1/2 soup can milk (if soup in concentrated. Mine wasn't, so I omitted it)
flour tortillas (about 10 small or 6 large)
2 cups grated cheese (we like sharp cheddar)
salsa or picante sauce, hot or mild according to taste

Brown ground meat and onion in a bit of olive oil. Add taco seasoning or a swig of fajita marinade.

While the meat is browning, mix the sauce: mushroom soup, sour cream, milk, and salsa to taste. In the above photo I'm substituting yogurt in place of the sour cream and milk. We like our yogurt liquidy for cereal, so mine has been well stirred to get that consistency.

Fill each tortilla with some browned meat and a generous sprinkle of cheese. Add a spoonful or two of sauce, roll, and place in an 8x12 inch baking dish (for a full recipe).

There should be plenty of leftover sauce to pour over all. I use a scraper to work the sauce in between all the rolled tortillas. Sprinkle with remaining cheese and bake at 400 F for 15 to 20 minutes or until bubbly.

This is a great make-ahead recipe to pop in the oven right before dinner. This allows the tortillas to absorb some of the sauce making them soft and yummy. Alternatively, the dish can be covered with foil before baking.

We love these with salad and/or Spanish rice on the side.

American Enchiladas © February 2011 by Leigh at http://my5acredream.blogspot.com/

Garden Gazintas

And what, you might well ask, is a gazinta? Doing gazintas is something DH says, when he's trying to figure something out. As in, "12 inches gazinta 106 inches 8 feet worth, with 10 inches to spare." That's the height of our kitchen ceiling, which give you a clue as to what he's working on. I'm trying to figure out next year's garden.

In the past I've always planted a somewhat traditional garden, with a row or two of carrots here, a row or two of tomatoes there, etc., etc. After reading Dick Raymond's Joy of Gardening, I started planting some things, like carrots or lettuce, in beds. I also started to plant radish seeds in with other root crop seeds as spacers and ground breakers.

I've dabbled somewhat in companion planting too, taking care what vegetables I planted next to one another, or what followed what in the same spot. I interplanted marigolds with my tomatoes, and while I'm not sure if they actually helped, I loved how they looked.

My 2010 tomato & marigold bed

This inspired me to dig a little deeper into companion planting, and I scoured the shelves of my county library. It didn't take me long to exhaust their resources.

Then, I got my hands on a copy of Great Garden Companions: A Companion Planting System for a Beautiful, Chemical-Free Vegetable Garden, by Sally Jean Cunningham. When I first flipped through it, I was a little disappointed and I wondered if I'd wasted my money, because it's aimed primarily at beginning gardeners. This isn't a bad thing, but I was afraid it wouldn't have the information I wanted. I set it aside.

One evening I was in need of some bedtime reading so I picked it up and discovered that it's very readable and contains a lot of good tips and ideas. The crux of it though, is not simply pairing plants as companions, but creating companion plant systems, which the author refers to as garden neighborhoods. In other words, she utilizes the same polycultural approach to vegetable gardening I had been reading about in Edible Forest Gardens , (but without being as technical) and Food Not Lawns (but with more how-to than why-to). The main difference is that those books focus more on perennial gardens, while this book addresses primarily annual garden vegetables. It was just what I was looking for.

Sally Jean's book offers several ways to approach this: grouping by botanical families, feeding families, performance families, or pest-fighting families. One consideration for me though, is seed saving. Apparently she is not a seed saver, which means she doesn't worry about cross pollination when she plans her groups. That made me hesitate. Then I read Mr. H's post, Seed Saving Schedule 2011 - 2014, and realized that I don't have to save every type of seed every year. It was onward ho after that.

My February gardening project then, is to develop a personalized plan for mixed beds of companion vegetables, with some flowers and herbs thrown in to round the whole thing out. I figure this year will be the hardest, because it's requiring a lot of research and planning. Once I get my companion groups established, I won't have to figure them all out from scratch every year. It will be a simpler matter of rotating where I plant them, or swapping out one thing for another. I can figure out my seed saving schedule from there. I'm sure I'll make adjustments, but hopefully, this system will work well and my garden will be happy. As soon as I get a basic plan for 2011 figured out, I'll let you know.

UPDATE: 2/18/11 - here it is, My Companion Group Garden Plan

Garden Gazintas © February 2011 by Leigh 

at http://my5acredream.blogspot.com/

Happy Hatch Day

One year ago today, our chickens were hatching from their eggs. Two days later, we were off to the post office shortly after 5 AM, to pick them up. (Their first post here).

Our chickens, one year ago

It's amazing that we've had them for a full year now. They are so much a part of the homestead that I can't remember what it was like without them.

My flock of 8

We started with 24 chicks, but ended up with a flock of 8, 7 hens and one rooster.

One of our two Ameraucana hens.

And the other

Of those, our most faithful layers have been my two Ameraucanas and my Barred Holland. When I did my initial research, I didn't read a lot of positives about the Ameraucanas. Most folks didn't think they were too friendly, but kept them around for their colored eggs. In fact, these chickens are often referred to as Easter Eggers, which is probably more accurate since a true Ameraucana is rare.

I've really liked mine though. They are inquisitive and always come when they see me. I'm not attributing this to "friendliness," but rather a curiosity as to whether or not I have something to eat. Still, I like it when they run up, cock their heads, and look me in the eye. Then too, the muffs on the sides of their faces give them a whimsical look. What's not to like? Besides laying throughout the winter, they also lay the largest eggs of my four breeds.

One of our 3 Welsummers

I have three Welsummers, which I think are beautifully colored. They are reputed to lay dark brown eggs, though mine haven't laid eggs any darker than the Delaware's. The eggs are distinct though because they are spotted. Even so, I've probably liked the Wellies the least. Of all my chickens, they keep their distance and generally try to avoid getting very near. They were the last to start laying and the earliest to quit with their winter moult. Now, all their feathers have grown back in but they still haven't started to lay again.

Lady Delaware on the right, 2 Wellies on the left

My Delaware quit laying and moulted about the same time as the Wellies. She, however, has begun to lay again. She is the one chicken that comes running anytime I empty a dirty water bucket. She loves to drink the dumped out water and scratch in the mud. She also likes to follow my Barred Holland hen around and snatch whatever Lady B has scratched up.

The one we worry about the most is the Delaware. Being white, she stands out visually. This is a concern because we have hawks. We also have blue jays who imitate hawk cries. Any time Lady Delaware hears one of these, she runs for cover. Smart chicken. Thankfully, we haven't lost a chicken so far.

Our Barred Holland hen, Lady B, on the right

Lady Barred Holland is the smallest of our hens and lays medium white eggs. She's been a very faithful winter layer, though she was one of the later ones to start. In fact she's still laying even though she's begun to moult. She's inquisitive and not shy, though draws the line at any attempt on my part to pet her. Actually none of my chickens likes to be petted, which is okay by me because I don't think of them as pets anyway.

Lord Barred Holland

Last but not least is our faithful rooster. He's turned out to be a real gem.

Lord B on duty

The above photo is how you'll usually see him, ever watchful while the ladies scratch and peck. He's always ready to warn at any loud sound or if something seems amiss. When he squawks the alarm, the hens all run for cover. If he finds some goody the hens will like, he clucks to them and then steps back to keep watch while they enjoy. He likes people too. He's inquisitive but not aggressive. If we're out in the field, he'll come hang out with us. He always comes to inspect whatever outdoor project we have going on. In fact, no matter where we are on the property, we'll see him at the fence, interested in our goings on. He doesn't miss a trick. Poor fellow got some frost bite on his comb though, at least I believe that's what the black is from, on the comb tips. I'm not sure if I could have prevented that.

I confess I wouldn't mind trying another breed or two. Dan likes the look of Buff Orpingtons, and I like to look of the Speckled Sussex. I'm not sure if I would want to try to integrate new chicks into an established flock however.

At long last, the hens have consented to use my nest boxes.

We're getting one to three eggs a day at present. I am hoping one of my hens goes broody this summer so she can hatch a clutch of eggs. I'd love to be able to add a half dozen or so new pullets to the flock every year, to keep annual egg production to where we can always have eggs, either fresh or frozen. Apparently Welsummers and Ameraucanas aren't particularly broody, so that leaves either my Delaware or Barred Holland. I suppose time will tell.

The flock out on the field

Happy Hatch Day © February 2011 by Leigh at http://my5acredream.blogspot.com/