So this is our first year with a real garden. We've done container gardens for awhile due to lack of space, but this year my sister and brother-in-law generously offered us a little plot in their garden. We will soon be moving to a place where we will have a garden of our very own, but for now this is working out fantastically. We're growing a ton of Brussels sprouts, which get freakin' huge! I had no idea. We also have kale, chard, cauliflower, and some herbs. There were other things that we tried out but they don't seem to be doing so well. There was kohlrabi, we only got one bulb out of that, bok choy, which bolted almost immediately, and soy beans and carrots, which seem to be doing a whole lot of nothing. But it's all a learning experience and the stuff that is growing looks quite happy.
I took a picture of some of the stuff I picked today, it's chard, mint, and lemon balm.
In addition to the plot at my family's house we have a container garden on our deck. Lots of herbs, some lettuce and spinach, and radishes. Our herbs are doing great which I love because you can make some of the most delicious, and simple summer meals using fresh herbs and not much else. Simple and fresh, exactly the way summer should be.
The sausage we used for this recipe was pork and apple from a local farm and it was really great. The sweetness from the sausage and the herbs were really good together, so I would recommend using a sausage with some sweetness, but any you like would probably be great. Then again, if you're a vegetarian or don't feel like adding the meat i'm sure this would be fantastic without it too.
I'd also like to add that I did not measure the herbs that I used and I put a ton of different kinds in, so I'll try to remember what they were but I'm not going to be able to give specific amounts. I think it ended up being about a 1/4 cup though.
- About 12 oz whole wheat spaghetti (or not whole wheat, whatever you have or want to have)
- About 1/3 lb sausage
- 1 Tbs fresh rosemary
- 1/4 cup chopped shallot
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh herbs, we used basil, culantro, (it's like cilantro on steroids, and much easier to grow, I love it!) oregano, Cuban oregano (which is a fun herb, it's kinda fuzzy and hearty and it looks nothing like the oregano most of us are used to) chives, thyme, and parsley.
- 1/2 large tomato, diced
- Juice from one lemon
- Olive oil for drizzling
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Feta for sprinkling over pasta when done
Bring water to a boil in a large pot, and add the spaghetti and some salt to the water, cook until noodles are noodly, I think everyone knows how to make pasta so meanwhile...
Cut the casing of the sausage and put it in a large skillet along with the rosemary and mix together thoroughly. Brown sausage and rosemary over medium high heat. Then add shallot and garlic, and saute several minutes until the shallot becomes tender. Remove from heat and add cooked spaghetti to the skillet, combining it well with the sausage mixture. Then stir in the herbs and tomato and squeeze on the lemon juice. Next drizzle with olive oil, you probably won't need much if any because of the fat from the sausage. Salt and pepper to taste and sprinkle with feta and you're done! So simple.
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