Before we get to this amazing dinner that we enjoyed last night, I thought I would update you on my vegetable garden progress!
Eric and I built the first of two raised beds for the veggie garden. Each bed is 4 feet by 8 feet. We used this step-by-step tutorial for a raised bed.
Our growing season doesn’t officially begin until Victoria Day Weekend (around May 20th), which is when most gardeners deem the risk of frost to be over. Some gardeners will plant before this date and then use a frost cover if there is a warning though.
Things I still need to figure out:
- Where to buy a 100% organic topsoil (do they exist?)
- Read up on Lasagna gardening method
- Build or buy a compost bin- research options/methods
- Make a list of what I will grow
- Read up on companion planting
- Draw a plan/diagram of where I will plant everything in boxes
- How to get rid of my black thumb!!!
Right now I am thinking about planting the following:
- Onions
- Lettuce
- Kale
- Zucchini/Squash
- Garlic
- Peas
- Beets
- Carrots
- Tomatoes
- Peppers
- Cucumber
- Herbs!
- Some type of berry (strawberries or blackberries probably)
What do you experienced gardeners think of this list? Is it too much for a 1st garden? Any tips?
In other news, my Mexican food kick rages on!
As does our cold and snowy weather…
When you can’t get warm, make spicy Mexican food, I say. :)
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Taco Chili with Nacho Cheeze Sauce
Chili adapted from Skinny Taste
Yield: 7 cups
Ingredients:
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 small onion, peeled and diced
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
- 1 cup dry kidney beans (or 2 cups cooked)
- 1 cup dry black beans (or 2 cups cooked)
- 1 tbsp ground cumin
- 1 tbsp ground chili powder
- One 5.5 oz can tomato paste
- 1 & 1/4 cup frozen corn kernels
- One 28-oz can diced tomatoes
- 2 tsp homemade taco seasoning (or packaged seasoning, to taste)
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh Cilantro
- heaping 1/4 cup Nacho Cheeze Sauce (below)
- To garnish: Nacho cheeze sauce, crushed tortilla chips, and non-dairy cheese
Directions:
1. Cook the beans if necessary. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook the onion and garlic in a very large skillet over low-medium heat until translucent, about 5 minutes.
2. Stir in the cumin, chili powder, followed by the tomato paste and frozen corn. Cook for a few minutes on low.
3. Add the canned tomatoes and Cilantro and stir well. When the beans are cooked, drain them, rinse, and stir into chili. Slowly add the homemade taco seasoning (or store bought) to taste until desired taste is achieved. Simmer on low-medium heat for about 10-15 minutes. Meanwhile, make your cheeze sauce (below).
4. Stir in a heaping 1/4 cup of the Nacho Cheeze Sauce and serve with crumbled tortilla chips, non-dairy cheese (I used Daiya), and Cilantro garnish. Makes 7 cups.
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I bought some frozen Cilantro cubes as a more economical way to buy herbs (I hope to grow some in the summer though). I wasn’t overly impressed when I added a couple Cilantro cubes into the skillet. The aroma was not the same! Maybe I didn’t use enough? I can’t wait until I can pluck some from the garden!
Cook your onion and garlic until translucent.
Add in your seasonings, frozen corn, and tomato paste.
Stir in the can of tomatoes and Cilantro.
When the beans are cooked, drain and rinse, and then stir into the chili.
Simmer on low for about 10-15 minutes to allow the flavours to develop.
Meanwhile, make your nacho cheeze sauce!
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Nacho Cheeze Sauce
Adapted from Ashley.
Yield: 1 cup
Ingredients:
- 3/4 cup raw cashews
- 1/4 cup + 1 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1/3 cup water
- 1/4 cup salsa (I used Medium heat)
- 2 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder* see note
- Shake red pepper flakes
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
Directions: In a food processor, add all ingredients and process until smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.
Note: Next time, I would use fresh garlic (1 clove probably) instead of the powder.
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Now stir in a heaping 1/4 cup of the cheeze sauce into the chili! It makes the Taco Chili sooo creamy and delicious.
I topped a bed of romaine greens with a huge scoop of the Taco chili and garnished it with a spoonful of cheeze sauce, crumbled tortilla chips, and Daiya cheese. I prefer the cheeze sauce a bit warm so I heated it in the microwave for 15-20 seconds. It doesn’t heat very well though and it got a bit hard on the sides. It was nothing a good stir couldn’t fix though!
The Taco Chili turned out fantastic! A little spicy, a little creamy, and a ton of amazing flavours.
It was husband approved too…Eric gave it two thumbs up. :)
I’m so COLD this morning…need more tea!
I read your blog daily from Minneapolis! I so enjoy it and your energy to boot! ;)
I have never commented though and thought I would throw this in about your raised beds, just in case you have never heard of it before – http://www.squarefootgardening.com/
There is a book about it too, but after a lifetime of gardening in “row fashion” with my family, this new method has changed the way I garden forever! I think you might really really like it!
that’s awesome Angela! Unfortunately, I have no advice b/c I haven’t tried gardening. yet. :) This dish looks so yummy! anything with cumin and Mexican-ish is great in my book.
It looks delicious! I’m always amazed at how much stuff you get done on a daily basis. I can’t believe you’ve already gotten that far on your gardening! The chili looks unreal… I’m obsessed with nutritional yeast right now so I have to try that cheese sauce.
I recognize that I’m blog plugging here, but I’m in your growing zone and we’re starting up a garden too! (I have a page dedicated exclusively for it on my blog tabs) Can’t wait to get started! I don’t know how “organic” it is, but we just saw that the Loblaws has Organic Top Soil (also ones specially for veggies, perennials, etc.). Having just moved from 8 hours South, I can’t believe how late the growing seasons are here! Ah, the little things to get used to again…
Two things about composting: 1) the lasagna method is awesome (that’s what we’re starting with to kill our grass) 2) direct composting is best! We did this at my parents place for the past two years: all we did was keep a couple rows of the garden on reserve, and dug them into trenches about 4-6 inches deep, stick our compost in there, and then cover it with soil once you’ve put the stuff in. The worms do all the work, it works really quickly, and your soil becomes amazing! And the deer/bunnies/animals won’t get at it, despite my parents’ fears. Once you’ve worked your way through the whole row, and with proper dirt piling, you get a whole new wonderfully soiled row ready for planting! (it’s a lot simpler than I may have made it sound)
Chantal the link to your Blog is not working. Thanks so much for telling us about lasagna gardening, we are just putting our beds together and defining our garden area. This is the perfect way for us to garden, we have so much clay here in our part of BC. I have lots of nasty compost to use and I love your idea about keeping an area for just that. Andrea
Weird, I had checked if it worked on mine, but let me give it another shot… thanks for noticing! It’s http://eatdancelive.blogspot.com/p/garden-2011.html (or you can link it from http://eatdancelive.blogspot.com)
And about the clay, I guarantee you that with the direct composting method and one year of growing and composting you’ll be good to go (my parents can’t BELIEVE how their clay soil has transformed. It progressively went from that orangey-red colour to a dark rich brown in a year.)
Wow, Angela…awesome taco chili! I love it…it looks awesome! And the nacho cheeze sauce…yum! The cheezy sauce I make as the kale chip coating I use for my cheezy kale chips starts out with cashews and nooch, red pepper, more seasonings..I love the looks of yours. The mexican flavored twist to it with the cumin and salsa. I want it!
The whole meal just looks glorious..yum!
And great work on the gardening. You two are pros already just getting it all set up is awesome! Between running your blog, cooking, photography, now gardening….you must sleep less than I do :)
Oooh, good luck with the veggie garden! I’ve always wanted to try the raised boxes but we just don’t have enough room yet. I’m not sure how you are planning on starting your veggies (from seeds or plants?) but I started my plants from seeds and watched them grow into seedlings (full of pride!) until one day my bad little kitty went and ate ALL of the seedlings. Just a word of caution since I know you have a kitty!
Mmm, that chili looks super yummy!
I was thinking about starting a garden too, and I want to do it similar to yours. Can you keep us updated as to your progress? I’d love to see a few posts on gardening. =)
I’ve seen organic top soil at my local home depot and at some local gardening stores…..my mom uses it! And let me just say…..recipes like this prove that eating vegan can be DELICIOUS! Can’t wait to try this out!
Oh my I want a garden! I should move to a small town…or wait, I don’t know. Grrr….
Yum. Every night no matter what I eat it’s topped with sauce and cheese…uh, not the healthy cheese though…darn ;)
a little off the subject, but saw this in this month’s whole living magazine and reminded me of your blog…
“The most beautiful glow isn’t applied, it’s cultivated from within.”
Be warned . . . strawberries are hard to contain! They spread everywhere and you either need to pull shoots or till them up. I found them in my herb garden right next to the strawberry patch. Blueberries don’t spread and Raspberries do a little. Black raspberries arch funny, but don’t take up too much space.
Have fun planning and planting your garden!
I also cant wait to plant some herbs and veggies!
So I may have made this for dinner, and ate 1/3 of it!!!! Opps.
I’m not sure about soil, but here’s a great place to get organic seeds:
http://www.johnnyseeds.com/default.aspx
I checked — they deliver to Canada.
The husband and I are planning to grow a whole lot of stuff this year, and we’re first time gardeners. I wonder if we’re planting too many things. I guess we’ll see!
I wish I had this recipe yesterday because I was in definite need of some comfort food! I can’t believe we’re getting SNOW in April!
Wow, that is going to be a huge garden! You put my little garden of tomatoes and herbs to shame. ;) I’m excited to follow along with its progress!
I’m so jealous of your soon-to-be garden! We’re apartment dwellers so a garden is definitely out of the question for us. We might be able to get away with one of those “grow tomatoes upside down” contraptions on the balcony, but that’s about it. Sounds like you’ve got a delicious summer ahead of you!
That nacho cheese sounds SO delicious!!
Your taco chili look so yummy. That’s one thing that I haven’t tried yet
I don’t know if this has already been mentioned in the comments (didn’t read them all), but not everything can be planted at the same time, in the same spot, or together.
Also, watch out for planting 2 different types of squash, don’t plant them one next to the other, they cross-pollinate very easily, and you’ll end up with weird cross-squashes (which can turn either good or bad).
My recommendation would be to trim the list a little, pick about 4 or 5 veg and start with that, since some plants like sun, some don’t, some like a lot of water, some don’t, and herbs can easily overgrow a garden. I have my herbs in pots, so they don’t take the beds over. I think it’s easier to take some plants that grow well (like squashes, sweet potatoes, etc…) and try your hand with those, they’re more forgiving. Once you get the hang of it, you can increase your list easily.
This looks so delicious! I’m always looking for new vegan mexican recipes that my non-vegan husband this looks like a winner!