NOISE: Dig In

Ultimate Memorial Day Barbecue

How could your weekend be complete without an American flag and the grill fired up?  Asparagus is perfect this time of year: toss in oil, cook a few minutes on the grill, then cool while you cook up your other dishes and sprinkle with thyme before serving.  Sweet potatoes can be roasted in the coals (wrapped in foil) while other delicacies occupy the grill surface.

 

Don't forget the fresh corn! Soak ears (husks on) for about an hour, then let them slow cook on your dying coals while you enjoy dinner....

Moles, Badgers, Woodchucks... River Eels?

Before your domain is intruded upon by pesky rodents, get familiar with the signs of and distinctions between these various varmints.  Your yard, garden, and taming-of-the-wild impulse will al be equally well served.

Airport Community Garden Opening & Allen St. Farmers Market

The Lansing area's largest community garden will have its yearly opening soon.  Whether you're looking to grow a garden for yourself or to donate to others, Airport Community Garden provides an opportunity to learn from others' planting styles while enjoying a countryside atmosphere minutes from the heart of Lansing.  To sign up for a plot, contact gardenproject@greaterlansingfoodbank.org

 

Looking for starter plants for your garden?  Allen Neighborhood Center's Allen Street Farmer's Market (at the corner of Kalamazoo St.) will feature them at market this Wednesday, May 26.  Market hours are 2:30 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. every Wednesday throughout the summer.

Frittata du jour

Nitaawe busted out this G'onion frittata (thanks to Mike for the eponymous garlic onions) with ingredients salvaged from the community garden before tilling--it's a great time of year for dill.  Grated potatoes form the base of this fluffy egg dish with a crunchy cheddar crust.  

  

Spread the veggies in an even layer before adding the eggs.

  Healthy and delicious toast is the perfect accompaniment for a summer frittata.

G'Onion Frittata

• 1 medium potato, grated and rinsed
• 2 Tbs. butter
• 1 tsp. olive oil
• 1 cup broccoli, chopped
• 3 garlic-onions
• 7 eggs, beaten with milk
• 0.5 cup cheddar cheese, grated
• 1 Tbs. fresh dill, chopped
• Seasonings to taste

1. Turn broiler on high
2. To hot skillet on stove-top, add first four ingredients.  Cook until soft.
3. Add "G'onions" and saute briefly. Spread in even layer.
4. Add eggs to skillet, then sprinkle cheese on top. Cook until eggs stiffen slightly.
5. Place skillet in broiler on top rack.
6. Safely yank when the top looks inflated and crunchy. Carefully remove the skillet and allow to cool for a few minutes before serving.

Use a creative garnish to liven up the plate--baby radishes would go great with this dish!  

Spice Up Your Monday

Went to weed the garden and found the herb corner was thrusting up thyme, sage, even lavender foliage along with the hardy chives, mint, and sage.  This is a good time to harvest these tasty herbs for fresh use or storage. 

Chives, mint, thyme, oregano and sage fresh from the garden.  The purple chive flowers are delicious.  

Lansing Urban Farms, Community Gardens, Kitchen Gardens...

There are over a hundred community gardens growing food or a combination of food and ornamentals within a twenty minute radius by car from the Capitol.  Add on the numerous ornamental gardens, home gardens, and local farms in the tri-county area, and you've got a glorious cross-section of what the mitten can grow.

Looking for a tour?

MSU Student Organic Farm Tour Monday

The Student Organic Farm (SOF) at Michigan State University is a great inspiration for those interested in responsible food production.  Take the opportunity to tour the pioneering, student-initiated farm this Monday, May 10th, 3-4:30 p.m.

 

Thinnings from the Garden

Yes, thinnings. Steel your heart and pluck enough of your sprouts to allow the remaining plants their necessary space to reach maturity (that's space above and below ground).  But don't toss those baby (or "micro-") greens in the compost--this is the stuff gourmet salads are made of. 

These radish sprouts keep well root-down in a glass of water in a cool place.  

For the salad below, top your sprouts with walnuts, almonds, pecans, dried blueberries and cranberries, grapes, avocado, and a few drops of oil and vinegar--some orange zest will lend an eye-brow raising contrast.

 Culling your densely planted garden is an opportunity to enjoy special early seasonal treats while providing your remaining plants with the proper spacing to reach full maturity.

Local Restaurants' Sleeper Hits

Ital or Deadas, It's All Irie

Palace of Jamaica Caribbean Cuisine on Washington and Kalamazoo is unmatched in mid-Michigan as a faithful gourmet of traditional yet innovative West Indian flair.  The Jerk Chicken has much less char than visitors to Jamaica might remember--the texture is that of delicately poached chicken in an almost duck-fat-like crusty skin. Many popular dishes sell out daily. The curried goat affects an equally deft translation: all the savory, triumphant flavor of home cooking with an easy-going professionalism that assures consistent quality.

Dinner at Tiffany's

Speaking of easy-going professionalism, the service at Dusty's Cellar and Wine Bar is impeccable.  More importantly, hidden in plain site among pricey steaks and other delicious entrees like stuffed quail is the knock-out, slow-cooked Mediterranean Spiced Braised Beef.  "It's traditional country fare," says general manager C.J. Davis, "and we've never been shy with spices."  This dish is cooked over the course of days in the traditional fashion: Veal bones are roasted and used to make stock, which is combined with Chianti and Tomato stock to form the braising liquid with garlic, fennel, peppers, olives and onions.  The ultra-slow process yields a succulent, generous portion of beef that falls off the bone with complex flavor and a surprisingly delicate yet tangy, savory taste.  You may find the suits with the fifty dollar steaks at the next table looking disappointed in their poor choices ;)