Medford Gardening Project: Lighthearts Pumpkins

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Lighthearts Pumpkins

Day 1 (4/6): Planted Pumpkin Seeds and watered
Day 5 (4/11): Seeds started to sprout
Day 6 (4/12): Removed lid
Day 7 (4/13): Plants about 4-6 inches tall
Day 9 (4/15): Watered (1/4cup each plant)
Day 10 (4/16):

Day 13 (4/19): Watered (about 1/4C each)

Day 19 (4/25): Watered plants - third leaves started growing

The pumpkin plants ended up being very leggy and difficult to separate to plant. This is possibly due to lack of sunshine. We don't have a great place to put the plants outside due to the deer, so I'm not sure if that is why they were leggy or if was still too early in the season to plant.

Day 21 (4/27): Planted one flat
We planted one flat and watered them with buckets. We checked on them on 4/28, they still looked good. On 4/30 we checked on them again and by that time they were all wilted. I think because of lack of water and also because they weren't real healthy to start with.

Day 24 (4/30): Planted other flat
We planted the second flat and watered with the sprinklers after they were planted.

Day 29: (5/4): Plants didn't survive. The consensus was it was probably too much of a shock to be transplanted and also have the cold night air.

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RECIPES

Best-Ever Sweet Pickle Relish from Linda Fernandez

Puree of Yellow Squash Soup

from Linda Fernandez

This is very good and rather gourmet tasting

1 pound yellow crookneck squash

2 cups onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, sliced

2 Tbsp. gutter

½ tsp. dried thyme or 2 tsp. fresh thyme

½ tsp. dried sage or 2 tsp. fresh sage, sliced

½ ts[/ dried basil or 2 Tbsp. fresh basil, sliced

1 tsp salt

2 Tbsp. flour

½ cup white wine (I use the wine but you can substitute chicken broth)

2 cups milk

Black pepper, to taste

2 tsp. olive oil

1 red bell pepper, sliced into thin strips

1 garlic clove, minced

Chives, chopped

Directions

1) Cut the end off the squash, and peel any skin that is blemished. Cut the squash into 1/4 inch slices and set aside.

2) In a large saucepan sauté onions and garlic in butter over medium heat. After about 5 minutes, add squash, herbs, and salt. Stir, cover, and continue to cook about 10 more minutes.

3) Gradually sprinkle in the flour, stirring constantly. Continue to cook and stir over low heat about 5 minutes.

4) Pour in the white wine, stir briefly, cover, and let simmer 10 to 15 minutes.

(Note: The alcoholic content of the wine dissipates with cooking, and the taste of the wine diminishes gradually. So if you let if cook a little longer at this step, you will get a more subtle result. Just be sure to stir everything up from the bottom from time to time, so it won't stick or scorch.) Remove from heat, and allow the soup to cool until it's cool enough to puree.

5) Puree the soup with the milk in a food processor or blender, and return it to a kettle. Adjust the seasonings. Add black pepper to taste.

6) Heat gently just before serving.

7) While the soup is heating, prepare the optional topping.

Saute the bell pepper and garlic in olive oil or butter until just tender.

Spoon a little bit of this into each steaming bowl of soup, and sprinkle with minced chives.

Prep time: 45 minutes Yield: 4 to 6 Servings

Yellow Crookneck Squash Soup

from Linda Fernandez

6 crookneck squash -- peeled, seeded and chopped

1 green bell pepper, chopped

1 onion, chopped

2 cups cubed processed cheese

salt and pepper to taste

1. Place squash, bell pepper and onion in a large pot with water to cover. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until tender, about 15 minutes; drain.

2. Puree vegetables with a blender or food processor. Return to pot over medium heat and stir in cheese until melted. Serve.

CROOKNECK SQUASH SOUP WITH GINGER

from Linda Fernandez

Serves 8

2 1/2 pounds crookneck squash, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes *

1 onion, chopped

1 carrot, shredded

3 cups fat free chicken broth

2 tsp gingerroot, finely chopped

1 tsp curry powder

1/2 cup half and half

* You can substitute crookneck with butternut or acorn squash.

Combine squash, onions, carrots and broth in crock pot; stir in the gingerroot and curry powder. Cover and cook on LOW for 7 to 9 hours or on HIGH for 4 to 6 hours or until squash is tender. Put vegetables in a blender and puree. Stir in half and half.

Total Calories per serving: 90

Total Fat 2 grams

Saturated Fat 1 gram

Dietary Fiber 1 gram

Summer Squash Soup

from Linda Fernandez

3 medium yellow squash

2 tablespoons butter

1 clove garlic, minced

1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 cup chicken broth

2 cups cooked chicken, diced

Scrub squash; do not peel. Dice squash to make 5 to 6 cups. Melt butter in a large saucepan and sauté garlic briefly. Add squash, rosemary, salt and pepper. Sauté very slowly. Keep pan tightly covered and do not allow squash to brown. Add 1 or 2 tablespoons water if necessary when squash is softened. Purée in electric blender. Return purée to pan and add chicken broth, and diced chicken. Heat until flavors are well blended. Pour into serving dish or soup bowls. Serves 4.

Summer Squash Salad

from Linda Fernandez

4 small yellow crookneck or a mixture of zucchini and yellow summer squash

6-8 leaves basil, or to taste (original recipe calls for 1/3 cup packed mint leaves)

3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice

¼ tsp fine sea salt

Pepper to taste

¼ cup toasted pine nuts (1 oz.)

Asagio or parmesan cheese for shaving

Fresh mint sprigs for garnish

Toast pine nuts in a small skillet on medium high heat. Stir gently until pine nuts start to brown. Remove from heat and allow to cool.

Slice squash into paper-thin slices. Set aside

Stack basil or mint leaves and roll together lengthwise. Slice crosswise into very thin slivers. Add to squash.

Combine oil, lemon, salt and pepper. Pour dressing over squash. Add pinenuts and marinade for 10 minutes. Garnish with shavings of Asagio cheese. Use a vegetable peeler to shave cheese. Garnish with mint leaves.

Bread and Butter Pickles

from Janet Lightheart

25-30 medium sized cucumbers

8 large white onions

2 large sweet red peppers

½C Salt

5C cider vinegar

5C Sugar

2 T mustard seed

1 t turmeric

½ t cloves

Wash cucumbers and slice. Chop onions and peppers. Combine cucumbers, onions, peppers and salt. Let stand for 3 hrs. Drain.

Combine vinegar, sugar, and spices in large kettle and bring to boil. Add the drained cucumber mixture. Heat thoroughly but do not boil. Pack while hot and seal.

Zucchini Casserole

from Linda Fernandez

6-8 cups sliced zucchini, about 2 pounds

1 can cream of chicken soup (can use low fat)

1 cup sour cream

1 cup grated carrots

¼ - ½ cup chopped onions

1 – 8oz. Stove Top stuffing mix, chicken

¼ cup butter

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add sliced zucchini and cook for just a few minutes, no more than 5 minutes. Drain.

Mix sour cream, soup, carrots and onion. Add drained zucchini and gently mix with the sauce mixture. In a sauce pan, melt butter and add stuffing mix. Put ½ of stuffing mix into the bottom of a 9X13 pan. Add all the of the squash mixture. Top with remaining stuffing. Bake for 25 – 30 minutes at 350 degrees.

Note: We really like the stuffing part so I usually use 2-8oz. packages of stuffing mix and an additional ¼ cup butter. One half of the stuffing on the bottom of the casserole and the other half on top. Yum!

Medford Gardening Project

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Lighthearts Pumpkins

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