The Accidental Boilermaker

But wait, these aren't just any peas.  These are fresh peas from our garden.  And they were really good.  We picked and shelled three rows of peas and then ate them all.  We are definitely going to plant more for a fall harvest.   We had red bean and rice burgers with our peas.  Nate actually requests these burgers he likes them so much.  I add two eggs to help everything bind better, but overall they come together really quick and easy.

We did a lot of yard work today.  And by we, I mean Nate.  He mowed the front yard, cleaned out the chicken coop, and weed whacked around the barn for our landlords.  So, we decided that instead of staying in, we'd go out to Steak'n'Shake for dinner.  It just recently opened in Roanoke and has been crazy busy.  Luckily tonight we didn't have to wait very long for our table (the idea of waiting to eat at a Steak'n'Shake is very strange to me).  And our food was yummy.  Now to watch the Blackhawks hopefully beat the Bruins!

Not too too much going on here.  Our garden looks good but it is also full of weeds.  We have gotten a lot of rain lately, so we can't get inside and do any work.  I tried my hand at making bagels  which ended up being pretty easy and not too time consuming.  Not to mention yummy. And since it is Monday I thought I would throw in a meatless recipe - Black Bean Pizza .  It was good, but since there's no sauce, the toppings had nothing to stick to and had a tendency to fall off. Nate wanted me to post a picture of the turtle we found in our driveway on Friday.  He was still in the grass when Nate mowed on Saturday, but we couldn't find him again on Sunday.  

I think hay bales sitting out in the fields is one of the most picturesque scenes ever. While I was out taking some pictures, Nate returned from his bike ride.  I don't think he felt quite as bad as that he looks.

Our garden is mostly planted.  We are waiting for some of our tomatoes and pepper plants that we started from seed to grow a little bit bigger before we transplant them.  Unfortunately, we pretty much lost all our green beans to corn maggots (yuck).  Apparently all the cow manure (since our garden was once pasture) that we thought was going to be excellent fertilizer is actually an amazing breeding ground for these tiny green bean destroying bugs.  But not all hope is lost.  We can replant and as it gets warmer and drier, the green beans hopefully will be able to grow faster than the bugs can eat them. We also kind of wondered if birds weren't nibbling here and there on some of the peppers and squash plants, so Nate made a scarecrow.  It's pretty creepy looking but it seems to be doing the trick.

Nate and I are on the hunt for strawberries. We want to make some jam.  So yesterday we went to the Catawba Farmers Market in hopes of finding some berries.  No luck.  But there was a lady from the Craig County Extension testing pressure canners.  So we decide to drive back home (we live not even 2 miles from the community center) to get the canner and have it checked out.  Good thing too because it was two pounds off.  And we got our picture taken. Catawba Farmers Market Facebook page

Happy National Vegetarian Week !  I made these very yummy and surprisingly not too time consuming potato, mushroom, and leek croquettes last Friday.  Tonight we went vegetarian too - orzo lentil pilaf with sauteed kale. I took a bite and thought these are really good - I should take a picture : )