Why you should love basil! (and preserving pesto)

I love basil. And I grew a lot of basil over summer. And when I say a lot, I mean I had six huge basil plants growing. I love basil on pizza, in pasta, with sun-dried tomatoes, and I definitely LOVE basil pesto! I love it on crackers, on pasta, with chicken, and in pastry scrolls with cheese. Oh golly. Yes, I love basil.

And you should love basil too. Basil is such a great herb to grow in your garden. Planting it around tomato plants (I did this), called companion planting, helps to give the tomatoes more flavor as they grow. It looks so beautiful as well, if you are planting it in a herb garden, or even in your kitchen garden. Its very simple to grow as well. I bought seedlings and then transferred these to my garden. I dug holes deeper than needed, and then filled these holes with some soil that has special nutrients in it that helps herbs to grow well. I then put the seedling in the hole and covered the roots, and then watered it.

As basil grows, it does have the tendency to grow up rather than fill out, and the ideal basil plant, is not tall with sparing leaves, but rather any height and full of leaves. This can be done by pruning the plant! It sounds scary, and don't stop reading now, cos this is beyond simple. All you need to do to get big, luscious plants is to:

1. Find the main stem of the basil plant (the one that goes down into the ground)

2. Find the spot where there are two smaller branches out of this main stem that are opposite one another

3. Pinch off the stem above these leaves

The two minor branches that you found, will now turn into main stems, and encourage more growth outwards rather than upwards. You can continue to do this as you feel your plant is getting too tall.

At the end of summer, I had a lot of basil that I hadn't used, and I was getting my garden ready for the new seasons planting, I decided to pull the basil out of the garden. I had a lot. And so I knew I wasn't going to be able to eat it all by scattering a few leaves here and then. So pesto was my best option for savoring my basil. And I knew that I would have to preserve some of it, and I don't like the idea of putting it in jars. And then it hit me, I could freeze individual pesto servings!

This actually turned out to be a thing already, and I found that many people had had problems where they were thawing their pesto, and the basil turned brown. The solution: blanch the basil first! Blanching is where you emerge a vegetable into boiling hot water for a short amount of time (in this case, for the basil, like 5 seconds, or until it wilts slightly). I used a sieve to help me do this, because it is only in the water for a short time, it is easier than fishing around with a slotted spoon, but use that if you need to! And very importantly, do it in batches, as this means the cooking is more even! 

After putting it in the boiling water, the basil is quickly transferred to ice cold water. Doing this almost brightens the green color of the basil, and helps to lock it in. I found that it intensified the basil flavor too!

After blanching the basil, I removed it from the ice cold water, and gently patted the leaves dry. I put these in a blender, and then added a little bit of oil. As the blender combined the basil and the oil, I added oil slowly so that it became more of a paste, than slightly oily little basil leaves. This is such a simple recipe, that you don't need measurements. Just add oil, until the pesto looks like it is starting to come along. After I had the right consistency, I poured it (very messily) into ice cube trays and then put these in the freezer.

After spending the night in the freezer I removed the pesto cubes from the ice tray and put them in an air tight container which I keep in the freezer. This is so handy because whenever I need a little bit of pesto, I just take out a cube, and let it thaw. Because it is just basil and oil, you can add your own seasonings depending on what meal you are having. Some delicious flavors to add are garlic or parmesan! Yum yum yum!

I love this pesto with pasta! Its such an easy quick meal! Just cook the pasta, and then drain the water, saving a little of the water. Put the pasta back in the pot, add the pesto cubes, and add a little bit of water, and heat through! Add lots of pepper and lots of parmesan! So good!

Capsi-YUM (growing capsicums)

Capsicums are delicious, crispy, juicy, sweet and oh so versatile. You can have them in salads, you can stuff them, roast them, have them on pizza. They add amazing flavor, and texture to whatever dish they are in. And the best part about capsicums, is that they are actually really simple to grow. I used to find the idea of growing capsicums really daunting, but after a long hot summer, I now think they are such an incredible thing to grow! This guide can be used for both capsicums and chillies!

When to grow: Mid spring to mid summer. If you live in a warm area, plant inside in late winter, and then put outside mid spring, and if you live in a cold area, plant inside in late winter or early spring and then don't put outside until after the risk of frost has passed.

Where to grow: Capsicums grow up (to about knee height) rather than out, so you don't need too much space around the plant. They do need a spot that gets a lot of sunlight, but not too much wind. The capsicums are very heavy on the plants and the strong winds can break the plants as they are quite brittle.

How to grow: If you are starting with a seed, plant the seed in good quality soil either inside or outside, depending on your timing, in a seed tray. Make sure you water the seeds really well, and after about 10 days, the seeds will start to sprout. Then move the plants to a small pot about 7cm or 3 inches tall, and keep the plant in this pot until it is about the same height.

If you bought seedlings, or if you planted it from a seed, the steps are the same from here on! Then move the capsicum plant to the garden, or to a big pot if thats where you are wanting to plant it. Plant the capsicum in a good sized hole in the ground. Pat the soil down around the plant base, and then put a bamboo stake into the ground next to the capsicum plant.

Feeding your plants: Capsicums love nourishment! Make sure that you are giving them enough food. Using a liquid compost once every two weeks while the capsicums are growing is really important, as this gives them the nutrients they need to grow well.

Staking the plants: Because of the brittleness of the plants, capsicums need to be staked as they are growing. Putting a bamboo stake in the ground next to the plants is the best idea. The plants can then be tied to the stake using old stockings or something else that will be gentle on the plant. As the capsicum plant keeps growing, keep staking the plant up, so that is secure against the stake.

Important things to know: Good ventilation is important when growing fruits (or capsicums). So ensure that the plants have enough room for air to move freely. Watering the plants really well everyday is also a very important part of growing capsicums.

Harvest: Capsicums can be picked whenever you want to pick them really! The longer they are left on the plant, the more they mature, and the flavor changes. The above, and below capsicum are from the same plant, just the bottom one (reddish) was left on the plant for longer. This is because the plant I grew was a common capsicum. The capsicum starts out green, and ripens to orange or red! Beautiful! When you are ready to pick your capsicums, use scissors to cut the vegetable off, or you can damage the brittle plant!

Enjoy your capsicums, they truly are beautiful plants, and they are so simple to grow! If you have any questions, let me know! (:

WIFE 101: Frozen Cookie Dough Balls

Its official. Your life has just changed. And lets be honest, you're welcome.

Frozen cookie dough balls. Your partner, your children, your friends, and you will all thank, well you.

So to do this, just 

1. Make your favourite cookie dough. 

2. Roll the cookie dough into balls.

3. Line a baking tray with baking paper.

4. Place the dough balls onto the tray.

5. Put in the freezer for two hours (this will stop the dough balls from sticking together into one massive dough ball).

6. Then transfer to a bag or container to keep in the freezer. So simple!

And then when you want to eat the cookies just

1. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F or 150 degrees C.

2. Line a tray with baking paper.

3. Put the dough balls onto the baking tray with enough room between each cookie for it to spread as it bakes.

4. Put the tray in the oven.

5. After 10 - 15 minutes enjoy freshly baked cookies without any hard work.

You're welcome.

WIFE 101: Chores and Blackboards

Sometimes in life you need some friendly competition. I have found this especially to be true when it comes to chores. After a year of asking and then begging for my husband to do some chores (when he does them, he does a good job, he just has other priorities, like TV and 9gag) I think I have discovered a way to get him to do chores without asking!

Yes! Without asking!

All it has taken is a blackboard, some friendly competition and a sweet prize for the winner.

So here is how it works:

-The chores are listed as daily, weekly or monthly chores.

-The daily chores are worth 1 point, the weekly points worth 2, and the monthly worth 3.

-Daily and monthly chores are up for grabs for anyone, but weekly chores are divided equally between us (easier for him).

-Every chore that you do, earns a certain amount of points that you add to your weekly tally.

-At the end of the week, the winner gets a star.

-Then at the end of the month, the person with the most stars wins a prize! This prize could be a box of beer, a manicure, a massage etc. Something that is special that we wouldn't normally do!

And I have put this amazing competition board up on the blackboard painted in our kitchen. Its amazing! The trick to these blackboards is wiping as much dry chalk of as possible, then using vinegar diluted in water to clean the remaining chalk off. Then when it comes to writing on it, wait until the board is completely dry, then using chalk that has been sharpened with a pencil sharpener, and wet with some water, write on the board. The chalk will go on dull, but then dry to be bright and vibrant! Its so much easier to use that way!

So may your house be cleaner and your chalkboards neater.

Iced Green Tea

Everybody loves ice tea. And I especially like it. And here is my recipe for Iced Green Tea made with organic tea! Yum! And so good!!

Iced Green Tea (makes 2L)

Ingredients:

-3/4 cup of sugar (I used brown sugar)

-4 cups of cold water

-4 cups of hot (just boiled) water

-8 organic green tea bags

Method:

1. Put the sugar into a pitcher large enough to hold 2L, and then add in the 4 cups of water.

2. Stir until the sugar is dissolved.

3. Put the 4 cups of hot water into a container (jug or saucepan) and put the tea bags in. Only leave the tea bags to steep for 2 minutes at most.

4. Remove the tea bags from the water and squeeze slightly.

5. Pour the tea into the sugar water slowly and stir to combine.

6. Leave the tea to cool at room temperature and then serve over ice!

7. Enjoy on a beautiful sunny day! YAY!

WIFE 101: How to paint a door

I love my husband. More than anything in the world. But sometimes, you just have to do stuff yourself, because your husband is too busy/you've asked him many times, and its been months. And often times the tasks that we think we can't do, are actually super easy! So here is a Wife 101 (or just independent woman) guide on how to paint a door!

To start with go to the hardware store and choose out some paint samples to take home, also while you are there, purchase a paintbrush that will work best for your door. Using some painters tape, cover up any bits that you don't wanna paint, such as glass or metal embellishments. Before you paint, use a stick of some sort to stir the paint. Then paint some of the different colors of paint onto the door so that you can see what the colors will look like.

After the paint has dried, choose which color is your favorite, and then head back to the hardware store to buy a pot of the paint. Ask the person at the hardware store to make sure that you are buying the right sort of paint for your environment, such as getting a paint that works well outdoors as opposed to an indoor paint etc.

Set up

Before you do anything else, lay down some drop cloths, or old sheets that you can use to catch any paint that falls, or anything else that might damage your floor. 

To begin painting your door, you need to start with essentially a blank canvas, or as close to it as possible. So use sand paper to get as much of the original paint of as possible. This will help your new paint to go on well. Using sand paper roughs up the door a bit as well, but for the best look, try to sand the door in one direction, as opposed to going crazy in all directions, but if you are using a finer sand paper, you can go crazy!

After the door is all sanded down, there is another preparation step. This involves taping up the door, so that you get paint only where you want it. Try to get the paint as close to whatever you are trying to protect, as well as trying to get it as neat as possible, so that you end up with clean lines, and not too much clean up work to do. If you do get paint where you don't want it, you can always use a paint scraper to help tidy it up.

Now that your door is all ready, its time to get the paint all ready. Carefully open the tin up (on your drop cloth) as sometimes paint can go all over the place when you open a tin. Then, using a paint stirrer, or a stick, stir the paint really well. You will notice the color change, and perhaps the consistency. And this is why you need to stir it well!

And begin!

So now you are completely ready to start painting your door. Dip your paint brush in to the paint tin, and then wipe of a little bit of the paint by dragging the brush against the lip of the paint tin. This means that you won't have too much paint on your brush at one time. Then, moving the brush in one direction, begin painting the door. It is important to move the brush in one direction, as this creates the best finish. Get more paint on your brush whenever you need it, and then keep painting the door until it is covered with one even coat.

When painting around the door handles or glass, go nice and slowly, as even though you've used tape to protect these details, some paint could still get on these things!

Apply a second coat!
Once you have done a full coat of paint, wait two hours (or follow the directions on tin), and then apply a second coat. Make sure that all the coats are even and that there are no drips in the paint.

And after the paint has completely dried, carefully remove the tape! And voila! You just painted your first door! The world is now yours! Go and conquer it!

My "Making Use of a Small Space" Garden

You're not always going to be able to live at a house that has land for you to establish your vegetable garden presence. So sometimes you just have to get creative, and use whatever space you can. Although I do have space for a vegetable garden, I do also have my patio/kitchen garden that I love.

I love it because I can look at it all the time if I want. I can easily pop out and get some vegetables, pick a couple of herbs to add to dinner, or even just easily water and tend it (as my main veggie garden is up a little hill). There is something so beautiful and creative about turning any little space you have into a garden. 

Have you heard of Guerilla Gardening? Google it. But basically, do it to your own place.

And I have some handy little tips to help you turn whatever dull, small, empty space into a thriving GARDEN.

Tip #1

Try to get some sunshine, (or light and warmth) onto your precious babies. This will help them to be the plants you dream they could be. Without getting technical, pretty much all plants need some light and warmth, so if you don't have the real stuff, then fake it some how!

Tip #2

Use whatever you can to plant in. This isn't really a tip, but I'm pretty much saying, you can make everything uniform in matching pots (very pretty), or you can mix and match whatever you have and whatever you can AFFORD. You may have heard the fancy term "repurposing". Its very fashionable and you can do it! I use mixes of old planter boxes, big plastic pots, little pots that some seedlings came in, as well as glass jars, little buckets, empty soup cans. You name it. If you can put soil in it, you can grow something in it. Go wild. And have fun. Just make sure there is some drainage (holes in the bottom).

Tip #3

Nourish your plants. As you will be planting in boxes or pots, your plants don't have the opportunity to gather nutrients from the surrounding soil as much as their counterparts out in the big wide world of the ground. This nourishment factor is so easy to over look, as we are so used to house plants, that you just water and leave, then water every so often. But your vegetables need your love. When you are planting your plants, use a really good quality organic soil or compost. As this will be the foundation for your plants long and healthy life. And make sure that they are being watered adequately, as often water can drain straight out the bottom of the plant, and not reach all the soil it needs to. And this leads to the next tip...

Tip #4

Feed your plants! Plant food, compost, whatever you want! BUT JUST FEED YOUR PLANTS! There isn't a lot of soil in those pots, and the plants need a lot of nutrients to grow! I like to use and organic (liquid) plant food, that I treat my plants to every one or two weeks depending on how well they are growing, or what they are (heavy fruiting plants need more than leafy plants). I grow strawberries on my patio, and I make sure that they get strawberry food (its a real thing!), as this helps them to grow, even in the small pots.

Tip #5

Plant things that you wouldn't plant in your big garden. For example, in my kitchen garden, I grow wheatgrass, because it works better in a tray, and its good for it to be nice and easy on hand. Get creative and think outside the (planter) box.

Tip #6

Plant "cut and come again" plants. These are plants that you literally take a couple of leaves off, and then you can come back to them again later and take a few more leaves off. You don't have to harvest the whole thing at once. In my small garden, I like to plant lettuces, spinach, kale and swiss chard, as they are fast growing, but they are also very handy and useful plants in terms of eating. 

Tip #7

Have a few flowers in your small potted garden. Having some flowers will help to attract the good bugs, and may even help to keep the bad ones away (depending on what you plant). It is very important to make sure that your little garden (or big) is getting pollinated, and if no bees do it, make sure that you do it for the plant (depending on what plant it is!) because that is important in the growing stage for some plants!

Tip #8

Move your plants around. For two reasons. The first reason is to create companion planting. Putting some plants next to others is a good thing (for example tomatoes and basil), they enhance one anothers flavour while growing, whereas putting tomato and cabbage next to one another is bad and stunts growth. So move those babies around to get the best possible growing happening. Secondly, move them around to get the best sunshine for the plant. If you are like me, your planting area isn't in the sun all the time, so move those babies around a couple of days a week so that they can soak up some nice rays. They will thank you for it in beautiful vegetables.

Tip #9

Start small, and increase. You don't need to have 50 pots of varying varieties of vegetables the first day of your garden. I started with two pots, and slowly but surely I kept adding and collecting, and now I have many random containers, and some random plants. If you start small, its easier for you to manage, and make sure that those vegetables are getting the love they deserve. Add a few more to your collection every couple of weeks or so. This leads to the final tip...

Tip #10

You can increase the container size if you want. Say you planted a tomato plant in a small pot, but now it seems that it is just getting too big for that pot, well never fear, buy a slightly bigger (or much bigger if you are super keen) container, and just move your little friend into a bigger home. Plants will only grow until their roots can't grow no more, so the bigger the space for roots, the bigger your plant will be. And once you've moved that plant into a bigger container, you have a spare container to start something else in. Its like the circle of life. Only different.

But most importantly HAVE FUN!! And remember, you are only limited by your imagination, so get out there are get creating your own little piece of vegetable paradise.