Calories on the Street

We love the San Marzano tomatoes and do not readily share them with anyone but close friends. So when I spotted giant caterpillar poops (really they were still "pooplets," but relatively speaking, they were enormous) under the plants, I knew I had a varmint.

In fact, I had two. Tomato Hornworms. One was almost 5" long. Both were completely yucky. And almost impossible to locate on the vines because of their protective coloration. But if you just look up from the trail of poops (and stifle the squeam-factor), you can eventually find 'em.

And then what to do? They're just too big to squish (you'd never get the mess off your shoes). So I pitched them into the yard waste bin for pick-up later in the week. Let the garbage guys deal with them - they get paid for this kinda stuff.

And then I got to thinking...

These babies must pack a lot of calories, probably some usable proteins and, after eating all those leaves and a coupla green tomatoes, a fair amount of vitamins and minerals. Not that I was planning on eating them, mind you. I'm still not sure about this new idea of cricket bars, which apparently do a good job of disguising the bugs inside. Truth to tell, I'm not even sure about the old timey energy/power bar units. I think they all taste pretty nasty.

But what about my friends' chickens? Chickens love caterpillars, right? So I scooped them back out of the bin, packaged them up in a small paper carton and sent them off to the ladies for lunch.

Hah! Such a sad story. Unlike these birds - the local Oakland gals were afraid. Afraid of a coupla green squishy bugs. So much for Oaktown 'tude...

Go Take a Hike....on the New Bay Bridge

We did. And can recommend it, especially before the old one is completely gone. 'Cause after all these years of traveling over it, you've never seen it look like this before: totally empty. Privately, I wonder if someone will pay enough to be allowed to film some apocalyptic, car-chase movie on the bridge before it is all torn down...

To get onto the pathway, we used the Burma Rd./Maritime St. trailhead near the Port. We went on a weekday morning (be aware that you must walk from the parking area back to the intersection - the way is not obvious - but the trailhead actually starts back there.) and parking was easy. Dress in layers: we started out all bundled up but by the end, were both sweaty hot.

And that's because it's a looong walk. Or at least much longer than I was expecting. Everything I read about the trail mentioned "2.2 miles." But that doesn't count the nearly 2 miles of walking before you can actually get onto the bridge. So count on nearly 8 miles round trip, and on being starved for lunch by the end.

But that little detail didn't stop lots of people from enjoying the outing.  I counted about the same number of bicyclists as pedestrians, the majority of whom were women. Yup, surprised me, too. 

Also along the way we came across an art class from a local elementary school drawing the old bridge, an entire fleet, organized in small pods, though, of parents, grandparents and babysitters pushing strollers, and more than a few older goofballs like us.  Many of the people on the trail were a little giggly, probably because it seemed pretty darn unusual to be walking above the bay.

Everyone had a camera, and stopped repeatedly to take photos. The "real" traffic was also stopped for some of the time, but I doubt they were having nearly as much fun as we were.

I Hate:

 Getting my nails clipped

(even though I get treats afterwards)

photo courtesy of Sari Kulberg

Amaranth, the Showstopper

Amaranth is once again being touted as the next big thing - a superfood even - but it has been around since before the Aztecs and the Incas lost out to the Spaniards. In the 70's, the Rodale Institute tried to pitch amaranth as the grain of the future, but without much success. This summer I just had to try it: not so much for the superfood aspects, but because I had never tried growing any kind of grain before, and this was a very easy place to start.

Amaranth starts really small - the seeds are so tiny that they cook down into a porridge. When they were still young and tender, we ate the leaves - think "mild spinach." Even better, think "Greek diet."  I convinced the neighbors to try some, and they thought the amaranth was alright, although they found the stems a little tough. (Yeah right, try rainbow chard if you want tough stems.)

Some people apparently add the young leaves to the salad mix, but do not try this at my home. Nor rainbow chard in any form, for that matter.

But amaranth sure knows how to grow. Within a few weeks, the plants were no longer suitable for greens (the seed heads were already forming). Instead they became the Purple Sensation on the block. I met more people over the question of just what the heck was growing up front. And the queries only increased as the number and size of the flowering seed heads expanded.

Ultimately, the plants topped out at about 6 ft., with at least a 3 ft. spread (naw, once again, we couldn't use the walkway. So whose dumb idea was this anyway?)

Be aware that those tiny seeds easily drop from the flower heads, so if you plant amaranth, expect to find many, many, many seedlings coming up next year - just in time for a spring "mess o' greens." No worries, though, they are very easy to pull out.

Many gardeners grow amaranth for the wonderful, long-lasting bouquets they produce. The flowers can also be dried for year-round floral arrangements. (Can be, but not by me. I already have enough things that suffer from a lack of dusting.)

So eat the leaves and share the bounty with your friends and neighbors.

Go ahead. Play with your Food

It's completely ridiculous, but the ridiculous in me (a big, big portion here) simply had to plant the dark red ("Outredeous") lettuce evenly spaced between the bright green one (Black-seeded Simpson"). 

And those shallot tops that just won't die down? Turn them into an aromatic bouquet for the desk.  Keeps the pests away and later on, they can be used in an omelette.

Updates: #3

The Discover and Go program, available through the Oakland Public Library and other local libraries, still works for me.  Free entry into the Aquarium by the Bay, the Academy of Sciences and the Lindsay Wildlife Museum, for example, really saved this month's budget.

At the Aquarium, the coolest items included the jellyfish tanks and the octopus. I had heard that the Aquarium was kinda rinky-dink, but it was far more interesting than I was expecting. (Maybe the free entry helped.)

So why were we aware of entrance fees? Well, aside from the fact that some of them are pretty high (I know, the costs of blah, blah, blah justify...) we had a young visitor, our nephew Ian, who wanted to see everything.

And although the weather was foggy and cool, the Bay Bridge out of commission and the fireworks show canceled, we persevered. Heck, we even went to Tahoe, suspecting that it might be a little smoky from the Rim Fire, but never ever imaging that it would be sooooo bad. No hiking for us.

Princess came out of hiding once Ian left. She has never been keen about visitors, hates it when the doorbell rings but somehow always seems to know the precise moment when those evil strangers are gone.

Whew! Still with me? Well then, Kevin is doing just great, and planning on going back to work asap (yeah, he likes to keep busy).

And if you need some retail therapy now that the back-to-school madness is over, Kathy Kenny and a few friends - Las Tres Amigas - are putting on a trunk show this upcoming weekend.

Oh yeah, and did I mention the tomatoes? Finally, finally, finally, something is happening out back. And this year, they are pretty tasty. We switched from Stupice to Glacier, and they really were glacial in ripening - ninety days? C'mon. But I'll try them again next year, no prob. 'cause they taste so good.

Lastly, it was a great party at Velvet da Vinci in celebration of the marriage of Tom and Mike! Yessir, it was a fun time, and it was had by all. Congratulations and Best Wishes!

Jellyfish photo courtesy of Ian Cullings

Summer Bounty for the Rest of Us

Since retiring, I have made two lampshades. Or rather, I've re-made two small shades which were old enough to be attending junior high, but I don't think that really counts as working.

Instead, I've been slaving away into the yard. Ahhh, yes, the Zucchini Sex Goddess has been re-deployed. In fact, that ZSG tried to expand her area of expertise and work her charms on a gourd plant - close cousin to the zuke, that blooms even earlier in the morning - but to no purpose. No girl gourds came to the party.



The blossoms on the gourd plant are quite pretty, though - white instead of goldfish-orange. So we all pretended it was just fine to grow a flowering vine. It doesn't really matter that there will not be any gourds this year, right?

But there are beans, beans and more than enough beans to make up for the lack of a few stupid gourds. This season's choice was Fortex pole beans. Great results. And the neighborhood crowd pleaser? Watching the vines grow up the trellis in the front yard (more about trellises another time).

I like my beans mildly flavored (none of that hearty, chewy beany-ness of romanos for me). If you feel that same way, I strongly recommend Fortex. Then you get the entertainment of designing and building a trellis, too.

Summer Bounty

The catnip (nepeta cataria) I planted this spring

is now ready for primetime...

Just ask Princess.

(And Kevin wishes to thank you all for your kind thoughts and messages. He is doing well and expects to be home next week sometime.)

In the Kitchen

Private home in the Markha Valley

I've been spending a fair amount of time in the kitchen these days. I would like to say that it's because of the bountiful tomato crop, but I'd be lying. Zucchini, sure, but if the tomatoes show up for Thanksgiving, it will be a miracle. And I will be grateful. 

Other kitchens I've been visiting? The photo to the right is of a Ladakhi kitchen in the village of Yurutse (alt. 13,500 ft.), a "village" of one family, with three generations living together. We stopped for tea and a rest on our trek in the Markha Valley. The family was very kind to this tired and slightly sick traveler.

An important feature of the Ladakhi kitchen is the imposing metal stove. It is not only used for cooking, but for heat during the long winters. Surrounding the stove are cabinets containing beautiful brass utensils, cooking pots and food storage containers. Many of these items have been handed down for generations.

The kitchen also serves as the living room, dining room, playroom and, sometimes, even as a sleeping area. In fact, much of Ladakhi daily life is carried out in the kitchen. Sound familiar?

Many families in the Markha Valley now use outdoor solar cookers, especially for heating water for the generous rounds of tea which are consumed each day. Since the traditional stoves use animal dung - hand collected - for fuel, there are obvious advantages to the solar cooker.

Our traveling kitchen consisted of two gas burners, set up in a large yellow tent (smoked to black on the inside. It could have been declared a toxic waste site. Makes burning dung seem like a plausible option after all...). Our cook's meals were astonishing in their complexity, range of flavors and sheer tastiness. Needless to say, the tent also served as the dining room on windy nights, the storage area, and the bedroom for our helpers.

Gelsim cooking dinner

Relax. Think positively. Praise is Vital.

Kevin, my brother-in-law, is going in for heart surgery on Friday.  So, if you have some spare time to think good thoughts, please do.