This morning Eden and I slept in till about 6:00. I tried to sleep in, I really did. But once it gets light, I just lie there thinking about all the stuff I want to do so I just get up and do it. The downside to getting up when it's light (or right before) is that when it gets dark...you guessed it, I am ready to go to bed.
Anyway...we hopped up out of bed and went straight to the mini garden to harvest our first batch of spinach. About 5 days later than it really should have been harvested, but my schedule just wouldn't cooperate with spinach production this week.
this is where the spinach used to be...see those 6 strawberry plants? someone at the strawberry store told DW that would be enough to feed our family....pssshhhhhttt! Once....MAYBE. We will be making a trip to the "pick-ur-own" strawberry patch soon (that's how they spray paint it on the signs here in Alabama).
Spinach....spinach, I am so easily distracted.
first we rinsed, and rinsed, and rinsed. I had forgotten how long this takes. spinach leaves love to hang on to dirt. and bugs. and those little white, almost clear spiders. I didn't let the kids see those, they would never eat this spinach. AS IF I wouldn't get them all. My grandfather never let a little bug or worm in the spinach faze him. He just said it's a little extra protein...free :) I miss my grandpa.
isn't this beautiful? and clean?
next we blanched for 2 minutes. It shrinks up a bit and gets sooooo green!
after blanching we tossed it into ice water to stop the cooking process and then plopped it into the strainer. Next comes the fun step. I don't have a salad spinner so we....
put a pile of spinach in a tea towel, pulled up the corners and took it to the porch for a spin (to get the water out, of course)
This was Eden's job...
she enjoyed it.
then we just took it back inside and bagged it. Nothing to it. We were done and had a clean kitchen before 9am! Yes, I know that's 3 hours. It really didn't seem like it took that long. There was a little coffee-drinking and breakfast-eating mixed in there.
From that little plot of spinach, we got 10 - 1cup bags and 8 - 1 1/2cup bags. I have promised Harrison and Eden pizza tonight while Waverly and DW go to
Secret Church, so we will use some of our fresh spinach on my famous garlic/spinach white pizza (what? you haven't heard of it? Harrison says it is famous...hmmm).
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