Saturday - in the Wildflower Sanctuary!

Please join us at the Batavia Wildflower Sanctuary on Saturday, July 16 at 9:00 am.  We will be continuing our clean-up of the area between the sidewalk and Riverain's gravel drive, on the west end of the Wildflower Sanctuary, on the way to the gazebo.  Please wear long-sleeves, long pants, gardening gloves and perhaps sun or safety glasses.  If you have loppers, clippers, etc., they will come in handy too.

 

Thank you for your help!

Sarah   

Wildflower Sanctuary July 2 Clean Up

Please come to the Wildflower Sanctuary on Saturday, July 2nd.  We will be cleaning up the area near the west side kiosk (between the sidewalk and the gravel drive behind Riverain).  If you have them, bring gardening gloves, loppers, clippers, weed diggers and something to put weeds into.  I would also wear long sleeves and long pants in case of thorns or poison ivy.  The weather forecast looks perfect, so I hope you will be able to join us!

 

Sarah

July 2 - Workday at the Wildflower Sanctuary

Join some fun gardening friends at the Wildflower Sanctuary at 9am Saturday July 2.  More information will be sent out later this week on where to meet.  If we miss getting it to you, come on down with your gloves, nippers, and a weed hauling bucket or tarp and I am sure you'll easily find Sarah and the crew!

Home Made Weed-Be-Gone

Sue Peterson brought a home-made weed-be-gone to the Wild Flower Sanctuary and we had requests to put the recipe on the blog.  She said she got the recipe at a Plain Dirt meeting several years ago.  Here is the recipe:

 

Weed-Be-Gone

 

1 gallon vinegar

2 cups epson salt

1/4 cup Dawn dish soap (the blue original)

 

It will kill anything you spray it on.  Just mix and spray in the morning, after the dew has evaporated.  Walk away.  Go back after dinner and the weeds are all gone!

Cheaper than anything you can buy anywhere!  Never buy a commercial weed killer again!

  

Homemade Zuppa Toscana Soup

If you were able to join us in February, you would have tasted Linda's delicious homemade Zuppa Toscana Soup.  We asked for the recipe and Linda was happy to share it.  Enjoy!   Homemade Zuppa Toscana Soup Bacon, potatoes and Italian sausage come together to make this a hearty soup that warms the soul.

 

Prep time: 15 mins

Cook time: 30 mins

Total time: 45 mins

 

Ingredients

• 12 slices bacon, sliced
• 2 lbs Johnsonville All Natural Ground Mild Italian Sausage
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 10 cups chicken broth
• 5 large russet potatoes, thinly sliced (I used a mandolin to get even slices. I also left the skin on the potatoes because that is how my local restaurant serves it, plus the skin is filled with nutrients)
• 1 bunch kale, leaves torn from stem and chopped
• 2 cups heavy cream
• Freshly ground black pepper and salt, to taste

Instructions

1. In a large skillet over medium high heat, cook bacon until brown and crispy; transfer to paper towel-lined plate and set aside.
2. In the same skillet, add ground Italian sausage and cook until evenly browned. Drain excess grease and set aside.
3. In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and garlic. Cook for about 3 minutes, stirring frequently, until onions are translucent. Add chicken broth and bring to a boil. Carefully add in potatoes and cook for about 10 minutes, or until they are tender.
4. Stir in cooked sausage. Add chopped kale and stir. It will cook down a little as you stir. Once it's cooked down, stir in bacon. Stir in heavy cream, and season with freshly ground black pepper, and salt, if needed

Saturday Workday -Wildflower Sanctuary

Please join us for a fall work day at the Batavia Wildflower Sanctuary on Saturday, Nov. 21 at 9:00 am.  We will be trimming back woody shrubs and planting some seeds, so please bring gloves, loppers, tarps, trowels, and pruning shears if you have them.  We will be meeting near the gazebo in the wooded area south and east of the boardwalk.

 

Hope to see you there!

Sarah    

Snappy Ginger Spice Cookies Recipe - Treats from our October meeting

Treats from our October meeting brought out the goodness of the season.  For those who asked, here is the Snappy Ginger Spice Cookie recipe that Doris Trout shared with us.  Happy baking and eating....you'll stay warm twice!

 

SNAPPY GINGER SPICE COOKIES

½ cup butter, room temperature

1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar, divided
1/3 cup molasses
2 eggs
2 ¾ cups flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
¼ teaspoon salt

Heat oven to 300 degrees.  Cream the butter, brown sugar, ½ cup of the granulated sugar, and the molasses in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed for about 3 minutes.  Beat in eggs until smooth.  Set aside.

Combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cayenne pepper, cloves and sale in a medium bowl.  Beat into the butter-molasses mixture until smooth.

Refrigerate dough about one hour.

Pour remaining sugar in flat dish. Shape dough into balls (18 grams each-about two tablespoons full of dough per cookie).  Roll balls in remaining sugar, then flatten with a glass.

Bake at 300 degrees for 10-11 minutes on parchment-lined baking sheets.  Remove from oven and keep cookies on cookie sheet one minute, then move to wire racks to cool completely.

NOTE:  Crispness or softness of cookie is affected by how much you flatten the ball of dough as well as bake time.  Doris Trout tells us that she prefers softer cookies so she flattens them to ¼ to 3/8ths inch thicknesses.

Thanks to Doris Trout for the cookies and the recipe!