We’ve been blessed with a mild, although dry, Autumn this year. Today was no exception with bright sunshine and nary a cloud to be seen. I checked the bulbs I (finally) planted to make sure the squirrels haven’t found them and picked a few China Rose radishes from the vegetable garden. The mild weather has kept the garden producing, ironically lack of rain has slowed it down. I’ve ordered row covers for next spring, but if they arrive before the ground freezes I may use them now for the fennel, beets, kale, radishes and cabbage lettuce. A few of the indoor Asian greens may be transplanted “under cover”, also. They’re very frost tolerant making them ideal candidates.
For those (like me) that prefer a little spice with some sweet, here’s a recipe for snappy Ginger Crinkles. I baked a batch this afternoon when craving something ginger-y. For a sugar-restricted diet replace the sugar with one tablespoon powdered stevia and omit rolling the cookies in sugar; so yummy!
Ginger Crinkles:
- 1c. white sugar or 1 Tbsp. powdered stevia
- 3/4 c. butter or margarine
- 1/4 c. dark molasses
- 1 egg
- 2 1/4 c. flour
- 1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
- 1 Tbsp. dried powdered ginger
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp. salt
Mix sugar (or stevia), butter, molasses and egg until well combined. Stir in flour, soda, cinnamon, ginger and salt. Roll cookies into 1″ balls and roll in sugar to coat. Bake in a 375 degree oven about 7 minutes for a soft cookie, 10 minutes for a crispier cookie. Remove from cookie sheet immediately and cool.
Last but not least, I planted a few flower seeds for the indoor garden. Dwarf zinnias, French marigolds, Pansies and Alyssum. I may dig out a few more from the stash, but right now I have more seedlings to pot up. The eggplant and peppers are ready… five of each…that’s 100% germination! I love heirloom seeds…dependable, delicious and beautiful. Tomorrow I’ll share my all-time favorites and some new-to-my garden varieties I’m trying next year.
