Springtime renewal, inside & out
Spring is the time to celebrate the return of things we love, such as bluebonnets in Texas, as well as a good time to try something new.
Leaves emerging for the first time on a young tulip magnolia
This weekend we enjoyed two new things: leaves on the tulip magnolia we planted last fall, and homemade red lentil curry dahl. We also enjoyed the return of bluebonnets and citrus blossoms in our garden.
The bluebonnet is the Texas state flower and makes its return each spring
Some things renew on their own. Here come the elephant ears, without prompting. A friend was once so overwhelmed by her elephant ears that she yanked a bunch out by the roots and put them in a huge bucket, which she left on our front porch. We were out of town and did not immediately attend to the bucket when we got back. Eventually, we planted them. They not only made it after the transplanting, they thrived. Then, they took over some beds. I yanked a bunch, and yet, a couple of years later, here they come again.
There are other things that need help. The caterpillars that will become Monach butterflies showed up and ate just about all the milkweed that had started to grow back. We rushed out to a nursery that fortunately was carrying milkweed and bought several little plants. As soon as they were in the ground, the caterpillars converged. We counted several.
Tomatoes are not something we lucked out on last year, our first attempt with tomatoes. For Valentine’s Day, we placed two tomato plants in the vegetable bed, fertilized them and crossed our fingers. Each one now has a tiny tomato growing, which bodes well.
The veggie bed is in the side yard with citrus trees. It all started with a mystery shrub, or so it appeared. Eventually, the plant emerged as an impressive Meyer lemon tree.
Meyer lemons can be consumed when green or yellow
It became so prolific over recent years that we took to freezing the juice. Not too long ago a heavy rain came while it was overloaded with lemons and tree was uprooted, undermined by floodwater and its own weight. We had only been picking a few lemons at a time to have fresh ones in the kitchen. Live and learn. My boyfriend cut off several broken limbs and righted the tree’s trunk with a pitchfork as a temporary brace. I’m happy to report the tree survived and is growing again. Looking back, the amount of lemons I harvested from the broken limbs was comical. The neighbors all got some and there still is some of that juice in the freezer.
Meyer lemon harvest
Grapefruit blossom
We liked the lemon tree so much that we added a Satsuma, a grapefruit and a lime tree. The grapefruit tree was a slow grower, but amazingly started reaching skyward once we planted a more robust companion grapefruit tree a couple of yards away. Both are blossoming, literally.
To wrap up the weekend, we ate a traditional Sunday dinner with pasta and meatballs cooked in tomato sauce. Some people call this Sunday sauce. My grandmother called it tomato gravy.
Meatballs cooking through in tomato sauce after browning
She would serve the meat separate from the pasta, with the meat accompanied by Boston lettuce salad. The pasta was served in bowls, the lettuce on salad plates and the meat on the entree plate. Not sure what she would make of us eating the meatballs in the pasta bowls while sitting on the couch watching TV. This dish is a family tradition and brings much comfort. The other night I tried something completely new to us, at least at home: dalh. I had bought a lot of bags of dried legumes, including green and red lentils. An internet search led me to a recipe for red lentil curry dahl. I’ve made many curries before and ad libbed some as well, so I wasn’t intimidated.
Red lentil dahl with red curry
The ginger and red curry combine so well it’s no wonder how popular the combination is. We liked it so much, I have a feeling that this dish may become as much as a staple around here as the meatballs.