Chives, chives, everywhere we look. Having seriously considered starting a chive farm, I’ve decided instead to harvest those that are taking up valuable real estate in the flowerbed. What to do with them now? My chive repertoire is weak as it is. I know they’re great with baked potatoes, cottage cheese, garnishing things like salad, soup, etc, but what to do with buckets of them? My wise friend, Google, pointed me to this concise article by Gail Reynolds, who suggested two good solutions for preserving/using them. Freezing them seems to be the best way to preserve the fresh flavor and color. I will chop them, lay out on a cookie sheet, and flash freeze them for a few minutes and then put the not-quite-frosty pieces in an airtight freezer container. Flash-freezing allows for easy retrieval for future oh-yeah-I-should-add-some-chives-to-this winter cooking.
The other option that I liked was to make a chive-infused vinegar. How beautiful is this??
Taking Ms. Reynold’s recommendations to include some flowers in the mix does indeed impart a lovely lavender hue to the vinegar, doesn’t it? I think I remember a friend mentioning her intention to infuse them in oil, so I may try that as well.
Moving on to other business, I discovered today that a new family has moved into town. Mr. and Mrs. House Finch (or possibly Purple Finch – I couldn’t make out the lettering on the mailbox) have taken up residence here, on our porch:
You’ll have to take my word for it, as she had the curtains drawn in this picture. They have 4 children on the way, though I couldn’t get a good shot of them either. Maybe tomorrow. We’re excited to have them and to watch their progress, though they make it tricky to keep this begonia watered. Maybe I can distract them with a Welcome-to-the-Neighborhood Pie and sneak a watering can in there…
Denise said,
June 3, 2008 @ 10:37 am
That vinegar looks amazing! The color is great. I got behind in planting with the crazy weather, and don’t have chives this year. Miss that purple.
Interesting we both have nesting birds in our hanging flowerpots this week!
For doves I had read that their eggs are sensitive to moisture, so I’m afraid to even try to water , but I snuck a little around the edge the other day. I don’t think I’ll be able to salvage it though, as it is hanging under our gazebo, so doesn’t even get rainwater. Worth it for the little dove, I think! Finches might make real nests though, impervious to water!
Fruition, unbeknownst to us. « Five Green Acres said,
July 24, 2008 @ 11:16 am
[...] with a shocking surprise this afternoon while doing some housecleaning for the Finch Family. (You may or may not know that a family of finches took up residence in my porch-hanging [...]