Frog Log

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It was Friday morning, August 22, and Holler Fest would begin in a few hours. I had lots to d0 - I had more things to do than I even knew I had to do! I was up at the barn "doing" - focused, intent, and looking down at the task at hand. Something made me look up.

The barn overlooks the garden, and as I straightened up and looked out, I caught a glimpse of the new lettuce patch. This is the patch that we seeded weeks ago in order to have a fall crop. We planted it in our best ground, watered diligently, and waited...and waited. This year's drought seemed too much for us, and we had all but given up the possibility that those tender seedlings could or would even want to germinate into the relentless sun and heat that has characterized the summer of '08. Daily we would check for seedling emergence and daily we saw only dirt. Maybe they knew best.

But my glance toward the garden that busy morning caught a faint glimmer of green coming from the lettuce patch. I stopped, looked harder, and saw the rows just emerging - pale hues of light and darker greens. No, it hadn't rained. No, we hadn't even watered the night before. It was just time, and a good time it was.

As Holler Fest got under way, folks started coming, and they kept coming all weekend. They came to sing, to eat, to play, to walk, to camp, to simply breathe. They came to help. They came to be part of something bigger than the King family putting on a music festival. They came because it was just time, and a good time it was.

If you were there, thanks for coming! If you missed it, join us next year!(www.hollerfest.com) And come by the stall in three weeks or so for some fresh, tender and very special lettuce!

From A Word A Day, one of my favorite virtual visits, other than the sprouting community of "ladies food blogs". More on that later.

At a time when the bounty of summer produce is starting to pour from our gardens into celebratory meals and gatherings, consider this:

Tomatoes and oregano make it Italian; wine and tarragon make it French. Sour cream makes it Russian; lemon and cinnamon make it Greek. Soy sauce makes it Chinese; garlic makes it good. -Alice May Brock, author (b. 1941)

And here's something mighty tasty to do with that good garlic.

Beet Caviar - adapted from a Khazakstani dish
Boil one large or two medium beets until tender; remove skins
Grind one-half cup walnuts (may toast them first but not necessary)
Mince 2-4 cloves of garlic, depending on how "good" you want this dish to be!
Grate beets and mix everything together with one-quarter to one-third cup mayonnaise.

Serve as a dip or spread with some good crackers. Incredibly tasty, addictive and good!