It's Not Really Spring Yet

It seemed so glorious outside last Wednesday that I temporarily lost my mind and forgot it was still March in Montana. After doing some spring cleaning inside in the morning, I spent a couple hours in the afternoon clearing debris and dead leaves (so many dead leaves!) from one flowerbed.

This particular flowerbed is on the south side of the house, closest to the deck, so it gets all the benefit of the sun as well as being sheltered from the wind. In it grows the Virginia creeper that has grown up the side of the house and smothers my kitchen window every summer. It's the vine the little birdies have built their ever expanding nest in and where they merrily chirp away outside the stove vent.

Lots of little birdies means lots of little birdie droppings under that vine and atop the blown in dead leaves. I guess I should have worn a mask as I stirred up the dust and leaf mold and those droppings. It isn't like I don't have any masks. Or maybe I should have left the leaves there longer - there was still ice underneath. Anyway, I've been sniffling and sneezing since. OTC hay fever meds are not completely cutting it yet.

But life does go on. All my bird feeders have now been cleaned. I did half of them at a time. The first cleaning happened over a week ago, and those feeders are refilled with fresh seed and are hung out for the little birdies' enjoyment. The other half just got scrubbed out and are awaiting reassembly.

I've had a wooden plant stand that's gone outside every summer and come back in every winter. It's always been a little wobbly, having been assembled with skinny nails rather than screws. The shelves tend to lean which I've dealt with by making sure it was leaning up against a wall, using a wooden shim under the front side. But I got tired of doing that, and so I bought a couple new metal plant stands. Unfortunately, one of those arrived missing the top shelf which is what helps keep the entire stand connected. So it's being returned and replaced. Some plants got rearranged, and I'm happy with that corner.

With the new stands, I also bought a couple full spectrum grow lights. These units are clip-on, and each has two flexible arms, so the lights can be directed where you want them. I haven't yet taken the time to figure out the automatic timers on them, but I'm very happy with the lights.

I had a big grow light that I balanced across my dresser and the wobbly plant stand. That's now available should I decide to actually use as intended, and start some garden seeds. That would mean setting up a space dedicated to seed starting. It would also mean getting out the starter trays & pots, the potting soil, and seeds, and putting them all together. It would mean dedicating time each day to making sure the seedlings haven't dried up. I still haven't bought seeds yet, but I did save a bunch of seeds from various flowers last summer.

But I also know me and my procrastinating ways: I'll dither until it's too late to bother. I'll buy seeds locally, as usual. I've seen the displays that are designed to catch my attention. They're ready for me and my type. I know there are greenhouses dedicated to my type. They count on my type. They'll happily do all that work for me. It's only money (and time and effort), right? They're worth every penny to me.

I'm happy to have a couple new recipes to share this week. I cut the couscous in half since it's only the two of us here. And no, Dennis did not even attempt to try my couscous, so it's all for me. He was happy with corn for his side dish. He did, however, get the other half can of black olives. I could have used kalamata olives, which he wouldn't eat. I skipped the Romaine and forgot the pine nuts. It's still great.

Greek Couscous with Olives

1-1/2 C water

1 C couscous

1 medium red or yellow pepper, chopped

1/2 C red onion, chopped

1 C ripe olives, sliced

1 (6 oz) jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained and quartered

3 oz Feta cheese, crumbled

1/3 C mint leaves, shredded

2 large cloves garlic, minced

1/4 tsp black pepper

1/2 C lemon juice

1/2 C EVOO

8 leaves Romaine

1 medium tomato, cut in wedges

3 Tbl pine nuts, toasted

Bring water to boil. Stir in couscous. Cover kettle, remove from heat, let stand 5 minutes. Add the next 5 ingredients. Whisk together the mint, garlic, pepper, juice and oil, then pour over the mix, tossing to combine. Refrigerate until chilled. To serve, line bowl with Romaine, top with couscous. Garnish with tomato and sprinkle with nuts.

Spicy Garlic Lime Chicken

3/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp cayenne

1/8 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/8 tsp onion powder

1/4 tsp thyme

1/4 tsp diced parsley

4 chicken breasts

2 Tbl butter

1 Tbl olive oil

2 tsp garlic powder

3 Tbl lime juice

Mix the first 8 together, and sprinkle generously on the meat, heat butter and oil in skillet over medium heat, sauté the meat 6 minutes per side until golden. Sprinkle with garlic powder and juice, cooking another 5 minutes.

I used chicken leg quarters as that's what I had in the freezer. I just kept them over low heat longer than six minutes per side, until the juices ran clear. We never want our chicken underdone.