Hello you! It’s been a long time since I last shared content, hasn’t it? Well, life has certainly been picking up, as is the case for most of the vaccinated folks here in the US. I’ve been spending a lot of time outdoors - hiking, backyard hangouts with friends I haven’t seen in ages, and lots of gardening!

…Which brings me to the topic of today’s blog post - my garden harvest! My success this year has been mixed. There are some things that just didn’t stand a chance - RIP bok choy! - and some things that are absolutely thriving. Truly, I have a pumpkin who is living her absolute, very best life to prepare herself for spooky season, & I am so proud of her!

Last year, I planted some things, but didn’t know what to do with them; however, this year, I am prepared! I’ll share with you some of the fruits, vegetables, & herbs I’ve planted in my Pacific Northwest garden, and a few recipes I’ve either tried (or plan to try!) with my harvest.

Strawberries

I have been extremely lucky with strawberries in my little garden. Last year, I planted one strawberry plant & still managed to get a few berries in early summer. Then by mid-to-late summer, I noticed a few strawberry runners, which is a strawberry’s method of propagating new plants that shoot off from the main mother plant. To keep these new plants from taking all the energy from my main plant, I cut off a couple of runners, leaving 2-3 to establish themselves. I was rewarded because now I have a huge strawberry system, which significantly increased this spring & summer. Again more runners, some of which remain, but many I had to trim away just to keep the plant healthy.

With all these runners & new plants establishing themselves, I am getting a significant, ongoing yield this year. It comes in waves, but now that July is here, I’m pulling a handful of strawberries every few days. Sometimes I’ll just eat them on their own, but I’ve also got a few baked goods up my sleeve that give strawberries a platform to shine.

Lemon Cream Berry Tart

This lemon cream & berry tart has been a fast favorite among my friends, and actually is a marriage of two recipes: (1) Lauren Ko’s shortbread tart crust from Pieometry and (2) this lemon filling from Completely Delicious. Some of the berries in my photo are unfortunately store bought because blueberries, blackberries & raspberries are not in my garden… at least as of yet. However, our local produce stand was a great place to source ripe, delicious berries to perfectly top this show-stopping tart! As pretty as it is, it’s really easy to assemble. Just randomly stack different berries together. Small gaps? Fill them in with stacks of blueberries!

Other strawberry recipes to try

Strawberry Moscato Layer Cake from Life, Love & Sugar - I made this cake a couple of years ago. I never thought to put wine in cake, but it really gave a great flavor - especially paired with that amazing strawberry frosting.
Strawberry Goat Cheese Bruschetta from All Recipes - Admittedly, I haven’t made this, but this has been pinned on my Pinterest board for a long time. I’ve got some thyme growing in my garden too, so this is the perfect way to take advantage of both things growing in the garden.

Zucchini

This was my first year growing zucchini, and with the way these grew, it certainly won’t be my last. Zucchini really likes it hot, making it perfect for that summertime harvest. I made the mistake of planting my zucchini start a little early, and for a long time, it looked really sad. I really thought it would die on me, but it bounced back at the tail end of spring with some blossoms. I think our little Seattle area heatwave in late June really gave my zucchini plant the last “oomph” it needed to really maximize its yield. I had to start giving away zucchinis to my friends that lived close by because I couldn’t eat them fast enough!

Zucchini recipes to try

While I wish I would’ve taken advantage of some zucchini blossoms, because you can really do some innovative and delicious things with them, I’ll have to save it for another year. I have other plans for my massive zucchini this year!

Zucchini Bread with Cherries, Chocolate & Cardamom from Dishing Up the Dirt - I always forget I have this recipe pinned until after peak cherry season passes us by, and I want to kick myself for it. This recipe looks SO GOOD and I refuse to forget it exists again this year! I love cherries, I love chocolate, and I love cardamom, so to me this zucchini bread seems like a winning combination.
Zucchini Fritters from Damn Delicious - I have a family recipe I use that is extremely similar to this one. I love how easy zucchini fritters are to make and how deliciously crispy they get. I don’t recall ever topping them with sour cream and chives, but I’m willing to try… for science!
Crispy Zucchini Fries from The Cookie Rookie - My husband took one of our largest zucchini from my harvest & made zucchini fries just like these ones from The Cookie Rookie. I’m still feeling the effects of a burn on the roof of my mouth because they looked so good I couldn’t wait for them to cool before I dove in. I have no regrets!

Chamomile

Last, but not least, we have chamomile. I actually planted chamomile last fall. It was a very small plant that bushed out a little bit, and I really didn’t have a lot of expectations. Come spring time, my chamomile plant ballooned in size and started flowering like crazy. I learned how to properly harvest my chamomile thanks to Epic Gardening. I got so much chamomile off of what was one my tiny plant. Though after I put them through my oven on a dehydration setting, I only managed to fill up a small mason jar. I’d like to plant 2-3 of these starts for next year to increase my yield!

Chamomile Tea

That’s it, that’s the recipe. In that same Epic Gardening video I linked above, Kevin shared how to make your own chamomile tea. In short - you can dehydrate it for 12-18 hours (either in a dehydrator or in the oven on a low temperature) and then store it in a jar to keep it dry. When you’re ready for tea, you can pack it into a tea infuser (I like this one from Ikea) and steep it in hot water for a few minutes. I love the apple smells you get from chamomile, and it really comes through when it hits that hot water.

I highly recommend growing & harvesting chamomile for tea. In the Pacific Northwest, chamomile plants are not fussy at all given the copious amounts of spring rain and cool temperatures.

What are you growing & eating this year?

Are you a gardener or are you someone that leaves gardening to the professionals & just reaps the benefits? I’d love to hear about what you’re growing and/or eating this season, and if you utilize any of the recipes I’ve shared above. Until next time - happy gardening!