Le Jardin: June (and a cocktail recipe)

Because I didn't make anything this Memorial Day weekend save for Black & Blue Mojitos (recipe below!) and a bowl of guacamole, I'm resorting to posting pictures of the back 40. So far, things are going swimmingly....

The cucumbers are taking off; there's probably a dozen blossoms already. Hopefully, I can train/tie them up the fence. There will be lots of pickle experiments this summer.

The peas are doing ok--I've never dealt with peas, so I don't know if they look good, too thin, or are slow to fruit (or maybe, they're fine). All the March/April cooking magazines I get promote pea recipes, but those editors are crazy--here in central Ohio we most definitely do not have fresh peas in April...


The radishes, however, are most definitely doing well. I pulled half of my little row of radishes last weekend, and will probably pull the rest this weekend.


Broccoli. Again, I'm not really familiar with the growing of broccoli, but basically, you get a giant (close to two feet tall) stalk, with big, green, cabbage-like leaves (which means cabbage worms-ugh), and the broccoli crown grows out of the very center of the stalk. This is looking straight down on the top of the plant. Kinda cool.

Alrighty: Here's a recipe (and I use this term loosely) for what I'm calling Black & Blue Mojitos--pretty much ideal for sipping on a back porch with your feet soaking in a kiddie pool...but that's just me.

Black & Blue Mojitos

Rum (clear, spiced, aged, whatever you have on hand)
Blackberries
Blueberries
Agave syrup (this happened to be sitting on my friend's counter, otherwise, it would read: simple syrup)
Club soda/Soda water

In a shaker, pour a couple of ounces of rum, a handful of each of the berries, and a squirt (a tablespoon?) of the agave or simple syrup. Add a handful of ice and shake the bejesus out of it--you want those berries to get really bruised and banged up. (Get it? Black & Blue! Ha!)

Pour into a glass (highball is fine) add a little more ice and top with a splash of club soda. Add some mint leaves for garnish if you're feeling fancy (or more rum if you're feeling saucy).

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