Fall Garden & Tortilla Soup

In about three days we'll be halfway through summer, which means it's time to start planning for fall by ordering seeds, planting them and then giving them motivational speeches in the mornings and evenings.

Our adorable, elderly Danish neighbor leaves us tomatoes from her garden about once a week. She sets them by our front gate instead of coming to the door and I can't help but wonder why she doesn't just come to the door. Maybe she overheard me talking to my lettuce once and misunderstood why I cried, "Come on you little bitch"... or she could have seen me hunting fruit flies through the patio window...in which case I'm surprised she even ventures to the gate. Either way, she brings us food from her garden--and it's fantastic. I made tortilla soup last week with the tomatoes she brought. (See recipe below.) But yesterday, instead of tomatoes she left a newspaper clipping about what to start planting for a fall harvest. Thought you might be interested, so here it is in a nutshell.

Planting Guide for August: Fall Vegetables
After the middle of the month you can plant seeds for the following vegetables:

Beets
Cabbage
Carrots
Collards
Kale
Lettuce
Peas
Radishes
Spinach
Swiss chard
Turnips

And, even though it's not on the list, I'm going to try (again) some bok choy. My last batch was trampled by a rogue puppy we fostered for a week... I chose my garden over the dog... let's just hope when I have kids they don't tear up any of my plants.

Tortilla Soup Recipe

Dump the following in a crockpot and cook on high for 4-6 hours. For best flavor, saute the onions, cabbage and garlic in olive oil until soft before putting into the crockpot.
(FYI: All the "1 cups" below are actually a little less than a cup. Or a little more if you want it to be. Just use whatever you have.)

1-2 ear of corn (cut off the kernels)
1-2 cloves chopped garlic
1 c diced red potatoes
1 c black beans
As much chopped cabbage as you want it-- cooks WAY down (I think I use about a half a head)
1 c diced tomatoes
1/2 c diced carrots
1/2 c onion
1-2 small cans of diced chiles
1 packet of taco seasoning
2 bay leaves
Salt and pepper to taste
Cover with chicken or vegetable broth (4-5 cups?)

Once everything is soft and simmery... serve with fresh avocado, cheese, tortilla chips and sour cream on top. Or none of that and it will still be really good.

*One thing you'll probably learn about me, as I post more recipes, is that I'm not meticulous about portions and amounts and making sure I do it the same every time. Sorry if you like to know how many teaspoons of salt and pepper to add...you won't find out from me. I don't believe in tsp's of any kind.