Winter Meals From the Garden           by Tom Motley

I’m looking out the study window at an explosion of red leaves on the old pear tree out front. It’s a bright, cool day, and I’m enjoying watching yellow and golden leaves float down from the big pecans and sycamores on the place. This morning we were up early to cheer the runners (and walkers) streaming by us, on their way to the Square during the last leg of their annual run through the Historic District as one of the opening ceremonies for McKinney’s Dickens of a Christmas festivities and events downtown. The city Christmas Tree was lit last night midst red-cheeked crowds of revelers and diners strolling through the many colorful stalls and tents of vendors and artisans. Downtown merchants were open late, serving shoppers who juggled arms full of bags stuffed with toys, kitchen gadgets, apparel, perfumes, linens, plus weekend supplies of libations, and organic groceries, all available on the Square.

Our winter garden is bountiful with greens and herbs, of course, but also some tasty produce. The current recipes we’re working on benefit from fresh, organic items like Greek oregano, Hill Hardy rosemary, chocolate mint, French Rocket arugula, Mexican Mint Marigold (with edible yellow flowers), Genovese basil, French tarragon, cilantro, English thyme, Italian parsley and garlic chives (my favorite chive for baked potatoes).

The Poblano and Cayenne pepper plants are robust and productive, plus a few sweet peppers and marble-sized Loco peppers (hot).  We still get one or two lemon cucumbers every day, and the Nantes carrots and Detroit Red Beets are perfect right now. The beautiful black zucchini won’t make much more, but the soon-to-be-harvested winter Brussels sprouts and broccoli will make up for the loss. Our ground cherries (also called cherry-husk tomatoes) are about to give up what with the cold nights, but still gift us with a few of the sweet little wrapped-gems. We have a bumper crop of white, sweet onions. We will plant garlic and shallots in late December. In years past, I’ve always planted these in late January, but after all we ARE a zone 8 now (thanks to climate change).  I may plant bananas next year!

We continue enjoying big plates of salad greens (fresh and wilted): Chinese cabbage, collard and mustard greens, rainbow chard, and tah-tsoi (Korean heirloom mustard), with small, perfectly round dark green leaves that taste like sweet spinach.

Night temperatures have been kind to the garden, though on three separate occasions in recent weeks, we had to bring out the freeze-cloth and cover everything. We don’t normally worry about it unless the temp drops several degrees under thirty. Poor basil, of course, pretty much gives up the ghost with sustained nights of forty degrees, covered or uncovered.

With winter upon us, I crave pasta, soups and stews, braised and poached items and Chinese dishes, so out come the stock-pots, woks and steam-baskets from the back of the kitchen cabinets to the front. For a cold-weather treat the other night, we’d reserved dinner for delicious braised, locally farmed, lamb-shanks prepared by Chef and Co-owner of Square Burger, Craig Brundege. The meat had been marinated for three days and melted like butter in the mouth. (Square Burger is called that, by the way, because it is on the Square).