Welcome Everyone

Welcome to my own little section of the blog where it will be my job to cover basic guitar playing and basic music theory. In the first few lessons I will be going over the parts of the guitar and basic finger excercises that you can do on your own. I look forward to writing and going over music with all of you. If you have any questions about what I cover please feel free to email me at guitarcookies@gmail.com or post a comment. With that I bid you farewell for now.

Until next time :)

Salad Burnett “Tzatziki” (“pantry tzatziki”)

I grow an herb in my container garden called Salad burnett. It’s easy to grow and looks nice hanging over the edges of the planters. The leaves can be slightly bitter but have a lingering taste of cucumber to them – many articles I’ve found recommend using the leaves in herb butters or for cooling, refreshing flavored waters.
The best way I’ve come up with to use it is to mix it into a yummy tzatziki-type sauce (You might know tzatziki as “gyro sauce” if there’s not a large Greek population in your area). Traditionally tzatziki is made with cucumbers but since I don’t habitually keep cucumbers in the house I like this version because I can use the items that I do tend to have already in the fridge or pantry.
My version is made with fat free yogurt but you could use full-fat if calories are not a concern. Restaurant versions probably are full-fat and in addition are often made with sour cream as well as yogurt. The only fat in the recipe below is the “good fat” from the olive oil (unless you use a different yogurt).
If you have cucumbers go ahead and use those too – grate about 1/2 cup and press them dry with paper towels. Again, I just don’t usually have them around (and when I do have them I usually eat them up in a salad before thinking to make sauce with them).

2 cups plain fat free Greek yogurt (or strained “American” yogurt)
1/2 cup chopped fresh salad burnet leaves
1/2 cup minced or thinly sliced onion
1 tbsp lemon
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp minced garlic or ¼ tsp garlic powder
½ tsp salt and a dash of pepper

Mix everything together, adjust seasoning to taste. Best if allowed to chill in the fridge for a few hours (or overnight) before serving.
You can use this sauce on top of lamb, burgers, falafel, even veggie burgers ; or serve as a dip with some pita chips or potato chips (and maybe a bowl of olives as finger food – yum!).

My New Favorite Omelette

Once in a while I try something and it works.
I wanted to make a nice breakfast for my friends and I had some good leftover white wine in the fridge. I made an omelette with fresh herbs from the container garden (oregano, basil, chives, a little lemon balm, and some of the marigold fronds that I posted about below). I took about half of the yolks out of the eggs and discarded those out of habit, then instead of the usual milk or water that I would have beaten into the eggs I added a generous splash of the white wine.

Herbs, eggs, and wine all got whipped up into a nice froth with some salt and pepper and then fried and filled with some gouda cheese I also happened to have in the fridge. I topped it with fresh chives and served with fried squash blossoms and homemade home fries with hominy corn (I was almost out of potatoes so I used a can of hominy to stretch them further).

My sister thinks the wine (and the two citrusy herbs) sound like they wouldn’t be good in eggs but it was a hit with the three I served it to and I’ve made it twice since and friends haven’t complained (and at least one of them is blunt enough to have told me if it wasn’t a good idea). I think it may help that I remove half of the yolks, which might remove some of the strong flavor that can then be replaced with the wine flavor. Also I ran out of gouda and have made it with whatever white cheeses I have at the house… still works.


White wine from Jefferson Vineyards, Charlottesville, VA in my marigold basket.

Signet (Gem) Marigolds

I know I can’t be the only one who feels no interest in the orange potted marigolds that show up every year in the supermarkets and home improvement stores. I certainly would not have thought to plant marigolds on my balcony; It’s supposed to be a kitchen garden after all!

Well, enter the Signet Marigold (Tagetes tenuifolia). I came across it while looking for pest-controlling companion herbs. It has a strong citrusy scent, deters some pests, and the flowers are edible! On top of this, they look nothing like the dense orange ruffles I’m used to. These are pretty little five-petaled, simple blossoms set among lacy leaves… and they’re tasty too!

While waiting for the flowers to bloom I went ahead and gave the leaves a taste. Yes, this was before I even double-checked that the leaves were edible. They taste to me like orange or grapefruit zest… but without any of the fruits’ sweetness, if that makes sense. I think I may like the leaves better than the blossoms (and a little goes a long way as they’re very strongly scented).

As far as using the blossoms [and greens if you are doing that], I’ve found suggestions for pairing them with fish – think tarragon – and for including the petals in a colorful chicken salad. I’ve been using them with some rosemary when I make fried squash blossoms and also throwing sprigs into my omelettes. I just came across a sweet biscuit recipe that uses them too and I will be trying that in the fall when it’s cool enough to do some baking. They sound delicious and I will post the recipe (pending permission) when I make them.





To be completely honest, I haven’t found anything that explicitly states that the leaves are edible (the blossoms are, there is no doubt to that). I have however found several recipes that use both the leaves and the blossoms (which I am taking as a statement that the leaves are indeed edible) and have been eating both with no ill effects. With any new foods please use common sense and be alert to any possible reactions you may experience.

Not all marigold varieties are edible so please be sure of what you have before cooking with them. SIGNET marigolds are the ones I refer to in this post, they can also be called Lemon Gem Signet, Orange Gem Signet, or Starfire Signet.

My Starfire Signet seeds came from Reneesgarden.com.

Fairy Tale Eggplants Grown From Seed

Last year was my first try at growing these pretty little nightshades. I started them indoors from seed (seeds purchased from Park Seeds) and moved them out to the balcony in late May. The flowers were gorgeous but the fruits finally came in long after my tomatoes started producing.

Okay, I thought, these are a late bearing fruit.
I’d better keep that in mind.

Or maybe not; because this year they are the first
ripe fruits coming in from my garden!
Beautiful mini-eggplants striped in my favorite
color, I can’t wait to toss them with some olive oil
and S&P and throw them in the toaster oven set to broil (I am determined to avoid turning on the oven all summer – it's just too hot!)




(Next up to ripen will be these little Gretal eggplants. I think next year I am going to have to get seeds for the variety called "Hansel". It's just too sickeningly cute to have a trio of plants called "Hansel", "Gretal", and "Fairy Tale" out in the container garden.)