Patience comes in a garden of pots
Friday, May 20, 2011 It's a big foodie weekend if you are in the Atlanta area - the first-annual Atlanta Food & Wine Festival kicked off yesterday and continues through the weekend. I’ll be heading to the BlogHer Food '11 convention this weekend as the closing keynote speaker with former New York Times food writer Molly O’Neill of One Big Table and Epicurious.com’s Tanya Steel. The three of us have been challenged to speak about the future of food writing and how we managed to move from traditional roles in journalism to the internet. I can’t wait. I am absolutely thrilled and honored to be speaking, especially with two of the most distinguished food writers in the country. If you’re headed there this weekend, please stop by and see us and say hello – I’d love to meet you!
In the meantime, get outside and pot some herbs!
Cilantro and basil.
Gardening has long been a passion I turn to for therapy; for me, there is no better church than my backyard. When I lived in New England, I had an acre to roam, enclosed by a hundreds-year-old stone fence where I had peonies, poppies, vegetables, a pear espalier and an annual flower garden that I tended daily.
That was before a baby came along. Once my daughter was born, my time for gardening was limited. And when I moved back to the Atlanta area, my job at the AJC took what was left of my time. So gardening became something I had done in past; I brushed it aside, placing it in a box somewhere in mind that I would get to again someday when it was convenient.
Pineapple sage.
In the last couple of years, I realized how damaging it was to do that. I need my church. Planning, planting and waiting teaches me patience. So I’ve learned to compromise: I garden mostly in pots. They are easy to tend because there is no weeding or tilling, and I can move things around easily. I pot everything from herbs to corn (Though my corn, when I plant it, is ornamental. Corn needs a lot of space to pollinate and produce ears.)
Orange mint and lemon verbena, planted with shade-loving coleus.
Herbs work perfectly in pots as long as you keep them well-watered accordingly. So far this year I’ve planted orange mint, cilantro, verbena (which, amazingly, lives through the winter here), thyme, tarragon, sage, pineapple sage, rosemary and basil. More will come.
Mango Chow Chow
Bright and colorful, this Caribbean-inspired mix of mango and pineapple is a snap to make, and pairs well with fish and cheese, as well as white wines such as an Albarino or vino verde. It calls for mint and cilantro, but any bright-tasting herb will do.
Yield: 2- 3 pints, 4 - 6 half-pints
1 ripe mango, peeled, pitted, and diced (about 1 to 1 and ½ cups)
1 ripe pineapple, peeled, pitted and diced
1/2 medium red onion, finely chopped
1 red pepper, seeded and diced
1 chile pepper, seeded and minced
¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
¼ cup fresh mint, chopped
¼ cup fresh lime juice
¼ cup rice wine vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste
In a large bowl, combine the mango, pineapple, red onion, pepper, chile pepper, cilantro, lime juice, vinegar and salt and pepper.
The chow chow can be processed using the hot water bath method if desire, or kept in the fridge for 2 weeks.
Thyme.
Herbs, gardening, mango, pineapple in Cook Like A Chef, Going Green 
Reader Comments (8)
Thank you for using the word "church"...I have always called my time in the garden the very same. Great stuff, Meredith. I am so glad I started my day with you.
Jake - you are so sweet to say so! Thanks for reading!
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