Summer Garden Goodness

This weekend I had the pleasure of using quite a few of our garden plants for various things around the house. Here's what we made:

Raspberry iced tea: We steeped the tea bags with the raspberries (in a strainer or tied up in a coffee filter works nicely) and some lemon balm. Then, we added the sugar while the concentrated tea was still warm so the sugar would melt. Finally, we added the appropriate amount of water to get two quarts and enjoyed some ice cold goodness!

We picked some blackberries and black raspberries from some of our bushes that have been thriving in the heat wave. We added them to cereal, yogurt, and just enjoyed them to munch on. Nothing like living off the land!

I added some fresh basil to a store bought pizza (of course purchased with a coupon that was doubled during super doubles at HT) and it really helped to perk up the flavor. I've also added chives or cilantro in the past and that's been yummy too.

Benny added some fresh cilantro to his enchilada casserole. This really brightened the flavor of all of the canned ingredients. It's also a nice pop of color in the dish.

Lastly, and this one I haven't gotten to yet, I plan to do a few cut flower arrangements with the herbs and flowers fresh from the garden. The calla lilies are blooming now, as are the Easter lilies I bought last year (after Easter for 75 cents a plant... score!), and I think these would be gorgeous in a small glass vase or floating the lilies in a shallow bowl. The lemon balm and mint would add some nice fragrance to wild flower arrangements on the mantle and in the kitchen window.

So, how does your garden grow this week? Are you enjoying any of the fruits of your labor? I'd love to hear from you! Here's to living and saving green in the summer garden.