Treehugger.com is a great website to get news about all different aspects of environmental policy, clean energy innovations and climate change implications. Recently I came across a post about the growing trend of organic and local food showing up on the shelves and in the bins of major grocery chains. While this is a welcome change, it still leaves a lot of questions like how local is local? Are the organic foods raised in a sustainable and environmentally sensitive way? It's important to remember that the bottom line for the grocery chains is exactly that... the bottom line. Profit. Organic and local are "in" right now. The general public is picking up on it and increasing their demand for these products. Large food retailers are only too happy to jump in and provide these goods at a premium price (for what may actually be cheaper for them to purchase given savings on transportation costs). A food co-op that carries local, organic and sustainably produced foods has a different motivation. For a food co-op devoted to carrying these products as part of its mission there really is no choice but to carry local, organic and sustainably produced foods. On top of that, the food co-op seeks to educated consumers about why these "buzz words" are actually important to the overall environment and to their own public health. Finally, the co-op seeks to make the connection between consumers and the source of their food. Offering "local" is great. But offering tomatoes from "XYZ Farm in Bucks County, owned by John Doe who has been raising his tomatoes in such and such fashion" tells the story behind the food. And if we can't raise our own tomatoes (and have our own stories), then knowing the story behind the tomatoes we do eat is almost as good.  

(Editor's note: Don't forget... Sarah's Garden is one of 20 gardens featured in the 1st Annual South Philly Garden Tour, taking place tomorrow from 11am to 3pm. Check-in begins at 10:30am at Urban Jungle. Click here for information about how to get your tickets in advance and to learn about the great food and drink specials being offered by local businesses throughout the neighborhood. Special thanks again to our sponsors: PhillyCarShare, Bennett Compost and Urban Jungle!)

Maybe I spoke too soon last week?  This rain seems never-ending!  On the plus side, my basil seems to be enjoying itself:

And fig is growing and growing.  I love watching the tiny new growth:

The fig seems to love these really steamy days when the air is so humid it's almost raining but not quite and it kind of feels like a steam room (not that I've ever been in a steam room, I'm just assuming.)

Something that is probably not enjoying the steamishness of the weather is this little creature:

This is a Crown of Thorns and it really is quite thorny:  the other day I asked it if it was enjoying its spot by the sunflowers and it totally ignored me!  The nerve!  (Sorry, couldn't help it.)  It may have even bristled!  (Okay, now I'm really done.)  But seriously, I love how this little one looks and its stems are truly covered in long, sharp thorns.  But!  It's a succulent and likes things on the dry side.  Oops!  Maybe if you adjusted your attitude, little prickly one...

The interesting thing about the Crown of Thorns is that it flowers nearly year-round.  And the flowers are actually very small - it's the little leaves around the flowers that are that nice shade of pink.  I hope all this rain doesn't kill you, Crown of Thorns, cause I like you, even if you are...caught myself!  Actually I just can't think of any more synonyms for "thorny" right now, so thank your lucky stars, reader(s), and be glad I'm too lazy to use even an online thesaurus.

If you made it this far you either have a high tolerance for bad puns or maybe you're just awesome.  Either way, please enjoy my littlest sunflower, peeking its head up over the table just barely:

This one was in a perhaps over-planted pot (what?  space is limited out here) and somehow it's only about half the size of its neighbors.  But that's okay, sunflower, you're adorable and bees will still love you for your pollen.

Garden tour is Saturday!  Hopefully we'll have no rain and a good turnout.  I've got lots more horrible puns up my sleeve that I will happily regale you with if you just ask.

Sarah DeGiorgis has lived in Philly for five years and is finally starting to feel like a true Philadelphian, though she still detests cheesesteaks.  She enjoys reading, watching bad tv, eating and cooking good food and digging in the dirt. Catch up with her continuing efforts to grow food in South Philly by clicking here.

A lot of folks have been putting in a lot of time and effort to make the 1st Annual South Philly Garden Tour a reality but a few have added their financial support and deserve our recognition and your support. Please show your appreciation to Urban Jungle, Bennett Compost, and PhillyCarShare for helping to defray many of the costs of Garden Tour. All three do great things for the community and have been longtime supporters of the effort to make the South Philly Food Co-op a reality. Best of all, all three businesses operate with a philosophy very similar to ours with emphasis on high-quality, local, sustainable solutions to your needs for gardening supplies, compost and transportation. So visit their websites or support them the old-fashioned way by visiting Urban Jungle (where you can also purchase compost from Bennett Compost).

We've talked a little about some of the great gardens on the Tour and we mentioned some of the great food and drink specials available throughout the day to Tour participants and the party we're having after the Tour. Well, we have one more special to add. $1 off at Rita's - first 70 people who check-in! So there's some incentive for you to get to Urban Jungle as soon after the 10:30am start time for check-in as you can. This special is in addition to: Free cookie at Black N Brew Free coffee or tea at Grindcore house $1 off drafts and menu items at 2nd St Brew House Half off all drafts from 11am to 3pm at Pope AND: 20% off drink and food at the Cantina from 3pm to 5pm. So come ready to see some great gardens and come hungry.

Former Inquirer columnist and current new media guru Tom Ferrick has been running the news website Metropolis for some time now. Metropolis is a great mix of hard news, political analysis and cultural and lifestyle pieces by a number of contributors. And it's all local. This week, reporter Elise Vider profiles the plethora of new food companies that are springing up all over the city. Working in facilities like shared kitchens or in their own kitchens, these innovative small businesses are following the mantra of keeping it local and finding varying degrees of success. Of course, we co-op'ers love anything local and look forward to a time when the South Philly Food Co-op can be yet another outlet - along with Weaver's Way, Mariposa, the Kensington Community Food Co-op, specialty stores and even - really - supermarkets - for these local food makers. If you are someone who is interested not just in purchasing these locally made foods but also giving a go at starting your own business, check out Vider's second piece on how these businesses are navigating the city's business regulations.

12. Kids can do the tour for FREE! That's right. Now, not only do the little ones get you a fat tax credit from the federal government, they can also come along and take pictures of you with the fig tree planted by Mayor Nutter AND you won't have to pay for them. Twenty (twenty!) gardens all throughout South Philadelphia have signed on to be on the Tour which goes from 11am to 3pm on Saturday, September 10. Gardens range from individual backyards to community gardens to parks. You can visit all the gardens or just target a few since they’re all in a 5-mile radius (perfect for walking or biking). Tickets are $20 in advance or $25 on the day of, and can be purchased now at:

• Urban Jungle, 1526 E. Passyunk Avenue
• Grindcore House, 1515 S. 4th Street
• Ultimo Coffee Bar, 1900 S. 15th Street
• Online by clicking here.

Check-in will begin at 10:30am on Saturday at Urban Jungle (1526 E. Passyunk) where you can also purchase tickets if you haven’t gotten them by then. Following the Tour, participants are invited to the Cantina (East Passyunk Ave and Morris St.) for an after party from 3pm to 5pm. Anyone with their Garden Tour ticket will receive 20 percent off food and drinks. We’ll see you on the Tour! Our goal is to sell at least 100 tickets. We can only do this if you dig deep and pull out a twenty (or two) at one of the locations below and purchase a ticket. (Heck, the food and drink specials alone make it a worthwhile purchase.)

Chard is the new spinach. Didn't you hear? Nutritionally they're very similar - actually, spinach has slight advantages. Slight. And chard is so easy. I get it locally, six months out of the year, and it just goes with everything. That said, you could totally use spinach here, or another leafy green.

I've been using chard more and more in "Mexican"-style foods. A little chard in your black bean egg roll? Sure. In your quesadilla, of course. And in my Italian and Thai foods too. Chard plays well with others.

So we're thinking about dinner, and Sous Chef Brian says, "Mexican," and I say, "We don't have any beans ready, we don't have meat...." So butternut squash and chard it is.

I had leftover butternut squash from one of those secret recipes, so I had frozen it in cubes. Once I figured out what was going in it, dinner came together in minutes.

Wash a head of chard and chop it roughly (this photo is unchopped chard).



Find some peppers. Not necessary, but nice. I had these little sweet cherry peppers and one serrano.  You could use a jalepeno and some bell pepper.



Chop them up and add them and your chard to a frying pan with a bit of oil. I used avocado oil, but go with what you like. Saute until wilted and remove from heat.

Meanwhile, get your squash set. In fact, if you're starting from fresh, you need to do this first. Steam or bake your squash, skin it and cube it. Let's imagine everyone has a freezer full of veg like I do.

Take a cup and a half of cubed, cooked, frozen squash and defrost it. Microwave works, or an oven on 300. Once it's warm and defrosted, mash it with a fork.

 At this point, we faced a minor setback. We discovered our flour tortillas in the fridge had turned. I sent Brian to the corner store for "more tortillas." That's what I said, "more tortillas." We have flour tortillas on hand all the time, for quick sandwiches, and quesadillas and we use them for tacos too. I have no idea why we use them for tacos, but we do. We always have. So when Brian came back with (local!) blue corn tortillas, I was disappointed. Then I realized that everyone else uses corn. We're the only fools making tacos in flour tortillas. So there's been a little bit of a taco revolution at Saturday's Mouse HQ.

A spritz of oil in a frying pan, high heat, and a corn tortilla.

30 seconds, until they start to bubble a bit and get a few brown spots.



Flip and do it again.

We also cut up some scallions.



Mix the chard and squash, taste - we were surprised, we didn't season them at this point. We also knew we were adding cheese. If you weren't going to use cheese, maybe a pinch of salt. Cheese is optional, I'm calling this vegan.

Put that on a taco and you're all set. Silly me, I thought of restaurant orders of tacos on corn tortillas and put three on a plate. Three is quite a lot of taco. I'm going to say this recipe serves three, with two tacos each.

I had some Hillacres Pride chipotle smoked cheddar, which was awesome, but another cheese would work here. A dash of hot sauce and you're set.

 This recipe is cross-posted at Saturday’s Mouse, where I’m working on making food out of food. 

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups butternut Squash (cooked and cubed)

 

• 1 head chard (cleaned and chopped)

 

• 6 corn tortillas

 

• 1/2 cup cheese (optional)

 

• 1.5 tbsp oil (avocado or whatever)

 

• Salt to taste

 

• 1/2 cup scallions, chopped

 

• 1 serrano pepper, diced (or jalepeno)

 

• 1/4 cup sweet pepper, diced (cherry or bell)

Instructions

• Saute chard and peppers in 1 tbsp of oil until wilted.

 

• Mash cooked squash with a fork. Combine with chard and peppers.

 

• Heat a spritz of oil in a frying pan, add a corn tortilla, heat until bubbles form, flip, heat another 30 seconds, set aside, repeat.

 

• Fill tacos with chard and squash mixture, top with scallions and cheese (optional).

Details

• Prep time: 5 mins

 

• Cook time: 15 mins

 

• Total time: 20 mins

 

• Yield: 3 servings

 

(That's right. These reasons do go up to 11!) 11. Every dollar raised from this event puts us one step closer to having the funds needed to conduct our market analysis and draft our business plan. These are perhaps two of the biggest start-up costs we have and are VITAL in the process of securing financing from lenders and choosing the location that gives the Co-op the best chance to thrive. Twenty (twenty!) gardens all throughout South Philadelphia have signed on to be on the Tour which goes from 11am to 3pm on Saturday, September 10. Gardens range from individual backyards to community gardens to parks. You can visit all the gardens or just target a few since they’re all in a 5-mile radius (perfect for walking or biking). Tickets are $20 in advance or $25 on the day of, and can be purchased now at:

• Urban Jungle, 1526 E. Passyunk Avenue
• Grindcore House, 1515 S. 4th Street
• Ultimo Coffee Bar, 1900 S. 15th Street
• Online by clicking here.

Check-in will begin at 10:30am on Saturday at Urban Jungle (1526 E. Passyunk) where you can also purchase tickets if you haven't gotten them by then. Following the Tour, participants are invited to the Cantina (East Passyunk Ave and Morris St.) for an after party from 3pm to 5pm. Anyone with their Garden Tour ticket will receive 20 percent off food and drinks. We’ll see you on the Tour! Our goal is to sell at least 100 tickets. We can only do this if you dig deep and pull out a twenty (or two) at one of the locations below and purchase a ticket. (Heck, the food and drink specials alone make it a worthwhile purchase.)

10. Hopefully you know about the after party by now but did you also know about all the food and drink specials that will be available from other businesses throughout the day? Tour participants can get a free homemade cookie from Black and Brew, a free small coffee or tea at Grindcore House, dollar off drafts and menu items at Second Street Brew House and half off drafts at P.O.P.E. And at least one of the gardens might be using the tour as a way to use all the mint he's been growing this year. Mint Juleps or Mojitos, anyone? Twenty (twenty!) gardens all throughout South Philadelphia have signed on to be on the Tour which goes from 11am to 3pm on Saturday, September 10. Gardens range from individual backyards to community gardens to parks. You can visit all the gardens or just target a few since they’re all in a 5-mile radius (perfect for walking or biking). Tickets are $20 in advance or $25 on the day of, and can be purchased now at:

• Urban Jungle, 1526 E. Passyunk Avenue
• Grindcore House, 1515 S. 4th Street
• Ultimo Coffee Bar, 1900 S. 15th Street
• Online by clicking here.

Following the Tour, participants are invited to the Cantina (East Passyunk Ave and Morris St.) for an after party from 3pm to 5pm. Anyone with their Garden Tour ticket will receive 20 percent off food and drinks. We’ll see you on the Tour! Check-in will begin at 10:30am on Saturday at Urban Jungle (1526 E. Passyunk) where you can also purchase tickets if you haven't gotten them by then.

(Editor’s Note: Sarah’s Garden is one of the 20 featured gardens on our 1st Annual South Philly Garden Tour on Saturday, September 10 from 11am to 3pm.  20 AWESOME gardens. Food and drink specials at several local establishments. An after party at the Cantina from 3pm to 5pm. And all of this fun supports our efforts to bring a co-op to South Philly. Click here for information on where to buy tickets… including a link to buy online if you’re into that. Thanks!)

Hello!  I am happy to report that my little garden survived the hurricane!  My palm tree fell over but that was it.  All the tomatoes are still going strong (lots of little flowers!) and the eggplant especially seems to be liking all the water:

The kale is also enjoying the extra water:

I was a little worried about the moss growing there, but little kale doesn't seem to mind...the moss was actually already growing in the potting soil when I planted the kale seeds but I needed all the soil I could get so I just left it.  As long as the kale continues to grow I'm not too worried about the moss.  Here's a closeup of the kale:

The biggest ones have four leaves!  Guess it's time to transplant...

I also made a trip to visit my parents and some old friends in western Massachusetts recently.  Back when I was overrun with tomato seedlings I gave some to my dad and he planted them in the garden.  And they're HUGE!  I'm a little jealous, actually, of these people who can plant things in the actual ground instead of containers.  Here are his beefsteaks:

And check out his Beauty Queens!  I haven't even gotten any of these yet but his are huge:

We actually ate one Beauty Queen that had already turned yellow and it was delicious.  They really are beauty queens:  yellow with light green and orange stripes throughout.  Here are some more (sorry about the leaf):

I love how you can see the stripes already even though they're still green.  So pretty!

But!  This is about my garden and I have some new specimens to show you.  First up:  Rex!

I call this guy Rex because he's a Rex Begonia and besides being awesomely jungle-like he also likes shade so his new home is under the tree.  Enjoy your dappled shade, Rex!

And there is one more new addition, also of the crazy-jungle-exotic-looking variety:  a castor bean plant!

I love the color and shape of its leaves and the crazy spiky seedpods but this one is very poisonous and must be kept away from cats and the like.  The cats were never too interested in my little tomatoes when they were inside (they would sniff them and then back away) but this guy is apparently more attractive to kitties so I think when it gets too cold he'll be going on vacation in Massachusetts - inside, of course.  This one likes full sun so he's in a sea of basil for right now.

There are a few more additions so stay tuned!  We're just full of excitement here in South Philly.

Sarah DeGiorgis has lived in Philly for five years and is finally starting to feel like a true Philadelphian, though she still detests cheesesteaks.  She enjoys reading, watching bad tv, eating and cooking good food and digging in the dirt. Catch up with her continuing efforts to grow food in South Philly by clicking here.