Archive for March, 2009
On Seeds & Schedules
It’s early March. Do you know where your seeds are? Mine have been arriving in spurts as each different supplier gets them shipped to me. My two favorite sources for seeds are Renee’s Garden Seeds and Johnny’s Selected Seeds. I think I should be ashamed to admit to you that I’ve got more than 35 packets of seeds in my storage box and more on the way, but I’m rather addicted to seed starting. If you’ve ever started your own seeds, you’ve probably gotten hooked too.
With a small bench in a greenhouse currently at my disposal, getting seeds started is easier than ever. Three weeks ago I started my ‘Frontier’ onions, and they’ve done a tremendous job popping their long skinny necks up out of the flats. When I start seeds, I fill my packs or flats with a very loose germination mix and soak it thoroughly with a gentle mist from the hose before sowing the seeds. By soaking the soil/media first, the seeds don’t get clumped into groups by water droplets from overhead watering, and they start off with a wealth of moisture to get them happy and growing.
My seeds tend to germinate much more quickly than the seed packet says thanks to a rather homemade system for keeping them in a perfect little pocket of moisture and warmth. I use one of those flimsy flats that hold pots at the commercial greenhouse and invert it over the tray holding my seeds. Then I cover the whole thing in clear plastic, sealing in and protecting the little seeds against drying out or getting hit by any chilly drafts. The need to water them is cut in half, which is hugely helpful considering seeds need fairly constant and even moisture to germinate. If you’re going to give this system a shot, just be sure to use the kind of flats that have big openings in them so that plenty of light can still get through to your seedlings when they start popping up their heads.
I typically leave this little incubator system in place for about a week after the first signs of germination since the seeds have headroom thanks to the inverted flat keeping the plastic off of them. After that first week’s growth though, I take the plastic and inverted flat off the seed tray to let the seedlings have the maximum amount of light possible as they get their photosynthetic wheels turning.
Pizza Dough
Basic Pizza Dough
1 C. warm tap water (may need 1 or 2 T. more water)
1 1/2 t. active dry yeast
2 t. honey
2 t. salt
2 T. olive oil
3 C. flour
Whisk water, honey and yeast in a medium bowl until yeast has dissolved. Sit aside and cover with a towel until mixture is foamy and double in size, about 15 minutes. Stir in salt and oil. Add flour and work mixture with a spoon and your fingers until it comes together as a dough. Add more water one tablespoon at a time if you need, but try to avoid this if you can knead the dough without more water.
Sprinkle some flour on the counter and knead the dough for a few minutes.
Clean out the bowl you used to mix the dough and coat it with olive oil (or non-stick spray). Put the dough in, cover it with a clean dish towel, and let it rise for an hour or up to two, until it is doubled. If dough is not showing much life, place on top of a warm oven or radiator.
When dough is doubled, gently deflate it with the heel of your hand. Form it into a ball and let it rest on a floured spot with the bowl turned over top of it to keep out drafts. In 15 minutes, it is ready to roll out.
Makes enough dough for 4 small pizzas (if you want to personalize them for everyone at the table) or 2 large pizzas . Dough may also be frozen, wrapped in plastic wrap and placed in a freezer bag, for use on a week night. Just pull the dough from the freezer the night before you plan to use it, unwrap it, and put it in a bowl in the fridge to thaw out. Let it come to room temperature before rolling out.
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