Cabin Cooking: Fresh Asparagus Soup

Our asparagus is just starting to produce. I can cut the plump spears until mid-June. After that, I need to let them grow into ferns to replenish the roots for next year. My plot in the floating garden is pretty small, only about 1'X4'. Consequently, I like to use each spear to the max. I cut them carefully with a knife just below the soil level. In the kitchen I wash them and snap off the tough lower stem. They break at the tender point, but a little bit of good asparagus may remain below the split.

I like to make fresh asparagus soup with trimmings from the bottom ends. I cut off very thin slices until I feel resistance on the knife. If there isn't enough asparagus, I cut a few more whole spears into very thin slices. To that I add two slices of onion, half a stalk of celery and a few strips of bell pepper also cut into very small bits. I bring 2 cups of water to a boil and add the veggies.

I cook the veggies on simmer for about an hour and use a wire whisk to mash and blend them together. I like a rustic soup including the bits of veggies. (If you like a smooth soup, you can put it in a blender and strain out the pulp.) Then I cut several whole spears into 3/4 inch pieces to add at the end.

I put 2 tablespoons flour and 1/2 cup milk in a container with a lid. Vigorous shaking blends it well. I add the milk and flour mixture to the cooked veggies and continue cooking it over low heat to thicken. I add another 1/2 cup of cream (or milk if you prefer) and the larger pieces of asparagus. Simmer long enough for the asparagus chunks to soften. Season to taste with salt, pepper and herbs (I like thyme).

This recipe makes enough for two good size servings. I think it tastes so good because I know it came partly from my garden.

Do you have any good soup recipes? I'd love to hear about them. -- Margy

"Eyes on the Wilderness" by Helmut Hirnschall

Eyes on the Wilderness is a treasure from a simpler time. It's hardback and available only in used bookstores or online. Amazon.com has it for $19.95 plus shipping, but I found it for $5.00 in one of my favourite used book haunts.

Helmut Hirnschall was born in Austria and immigrated to Canada at 27 in 1960. Austria had few wilderness areas even then, so Helmut was enthralled with all the natural surroundings in Ontario where he settled. First on foot, and then by kayak, he explored the lakes, forests and rivers whenever his work schedule allowed.

In Eyes on the Wilderness, Helmut uses the animals he encountered as the vehicle to introduce the reader to his new life in Canada. They range from the lowly (but powerful) Blackfly to the mighty Black Bear. You can hear the hoot of the night owl, trills of the many songbirds and lonely cry of the loon through his vivid descriptions. Each animal story includes a personal anecdote about its discovery, a biological description and First Nation legends.

This book is recommended for both children and adults. I can imagine reading it as a young teen while on a camping trip exploring the outdoors for myself. As a adult and a new Canadian immigrant myself, it was interesting to see how someone else became acquainted with his new and exciting home. So if you would like to step back in time, and get back to the wilderness, keep an eye out for Helmut Hirnschall's Eyes on the Wilderness (Hancock House, 1975) at a used bookstore near you. -- Margy

Cabin Cooking: Seasoning Cast Iron Frying Pans

One store Wayne and I like to frequent is Harbor Freight Tools. They're nationwide in the US with several in Washington and Oregon near our travel routes. Of course they're loaded with tools, but they also have some home items. On our last trip I got a three-piece set of cast iron frying pans. To use cast iron for cooking and keep it from rusting, it must either be the pre-seasoned kind or manually seasoned by the user. For $13.99 I had to do the seasoning.

The pans are shipped (often from China) in a protective coating. In my case, it was a waxy substance. To season the pans I first had to remove the waxy substance to get down to bare metal. I used hot soapy water and a scour pad. Oh, there was one other ingredient, lots of elbow grease. You don't want to start the seasoning process until all of this yucky stuff is removed.

The next step is to rub the entire surface of the pan with fat (like Crisco) or vegetable oil. It's best to use a variety that's high in saturated fats. I didn't have any on my shelf, so I used my regular cooking oil. After coating each pan inside and out with oil, bake them upside down in the oven at 350 degrees for one hour. It does smell a bit, so I opted to use our BBQ outdoors on low. After the hour let the pans cool before touching them.

Seasoning makes the cast iron non-stick. To keep it that way, wipe them clean with as little water as possible and dry immediately. Warming on the stovetop helps. If the pan starts sticking or rust appears, you can go through the seasoning process again.

Here is a quick Good Housekeeping Magazine video on YouTube showing the process.

Do you have any favourite cast iron recipes? I'd love to hear them. -- Margy

Spring Melt

It's a bit early, but so is the warmer weather. Spring melt is starting in the back country.

The lakes and rivers are rising. Here's Freda Creek as high as I've ever seen it.

All along the logging roads and trails small brooks are running, melting the snow and ice as they go.

We are up the lake enjoying our changeable spring weather. Just to let you know, there won't be a Wednesday Friends Day post this week. Come on back next Wednesday to meet another good blogging friend of mine. -- Margy

Beginner's Loop

Our friend Jeanne came back to visit us in Powell River. On her last trip, she had her first quad ride on a forest service road. Today we decided to introduce her to an easy trail close to town. We parked near Edgehill School at the head of Abbotsford Street. From there, we took the Edgehill Trail system through large stands of trees with an understory as beautiful as any in the area.

This handy launching point can be used to reach any area east and south of town. Even though it's an easy trail, there are a few challenging spots for the novice rider. The first is a hill with some turns and rocky patches, but Jeanne put her quad into 4X4 and crawled up like a champ. Our speed wasn't fast, but that gave us time to thoroughly enjoy our surroundings. We rode the rest of the trail and a short logging road to the entrance of the Washout Trail.

It's been raining lately, so the Washout Trail was dotted with big puddles. In places, the Wednesday Trail Building Group has created bypasses on drier soil to prevent damage to the area. Their hard work was just highlighted in this month's Rider's West Magazine. Thanks everyone for making our backcountry more accessible.

At the well marked junction we turned up the Blue Trail. This trail has also been the location of work by the dedicated ATV group. Jeanne is standing by one of the two new bridges they built last fall with a combination of volunteer workers, donated supplies and a $3000 grant from ATV/BC. But it's not just a quad trail. The Blue Trail is a multi-use for hikers, mountain bikers, and horseback riders as well. It's also an interpretive trail used to teach the youth of Powell River about their forest environment. Once back on the Duck Lake Forest Road, we backtracked to our parking spot and ended a wonderful day in the bush.

Do you want to explore the great outdoors in Powell River? Would you like a book full of maps like this one? There's a great map book written by Dave, the president of the Powell River ATV Club. It’s called the ATV Trail Guide and costs $25. If want a copy, you can contact Dave through the ATV/BC website. The guides are also available in Powell River at Quality Parts, Guy's Cycle Works and the Edgehill Store. All profits support trail maintenance and building activities. -- Margy

Double Barreled Watering

Several years ago I started growing potatoes on the hill above our cabin. There wasn't much soil up there, but over the years thanks to composting and carrying some peat and manure up the hill, I've built up a nice little plot. A big drawback, however, is that it's a long ways above lake level and water in buckets is VERY heavy. Even though we got lots of rain in the spring, summer can get pretty dry.

Soon after starting my hillside garden, my good friend John designed a water barrel and rain catchment system. Because of the hilly location, he could install the system higher on the hill and gravity would feed a hose for easy (if a bit low in pressure and slow) watering.

A heavy duty plastic tarp is suspended between three trees. A 2X4 angles the tarp towards a large funnel into the top hole of a 55 gallon plastic barrel. It has remained in place through many wind storms over the last three years. Then this last month, John upgraded my system by adding a second storage barrel.

The two barrels are connected by a hose at the bottom (click the picture to the left for a better view). As the first barrel fills, the second barrel follows suit. This was a fairly easy expansion. The hose attachment to the first barrel didn't even have to be altered. Just as the water level rises equally between both barrels, the outflow draws equally between them. Now when it gets dry this summer I'll have twice the watering power with my "double barreled" watering system. Thanks so much John. -- Margy

Coastal BC Birds: Varied Thrush

Varied Thrush

This spring a new visitor came to the cabin. At first I thought it was a robin, but on closer inspection I identified it as a Varied Thrush.

It first appeared along the cliff, hopping from one grassy spot to the next, never close enough for a good shot.

A Varied Thrush is related to a robin. They live in the Pacific Northwest in wet, coniferous forests. They eat insects (probably a lots of those on the grassy outcrops this time of year), fruit and acorns. Logging of mature forests has limited their range. Maybe that is why he (she?) appeared near the cabin. They just harvested the hills behind us, maybe destroying it's natural habitat or nesting site. -- Margy