Egg custard and veggie garden plans

My first task for this morning is to make my men some egg custard.  John LOVES custard.  And since we get 5 eggs a day, custard is NO problem!

The recipe I used is from the Better Homes and Gardens cookbook... you know the one.  Page 254.

This is a very simple recipe.  Before you begin mixing the ingredients, set your oven to 325.  You also need a pie pan & 6 custard cups.  I put my pie pan on a baking sheet.  Now, put the custard cups in the pie pan and pour boiling water around them.

Egg Custard (flan)

3 beaten eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
nutmeg and allspice to sprinkle on the top

In a large mixing bowl, blend all ingredients.  Pour into the custard cups, sprinkle with nutmeg and allspice.  Bake for 40 minutes.

Here's the pictures from this morning.

Doesn't that look yummy?

I'm also planning our garden.  John and Josh tilled the garden over a week ago, before the snow.  If the weather cooperates today, it will get another pass and I'll get the "root" veggies" into the ground.  Here's what we're planning to plant this weekend.

Sweet potato

Blue and red potatoes.  Red and yellow onions.

Walking onions.  I've never seen any plants like these so I thought I'd try them.

Carrots, beets and cabbage.

I also want to get some seeds started for transplant later.  Here's the list.

Flowers for the flower beds and around the garden for insect control.

Plants for the herb garden and on the patio.

And of course, lettuce for salad all summer long.

We love big tomatoes.  Okra is a necessity.

Who could live without squash?

Or cucumbers?

And a nice, ripe melon is HEAVEN!

Our garden didn't do as well last year.  It got too hot, too soon.  Our hottest day last year was June 28th when it was 111F!  Holy moly!  We were in "severe" drought all summer, and I believe we're just finally out of it.  It's been a very dry 12 months.

Northeast walkway and garden in background.

This picture was taken last year on March 31st.  The garden is in the background.  Notice that the onions are already in the ground and the soil is DRY?  The peonies were blooming already.  The peaches were DONE blooming.  It was 86 degrees that day.  Simply amazing.

Josh had just come to live with us that month.  My brother-in-law Joey and his wife Lisa were also living here then.  We had a house full. 

Joe tilled the garden and got the onions planted.  Lisa had lots of plants started in pots for a sale were were going to be in at the Hardy Gym.

In 2011, we had floods.  The Spring River didn't flood as long as some of the other local rivers.  The Black River and the White River were still over flood stage when we took a trip to Georgia for the 4th of July.  In fact, the Mississippi was so high that weekend, we were concerned we might not make it back on time!  We have a long growing season here.  This tomato was still blooming in October.  Notice Curly Joe our lavender guinea behind the tomato?




 We had a pretty good garden in 2010, but for some reason I don't have any pictures of it....  Hummmmm.  I think it's because my grand daughter was here all summer.  And I hurt my back that summer.  That was rough.  So I wasn't outside as much, digging in the ground.  But our homestead still looked pretty good that summer, as you can see from this picture.

Tammy and Ariel catching tadpoles in the "pond".

I know we had beets and carrots in the garden that year.  Ariel helped me dig them up and eat them.  I remember she really liked the Bull's Blood beets.  They're very sweet.  She even asked me, "Can I stay up late and eat beets?"  WOW!

Here's the garden in 2009.  That's the hickory tree that fell in the garden (I discussed this in my last post).

John out standing in his garden.

And the veggies we got that year were excellent.