Garden in the City (Year 4!)

Hey guys! Friday Favs is OUT today and Garden in the City is IN! May was a beautiful month filled with 80 degree days (10 total) and sunshine, but, this week was mostly rain and a ton of work so my iPhone had a serious lack of photos. That being said, I planted my "City Garden" two weeks ago and have been meaning to get this post up. For those that have been following this little blog 'o mine for a while know that every year, I utilize pots and planters of all different sizes to grow a variety of herbs, veggies, and some flowers.

To recap:
Patio Garden (the blog was so new then omg.)
Garden in the City
Garden in the City 2

This little garden provides me with veggies and herbs that last throughout the entire year. Yes, the entire year. I freeze or dry the leftover herbs at the end of the summer and then use them throughout the winter months.

I find that year over year I plant more herbs and less flowers. Here's what I have:
- Basil: Caprese, pesto, pasta, oh my!
- Sage: Necessary with butternut squash ravs
- Italian Flat Leaf Parsley: Um, everything!
- Rosemary: Potatoes and the best rosemary butter cookies
- Dill: Chicken and chicken salad
- Lettuce: All the salad
- Kale: I planted this by seed this year!
- Rainbow Chard: Delish quickly sautΓ©ed with evoo and salt
- Spearmint: Mojitos!!

For flowers, I stuck with the hearty and easy: geraniums, pansies, and gerbera daisies.

(note to mom: yes, I separated the basil plants :))

That about wraps it up. I've already harvested some of the lettuce due to last week's intense sunshine! It was delicious.

Remember, it is SO EASY to start a little herb garden, even with a small amount of space. Basil, parsley, and rosemary are always a staple in the kitchen so start small! If you want tips and tricks on where and how to being, just click on the past posts that I linked to above.

Have a great weekend! I hope you all have something fun planned. Be on the lookout for some #fff_travels posts on instagram -- we are off to the Cape for the weekend! Yippeeee!

xo

Earth Day, Randomness, & Chicken Thighs

Good evening, friends! Is anyone else still recovering from Marathon Monday? And no, I'm not referring to those who should actually be recovering. I'm talking about us by-standers/cheerleaders... woof. AM workouts have been no joke for the last two days. 

Moving on, it's Earth Day! Even if you missed out on giving back to Mother Nature today, it's not too late to do something for our planet. I'm excited because my little spinach and kale seedlings started to sprout this week. If you're interested in growing a little herb garden this year... check out these past posts (here, here, and here) about my "City Gardens". There's nothing better (and easier/cheaper) than fresh herbs from the garden!

Next, random but, any local people signed up for some 6k-9k races in the nearish future? I have the running bug (like I do every Spring), however, this year I'm not running the Run to Remember Half Marathon like I usually do so I'm itching to run another fun race. I'd love to run Falmouth but, that's not until August. Please share!

Tonight, I made grilled chicken thighs with roasted asparagus and spiralized sweet potato 'chips'. The real star of the meal, however, was the sauce. The other day I mentioned that I made a spicy mayo to go with fish tacos. I made the same sauce tonight except I reduced the mayo portion and increased the sriracha/dijon portion. It was a very nice compliment to the chicken thighs that were marinated in turmeric, coriander, and paprika.

Sweets: Tossed in evoo, garlic powder, salt, and rosemary and baked at 410 for 15
Asparagus: Tossed in evoo, salt, crushed red pepper and baked at 410 for 10
Thighs: Marinated quickly in tbs paprika and turmeric and 1/2 tbs for coriander and grilled on cast iron pan (covered and uncovered) until cooked through.
Sauce: Tbs organic mayo, 1.5 Tbs sriracha, Tbs Dijon - mix and adjust as needed

Yum, Yum, Yum! Hope you're all having a fiiinnee week! xo

QUESTIONS:
Do you plant a garden?
What are your favorite herbs?

Are you running any races in the next month or so?
Chicken thighs or chicken breasts?