SWAAAAAAAAAP!

So many seeds, so little garden...

The 4th Annual Seed Swap went quite well this morning/early afternoon, if I do say so myself.  About twenty people turned out and made off with packets and packets of seeds (although I have a couple of plastic sacks full of the extras, which just tells you how many seeds turned up).  Several people went in on group ordering from Seed Savers, FedCo Seeds and St. Lawrence Nurseries, helping us all to save a bit on shipping and overall costs (FedCo offers you discounts of certain percentages off if your total is over a specified amount!)  They even seemed to like the soup and baked goods.

All in all, an excellent day!

Cris' Smoked Trout & Corn Chowder

You'll need: one filet trout, smoked and cured (preferably by a local outfit) and flaked into little chunks; two potatoes, cubed; 1 cup frozen sweet corn; 1 onion, chopped; 3 or 4 stalks of celery, chopped; 2 or 3 carrots, chopped; 4 cups or so chicken broth; 2 cloves garlic, chopped; 1 teaspoon thyme leaves; salt and pepper to taste; 1/2 cup cream.

Saute onions, garlic, celery and carrots in a little bit of butter and olive oil (I slosh a little o.o. on top of a tablespoon or so of butter) in a large stockpot until slightly soft and fragrant.  Add in the sweet corn and potatoes, stir and then add the thyme leaves. You can salt and pepper now, or wait until the end and season just before serving.  Pour in the stock (and I then add a couple cups of water) and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer 30 minutes or so, until the potatoes and carrots are cooked through.  Add the flaked fish, stir it in gently and simmer for another 5 minutes.  Add the cream, heat a minute to warm it up and then serve with good bread.

Ridiculously good, really.