Friday, July 1, 2011

"Mr. Garbage Gut" DOES have his limits!

Friends and my Dad and I joke about how I can eat and enjoy almost anything.....I've not tried bugs yet, but my Will Not Eat list is very short......sea urchin sushi, mince meat pie, Christmas fruit cake, Krispy Kreme donuts, sangria wine, and ranch dressing come to mind (the latter two remind me of gastric juice when you burp too hard). But yesterday I discovered that even though I have a bitter palate and love many bitter herbs and veggies, my oddly lush volunteer seedlings of arugula that came up despite the drought and heat are simply WAY too bitter for me to eat, even after a lengthy cooking. Folks here in central Florida grow it in the cool winter season when the flavor is nutty with a TOUCH of bitterness, and the plant itself is immune to frosts and freezes. Debbie and Jon Butz had arugula seedlings appear in the heat too.....I'll have to ask if theirs is ultra-bitter. When I made the harvest yesterday when the wonderful rains eased up (looks like I got over three inches!) I had to carefully pick through the leaves for young stink bugs...though I doubt I could have tasted them in that extreme bitterness.

John

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