Water! Water!

I'm still trying to come up with a workable self-watering system for the bee garden. Challenges include the raised beds already being built, and not for self-watering; lack of a pressurized water source; and the project budget being approximately $0. I did some looking around at stuff on the web, but what I found was mostly pot-over-a-bucket stuff that would require rebuilding the beds. There was one discussion of a drip system but it required a faucet and assumed you were building it in a yard. So, pretty much left to my own ingenuity, I'm back to thinking about some kind of dripping bottles, or maybe bottles with wicks, dotted about among the plants. But would a 2-liter bottle last all weekend in hot weather? Especially if I cut the end off to make filling it easier?

On a more positive note, I found some small boards (in a dumpster, yay dumpster-diving) that should work to shelter the external combs on the east hive. They'll have to be joined end-to-end in pairs, trimmed to fit the slope of the roof, and tied down somehow -- still haven't worked out how to do that part -- but if they don't keep enough rain off I can try covering them with garbage bags or a piece of drop cloth, and anyway, it'll be better than the nothing that's there now. Or maybe the combs have already gotten too wet and the point is moot, I'll find out Monday.

Esperanta traduko: this post is also available in Esperanto, because Dana is a language geek.

Pot roast stew for slow-cooker

Note: all ingredient amounts are "or to taste" and should be considered more guidelines than instructions.

3 medium (non-baking-sized) potatoes, quartered or sixth-ed
5 carrots, in about 1-inch pieces
1 lb. beef stew meat or roast or thick-cut steak,* in large-bite-sized pieces
1/4 cup diced onion
2 ribs celery, in about 1/2-inch pieces
several cloves of garlic, crushed
plenty of pepper, salt if you must

Arrange potatoes and carrots in the bottom of slow-cooker; top with meat, then onion, celery, and garlic. Season, cover, and cook about 4 hours on medium-high, or until done.

Makes about 2 dinners for me, 2-4 lunches.

*If using a pre-seasoned cut of meat, I recommend rinsing it before chopping and probably reducing the amount of salt you add, if any. If using pre-cut stew meat, I recommend cutting each chunk in half -- no real reason, I just like it better that way and it cooks a little more quickly.

The rest of the story
My mother used to joke that she cooked by finding the recipe, carefully setting it out nearby on the counter, and meticulously ignoring it. This is exactly that type of recipe. Actually, most of my cooking follows that fine old tradition.

I considered topping it off with some fresh parsley and a few leaves of sage or a sprig of rosemary, but it was raining and I didn't feel like putting my shoes on to go out and fetch it. Normally my stews have at least one other vegetable, but I was feeling lazy (possibly fighting my usual late-September cold, which I get from parents after their children have brought it home to them from starting the school year). Then I realized that I had exactly the same ingredients as a pot roast, so why not leave out the broth and just let it cook in its own juices? So that's where the title comes from.

It came out moist enough but with very little extra liquid, so don't expect to make gravy from these drippings. You could add a little beef broth or just get some canned gravy, but I thought it was fine by itself.

Esperanta traduko: this post is also available in Esperanto, because Dana is a language geek.