Battling bamboo with curry

And a fail-proof roasted chicken recipe to pair with peppery arugula.

While our vegetables were growing last week, Jagger spent part of his days at summer camp for the first time. He learned to make new friends and put his sharing skills to use, and we learned how to interpret the unreliable narration of a toddler. We’re pretty sure he ate a different color popsicle every day, and he may have peed in and/or around a toilet, but nothing’s confirmed. He definitely had the best time, and the only tears shed were ours on the first-day drop-off, so maybe we were all growing last week.

Marching into camp prepared and fashionable.

Back at the garden, we’ve seen big growth spurts in our yellow squash, beans, broccoli, cucumber, carrots, and tomatoes, all of which are beginning to bud or flower or fruit. We’ve been harvesting our ruby gem lettuce and arugula for several weeks and planted second seedings of each. The strawberry plants are frustrating — a flower or unripe berry will show up here or there, but the plants as a whole just aren’t growing as robustly as they initially started. Our parsley is still piddling at this point, and I’ve replanted some failed rows of watercress, shiso, and shishito with eggplant, bell pepper, and San Marzano tomatoes. Fingers crossed!

Brandy Boy tomatoes starting to shine.

One problem we’ve faced is an invasion of bamboo that has been shooting up from a nearby patch outside our property. Try as I might to cut them back, the runners have taken a firm hold beneath the garden, and I fear that their ruthless root systems have put a strangle hold on some of our wanted vegetation.

While I figure out a way to deal with that between growing seasons, Jagger’s nanny has been showing us how to harvest young bamboo to eat. The process of digging, cleaning, peeling, and boiling is fairly intensive, and the end result is delicious. Emmy made a Thai curry with bamboo and chicken that was fresh and fiery and alive with flavor. She’s also been taking extra bamboo to local restaurant chefs, who have been happy to prepare it their ways for her to try.

Young bamboo coming up outside the garden.

Emmy holding split fresh bamboo.

Other than bamboo, our garden’s most prolific output so far has been arugula, which we’ve been eating almost every day. It’s a great excuse to make one of our all-time favorite roasted chicken recipes, from chef Michael Schwartz of Michael’s Genuine Food & Drink in Miami. The chicken cooks in a skillet in the oven then gets served over peppery arugula with warm, plump raisins and pine nuts. What I love about it: crispy skin, easy clean-up, and it uses three things from our garden (arugula, rosemary, parsley).

Roasted chicken with homegrown arugula.

Recipe: Michael’s Genuine Roasted Chicken with Arugula and Raisins

Serves 4

1/3 cup raisins

1/2 cup olive oil

1 fresh rosemary sprig

1 (4-pound) whole chicken

2 tablespoons fresh herbs like Italian parsley or thyme

2 tablespoons kosher salt

1 tablespoon ground black pepper

1 tablespoon canola oil

1/4 cup dry white wine

2 cups fresh arugula leaves

2 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted

1. Heat oven to 300 degrees. Put the raisins, olive oil, and rosemary in a ramekin with 1 tablespoon water. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes, or until the raisins are plump. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.

2. Crank the oven to 450 degrees. Dry the chicken with paper towels. Run your finger between the skin and the breast meat, and slide the herbs in there. Season the body and cavity of the chicken generously with salt and pepper.

3. Put a 10-inch ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat and add the canola oil. When the oil is hot, lay the chicken in the pan, breast side down, tucking the wings under. Put the skillet in the oven and roast until the chicken starts to brown, about 35 minutes.

4. Carefully take the pan out of the oven. Insert tongs or a sturdy wooden spoon into the cavity of the chicken and gently lift the chicken out, being careful not to tear the skin. Tilt the chicken slightly so all of the juices from the inside run out into the pan. Discard all of the pan juices, which will mostly be fat. Nestle the chicken back in the pan, breast side up. Return it to the oven and roast for 30 minutes, decreasing oven temperature to 400 if it begins to brown too quickly. The chicken is done when an instant-read thermometer reads 165 degrees in the thickest part of the thigh. Transfer the chicken to a cutting board and let rest for 5 minutes before carving.

5. To make a quick pan sauce, pour off the excess fat from the pan drippings. Put the skillet over medium-high heat and add the wine. Using a wooden spoon, scrape up the brown bits stuck to bottom of the pan. Season with salt and pepper. To serve, put a bed of arugula on individual plates or on a platter and arrange the carved chicken on top. Scatter the raisins and pine nuts all over. Drizzle with the pan sauce and a little of the raisin oil.