Today, I find that history has inspired me to revisit desperation cooking and start my green onion victory garden.
During WWII, people converted their yards into Victory Gardens as a way to support the war effort and supplement their rations. I imagine for those at home, they were also a powerful way to assert some control over what must have felt like a terrible, uncontrollable situation. This must have been especially true for those who had loved ones fighting abroad. Perhaps it provided an outlet for channeling anxious energy, a way to cultivate something positive in a troubling time.
Another food-related, historical response to trying times is that of Desperation Cooking. These “make due” desserts, like my recipe for Balsamic Vinegar Pie with Olive Oil Crust, were born out of desire and need. Some haute cuisine restaurants across the country have even their respects to this frugal form of cooking by adding comfort dishes to their menus. And they’re re-imagining these dishes with elevated ingredients and stylized presentations.
Table of Contents
Grit & Resilience
WWII and the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic are two very different animals. However, I think our human response to uncertainty is not so different.
I have family and close friends in public service and the health care field (you may, too) and I see the toll of the dangers and difficulties they are facing every day on the job. They come home exhausted and heavy-hearted. However, they get up the next day – every day – and do it all again. They are doing important work to flatten the curve of this virus and to care for the sick. They are working to maintain order in our communities and to ensure there are program protections in place to provide support both in the moment and in the future.
A trip to the store
Early one Saturday morning, I went to the grocery with my usual list in hand. I didn’t recognize my store. Entire sections of the store were bare. This was a similar scene that would play out in markets across the country. As I drove by a Meijer delivery truck on my way home, I had a strange desire to honk and wave as a sign of gratitude to the driver for transporting food from warehouse to empty store shelves.
Once home, I cleaned and put away the few odd groceries I had gathered. I then started to clean the green onions I’d picked up for the quiche I was planning to make for brunch that day. The onions laid neatly across the cutting board. With my favorite chef’s knife in hand, I positioned the blade 1/2 inch from the roots, lowered it in a single sweeping motion and pushed aside the bottoms of the onions with the edge of my blade. And then I just stood there and looked at them.
Fun memories, lessons from childhood.
I grew up in the country. My family always had a huge garden, fruit trees, grape vines, chickens – and a creepy old Michigan basement where the canned goods and a giant chest freezer were kept. My mom could can and freeze everything. And everything she made was delicious.
When I was about 5 years old, my dad decided to see if we could winter over potatoes in the back yard. I was too young, so my brothers got the distinct honor of digging a hole to the center of the earth. At least, that’s how it seemed to my 5 year old self. More accurately, it was a hole approximately 4 ft. wide by 6 ft. deep that went down below the frost line. They placed the potatoes in bushel baskets, covered them over with straw and buried them in the fall. In the spring, they dug them back up again.
The potatoes had survived the winter, And after we retrieved the baskets, my brothers got to fill in the hole – again. Years later we laughed as we shared that story at my father’s memorial service. My brothers speculated he dreamed up projects around the house like “the great potato experiment” just to keep us too busy and too tired to get into trouble.
Today, I have no desire to dig a giant hole in my back yard for potatoes, but I am inclined to put in a small victory garden – My Green Onion Victory Garden.
The start of My Green Onion Victory Garden.
I held the bottoms of the onions in the palm of my hand for a moment, inspecting them and nudging them gently with the tip of my index finger. Good roots. I set them aside on the counter, walked into the garage, filled an empty pot with soil and poked 8 little holes 1 inch deep with my finder.
Into each hole, I placed a cutting and lightly covered them with some soil. I gave them some water, a little encouragement, and placed them in a sunny spot by my kitchen window. And finally, I placed a plastic zipper bag over the top to create a green house.
Within one week, my green onion victory garden had taken root. The cuttings had sprouted new green tops – not a bad start to My Green Onion Victory Garden. In another 2 weeks I had new onions and could repeat the process over again. March is still too chilly to move things outdoors in Michigan. However, once it’s warm enough, I can either transfer the onions to a larger pot, or into the ground for the summer.
Cultivating More than Onions
In the past, I’ve done this in the spirit of economy. But today it’s something different. If I can grow a few onions this spring, it’s perhaps something more than nothing in terms of easing the burden on our supply chain. It’s one less thing I have to buy from the store – freeing it up for someone else who may need it. If I’m attentive to My Green Onion Victory Garden, I may be able to grow enough to meet the needs of my family and have some to share with others.
At a time when there is very little I can do besides wash my hands and practice social distancing to control what’s going on in the world around me, cultivating a few onions in My Green Onion Victory Garden is surely something I can do to ease my mind and the burden of others.
Conclusion
So, if you’re looking for something to do while sheltering in place, start a Victory Garden. Give cultivating onions a try today. And keep up with it even after the words “Coronavirus” or “COVID-19” become something we remember instead of live with on a daily basis. If you have good luck and a bountiful harvest with these easy steps from “My Green Onion Victory Garden” post, leave a few on your neighbor’s doorstep. Self-reliance, a little economy and a lot of compassion are all good strategies for small victories. When combined, these little things amount to something much greater.
SIX SIMPLE STEPS TO PROPAGATING GREEN ONIONS
Cut the tops off the green onions.
Leave approximately 1 inch of the white part of the onion intact with the roots.
Prep your ground or container.
If it’s warm enough where you live and after the threat of frost, you can cultivate a small patch of ground in your yard. If it’s still cool where you live, you can fill a pot with potting mix before proceeding to Step 3.
Poke a hole.
Poke a hole in the soil with your finger 1 inch deep. Space holes 1 inch apart.
Plant the onion cuttings.
Place a cutting in each hole, with the roots facing down. Lightly cover them over with some of the soil.
Water and tent.
Lightly water. If cultivating indoors, place them in a sunny spot by a window. Place a plastic zipper bag over the top of the pot to create a little greenhouse.
Be attentive.
Check on your green onion victory garden daily to give it a little water if needed, and some encouragement. Within one week, the cuttings will sprout new green tops. Depending on the temperature and exposure to sunlight, in another 1-3 weeks you’ll have new onions and can repeat the process over again.
I loved reading this! Thank you for sharing your stories. We are planning and preparing our garden this week. I feel it in my bones, cultivating more food at home is vital during this time.