The 2nd harvest, 1st pick of figs happened a few weeks ago and from them we made jam. A couple of weeks after that twelve more quarts of figs were picked, which became whole fig preserves along with fresh munchies and a bunch brought to work. The last of the figs should have been ready last week, and a lot were, and dried, and today I just checked the tree and more are ripening. Alright already!
Garden Chili Verde sauce |
It has been a fantastic bumper tomato crop - and yes, Heirloom makes a difference in the taste and quality of the fruit - and also the garden has done well with salsa peppers, green peppers, Japanese eggplant and Armenian cucumbers. I think we have 10x more eggplants than last season just by putting up a trellis that shields them from a little of the afternoon sun.
We've put up quite a few quarts of Gardineira and dilly beans, plus a jalapeno/wax/green/salsa/garlic medley that looks interesting. It was another disappointing yield with zucchini, and I'm inclined to skip it altogether next year. Our tomatillos are fruiting but they are small - we will trellis them next year and see how they do. They made a really good chili verde sauce base, along with some of the green tomatoes and salsa peppers - and we like knowing it has no preservatives. And now I'm experimenting with ChowChow with green tomatoes, peppers, cabbage and a lot of interesting spices including mustard seed. Will let you know how it goes.
Garden vinaigrette salad |
That little spindly leggy Pomegranate out back turned out to have the only beautiful pomegranate of the season: the other big tree produced a lot of small and dry fruit that opened months early and spilled out for the birds. Nothing gets wasted but we were disappointed. But that one pomegranate was harvested and trickled in a salad with friends and we enjoyed every kernel.
Pickled raw veggies |
I am looking into a good salsa recipe now that we are quickly exhausting the tomato options with spaghetti sauce, freezing them whole, eating them in Caprese salads, stewing them and constantly eating them as part of my lunchtime vinaigrette salad.
Garden Pesto |
Mexican Salad with Honey Lime Dressing (FB)
Salad: (prep this in a bowl and squirt a little extra lime juice and coat everything so the avocado doesn't turn)1 pint cubed tomatoes, fresh
1 avocado, ripe but still somewhat firm
2 T. fresh cilantro, chopped
2 ears fresh sweet corn, cooked al dente or raw - cut the corn off the cob and with the back of the knife scrape the cob to get all the juices.
Dressing: Juice of 1 lime; 3 T. olive oil, 1 teaspoon honey, sea salt and lots of cracked pepper, 1 clove fresh garlic minced, and a dash of cayenne. (Mix these ingredients and whisk; set aside)
Saran Wrap cover and store in the fridge until ready to serve. Great over broiled fish. Great as a pico de gallo alternative with chips. We loved it as a side for our breakfast omelet this morning.
Being in the kitchen seems to relieve some of the day's stress. Now if only someone would clean up the mess ...