Things still are hopping around here and there just never seems to be enough time to tackle it all!  I try to get back to the house to catch up whenever I can. A bit of hope is out there as there may be a job opportunity. I'm not holding my breath, but I am crossing my fingers.

 Meanwhile, I've been trying to keep a handle on the tomatoes which means every other day I am making sauce. I'm grateful for every jar as this is one thing I use a LOT.

  The imperfect tomatoes go to the chickens and the rest gets used fresh or into various sauces. This morning I just made a plain stewed tomatoes. I love adding tomatoes to beef barley stew or I use it to smother fish (I lay out a bed of veggies sliced rather thin.. then whatever firm white fish I may have on hand over it.. top it off with crushed stewed tomatoes and bake it.) 

 The Queen Anne tomatoes are rather juicy, thin skinned, seedy.. which lends well to eating fresh, but not too great for sauces. The Goldman's Italian American ( GIA ) are much less seedy, drier, well flavored.. and a bit thicker skinned. Blanching the GIA's was fast as they easily slipped out of their skins and are rather large tomatoes too. 

 I of course could not stop myself..

  I am still awaiting the Jersey Giants. No wonder that strain is "rare" if it is almost September and still the tomatoes are green. A strain I will try again next year should I get seeds from them, and I will make sure to start them well ahead of the rest.

 The hornworms successfully nailed all of my other paste/ sauce type tomatoes. The yellow pears have been in high demand.  They are the perfect snack size and are great to toss into various dishes. I've tossed them in with carrots, potatoes, garlic, onions that were around a roasting chicken (the gravy made from that was fantastic. We brought some to DV and he came to the house the very next day to ask how I made it.)  I'll typically put a dash of olive oil in a pan (although my husband likes the bacon version better.. chop up a few lean slices and crisp up in a pan.. set bacon aside and use the drippings instead of olive oil).. thin sliced onions, sweet peppers (sometimes I'll toss in a chili pepper with the sweet), thin cut carrots, and several handfuls of the yellow pear tomatoes. At the end I'll put in minced garlic and pour this over pasta. The yellow pear tomatoes will soften and break to create a lovely sauce. I can make endless combinations (beans, corn, edamame, mushrooms.. almost anything works!)  The bacon version.. the bits go on top as a garnish usually with chopped chives and parsley.

 I haven't yet jarred up any salsa. That is on the list for next year. We can eat a lot of salsa when it is around.

 I have several good sized squash stashed away. Many winter squash are best eaten after they have had some time to cure. Fresh off the vine many seem bland and water.. their flavor improves as they dry out a bit. They will be wonderful in the middle of winter!

 This is my latest treasure..

      Pink old fashioned hollyhocks courtesy of yet another neighbor. His Grandmother planted this stand of hollyhocks before he was born. That puts it sometime before the 1940's. I have collected up enough of these seeds to plant an entire city block. Hollyhocks are biennial and in some areas will keep reseeding themselves quite happily. After drying.. these seeds will go into the freezer for 2 weeks to remove any potential weevils. 

 The honey bees have been happily visiting these flowers all day long. (Unfortunately.. so have the Japanese beetles.. munching on the foliage.) The seed pods remind me of wheels of cheese. A long sleeved shirt and gloves are helpful if you have to mess with these a bit as they have irritating hairs all along the stems and stalk. His hollyhocks are not staked up (they are planted along the wall of a free standing shed).. so in the crazy wind storms they got knocked over. They are well over 7 feet tall and still putting out blooms. 

 Today we have apple picking to tackle.  I need baskets. Those old apple baskets of woven wood slats would be incredibly helpful right now. Many of our apple trees on the bigger farm have been nailed by a blight. Flowering very well.. heavy fruit set.. and then BLAMO! A few trees didn't blow their load, but most did. (Quite a few fruit trees will probably need to be removed. Sad.. but necessary. Fruit wood is quite lovely for smoking meats..)

 The pears are still going crazy.. but they are a wild sort that nature planted. Small, heavy producing, highly russeted.. they won't be winning any beauty contest. They do however taste very good and are sweet.. even though I sampled them while they were still very unripe. 

 Black walnuts should be along soon. A few have dropped unintentionally, but they are not ready for picking yet. It should be a decent year for them, but in no way great. There are not nearly as many nuts on the trees this year.. but still more than enough to keep me busy. The husks smell lemony.. a good thing as I forgot I had stashed several of them in my backpack.

 It rained most of the day yesterday.. so gardening is not going to happen. In the next day or two I will be keeping my eyes peeled for puffballs. Mushrooms are triggered by both moisture and temperature fluctuations. It is kinda like playing a slot machine.. just with better odds of a pay out. I swear I have been dreaming about these mushrooms..  with wine, caramelized onions & garlic, and steeping in a beef broth.. and a crusty bread to dip into it. That can be made with any mushroom.. like button.. and it still is very good.  



And to my surprise.. I found that Guineas and chickens can cross.  As Roy, the Americauna rooster has displayed his vim and vigor... in the front yard...with what feels like every time a car passes... I am not concerned. Mainly because Roy... likes guinea boys.

 Back to work I go. I hope you all get a moment of more to enjoy summer while it is still here!

Queen Anne and the derecho

  The hints of fall being right around the corner can be felt in the air. While I can, I am savoring tomatoes as often as possible.. starting with my favorite breakfast sandwich.

Queen Anne tomatoes thrived for me this year when many of the others struggled.

  Toasted bagel with cream cheese, thick slices of tomato, seasoned with onion powder, a pinch of salt and pepper. YUM!! A family favorite, my husband also has been busted repeatedly scarfing this down.. and he constantly professes his dislike for fresh tomatoes. Queen Anne's seem to be the exception to the rule. They are mild almost sweet. While I personally love a tomato that is acidic, smacks you in the face with flavor, I understand that's not everyone's desire.

 What you might notice missing.. are the seeds. The plant this tomato came from has been putting out some hefty fruit, and the blush is also more pronounced at the blossom end. Any tomato my husband happily eats fresh is a keeper. So the seeds were removed and set aside to ferment.. as I pray they didn't cross with the yellow pear. I have enough of a stash from this variety to last me several decades, but I can't help grabbing up more.


Standing out on the front porch, making my husband hold the plate so I could actually capture the tomato's color.. he says "look at the sky!"
 I glance up.. and take a picture..

"Oh wow... pretty!"  I heard myself say.
 "Didn't you just feed the chickens?" he asked.
 "Crap!"
 I grabbed one of the sandwiches and inhaled it as I fled to the backyard. Just as I was speed waddling agilely sprinting across the lawn.. and half way to the feeders, the sky let loose. 

   Meanwhile, my husband sat down on the bench and snapped a shot of the neighbor's from the porch.. while he ate the other half of my sandwich. When I came back he shot me a huge grin, handed me the empty plate and announced the camera was dry. I fought the urge to channel all 3 Stooges. The rain had stopped, the sun was back, the pellets were squishy (but oddly the birds were loving them like that) and it could have been worse.
  The first wave of rain passed pretty quickly and it was a mild summer shower. I snapped a few shots of the flowers in the yard.  

Shortly after this, wave 2 hit fiercely. Winds strong enough to slam me into the side of the house and almost knock me off my feet! No joke.. chickens were sliding across the cement patio. The door was violently blown open dousing several antique table ends and a couch with sideways rain as I tried to shut it. Drenched in a New York second, I ended up huddled in the corner attempting to protect the birds from the onslaught with the only thing I had... myself.


 Sometimes, 15 minutes can feel like an eternity. The inside of the temporary coop was soaked, patio chairs were launched into the yard.. but I managed to keep most of them safe and maybe 6 of the chickens got drenched. The rain let up, the birds raced to the yard to hunt for worms. I slogged into the house the way only someone in super cold wet jeans can.


 I had to rummage for some dry clothes as mine were all wet. "Need to make a trip home to get changed." I muttered to my husband. It worked out well as he had to get more hinges in town.


  Dropping me off at home as he ran off to the boy's toy depot hardware store, he told me he took an interesting picture too.

   I totally forgot I had opened the windows. He thankfully, remembered as he saw the storm front moving towards us. When we got home, I made him his own tomato sandwich complete with bacon.