Sunday, August 28, 2011

Greenhouse friends...

 It has been a busy weekend.  I harvested my vertically challenged carrots.  Made salsa and Jody's recipe rocks!  Made more raspberry jam.  Canned some cherry tomatoes.  To wrap it all up I am making a roast with my baby carrots and the potatoes that I manage to nick each one when I was digging them up.  I am still picking raspberries and now the chokecherries are starting.  I went down to our pond and harvested the sweetgrass.  I managed to get 3 braids.  The house would smell beautiful, except the onions and garlic are permeating the premises. 

You can't tell the carrots from the cherry tomatoes.  The onions didn't grow for some reason either.  They are in the leaf shaped dish at the bottom left.  Raspberries are in the upper right bowl and chokecherries in the lower middle.  My potato harvest wasn't earth shattering, but enough for one roast.  I know it doesn't look like a tremendous amount, but just knowing I grew it and am using it is worth while.

 I have some new friends in my greenhouse.  A little snake has denned up.  He is extremely shy and it took me forever to get this photo.  I don't mind snakes at all, so I'm happy to share the greenhouse with him. 
 I'm not as happy to share the greenhouse with this old matriarch.  She set up camp last week and I have had to be very cautious as to her whereabouts.  For some reason I have never been able to kill spiders.  I am going to Washington DC this week and my husband who detests both spiders and snakes has to water my greenhouse every morning.  I relocated the old girl today.  I'm afraid he is stuck with the snake. 

I'm going to leave you with this pickled cherry tomato recipe that I got from The Country Store by Stephanie Donaldson.  It is one of my favorite books.  I tried the recipe last night and I really like it.

Pickled Cherry Tomatoes
2 1/4 lb cherry tomatoes
1 t. salt per 4 cup jar
1 t. sugar per 4 cup jar
fresh basil or parsley
5 garlic cloves per jar
1. Prick each tomato with a toothpick.
2. Pack the tomatoes into a clean dry jar, adding the salt and sugar as you go.
3. Pack the jars with tomatoes to within 3/4 inches from the top.  Tuck the basil or parsley and garlic among the tomatoes.
4. Rest the lids on the jars, but do not seal.
5. Stand the jars in the oven at 250 degrees for 45 minutes.  The juice should be simmering.
6. Remove the jars from the oven and seal.  Store in a cool place and use within 6 months.

14 comments:

  1. Wow, a fantastic harvest from the garden. Enjoy the roast!!!

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  2. It sounds wonderful. I love that you can go pick sweet grass. Could you post a picture of it before you harvest it? I have never seen it before and I have always wanted to have some growing. I just wondered if I have seen it growing but didn't know what it was. I see the braid in your picture.
    Have a very nice trip.

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  3. A neat harvest, indeed. If not as abundant, or sized big enough for you delight, believe me, all those goodies will taste much, much better than the store bought ones!

    A few days ago, I also picked our potatoes and onions. The whole garden was a freaking mess of weeds, but the dirt was soft enough that I could pick them up without the shovel nicking that I know so well...LOL. Last year I did it too!!
    xxxxxxxx

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  4. it is just so rewarding to grow fresh produce and do amazing things with it!!!

    i think your harvest is wonderful!!!!

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  5. What a wonderful way to spend a weekend with natures creatures and veggies ! Awesome photos and post ! Have a wonderful Sunday eve !

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  6. How I enjoyed your entry of your progress with your garden. Your Roast is going to be delicious with all of the fresh produce. Your 'onions' look like shallots...I'll bet they are so aromatic as they roast.
    Have a great trip and don't worry about your hubby and the snake, both will retreat at the sight of one another.
    BlessYourHeart

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  7. That cherry tomato recipe looks yummy! One question...how do you seal the jars? Hot water bath? For how long? I'd love to try this one...thanks!

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  8. It feels so good to harvest your own food. I loved seeing Mrs. Obama's garden at the White House to encourage everyone to plant something and watch it grow.
    Your recipe looks wonderful and I was thinking today I should make some "Tomato Jam" like my Grandmother would do. You've inspired me too! XOXO

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  9. Looks like you are going to have a yummy pot roast!
    Isn't it a great feeling being able to grow and harvest some of your own veggies? Your harvest looks good! I went out and harvested my very small harvest of green peppers and banana peppers yesterday as I beamed with joy!

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  10. Now you have me all ready to go out to my vegetable patch and see what is out there. Vegetable gardening is not my strong suit, but I do try every year to grow tomatoes, potatoes, carrots and onions. And even though I know where the potato plants are, I always nick at least half of them digging them up, lol.

    Your harvest is amazing, and so is your greenhouse. I guess I would have less problems with the snake if I knew for sure it was harmless? How kind of you to relocate the spider, they are ugly but they do a lot of good. This one was up there on the 'creepiness scale' though!

    Enjoyed my visit here again today!

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  11. A bountiful summer you've had, which is a good feeling. Putting food up is one of my favorite things about gardening! YUM in winter.

    If I ever get enough cherry tomatoes again I will have to try this recipe.

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  12. Eww, I'm with your husband, I hate snakes and spiders!

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  13. Wow you have been busy. Snakes and spiders oh my.
    I am going to try this recipe for cherry tomatoes we seem to have a bunch of them. Thank you. Have a nice long weekend. B

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