the life and death of a summer garden

over the course of my summer garden i took a series of photos to document the growth and subsequent decline of the garden.  the bed in the foreground has tomatoes and cucumbers.  the one in the background has lettuce, peppers, basil, and eggplant. below is a photo sequence of this season.  

may 1

 may 8 

 may 15

 may 22

 may 30

 jun 7

 jun 12

 jun 19

jul 11

 jul 18

 jul 30

 aug 16

 aug 21

 aug 28

 sep 4

 nov 5

nov 6

cullinary european tour

it's been awhile since my last post.  the main culprit is that i took a month long trip thru europe in september/ october.  to say the trip was much needed is an understatement.  i was fortunate enough to have a number of friends to stay with along the way, which always makes traveling more fun.  my travels took me to paris, berlin, florence, rome, and turkey (istanbul and antalya).  the food was varied and universally delicious.  as you can see from the following pictures i spent a good deal of time eating.  no sense in holding back when faced with so many delicious opportunities.  amazingly my clothes all still fit me on the way home :)

breakfast shortly after arriving in paris - pain au chocolate and cafe au lait

lunch and dessert at the wonderful 'la duree' - perfect for a rainy afternoon

temptations around every corner

a brief rest at the jardin du luxembourg

 might as well skip to the chase - this was actually our lunch at 'sans souci' - the former residence of frederick the great outside of berlin

view of the prinzessinnengarten - it is an urban garden in a vacant plot of land in the middle of berln.  we had an unbelievable four course dinner there consisting mostly of food grown in the garden.  i was so full i couldn't eat until dinner the next day.  it is a really extraordinary place - one of the highlights of my trip!  for more info go to http://prinzessinnengarten.net/about/

my first cappucino - in florence 

the best gelato in florence - 'percho no!' (why not!)

delectable foods at the market in rome 

markets in istanbul

turkish coffee - ready to read my fortune in the grounds

fresh squeezed pomegranate juice in antalya

another delicious dessert in paris to help round out the trip

winding down

the summer veggies are winding down.  by this point i usually am ready for the transition to fall. one of these years i hope to do some fall planting too.  there are lots of greens and other plants that can be planted for the fall.  but usually by this point i feel like i need a break from the garden so i just let the summer garden run its course. i'll be heading out of town soon too, so i've been spending the last week gathering up the remaining veggies and prepping them so that i can still use them in the coming months.

i first made a huge batch of pesto with my basil.  pesto freezes really easily.  amazingly i had enough of everything except the parmesan cheese to make all this pesto.  but i freeze it without the cheese so that worked out.  i think i'll have enough pesto to last until next summer's harvest.

the peppers and eggplants are still producing quite a bit.  after roasting about half a dozen peppers and then stuffing another half dozen i still had about 8 left.  peppers are easy to freeze.  i cut them into large pieces and then spread them on a cookie sheet to freeze.  once they were frozen, i put them in a plastic freezer bag.  freezing them like this keeps the pieces separate and easier to use.  

the eggplant required a little more work. after a little searching online i found out that they needed to be blanched.  i peeled and sliced them, then blanched them in water and a little lemon juice for 4 minutes.  after draining them i plunged them in an ice bath to stop the cooking.  then like the peppers, i froze them on a cookie sheet before putting them in a plastic bag.  they looked like eggplant popsicles, hmmm, not sure that seems too appetizing.  

 

hot hot hot

 

like many areas across the country this summer we've had quite a heat wave, especially the end of july and beginning of august.  while my tomatoes were languishing in the heat, my peppers were loving it.  as you can see i've got quite a crop of hot peppers.  the variety i am growing this year is called 'hungarian hot black pepper.'  they ripen to a typical red color, but before they do, they are a beautiful deep purple color.  they do have quite a kick as well.  these ones seem a little too fleshy to dry easily, but fortunately peppers freeze really well.  i just keep them in a freezer bag to use throughout the year.  

one interesting thing about the peppers is that one of the plants has peppers that are a much different shape than the others, even though they are supposed to be the same kind.  instead of jalepeno shaped, they are much smaller, about a half inch.  i've found that these ones dry easily, so i just let them dry on a ledge in my kitchen.

 

okra 2 ways

 

i'm a southern girl, and i love okra.  not only is it great to eat, but the blossoms are a gorgeous hibiscus-like shape.  i know a lot of people are turned off of okra because of the slime factor.  i agree that can be a bit hard to overcome, but there are 2 ways i love to eat it that have changed the minds of people who consider themselves non-okra eaters.  

i am growing two different types of okra.  a green one and a burgundy one.  there isn't any difference in the flavor, i just love the way the two compliment each other visually.

pickled okra

this is a quick easy way to prepare okra. for about 3/4 lb of okra (i've found that fills a quart mason jar), mix together in a saucepan 1 cup water, 1 cup vinegar, 2 tablespoons sugar, 1 tablespoon salt, and then whatever spices you may have on hand.  good ones to use are fennel seeds, cumin seeds, coriander seed, and peppercorns.  i put in about a teaspoon of each.  bring to a boil and cook the mixture for a couple minutes making sure the salt and sugar dissolve.  then pour the mixture over the raw okra (i like to combine it all in a mason jar), along with a hot pepper that has been cut in half.  if you have fresh dill, add a few sprigs as well.  let cool and then store in the refrigerator.  they will keep for a couple weeks.  i like to just eat them straight out of the jar.  they have a wonderful crunchy texture and vinegary flavor.  

 

 

roasted okra

this is such a simple way to prepare okra, but you have to endure having your oven on, which in the summer isn't the most comfortable thing to do. 

heat oven to 400 degrees.  toss okra (keep them whole!) with some olive oil, and salt.  if you have fresh herbs like basil or mint, tear a handful over the okra as well.  roast in a baking dish, or baking sheet for 15 to 20 minutes or until they have softened and are getting a little brown.  stir them once half way through the cooking.