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.  

fried squash blossoms

zucchini and squash plants are notorious for providing so many copious vegetables that by midsummer you are begging anyone, friends, neighbors, strangers to just take some off your hands.  but there's more to a squash plant than the vegetable (well, technically the fruit).  

years ago in italy, i had fried zucchini blossoms and since then have been wanting to try to recreate the delicacy for myself.  this summer, i took to the internet to figure out the proper way of preparing them.  squash and zucchini plants are monoecious, meaning they bear both male and female flowers.  the actual squash fruit comes from the female flowers.  i had always assumed that to make fried squash blossoms you'd be sacrificing some of the fruits by taking away the flowers, but it turns out the male flowers are supposed to taste better, so that is what you use.  it's easy to tell the difference because the female flowers have the fruit forming at the base of them. 

i picked about 10 flowers from my plants (i picked the ones where the blooms were still closed).  the recipes i found said to pinch out the stamen in the middle of the bloom, which was a bit difficult to do without tearing the blossom.  you also want to check inside the blossom to make sure there aren't any renegade insects trapped in there.

i decided that i wanted to stuff the blossoms with something before frying them.  the first time i made them i used homemade ricotta (so simple to make, and absolutely delicious)!  the second time i used goat cheese.  i didn't realize until i began stuffing the blossoms that i had bought goat cheese with honey, but it actually turned out quite well.  the sweetness of the honey was a nice foil to the fried blossoms.  

one trick i learned after the first time i made them was to make sure the ends of the blossoms were twisted shut well.  in fact i even used a little of the cheese as 'glue' to keep them shut.  otherwise you risk them opening and having the cheese come out while they are frying.  i made a simple batter of flour and beer, coated them and then put them in an inch of oil heated to about 350 degrees.  the hardest part was just keeping the oil around that temperature. 

once they turned golden brown, after just a couple minutes, i took them out, set them on a paper towel and sprinkled them with salt.  that was it.  a perfect summer treat.