Today's harvest

It is so nice to be harvesting daily from my garden.  This is just the veggies that I picked today - I also picked raspberries and plums and I'm about to go and pick enough apples for a crisp. 

Today's harvest included a few sugar snap peas - they are really done and I need to pull the plants up but since there were a few on there I picked them, pole beans - both yellow and green, tomatoes - both roma and grape, cucumbers and bell peppers.

What are you harvesting?

First Fresh Salsa of the Season!

The tomatoes had a slow start this year due to the cold spring but they are doing well now!  The first batch of fresh salsa is always the best every year.

This batch won't make it until sundown - the first batch never does.  I also have lots of bell peppers and onions in the garden so I think I'll make fajitas for dinner.

Fresh salsa with fajitas - YUM!

June 2nd and the garden is finally planted!

I think this is the latest I have ever planted my garden.  I did plant a couple of things 2 weeks ago but the bulk of the planting was done yesterday and today.  As it is, my tomatoes and peppers aren't liking the cool weather and really wish they were back inside.  I hope it warms up soon and they make it.  

 My main garden.  I have Egyptian walking onions, pole beans, fennel, snow peas, beauty heart radishes, carrots, lettuce, beets and mini bell peppers. 

 I have potatoes in my earth boxes on my patio.

 Yummy brussells sprouts! 

 Herbs - basil, parsley, sage, rosemary, marjoram, oregano

 Bell peppers in the lower part of my new raised bed garden - 6 are mixed colors regular bells and 3 are mini bells - we love peppers, can you tell?

 Tomatoes (roma) in the upper part of my new raised bed garden.  They are not happy to be outside in the cold - I hope they perk up and make it.

And back behind the fence is Andy's garden and as usual he has planted cucumbers and watermelon.  We added an A frame this year for the plants to grow up instead of having them all on the ground. 

How about you?  When did you plant your garden this year?  If you are in Minnesota, haven't you just loved this weather?

The 2013 Growing Season has Begun!

I'm so jealous of my friends down south who have already started their gardens!  I am so over this winter and ready to start gardening.  The weather outside is still very wintery and not spring like at all - although it did rain most of the day today.  Even with the rain melting some of the snow, there is still plenty left.  

So I did what every good northerner will do when they can't get outside and garden yet - I started my seedlings inside!  It doesn't look like it will be an early spring, but I will be ready when spring decides to come.  Last year we had an early spring and things just got away from me and I didn't start my own seeds - I didn't want to repeat that this year so I'm starting a little earlier than I normally do. 

I planted tomatoes, bell peppers (mixed colors), mini bell peppers (first time growing these I hope they do well), brussels sprouts, watermelon (this is actually for Andy - he always grows these and this year he picked out a seedless personal size variety), fennel (another first for me - I never knew I liked fennel until a couple of years ago and now I can't get enough of it), and cucumbers (also for Andy - can you believe the little boy that was a preschooler when I started this blog is now a TEENAGER!).

I will probably start more seeds next week or the week after.  I'm happy for now to be started growing!

I even nicely labeled them.  I have the specific variety on the back of the stakes. 

In previous years I have used yogurt cups, egg cartons and such to start my plants.  I think that was part of my problem in getting behind last year was gathering together planting cups and cutting drainage holes in the bottom.  It was a great idea to use them one more time before recycling but honestly, buying square pots is easier - and I got nice plastic covers that fit on top so nicely so I don't have to mess with sheets of plastic on top. 

Have you started your garden yet?  What are you growing?

Mrs. Wages Salsa Mix

A friend gave me this package of Mrs. Wages Salsa mix and it has just been sitting in my cupboard. I saw it the other day and thought since I have an overabundance of tomatoes right now it might be a good time to try it out.

I followed the directions exactly on the package - it was super easy to do. I weighed out my tomatoes, skinned them and then cut them up. Then you just have to add the mix, vinegar (I used cider) and cook. If you don't have fresh tomatoes, you can even use canned tomatoes.

There is nothing artificial in the ingredients that I could see - just seems to be dehydrated vegetables and seasonings.

It tastes as good as my own salsa and I didn't have to mess with the seasonings a zillion times and I only had to cut up tomatoes and not onions, peppers and garlic.

This is what the finished salsa looks like.

I will probably continue to make my salsa totally from scratch but if you want to make a batch of "homemade salsa" without using everything from scratch -this will definitely do.

Apples and Tomatoes!

Everything these days seems to revolve around Apples or Tomatoes. I do have more grapes to pick but I never seem to get around to it. My apple tree is still loaded - I haven't even begun to make a dent in the apples!

This week I have been running the dehydrator 24/7 and have many jars of dried apple slices to show for it. I never make enough of these - we all like to snack on them.

Today I am cooking down tomato sauce. It is satisfying to open a jar of tomato sauce in the winter and know where it came from.

Your turn, what is keeping you busy in your garden this fall?

A very fruitful weekend!

Look how loaded my apple tree is!

A bucket of apples freshly picked - does anyone know what variety they are? They are definitely a pie apple. These apples have not been sprayed - even with anything natural - if you maintain a healthy tree and environment around your tree, your apples will be fine. There is no need to put nasty chemical on your fruit.

A bowl full of apple slices ready to be made into apple pie filling

What I canned this weekend - 6 quarts and 1 pint of diced tomatoes, 7 quarts of apple pie filling and 1 quart of dehydrated apple slices.

My apple tree!

My son is already bugging me to let him open one of the jars of apple pie filling - he likes to just eat it right out of the jar and not wait for pie! My husband is already hoping for spaghetti from the canned tomatoes. I told both of them that for the amount of work that went into canning them, I just want them to sit on the shelf awhile so I can admire them - not see them gone in 30 seconds!

This weekend's goals

I love this time of the year but at the same time there never seems to be enough time to get everything done. I find I do better if I set goals for myself.

This weekend - canning apples and tomatoes.

The apple tree is LOADED! And I mean LOADED! Did I mention that my tree has a ton of apples this year? My son's favorite is my apple pie filling so I will do some of that - I still have applesauce from last year so maybe not so much of that. I will probably throw some on the dehydrator as well. I've made a couple of pies, but this time of year you really can't make too many apple pies. If I had a press I would make juice.

I also have more tomatoes ready to can. Last week I did sauce so this week I am going to can diced tomatoes.

It will be another busy weekend - I'll be sure to post the results.

Pictures from my harvest kitchen!

It is going to be a busy weekend in my harvest kitchen. The day has just begun and I already have many things in progress. It is appropriate to call this weekend Labor Day because it will all be about labor for me!

A pot of tomato sauce is cooking down to the right consistency for canning. I picked the tomatoes from the garden yesterday and started processing them right away - the sauce wasn't thick enough when I went to bed last night so I put it in the fridge overnight and put it back on this morning. It just doesn't get much fresher than this!

Ingredients all cut up for a batch of relish. I ran out of relish and had to buy some this past year so I will probably be making two batches this year (or giving less away). The store bought just isn't as good as mine.

Fruit ice cubes. This is just pureed fruit frozen in ice cube trays. I process it and sweeten it to taste before making the cubes. I store the cubes in freezer bags in the freezer. I mostly use them to make smoothies. These are from the last of my currants. I plan on making some from raspberries and grapes this weekend. I love a mixed fruit smoothie with a little soy yogurt added in.

Today's harvest

Tomatoes and Purple (green) Beans

I also canned some beans today - notice how they are green and no longer purple - that happens when you cook them, but the purple color makes them easier to find when you are picking. I also have some green ones but they are just flowering now. I will freeze many of my beans but my son really likes canned ones that are cut french style so I always can a few for him.

Slowly but surely

In spite of a stormy weekend, I did squeeze some gardening in - the ground was really wet but you gotta squeeze gardening time in when you can.

The peas are growing nicely. I can't wait for fresh peas!

The potatoes are coming up already.

I planted cauliflower, cabbage and broccoli this weekend.

Golden Rave Tomatoes are hanging out on the patio getting used to the weather and waiting their turn to be planted.

I still have Roma Tomatoes, Watermelon, Bell and Hot Peppers in the basement under the lights.

It is starting to actually feel like spring.

It has been a very long winter!

I can't remember ever wanting winter to be over as much as I have this year. The snow came early, a lot of it came, and it is still with us! I am sick of winter. I am ready to be out in the garden!

Since that is not a possibility for a couple more months, I will console myself with starting my seeds indoors.

The last couple of years I have had a problem with some of my warmer weather seeds germinating in my cold basement. I decided to invest in a heating pad for some of my seeds. If it works, I may buy another one next year.

Starting my seeds in egg cartons last year worked so well that I decided to do the same this year. I just love getting one more use out of thing that I can't recycle (my recycling company does not take any egg cartons). When the seedlings get a little bigger I will transplant them into bigger pots. I used Eggland's Best cartons and poked a hole in the bottom before filling with dirt.

And here are some of the egg cartons filled with dirt. I cut some of them into 2 sections if I wanted to plant 6 of something instead of 12.

I wrote on Popsicle sticks to mark my plants.

After everything was planted, I watered them well and covered them with plastic. I will remove the plastic once the seeds sprout. I lowered the lights down to just above the plants.

I planted Roma and Golden Rave Tomatoes, Sugar Baby Watermelon, Assorted Sweet Bell Peppers, Hot Peppers, Brussels Sprouts, Broccoli, and Cabbage.

My Mothers' Day Present

I got just what I wanted this year for Mothers' Day. I ordered it myself and then when Dan asked me what I wanted the day before I told him it was already taken care of!

I have been intrigued for some time by those topsy turvy tomato planters - but not intrigued enough to buy one. They just looked so cheap - I was afraid that I would damage the plant getting it through the hole - and I heard that they needed watering constantly. That's why when I saw the Gardener's Revolution Planter from Gardener's Supply Company I just had to have it.

There is nothing cheap looking about these. I must admit it took me awhile to figure out how to put together the first one - I don't do so good looking at pictures - but once it was together the rest went real fast. These have heavy duty wire cages and thick fabric bags that open up - the bags zip shut and then you close the metal cages and clip them. Very sturdy. And they have a reservoir so you aren't watering them constantly - and they send lots of extra wicks!

I also ordered the 4-Arm Plant Hanger to hang the tomatoes. It is very tall and sturdy. No instructions came with it so I struggled a little with assembling it also - but luckily my child was helping me and he figured it out right away!

I planted 4 different types of tomatoes - I thought it might be interesting to see which ones do better. I planted Golden Rave, Roma, Amish Paste and Eva Purple Ball Heirloom.

I'm hoping this will be a better solution for me than staking or caging my tomatoes. I always struggle with keeping them off the ground. Of course I planted many more tomatoes that I am staking and or caging. I just used my last jar of home canned tomatoes from last year last week so I am anxious for fresh ones.

Making Salsa to can

My home canned salsa is something that my family looks forward to.

Making salsa is a lot of work but oh so worth it.

Step One: Prepare the tomatoes. I cut mine up and run them through a food mill to remove the peels and seeds. If you don't have a food mill, you will need to peel and seed them. You want to cook them down to the consistency of tomato sauce or your finished salsa will be runny. I start with about 8 quarts of tomato puree - for smaller batches, you can cut the recipe down.

The type of tomato that you use will make a big difference. I use roma times that have more meat and less juice.

After I have started the tomatoe puree cooking down, I chop up the rest of the vegetables.

Step Two: Cut up 8 cups of peppers. I make a mild salsa that my child can eat so it is about 3 cups of hot peppers and 5 cups of bell. The hotter you want it, increase the amount of hot peppers while reducing the amount of bell. Also take into account the heat of the peppers you are using - some peppers are hotter than others. Always better if you aren't sure to go milder.

Add the peppers to the tomato puree as it continues to simmer and cook down.

Step Three: Next chop and add 5 cups of onions. I use a mixture of red and white onions, but any will do.

Step Four: Next I mince 6 cloves of garlic. Use less if you aren't a garlic fan. I am of the school that you can never have too much garlic in anything. It is so healthy and good for you and I just like the taste.

Step Five: Add 1 1/2 cups of vinegar. This is a necessary step to raise the acidity of the salsa so you can safely can it in a boiling water bath.

Step Six: Add 1 tablespoon of salt. Always use canning/pickling salt - never use table salt - it will discolor.

Step Seven: Optional - add minced fresh cilantro. I add it if I have it but don't worry about it if I don't.

Step Eight: Let the salsa cook down until it is a good consistency. To test I take some and put it in a small dish and put it in the refrigerator to cool. Then test it on a chip and see if it is too runny. This is also a good time to see if the flavor needs adjusting before canning.

The salsa has cooked down to the right consistency. I have about 6 quarts in my 8 quart stock pot. The tomatoes have reduced themselves by about half - it was down to 6 quarts when I added the other vegetables and that brought it back up to full, now it has cooked down again to the 6 quart mark.

The salsa in a small dish for sampling.

Nice and thick on the chip.

Step Nine: Process in a boiling water bath for 15 minutes. Making sure you sterilize the jars and lids right before using.

The finished salsa. This recipe makes 6 quarts.

Today's Harvest

I haven't been online much because I have been spending much of my time in the kitchen processing harvests like this one.

Today's harvest includes:
3 5-quart pails of tomatoes
1 pint of raspberries (both yellow and red)
1 huge bucket (maybe 2 gallon?) of Swanson Red Grapes (seeded but sweet)
4 cucumbers
2 quarts of green beans (both green and purple)
1 quart of broccoli

I really should pick some apples too but I want to process all of this first.

I grumble and complain about all of the work this time of year but those who know me best know that I really love it and would rather be busy than complaining that nothing grew. And in the deep of winter it will be so nice to be able to enjoy all of this bounty!

I hope all of you are having great harvests this fall as well!

Where has June gone?

Seriously, can you believe it is almost July? I cannot believe how time keeps slipping away from me.

It has been a strange year for gardening - but don't we say that every year? It is just that the strangeness is different every year. There is never a "perfect" year for gardening - something is always out of whack - that's the way it is with nature. Every year something does great and something doesn't. I don't think I have ever had a garden where everything grew perfectly.

This year the weather has been so variable. We had below average temperatures for much of the spring and early summer and now it is hot - too hot - the garden didn't have time to adjust. We also had very little rain so I haven't been complaining one bit about the last few rainy days.

So, how has my garden been growing since I haven't been updating? Here are a few pics:

The lettuce has been doing great. It loves the cooler weather we were having. It will probably be done pretty soon now that the weather has turned hot.

The potatoes are also doing great. They have started flowering which means there will be new potatoes to dig very soon.

The peppers have just not done well so far this year. They are small and just not growing much. They are heat lovers, so maybe now that it has turned hot, they will start thriving instead of just surviving.

The cauliflower was looking great but the heads have started looking really funky the last couple of days. I suspect it is the sudden heat.

The brocolli is looking really good. It hasn't seemed to mind the heat.

The brussels sprouts are also doing well.

I lost most of my cabbage this spring to the rabbits. The ones that survived (I put a fence around them a little too late) are doing great.

My tomatoes are struggling. They are starting to bounce back. None of my tomatoes look as good as my neighbor's but I'm not too concerned - at least not yet.

The new peach tree is thriving. My son keeps asking when we will have peaches again. Poor impatient child, he just does not understand that this young tree will not produce fruit for some time.

The currant bushes are loaded with berries that are just starting to ripen.

And lastly, Andy's garden. He planted cucumbers, canteloupe and watermelons. The cucumbers and canteloupes are beginning to look really good. His seedless watermelon never came up and the seeded ones just don't seem to be doing much. They are barely growing - I'm not sure if we will see any fruit from them this year. Andy, being the ever hopeful child still thinks the seedless ones might come up yet.