Weather: Thankfully a little cooler. Still humid. Someone tell the weatherrman I want a refund. Harvested: Tomatoes (roughly sixteen pounds’ worth), zucchini, bell peppers, basil, eggplants — about ten! Must be headed toward fall. Cooked: Marinated zucchini with garlic, hot peppers, and basil, conserva di pomidori, yogurt. Ate mostly leftovers this week. There will be […]
Weekly Homestead Report (August 28-Septe...
Weather: Scorching! Highs in the 100°F+ zone, lows in the high 60°Fs. No rain in sight. Normal for this time of year, but erk. Fire season. Hoping things stay calm. Cooked: Healthy apple crumble with apples from Volcan Valley Farm — twice!, Nectarine and Beet Salad with Pistachio Dressing (adapted from Eating Well), tomato and eggplant […]
I have a confession to make.
I write in my cookbooks. Shock. Horror. And you should too. No one is going to judge you for that. In fact, if for some reason your cookbook ends up being given to someone else, they’ll probably be delighted to see your notes. I know I always am when I find a used cookbook. Why? […]
Weekly Homestead Report
Picked this week: tomatoes (oh goodness so many tomatoes), zucchini, Italian roasting peppers, a few strawberries and raspberries, apples at Volcan Valley Apple Farm (full post coming later when I have time to sit down) Preserved: bruschetta in a jar (Ball canning), kimchee kraut (The Joy of Pickling), apple liqueur Traded: tomatoes for homemade bread, […]
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Dealing Tomatoes out of a ’95 Tercel
You ever have one of those days where you look at your garden and go “well … shoot”? I hit “overrun with tomatoes” more than once this summer. I made over a gallon of dried tomatoes. Three quarts of roasted tomatoes. Two batches of conserva. Two gallons of tomato sauce that went into the freezer. […]
This is a test of the emergency broadcas...
Well, no, not really. Actually, it’s a check to see if my nifty WordPress app is crossposting to Tumblr correctly. Fingers crossed, it is. If you’re a Tumblr fan, you can find me over there at http://auntiepasto.tumblr.com. Where’ve I been? Busy. With about a bajillion things. Drainage ditch did get cleared. Veggie beds did get […]
Clearing the Drainage Ditch, Part 2
It’s going. I do about three wheelbarrows full of rocks about four times a week. That’s about two feet at a stretch. Definite progress from last time! I’m doing chop-and-drop with the plants that have grown it over, and using them as mulch. That hillside could use a lot of mulch … heck, it […]
[Garden] Drainage Ditch Clearout, Part 1
I spent yesterday acquiring a wheelbarrow with the help of my buddy John. Thanks, John! It’s a good thing I did. Y’see, we have this great backyard, with an enormous slope, and the nice folks who built our property installed a drainage ditch near its base. I wish I could say it was a swale, […]
[Basics] How to Poach an Egg
It never fails to surprise me when someone asks me what a poached egg is. I’ve been eating them since I was a wee thing, and they’re easy to make. Bonus: it’s very simple to get the hardness exactly as you like.