Kelli's 2014 Garden Journal

[BucksCountyGirl]

Tania, you are too kind! If you are ever in the Bucks County area, I'll see what I can do. haha

Robin, it's actually the same process they use to make Tabasco sauce. You just roughly blend up your peppers with some salt (they call this pepper "mash")and let it go in a fermenting vessel. I add some garlic and some whey from my kefir to get things going but they are not necessary. After you let it ferment for about a month (though some are aged a year or more) you blend it smooth and cut it with some vinegar. Some people HWB can it, but I just keep it in the fridge in bottles. So far they have lasted up to a year for me that way. They would probably last longer, but we use a LOT of hot sauce at my house

[Salsacharley]

Kelli,

This thread is insane! The pictures, produce, meals, recipes and concepts are absolutely mind blowing. I'm going to be dreaming about the fantastic ways you put your abundant harvests to use.

You should write a book on your whole operation. I'll buy the first copy.

Thanks for sharing.

Charley

[efisakov]

Kelli, great job. Congratulations, you are having an awesome year.
The cherry tomatoes are great just mildly fermented. I eat them like that with potatoes.

[BucksCountyGirl]

Wow, thanks for the kind words, Charley!

Thanks, Ella! I was just over on your thread drooling over all the delicious looking black varieties you are growing this year. I do like the cherry tomatoes lightly fermented. Sometimes we use them in place of an olive in a dirty martini

I just adore this time of year because I barely have to see the inside of a supermarket.

The first pic is a quick breakfast I whipped up of a cheese omelette with fresh pico de gallo from the garden.

The second pic is a little buddy that visited my husband while he was cleaning out the potato containers.

The third is our final potato harvest from the containers. We ended up with just over 5 1/2 pounds of French Fingerlings and 9 pounds of German Butterballs overall (the pictured harvest, plus the harvest from last week). Definitely going to expand on this next year!

The fourth pic is dinner with said French Fingerlings. I steamed them, then crisped them up in a pan with some garlic and thyme. So delicious!

The last pic is a caprese salad with some raw milk mozzarella I made after we visited a local farm yesterday. It's so easy to make mozzarella at home. It took less than a half hour! The tomatoes are KBX, Sweet Sue and Rosella Purple...I'm having the leftovers for lunch today

[efisakov]

I had few of the visitors last year. Did not see them this year yet.
Kelli, your last picture can be framed and hanged in the kitchen as a real art.
I love the sweetness of Rosella Purple. It was a perfect 10 taste wise.

[Tania]

Absolutely delicious! And I agree with Ella, it is an art work.

[BucksCountyGirl]

Thanks, ladies I am REALLY loving the Rosella Purple as well. Going to add a few more plants next year!

[efisakov]

Originally Posted by BucksCountyGirl

Thanks, ladies I am REALLY loving the Rosella Purple as well. Going to add a few more plants next year!

Do you grow them in pots or in ground?
My are in pots. Sweet Sue as well. I have yet to pick that one. Looking forward.

[BucksCountyGirl]

Ella,
I have a few plants in ground (mostly Cherries) and the rest are in Earthtainers and pots. I am growing the dwarf varieties in 7 gallon pots in my driveway with a drip irrigation system. So far they seem to be liking it! I think you will like Sweet Sue. It is definitely the best tasting light yellow I have found so far.

[efisakov]

Thank you, Kelli. My is getting there. Couple of days.
BTW your potatoes looking soo good!

[BucksCountyGirl]

Thanks, Ella! The potatoes taste amazing too Definitely a new garden addiction (like I needed another one!) haha

This weekend I tried to use up some of the produce that has been languishing on my counter all week while I was busy at work.

The first pic is a KBX that i shared with my dad who is still testing the waters as far as heirlooms are concerned. He was surprised that it didn't taste more "orange" . KBX has been MUCH more productive that Kellogg's Bkfast in my garden with the same great taste, so it is going on the "permanent" list!

The second pic is some garden goodies I used to make brunch for a few people on Saturday. The leaves are papalo which is an excellent (non bolting) replacement for cilantro in the summer.

The third pic is the resulting huevos rancheros.

The fourth pic is what I picked on Sunday...just when I had almost caught up with the onslaught from last week. (No that I'm complaining!)

The last pic is some homemade sauce I made with some of those tomatoes. I just threw them all in my high powered Omega blender (similar to a Vitamix) without coring or peeling them at all and blended until smooth. I then cooked them down in a bit of olive oil with some garlic, oregano and basil from the garden. Then I added some homemade meatballs. The sauce turned out sweet and complex and the best part was that it was dead easy to prepare! Cheers!

[Salsacharley]

[Tania]

Originally Posted by Salsacharley

I second that!

[RobinB]

Kelli,
That's how I made sauce last week (with a Vitamix.) I also added in a thawed quart ziploc of roasted tomatoes from last summer which gave it a great flavor boost. YUM! Add some milk (or cashew cream) and you've got a lovely tomato soup.

[BucksCountyGirl]

Thanks, Charley & Tania

Robin, that sounds delish. I'll have to give it a try!