Camping Trip Malfunction

Although we picked the hottest, most humid weekend to camp, we went.  Even though the air conditioning wasn't working in the truck, and it was to be 90°F.

It was our first time to go camping at this beautiful, scenic campground.  Waterfalls, long hikes, horse riding - the works.


Meals were super simple this time, and hiking shoes were donned.  Two took off work, one taking the entire weekend off, and two were taken out of school for a day.

We packed up coolers, bicycles, chairs, and tables.

Two hours or so into our 3 hour drive, and we stopped at a gas station.  A guy starts waving at us.  Hubby says, "now what?"

Hubby gets out and then shakes his head.

Tomatoes, Oh Joy Tomatoes! ~ Tidbits

Tomato-Herb Jam.  I just couldn't help myself.  I had just enough ripe tomatoes to make this, so I did.  It's a first time recipe.  Another BHG recipe.

Unlike tomato-basil jam, it uses zero pectin, and simply sugar.  It's more of a sauce than a jam.  They call it "adult ketchup" because you use a bit of pinot grigio to make it.  Now I have this opened bottle of pinot that is chilling for dinner.

Tincture Tip

I have finally ordered, and received my bottles to properly bottle and label my tinctures.

Guess how I "washed" my bottles and droppers?

I used vodka.

I visited a brewery in KY once, and they "wash" their bottles with bourbon, so they do not water down the content.  

Brilliant!

Just thought I'd share that info.

Hot Peppers and Winter Prep

I finally found some habanero peppers, so another batch of hot sauce was canned. 

I used my own serrano and jalapeno peppers for this batch. I got exactly 4 - 4 oz. jars this time, and boy is it hot!  Personally, hubby and I much prefer the first batch using cherry bomb (hot, but not burn-your-mouth-off hot).  It's all up to your taste I guess.

Did I share the recipe (BHG) link?  Triple Pepper Hot Sauce

I put more dandelions on the freezer.  I am pretty sure we'll be well stocked with greens, but I have another list that needs filled before the snow even thinks about falling.   


The barn cats are eating up a storm.  I am taking this as a warning to prepare for a bad winter.  They are already trying to fatten up. 

Today?  It's another day with tomatoes.   And the next day too.

Pears ~ Anise ~ Uses for Ginger-Brown Sugar Sweet Potato Butter

The pears are ripening before I want them to, so I canned Pear-Star Anise Butter (Ball recipe).  It's a first time recipe for me.  I can't wait to taste it.

Anise intrigued me, so I started researching it too.

Bilberries ~ Eye Tea, Tincture, Vinegar, and Syrup

The older I get the more research I have been doing on all sorts of fruits and vegetables, in relation to a healthy body, good eyesight, fighting off illness and diseases, and so forth.

I originally started researching bilberries due to the amount of goodness it can do for your eyes and veins (varicosities). 

A few years back, when I was looking at all sorts of herbal tea infusions, I found one for "eye health" and have a jar in my pantry all year long.  I still felt it wasn't enough of the bilberry, so I started doing more.

De-Program? Ha!

I brought in another 21.11# of tomatoes on Thursday.  Our whopping tomato tally reached 304.33# (so far this season).

I didn't have enough to can a 1/2 batch of tomato sauce, so I decided to use a portion of them to try that new BBQ sauce I wanted to try. The recipe is from Better Homes and Garden's and they have the recipe online.  

The trick I have been using to check the reduction amount, is to first measure with the handle of a wooden spoon.  I tie on a twist tie, and wipe it clean.  Each time I measure I can quickly see where I am in the process.  By the way, this recipe tastes so much better than Ball's recipe I canned two years ago.  We love it.  Next batch will be a double batch.
 
In between all that, I got greens in the freezer, but I'm falling behind.  The yellow straight neck squash is piling up.  The cauliflower is just now producing as well.  The swiss chard is going bananas, and I cannot squeeze more time into my day.  The fall prep list is growing.  It's growing so fast, it's burying the big "to-do" list. 

Tomato Paste ~ Canned

A few have asked for me to share the recipe I use for canning tomato paste.  Here you are:

Tidbits

Oh my gosh!

Mom found these on clearance and texted me if I wanted one.  When I said yes, I had no idea she found two.

And!!!

Can you believe these are solar?  Adorable!!

Last night Hubby and I played a joke on our 17 year-old.  Her homecoming dress arrived and she left it on the kitchen table as she went out the door for driver's ed.  She had tried it on, loved it, pranced around with it on etc.  I told her to put it away or the dogs would chew it up.  She left it sit, so Hubby and I tore up the bag, tore shreds from an old t-shirt of the same color, and left it on the floor by the table.  When she got home, I filmed her approaching the table as King looked down on the shredded mess.  She said a few words of panic, and slowly picked it up.  Oh, my gosh, funniest thing we ever did to a kid I think.  We all got a good laugh before going to bed.

Barbecue Sauce ~ Gutting the Garden

The first year I canned BBQ sauce was 2 years ago when we had a bumper tomato crop.  It was the ball canning recipe.

We did not like the taste.  Just something about it.

Then, I came across Grit magazines homemade BBQ sauce, made from ketchup (we used home canned), pure maple syrup, dry mustard, black pepper, and cider vinegar.  It's not canned, but I was so excited to find it, because I wouldn't have to can it (just the ketchup).

So, while ketchup was reducing to can, I put a pot on another burner and whipped up a batch.

Monday Crazy is Back

I started out Monday with Hubby waking me up, "Hun, did you thaw tortillas?"

"Oh poo, I forgot."

I got up anyway, and charged slowly scooted my feet to the kitchen.  I weighed out tomatoes for delicious taco sauce.  I've been canning this for a few years and we love the taste of it.  One year we canned BBQ sauce (Ball recipe) and did not like the taste.  I still have one jar of it left.

Anyway, it was a maddening Monday for sure.  While the taco sauce reduced, I had to get pork chops in the crock pot for dinner.  In between those two jobs, I did my usual exercise (reluctantly).

(before the chili powder, dandelions and eggs were added)

Then it was breakfast time - Sweet Potato Breakfast Burritos.  I had to run out to pick bell peppers to make it, so I went ahead and grabbed my tomato baskets and went to the garden.  The recipe is online with Clean Eating - absolutely delicious!  I ate it without cheese and loved it.  I used dandelions vs. spinach as well.  It was just what I had more of in the freezer.

Slower Sunday

Today, I started the day much more relaxed. I will try not to think about tomatoes until tomorrow.

Yesterday was a madwoman shopping day.  We needed chicken feed, coffee, toilet paper....necessary items.  I got my car an oil change (saving Hubby the work).  Also, we took too long to get our 17 year-old her driver's education classes, so we had to get her a new permit.   I was whipped at the end of unloading and putting everything away.  Today, we deserved to relax.  Hubby worked overtime this weekend too.

Hubby and I took our coffee to the front porch, and watched the sunrise for the first time this fall.  In fact, I can't remember watching it this summer, we were so busy.  Today, we enjoyed it. One kiddo even joined us.

I can hear the ragweed growing out in my vegetable garden, but today I will not listen.  Today, I will relax.  I keep repeating it in hopes I'll listen to myself, ha ha!

Random Tidbits ~ Relaxation Day!

Woke up to fog today.  School even closed after they had a 2 hour delay.  The weather is strange, but I got my motorcycle ride last night.  Hubby is sweet. He came home and said "ride after dinner?"  and when I said "where?" he said "you pick" I'm doing it for you.  It's really for both of us.

We delivered Jack Daniel's fudge.  Word got out, after leaving a few pieces at Hubby's nephew's house, and even after dropping it off, we got another call for more.  I will most likely make another pan for his family to try, and hopefully mine too.

Hot Sauce ~ Home Canned

Hubby loves hot sauce and I use it in several recipes (and our steak marinade).  I decided it was time to try canning it.  I planted serrano hot peppers this year by accident, when I purchased my jalapeno plants.   They were mixed in and I didn't see the labels.

I drove down the road and bought some cherry bomb peppers from our roadside stand guy we rely on some days.  He was out of habanero, so I decided to try cherry bomb for the first batch.

Another Drought

Despite the heat returning, the canning continues.  The tomato plants are loaded with green tomatoes and we accidentally knocked a few off.  

Yesterday, I baked a green tomato cake while the pizza sauce reduced.  I am so far behind on blanching greens, I feel like the day passes so quickly now.

I don't know how I pulled it off, but before I canned the sauce, I sliced up some home grown potatoes, onions, and tossed in some green beans into foil packets.  With canning season taking up the stove top, I took advantage of the grill.  We pulled the last of the steaks from the freezer, marinated them and grilled them. 

Jack Daniel's Fudge ~ Holiday Prep

Don't throw tomatoes at me, ha ha!  I spent the Labor Day weekend laboring in the tomato patch(s).

Hubby and I had to re-tie the 100-some tomato plants and finally finished them up yesterday.  By the time we picked tomatoes, it was too hot to remain out there, and too late to start a batch of anything with tomatoes.

I tried a new recipe to see if it would be a different spin on a holiday treat for gatherings.  I lined a 13 x 9 pan with parchment paper, then lightly oiled it.  You could use non-stick spray if you prefer.  I didn't use much at all really.  

Pour 1 cup of Jack Daniel's Whiskey over 2 pounds of sifted powdered sugar and stir.

Lesson Learned ~ Tidbits

We've been gardening for maybe 5 years.  I really can't remember without looking in our homesteading journal.  Anyway, we used to plant the smaller roma type tomato in our garden.

Hubby was in charge of purchasing the tomato plants this year, and he brought home a larger heirloom paste tomato.  Actually a few varieties to try.  This was a ripe one, but the sunlight was reflecting on it in the photo.  You can see it was about 4 inches wide.  It's not a beefsteak variety, but a paste.  I have no idea what the correct name was, and will be better at that next year, but these babies are huge and heavy.

Random Tidbits ~ Cowboy Candy ~ Sticky-note-itis ~ Bonfire

So, you know how I blogged about adding greens and adding the nuts, and "boom" my weight started coming off?  And my nails grew?

Well, come to find out, I found this article on "Why Adding Copper...." from Clean Eating.  Makes sense to me.  Maybe I was lacking the copper in my diet.   I knew my thyroid was wonky, but the more I read the more I learn.

And for a twist on things....

I took one afternoon off from tomatoes (hoping they didn't over-ripen), but jalapenos were having their day, thanks to someone who bought two pounds at the Farmer's Market.  That would be me of course.  The third pound came from my own garden.

More Tomatoes ~ Oh my!

Ketchup requires 10 pounds of tomatoes - 3 batches made.  More to make later I hope.

I've been successful at getting the tomatoes cut and cooked down before the sun rises, but not through the sauce maker.  Early is best when canning with sauce anything.  This was a double batch of tomato paste (20 pounds).  That is one of my smaller sauce pans - 8 inches tall, and 10 inches in diameter.  That is what it looks like before it becomes.....

Tincture Time ~ Bilberry Vinegar

(sorry for the blurry picture)

I strained the two tinctures I made recently - mullein, and bilberry.    Now I'm ready to make one that I feel will be good for varicose veins.  

It includes:

Barberry Bark
Bilberry leaf
Bilberries

However, after I got my herbs out, I started wondering if an infused oil (to make a rub) would be better?

Malfunction Junction

We've had a very busy week and weekend.  First Hubby arranged a 1st birthday party for our grand-daughter (mid week of all days).  Then we had a ton of tomatoes to deal with, and then a family gathering on my side of the family, which required me to cook.

Hence the tomatoes sat still, the garden was still worked, on, but I gotta share this ditty.  It only happens in my family.

I was so busy I forgot to pay a few bills and poo, one is late.  I'm never late.  People just need to leave me be in August anymore.  I don't even have time to think right.  My brain is not functioning properly during this ever so, full speed ahead gardening season.

Garlic, Fresh Tomatoes and Green onions

Easy Layered Dip
1 - 8 oz. cream cheese
2 cloves of garlic minced
1-2 Roma tomatoes (or your choice) chopped
Green onions, snipped
Mozzarella cheese, finely shredded

Set cream cheese out to soften.  Once soft, cream it with the minced garlic.  Spread it onto a serving plate (I use a regular dinner plate).  Top it with chopped tomatoes, and green onions.  Add shredded cheese to cover, to your taste.

Refrigerate for several hours for the garlic and cream cheese to infuse flavors.  Serve with crackers of your choice, and set the dip out for a few minutes to soften again (or it will be difficult to "dip" your crackers).

Ketchup, Pizza Sauce ~ Tomato Explosion

Every day the tomatoes are being brought in now.  I am canning daily, and exhausted (but have zero problems with falling asleep).  The sauce maker is in full swing.

Ketchup takes 10 pounds of paste tomatoes.  One batch made so far.  Pizza sauce requires 25 pounds.  One batch made so far.  The table is covered with more tomatoes.  I am thrilled for such a good harvest, but my posts will be short this week, ha ha!  As of yesterday, we have brought in 120 pounds of tomatoes.  Some canned, some frozen, and some eaten.  There are more to can yet today, but dishes must be tackled first.  The "guts" from all the sauce making is being fed to my chickens.  The goats will eat a few bites, but they are still young.

Garden Visit ~ Tornado Season Starts

Yesterday, I had to put my lavender heat pillow on my neck.  I'm spending many, many hours at the kitchen sink these days.  I picked another 21 lbs. of tomatoes, but left them sit on the table overnight.  I prayed that King would not be able to get to them, and tackled the other day's pickings.

Swiss chard, rosemary, comfrey, calendula, a tiny bit of fresh thyme for a tea infusion, and some wild growing dandelions.  It was all put up, dried, or blanched. 

A Whole Lot Goin' On

Beets are finally filling up my freezer this fall.  

We have a good supply of shredded zucchini, so the next ones went in the freezer sliced.  I know these sometimes thaw watery and softer, but I just drain the water and cook.  We use these mainly in our teriyaki dish over winter, but have added them to other casserole dishes and mixed vegetable sides.  I'll be honest, I'm surprised my zucchini is still producing.  It looks terrible right now.  I doubt I'll get much more, but would be blessed to get a few more.

I purchased some large head garlic (organic) at the Farmer's Market, which is much easier to slice and dehydrate than my homegrown this year.  It's much smaller (in fact there were farmer's selling the smaller size for $.25/each as well).

Island Escape

Well, I'm here to say, Hubby whisked me away again.  It was all spontaneous.  Very spontaneous.

It all started with taking the Harley in for a tire change.  Pretty soon, we were picking it up and going out for a ride, only for him to tell me we were leaving the next day - our first overnight motorcycle ride. Panic set it since I had 36 hot banana peppers to deal with.  However, you can see I got that done before we picked up the newly tuned up Harley on Thursday.

We literally went to bed Thursday night without reservations on our favorite island.  The next morning, he pulled his typical magic, and we had a room.  

Off we went.  

Hot Banana Pepper Mustard Sauce

My restocking mode is really kicking into full drive here.  I got one kiddo to cut up my hot peppers, so I could zip up to the "big city" and drop off a motorcycle tire.  We wore it out already and we needed a "tune up" and new back tire.
When I got back home, the peppers were ready for me.

 I actually weighed my 36 peppers and they weighed bout 2 1/2 pounds.  

Since I gave you all too long of a blog post yesterday, today's is super short, ha ha!  The first batch of mustard sauce has been made.  Whew! I took the photo when it was still bubbly hot, and right out of the canner pot.  8 pints of goodness.

Recipe is posted here:  Pepper Mustard Sauce