Summer harvest

This summer we didn't plant a veggie garden, unless you can count the big pot of basil and rosemary, and the upside-down hanging cherry tomato plant, both on the patio and doing well. So we depend on the kindness of friends, and they really came through for us this past few weeks. BAGS of cucumbers appeared in our car, along with zucchini. Was able to obtain organic green peppers, so went to work on Monday starting the chopping chopping of green veggies. Thank heaven for food processors, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to do it. In between the relish chopping, I threw in zucchini so I would have plenty to make more of my zucchini chocolate cake later. Dug out my grandma's crock, to start the 24 hour pickling process. Then had to drain everything for a few hours in the sink, then cooked it for awhile, then loaded up the pressure canner about 4 times, and voila! Sweet pickle relish appeared magically on my kitchen counter! Now I have to distribute the jars to people, especially those who shared their wonderful harvest this summer.

If you have extra cucumbers, here is the Sweet Pickle Relish recipe for you to try out:
For a single batch you need---
10 cups chopped cucumbers
1 and 1/2 cups chopped onions
1/2 cup chopped green peppers (I usually add a bit more to ours)
Put the above ingredients into a large crock.
Pour in 6 cups water and 1/4 cup pickling salt.
Put a plate on top, get a clean brick and put it inside a 2 gallon ziploc bag (I use two bags for good measure). The brick is to weigh down the plate, and make sure the chopped veggies stay in the pickling brine.
Soak this overnight.
Drain for 2 hours, and rinse off well.

Now prepare your large cooking pot (enamel or stainless steel)--
you need 5 cups sugar, 2 cups white vinegar, 2 tablespoons celery seed, 2 teaspoons mustard seed, and 1 teaspoon turmeric. Bring this to a boil, add the cucumber mix. Bring it back to a boil, cook for about 15 minutes.
Meantime you should have your pint and/or quart jars prepared. I throw them in the dishwasher about an hour before I start the draining process of my veggies. Place your rings and seals in a pot of water and start the boiling of that while you are cooking the relish. At this point I use a pressure canner, but a cold pack canner would work too. I pack the jars with the relish, being careful to wipe the rims of the jars, seal them and load into the pressure canner. Turn it on to high on your stove, and bring to a boil, letting steam come out of the stopcock point for about a minute or two. You do not need to put the jiggly thing on the point. After it has steamed for a minute, you turn off the heat. Let it cool down, and remove when it is safe enough to open the canner. If I were cold pack canning, I would bring the whole pot up to a boil for a few minutes and then turn off the heat just as I do my pressure canner. Carefully remove your jars and let cool on a board on the counter. Check your seals to make sure they are sealed, and if any have not sealed, you need to refrigerate those when they cool down. The rest you can store in your pantry now, and don't forget to label and date the jar lids.

I had some leftover relish, from the bottom of the pot, so today I got to try it in a quickie egg salad--chop up one hard boiled egg, add a dollop of mayonnaise or Miracle Whip, and another dollop of the sweet pickle relish. Tastes great as a quick lunch bite!

Are we there yet?

Been a long time coming, back since last September in fact, but we think we are getting closer to the end of this kitchen renovation thing. Got the new vinyl installed last week, and it really makes a difference in lighting--now I can actually see Violet (our black kitty) on the new floor at night in the dark! Hubby has to reinstall the trash compactor yet, and has to remove part of a trim board underneath the granite countertop to make it fit back in its little cubbyhole. Nothing comes easily with renovations, we have noticed over the years. So this is just something else to get through. Then I have to finish the repainting, but don't dare even think about it in the kind of weather we have been having lately, with heat indexes in triple digits, and the kind of humidity that gives us that "jungle feeling". Can't paint until the windows can be open once more to the outside air. Meantime we are enjoying the kitchen now, and our new "throne" in the powder room--so yes, I guess we are almost there!

Summer Vacation to Maine

We kicked off the month of July with a visit to Maine, where we had never been before, and fell in love with the beauty of the state. Spent the week in Acadia National Park, got out on the Sound for a boat ride, explored the shore, picking up beautiful pink granite rocks, saw all kinds of beautiful flowers (and all kinds of 8 foot tall fencing to keep the moose and deer away from those flowers), yes, and saw deer. No moose though, which was fortunate. I understand they are like "tanks with fur", according to a friend of mine. Visited LL Bean in Ellsworth, and of course Bar Harbor. Went to church in Bar Harbor, and back another day for a shopping expedition. Best of all, dined on fresh caught seafood every day and loved it! Hubby isn't a big fan of fish, so our hosts made sure he had plenty of meat to live on while we enjoyed our fish. Lobster fresh caught is absolutely wonderful, and of course the cooking experience is part of the fun of it. I got great lessons from our hosts on cooking and disassembling it to eat it afterward, messy fun! So hope you enjoy a little taste of Maine here.

Almost July

Well, the lilies are STILL blooming, and more are opening up every day. Most of these came from starts we got at Powell Gardens, during their Blooms and Booms Festival. But some came from Mom, and we treasure every one. She shared some of her pink hydrangea flowers with us on our trip down south, so I wanted to include a picture of her pretty-in-pink flowers here. Out here in the country, they call daylilies "ditch lilies", those "common" orange daylilies brightening all the highways and byways during hot summer days and nights, while the hybrids glorify our gardens--good relatives to have around.

The weather has changed, we actually have a drier week this week, but I expect more rain, only because it seems to be that way this summer. Oh well, good gardening what with everything in bloom. Our roses are back into their second bloom cycle now too. And the black raspberries should be turning black now down here in our woodsy patch. And our blackberries up in the field patch should be ripening after July 4th. Looking forward to that!

The red flowers are all over a cactus plant I got from Mom years ago, from her friend who used to have a hobby greenhouse. I put it outside last year in desperation, and it bloomed a few flowers. This year, it is really celebrating the 4th with fire cracker red blooms, all over the plant!
Happy Fourth of July!

Summer lilies

We are in the middle of monsoon season here in MO. Usually our summers are dry and we pray hard for rain. Last week the ground was cracking. This week it is a sponge. But the flowers really seem to love it. All my lilies are in bloom, and going crazy. Baby grass we planted in the fall looks like an emerald carpet. So I guess all that rain is doing some good. Hope you enjoy our June blooms!

Book pages

Just finished the most recent book in a series, and I have to share--written by Suzanne Arruda, Treasure of the Golden Cheetah takes place in the 1920's in Africa. The heroine, Jade Del Cameron, is most likely based upon a real life African explorer, Osa Johnson. Osa was born and raised in Kansas and she and her husband flew their little plane all over Africa, taking pictures, and writing stories, and returning to the US, giving talks and sharing their journeys with the rest of the world. This in turn would pay for future trips abroad for them.

Jade is a spunky heroine, and wild animals and hostile tribes or evil villains don't put a dent in her vast enthusiasm and abilities to lead people into the bush and share her views of the wild and beautiful Africa she loves. Most of the time she encounters help from the natives, and most of the time she can venture further into the bush, but there are always mysteries to solve, and quests for hidden treasures or high adventure.

If you want to learn more about this series, the author has several websites to check out:

www.suzannearruda.com and
http://suzannearruda.blogspot.com

These sites will get you deeper and perhaps make you want to read further. This author has also written a biography of Osa, which you may also want to read. Osa's books are probably out of print, and pretty old, so they are also probably difficult to find, which is why I recommend you read about Jade.

June flowers

Well, May flitted past and suddenly-gasp!-we are stampeding through this summer. So are our flowers it seems. Retirement gives me better looking flowerbeds, obvious conclusion is that I can now spend more time weeding, trimming etc. Anyway, here is a glimpse of the second wave of blooms. The double mock orange bush was doing well with its blooms until we had a little hail storm, so we can only pick pictures instead of blossoms!