Continuing on my lazy days of summer postings, let’s talk about tomatoes. Fresh garden tomatoes cannot be compared in any way to the mushy, tasteless tomatoes at the grocery store. Comparing the two is like comparing a beautiful rose to a dandelion. Wonder why that’s the case? Read this great article from the University of Illinois Extension office.
Unfortunately, I have regular visitors to my garden helping themselves to my tomatoes. The silly bunny (that isn’t afraid of my Golden or Chihuahua) along with the neighborhood Raccoon are creating havoc with the tomatoes. I find green tomatoes plucked from the vine laying on the ground. I find large red tomatoes half eaten on the vine. Have any of you had the same experience? This is the first time in over 20 years that I’ve had to fight for my own tomatoes!
My tomatoes have been slow to produce this year but I have enjoyed a few fresh tomato salads. This time a juicy sliced tomatoes paired with homemade pesto (basil also from my garden) was the salad du jour.
If you don’t grow your own tomatoes, visit a local Farmer’s Market soon and enjoy the harvest.
English: Photograph of tomatoes on a vegetable stall at Borough Market in London, UK (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
For the pesto recipe, reference my posting, Pesto Schmesto.
Squash season is here! While my garden has yet to produce zucchini or yellow squash, my friend Jan has been kind enough to share. Summer squash baked with onion, peppers drizzled with olive oil, seasoned with herbs and topped with melted Mozzarella is a summer staple.
SUMMER SQUASH BAKE
1-2 small to medium sized zucchini, sliced
2 small to medium sized yellow squash, sliced
1 small onion, chopped
1-2 Anaheim or green sweet peppers, chopped
drizzle of olive oil
optional: diced Japanese eggplant
sprinkle of herbs of choice (I have used thyme, summer savory or this time I used Cantanzo Herbs)
Salt and pepper
Shredded Parmesan Cheese or cheese or choice
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Toss all ingredients, except cheese, and place in greased casserole dish.
Top with shredded cheese.
Bake 45 minutes or until all ingredients are cooked through.
Summer and watermelon go together like Mac and Cheese.
When the weather is scorching hot…
a chilled slice of watermelon hits the spot.
As a kid we would take a half slice of watermelon outside and let the sweet juice run down our chins and arms. Seedless watermelons were unheard of so a little ‘seed spitting’ was in order, too! Mom probably had to hose us down before letting us back in the house.
My Mother would always eat watermelon and canteloupe sprinkled with salt. I prefer my watermelon naked but daughter, Sarah, and her friends introduced me to TAJIN fruit with lime seasoning a few years ago. From the moment I tried it, I was hooked and it has become family favorite. The combination of lime, salt and a little kick with the sweet juicy watermelon is delectable.
I find TAJIN at Walmart and sometimes at the local grocery store in either the fruit section or ethnic foods section.
Summer vegetables and Quinoa is the perfect combination. This recipe is from Iowa Girl Eats. I follow her blog and love her recipes! Her blog name, alone, was enough to bring me to her blog…Iowa girls stick together!
I loved this dish and the wonderful summer vegetables. I substituted roast red peppers for the sundried tomatoes with great results. I hope you’ll enjoy it as much as I did!
EASY SUMMER QUINOA
1 cup chicken or vegetable broth
1/2 cup quinoa
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 large shallot, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
pinch red pepper flakes
2 cups chopped kale
1 small zucchini, chopped
salt & pepper
2 ears sweet corn kernels (about 2 cups)
1/4 cup sundried tomatoes packed in oil, cut into strips (or roasted red peppers or both!)
1/4 cup white wine
1/2 cup peas
1/4 cup chicken or vegetable broth
1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped
shaved or fresh grated parmesan cheese, for topping
Bring scant cup chicken (or vegetable) broth to a boil in a small saucepan. Rinse quinoa very well in a fine mesh sieve under running water (quinoa is coated in a natural, bitter coating that needs to be rinsed off) then add to saucepan, place a lid on top, turn heat down to medium-low, then cook until quinoa is tender and broth is absorbed, about 15 minutes. Set aside.
Heat olive oil in a very large skillet over medium heat. Add shallots then sauté until tender, about 2 minutes. Add garlic and red chili pepper flakes then sauté for 30 more seconds, stirring constantly.
Turn heat up to medium-high then add kale and zucchini. Season with salt and pepper then sauté for 2 minutes.
Add corn and sun-dried tomatoes then sauté for 2 more minutes.
Add white wine then scrape up brown bits from bottom of skillet with a wooden spoon. When wine is nearly gone, add peas then stir to combine. Add chicken broth and cooked quinoa then cook until broth is absorbed. Remove skillet from heat then add basil and stir to combine. Taste then add salt and pepper if necessary. Serve topped with freshly shaved or grated parmesan cheese.
Last summer I raised kale in my garden and, unfortunately, the bugs LOVED it. I decided not to plant Kale again this year but Mother Nature took a different turn. Several volunteer kale plants popped up in my garden and it was beautiful and…no bugs! Mother Nature, are you telling me I need to try Kale again next year?
Recently at our book club potluck, a friend made a delicious collard green dish and this sounded similar. It is very tasty but next time I would cut back on the crushed pepper. This could easily be vegan by skipping the bacon.
BRAISED KALE
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 1/2 cups thinly sliced onion
1/3 cup thinly sliced garlic
10 cups loosely packed chopped kale (about 2 pounds)
1 cup fat-free lower-sodium chicken broth
1 cup water
3/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper (too hot for me–I would reduce to 1/4 teaspoon)
2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion and garlic; cook 10 minutes or until golden, stirring frequently.
Add kale, broth, 1 cup water, and red pepper; cover and bring to a boil.
Reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes. Stir in vinegar, salt, and black pepper.
How many ways are there to use Gooseberries? Not as many as one would think, at least not many that are documented. I’ve never tried a smoothie with gooseberries until I found this recipe. I substituted almond milk for cow’s milk. Very refreshing!
BLUEBERRY GOOSEBERRY YOGURT SMOOTHIE
1/2 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
1/2 cup fresh or frozen gooseberries
1/2 of banana, frozen
1/2 cup lowfat vanilla yogurt (I prefer Greek yogurt)
1/2 cup almond milk
Put all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth. Enjoy!
English: a yellow jacket wasp (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
There is nothing more annoying than pesky yellow jackets when you’re trying to eat outside in the summer. In Colorado, we are fortunate to not have many bugs allowing us to leave our doors open without much concern of flying insects invading our homes. Growing up in Iowa, it was a race to get inside and shut the door before the flies, mosquitos, June bugs, moths, etc. dive bombed toward the door.
For each of the 24 years we’ve lived in our home, the yellow jackets smell food/BBQ when we’re on the patio and the panic is on. The girls freeze, run and scream into the house, slamming the door. What a waste of perfect Colorado summer outdoor dining.
Each year I purchase every type of yellow jacket trap and bait without catching a single yellow jacket. GRRRRR!
This year, I decided to try a DIY yellowjacket trap made from a 1 liter soda bottle. After 10 minutes of creating this gem of a trap, I started watching the clock to see if it worked. I used bits of turkey to lure the protein-seeking pests into my lair. Tick, Tock! Tick, Tock! No luck.
A week later, 2 flies…that’s it. Now I’ve added sugar water and we’ll see what happens Tick, Tock!
I have a hunch that the secret is in the bait. If you have a special yellow jacket concoction that works for you, please share! In the meantime, I’m proud of my homemade trap.
DIY YELLOW JACKET TRAP
1 empty 1 liter soda bottle
Knife or scissors
Stapler and Staples
Wire
Paper Hole Punch
Hook, washer or anything that allows you to secure the twister wire to something you can use to hang the trap. (I used an old picture hanger that had a hole in the middle.)
Bait (bits of meat, or sugar water)
Pam or cooking oil
Cut the top off of the soda bottle. Put top of bottle, upside down into the bottom of the bottle, creating a funnel/entrance for the yellow jackets.
Staple the two pieces of bottle together.
Punch 3 holes equal distance apart in the top of the trap.
Cut 3 pieces of wire, about 10-12″ long. Lace a piece of wire into each of the three holes and twists the end around the bottom of the wire to secure to the bottle.
Bring the three wires together at the top and twist all together.
Spray PAM in top of trap to create a slippery entrance to the trap.
Bait the trap with bits of meat or sugar water.
Hang in your yard (away from where children and pets may be)
Every year I plant a vegetable garden with several varieties of tomatoes, onions, peppers, eggplant, green beans, zucchini, yellow squash, cilantro, basil, rosemary and thyme. 2011 was not my best year in the garden. Tomatoes were late to set but were coming on strong just in time for the first frost. I picked all of the green tomatoes and brought them in the house to ripen. Today is the day that this last memory of summer will create a wonderful fresh tomato salsa to share with neighbors and family this weekend.
Salsa is wonderful with chips but also a great topping for fresh fish, chicken, or even to dress a salad. Or if you’re desperate for salsa, just eat it with a spoon! My husband and I once observed a gentleman in a restaurant simply take the bowl of free salsa, crush in the free chips for his version of Gazpacho and then leave. I’m not a fan of that behavior, but what you do in the privacy of your own home is your business!
Fresh Tomato Salsa
FRESH TOMATO SALSA
4 small (2 cups) tomatoes, peeled and chopped
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup finely chopped green pepper
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon Cilantro
1/2 teaspoon oregano leaves
2 tablespoons oil
1 tablespoon lime or lemon juice
1 tablespoon vinegar
8 ounces tomato sauce
Fork Lore 