Rooftop Tour

Watch the semi-aerial tour of our gardens, as of June 2010:

Rooftop Tour

Tomatoes!

They are here! The tomatoes are ripe and are coming to a market near you. In fact, we brought a few cherry tomatoes to the markets this week; we'll have lots of baskets for Saturday's market.

We'll also be bringing these Cherokee Purple big tomatoes. Don't let their appearance fool you; these tomatoes are delicious! All the recent rain has caused them to grow uglier than usual -- and Cherokee Purples aren't known for being pristine -- but they taste fabulous.

Tomatoes!

Friday's Featured Food: Maggie's Favorite

It's Maggie's turn! Maggie said her favorite veggie is the pink potatoes, but since we featured those last week, she had to pick again. She chose watermelon.

First off, no, we don't have watermelon right now and won't have it for sale for the July 4th weekend. Watermelon grown in Kansas is usually not ready until late July.

We don't grow too many watermelon, since watermelon grows best in sandy soil, something we don't have. The varieties we do grow, however, are very unusual. This year we are growing:

• Golden Midget: small and yellow, perfect for Miss Mags. I like it because the rind turns yellow when it's ripe, so no more thumping-and-guessing when to pick it.
• Jubilee: oblong-shaped watermelon with a green-striped rind, known for its large size
• Crimson Sweet: tried and true, the old-faithful of watermelons
• Sugar Baby: small, dark-green fruits
• Moon and Stars: dark blue-green rind with yellow spots
• Black Diamond: another old-faithful variety, this one producing dark green fruit with bright red inside

For something new, we are going to try square watermelons this year. How cool would it be to have one of these to enter in the county fair:

Not only do watermelons taste great, they also contain high concentrations of lycopene, an antioxidant that may help reduce the risks of cancer and other diseases. They are also great on hot days, a refreshing snack thanks to all that messy juiciness.

Recipes for watermelon? Sure, why not! I adore, love, crave, need watermelon rind pickles. They are easy to make but time consuming. But, oh my gosh, they are SO worth the effort. Here is a great recipe for these delicious sweet pickles:

1 large watermelon, quartered Pickling salt

2 tablespoons plus

2 teaspoons whole cloves

16 (1 1/2-inch) sticks cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds

8 cups sugar

1 quart vinegar (5% acidity)

1. Remove flesh from melon (reserve for other use); peel watermelon.
2. Cut rind into 1-inch cubes.
3. Place rind in a large crock or plastic container.
4. Add water by the quart until it covers the rind; add 1/4 cup pickling salt for each quart water, stirring until salt dissolves.
5. Cover and let stand in a cool place overnight.
6. Drain well.
7. Place rind in a 10-quart Dutch oven; cover with cold water.
8. Bring to a boil, and cook until rind is almost tender.
9. Drain and set aside.
10. Tie cloves, cinnamon, and mustard seeds in a cheesecloth bag.
11. Combine spice bag, sugar, and vinegar in a Dutch oven.
12. Bring to a boil; remove from heat and let stand 15 minutes.
13. Add rind to syrup
    
    
    .
14. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to low and cook until rind is transparent.
15. Remove spice bag.
16. Pack rind into hot sterilized jars, leaving 1/2-inch headspace.
17. Cover at once with metal lids, and screw bands tight.
18. Process in boiling-water bath 5 minutes.

Friday's Featured Food: Maggie's Favorite

Veronica Cauliflower

What is green, spiraled and tastes good? Veronica Cauliflower. This is another of my vegetable experiments that went pretty well. The heads aren't really big, but it does taste really good. I have eaten two heads by myself, just boiled with some cheese on top.

Veronica Cauliflower

All's well on the hill

I've said it before and I'll say it again... it is amazing what a bunch of saran wrap and pipes can handle. No, it's not saran wrap; it's greenhouse-grade plastic. But, wow. Three rounds of storms, each one packing the threat (if not actual) 60 mph straight-line winds and hail. This was the view from our porch tonight, which looked the same as yesterday morning and evening:

And looking north, a few minutes later:

But, no major damage to report. All six buildings are still standing. We lost one tree and have ripped plastic in one corner of one of the mobile buildings. The outside crops are leaning to the east but will probably bounce back. Because we are on top of this hill, the many inches of rain isn't affecting us much, either.

We are thankful to be spared, but our thoughts and prayers go out to all those who haven't been so lucky. Flooding rain near Concordia, 90 mphs winds in Waterville, many crops ruined... we are thankful.

All's well on the hill