Sigh.... those canned caramelized onions are NOT good!

Warning!!!  Yesterday I canned 4 pints of caramelized onions.  One of them did not seal, so a little while ago I tasted it.  They are all mushy and do not have a nice flavor.  They tasted great before I processed them in the canner.  I hope I didn't lead anyone astray.  I am so sorry.  :(

Garden Bounty!

Yes, I'm barefoot.  When the weather is warm, that's how I like to work in the garden, and when it's harvest time, it makes it easier not to stomp on something edible.  We brought in quite a few winter squash this morning and some little melons as well as cabbages.  I was able to walk amongst the crowded vines without destroying anything.  :)  In that picture, I'm wearing my wonderful garden apron.  I can work out there without getting my clothing all dirty.  Here, I have baskets of cucumbers, jalapenos, green peppers, okra and zucchini squash.

 Some of the bounty!

Here is my garden fairy (a.k.a. our daughter) wheeling in the goodies.

And tomatoes!  I have to pick them before they are "dead ripe," because otherwise insects get to them first and they spoil.

I love this time of year....

I often think that this is the "real" time of the year.  The winter is, for me, just when I am waiting for the the summer and the garden bounty, nice temperatures, sunshine, bird song... in the words of a song from the  musical, "Porgy and Bess," --- "Summertime...and the livin' is easy..."  That's how I feel.  Even though I work really hard all spring and summer and into the fall, it makes me happy.

Here is a picture of what I had for breakfast this morning.  I went out to the garden and found a very small zucchini squash, melted 1 Tablespoon of butter in a small skillet and grated the zucchini into it.  I sauteed that for a little while.  Then, I took 2 of the tiny itty bitty eggs from our baby chickens that have just begun to lay, and scrambled them in a small bowl with a bit of water, some salt and pepper.  I poured that over the zucchini and cooked it together.  Then I put a 1 ounce slice of marble cheese on top, turned off the heat and let it sit until the cheese was nicely melted.  I ate all of that with a cut up nectarine.  Oh, it was so good.  Come over and I'll fix some for you too!

Free Garlic Seeds Again!!

Here is a picture of me, 3 years ago, when I harvested our garlic.  Well, it's that time of year again, and as I've been doing for a few years, I am offering free garlic seeds to my readers. If you would like some, leave a comment (I will not publish it) with your email address.  I will email my mailing address to you and then if you will send me an SASE with TWO first-class stamps on it, I will send you some seeds.  When you get them, plant them in some nice soil, mulch lightly, and in two years you will have garlic to harvest.  After that, you can plant the individual cloves each year and continue to grow it.  This garlic is wonderful and hardy.  When I harvest it, I hang it up to dry in the front porch and after about a month, I cut off most of the tops, and just keep the bulbs in a basket hanging above my kitchen sink.  I am still using some of what I grew last year!  You will love it!

HERE is a link to a great article/slide show, on how to grow, harvest, and store garlic, put out by Seed Saver's Exchange.