farmer's market and garden salsa

We went to the farmer's market this weekend and got some fabulous peaches.  They were so ripe that some got squished on the way home.  I made salsa with them.

Salsa

8 or so tomatoes (farmer's market)

4 peaches (farmer's market)

Handful of green onions (garden)

1 jalapeno pepper (friend's garden)

half a head of garlic

1 soaked date

salt and pepper

Chop finely the tomatoes, peaches, onions, jalapeno, and garlic.  Put half in the a bowl and the other half in a blender or food processor.  Pit the date.  Add to the mixture in the food processor.  Blend.

 

Put the blended mixture in the bowl with the chopped mixture and stir.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

 

Russell said this was so yummy that he could it is all up not on anything.  Or just on rice.  It is yummy!

pumpkin brownies

I have been craving brownies.  I wanted something moist and rich and yummy.  This does not mean going to a bakery.  I am always disappointed.

Pumpkin Brownies

4 ounces dark chocolate

14 tablespoons canned pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie filling)

3/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup olive oil

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3/4 cup flour

1/4 cup cocoa

1 tablespoon tapioca flour

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit.  Prepare a 8 by 8 inch pan (I line with parchment paper).

Put chocolate and oil in a pot.  Over medium low heat melt the chocolate with the oil.

Turn off the heat.  Mix in the pumpkin and sugar.  Add the vanilla and mix in.  Add the flour, cocoa, tapioca, baking soda, and salt.  Mix well.

Spread in prepared pan.  Bake for 20 minutes.  Let cool.  If at all possible, wait until the next day to eat these.  They will be that much better.  Just ask Russell!

 

You can taste the pumpkin a bit, which I do not mind at all.  However, when apples come into season and I have made applesauce, I wish to try these with applesauce instead of pumpkin.  Both very autumn flavors.  I think I am craving autumn again.  The only issue with applesauce is it is hard to keep around our house.  Tummies like it!

spoiling ourselves strangely

We took a camping trip a few weeks ago.  We have a travel trailer and the mattress never pleased our backs.  So we having been looking for a new mattress.  While, camping we did some shopping and walked into a high end mattress and linens store (organic mattresses).  They had the rocking chair I have been looking at forever and I actually got to sit in it.  I like it as much as I thought I would.  Soft for my arthritis ridden body.  Just cradled me.

But back to the bed.  We did not see a mattress we liked.  But we liked the linens.  The sheets and pillowcases were linen and so soft.  Soft in our life is paramount.  The price was a bit prohibitive though.  $150 for one standard pillowcase.  

We went fabric shopping instead.

 

We touched many bolts of linen at the fabric store.  There were some very soft ones and then we narrowed it down to four.  I had Russell pick the color.

I bought two yards.  I took those two yards and cut it into two one yard lengths.  I cut ten inches off the width and french seamed the long edge and one short edge.  On the other short edge, I put a six inch hem in.

 

We have two linen pillowcases.

I made the bed with clean sheets when I put the pillowcases on the pillows.  I pulled out the sheets I had made.  I made them out of ninety inch cotton muslin and embroidered the top sheet's top edge in orange and brown and am amazed how well they match without trying.  These are my favorite sheets in the house.

I think linen sheets, more linen pillowcases, and more embroidered sheets are in our future at some point.   

Russell's new power bars or better known as fig bars

I tried the fig bar recipe from: Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar.  I put the link to worldcat.org below.  I am a huge fan of the library system and this will tell you where the nearest library to you has the book.  It also tells you where you can buy it if you like.

http://www.worldcat.org/title/vegan-cookies-invade-your-cookie-jar-100-dairy-free-recipes-for-everyones-favorite-treats/oclc/225875003&referer=brief_results

This was my first pass at this recipe.  Which means I sort of followed the recipe.  I think it needs some tweaking.  Russell and friends do not.  I am going to tweak and when I am happy with it, the recipe will be here.  Also, the gluten free version since I had that request.  Welcome to my life.  At least I get called a goddess often.......

getting ready for winter

Russell and I have started getting ready for the winter gardening season.  I know it is August and the heat index is above 100 but if we do not get started now the plants will not have a chance.

We have started digging and cleaning out beds.  I have seeds ordered for the winter vegetables we eat:  broccoli, kale, swiss chard, brussels sprouts, spinach, cabbage, and lettuce.  And we have a few things that made it through the summer heat.

Our eggplants are blooming.  I have to admit that I would grow eggplant just for the flowers.  But the eggplant from our garden has never been bitter.  They are so lovely.

 

We have four different types of peppers growing.  They all have flowers and peppers.  I have been receiving peppers from a friend at work whose garden is ahead of mine.  I may have to return the favor soon!  We only have six plants!

I planted winter squashes last spring and they fruited then.  Some of the plants made it through the summer and we have more fruit developing.  

I believe the fruit we have currently is pumpkins but I cannot be sure until they look like those in the picture.  These are part of what the vines produced this spring.