Golden Jubilee
The slight difference in color between the first two Golden Jubilee and these three made a world of difference in the flavor. The darker, almost orange gold tomatoes had an unbelievably rich tomato flavor. And, the texture was still firm, yet creamy. We’re in love with these.
Four Of The Best Black Krim
These large tomatoes hang heavily on the vine. So, it’s best to let them ripen for as long as they can on the vine. (That would be to about 75-80% ripe) Then, let them sit at room temperature for a couple days for the tomatoes to ripen. Their colors develop completely.
It’s very obvious when they’re ripe. They might not be picture perfect. But, they will most surely be delicious.
Black Krim From The Garden
Gorgeous tomatoes picked fresh out of the garden demand attention. It would be a crime to hide their beauty. So, with a little thought, we decided migas would make the perfect companion. Even better, this is a great way to put some leftovers to good use.
Migas
for 1
2 eggs
1/4 cup pico de gallo
1-2 Tablespoons chunky salsa, cilantro rich
1 handful thin tortilla chips (preferably unsalted or lightly salted)
1 teaspoon butter or olive oil
1 jalapeño, finely diced, if desired
fine sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
grated cheese, to top, if desired
In a bowl, whip eggs aggressively. Add pico de gallo, salsa, a pinch of salt and a turn or two of freshly ground black pepper. Stir to combine. Set aside.
Using your fingers, crumble tortilla chips into a bowl. Pieces should be 1 inch or so in size. Or, crumble to your desired size. Set aside.
Melt butter in a small frying pan. Coat the bottom of the pan. Add diced jalapeño. Sauté briefly. Add eggs and crumbled tortilla chips. Cook eggs gently over moderate heat. Eggs should be creamy and tender. Do not over-cook. Plate and serve with a sliced tomato.
Lets eat!
First, we started with one tomato slice per sandwich. But, it quickly became obvious that for these thicker rolls, two slices would be best.
Going into this challenge, we were seriously biased. We both though that the Black Krim would be the clear-cut winner. But, we were so very wrong! Both were divine. But, there was something really special about the Golden Jubilee. It truly shines in a tomato sandwich
Tomato Sandwich Showdown
Black Krim vs. Golden Jubilee
Black Krim
Richer, more savory and melt-in-your-mouth smooth texture… It’s a very close second. But, the burst of fresh flavor in the Golden Jubilee made it the clear winner.
Golden Jubilee
Fresh FRESH FRESH! There was a vivid, wide awake freshness to the Golden Jubilee that is just too hard to describe. There’s a brightness to the Golden Jubilee sandwich that we loved. Eaten by the slice, it is delicious and there is a nice, firm texture. But, it lacks the smoothness of the Black Krim. In the sandwich, that extra texture adds a pleasant, hearty touch that we both enjoyed, too.
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Tomato Sandwich
makes 2
2 brioche buns, cut in half
homemade mayo
(Or Duke’s, Or Hellmann’s… that’s a challenge for another day)
2 tomatoes, sliced thickly
freshly ground black pepper
kosher salt, coarse
Toast or grill bun halves to a light golden. Coat each bun lightly with mayonnaise. Place slices on top. Grind black pepper onto the tomato half. Then, sprinkle with salt.
Devour.
P.S.
If you’re Italian, you’ll probably be tempted to add a basil leaf or two. But, for this challenge we wanted the tomato to shine. So, we made our sandwiches basil free.
Once you shuck the oysters, it’s a piece of cake.
Roasted Oysters
12-16 oysters
8 Tablespoons (1 stick) butter, soft
2 Tablespoons fresh tarragon or chive, finely minced
1-2 Tablespoon parsley, finely minced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1/4 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 lemon, halved
white wine, optional
1-2 lemons cut into wedges
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F or heat up your broiler, if you have one.
In a small bowl, make a paste with butter, herbs, garlic, cayenne, black pepper and salt. Set aside.
Shuck oysters. Place oysters on a roasting pan as you go. Place a dot of butter on the top of each oyster. Drizzle lightly with lemon juice and white wine.
Roast for 4-8 minutes. Oysters will swell, juices will bubble and shell will turn golden at the edges.
DO NOT OVERCOOK!
Serve immediately with lemon wedges and grilled bread.
Homegrown Peaches
If you’re in Georgia and you have room for only one fruit tree, you must make it a peach tree. Above, you see 9 of the roughly 15 peaches we were able to save this year. Our two trees originally held about 30 peaches each. But, heavy winds knocked off many of them. And, squirrels are evil. It takes them less than 30 seconds to run over, pick a peach and run off with one pretty peach clamped in their nasty little mouthes. And, last but not least, we have a new set of peach lovers. The latest in the line of back yard peach thieves are a pair of woodpeckers. We know they’re tasty, we don’t begrudge the wildlife a few peaches. But, leave us a few!
Through it all, we would do it again in a New York minute. One bite of sun-warmed peach erases all of the frustration. There is nothing better than that sweet rush of juice in your mouth from a tree-ripened peach grown in your very own back yard. It’s a priceless treasure that lingers endlessly in your memory.
Peaches On The Tree
(about 3 weeks ago)
Again, Just Over A Week Ago
Biggest First Batch EVER!
This year our first batch of tomatoes was close to a full pint of assorted tomatoes.
Sweet, Richly Flavored & Delicious
The bright orange cherry tomato is a perfectly ripe Sun Gold. (The yellowy-orange cherry to the left is a barely ripe Sun Gold.) There was a world of difference between the two when it came flavor.
The Sun Gold cherry tomatoes are already the clear favorite for us. With a gorgeous deep dark orange gold color and a super sweet taste, these were some incredible tomatoes. The Tami G’s look like miniature Juliets. Just as sweet as the Juliet, they were another early favorite. But, we still prefer the Juliet. There’s just no beating them for depth of flavor, sweetness and size (small plum size, but, oodles more flavor than most plums).
Black Krim
Two More Black Krims
The Black Krims are absolutely thriving with all of the rain. Each plant has 3-6 BIG (and gorgeous) tomatoes. All of the tomato plants seem to be growing very well. And, they’re dripping with buds. Even with all of the destructive chipmunk activity, we’ve been lucky for the most part. The yellow pear tomatoes are the one exception. They’re proving to be the most temperamental and difficult this year. They don’t seem to appreciate the heavy rains. All three yellow pear tomatoes are yellowing, wilty and struggling to survive. They’re also not that noteworthy in the flavor category. They’re more than a little bit bland and boring. And, when they over-ripen, they have an unpleasant mushy-mealy texture. I doubt we’ll ever plant them again.
Tomato Topped Baked Buttered Pasta
1 baking dish
1 lb mezza penne, cooked al dente, and drained
1/2 cup pasta water, reserved
4-5 Tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
fine sea salt
assorted cherry and plum tomatoes, halved
Parmigiano Reggiano, slivers
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
After straining the pasta, return to the stock pot. Toss with pasta water, butter, black pepper nutmeg and sea salt. Pour into buttered baking dish that’s pretty enough for serving. Scatter halved tomatoes over the top. Bake at 425 degrees F for 35-45 min. Edges of pasta should be golden brown at the edges. Shave parmigiano slivers over the top. Serve in baking dish with grilled bread on the side.
Pesto, it’s not just for pasta!
Salmon, Pesto, Red Pepper Flakes
That’s really all there is to it. If you make the pesto from scratch, it’s even better. But, on a busy day, you do what you have to do. I always have homemade bread crumbs hanging around in the fridge. So, sometimes, I’ll throw a few handfuls on top for a bit of crunch. The salmon could easily be substituted for another hearty fish like grouper, dorado (mahi-mahi), cod or even pompano. If you don’t like fish, try chicken.
Pesto Salmon
1 heaping cup homemade or prepared pesto
olive oil, if using prepared pesto, use as needed to make sauce spreadable
juice of one very juicy lemon
red pepper flakes, to taste
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
fine sea salt
bread crumbs, optional
whole pine nuts, optional
Preheat oven to 425 Degrees F.
If making homemade pesto, prepare in food processor. Add lemon juice and black pepper. Place salmon filets in a large baking dish. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Gently spread pesto over filets. Sprinkle red pepper flakes on top, to your taste. Sprinkle bread crumbs &/or pine nuts on top, if you like.
Place baking dish in hot oven and bake from 20-35 minutes depending on size and thickness of your fish filets. Half of a filleted salmon takes 30-40 minutes, also depending on the size and thickness. Fish should flake when tested with a fork, yet remain very moist.
Schmear on as much… or as little pesto as you like.
Bread & Butter Pickles
I never can anything. I just don’t do it.
Some people are always prepared. I’m never prepared. You need to have jars ready to use. You need a good place to store your jars. And, you need to remember to USE what’s in the jars. (I’m ridiculously forgetful. I’m always forgetting those great little things tucked away at the back of my pantry. And, I hate throwing things away. With an Italian grandmother, I was taught at a very young age that we’re not wasters.) Since I rarely have clean jars ready to go, I’m much more likely to just make a batch of pickles, jam, or whatever that’s just big enough to eat. And, there are so many reasons why I like to do this. First and foremost, I’m fickle. What I want to eat now, I rarely want to eat next month. Been there, done that… That’s the way my mind works.
So, this will make one big bowl of pickles that you can store in the fridge. We’ll probably devour them within the week.
Refrigerator Bread & Butter Pickles
makes 1 big bowl
6-7 Kirby cucumbers, well-washed and cut into spears
2 red peppers, sliced into similar-sized pieces
1 Vidalia onion, cut into fat slices
20 whole garlic cloves, trimmed
3 cups cidger vinegar
2 cups sugar
1 Tablespoon fine sea salt
1 Tablespoon yellow mustard seeds
1 Tablespoon celery seeds
1 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
scant 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
Combine all ingredients (except cucumbers, red pepper slices, and onion slices) into a large non-reactive stock pot. Bring to a boil. Add vegetables. Bring mixture back to a boil. Cover and set aside to cool. When cool, pour into large glass bowl, cover with plastic wrap and place the bowl in the fridge. At minimum, let chill overnight. But, they are best after 24 hours.
Eat with a cheese plate, salad, grilled meats or any meal you choose. Or, simply nibble spears as a snack like we do.
Chillin’ in the pot.
I was shooting for something halfway between a blueberry muffin and sweet cornbread. And, I think I’m getting close. This was closer to a sweet cornbread with blueberries added. Those blueberries are dried wild blueberries from Trader Joe’s. (Love them! They’re not really dry. They’re closer to a dehydrated blueberry jerky.) They were incredibly sweet, moist and tender in the finished cake. And, for $6, they’re incredibly high quality.
Blueberry Cornmeal Snack Cake
makes one 8×8 inch baking dish
1 cup unbleached AP flour
1/2 cup corn flour
1/2 cup superfine sugar
1/2 heaping cup dried wild blueberries
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/2 cup canola oil
2 jumbo eggs
1/2 cup buttermilk (or light cream)
1 heaping teaspoon vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
Combine all dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Stir vigorously with a large spoon. Add blueberries and stir briefly. Then, add eggs, oil, buttermilk, and vanilla. Stir gently to combine. Pour into buttered baking dish. Bake at 425 degrees F for 24-28 minutes. Let cool and cut into squares.
These make a perfect snack, small breakfast or barely sweet dessert treat.
Blackberry Buds
Green Berries
Purple Sage Flowers
Roses are trying to invade the Greek Oregano.
Basil
No need to pull off green peaches. They’re falling off on their own.
Even though most of my garden is thriving. We do have a few issues. The worst of those issues? Aphids! Aphids are trying to eat my gorgeous tomato buds. For me, using a pesticide would defeat the purpose of a backyard garden. So, what to do? Soapy water mist, oil mist, neem oil? Today, I tried a very light blend of water, soap, and tiny drop of oil in a mister. Will it work? No clue. But, it’s worth a try. I’ll check the tomato buds daily to see if this is going to work.
After spritzing one plant to test the mist, I spritzed a bit of the mixture on my dirty hands to clean up. Then, washed it off. Turns out, this mixture makes a very nice and very mild hand wash too. So, as another experiment, I filled a foaming hand soap dispenser with the mixture. I’m guessing it will need a good shake every now and then. But, I’m loving the silky feel of my skin without the greasy residue of moisturizer.
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Update May 31, 2013
It worked! Well, it mostly worked. Twenty-four hours later there are a only few stragglers remaining. The delicate stems and buds are still healthy, too. (So Far… But, I’ll be keeping an eye on the branches that I’ve sprayed.) I’m going to wait a couple days to spray again… just to be safe. I have very little gardening experience and I don’t want to kill the delicate little buds. If I had to guess, I’d say that 80% of the aphids died overnight. So, I’m going to tentatively call this spray a success.
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Homemade Aphid Spray
fills one 24 ounce spray bottle
1 good squeeze of Dawn (or real soap)
(some dish soaps might be too harsh… so choose your soap carefully and test it on a small area)
1 teaspoon canola oil
fill with water
Combine all in misting bottle. Attach spritzer and seal tight. Shake vigorously. The mixture should be soapy enough to foam when shaken. But, it should feel mostly like water when spritzed on your fingers.
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