Summer Days

chamomile suntea, try it and love it
(.23 c. chamomile blossoms + 4 c. water + sunshine)

sunny afternoons outdoors on a beat up porch

summer pinks

hibiscus

stormy summer sky

local meal: summer style

last night i chopped up some sweet onions and sauteed them, threw in a clove of garlic i picked up downtown and opened up one of my jars of tomatoes from the farm last year.

fresh rosemary and sage from my mother's were on hand, all together the house smelled wonderful.

when it was looking nice and saucy i chopped up a yellow squash from the market and sliced up a few of these babies from a friend's garden.

on farfalle pasta, the result was delicious. one of the more savory, delicious, local meals that i've eaten all summer. what can i say—it's been a lazy, slow, strange summer, and my standards are low.

jubilee lake

early morning on the lake

very tempting

found this on the tree at our campsite

soft sunlight and grass

woke up with the sun on friday. it was so refreshing to be in the cool mountain air, the sound of birds and the silence of a campground full of sleeping people. walked around the campground, watched the mist skitter across the lake and basked in the warmth of the sun.

an invigorating experience everywhere i turned.

fresh bean deliciousness

today i picked my first beans and found a baby cucumber that is growing.
still working on the motivation to do anything more productive in the garden.

merry half-birthday to me

this morning while puttering around in the yard i saw them—beans!
somehow that promise of delicious french fillet beans is telling me that i need to get my rear in gear. i'd be just in time for fall planting—my fall garden could surpass my summer one?

this summer has been one characterized by apathy.
the smallest upsets have just decimated my productivity.

tonight i am (hopefully) picking blueberries, so tomorrow: garden time.

life in the country

seattle

returned to a slightly chaotic home after a mini-break that took an additional two hours each way. let's just say that i am glad to be home.

local score's that i am especially proud of are some honeycrisp apple cider from Rockridge Orchards and some hazelnuts that i picked up at the Ballard Farmer's Market. the cider has a nice tangy-ness too it, a breath of fresh air to overly sweet ciders, the hazelnuts will be something to experiment with...!

the only other noteworthy purchase was the Preparas Tabletop mister that was recently reviews on the Apartment Therapy Kitchen blog. haven't put it in action, but i would say already that i don't find it to be all that heavy, as they mentioned.

seattle was beautiful—the end of summer on the west coast is always lovely and temperate. i ate delicious pirosky from Pirosky Pirosky, lamb sausage pita at the 74th St. Ale House and breakfasted on bennies (benedict) at Hattie's in Ballard.

we just so happened to stop to snack on our pirosky with our backs to one of the more iconic photo ops in Seattle.

in walla walla you can feel fall on our heels, it makes for lovely cool night walks with the dog. i am looking forward to a quiet week and a quiet weekend (in five days). fall always seems more quiet to me.

mini-break

one last weekend away before i get down to the business of fall.

this time, seattle. a very urban trip but i am hoping to hit up some farmer's markets, snag some local cheeses or meats perhaps? not to mention—trader joe's and cheap tasty wine.

when i return...some hardcore yard work action, canning and fall planting.
not to mention some serious dog training and quality doggy time.

and beautiful end-of-summer photos!

snapshots of the end of summer

the makings of a peach blackberry pie with streusel topping

(note: topping not yet applied. also note: three days later i still haven't tasted it. i forgot about it, cooked it 30 minutes longer than i should have, and am still sad. checked it today, the topping is soggy. started out so beautifully too. however, it can be breakfast tomorrow and perhaps there is hope.)

tray of tomatoes quartered and ready for the freezer

(the lazy man's way to preserving tomatoes, when you are tired or do not have time for saucing or drying)

my kitchen table. 

(note the narcissistic pepper near the toaster.

also note the insane number of peppers and the beautiful tomatoes.)

vacation of the fleeting summer

spent the weekend on the oregon coast. very lovely.
i highly recommend camping at cape lookout just south of tillamook. basically on the beach and all of the tent campsites had a nice smattering of bushes for privacy. (even still, manzanita is by far my favorite oregon coast town)

while on the road we dined on fresh sourdough from portland covered in cheese, butter, fresh tomatoes and whatever else we had on hand. need a good sandwich idea? tomato+apple+cheese+mustard+sourdough. yum.

picked up some delicious cheeses in tillamook. chili pepper cheddar, garlic and herb cheddar, smoked aged extra sharp cheddar (swoon) from tillamook and a smoked brie from the blue heron french cheese-makers down the street.

the impending vacation threw me into a fit of productivity and as i expected, it was a relief to come home to a garden within the realm of manageable. tonight i will pick more tomatoes, play with my csa bag, eat some delicious cheese and see if the second crop of beans is salvageable.

tomorrow? more pickling!

pictures from the coast

the ocean and dunes at fort stevens

the start of a 3mi. ocean-side hike

homemade ginger honey lemonade and tomatoes from my garden

view from the top of the astoria column

photos from the fair

we spent awhile trying to decide if he could get out. he could. he was a total pro.

this little guy was puffing up his chest so pretty

momma chicken with babies!

next year, i should enter the vegetable contest

award winning pumpkin. so beautiful.

garden update: august

i've been doing my best to stay on top of the tomatoes: saucing, drying, packing in olive oil.

my tomato plants are finally starting to ripen up. (i shudder to think what the chickens may be doing at this very moment.) i dry the black plums, use the orange ones (variety?). black from tula is just starting to ripen, as well as the juliette cherry tomatoes. they are definitely no sungold. sigh.

somehow i didn't end up with a green zebra. sigh.

the eggplants are crazy. very amazing, successful year for eggplant. haven't picked in several days, they keep much better on the plant. though i did find a good rigatoni recipe i want to try.

ended up with approximately two gallons of beans from the farm that i steam blanched and froze. very excited about this. they are small and tender, last year the ones i froze were too old and tough.

of course i killed all of my promising fall seedlings.
i'll plant again, maybe this weekend. its late but i think we'll be okay.

the peppers are also doing spectacular.
and the cucumbers are finally producing as well.

sometimes i feel frantic, overwhelmed. but the fact is, this is the sweet spot. this is the pick and enjoy time. it's easy. just keep up with the plants.

fifty pounds of tomatoes makes one nervous

this weekend i have felt frantic but i am starting to slow down.

things have not gone according to plan but i am trying to catch up.

i've inherited a friends garden. it thrills me to no end because they happened to get things in the ground that i was unable to—namely, winter & summer squash. they have a bevy of tomatoes, tomatillos, peppers and potatoes as well. and golden beets! they have beautiful squash plants that are meandering along their fence line, sneaking under into the alley.

friday i went over and picked everything that was ripe, in hopes of encouraging the plants to keep producing. i ended up with twenty or so white patty pan squash, six cucumbers and fifty pounds or so of potatoes.

just a portion of what i took home.

immediately i began to worry about putting the tomatoes up before they spoiled, the harvest was a little akwardly timed on my part. 

nevertheless, last night i stayed home and instead of going out and dancing or drinking, i sauced, stewed, roasted and canned tomatoes. i'm now down to one large bowl of beautiful tomatoes for salad and salsa, a smaller bowl for another tray to dry and all the tomatoes i have on my plants in my own garden.

my large jar of tomatoes. i threw in a couple of cloves of garlic, some basil and covered it with olive oil. then, into the freezer! a lazy man's canning.

now i am not-quite-rested but will roll out of bed and head out to the farm to feed the pigs and pick beans. on the way home i may stop and pick peppers at my new co-opted garden, as well as cilantro and milk from the grocery store. the goals for today are: tomatillo salsa, roast peppers, freeze green beans—and play board games outside. and watch (500) Days of Summer.

my excellent note. i kept three cucumbers and several small or mid size squash, but even i have my limits some days. especially around one in the morning.

sadly my own home garden will get little attention until tomorrow. maybe some eggplant will be picked if i can find a way to put them up. tomorrow: eggplant and pickled beets perhaps?

in the garden with the bottle opener

sunday i simmered peaches in moscato and rosemary, mixed up some tuna salad, sliced up a tomato and parked myself outside with a glass of pinot gris and my book. outdoor living at its best.

the weather was great—sunny, breezy, cool. the occasion was made all the better by the decision to play board games outdoors. i highly encourage anyone with a garden or a nearby park to set up a table and repeat the experience some sunny evening or perfect weekend day. full disclosure—clue isn't quite as amazing as i remember as a child, but i do think that it has the possibility to be made into a fantastic adult game, just haven't figured out how. i think next week i'll campaign for scrabble.

its interesting to see how my taste for outdoor living evolves—this summer has definitely been one of smaller, more intimate groups. and its predicted to be in the triple-digits thursday, so summer certainly isn't gone just yet.

easy like sunday morning

its been a good weekend. the kind of weekend i looked back fondly of from last summer. cooking, farming, people, faces, places.

i spent saturday morning cleaning the kitchen, roasting peppers in a small cast iron pan and making a Mediterranean eggplant and barley salad that i found at Smitten Kitchen. needed to put an eggplant or two to use and i wanted something that would keep well.

i only strayed from the recipe in that i don't have cayenne pepper. so i threw in some red pepper flakes and paprika. it added a little kick, but i don't know if the effect was similar. either way, the salad was delicious, enjoyed later saturday afternoon along with chicken salad and fresh tomatoes.

spent time at the farm, planting, weeding and playing with the chickens and children.

now its sunday and i spent the morning making a quiche and getting ready for a wedding i'm to attend. the quiche made the entire kitchen smell wonderful, full of tomatoes, chard, onions, chev and basil. i like mornings where i can play in the kitchen before the days events.

mm. summer love.

refreshing summer rain

the heat wave has broken.
last night it rained. a lot. it was wonderful.
(although, a little ill-timed, given my plans for an outdoor play tonight.)

its smelled like rain and wheat harvest for the past several days. it was nice to suddenly have the sky break and the rain to come pouring down. not an ugly hard rain, but a pleasant one. i'm sure the garden is happy about it, i have been watering very sparsely.

i haven't been in the garden much.

still waiting on my own tomatoes but enjoying some delicious ones from the farm. will definitely make oxhart a pick for next years planting. there are two or three eggplant waiting for me to pick them, and one in my fridge waiting to be used.

i've completely ignored the beans.
should probably check in on them soon, i expect they are getting tough.

its hard to believe that the east coast and mid-west have had such an un-summery summer, when we have been here in 100+ degree heat for two weeks straight. i'm thankful that we are being hit with the blight the northeast has experienced and i hope the long hot days mean good things for my melon plants.

for now i'll enjoy the rain but i do hope the heat makes a comeback.

beautiful sunsets

my new camera has a sunset option. let's just say i'm enjoying it.

(last friday)

(this past tuesday)

spring meets summer

tuesday i had a delicious dinner.
bow tie pasta+fava beans+tomatoes+zucchini+garlic+basil.

beautiful. colorful. fresh.
the last of the spring favas with the first of the tomatoes.

sauteed the zucchini in olive oil and garlic while the pasta boiled. steamed the favas over the pasta water, removed their skins and threw them in with the zucchini. shortly thereafter, drained and added the pasta. added chopped tomatoes. added the basil last, only a couple minutes before dishing it up for myself.


it was delightful.
i ate it sitting on my back patio, reading and listening to the brief summer thunderstorm sweep through my backyard. stayed out reading until the sunset.

an excellent night all around.