Marinated Salad Recipes for Super Saturday

In-the-Pink Salad (with beans and beets) is a variation on Black-eyed Pea Confetti Salad.   It is a good choice if your power is out and you can't cook or refrigerate your food.   Also great for picnics.  

The coleslaw at Super Saturday was Christmas Party Coleslaw, substituting carrot and parsley for chiles.  There's a family-sized recipe at the link. 

You might also like to try Italian-style Marinated Broccoli and Cauliflower Salad for winter or Marinated Italian Tomato and Cucumber Salad for summer.    

June 9 Tomatoes (and apricots)

The forcast today is for 108 degrees, so I had to finish in the garden early.

My second non-cherry heirloom tomato of the season is Aunt Ginny's Purple, at the top.  The first of the season was Stump of the World.  Very tasty.  You can see from the photo that not all "purple" tomatoes are really purple.  Some just lack yellow coloration in their skin. 

Aunt Ginny's Purple is a famous tomato.  The name reminds me of Aunt Virginia.  She grew tomatoes, and served some of them sliced on French Toast (unsweetened) for breakfast.  Wonderful.  

Clockwise from Aunt Ginny is Barbara, a sweet plum tomato - a disease-resistant hybrid which is no longer available from seed.  Too bad. 

Golden Amber apricot - a late one.  Sweet, a little soft.

Miracle Sweet tomato - Early, sweet.  Hybrid seed no longer available.

Sun Glow, Teardrop and Tomatoberry Garden (the little ones).  Sun Gold is famous for a reason.  Tomatoberry Garden is also very good.  Shaped like little strawberries.  Teardrop is another discontinued hybrid.  Sweet, firm.

Moreton Hybrid - One of the first hybrid tomatoes, the favorite of Betty's parents.  Parent lines were once thought lost, but the hybrid was revived because of its popularity.  Full of flavor.

Juliet - A small, sweet hybrid plum.  Firm.  Has a reputation for disease resistance and reliability.  Recommended for roasting as halves. 

BIG zucchinis, First Medium-Sized Tomatoes, Recipes

We have one variety of zucchini (Sweet Zuke) on which the fruits seem to to successfully hide among the stems and leaves of the plants until they get VERY BIG.  You can see a younger one at the top of the photo.  The big ones have lost their gloss, but the skin still seems tender.  You also need a knife to pick this one, as it often breaks at the neck if you're not careful. 

Anybody have a good stuffed zucchini recipe?  Microwave recipes welcome for hot weather.  Otherwise, the big ones are good for zucchini bread and zucchini pancakes, either fancy gluten- and dairy-free ones or make them more like traditional (grated) potato pancakes.    David's Mom uses a little Bisquick with the zucchini.  There are also recipes which add cheese, corn and other ingredients.  A slice of tomato on top might be nice.  Aunt Virginia used to serve sliced tomatoes with (unsweetened) French Toast. Wonderful. 

We've been picking cherry tomatoes, Yellow Perfection and Garden Peach (from purchased plants) for a while now.  Garden Peach is a small, non-shiny pale yellow tomato with a faint "fuzz" that wipes off.  Nice sweet flavor with a little acid, but not too much "tomato" flavor.   Slightly fruity in flavor.

Our first medium-sized tomato, slightly bigger than Yellow Perfection, ripened about May 28.   Fourth of July is the variety.  Makes sense, as it is a very early one.  Tough skin, but easy to peel and nice tomato flavor and red color.  Others followed right away - Big Beef, Aunt Ginny's Purple (actually rosy pink - the name makes me think of Aunt Virginia)  and not-so-giant Belgium Giant.  David says the last one tastes like the tomatoes his grandpa used to grow.  Picked a couple of dark Nyagous with green shoulders, too.  Both had a crack at the shoulder.  Uncharacteristic of this variety.  I was surprised to get them right after Fourth of July, as this is supposed to be a later tomato.  Had some smokey flavor, but Fourth of July had more "tomato" flavor.  

We also got a Little Lucky (yellow and blush bicolor).  Sweet, not too flavorful, but the first tomatoes are often not representative.   I picked an Indian Striped tomato yesterday.  It still had green shoulders, though it can reportedly be picked when it looks ripe, unlike many other dark tomatoes.  It has a crack in the shoulder.  I'll let it sit for a couple of days before we eat it. 

We've had several days at or above 100 degrees already.  There have been some spider mite-related foliage problems already.  Next year, I'll try to start seeds in mid-January and plant them out soon after March 15. 

What happens when we skip a day picking squash?

They just keep growing.  A few of zucchinis are stuffing size now.

The squash we should have picked yesterday, plus today's harvest, is below with some windfall Flavor Delight Apriums and Harcot Apricots (the ones with the red blush).  These two varieties are well-adapted here, along with the apricots Golden Sweet (commercial variety, just coming off patent and becoming available for home growers), Robada (commercial, sweet pit variety, needs a pollenizer, developed by USDA) and Tomcot (best with a pollenizer)

Today was the best gardening day we've had in a while.  I also transplanted some extra seedlings from a row of melons.  They HATE that when they have true leaves, but I think some of them will make it.  Tied up the cucumbers, too.

I'm not much on gardening in containers in summer in our hot climate, but I planted Red Russian kale in a pot with some chrysanthemums last fall.  I used it often in salads with angel hair-cut cabbage.  It is more tender than most kale varieties.

It's bolting now.  You can see its skinny seedheads and yellow blossoms behind the chrysanthemums, which seem to have picked an odd time to bloom again.  The color of Red Russian kale is great with chrysanthemums with blue-green leaves and purplish or pink flowers.

I also threw caution to the wind this year and planted some peppers (Mariachi and Monster Jalapeno) in a pot with some marigolds.  They're next to a pot o' ground cherries (first time I'm trying these), in the afternoon shade of a couple of big English roses.  Most places, I would not recommend shade for hot peppers.  Here, in a pot, yes.  I'll let you know how they do.

Early Harvest, 2013

Above, an all-yellow early harvest: Two Yellow Perfection tomatoes (a variety from England - smaller than a ping pong ball), three Sungold tomatoes (even smaller) and one baby Meteor yellow zucchini. They're nestled among the prettiest weed of the season, Mexican Evening Primrose.   Yellow Perfection is a pleasant tomato with some sweetness, on the mild side but not bland.  The great Sungold has not come into its own yet this season.  Both varieties had tough skin on these first tomatoes (on the plant before transplant).  

We've only had a few Sungold tomatoes and one other Yellow Perfection (given away) so far this season. Should have started a couple of weeks earlier. Next year. . . .

Update: the day after I harvested the first squash of the year above, I got a Magda, a Zephyr and a Sweet Zuke (examples pictured in a previous post here. )  Princess Kitty Darla has  more kitty friends now than she did in the picture at the link and may now qualify as Queen.   I also got a Butter Scallop the second day (looks like its name) and a Supersett (yellow crookneck).  Same old seeds I had in 2011, pretty much.   By May 11, two days after the first zucchini was harvested, we had a total of 19 squashes.  Once these plants start . . . I also planted Peter Pan, a scallop, from quite old seed.  It is behind the others in development.  

 The lettuce above is now too bitter to eat, but it was nice while it lasted.  Doesn't take much potting mix to grow cut-and-come-again leaf lettuce in winter here.  These are growing in trays from supermarket barbecued chicken.  My favorite cool-season crops this year were Tatsoi and its later blossoms, broccoli and Red Russian kale.  UPDATE for Gilly:   Tatsoi is one of the cutest edible plants ever, and would look nice with pansies or other low-growing plants.  I planted Red Russian Kale in a pot with some mauve and pink chrysanthemums.

2013 tomato wish list

Varieties in bold type below are on my "wish list". If you want information or seeds for another variety, let me know. SEED CATALOGS ARE COMING IN. If you live in the Valley and want to start your own plants or supply your favorite nursery with seeds to start a favored variety for you, you need to act fairly soon. These are the varieties we planted this year:
German Johnson regular leaf vs. Big Pink Hybrid (Burpee)

Brandy Boy Hybrid vs. Pink Brandy Master Hybrid 

Black Krim vs. Black Prince (already know Nyagous does well here)
Cherokee Purple

Jetsetter vs. Early Girl 

Better Boy vs. Champion

 Big Beef vs. Park Whopper vs. Goliath vs Beefmaster

 Yellow Brandywine vs. Golden Jubilee vs. Lemon Boy
Solar Power (Burpee) vs. Orange Wellington 

Husky Cherry Red vs. Cherry Punch (new variety, compact plants)

Black Cherry vs. Chocolate Cherry

Sun Gold vs. SunSugar
2013 CHERRY AND GRAPE TOMATOES
Yesterday, December 14, we had a light frost, which did not affect our surviving cherry tomatoes. The best-flavored ones still in the garden are Chocolate Cherry, a dark-colored tomato which is picked while it still has green shoulders (like most dark tomatoes. It was not outstanding in hot weather. It is available from Bonnie Plants, in their children's garden series. Black Cherry, the favorite of tomato nuts, does not seem to be particularly well-suited to our climate. For those with cooler summers, be aware that it is sort of late for a cherry.
We also compared Sun Gold and SunSugar. Both were lovely at certain times during the summer, but are not so great now. Sun Gold is the favorite of tomato nuts for its unique, fruity flavor. Sun Sugar is even sweeter, but less fruity. It is resistant to a couple of tomato diseases. Our red varieties of cherry types were nothing to brag about. Many people who like "tomato flavor" recommend Husky Cherry Red, a Short Internode Indeterminate variety. I like sweet cherries better. Cherry Punch was not good. Plants looked nice, though. Neither of our compact red cherry plants look so good this time of year.
Reds to try in 2013: Sweet Million (sweet, disease-resistant) and/or Sweet Baby Girl (Compact indeterminate, some disease resistance).
Napa Grape is a red Burpee grape we grew one year. It is very sweet and maintains its quality in cool weather. Burpee generally doesn't release information on disease resistance. Also recommended for the Valley: Golden Honey Bunch. Might also try Rosalita (pink grape) Sweet Quartz (pink cherry) Jenny Hybrid, Orange Paruche, Ladybug and/or Cherry Roma. Already have seeds.
2013 COCKTAIL/SALAD-SIZED WISH LIST
Moravski Div (Wonder of Moravia) The only extra-early tomato recommended by tomato expert Carolyn Male. May be the only tomato I try to plant in a container (to protect during frost). Semi-determinate. Container tomato growers in cooler-summer climates may want to try some of the new internationally developed (by amateurs) Dwarf Indeterminate varieties.
Mountain Magic F1. Cocktail tomato (large cherry) recommended for flavor. Good choice for humid climates also, as it is blight-resistant and resistant to several other tomato diseases.
Flamme (Jaune Flammee) Old French cocktail-sized tomato, intense flavor, holds color when dried or roasted. Productive.
Bulgarian Triumph (the round ones). Love the name. Not real early. Or Brandysweet Plum.
Moskvich Does well here. Starts early, keeps going in heat.
Cosmonaut Volkov from Ukraine. Does well here. Nice flavor.
Nyagous - a "black" tomato, picked with green shoulders. Beautiful little tomatoes, my healthiest plants the year I grew it.
AAA Sweet Solano - Yellow/orange striped tomato - sweet, firm, beautiful, on the late side.
DARK TOMATOES, STANDARD TO LARGE
Indian Stripe, the slightly smaller, slightly earlier, slightly more heat-tolerant cousin of Cherokee Purple. May be picked fully ripe, unlike most dark tomatoes. Cherokee Purple is wonderful, but is not productive here.
JD's Special C Tex or Gary O Sena - have grown before. Similar to Cherokee Purple. Large.
Burgundy Traveler - Better than Arkansas traveler, medium-sized.
No larger "blacks" this year, I think. Nyagous may be my only "black". No luck with other blacks last year.

Moldy Mounds of Dirt (Treat for Kids Only)

These are prepared on the Rice Krispies Treats model with cocoa-flavored cereal, for Trunk or Treat parties. Ugly -- gummy worm emerging from each mound of dirt optional.

Regular Batch
Spray a very large bowl and a 9 x 13 inch pan with non-stick cooking spray.  Line a cookie sheet with waxed paper if you intent to make shaped mounds rather than rectangles.  If desired, crush chocolate cookie wafers to decorate the finished treats (I took some Oreos apart and used the halves with no filling to crush, putting the remaining halves together for "double stuff" Oreos). Reserve crushed cookies in a bowl.

Measure about 8 1/2 cups Cocoa Pebbles or Cocoa Dyno-Bites (13 oz. box) into the very large bowl you have sprayed with non-stick spray. Have a sturdy spatula or large spoon ready for stirring.

Melt 1/4 cup butter (1/2 stick) in a microwave, in a large microwave-proof bowl. Pour in a 10 oz. bag of marshmallows and stir to coat marshmallows with butter. Melt marshmallows completely in the microwave on high power for about 1 1/2 minutes, stirring once at 45 seconds. Pour and scrape melted marshmallow mixture into cereal and quickly stir to coat the cereal. Scrape into the prepared 9 x 13 inch pan and press evenly into the pan with buttered hands (or spray hands with non-stick cooking spray). If you intend to serve as bars, sprinkle some cookie crumbs over the cereal mixture and press into the top if desired, to make the top look "dirty". Also makes the bars less sticky (you could also coat the bottom of the pan with cookie crumbs before adding cereal if desired).  Cut when cooled. Cover tightly to store.

If you want to make "moldy mounds of dirt", score the warm cereal mixture quickly into serving-sized pieces. With buttered hands, shape each piece into a flat-bottomed mound, shaping it around half of a gummy worm if desired, so that the other  half of the worm emerges from the "mound of dirt". Firm cereal mixture around the worm. Roll the mound in crushed cookies to give the appearance of an uneven, dirty surface. Press cookie crumbs into cereal mixture and set on waxed paper-lined cookie sheet to cool.

Big Batch

Prepare as above, using a 16 oz. bag of marshmallows, 13 cups of cereal and 6 Tablespoons of butter. Marshmallows will take a little longer to melt and you will need BIG bowls both for the microwave and the cereal. I put the mixture in a  10 x 15 inch baking dish(sprayed with non-stick cooking spray as above) to score it into serving sections, then quickly shaped the pieces around gummy worms and coated with cookie crumbs. I set the mounds on a 1/2 hotel sheet lined with waxed paper, but you could use 2 smaller cookie sheets. I got 31 mounds of dirt, most of them quite large for a kid (slightly smaller than a cupcake).

NOTE: If you get a 42 oz. bag of Cocoa Dyno-Bites cereal, you can make 2 big batches if you substitute a cup or two of another ingredient for cereal in each batch -- nuts, coconut, another kind of cereal, etc. I would not try to make a double batch at one time - just too big. Separate batches are much more feasible.

Mongolian Beef

Quick to make. Guys especially seem to like this spicy/sweet/salty recipe when they are dragging a little after a hard day of work. I adapted this recipe from the one linked at the bottom of this post, at Pink Bites. I reduced the sugar (the original was too sweet for me, but you could add some back if you prefer) and substituted flour for cornstarch (corn allergy). Because I was now making a sauce with flour rather than mixing cornstarch with the beef, I switched the brown sugar to white sugar to make it easier to mix with the flour. You could do the same thing with cornstarch or arrowroot, but use only half as much as you would measure if using flour. A sauce made with arrowroot should be added right at the end of cooking, as it will thin out again if over-cooked.

I usually don't use the maximum amount of garlic. I often add both hot pepper flakes (or ground hot pepper) and a fresh Ancho/Poblano chile. I usually use more ginger than in the original recipe, and if I don't have fresh ginger, I use a little ground ginger.

Serves two or three. You can easily double or triple the recipe if you have a large electric skillet. I often make this with cube steak, though Mexican-style Milanesa also works. If I have last-minute guests, I may start some ground beef cooking before adding the steak.

Mongolian Beef (corn free)


1 pound of flank steak, cube steak, Milanesa or other lean steak
1 Tablespoon canola oil or similar oil for stir-frying


1/2 teaspoon to 1 Tablespoon grated or minced ginger (peeled)

Up to 1 tablespoon minced garlic (about 2 -3 large cloves)

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes or ground red pepper (cayenne if you're brave)
AND/OR 1 fresh Ancho, Pasilla or other mild chile, seeded and sliced

1/2 cup cold water

1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce

1/4 cup granulated sugar  (you can add 2 to 4 Tablespoons brown OR additional granulated sugar)
1 to 2 Tablespoons flour (depending on desired thickness of sauce)



3 large green onions, 6 small green onions or 1 small regular or sweet onion

Cooked white or brown rice, and/or stir-fried vegetables for serving
(shredded Napa cabbage or similar greens, mushrooms, onions, celery, etc)

1. Begin to cook the rice while you prepare the rest of the meal.

Mince garlic and grate or mince ginger, set aside. Prepare and slice fresh chile (if used) in about 1/4 inch by 1 inch strips. Peel onion and slice into 1/4 inch by 1 inch strips or trim green onions (both white and green parts) and slice once vertically, then chop into 1 inch slices. Set aside.

Slice steak thinly across the grain, then slice into short strips.

2. For the sauce, mix granulated sugar and flour. Stir in the brown sugar (if used), cold water, and soy sauce. Save until meat is browned.

3. Heat a large wok, heavy pan or electric skillet to medium-high. Add the oil and then the meat, stirring until it is all browned (should not take long). Add the garlic, ginger, red pepper and sliced fresh chile if used. Continue cooking and stirring until garlic softens a little.

Stir the sauce ingredients to suspend the flour, pour into the wok/pan, stir until thickened and let it cook along with the meat for a few minutes.

4. You can cook down the sauce to reduce it to a sweeter, more concentrated flavor or leave it thinner. Add green onions at the last minute so the green parts will stay green and the white parts crunchy. Serve it hot with rice and/or stir-fried vegetables or salad. It may not seem like you have much sauce, but the sauce is quite sweet and salty, and goes a long way on rice. Serves two, or maybe three if you serve it with veggies, etc.

Allergy Information: Check soy sauce for wheat or corn products.

Mongolian Beef
 from Pink Bites
1 lb of flank steak or cube steak, thinly sliced crosswise

1/4 cup of cornstarch

3 teaspoons of canola oil

1/2 teaspoon grated ginger (about 1/2 inch piece)

1 tablespoon minced garlic (about 2 -3 large cloves)

1/2 cup water

1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

3 large green onions, sliced

Rice, for serving

1. For the meat, make sure the steak slices are dry by patting them with a paper towel. Slice them into strips, then add the cornstarch to the beef. Place the slices in a strainer and shake off excess corn starch. Begin to cook the rice while you prepare the rest of the meal.

2. For the sauce, heat half of the oil in a large wok or pan at medium-high heat and add the garlic and the ginger. Immediately add the soy sauce, water, brown sugar and pepper flakes. Cook the sauce for about 2 minutes and transfer to a bowl. Don’t worry if the sauce doesn’t look thick enough at this point. The corn starch in the beef will thicken it up later.

3. Place the meat in the same pan and cook, stirring until it is all browned (this is a quick thing). Pour the sauce back into the wok/pan and let it cook along with the meat.

4. You can cook down the sauce to reduce it to thicken or leave it thinner. Add the green onions on the last minute so the green parts will stay green and the white parts crunchy. Serve it hot with rice. Serves 2.

Little Squashes

Darla the Kitty Princess checks out a platter of summer squash in her flower border. Some of the ones she's looking over would qualify as "baby squash" - the kind I could never afford when I lived in Southern California and occasionally visited the upscale Irvine Ranch market.

I think the very cutest baby squashes are the scallop types (in white, all shades of green, pale yellow, deep yellow, rings,  stripes, and combinations) and the crooknecks. And "round zucchinis" have gone beyond the old European heirlooms and their progeny to standardized hybrids. They make for a fun picture arranged like billiard balls. But I'm not growing any of those this year.

Even though I've simplified our squash list, we've still got 8 plants of summer squash this year - way too many for one family, unless you plan on giving some away. Even if you give lots of squash away, you can be overwhelmed if you don't pick them young. The ones on the platter are:

Magda:   A pale green, fat Lebanese (Cousa) type bred in France. My favorite zucchini. First to produce this year, as usual.
Sweet Zuke:   Medium green with faint stripes, shaped something like the Cousa types when it gets bigger. I bought seeds for this variety as a darker companion to Magda. Tends to break at the neck when picked.
Spineless Beauty:   Zucchinis on a less-prickly, less-hairy plant. They're the ones in the photo with the blossoms still attached. How high-end is THAT? My favorite variety name for a "hairless" zucchini was "Kojac". This type really is more pleasant to pick than regular zucchini.
Meteor:   A deep yellow zucchini, very slim when young.  Apparently being dropped from production. Yellow zucchinis taste a lot more like green zucchini than like the yellow crooknecks and straightnecks. They probably have a different profile of phytonutrients than the green ones, so if you're a zucchini fan, growing both could be good for you.
Precious II:   A hybrid straightneck yellow squash which resists greening from a common squash virus.  They're the ones that look sort of like pale yellow bowling pins in the photo.
Zephyr:   The one in the photo that's yellow on top and pale green on the bottom. A unique squash bred by Johnny's Selected Seeds. Has a winter squash in its parentage, and is rather firm.  Nice flavor.  Reported to keep better in the fridge than most varieties.

I planted two plants each of Magda and Zephyr. Thought I had 9 plants in all, but the Butterstick I thought I planted turned out to be a melon. Maybe I'm a little crazy for planting so many. But the bounty doesn't last forever. Summer squashes tend to produce so much fruit that they seem to wear themselves out after a while.

In our yard, the yummy yellow squashes, both crookneck and straightneck, tend to succumb to disease and/or insects faster than the zucchini types. Here, it's possible to put in a fall crop of summer squash if the white flies and squash bugs aren't too bad and soil diseases don't get to the plants.

Recipes: Okie Squash and Tomatoes is a good recipe for people who are not wild about zucchini by itself. Skillet Lasagna with Shredded Zucchini works even for most people who don't like zucchini because of its texture.

Melons as Cucumbers? Plus: Apricots! and a Garden Update

MELONS AS CUCUMBERS
For me, part of the fun of gardening is doing a little experimentation.  Last year, I tried hybridizing a new melon variety:  Bidwell Casaba x Small Persian, to see if I would come up with anything close to a Crenshaw melon (the Crenshaw is reported to be derived from a Casaba and a Persian melon).  Maybe we'll see this summer.  Plants are in the ground along with some of our favorite melon varieties and a couple of new ones.

This year, I lost some of my cucumber seedlings to damping off fungus.  So on the cucumber trellis, I'm trying some melons which I plan to try harvesting as cucumbers. "Armenian Cucumbers" and related varieties like "Painted Serpent Cucumbers" are actually melons, after all. True cucumbers have a hard time producing palatable, non-bitter fruit here because of the heat and because it is hard to maintain an even water level in the soil. The variety Summer Dance is the best I've found so far here, and it must be grown vertically or in part shade in this climate. This year, I'm also giving a few other varieties a spot in the garden, in addition to the "melon as cuke" experiment. I'm not including Armenian, because of the folk tradition that growing it near regular melons will change their taste. Not sure it's true.  But why let this idea interfere with my experiment?

 One year, our late, great dog Sparky was trying to harvest a melon (Piel de Sapo type) and accidentally pulled up the whole plant.  He loved Summer Dance cucumbers, so I figured he mistook the melon for a cucumber.  We used some of the immature melons he pulled up with the plant like cucumbers (peeled and seeded).  They were sweeter than cucumbers, but quite similar. Our neighbor at the time told me that in the old days, his family ate immature honeydews as cucumbers. Yesterday, I planted out six varieties of melons on the cucumber trellis, along with a late planting of  "Summer Dance" cucumber and  "Poona Kheera (a brown-skinned cucumber from India). The melons are:

Honeydew Gold Rind: A honeydew melon which turns golden when ripe. Not too sweet, according to the description. From Willhite, 2005 seed. Pick on full slip if using as a melon.

Sprite: A crispy little white Asian melon. Tiny seeds from 1998 AND 2001. We'll see if they germinate.

Bartlett Hybrid honeydew from Burpee. 2007 seed. They've discontinued this one, which is why I got it on their bargain page in 2007. Supposed to taste like a Bartlett pear.

Lambkin: an early Piel de Sapo type hybrid with yellower skin. Kind of defeats the purpose of having a winter storage melon here if it matures early, so why not use as a cucumber?

Golden Crispy hybrid: another discontinued hybrid, not too different from this one. Crisp little melons are popular in Asia.

Gold Bar hybrid: Park bills this as the first cucumber/melon cross: a cross of Cucumis sativas (a cucumber) and Cucumis hystrix (a melon). But information I see on C. hystrix calls it the closest cousin to the cucumber. It's not a regular melon. It's hard to cross a cucumber with the melons we are familiar with. Even this cross-species "melon" has been hard for me to grown. Last chance for this batch of seeds.

Update: June 8, Lambkin and Summer Dance sprouted in their little seed protectors, which have now been removed Pictures of those later.

APRICOTS: We got our first apricot on June 2, a Royalty (not Royal). Second one yesterday.  Quality is much better than usual, probably due to the cooler weather this year. Not as mushy this year.  Maybe it's gotten less water during ripening than usual, too.  This is a really big apricot, and the fruits stayed on the tree in our recent windstorms (it's billed as a wind-resistant variety). I'm thinking that this is a good variety for the Salinas Valley.  It's a semi-freestone and there are other varieties out there which taste better.  But it's still an apricot.

Update:  On June 7, I picked our first Blenheim apricots which matured in reasonable weather.  No comparison with Royalty.  Blenheim's depth of flavor was remarkable, and its texture is far superior.  No wonder people go on orchard tours in the Santa Rosa Valley to taste it.  The variety Golden Sweet is said by Andy Mariani to be very similar, but more resistant to pitburn and brown rot.  I just have to convince a nursery to pick some up from the commercial vendor.  There should be some super-sweet varieties coming onto the nursery market soon, too.

I also picked a Harcot on June 8.  It was bigger than Blenheim, but not as big as Royalty.  Quality is much better than Royalty, not as good as Blenheim.  It's better suited to our climate, though.  Flavor Delight Aprium also has some ripe fruits.  Usually they ripen before or with Royalty.  They rank just under Harcot for flavor.  They're quite reliable here.

FRUIT TREES:  I finally got around to whitewashing the trunks of the new Pluot trees yesterday:  a Flavor King to replace the one Sparky's bathtub killed, a Flavor Grenade to replace the one Little Buddy chewed up when he was a puppy, and a Splash.  You're supposed to use a cheap white latex interior paint, diluted with an equal part of water.  I found a little jar of paint used for testing mixed paint colors which was perfect for this use.  I also renewed the whitewash on the cherry trees.

ONIONS AND LETTUCE: F. planted a bunch of seed for a short-day purple onion this spring, and they're bolting, so I advised him to dig them up. It's hard for him to understand that you plant some kinds of onions in spring and other kinds in fall. But he buries all onions so deep that they won't bulb up, anyway. These are woody, but he harvested and bunched them like scallions, anyway. Tied them with an onion stem.  He hates to waste food. We give him some space in the garden to grow the things he likes. He does better with tomatoes and winter squash than with onions. He also transplanted some lettuce a couple of weeks ago which was already too bitter to eat after a warm spell. He really hates waste, and I think he intended to grow it out for seed.  More seed than we could ever use. It's a pretty, but inferior, variety - a volunteer with tough, frilly leaves. I pulled them and put them in the compost bin so he wouldn't have to. There are still some in the front yard. He had started to transplant those to his garden plot, too. But I stopped him. Think I'll try to keep them from going to seed after they bloom. We have lots of lettuce seeds.

TOMATOES: I saw my first sphinx moth of the year last night. It's a shame that these fascinating moths lay eggs which turn into such destructive caterpillars. It will be time to break out the Bt spray (one of the most effective, specific biological insect controls around) soon, as the moths begin to lay eggs on the tomatoes. You can see the difference between a tobacco hornworm and a tomato hornworm if you scroll down here. I think the tobacco hornworm is more common in our garden. I only saw one of them on the tomatoes last year. Only sprayed Bt once. We also get the white-lined sphinx moth here. It's a beauty. According to Wikipedia, the caterpillars feed on tomatoes as well as a wide range of other plants. I'm not sure I've ever seen one on a tomato plant, though. Other sources don't seem to list tomato as a host. This is the green color variation of the caterpillar. Uncle Kent told us years ago about having to drive over a migration of green caterpillars in the Arizona desert. Guess it might have been these.

Our first tomato will be ripe soon. It's turning red. It's on an Early Girl plant we bought at a promotion at Home Depot in a gallon pot for about a dollar. The Ace we bought at the same time has good-sized fruit on it, too. I shaded the exposed ones yesterday with aluminum foil. Many of the other tomatoes bought as smaller plants also have fruit.

It's the fourth of June, and this is a late year for tomatoes here, but the fourth of June seems pretty early for a ripe tomato to people in most of the country.  The name of the Fourth of July tomato doesn't mean as much in areas like this as it does in the North, and it's not offered in nurseries here. I didn't grow it this year because I didn't start plants from seed. Tough skin, but does well in the heat here, becoming very sweet. But I may be planting Moravsky Div (Wonder of Moravia) as my really early tomato next year. Recommended by heirloom tomato expert Carolyn Male. Along with Bulgarian Triumph as a later, small, sweet tomato.

The lanky potato-leafed plant I bought as an Early Girl has largely recovered from its early sickly appearance and has some small fruits on it. Though the plant is not what you would call "lush" at this point. It's probably the maternal parent of Early Girl, which is reported to be a potato-leafed cultivar. There were lots of potato-leafed plants among the Early Girls at nurseries and box stores this year. Somebody left some self-pollenized tomatoes on the plant during production of the hybrid seeds, apparently. I'm surprised that this doesn't happen more often.

Frost yesterday

We had a light frost yesterday morning. Didn't hurt the tomato plants. Temperature at the airport was 36 degrees.

How to get water rings off wood furniture

Today, I found a big white steam circle on our table. I read up on techniques for removing water rings, and decided to try ironing the table. It worked. The table has a polyurethane finish. I would be careful if trying this on lacquer. There are now clear water-based finishes, too. Sometimes marks on these will go away if you just wait a while.

But back to the almost-magical technique I tried. Steps below:

1. Find a clean, soft white cotton cloth or handkerchief with no texture or pattern. I used a doubled cotton handkerchief.

2. Place the cloth over the mark. Run a hot iron (no steam) back and forth over mark, moving the cloth every few seconds. Repeat until mark is gone.

3. Rub with lemon oil or other water-free furniture polish.

4. If the finish still looks damaged even though the ring is gone, you might eventually go over your entire surface of the furniture piece (i.e., the entire tabletop) with Danish Oil. Requires good air circulation and some time when you won't need the furniture.

Tomato Choices

This time last year, I already had tomato plants in the ground. I started plants indoors in January. Last year I also had problems with tobacco mosaic virus (or a very similar virus) in my tomatoes.  I didn't start any plants indoors this year.  The plan this year is to plant a TMV-resistant variety between varieties that are not resistant, since the virus can spread plant-to-plant and by handling (dip hands in milk to prevent the spread).

LOCAL TOBACCO MOSAIC VIRUS RESISTANT VARIETIES

I now have 12 Big Beef VF12NTSt (6 from RiteAid, 6 from OSH). May not need all 12. This variety is not quite as large as some of the giant beefsteaks, but it is recommended for our hot valley and is earlier than most big beefsteaks. Stores well. Peels more easily than Better Boy when raw.

2 Champion from Walmart (from the racks outdoors).  This is the indeterminate cousin of Celebrity, slightly larger tomatoes and reportedly with better flavor. The original Champion has VFNT resistance. Champion II: VFFNTA plus yellow leaf curl. Don't know which this is (or even if it's labeled correctly, for that matter).

1 Jetsetter VFFNTA - an early disease-resistant variety recommended for our hot summer climate, from OSH.

I may also pick up from OSH:

Carmelita VFNT Hybrid version of famous French heirloom Carmello. Red/pink with green shoulders. Midseason. 8 oz.

Sunsugar FT Even sweeter than Sungold, less cracking, less fruity flavor. Other TMV resistant varieties which may be available commercially include Sweet Million, Orange Paruche and Sweet Baby Girl (compact). Also Sweet Hearts grape tomato and Golden Rave FT mini-Roma. You can plant cherry tomatoes in places where they can just sprawl, if you like.

OTHER LOCALLY AVAILABLE VARIETIES

I picked up cheap gallon containers of Early Girl and Ace. I had an Ace die on me (probably due to a soil disease) once, but it is very popular locally. Early Girl is early. Roma and Beefmaster were also available in gallons, 2 for 3 dollars.

I also got from Hofman's 6 each of Black Krim and Cherokee Purple. Won't need 6 each. Black Krim did very well here last year. There are reportedly 2 strains running around: one "smoky" and one "salty". I got the "smoky" one last year. Cherokee Purple is not real productive, but has exceptional flavor. Pick black/purple varieties while the shoulders are still green (as a rule). Not applicable to Indian Stripe, a slightly smaller, more productive version of Cherokee Purple. It's available from Victory Seeds, which also sells rechargeable desiccant packets for storing seeds.

Hofman's has some pretty nice plants this year, including several heirloom and OP types. I picked up a "mystery plant" labeled as Early Girl from a flat of Early Girls. It's a rangy potato-leaf plant - certainly not Early Girl.  My thrills come cheap.  I also saw at Walmart an Early Girl plant with one stem which had sported to potato leaf. Didn't buy it.

I will probably get a Better Boy, which I think has a little better flavor than Big Beef, but is harder to peel when raw. It is not TMV resistant

I may also pick up the following from OSH:

Jubilation F1 6 oz, orange, firm flavorful, unspecified multiple disease resistance, indt.

Sunny Boy Determinate (?), very sweet, firm, few seeds

Arkansas Traveler Medium-sized, pretty, pink, late.  Others with similar breeding are Traveler 76 (less cracking), Burgundy Traveler (better flavor) and Bradley F (bigger, soft, delicious, used for canning and fresh eating in the South. As with other determinate types, you can restrict water as the fruit ripens to increase flavor). There is a Bradley County Pink Tomato Festival in Arkansas. I also planted a Porter's Dark Cherry (Bonnie Plants). I suspect that it may actually be Porter.

From Home Depot or Lowe's

Sungold - the world's favorite cherry tomato. Be sure you get the hybrid. Golden orange color, prone to cracking, distinctive fruity flavor

Also, I think I have a German Johnson this year (one of the more heat-tolerant pink heirloom beefsteak types), a Lemon Boy VFN hybrid for mild yellow salsa, and a Mama Mia paste type. I don't know if the last one is a hybrid or not. It's a big, gangly indeterminate and the only reference to a tomato of that name I find is a standard determinate type.

OTHER RECOMMENDED VARIETIES

The heirloom tomatoes which are most commonly used as standards for flavor and texture are Brandywine Pink (particularly Sudduth's Strain or another named strain) and Cherokee Purple. Brandywine Pink is notorious for poor production, even though it tastes wonderful. It's worthwhile looking around for some similar varieties with better production (especially in hot-summer climates). Marianna's Peace and Mexico, along with Boondocks, are recommended for our hot valley. There are also some red Brandywine types recommended for warmer weather, such as Brandywine OTV.

If you're in Utah, you might check out Diane's. In addition to their own Purple Passion, they sell other great pinks.   Caspian Pink, Rose and Chianti Rose would be good bets for cooler climates. Gregory's Altai is early for a big pink. Little Rosalita is very pretty and lasted late into the fall last year here. If you want to try an Ivory-colored tomato, Super Snow White might be a good choice. Nyagous is a beautiful "black" tomato that did well here. Amazon Chocolate sounds nice.

Gardeners in more humid areas need to be aware of local blights, and new virus prevalent in the East. Resistant varieties should be available locally, like Mountain Magic, (early and late blight, FFF, V).  This new variety is highly regarded for flavor by "tomato people", and is said to improve in flavor if left on the counter for a few days after picking.  Choose a resistant type as insurance even if you plant non-resistant types.  In the Pacific Northwest, Territorial and Nichols are two catalogs with good information on varieties which get enough heat units to ripen there, as well as blight resistance.

In the East,  Bella Rosa, Amelia, and other tomato spotted wilt virus-resistant varieties would be good insurance of a tomato crop even if you plant other varieties.  Early standard tomatoes are also described here.  Fourth of July hybrid is small, has tough skin, is very early and gets sweet in hot weather.

If you typically set out plants in May, you may still be able to start some seeds indoors. Otherwise, you might consider picking up some seeds for next year. Pinetree is a good source of reasonably-priced seeds. Check out their International section. (I also have tomato seeds if you just need a few). On its Hybrid Tomato page, Pinetree now sells the famous old Moreton Hybrid and the slightly newer Jet Star, (both having some characteristics of older, flavorful standard tomatoes) as well as other hybrids, notably Grandeur VFFNST (a Japanese short internode variety, said to be heat tolerant), Polbig VFT (very early, tolerates cool weather), and Sungold.

Their standard tomatoes include interesting varieties such as Prudens Purple, Tip Top, Oregon Spring (parthenocarpic, tolerates cool weather), Mortgage Lifter, Peach Blow Sutton, Black Krim, Black Cherry, Gold Nugget (parthenocarpic, takes cool weather, may be grown in container), Nebraska Wedding and Stupice. The last is reportedly tolerant of cool weather, hot weather and difficult growing conditions. People love the flavor or they don't when served fresh. It's supposed to be wonderful cooked. Moskvich (same size range, semi-determinate)) did well here last year and has nice flavor. Ditto Cosmonaut Volkov.

Tomato Grower's Supply ships promptly. They sell the beloved pink cherry tomato Rose Quartz VFNT, as well as a wide variety of good open-pollinated and hybrid varieties.  Husky Cherry Red is a good front-yard variety.  Husky Gold is the other recommended "Husky" variety (short internode indeterminate).  Green Grape if you're worried about pilferage and don't mind a less-neat plant.

If you like Roma-type tomatoes, you might as well pick a variety with some flavor or disease resistance. Most Roma types are determinate. If you want fruit all season, you might go for an indeterminate type (if you're canning, determinate might be better). If you want to use them fresh, pick a variety described as good fresh (orange and black plum types are listed by color). Or maybe even a meaty, flavorful oxheart. Expect wispy foliage on oxhearts. You might even think the plant is sick.

For next year, I'm thinking about Sweet Treats F1 Large pink cherry tomato. F12,TMV, grey leaf spot Resists leaf mold, tolerates gray leaf post, crown rot and root rot. And Bulgarian Triumph.

Wild Boar Farms has your wild-looking tomatoes. AAA Sweet Solano was my favorite orange/yellow variety last year. Has faint stripes. Pink Berkeley Tie-Dye had TMV here, but is recommended for cool-summer climates. Early. Mine took a long time to germinate last year.


Have fun. Don't get carried away, though.

UPDATE: The new favorite very early tomato of Carolyn Male (heirloom tomato expert) is Moravsky Div or Wonder of Moravia in one of the Slavic languages - very close in Slovak. (apparently not ultra-early in Oregon) - potato leaf, determinate.

Winter Veggie Update

Well, the "Just Right" hybrid turnips I planted in December are bolting, right on schedule to attract bees to pollinate the Royal Rosa apricot and the Flavor Delight Aprium.

"White Lady" turnip, planted the same time, is not bolting yet.  "Just Right" is a great fall turnip, resistant to cold.  Not such a great spring turnip.  Just as described in the catalog.

Thumbprint Cookies

These are rich butter cookies, resembling shortbread. They contain no eggs or leavening, so if you want kids to have the experience of eating cookie dough, this is a good recipe to use.

Little Cooking Lessons

Creaming butter and sugar: Some classic baking recipes (such as butter cakes and some cookies -- like this recipe, which contains no leavening and very little liquid) depend on creaming butter and sugar to add lightness and proper texture to the finished product. The temperature of the ingredients, especially the butter, is important. Butter and sugar will cream to a "light and fluffy" consistency when at 65 to 67 degrees. Start creaming the butter first, then add the sugar,as described at the link. Beating creates some heat, so you may need to put your bowl in a shallow container of cool water to keep the butter from melting, especially if the room temperature is above 67 degrees F.

Sifting Flour: Some precise baking recipes still call for sifted flour, which gives a more reproducible measurement than newer methods. When I was little, Mom, who hates to measure, had a flour sifter in the flour canister. My high school cooking teacher, Miss Hauser, had us sift flour onto a sheet of waxed paper with a relatively fine-meshed strainer, spoon the flour into a measureing cup and level with a knife without shaking or tapping. She also had us sift the measured flour together with the salt and/or leavening in a recipe two or three times for the highest-quality results. This recipe calls for sifted flour.

Some popular recipe books simplified the method for measuring flour by calling for stirring the flour in the canister then spooning the flour into a cup without shaking or tapping, then leveling. Then came the "stir, dip and level" method. It is good to be familiar with the method recommended by your favorite recipe books (accurate measurements matter more for some recipes than others).   Heritage recipes were often developed with sifted flour.  People who compete in baking at state fairs, etc. usually use recipes which call for sifted flour.

Ingredients

2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened but not mushy
1/2 cup superfine sugar (baker's sugar)
2 teaspoons vanilla or a combination of flavors*

Directions

Mix measured, sifted flour with salt, sift together and set aside. Cream butter, then cream with sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in flavoring. Gently fold in flour about 1/2 cup at a time. Do not over-mix. Cover dough and refrigerate for 1 - 2 hours (you can also divide into 2 or 3 portions to use on different days. Avoid over-handling. Keep sealed and refrigerated).

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Roll cold dough into 1-inch balls and place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets (I line a cookie sheet with heavy-duty aluminum foil) if making a single sheet of cookies). Make a deep indentation in the top of each cookie with your thumb. Avoid handling dough too much. Cookies don't have to be perfect, especially if kids help. Fill with jelly or preserves (or fill after baking with chocolate or preserves). Bake for 15 to 17 minutes, or until edges start to brown. Makes about 48 cookies.

I don't fill the cookies before baking. Instead, for a chocolate version, I slide the foil off the baking sheet onto a cool surface or a wire rack, immediately place 3 big Guittard milk chocolate chips in the indentation of each cookie and press the chips together slightly when they have partially melted. For a more traditional thumbprint cookie, I put a little dab of boysenberry preserves in some of the cooled cookies. Someday, I may try a baked filling with brown sugar and coconut, almonds or pecans.

Allergy information: This recipe contains no baking powder and so is free from corn products (unless toppings contain them - watch for corn in jams and jellies). It is one of a limited number of cookie recipes that don't include eggs.

* You can also use a combination of flavorings to make exactly 2 teaspoons: 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla with 1/2 tsp. almond or lemon extract or 1 3/4 tsp. vanilla with 1/4 tsp. almond or other extract. I think that 3 parts vanilla to 1 part almond is sometimes called "Viennese vanilla".

Easier Gardening, Lower Food Costs

The weather in Mexico and the world's financial situation have prompted people to think more seriously about gardening.  I left a comment here  concerning the value of good seed catalogs and gardening books.  If you want me to recommend a good seed catalog for you, let me know.

I get some resistance to treating our own garden more like a garden and less like a farm. But I'm starting to introduce the ideas of gardening beds where rows are not practical. This is a farming region, and people are used to farming. There is less interest in gardening than there might be in some non-farming areas, interestingly enough. Following are some ideas which might inspire you to consider gardening.

1. Square Foot Gardening

The link above takes you to an Amazon video about Mel Bartholomew's famous Square Foot Gardening system. Check out the written summary of his Latest Improvements here. There is much more emphasis on making gardening easy than in the original book. These changes are included in a 2006 book, All New Square Foot Gardening: Grow More in Less Space! which is recommended by the Cox family.

It appears to be out of print at the moment, but I recently bought a copy. Major changes from the original book include:

(a) Drip irrigation

(b) Raised beds filled with soilless mix and lined with weed-stopping landscape cloth

(c) Wider aisles between beds for easier maneuvering.

I would also recommend lining the bottoms of beds with galvanized 1/4 inch hardware cloth if there are gophers or moles in your neighborhood. These beds require the outlay of a little money at first, but will pay off in the long run. There's also a new cookbook to go with the new gardening book. Fun video.

In cold-winter climates, raised beds have the advantage of warming up faster in the spring. In a hot-summer climate like ours, they carry potential disadvantages of faster loss of water and sometimes salt accumulation at the surface. These problems can be lessened through the inclusion of water-retentive materials in the soil mix, mulching (as with reflective mulch which also repels bugs) and through periodic soil leaching. In windy desert climates, sometimes beds are build lower than the surrounding land. If you're ambitious, you could try this.

2. Weedless Gardening

This is a cheaper alternative which allows you to use your native soil (still utilizing beds rather than rows), Lee Reich, a former agricultural researcher, wrote a book which provides a scientific rationale for Ruth Stout's  emphasis on mulching, but does not require you to have as much mulching material as Stout originally recommended.  I love the title to Stout's book linked above, but haven't read it.

Reich recommends laying down four sheets of newsprint over the soil, covering it with mulch, and planting seeds in the mulch. Lots of people swear by it, as long as there are no really nasty weeds (like certain perennial grasses) in the soil.  I used a modification of this system on some tomato beds, and it really did eliminate weeds.

3. Cinder Block Gardens



The photo shows my first cinder block garden, containing young plants for my hybridization experiment for last year:  Bidwell Casaba x Small Persian Melon.  I'll plant some of the resulting seeds this year.  You can use pretty much all of the same techniques as the Square Foot Gardening, though bed dimensions will be a little different (up to 40 inches wide in the planting space, 55 inches wide on the exterior if the unit is 3.5 blocks wide). If your ground is level, you need no tools except maybe a hammer to drive stakes and a level to check your work.  The beds should be level. If you build it on, say, level concrete, you may not need any tools at all. These beds can be easily dismantled and moved if necessary.

The bed pictured above is narrow because it is against a fence. It required a couple of short (8-inch) blocks. It's made of "lightweight" cinderblocks (thinner).  If you build your frame two 8-inch cinder blocks high or three 6-inch cinder blocks high and cap it, you can sit on it (lay the blocks on halves, as with brickwork, if you use more than one layer of blocks).  The neighbors' yards near this bed are full of gophers, so I lined this little bed with hardware cloth.  This size bed allowed me to use an entire 2-foot wide roll of 1/4 inch galvanized hardware cloth without cutting. Lining the entire planting area with commercial-grade weed block before laying out beds eliminates weeds in the aisles, too. Eventually, you would want to cover the aisles with wood chips, gravel, or something similar. This advice also holds true for square foot gardens.

Fill the cavities in the blocks with native soil or sand. You can also secure with stakes like I did. I wonder if bottles of water in the cavities would moderate temperatures?  I used a soilless mix (potting soil) for the bed itself.

Cinder blocks wick water, so I lined the inside surfaces (NOT the bottom of the bed) with plastic and topped them with foil to repel aphids and whiteflies. In more moderate climates, you can plant herbs or some veggies in the cavities of the cinder blocks.

4. Self-watering containers

If you're short on space or time, try these. GardenWeb is a good source of information. One commercial type is the "Earthbox", typically big enough to hold two indeterminate (staked or caged with a PVC pipe support which fits around the container - see photos in thread at the last link) or up to four determinate or short-node indeterminate tomato plants. Someone put some thought into this system. You can also make your own containers. Do a little research first.

Have fun. Don't get too ambitious all at once.

Quick and Rich Fudge

Well, this is actually closer to being a ganache than to real fudge. But no matter. Quick to make. Kid friendly. You can load this up with chopped nuts and drop teaspoonfuls on a cookie sheet covered with waxed paper, then top with a pecan or other whole nut if you like. But most people seem to prefer it plain.

Oil an 8 inch square baking dish or spray with cooking spray. Fold a sheet of waxed paper to fit along the bottom of the dish and up two sides. Smooth into oiled dish.

Have all ingredients at room temperature.

One 14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk
2 to 4 Tablespoons butter
11.5 oz. bag (2 cups) Guittard milk chocolate chips (or other milk chocolate chips)
1 cup Nestle mini semi-sweet chocolate chips (or other semi-sweet chocolate chipe)

Melt all ingredients over medium heat in a heavy-bottomed saucepan, stirring constantly. This won't take long. When smooth, remove from heat and quickly stir in one to two teaspoons vanilla. Quickly spread evenly in pan. A stiff but flexible nylon or silicone scraper helps. Cover and chill until firm. Slide a knife around the edges of the pan and lift out cold fudge to remove waxed paper. Cut into small pieces - it is very rich. Keep tightly covered.

NOTE: If you use the maximum amounts of butter and vanilla, this fudge will be quite soft at room temperature. It will hold its quality best if refrigerated until shortly before serving.

Grandma's Almond Toffee

Similar to commercial "Almond Roca"but better.  This toffee is not too hard - easier to chew than some English toffees.  David's Mom has made 8 batches for Christmas this year (plus other candy).  I think this is the over-all favorite of her holiday candies.  Though various family members have additional favorites.

Prepare a jelly roll pan (about 10 x 15 inches with a lip) by lining with aluminum foil and generously buttering the foil.  Have ready the following ingredients:

2 cups salted butter (one pound) - bring to room temperature
2 cups sugar - room temperature
2 cups chopped, toasted almonds - divided
1 pound milk chocolate (about 2 2/3 cups of Guittard milk chocolate chips, for example)

It is important that the butter and sugar both be at room temperature, or the candy will separate.  Grandma uses cane sugar for candy.  You will need an accurate candy thermometer.

Heat butter and sugar together in a heavy saucepan while stirring constantly.  When butter and sugar have melted together, attach candy thermometer to the pan with the bulb in the candy.  Start with medium-high heat and adjust heat to bring candy to a boil, then to keep it boiling.  Boil, stirring constantly and vigorously, for about 5 minutes, then add about half of the chopped almonds.  Continue to cook and stir vigorously until candy reaches 300 degrees (optimum final temperature may be slightly different at high altitude or low barometric pressure.  You can look up general adjustments for candy making).   Be very careful.  The thermometer and candy are HOT.

Pour toffee into prepared jelly roll pan.  Cool toffee.  I think you could probably score the candy for easier breaking before it is completely cool, but Grandma doesn't bother because people tend to want to eat big chunks of it.

When the toffee is cool, melt milk chocolate over hot water (bring water to simmer in a double boiler, remove from heat and place chocolate in the top of the double boiler over the hot water).  I think Guittard milk chocolate chips would be a good choice if you don't buy milk chocolate in bulk.  If the weather is humid, you might want to use part "milk chocolate dipping wafers" and part milk chocolate to stabilize the chocolate.  "Frost" the cooled toffee with the melted chocolate.  Sprinkle with remaining chopped, toasted almonds (may not take an entire cup).  Cool until chocolate solidifies.  Break into pieces and enjoy.

If you wanted something closer to an "Almond Roca" presentation, I believe that you could also score the warm toffee, cool and break it into pieces before dipping in milk chocolate and rolling in chopped almonds.   Sounds like a lot of work.

Allergy information:  Contains milk products and nuts but no corn or wheat.

Bulgur or Quinoa Dressing

Quinoa Dressing garnished with Giant Italian Parsley 

Bulgur Wheat or Quinoa Thanksgiving Dressing  (Serves 4 to 5 as a side dish)

Part 1 
Cook over medium heat:
1 1/2 cups chopped onions
1/2 cup chopped celery with some leaves, in
2 to 4 Tablespoons oil and/or unsalted butter until onions are translucent. 

Add 1 cup medium to coarse bulgur wheat OR 1 cup (washed or prewashed) quinoa and 1 ¾ to 2 cups chicken or vegetable broth, cover tightly, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Let sit off heat for 5 minutes. Taste and carefully adjust salt if necessary. It probably will not need any additional salt if you used salted broth.  

Part 2
Microwave 1/3 cup packed sweetened dried cranberries in 2 Tablespoons orange or apple juice or water, until water simmers. Stir, cover and allow to stand until liquid is absorbed. 

Shortly before serving, fluff warm quinoa with a fork and add softened cranberries, 2 Tablespoons chopped Italian parsley and 4 finely minced young scallions with some of the tender green parts, or some minced chives. Serve.   

Seasoning Tips: 

Bulgur Wheat version:  The original recipe called for 1/4 teaspoon of poultry seasoning, but I leave it out because I want this dressing to taste different from the more traditional dressing on the table. You can add some black pepper with the onions and celery if using bulgur wheat.

Quinoa version:  Try doubling the amount of softened cranberries.

On a day other than Thanksgiving, you can substitute a minced garlic clove or one or two shallots (added with the onion and celery) for the scallions or chives added at the end.

If there is a no-sugar purist coming to dinner, you can leave out the cranberries and garnish the finished dressing with pomegranate arils. 

Quantity Cooking:  

If you will be eating with a crowd where the kitchen will be busy, a quadruple batch of the bulgur wheat version (Part 1) holds nicely for a few hours in a 6 or 7 quart slow cooker or big covered electric skillet set to “warm”. I don’t know how well the quinoa version holds. Add cranberries, parsley and green onion shortly before serving. 

Even after adding Part 2, this dressing re-heats nicely in a microwave.  Great for breakfast the day after Thanksgiving.

 Alternate Grains and Allergy information: 

The quinoa recipe is gluten-free.  I think  a wheat and milk-free alternative with brown rice and maybe a little wild rice, cooked until done but still chewy, would also be excellent.  For a different flavor, try adding some minced green tops from a bulb of fennel and chopping some of the bulb into the dressing, or some fresh tarragon. Consider pressure-cooking brown rice at high altitudes. Or try other grains. Cook enough rice (and/or other grain) in broth to make about 3 1/2 to 4 cups of cooked grain.  Add to cooked onions and celery, add additional liquid if necessary for a moister dressing and proceed as above.    

You're on your own figuring out equivalent amounts of cooked wild rice, millet, amaranth, quinoa, buckwheat or pearled barley (people who react to wheat gluten may not get along with barley, either).   Check basic cooking techniques for these grains online to determine cooking times and the proportions of liquid which will be needed. 

This dish could easily be made VEGETARIAN.  Just use vegetable broth or water instead of chicken broth and use oil rather than butter. 

This recipe can be made free of corn products - check chicken broth and cranberry ingredients. 

Stocking Up, Preparing Bulgur Wheat without Electricity:  
The classic salad made with bulgur wheat, Tabouleh (AKA Tabouli) generally uses bulgur wheat soaked in hot or cold water, then drained before adding other ingredients.  

 In an emergency, even if you had no way to heat food and no fresh veggies, you could serve a salad using similar ingredients by soaking medium bulgur in cold water for one hour (or until hydrated), adding dried celery, parsley and onion (not as much as in this recipe) plus dried cranberries or other dried fruit, desired seasonings, a little oil and lemon juice or vinegar.  Allow to sit until vegetables re-hydrate and flavors blend, stirring occasionally.  Stir in a can of tuna or diced chicken (with the liquid in the can) if you like and serve.

Fall Fruits

It's the day before Thanksgiveng. A freeze (26 degrees) is predicted tonight. Time to gather in some apples.