I haven't blogged since Thursday, and I am having withdrawl! Things have been swallowing me up whole lately and I have had that whole "garden is a mess this time of year" doldrums! I spent 2 days cleaning and preparing for a Harvest Swap Party I had on Saturday evening. In my head I know my house is just fine for entertaining, but my personality dictates everything must be spotless, even though no one really cares, and the place will be a mess an hour after the party starts, LOL!
I did, however, make it out to the garden Saturday afternoon to harvest jalapenos finally, in hopes of getting rid of them that evening without having to deal with them! Below is what I harvested for the swap: all peppers!
Some great food showed up for the pot-luck that evening, everyone did a great job of cooking up summer harvest dishes. I made the standard Caprese Salad & Potato Salad. These are so awesome because you can make them ahead of time and no cooking required at the party!
Caprese Salad, opted for easy chopped version that evening
Potato Salad w/ Feta, Onion & Vinegarette
Kids got some bitchin' tattoos that evening!
I ended up with some tomatoes and habaneros from the swap. I am drying these cute little tomatoes, not sure what they are but they are smaller than my thumbnail and delicious! Also drying the habaneros and will mix them with some other types of peppers to make a small jar of chile spice.
Yesterday we didn't get any real work done around here, I made a batch of tomato sauce in the crock pot and froze it, managed to get the party debris in the yard cleaned up, and avoided work in general by reading a great novel!
This morning's harvest was yet more jalapenos!
I was able to get a little motivation back today and after the harvest, made 3 jars of spicy pickles and added the few cayennes I got at the swap. These will be the last of the pickles probably since I just used up all the dill that was left in the garden. Hubby, this batch should keep until you get home so you will get a taste!
Also managed to chop and freeze bell pepper strips, blanch and freeze the yard-long beans, and get to the music shop for a violin repair! And now that I have managed to blog, I feel somewhat better.
Any of you having these late-summer doldrums? My garden is a mess, bugs and wilt and something is eating my tomatoes, and it is still to hot to enjoy any chores, and too hot to plant anything for fall... and on and on... what's the cure?!
Whats the cure? maybe sitting down to one of those Blackberry-Lemonade-Vodka beverages and giving yourself a pat on the back for all you have accomplished. While sitting down and sipping, go back to your first blog entry of the year and peruse to the present. See all that you have done?? WOW! Doldrums, what doldrums? ;)
ReplyDeleteLOL! What you really need is a cocktail that uses those Jalepenos! I've been feeling the same with the DOH! drums until yesterday when our heatwave broke. sigh...From the 100s to the high 80s. Ah, blessed relief. I took my laptop with me and worked outside all morning!
ReplyDeleteKelly & Melissa, you may be on to something there! I have to keep reminding myself that it will all be worthwhile in the winter - with hubby deployed and the kids' small veggie appetites I feel like it's all going in to the freezer, but hubby will be happy he didn't miss out on everything when he will be able to take out homegrown sauce for his pizzas this winter!
ReplyDeleteMelissa, the jalapeno cocktail has been done here! Hubby likes to infuse vodka with pepper for a spicy martini, trouble is, vodka doesn't need 50 lbs of the stuff LOL!
Wow! Your peppers are amazing! I know you may feel down, but it looks like things are pretty up out there! And yes...why do we clean so hard before company comes over to trash the joint? Not that they do so intentionally of course, but ya know there is always a mess and now you doubled your work. As if we needed more, right? But don't feel bad, I do the same thing! And like a knuckle head, will do it again!
ReplyDeleteOh, man, it's 96 in the shade and getting hotter. Expecting 101 tomorrow, so it's not very conducive to gardening in the hot sun. I am too busy to get the doldrums, but give me a couple more weeks of this weather and non-stop tomatoes, and I'll join you.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful peppers! However, you can keep 'em, especially those habaneros. Ew...wee....hot!
ReplyDeleteApplePieGal, it's a sickness... I always hear "oh, you are so organized, I wish I was like that", but really it's not that fun! Seems like I can't relax until everything is "shipshape" ... which is NEVER LOL!
ReplyDeleteGran, I saw your temps on the weather map, I hope it breaks soon... it's still in the high 90's here but it's better than the 100's of a week ago, so I'll take it!
EG, the habaneros were "left here" (thanks, Melissa "grin") after the party died out... I hope nobody guerrilla gardened in my beds that evening LOL! Luckily there is only a few so I will try and mix them with lots of "lesser" spices, grind them and use them for my hot pickles next year... or maybe they will get tossed if I can't handle the fumes from grinding them!
Oh my! You do more on a "not much" day than most people do in a week. Good for you for taking time for a novel.
ReplyDeleteMy garden- I'm harvesting but I've given up weeding. It's just been too miserably hot and humid and now they're so big I don't want to deal with them.
Go have some lemonade and read another book.
Judy
Although I'm as driven as you, the results aren't ever quite as pretty. When I'm overwhelmed it helps me to sit down with my plans and think about the future gardens. Do you want to do something special over the winter? Anything to start for the fall? Need to make notes about what worked and didn't this year? It's a nice break, and you really deserve one.
ReplyDeleteI always get "sick" of the garden by August-I wish I could just pull a tarp over it and forget it. Bad part is, by February I'll be going half nuts wanting to garden. Now THAT'S a sickness!
ReplyDelete:)
Our poor garden is a mess here this year, with the raccoons wiping out the corn, rabbits taking the pole beans, and the deer nibbling whatever's left. Potatoes are died down and waiting to be dug and the squash everywhere wilting and just about done. I'm going camping!
ReplyDeleteWhen we get back, and have a cool day, I'm ripping most of it out and starting some fall planting. But not until it's cooler.
Yes...and, I don't know. ok, it's not THAT bad, but sometimes it's pretty rough!
ReplyDeleteMiss, I blog about being busy, but I read your blog and think "What am I complaining about?" I'm not nearly as busy as you are!
ReplyDeleteThat's a lot of jalapenos! How are they tasting these days? Mine seem to be much hotter than what's in the supermarket.
ReplyDeleteStefaneener, that's exactly what I did last night! Pen to paper and drew out plans and made notes about my summer seeds!
ReplyDeleteTrailshome, Sue, Patty... I too, can't wait for fall! Still too hot to plant though
Kenneth, you are like the guy at the campfire that has all the marshmallow sticks! I can't believe how many different things you make time for!
Thomas, my jalapenos are so hot right now I am throwing them away! They would make horrible jalapeno stuffers, people would be miserable eating them. Seems more like habaneros these days, I'm hoping the next set of blossoms will produce a different heat!
Judy, I finished my book and instead of weeding went to the library during the rain and got another stack of them LOL!
ReplyDelete