Our Fall Garden

In July I shared with you our country garden, flourishing with summer produce.  The plants were neatly planted into raised beds, making for great growth.  The gravel pathways made it easy to meander through the space.  And it was all tucked inside the nostalgic white picket fence.  Can you tell I love the garden?  ;-)

During the harvest season, we enjoyed many garden-to-table meals, along with plenty of cherry tomatoes and peas straight from the vine.  I also preserved some produce through freezing and canning.

Tomatoes, peppers, and zucchini lasted a good while in our garden this year.  I credit most of the success to the good soil prep and the raised beds that weren't full of weeds.

In August, I planted more seeds to be able to enjoy a fall harvest...

The radishes took only a few weeks to mature.

Lettuce seeds quickly grew into beautiful, delicious leaves.

The kale was a flop...for the summer and fall plantings.  Maybe I'll change their place in the garden next year.

The snap peas are still hanging on, even though we've dipped into some cold weather here and there.  They should be ready soon. 

Most everything else has been pulled up and the garden is ready for a long winter nap.

This is my first time having a fall garden and I hope to expand my plantings for next year.

I'm always learning...

Tomato Pie

What do you do when it's October and you're still harvesting tomatoes?  You make tomato pie.  I used a combination of yellow and red tomatoes for this beauty.

This is a great recipe to use up those last few tomatoes of the season, or any time of year.  I used monterrey jack cheese because that's what I had in the fridge, but feel free to use your favorite cheese for this.  The parsley flakes add great color and flavor to this dish, and is a favorite seasoning I use often in my kitchen.

Easy Tomato Pie

Ingredients:
Single pie crust
4 tomatoes
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1 cup monterrey jack cheese, shredded
salt, pepper, dried parsley flakes

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Place the pie crust in a pie dish and bake for 5 minutes.
Thinly slice the tomatoes.
Mix together mayonnaise and cheese.

After baking the crust, spread a thin layer of the mayo/cheese mixture.
Place tomato slices on, sprinkling with salt, pepper, and parsley.
Spread another thin layer of mayo/cheese mixture on top.
Place another layer of sliced tomatoes with seasoning.
End with spreading the rest of the mayo/cheese mixture on top.
Bake at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes.
Let rest for at least 10 minutes before slicing.

Homemade Tomato Sauce (No Peeling Required)

Preserving tomatoes.  It's something I've been doing for a few years now.  And, although I enjoy the final project, let me be honest...prepping the tomatoes is a messy, time consuming chore that I don't enjoy.  Marking the tomatoes with an X, blanching them, plunging them into an ice bath, then peeling the skin away...it's a lot of work!  I even tried the food mill strainer/sauce maker.  Let's just say that I made a bit of a mess and move away from the subject.

The garden has been generous with tomatoes this year, but I was dreading the preserving process.  I thought, why go through that mess...there has to be an easier way.  By cooking (or oven roasting) the cut tomatoes and using an immersion blender, this homemade tomato sauce is now my go-to way of preserving the harvest - no peeling necessary!  I currently have some stored in the freezer and in jars on my pantry shelves.  

Oven Roasted Tomatoes

The garden is still producing beautiful tomatoes!

Along with eating them fresh, I have canned some and I have froze some.

One of my favorite ways to prepare garden fresh tomatoes is oven roasted.  

This summer, I did this for the first time, and I quickly asked myself, "why did you wait so long to do this?"

Pepper Jelly (Home Canning)

I have enjoyed pepper jelly for years, but this is my first year making my own.  And, wow is it good!

I used these adorable little jelly jars, and hope to give some of these cuties as gifts.

For this pepper jelly, I used one red pepper, one yellow pepper, one orange pepper, two green peppers, and one jalapeno pepper.

If you like spice, add more hot peppers.

If you don't like spice, then only use sweet peppers.

Start by getting the water set to boil in your water bath canner.

Always follow safe canning guidelines.

The Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving is a great reference to have on hand.

Now let's make some beautiful, colorful, delicious pepper jelly.

Pepper Jelly

makes 10 jelly jars

Ingredients

1 red pepper

1 yellow pepper

1 orange pepper

2 green peppers

1 jalapeno pepper

1 cup apple cider vinegar

6 tablespoons fruit pectin

1/2 teaspoon butter (to help reduce foaming)

5 cups sugar

Directions

Cut off the top of the peppers and remove the seeds.
Finely dice up all the peppers (using a knife or food processor).

Place diced peppers into a large pot.

Add vinegar.

Stir in pectin.

Add butter.

Bring mixture to a rolling boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly.

Stir in sugar.

Return to a rolling boil and boil for 1 minute while stirring.  

Ladle into prepared canning jars, leaving 1/4 inch head space.

Wipe jar rims.

Cover with lid and band.

Put on rack inside canner

Continue filling other jars.

Lower rack of prepared jars into the water bath canner.

Put lid on the canner.

Process for 10 minutes.

A favorite way to enjoy this colorful pepper jelly is to pour some over a block of cream cheese and serve with crackers.

Country Garden

Our little country garden received a face lift this year.

We added raised beds and gravel pathways.

I'm working on an article with details, but I wanted to give you a little peek at how well it is working out.

The tomatoes are growing up cattle panels.

The first couple of ripe ones may not have made it into the house.

Instead, they went straight into my mouth.  ;-)

I have some new farm helpers this summer.  I've caught them napping on the job a few times...good thing they are adorable!

The kohlrabi has already been harvested.

Strawberry plants were planted, and I am so looking forward to next year's harvest.

Radishes were a first for me this year.

As were sugar snap peas. 

We have been eating them plain and sauteed in olive oil with some s&p.

If you are thinking about raised beds, I say go for it!

Farm Photo Friday (June 2, 2017)

Welcome to Farm Photo Friday at LL Farm.

These pictures show  the 'real life' stuff that is going on during this busy season on our homestead.

All of these pictures were taken on my cell phone and have not been edited.

Warning!  I didn't even crop out the weeds.  ;-)

The New Pioneer Magazine Summer 2017

The New Pioneer Magazine Summer 2017 issue is now available!

This magazine is amazing, always full of great ideas.

I am honored to have 2 articles in this issue.

The first article is about home canning.  Something I've talked about here on the blog before.  My Mom used to can heavy volumes in her summer kitchen.  Generations before her canned as a life necessity.  Although I don't can like they did, I do dabble in home canning.  I involve my girls in the kitchen as much as possible, and I am thrilled to say that they are part of this article.

The second article is another DIY project that Handy Hubby made for our small farm.  It is a slow hay feeder.  Before this we just threw hay on the ground, which was a waste of money!  The cows trampled on and used the bathroom on it, wasting a lot of it.  If you have livestock that you feed hay, this DIY is for you!  

The magazine is available at most places where magazines are sold or you can order on line.

Happy Reading!

Farm Photo Friday (April 21, 2017)

Welcome to Farm Photo Friday at LL Farm!

Lots to share today, so grab a cup of coffee and walk around the farm with me, won't you.

The apple blossoms have made their beautiful appearance.

Individual Meatloaves With Cheesy Sauce

Some foods seem to be in constant rotation...

Meatloaf seems to be a menu staple for many home cooks, me included.

Homemade Beef Broth

Have you made your own beef broth yet?

It is so easy, you can make it while you sleep.
Seriously!

It's up to you if you want to dream about it, but rest assured...

...in the morning your nose will thank you as the delicious smell will be making magic in your kitchen.

...and later, when you cook with the homemade goodness, your taste buds will definitely thank you.