Labor Day Haul

 

Labor Day Haul

 
 
 
 

An ode to southern vegetables

There are times when I wish DC was a bit further north. A little less burning sun might prevent my tomatoes from dropping their fruit when they get too hot (see explanation under Chicago Gardener) and might just convince my eggplants that they didn't need to put all the energy into producing leaves.

The hot humid August days do make DC a suitable climate for growing butter beans and okra. I didn't grow up regularly eating these tasty delights. I do have a vivid memory of having okra soup on a plane ride between Atlanta and Orlando at age 5. It was probably the only memorable plan meal I have ever eaten. I don't think I had ever tasted butter beans until I moved to DC five years ago. I'm not quite sure how those Southerns keep butter beans a secret. Perhaps, we northerners were cleverly duped into avoiding them under their the "nom de plume du nord" "lima beans". Homegrown butter aka lima beans are just sublime, and one soon forgets the annoyance of husking after a couple bites.

Is the butter bean a lima bean?

Ask wiki
The first and official butterbean festival says ...

My tomato broke in half

When one of my indeterminate tomatoes broke in half the other day , I did feel my heart break a bit as well. For everyone's sake, I am trying to refrain from writing especially cliche titles for my blog posts. Thus, the comparisons between my broken tomato and heart will end here.

However, I do know that I have gone two season with lack luster success keeping my tomatoes from collapsing under their own weight. I used tomato cages last year, and they were pretty much lying horizontal by early October. I staked my tomatoes to three closely stake bamboo poles this spring and pruned excessively. Alas, I still arrived at my garden with my tomatoes and bamboo poles lying horizontal on the ground. It probably does not help that I have a very sandy soil. Not much more needs to be said about sand as a foolish foundation. However, I did find a link to some Master Gardeners in California who went on a quest to find the best wait to keep tomatoes upright and strong.


http://www.mastergardeners.org/picks/tomato_staking.html

I am inspired to try the square wooden cage option. It has the most advantages and is a good excuse to get my own drill :)

Hungarian Cucumber Salad

Last week I had six large cucumbers in my refrigerator and few ideas of what to make other than soup. The recipe below was really tasty, and I was surprised how quickly the cucumbers were used up by this simple recipe. My mom suggested adding onions to the salad next time. It was really refreshing.


HUNGARIAN CUCUMBER SALAD
Joan Nathan's Jewish Holiday Cookbook, 2004
By Joan Nathan
found at Epicurious

Rosemary Ratatouille

My mom tipped me off to the good ratatouille recipe on the Cooking for Engineers blog. I substituted rosemary for basil, and it was delicious. Be sure to add plenty of rosemary early in the cooking process. I think it would also be good with a handful of cannellini beans.

Yummy Ratatouille Recipe via Cooking for Engineers