Category Archives: general

11 quarts/30 pints of Spaghetti sauce-Now that’s a lot of tomatoes!

Well, it’s official. I’m done with canning for the year. Phew, what a push. No wonder I like winter-I get a break from the garden and all the harvest which I love to do, but by the end, I do need a rest and winter is THE perfect time to rest and reflect and get excited for the next gardening year. I push so hard because I just hate to waste any produce. The last push was finishing my tomatoes. I made  lots of spaghetti sauce-11 quarts and 30 pints of spaghetti sauce to be exact. And when you consider it takes 2 pints to make a quart, it blows my mind I made so many! Now that is a lot of tomatoes from the garden. I use to peel the tomatoes (put them in boiling water for a few minutes till their skins crack and then slip the skins off) and freeze them and make my sauce later but when you do actually make the spaghetti sauce, it takes a lot more tomatoes as they have to cook down. So I canned it all and I now I can reach for some spaghetti sauce out of the pantry already pre-made. I also made a zillion pickles earlier in the season which I also canned and dried many apples to munch on.. I do love looking at a full pantry with the harvest from a good season. I still  have to finish up some of those ten things I mentioned in an earlier post but not today. Happy Thanksgiving!

3 Great Pumpkin Soup Recipes

Here are the two soup recipes I posted last Spring and one more great recipe I found for pumpkin soup (or any winter squash soup).

JANNINE’S PUMPKIN SOUP

INGREDIENTS:
About 10 lbs of pumpkin or winter squash
Chicken broth or vegetable broth or water
1 can Coconut milk (whole or  lite)
fresh grated ginger
honey to taste

Cut, quarter and clean out your squash of seeds and stringy stuff.  Put oil on exposed edges and put face down on foil lined cookie sheet and place foil on top so it doesn’t dry out. Cook at 350 degrees for 30-45 minutes until soft when pierced by fork. Scoop out and place in a big soup pot and add 8-10 cups of either water, OR chicken broth OR vegetable broth-your preference. Then take a mixer or one of those hand held  blender wands and mix till smooth. Heat and add the can of coconut milk, some fresh grated ginger (peel first) and honey to taste. Do not boil. Yummy!

Here is another pumpkin soup recipe that I got from my friends Caleb and Genevieve. It’s really yummy too.

SPICED PUMPKIN SOUP
½ tsp fresh grated ginger
½ tsp cumin
2 cloves minced garlic
1 cup chopped onion
1½ cups apple cider
⅓ cup bourbon
¼ cup maple syrup
2 lbs cooked FRESH pumpkin (this is about 4 lbs before cooking)
1 can chicken broth or 2 cups veggie broth or water
2 cups milk
1 TLB flour
1 tsp salt
black pepper to taste
sour cream
3TLB chopped parsley or cilantro

Saute onions, ginger, cumin, and garlic 5 minutes or until lightly brown. Stir in apple cider, bourbon, syrup, pumpkin, and broth. Bring to boil and simmer 10 minutes. Take out mixture and puree in blender in batches until all blended or use (“magic wand” to puree right in pot) Return pureed mixture to pot and add milk, flour, salt, and pepper. Cook till just heated (do not boil) stirring occasionally.
Serve with dollop of sour cream and sprinkle parsley if desired. For vegetarians, leave out dairy and replace milk with coconut milk, chicken broth with veggie broth.

Bobby Flay’s Mesa Grill’s Pumpkin Soup with Cinnamon Crème and Roasted Pumpkin Seeds
Serves: 6-8

Pumpkin Soup
4 cups enriched chicken stock or low sodium canned chicken broth or vegetable broth
3 cups pumpkin puree (not flavored pie filling)
1 teaspoon ground Mexican cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons maple syrup
2 teaspoons chipotle puree NOTE: Canned chipotle peppers in adobo are available at Latino or gourmet markets or from Kitchen Market, 218 Eighth Avenue, New York, NY 10011, 212-243 4433, which has a mail-order list. To make chipotle purée, process canned chipotles in a blender or food processor, along with a little of their liquid.
3/4 cup crème fraiche
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Roasted pumpkin seeds (recipe below)

1. Bring 3 cups of the stock to a boil in a large saucepan over high heat. Whisk in the pumpkin puree, 1 teaspoon of the cinnamon, ginger, allspice, nutmeg, honey and chipotle puree. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add more stock, if the soup is too thick.

2. Remove from the heat and whisk in 1/4 cup of the crème fraiche and season with salt and pepper to taste.

3. Mix together the remaining crème fraiche and 1 teaspoon cinnamon until combined.

4. Ladle the soup into four bowls; drizzle with the cinnamon crema and sprinkle with roasted pumpkin seeds.

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds (Use regular size pumpkin seeds-giant pumpkin seeds are too thick) Makes 1 cup

1 cup raw pumpkin seeds
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Kosher salt

1. Preheat the oven to 350º F.

2. Toss the seeds with the oil and season with salt to taste. Spread the seeds evenly on a baking sheets and bake for 25-30 minutes, tossing occasionally, until they are lightly golden brown and crisp. Let cool. Can be made 2 days in advance and stored in an airtight container.

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds (Use a regular size pumpkin for seeds-giant pumpkin seeds are too thick) Makes 1 cup

1 cup raw pumpkin seeds
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Kosher salt

1. Preheat the oven to 350º F.

2. Toss the seeds with the oil and season with salt to taste. Spread the seeds evenly on a baking sheets and bake for 25-30 minutes, tossing occasionally, until they are lightly golden brown and crisp. Let cool. Can be made 2 days in advance and stored in an airtight container.

Saving Seeds-still time to collect them

giant marrow opened up exposing seeds

I’ve been collecting some of the seeds that I want to replant for next year-rattlesnake beans, giant marrow, Japonica corn, giant pumpkin, scarlet runner beans, sunflower seeds, tomato seed from my 2.11oz tomato, cosmos, and zinnas. Ones I won’t take are cucumbers, most tomatoes, zucchini, winter squash, and peppers as I grew several of the same varieties and they could of crossed and I might loose the original strain.

giant marrow seeds drying

When saving big seeds like squashes or pumpkins, be sure to thoroughly DRY the seeds before putting them in a zip-loc baggie or jar. Any hint of moisture will ruin them. I just put the cleaned, wet seeds on a piece of wax paper on a cookie sheet in a dry sunny place until dry. That way they will release from the wax paper after they are dry. I always like collecting seeds every year. It’s fun when you plant them the following year. It’s also fun when you don’t have to buy a packet of seeds for $2.49 with 20 seeds in them when you can collect the same seed and get 100’s more.  I have a friend (Fran) who walks and collects the wild flower seeds and broadcasts them on her property and the her natural garden this year looked awesome. (Did I tell you that Fran?!) Awesome!

10 Things To Do in November In The Garden

I’m baaaack! Been on vacation all last week in sunny, warm Southern California down in San Diego playing on the beaches and up to Disneyland. Ahhh, 78-80 degree weather. How nice!   A much needed vacation..But now that I’m back there is still much to do before cozying up to a fireplace and looking at future seed catalogs that I haven’t gotten yet. I’m so far behind, I can’t see. So here is my list of to do’s that I haven’t done:

1. Finish taking out the garden-only partially done. Must dispose of all tomato plants (all now dead), all cucumber and squash plants. I won’t compost any of these as I don’t want to spread any possible diseases they may have had since they are very disease prone and if you don’t get your compost pile hot enough, you may not kill all the pathogens. Also rake any debris and get rid of it. Make the dirt pretty. Here I come city dump!

2. Finish my compost pile. Got to get more coffee grounds, leaves and fresh horse manure or cottonseed meal (to heat up the pile) and add to the partially composted piles. Soon I won’t be adding any kitchen scraps as they will not break down in the dead of winter (at least not for me (I’m not a worm farmer)-Deb F. I need your advice on making hot compost in cold winter climates!)

3. I already took off the drip system timers but need to take out the batteries and put them inside somewhere. I never drain or blow out the drip and never had a problem. Ahh, one less thing to do!

4. Oh oh! I think I blew it. We have already had freezing weather at night, so I may have killed my new little friends-soil microbes in products such as Serenade, Companion and Mycorizial but I’m going to get them anyways out of the garden shed and put them in the house where it is warmer. Hmm, wonder what closet I can hide them in? I know, the cat room closet! Nobody wants to go in the cats room anyways (where the kitty litter boxes are)! I wonder what these microbes do in the winter anyways out in nature?! Hmm, I’ll have to investigate that this winter.

5. Put everything from the Tomato Lady business in the garden shed. Oh yea and clean up and straighten out that garden shed while I’m in there. And set some mouse traps in case they think the row cover is really just blankets for them in the winter.

6. I’m going to get the pumpkin patch soil tested this year and see what amendments I need to add.  I’m going to add amendments to it and the general veggie garden as soon as the sales go on at the garden stores. Last year I picked up my Seaweed, Thrive, Yum, Yum mix, and Fish emulsion really cheap- right about now.

7. Need to make notes about what happen in the garden this year-you know, successes, failures, problems-things I can look at next Spring to refresh my memory. Need to make a diagram of where my diseased tomatoes were before I forget. Shouldn’t replant tomatoes back in those spots again for 3 years. I will be planting less tomatoes next year in an area that either hasn’t had tomatoes or it’s been 3 years since I planted there. It’s called plant rotation-but with the number of tomato plants I plant every year, it’s getting harder to find new places with in the garden to plant them or I may need to expand again next year.  Na, just plant less tomatoes..

8. Finish up my collecting seeds and sorting them. I’ve almost done there.

9. Do you believe this? I’m planting some starts of spinach and lettuce in a cold frame NOW! Just an experiment to see if they will do well or not..

10. Planning to build a small high tunnel to be ready for early Spring. Hope it’s a warm winter…

Pumpkin Bash! Kong=561 pumpkin pies!

Yesterday, (Friday) we had the 3rd Annual Pumpkin Bash and subsequent cutting up of my giant pumpkin, Kong. We started with the kids and then the adults. Everybody got to help bust it up. Then we cut it up and gave it away to all. How could Kong become 561 pies or gallons of pumpkin soup!  561 pies? The answer is yes! Take 421 pounds x 16 oz =6736 oz of pumpkin. Now divide the 6736 oz of pumpkin by 12 oz (it takes 1.5 cups of pumpkin per pie) and you get 561 pies!  And I got the seeds for future little Kongs! Here are some pics..

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3rd Annual Pumpkin Bash and pumpkin giveaway this Friday-Nov.5th

Hear Ye! Hear Ye! The 3RD ANNUAL PUMPKIN BASH will be held this Friday, Nov 5th at 9am in the parking lot of Liquid Light Glass located at 926 Baca Street here in Santa Fe, NM, where ‘Kong’, the NEW New Mexico State Record Pumpkin has been on display all month.

I’ve invited friends and the Kong boys (the guys who schleped it around for me) to come and try to split Kong in two. We draw straws to see who gets the first whack and wield axes or mauls to (gulp) split Kong. Then we cut it up and give the wonderful pieces to my cook friends who I will contact ahead of time. (Cooks can pick it up after 10am-friday). You can come and watch or participate and please take a piece away! After all we have 421 lbs to give away! Last year it only took an hour for it to disappear. It will make wonderful pies, soup, bread, etc. and can be cooked and frozen for later use as well. So come and enjoy the event!

Tomatoes all picked and everywhere in house!

Monday  finished picking all the tomatoes and then the garden froze that night. Now I have a houseful of green and ripening tomatoes everywhere! Tomorrow I go to our Farmer’s Market and sell them. In fact I have 9 boxes which ain’t bad for end of October.  Usually I sell out and there are hardly any tomato people there now. I’ll wait and see how the rest of the tomatoes develop-just take it week to week as to whether I go back or are finished. Meanwhile the garden is a mess since it froze. I started to clean it up but the plants are too heavy still with water so I’ll wait till they are lighter. I think I’ll hire some help with it.

King Kong meets Godzilla (Stella)

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Everyday King Kong, my NM State record giant pumpkin (on display at Liquid Light Glass on Baca Street) gets visitors but today was rather special. Godzilla came dressed up as a little girl named Stella and allowed me to take some pictures of her and her parents, Leslie and Mark. Thanks Godzilla (Stella), you made my day!

Pick those green tomatoes before a freeze!

green tomatoes need to be on single layer

Now is the time to finish picking those green tomatoes before it freezes tonight! I have been collecting boxes and paper bags to store them in for some time now. They will be everywhere in the house this year. Last year I put them in the studio and it wasn’t heated and I didn’t get any tasty ones. Tomatoes that are picked need temperatures at 51 degrees or higher to finish ripening-so that leaves OUT most garages unless they are heated. Put them on a single layer of possible, not stacked as in the first photo.

Tomatoes starting to ripen

Also be sure to cover them so they are not in direct sunlight and be sure to rotate them as they all ripen differently. MOST of your tomatoes that have start turning light green will ripen just fine and SOME of those dark green ones MAY ripen as well. Don’t bother with picking all the immature small ones (depending on size of mature tomatoes), they won’t ripen well.

cherry tomtoes in clusters starting to ripen

Also I cut off the whole cluster of decent size cherry tomatoes to ripen. You can sort through them later to get rid of the small ones…

Lees Ferry flyfishing trip

Just got back from  a little rest and relaxation-flyfishing and camping at Lees Ferry in the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area just below Lake Powell in Arizona. Glen Canyon is in the uppermost northeast part of the Grand Canyon National Park.  All float trips into the Grand Canyon originate here and the Colorado River is a tailwater coming out of the Glen Canyon Dam and a top trout flyfishing spot. The scenery and rock formations are unparalleled in beauty. The history of Lees Ferry is fascinating too. After the first night of rain, the weather was great and we caught many fish. What a great trip!  Now it’s back to finishing the garden for the season! Tomorrow I pick the rest of the tomatoes and anything else as it is going to freeze on Monday night. Hard to believe summer is over. It’s been a terrific growing season. Here are some pics of the trip. Hope you enjoy them.

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Gone Fishing!!

Colorado River at Lee's Ferry

This week I’m taking off and going flyfishing at Lee’s Ferry at Marble Canyon, AZ. It’s a tailwater that comes out of Lake Powell where the water is a constant 42 degrees and the trout fat and fiesty. This tail water fishery is below Glen Canyon Dam, at the head of the Grand Canyon. Weather should be in the 60-70’s and nites in the 50’s. Perfect. Might get some rain too. Hope not too much but a sprinkle or two would be nice. I’m going for the majestic canyons where the Colorado river carved through them and of course the trout which is catch and release.  Some people ask why go fishing if you don’t keep them. I tell them I use to do ‘catch and eat’ but now I like the hunt-trying to see if you can fool them into thinking your fly is their food and then releasing these beautiful animals  back into the wild. I use single barbless hooks so the fish don’t get hurt.

Be back later this week-hope to have some great stories and pictures to share before getting back to finishing up the garden season. Still lots to do but we’ll talk about that next week!

Tips on How to Ripen Tomatoes Inside

 

How to ripen green tomatoes

 

So now that you’ve been waiting all season for your tomatoes to ripen, what do you do when you know that a hard frost is going to hit and you still have lots on the vine? Here are some tips on ripening tomatoes inside.

• Watch the news to see when we will get a potential freeze forecast. I have been caught running out at night picking as many as I could because I didn’t watch the weather forecast. I try to look a few days ahead now so I’m not out in the garden at night with my flashlight!
•  If we are going to get a freeze, run out before it freezes and pick all the decent size ones off. I don’t bother with the small ones, they are probably not mature enough to ripen properly anyways.
•  Sort the tomatoes from rock hard green to almost ripe and put them in heavy grocery paper bags and fold over the top. That way you don’t have to go through each bag every day and pull out the ones that are ripening sooner.
• When they start to change color, I pull them out and put them in bags where they are all similar in the ripening stage.
• In the bags with the green ones, I will put an apple in the bag to help ripen them if I am in a hurry. An apple releases ethylene gas (the tomatoes produce this as well) which helps the ripening process. That is why you fold over the bag to help trap the gas that both the tomatoes and apple are releasing. Don’t forget to check your bags every few days.
• Some people say to pull the whole plant and hang it upside down and watch the tomatoes as they ripen. Keep the plant out of direct sunlight. This can be done if you have a few plants but if you have a lot of plants, you may not have the room inside (visions of a tomato jungle inside my small house) and this is why I bag mine. I can keep them in another room out of the way.
• You can also choose to wrap green tomatoes individually in newspaper and lay them in shallow cardboard box in a single level. Store out of direct sunlight. Check them regularly. I don’t use this as I would have to unwrap all of them to see where they are at but this would work if you don’t have a lot of tomatoes.
• Leave them stem side up-they won’t rot as quickly.
• When your tomatoes are almost ripe, to increase flavor, set them in front of a warm window a couple of days before you want to use them.
• Also to increase flavor, be sure to store them in a room that is at least 55 degrees. Last year I didn’t and they didn’t have much flavor. If they won’t ripen or aren’t flavorful they are probably stored in too cool of a place or perhaps they were too small to begin with.
• Lastly you can always pickle green tomatoes or cook with them!

Fall is here-Aspens in Santa Fe

 

fall color in Santa Fe

 

Fall is here. Went up to our ski basin last Sunday and rode up the ski lift to the top of the mountain. The ski lift starts at 10,000 feet high and the top is 12,000 feet high. Glad I had my fleece jacket as it was pretty cool up top. Beautiful. It was really nice to get away for the day and our ski basin is so close-within 20 minutes of Santa Fe. This year the aspen color is unbelievable. And don’t you just love the smell of the trees. Last year we had one big freeze and they didn’t have time to change color. But not this year. Here are some photos of the day. Enjoy.

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Another Big Tomato-Striped German

 

Closeup of Striped German Tomato inside-my all time favorite

 

 

2.14 lb Striped German

 

My other big tomato is a Striped German, a beautiful bi-color tomato. I’ve been waiting for these to ripen all season. I grow them for eating. They can grow very big as they are a beefstake and are a super sweet tomato with just the right amount of acid to balance it. They get lots of cracks because they are thin skinned, very typical of an heirloom  tomato but nobody cares because of that incredible flavor. Very luscious and juicy. The flavor is unbelievable. If you ever get a chance to try one, jump on it. It is the first one I always sell out of at the Farmers Market.

It is one of those tomatoes that runs down your chin when you eat it in a BLT. I think out of all the tomatoes I have grown over the seasons, it is my all time favorite.

 

16.5 inch Striped German

 

Soon our tomato season will be gone as the nights get colder. We must watch the weather now for that first freeze. I still have many on the vine and will  most of the bigger ones off when I hear we will be getting a freeze on the news. Then I will bring them inside to ripen. I usually have tomatoes to eat well into November. Maybe we have another week-if we are lucky..