Aunt Ruby's Giant German Green

Yes, this is a ripe tomato. It has got to be my all time favorite. Not a lot of these tomatoes on the vine but the flavor is outstanding. I have played with some heirlooms over the past few years and this is my top choice. The flavor is very complex, but anyone who has ever tried it says this is the way a tomato is supposed to taste.(Not to mention, it is beautful on the plate.) Given a chance, this is a must try!

Tomato Time

Big beautiful baskets of tomatoes are sitting on my kitchen floor. Where to start? Today I think marinara sauce. After getting the tomatoes on to simmer, I pulled the red and yellow peppers from the fridge. Those I roasted and peeled. Some made their way into the freezer and others in the salsa. It has been a daily process to can all of these gifts from the garden but by the end of this week I have added another 7 quarts of plain tomatoes, 13 more pints of marinara and 12 pints of salsa! The early tomatoes are slowing a bit but the late are starting to ripen, We are not done yet! Still left on my list are a roasted pepper spaghetti sauce, one more round of salsa and at least a dozen more quarts of plain tomatoes.

Catching Up

Today was a day of catching up on things left undone. The animals were all doing well. We needed milk and it was one of the first days I felt well enough to save it. I also checked the garden. I had cucumbers as big as zucchini and zucchini as big as my bird dog! The tomatoes are really producing well and it is time to make marinara sauce and salsa. I picked a large basket of red and yellow bell peppers and the first of our patty pan squash. I am really surprised at how well things are doing considering the heat and lack of rain. There were a few casualties, a few potted plants and herbs did not make it while I was unable to water ;o( Ah well, the boys did a great job elsewhere and I am grateful for that!

Sick Days

And so Tuesday I woke up feeling a bit odd. As the morning wore on I knew I was coming down with something. By late evening I had a fever of 103*. I haven't run a fever in 18 years! (really!) and so it really kicked my butt. For the next three days I felt like I was in a coma. The boys were able to do the feeding but I still had to drag myself to the barn to milk. Needless to say it all got dumped on the ground. Thankfully today I am back in the land of the living. Though not a hundred percent, certainly a hundred percent better! As I finally wandered outside, I had to laugh at this stick I found hanging on the chicken coop.

 It seems the tom turkey was giving someone a fit during feeding time. Haha!!

Blueberries & Freezing Chickens

I met a friend early this morning to pick blueberries. It was a lovely morning and shortly we had our baskets overflowing with berries. I then headed home to milk the goats and freeze chickens. Freezing today was a bit of a challenge as my food saver was being a bit cantankerous. Finally I got the kinks worked out of it and with my mom's help we moved along. It still took until 4 though. Time to feed and back in to can the stock. Slowly the fridge is gaining some space and things don't fall on my toes when I open the door! There was no time to deal with the berries so I will work them up tomorrow.

Making Stock

Today I boiled the carcasses from yesterday. The two largest pots I own were filled to the top with onions, carrots, garlic, celery and salt and pepper and of course chickens. I set the pots to simmer all day. My kitchen was filled delicious smells. While the stock simmered I canned the tomatoes harvested yesterday. Once the stock was done I strained it and picked the bits of chicken from the bones to freeze for something down the road.. Two gallons! I let the stock cool and stuck it in the fridge. Tomorrow I will skim any fat and can it.

Butchering Day

When I opened my eyes this morning I was already tired. Seems I spent the night picking blackberries! Geezz.
We had slight reprieve because it was raining. So I dozed an extra hour. It was time to get started. One could not have asked for a more perfect day. Overcast, cool and slightly misty, it was a true blessing.
During the night a couple of the white rocks had escaped. Oops, forgot they can fly. They were way out in the pasture so they will be dealt with on another day. Last week my husband hurt his back so we also opted to not butcher the white rock hens and so as I caught them I clipped wings and put them in with the laying hens.That still left 50 birds. We left 35 or so whole and the rest we cut up. Unlike in years past I decided to keep the carcasses to make stock. Waste not, want not. It took about four hours to butcher. After we were finished and the birds in coolers covered with ice, I headed to milk and the boys cleaned up. Today's milk went to the critters. Since I was not keeping the milk it was a good opportunity to trim hooves and give the girls a once over. Last on the list was to check the garden. Finally tomatoes (and lots of them!) with no wholes in them. Yeah!