Eyes flew open at 6am, today! Waiting on the fog to clear so I can get some things done in the garden without getting soaking wet.
The weather has changed practically overnight; it was only 49 degrees when I got up - a REFRESHING change. I love Fall! :)
Fall is my favorite!
Some relatives touched base 2 days ago- they were in International Falls on their way home from a 4 week fishing trip. It was 56 there & we were sweltering in 98 degree heat (& lots of humidity). Quite the contrast!
Yay - got my propane tank at Tractor Supply. It was on sale, $10 off, which paid for 2/3 of the propane fill up.
Stopped at Aldi’s and got some things I needed (garlic, sugar, red/orange/yellow peppers), etc.
I am doing the tomato relish first since the tomatoes can spoil. The jalapeno peppers are in vinegar & the figs & blackberries are frozen.
There is a green tomato chutney recipe I would love to make, but I don’t think I will have enough green tomatoes if I make 2 batches of the relish, which is what will be best for gifting (it’s no-sugar & several of the relatives try not to eat sugar as do I). The chutney only makes 3 pints - I love curries and chutney goes great with curry or on ham, etc. but it’s not everyone’s cup of tea.
Let the chopping begin ...... :-)
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Green Tomato Relish Recipe (Can or Freeze)
https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/recipe-no-sugar-green-tomato-relish-can-freeze/
From the link:
We use homemade green tomato relish on all kinds of meals, not just burgers (or beans). It’s great as a salsa style dip with veggie chips, as a topping for most meats (especially pork), and as an extra addition to vegetable dishes. It even tastes good with eggs!
No Sugar Relish
It might be hard to believe that a relish recipe with no sugar tastes so good, but I wasn’t going to sacrifice quality or add refined sugar to this recipe. Thankfully there’s no compromises here; the apple and bell peppers add sweetness without no sugar for a delicious relish that our whole family loves.
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Green Tomato Chutney
https://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/green_tomato_chutney/
From link:
This green tomato chutney is one way to make excellent use of end of season tomatoes! You can store it in the fridge, or can it for later. Here are just a few delicious ideas for using this chutney:
Serve alongside baked chicken or pork chops
Use it as a relish for hot dogs
Serve as a lovely side for crab cakes
Top a cracker with the relish and a little cream cheese for an appetizer
We had 90 degrees yestday and the day before in Baltimore, then HAILSTONES against the windows last evening. Now it's not raining, but there has been rolling thunder on and off and near darkness at 4:00 pm.
As they say, “if you don't like the weather in Baltimore, wait fifteen minutes.” (It'll be doing something else.)
Mom & I got an invite this morning for a birthday cookout for a great-niece at one of the family farms. The day before is the first day of Fall (yay!) so I hope the humidity will be gone. The backyard has beautiful big shade trees - wonderful place to share a meal & talk.
What to bring? I have been cutting the flowers off my sweet basil so I should still have some by then for a favorite recipe: Ina Garten’s Fresh Corn Salad. It is super easy & can be served room temperature or cold, perfect as a ‘take along’ dish.
https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/fresh-corn-salad-recipe-1914351
If you don’t have fresh corn, frozen corn (cooked & cooled) works just fine.
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Big line of T-storms dumped .6 inches of rain this afternoon. No outdoor canning, but the chopping is done: 8 lbs of green tomatoes, 4 lbs of onions, 3 lbs of red bell peppers & 24 garlic cloves. I will chop the 2 lbs of apples while the pot of everything else heats up - don’t want them turning.
I picked every green tomato in the garden & if I use green cherry tomatoes, I can get up to the 2.5 lbs I need for the chutney recipe.