Feeling fruity and nostalgic

What do you do with more fresh, garden-grown tomatoes than you can shake a stick at?

Make old-fashioned, home-made ketchup, what else? 

After a long, hot summer of planting, watering, twining, tending and, the moment we were all waiting for, picking, I was left with... lots and lots and lots of tomatoes! 

But one can only enjoy so much insalata caprese.

So, instead of wasting the bounty (as opposed to the Bountiful), I decided to contact the beau's mother for an old-fashioned, home-made ketchup recipe.

And she did not disappoint!

Made with (approximately) six tomatoes, six peaches, six pears, six white onions, three green peppers, 5 cups of granulated sugar, two cups of white vinegar, two tablespoons of salt and a teaspoon each of cloves, cinnamon, black pepper and celery seeds, the resulting fruit ketchup has a slightly darker hue than the store-bought variety and a complexity of flavour that is a joy to behold (and savour).

The entire process took about three hours with two pushkins (the mamita and I) working double-time. 

What was most time consuming was peeling everything. To properly peel a tomato, for example, you must first score it with an X before dropping it into boiling water. After about 30 seconds, you can take it out and immerse it in ice water. It is then ready to be peeled.

While peeling the tomatoes I was reminded of a particularly gruesome bris scene from Seinfeld.

Moving on...

After peeling, slicing, dicing, combining and bringing everything to a simmering, slow boil - while stirring often - we were left with lots and lots and lots... of fruit ketchup. Go figure!

Move over Heinz. There's a new ketchup boss in town.  

Neighborhood watch

According to Merriam-Webster, there is an inextricable link between the word "neighbor" and the word(s) "fellow man," or kindred human being.

Not where I live.

Where I live, a neighbor is someone who calls the city to complain about another neighbor's lawn.

Sigh...

Moving here has been very different than I thought it would be and one of the most difficult things has been making new friends.

I used to be the kind of gal who made new friends everywhere she went.

Since moving here though, it feels as if I haven't met a single kindred spirit.

Except for Tammy.

Tammy is a neighborhood cat and truth be told... she is one of the few things (people?) that has made me smile this week.

Isn't she beautiful? 

Last night a little after 1 a.m. I realized I had forgotten to take the recycling out. Since the truck comes by early in the morning and I didn't want to miss it, I decided to get out of bed and do the deed.

I scampered down the stairs and dragged the recycling bin, yard waste bin and six cardboard boxes filled with the remains of the day garden to the curb before turning around to see Tammy trying to make a break for it... into my house.

This isn't the first Tammy has tried to adopt me, or the house I live in, and I hope it isn't the last because the look she gave me before scurrying away filled my heart with hope and love.

Seriously.

The reason I had so much garden waste - a bin and six boxes seems a little excessive, don't you think - is because a neighbor who shall remain nameless (the cranky Polish guy next door) complained to the city about the sorry state of our lawn and gardens.

In addition to being the last thing I needed to deal with this week it also made me feel really bad, and kind of sad, because I actually put a lot of work into, and take a lot of pride out of, maintaining what I thought was a beautiful home.  

To satisfy the neighbor (and the city which gave me one week to address the issue) I spent the last three days weeding, pruning and mowing (for the first time, might I add).

Unlike Gwyneth Paltrow... who works a seventies vibe.

Here are two quotes that sum up the way I feel about life right now...

In everyone's life, at some time, our inner fire goes out. It is then burst into flame by an encounter with another human being. We should all be thankful for those people (OR CATS!) who rekindle the inner spirit.

Albert Schweitzer

A single rose can be my garden... a single friend, my world.
Leo Buscaglia

 





 

The secret garden, part deux

Inspired by nature and unexpectedly left to my own devices, I recently made two recipes: vanilla cupcakes (care of Martha Stewart) and lobster risotto (care of IGA the SAQ).

I say inspired by nature because it seems as though the colours I recently captured in nature inspired me to make similarly-hued culinary delights.

Let me show you what I mean.

We had these beautiful pink buds, almost like cherry blossoms, adorn two trees in the backyard for about two weeks and I was so awed by their beauty (especially set against the bright blue sky and shining sun) that I had to Instagram them.

Subconsciously, I think the colours were painting a picture in my head because not long after I snapped these shots I looked up a long-forgotten Martha Stewart recipe for cupcakes and made them. 

This is how that looked.

In addition to being pretty to look at and easy to make they were also very tasty and I'd like to hone my cupcake-making skills to the point where I could attempt something like a red velvet or London fog.
Mmm. 

But on to the lobster risotto. Like cupcakes, I had never made risotto before. Every time I go to IGA and it's available I pick up Inspired, their free magazine, and usually get inspired by at least one recipe. It started with my new favourite appetizer - olive, basil, clementine and prosciutto (in that order) brochettes - and was quickly followed by another; bacon-topped pea and mint crostinis.

But hold on a sec.

In doing a little on the spot research, also known as rummaging through my recipes while I think about the next thing to write, I noticed that the lobster risotto recipe actually came from Cellier, the free SAQ magazine.

Hmm. I'm detecting another trend here.

I think what inspired me to make the risotto in the first place (other than the fact that I had leftover lobster... poor me!) was another picture I had recently taken of an almost phosphorescent, fern-like (???) plant in the garden.    

The recipe didn't call for them but I added peas and was left with a delicious, nutritious lobster risotto.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it!









  

Soul patch

Spring has (nearly) sprung and though there is still one (stubborn) little corner of the yard covered in snow, I've decided to start "getting the earth ready" (if that is something that is even done). 

I'd like to plant some tomato and eggplant, because according to Canadian Gardener they thrive in full sun, as well as some basil, mint, cilantro, lavender, rosemary and sage (sorry parsley and thyme, it's nothing personal). 

Though there's not much I can do before May 2-4 weekend I'm super psyched.

Many moons ago I planted my first vegetable garden. I wasn't sure how it would turn out but I ended up having more tomatoes than I could shake a stick at.

Mmm, mmm lycopene.