Only one in three has a real sense of humor!

 

Guess you have to know your audience as only one of the kittens appreciated my sense of humor. One didn't bother to look up. The second one looked disapproving. The third one obviously had great taste in humor!

Tomato harvesting . . . and it's just the beginning!

 

Attack of the Killer Tomatoes . . . or just the labor of the last few months making itself know? My husband's tomato plants have gone wild as well as his eggplant cucumber. I gave up trying to eat more than my share of tomatoes and spent the afternoon skinning and freezing packages of tomatoes for use later in the year. This year, I remembered to freeze the Roma Tomatoes separately as they make a wonderful sauce and have few seeds.

Although I kind of dreaded the work, it really isn't that bad. My trick, learned from my mother, is to dump the washed tomatoes into a pot of boiling water and almost immediately plunge them into a bowl of icy water. The sudden change bursts a crack in the skins and it is but a pull on the skin and it comes off in seconds.

I managed to put away two bags of regular tomatoes and one of the Romas in the freezer. Another trick that has worked out well for me . . . Put the tomatoes into a zip lock type bag and lay it flat to freeze. Makes it so much easier to stack them up rather than having bumpy, frozen bag crowding the freezer.

Tomorrow, I tackle the eggplant. Anyone have a good recipe? :-)

Tomato Soup from the Garden . . .

My husband deliberately planted his eight tomato plants about four feet apart to provide room for getting between them to pick the produce. Well, I look out the kitchen window and it looks like the beginning of a tomato invasion. With that in mind, the only way to fight the battle is to freeze, dry, and cook tomatoes. Salads with generous helpings of Feta cheese is also on my battle plan.

Tomato Soup from the Garden
15-20 medium to large tomatoes
2 brown onions
8 stalks of celery, finely diced
3 carrots, peeled and finely diced
2 cups beef or chicken stock
6 slices of bacon
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
Pinch of chili flakes
1 teaspoon granulated onion
1 teaspoon granulated garlic
Salt and pepper to taste
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon oregano
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Toss in the tomatoes and within a couple of minutes, drain the pot, and douse the tomatoes with ice cold water. This will help you slip off the peels.

Slice up the onions and place them with the peeled tomatoes, garlic, celery, and carrots into a large soup pot. Cover and let simmer for approximately 15 minutes. Add stock, granulated onion, granulated garlic, salt, pepper, bay leaves, oregano, sugar, and bacon. Cook on a slow heat for about two hours. When the vegetables have softened (halfway through cooking), mash them together. A potato masher works great for this. After two hours, remove from stove, and let cool down a bit. Puree in batches until very smooth and return to cooking pot. Taste for seasoning.

In another pot, melt the butter and then, add the flour. Cook a bit to combine but do not brown. Stir into the soup and continue cooking until the soup thickens.

Makes enough to make 8 first courses or 4-6 bowls for a main course.

Ideas . . .
Make or buy croutons to scatter on each bowl before serving.
Make a pot of rice and ladel soup over individual portions.
Sprinkle with Feta cheese before serving.
Serve over freshly boiled pasta.
Goes great with grilled cheese sandwiches.