Even though it was in the low 40's last night, there is still much blooming. The Cassia tree is covered with bright yellow blossoms. Very beautiful. Remember these little scrawny helpless things two months ago? Here they are now doing just fine. There are four females and two males.
Even in the cold there are two African Irises blooming. The lantana is still putting out a few half hearted blooms.
My tomatoes are loaded with fruit. I'm hoping to ripen them on the vine. I concocted this homemade green house tent in hopes of raising the temperature around them a bit.
My tomatoes did so much better this fall than they did in the summer. I'm going to try and get them in the ground a few weeks earlier than I did these. After 15 years of gardening, although half heartedly at times (I was raising babies.), you would think I would have this all figured out.
It's still a work in progress. Although I admit I love each and every minute of it. With each success I am encouraged more and more. Don't give up, right?
Here is another view of my tomato tent. There shouldn't be any frosts until December. I'll have to get some additional bricks or stepping stones to hold the plastic tightly closed then.
My salad mixes are coming up nicely. I really feel like everyone should grow their own lettuce. It is one of the most simple things to grow. You just pinch off the baby leaves as you need them and leave the plant to keep producing. Here is one of the broccoli plants. They are just huge. I'm looking forward to seeing how large a head it produces. This is one of my cabbages. They also are very large. I planted two heirloom varieties. Drumhead and Dutch Wakefield Early (I think). I harvested my first lavender blossoms and they are extremely fragrant. As you can see I'm still picking Lima's. Although I believe the purple hulls are ready to pulled up, I still got a couple of pods from them. Just thought you might like to see a pic of my neighbor's citrus trees. They are sagging with fruit. That's with loosing quite a bit to Gustav. My neighbor has the most wonderful fruit stand. I'll have to do a post on it soon.
Finally, Our long awaited church cookbook! Our church is selling this cookbook to help finish the last details on the restoration of our church after Hurricane Katrina.
I am so excited about it because it includes a free DVD with video footage and photos of the destruction of New Orleans and our Parish St. Bernard after Katrina. It's not just depressing pictures of destruction, it also includes pictures of the courage and rebuilding efforts of the local people. The DVD really turned out great!!! Everyone I know is getting one for Christmas!
I'm so excited!
Also the cover is an award winning painting by local artist Terri Borison. I believe there might be prints of it available. I'll find out and let you know.
Today I decided to make a variation of the Italian bread I made the other day. Instead of two loaves, I separated the dough into three pieces and braided it. Just to make it fancy. It's not that hard to spice up a simple life.
Having the ability to make my own bread is fun and satisfying. It's also more affordable than the artisan breads at specialty stores. This loaf of bread cost me approximately $1.50 to make. I used 1 tbsp of organic butter, water, 2 tblsps of yeast, sugar, salt, and 5 cups specialty flour. Purchasing this loaf in a store would cost $3.00 to $4.00. It might even be worth more in a store because it is larger than a store bought loaf.
Here is the bread before it was baked. Here it is just out of the oven.
And here is a close up. It didn't last much longer after this! I ran out of sesame seeds to top it with so I skipped them. I really missed them. It's just not Italian bread to me without them!
When I first started making bread I:
agonized with a thermometer over the temperature of the liquids
agonized over the amount of yeast
agonized over the amount of flour
agonized over the correct texture when kneading
agonized....agonized...agonized......You get the picture.
I agonize no longer. After a while you just get the feel for it. I'm so glad I kept plugging along at it. I've refused to get a bread maker. I'm not replacing or purchasing any electrical appliances, unless I deem it worth it. So far I haven't replaced my toaster oven, coffee maker or my ice maker. But, I do use my Kitchen Aid stand mixer to knead the bread. Lord help me when that dies. I love that mixer. It'll be a hotly contested mental debate on my part. Practical Vs. Love.
The biggest key to ending the agony was ditching the thermometer. Which is another thing I love dearly. I have to get everything to the perfect temperature, still is important when making fudge or pralines, but not bread. I just feel the liquid with my finger. The temp is right when the liquid is very hot, but I can still leave my finger in. If it is too hot to leave my finger in, it is too hot! Most breads basically follow a variation of this:
2 cups of liquid (water, milk, butter or a mixture)
2 tsps salt
1 tblsp sugar
2 tblsps yeast
5 cups of flour
From what I have observed, the texture and look of the bread depends on what you do with it once it has been kneaded. The taste depends on the flour and the liquids you use.
I found this series on making bread by Nancy Today very interesting. I haven't tried her wooden bowl method, but I did leave out the salt like she said. I got some very strange looks from my girls. Seleste said with one eyebrow raised, "Um Mom....this bread tastes...well...kinda funny like a sponge." So I make sure I put the salt now.
If you have any bread making tips you want to share. Bring 'em on. I promise not to agonize.
Seleste wanted an "American Girl Party" for her birthday. Since I'm no party giver, I was reluctant. She hadn't really had a party since she was a baby, so I let her invite five friends over for a "Depression Era Kit Kittridge American Girl Party". Seleste has been in love with her Kit doll long before any movie came out. She told me once, "Momma, I feel like I was born in the wrong time."
She begs for "flour sack" dresses, and if I don't watch her close, she'll attempt to cook dinner herself. Once when she was about six or seven, we came into the kitchen and she was eating a fried egg. "Seleste, who fixed you a fried egg?" said me. "I did.", said Seleste. Who didn't even look up just kept calmly eating her snack.
Seleste only thought a homemade jelly roll would do, just like Kit. Maw Maw Rivero made that. Now let's scrounge around the house and see what decorations we can use. This bright table cloth, these lantern lights we bought a couple of years ago for Carmen's Hawaiian party, This old square table cloth with pom pom's will make a great "Birthday Girl Chair". Thanks a lot Maw Maw Rivero for bringing the horns. Let's use old fashioned favors like, paper fans, Chinese jump ropes, caramels and jelly beans.
Seleste delightfully and thankfully appreciates everything. In turn it makes it delightful to do anything for her.
The taste.
The noise.
The drama.
The little girls. The presents.
In New Orleans how good a party was is judged by how much trash has to be removed later. This must have been a good party! Notice our depression era wrapping paper.
Chinese jump rope.
Then the dolls had a party. Happy 10th Birthday Seleste!
Winter's coming. So, what do you do with all that basil? I've dried some. I think I'll cut most of it, and leave some to seed. Then I'll make.........
Pesto.
Hmmm....This is my first time making pesto. It seems to be turning out fine.
Then...I'm going to make Italian bread.
Here it is ready to go into the pre-heated oven. The sesame seeds and egg white glaze is added five minutes before the bread finishes.
Wow, That looks really pretty.
Up close. Making bread is really pretty easy. After making bread for quite a while, I'm getting the hang of it and can do it from memory. Now I can simply dip my finger in the liquids and tell if it is the right temperature. If I can't leave my finger in it, it is to hot. It has to be very warm, but not unbearable.
Now, serve the pesto over cooked pasta with shredded Italian cheeses. The bread was outta site. On Sunday's when Byron and I were first married (before kids), we would wake early for church and swing by Salvo's bakery and eat hot Italian bread with coffee on the way. That was the best Italian bread. Unfortunately, they retired and closed their business. Sigh.... But this bread, I believe, was just as delicious.
Pesto Recipe
1/4 cup of toasted pine nuts
1/4 cup of olive oil
3 garlic cloves
2 cups of packed fresh basil leaves
Put olive oil, pine nuts, and peeled garlic cloves in food processor. Chop. Add Basil leaves a little at a time until chopped. I chopped mine pretty fine. I've seen some pesto chopped more coarse. You can also chop everything by hand and mix.
Serve over cooked pasta with shredded Italian cheese.
Any remaining pesto can be kept in the fridge for a week, or frozen in individual portions. I've read that it freezes well, so I'm going to try that.
Byron has semi finished the second chicken tractor. It still needs a cap on the ridge, a few details and a coat of paint. This tractor serves several purposes, it removes Cocktail the rooster from the sharp beak of the more aggressive rooster, puts him with three hens of the same breed (I'd like to hatch some eggs from them.), and allows them to safely free range.
Doesn't he look happy! Three ladies all to himself. He's such a good rooster too. He goes over to the food or any goodies I give them and bobs up an down while clucking in a manner that says, "Come over here and try this. It looks yummy." He always puts the ladies first. He even does a sorta dance for them occasionally. It includes spreading one wing towards the ground and shuffling sideways while bobbing in a "come hither" manner. If he had eyebrows, I'm sure he'd be raising them up down in rhythm. Such a Gentleman.
Yes, the grass is always greener on the other side. The gorgeous arugula. I use it in salads, on sandwiches and wrapped around pepper jack cheese.
Bok Choy! I want to learn to make Chinese food.
The lavender is about to bloom. I'm going to make sachets!
The herbs are doing great!
This is drum head cabbage. I also planted a smaller variety, and they both seem to be doing well. I've had to pick some caterpillars off of them.
This is a stripped French Marigold. I bought the seeds when we visited Thomas Jefferson's home "Monticello" this summer. Yes, I'm going to save seeds from these!
The marigolds are planted in between the tomatoes. My tomatoes are doing really well this fall. The stink bugs have gone away, so maybe I'll get some this time. I need to build a frame with bamboo to drape a tarp over if a frost threatens. We should be OK until December. There's a patch of bamboo near the levee, and I cut them for garden trellising.
Last Monday a large truck turned down my neighbor's small gravel orchard access road only to discover, WOW, this is the wrong drive. So, in an attempt to turn around and get back on the highway he snagged and pulled down not only the phone lines, but the electrical lines, the pole, all the birds perched on the lines, maybe a squirrel or two and didn't stop until he had disengaged himself completely from the mess.
All the while the truck driver strewed a tangled mess of wires all over the highway and railroad tracks, causing the train to stop and wait 24 hours for Entergy (the electrical company) to remove the live line. Luckily the train stopped before our driveway, and we didn't have to drive up the levee, down the levee and to the levee access road in order to leave our home. Our phone and Internet service A T & T, blessed us with their fast response time of seven days. I guess the important thing is that the truck driver didn't electrocute his silly self.
So the past week I have been Internet free. Since I live a happy TV free life, I was liberated from all the election drama! Hmmm, sometimes trouble is a blessing in disguise. An added bonus was that I only received calls from people I really wanted to talk too. You know, those who have my cell phone number.
The garden didn't take a break though. Fall and winter is a very productive month for our area. Limas, purple hulls, egg plant, collards, peppers, mustard, herbs are all producing nicely. Also my tomatoes are so much prettier than they were in the spring. I'm not sure when we'll have a frost. It's usually in December. I'll have to cover them.
The laundry line served double duty as an herb dehydrator! It worked pretty well.
I've discovered someone on YouTube, and I believe I'll be reviewing a lot of her videos for helpful hints. Her bread making series is extremely interesting and I will be trying her method soon. I just have to find a really big shallow wooden bowl. Now where can I find that.
Here is her video on tackling housework when it gets a bit overwhelming. At first I watched this video with mouth agape, and thought how does anyone let their house get in this condition in the first place? Well then, my next thought turned immediately to my sister Ginger and realize that yes it is possible for your house to quickly get into this unnatural disaster state. So to my sisters, except Melba, this is for you. (hee hee, snicker snicker)
Seriously, How do you tackle all that mess after a busy weekend or time in your life. Like for instance: Halloween? I woke up to piles of dirty costumes and laundry on the bedroom floors, thread, needles and fabric on the coffee table, leaves, hay, and clumps of mud on the tile, mugs, plates, and forks in the sink. bobby pins, rolled up socks and wet rags on the girls bathroom floor....you get the picture!
I always tackle the most smelly and obvious first. This is how my clean up day usually goes (after breakfast of course):
First decide what we are going to eat for dinner and take out of freezer if necessary
Gather all the dirty laundry and deposit in the laundry room
Get the first load of dirty clothes washing in the machine
Make up my bed (the girls clean their own rooms)
Remove burners and spray stove with vinegar spray (let set)
Unload and load dishwasher, wash any pots and pans
Wipe down stove, scrub stubborn stuff with borax
Scrub sink with borax and wipe dry
Change the table cloth put lovely centerpiece back on
Sprinkle Borax in the tub, sink and toilet (leave a while to do other things)
Finish picking up strewed items and deposit them where they belong (everything should already have a place)
Scrub bathroom fixtures and clean mirrors with vinegar water spray bottle
Sweep the entire house and vacuum up pile and corners with shop vac
Spot mop with damp mop
The rest of the day is spent working in the garden, cooking, going to appointments or meetings, or working on other projects or reading or blogging, while intermittently putting on laundry to wash, hanging them to dry, and folding and putting up.
If I follow this routine daily my house cleaning might average an hour a day. The only things I do not do everyday is dust, oil the furniture, vacuum the rug, clean the bathroom fixtures, wash linens, clean light fixtures, wet mop the entire floor. I only do these things as it becomes necessary or when I have a large block of time available. Also I routinely give things away that are no longer used, remove trash and de-junk. The best way to keep junk out of your house is not to bring it in.
Whew.....Now, how do you keep your house from becoming an unnatural disaster. Or is your house one and you're just happy with it...THANK YOU!
Remember these little scrawny helpless things two months ago? Here they are now doing just fine. There are four females and two males. 
Even in the cold there are two African Irises blooming. The lantana is still putting out a few half hearted blooms.
My tomatoes are loaded with fruit. I'm hoping to ripen them on the vine. I concocted this homemade green house tent in hopes of raising the temperature around them a bit. 
My tomatoes did so much better this fall than they did in the summer. I'm going to try and get them in the ground a few weeks earlier than I did these. After 15 years of gardening, although half heartedly at times (I was raising babies.), you would think I would have this all figured out. 
It's still a work in progress. Although I admit I love each and every minute of it. With each success I am encouraged more and more. Don't give up, right?
Here is another view of my tomato tent. There shouldn't be any frosts until December. I'll have to get some additional bricks or stepping stones to hold the plastic tightly closed then.
My salad mixes are coming up nicely. I really feel like everyone should grow their own lettuce. It is one of the most simple things to grow. You just pinch off the baby leaves as you need them and leave the plant to keep producing.
Here is one of the broccoli plants. They are just huge. I'm looking forward to seeing how large a head it produces.
This is one of my cabbages. They also are very large. I planted two heirloom varieties. Drumhead and Dutch Wakefield Early (I think).
I harvested my first lavender blossoms and they are extremely fragrant. As you can see I'm still picking Lima's. Although I believe the purple hulls are ready to pulled up, I still got a couple of pods from them.
Just thought you might like to see a pic of my neighbor's citrus trees. They are sagging with fruit. That's with loosing quite a bit to Gustav. My neighbor has the most wonderful fruit stand. I'll have to do a post on it soon.
