The First Peach Cobbler of 2010

Homemade peach cobbler from homegrown fresh peaches. The house smells like heaven. Baby Manimal said, "You know what I want to do right now?" Me, "No." Him, "Shove my face in that."

It's 106 outside so I think we will just stay inside and enjoy the cool of the AC.

Happy Summer y'all.

Bird Saved From Tailless Cat News At 11

One Big Habanero

Here is what happens when it rains a lot in Texas in June - giant habanero.

I noticed that Jenn was looking for a garlic tea recipe to repel mosquitoes. Simply put a whole garlic clove in a food processor or blender with some water and chop it up. Let it sit for a while, strain off the garlic bits, dilute with more water and apply to the mosquito infested area. I put it in a watering can and spin around like a crazy woman splashing it all over the place. This gives the neighbors something to talk about.

Linda wanted the pickled peach recipe. I didn't really follow a recipe, but here is how I threw them together. The brine is 2 parts white vinegar to one part water with enough sugar to make it slightly sweet (to taste) . Peel the peaches and cut into quarters. Add two cloves and one cinnamon stick to each jar and pack in the peaches. I packed the peaches gently because I didn't want them all mushy. Boil the brine and pour over the prepared peaches. Secure the lids on the jars and process in a boiling water bath for seven minutes. Make sure the lids pop down, if not refrigerate and eat sooner rather than later.

For safety's sake, please read some home canning instructions. I wouldn't want to accidentally poison anyone.

Pickled Peaches

Peaches pickled with vinegar, cinnamon, cloves and sugar.

Peach Liqueur

Here is the first of my peach preserving attempts - Peach liqueur. Just halve the peaches, pore Everclear over the top of them and seal. Once the peach flavor is infused into the alcohol, I am supposed to dilute it to 80% alcohol content and maybe add a little simple syrup if it needs to be sweetened. This is supposed to take about a month. Since I don't like sweet stuff or hard liquor, I have no idea what I am going to do with this stuff once it is ready.

Peaches Everywhere

While I may not be getting any squash, we have a bumper crop of peaches this year. You may not be able to tell from the picture, but that tree is loaded. There are also two more completely covered up with frut. I am researching recipes. Any suggestions would be appreciated. I also intend to share some fruit with friends and either a local food pantry or soup kitchen for the homeless in Dallas.

I am continuing to work in the garden every evening for at least 30 minutes. It is coming along fine and should be in great shape for the fall planting. The Monkeys started actually coming out and helping me over the last couple of days. This is a mixed blessing because they bicker the whole time they are "helping."

Last night we installed something called and Ooze Bag. It is just a large plastic bag onto which drip emitters are inserted. I have had one up for about two weeks on some tomatoes, and they are thriving. The bag installed last night is for the squash. Maybe I will finally get some zucchini.

Hope your gardens are doing fine.

Cave Clean Up

Yesterday I spent about two hours cleaning up the extra room that used to be my office/cave. Because I spent all the time in there, I just did a little bit of gardening. The Walk to the Moon website has a conversion for housework into steps, so I still get to count it...Yeah.

This evening I will get back out there and straighten out the squash bed. For some reason the plants are beautiful, but I'm not getting any zucchini or yellow squash. Maybe they are not getting pollinated. If I weed, maybe the bugs will be able to find the blooms.

If received a couple of inquiries about Manly's health. He had knee surgery last spring. Over the following weeks he developed blood clots in the leg. He is on blood thinners and the road to recovery will be a long one. This is a very dangerous situation and he has to be very very careful.

That said, he is pretty hilarious when he takes his pain medication.

Thank you for your concern and well wishes.