Drowning in Poblano Peppers
I always love growing poblano peppers, they are one of my favorites to use in chili, salsa, and other Mexican inspired dishes. I like to have a gallon or two of cut up poblanos in the freezer ready to use all winter long. This year I planted four ‘Baron’ plants, expecting a semi-decent harvest (seed was purchased from Johnny’s Seeds). Little did I know that these peppers would do better than any other pepper in the garden and I’d be drowning in them.
We’ve been harvesting them and roasting them on the grill, which is working beautifully. At least half of them will be preserved this way. After grilling, they are peeled, seeded, cut in half, then frozen.
The rest will be processed in the usually fashion, just like green peppers. I’ll seed then, slice them, and freeze them on a cookie sheet then transfer them to bags. This way I can scoop out what I need each time, not premeasuring needed.
Since we also have quite a stockpile of ground venison in the freezer from last year, it looks like venison chili will be on the menu quite often this coming winter.
What vegetables seem extra productive in your garden this year?
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Uncle Guinea
We have one guinea fowl left out of our original flock. We got some the first year we moved in and have had them ever since. They can be loud, obnoxious, and annoying, but in general we find them to be important to the garden. When there’s a large group they range freely over a very large area and do a fantastic job keeping the tick population under control. They don’t tear up the garden and eat crops like chickens and turkeys do. Their most value comes in their ability to alert to any kind of danger, which helps keep all the other birds safe.
Currently, we have only one remaining guinea, a male. We’ve always heard to never have lone males, because they are the most obnoxious. That has not been our experience, he’s actually quite nice and a real asset to our flock. He’s super protective of all of our birds, but with the baby ducks in particular. In fact, we have taken to calling him “Uncle Guinea”.
Whenever Mama Duck hatches out littles, he follows them around. When they get a little bigger and start popping through the fence and roaming over a larger territory, he follows right alongside them. If the tiny flock separates, he follows one group while Mama Duck follows the other. It’s really fun to watch how his protective nature is most fierce when there are baby ducklings. He’s been “Uncle Guinea” for several summers so, we’re always happy to see him step up into that role whenever the baby ducks are around.
What fun things are going on in your garden this week?
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Finding Beauty in the Everyday
Yesterday, I was putting some elderberry stems into the compost bowl and noticed how lovely it was. Perhaps it was because it was dominated by the color purple, perhaps it was the textures. Either way, I noticed that the compost bowl was beautiful, not just now, but would provide beautiful things for my garden when they composted down.
Sometimes it can be tough to find beauty in the midst of the mundane daily things, but if we look at things differently or stop to notice the colors, textures, and light, we may just be able to find beauty in the everyday. This time of year I especially notice the angle of the sun. While I’m sad that the days are getting shorter and summer is coming to an end, the angle of the sun provides a much more beautiful light in which to observe our gardens. It’s almost like we get golden days instead of golden hours right before sunset. You can bet that this time of year I’ll be out soaking up every single drop of this last beautiful light.
What are you noticing beauty in these days?
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New to the Flock
This past week I added 11 new members to our flock. I purchased four young pullets from a young 4-H student in the area. Yesterday I picked up a flock of Silver Laced Wyandottes from local lady.
My plan is to slowly transition my flock the the motley crew of mutt chickens to mostly Silver Laced Wyandotte. After having a few different breeds, they have been my favorites by far. I like their personalities, their temperament, their free range ability, and their calmness. I’m also hoping to sell hatching eggs next year, I never had success finding any for myself so I figured there’s a need for hatching eggs for this breed in the area.
Do you have a favorite chicken breed?
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Friday Favorite: Filling the Larder
One of my favorite things time of of year is filling the freezer and the pantry with homegrown goodness. I’ve been making small batches of interesting things: pickled beans with garlic and basil, pickled garlic, pickled nasturtium pods, figs in brandy, minted onions, spiced peaches, and many more. The freezer is pretty much chocked full and the pantry shelves are starting to look lovely.
I have a few favorite canning books, most that provide small batch recipes, which are perfect for small amount of produce and small families. These books are constantly on my table, I leaf through them and read through recipes trying to decide what to make. A few recipes have become favorites and are used yearly, some are made every so often.
A few of my go-to books this time of year:
The River Cottage Preserves Handbook by Pam Corbin
Preserving the Taste by Edon Waycott
Well Preserved by Eugenia Bone
I don’t can much, but the things that I do are throughly enjoyed in the middle of our long winters here in Maine. Every time we crack open a jar of pickles or preserves we are reminded of the delicious bounty from the garden.
What are you preserving from the garden this year?
