PICKLES AND ZUCCHINI BREAD

We have been eating pickles.  I made several batches of refrigerator pickles, some for us and some to give away, and they have been a hit.  The cukes continue to grow.  We've had zucchini grilled, stir fried, in my veggie spaghetti sauce, and in bread.  They are also doing well.  The broccoli was good, but quit producing once it got so horribly hot, as did the snap peas. Beets were good, but not enough of them.  The beans never did a thing, nor did the lettuce.  Ditto the peppers.   Potatoes are okay, a few of the carrots look pretty good, and the tomatoes are loaded.    Some of the tomatoes have butt rot, which is caused by irregular watering or not enough water.  They are just now ripening, so we'll see how many of them I can freeze.   The kale continues to produce, and I continue to freeze it for soup this winter.  So, the garden has not been as productive as we had hoped.  We have fat rabbits though.  And some chubby little shrews.  The lettuce and pepper buffet has served them well.  However the heat continues, and we are in a drought.  We are watering more now, but I don't think we gave it enough water early enough in the growing season. 

I am freezing rather than canning, as we have no storage space for canned goods.  We don't have a basement, and can't trust that the garage will stay above freezing in the winter, so freezing was the best option.  I think it's easier, too.  I am, however, freezing in wide mouth canning jars.  I much prefer food stored in glass as opposed to plastic containers.  You don't have to worry about BPA's. and you can reuse the jars and lids for years.  Some people worry about the jars breaking, but if you follow some simple rules, you won't have a problem.  You must use wide mouth straight side jars.  You cannot over fill them.  You must have them cooled before you put them into the freezer.  And there you go!  Easy peasy!

Yesterday I bought some wonderful Michigan blueberries at my local food co-op, and I got them frozen.  They will be so good next winter.  And remember that not too long ago I froze a bunch of turkey broth,  so we'll have plenty of soup.  I have lots of kale to add to it so we'll be healthy.  

Local corn is now ready so I think I'll freeze a few jars of that.  We don't eat a lot of corn, it certainly is not the healthiest vegetable, but it is good to have fresh corn a couple of times during the summer. So,tonight we will have fresh corn, fresh caught sunfish, crappies and blue gills that the neighbors brought over, and potato salad made with fresh farm eggs from free range chickens.  Oh ya, some pickles and zucchini bread, too.