Food galore

I wish Labor Day week end was this week end.  We have enough food to feed an army.  It is sinful.  Two of my biggest crock pots are filled with ribs and the new untried sauce that I can probably never duplicate, but there are enough ribs to satisfy us forever.  Then, Andy goes to market and brings home a cantaloup big as a large man's head, tomatoes (ours are not producing because of the deer), a basket of peaches (still not the best kind, that's next week), and 12 ears of the freshest corn.

Andy is hanging up the big garden this year for good.  Too many animals are treating it as their personal buffet.  We will do containers, and buy from the outdoor markets which is cheaper in the long run and much less work.

There were four deer in our yard one evening at dusk.  Two babies capering through the back yard because the woods does not afford them play space.  They were wild with joy while two grown deer watched from a distance.  Andy was nervous because we had a baby deer in the pool one time but she walked right up the steps like Ester Williams and joined her mother leaping over the fence.  The deer are getting too close to the house to suit me.  Where were our dogs?  With me, upstairs watching Southern Charm...nothing interrupts that! Well, I would move if there were a fire I guess.

I'm off to test the ribs.  When we bought the sealed ribs at Sam's I had no idea there were three racks.  I thought I could deal with two.  Well, I got it done and I hope they are good because someone is eating them that's for sure. Note: Add ribs to pies, I am not good at either. Sigh.

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Doris Lechler
47 mins · 

Andy has been to market. Note the size of a cantaloupe.











Doris Lechler
June 21 · 

A gentle rain






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7Norma Sears, Karen Agnor and 5 others


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Pamela Baumer Pouring rain here!!! Flooding expected! UGH!
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Doris Lechler
June 4 · 

A beautiful day at many branches.








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How do I love thee BLT?

Love this season; corn on the cob, tomatoes, and bacon lettuce and tomato toasted sandwiches.  Andy cannot resist them and at times tries to hog the bacon.  One minute there is a pile and I leave the room and it has disappeared and I know the dogs are too short to reach the counters. Watermelon once was on that list, but I have not found a good watermelon in years.  Yes, years!  Peaches.  I forgot peaches.  Let's face it, there isn't much that I don't like about summer.  Well, I don't like things that fly in the house.

Andy brought in eggplants today and they have made me feel guilty every time I walk by them.  So I turned them into eggplant parma and Beth is the only one who likes to eat these beautiful offerings from the garden.  Joe and Glenda like it, but only if I bread and fry the eggplant slices first.  Beth does not care.  But I think this is a good dish today and she always appreciates whatever I make.

It is pool floating time and cleaning the pool steps time, so out I go to beef up my tan which has had a rest for about a week with all the rain.  We are still having the yard mowed even this late in the season because of all the moisture.  It is still lush and green and does not feel like straw when you step on it.

I cannot believe they are talking about school already.  They usually wait until August at least, but no it's winter clothes and school supplies they are blabbering about on TV.  Oh, Southern Charm is on tonight.  I'm obsessed with their bad behavior.

Purging

Once I start purging, look out!  The dogs are nervous they won't have a bed to sleep in tonight. With that new big armoire that we were gifted with yesterday other stuff has to go.  Is there a limit to weight for trash companies to haul away? I have ten bags of good books for nursing homes.  Some lovely puzzles to go with the books.  The recycle bin is full already.  It's the library that is getting the clean out and reorganization. Andy is shuffling back and forth as he looks with longing as I bag his OSU notes and old paper back texts.  He'll never do it on his own, so I have to be the hammer or we are going to find ourselves labeled hoarders. I've never been called that one and I feel little sentiment when it comes to ephemera that has not been touched in years. At 82 Andy has collected four years of class notes and used books for his classes at OSU and he is signing up again for fall term.  He rarely misses a class and while it is admirable, there are times when I need him to miss a class to help with something. He is the teachers' pet before the class is over and they are always happy to see his participatory presence in their classrooms. He's da man.

Our guests left this morning and I am not cooking today.  We have so much food in the fridge it scares me to look in there.  Tomorrow I am starting on the second exploration of ribs with doctored bottled sauce.  None of them tastes exactly the way I want, so I start adding. 

Matt gets all of his wisdom teeth removed Friday.  It is a big deal as many of you must know.  I hope we get to keep Madeleine during his recovery but then everyone wants to watch that little gem of a girl.  I lure her with Sofia books and have a little library of 12 books that fit her fingers just right.  They are board books so she cannot tear the pages.  She does love her books. 

Old fashion fry-up

Sometimes I feel 'country' and today is one of them.  Andy brought home this very large head of cabbage, not because he likes it, but because it pleases Beth and me.  I am fixing it with pepper bacon, fried potatoes, corn off the cob, and cabbage, of course.  I've sprinkled in this and that and tasted as I went along discovering bottles and jars of seasoning for a dish never to be duplicated because there is no recipe. This picture is the beginning of the fry up.

Today we have company and tonight, hopefully, we can dine outside.  There are many different dishes and one can select whatever appeals. But first it is lunch around 12:30 when company arrives with chicken and noodles, this cabbage dish (which will be seen again when Beth gets home,) or corn chowder...yes, I had to make it again because the batch intended for today is gone, gone, gone.

In just now, we are getting a large piece of antique furniture given to us so I have to scramble to find where to put it.  Everything happens at once.  Glad I cooked early!! Pray for us. lol

Don't judge me

You will never guess what is simmering away in the biggest heaviest pot on my stove; roasted chicken bones and skin along with over a dozen corn cobs sans the corn...oh, and fresh herbs.  When it is finished and I have simmered every last drop of flavor from this concoction, I will have the best stock for any number of delicious dishes.

We are having overnight company and I plan to have three dishes for them to choose from because I fear one of them is picky.  I remember taking her as a teenager to Lazarus' Chintz Room for lunch one day and she ordered soup.  When it arrived she yelled I can't eat this there are weeds in there. Yes, I was pleased with that. 

So they will choose beef stew, chicken and noodles, or corn chowder with bacon and cheese.  I must say the large batch of corn chowder I made a day ago in hopes some would be left for lunch when they arrived, is gone! Success.  I count that as a success, so I am brewing up another and the stock will be from the kettle that is simmering right now.  It will, however, take a strong man to help me handle that big red pot.  No way I can get the debris out of there alone without losing the stock and the use of my arms for three months.  Believe me, I am just getting over a shoulder strain from that same red pot three months ago!  It's a mean situation.  Now I said they could choose but needless to say they will have it all served up in one meal or another until it is gone or until they leave and they might just have to take some with them when they head south east.

Simple salads will be served and hopefully, Nancy brings her orange cake, if not, looks like ice cream with fresh peaches for dessert.
I do have limits at this point in life.

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corn and peach season

They are upon us.  Andy just returned from the outdoor market with a dozen ears of fresh white corn and a large basket of ripe, lovely, delicious peaches...I'm a happy woman today.  I had a pot of potato soup on the stove when he left and I never thought sweet corn would be available but because of all the rain and sun the corn shot out of the earth like it was their last day to grow.  So, Andy shucked a few ears, I cut the corn off the cob and added the kernels to the potato soup (chowder). I am dreaming up other ways to use the remaining ears and how to use up all the peaches before next week.

I have become a Southern Charm junkie (the original one, I don't do the spin offs.) I can't believe the messes that people make with their lives.  My mouth hangs open the entire time until the episode ends. Then I turn it over in my mind as though they were members of the family and I have to fix them.  Well, I now know there is no fixing them.  They are what you see on that show. Like to see it, don't want to live it.

I am back on the John Sandford Prey series.  I finished Twisted Prey and am now on Golden Prey.  Nothing great but he is keeping my interest.

We re in for several days of gentle rain.  That means I will be in the kitchen.  My niece Nancy, and her husband, Danny, will be here Monday and Monday night and they better come hungry. I'll be ready for them.