homegrown tomatoes

We've had some funky weather this year...spring in January, winter in June, etc. So it's been an interesting year for gardening to say the least. Fortunately, we've had some real successes this year despite the lack of summer sun. We had bumper crops of strawberries, raspberries, kale, beets, carrots, cucumbers (many varieties), romaine lettuce, red leaf lettuce, rainbow chard, rhubarb, eggplant, peppers, fennel, herbs, squash, potatoes and tomatoes! We are getting so many wonderful varieties of tomatoes right now. Zig went with lots more cherry tomatoes this year which was a great choice. They are the perfect snack. I love the way my hands smell after picking tomatoes.




Last year I lamented (briefly) about the fact that our pumpkins didn't do too well, and how I wished there were more. And knowing Zig, would it surprise you to learn that we have dozens of pumpkins and gourds growing all over the place this year? They are everywhere and we have some pumpkins that are probably 50 pounds by now. There are Cinderellas and warty gourds and mini pumpkins. We have a patch in front, a garden bed devoted to them, and there are gourds growing on vines up the arbors. Oh, it's wonderful. I started decorating the house for fall and it was so much fun to go out to the garden and pick dark sunflowers and gourds for the table.

I love when summer and fall overlap...the time of year where we're still eating summer salads but also having butternut squash soup. In fact, this little stretch of time should be its own season. It would definitely be my favorite.

Tomato Goat Cheese Gratin...I could live on this.


Several crops also fizzled this year...red cabbage, cauliflower, snap peas, corn, and Zig's greenhouse attempt at watermelons. And all the stone fruit, of course, thanks to the weather. It's always a gamble and different every year. That's the beauty of living in the Pacific Northwest!