Garden Bounty

I am so excited about our garden. Looking at the tally last night of what we’ve harvested so far was mind boggling, especially considering we’ve still got a good couple of months to go.

Before I left for my trip, there wasn’t anything on the honeydew vine and now there’s a pretty good sized melon. I’m guessing it will be ready within a week or so. It’s crazy how it seems to have popped up overnight.

There are lots of jalapenos that will soon be ready to pick. I’m planning on fresh salsa with those! And the rhubarb is still getting bigger every day. It will be exciting to harvest that and make something yummy out of it.

And of course the tomatoes. I love the garden-fresh-off-the-vine tomatoes!

Mostly we’ve had the smaller tomatoes (grape and yellow pear), but the others are starting to pick up now. Lots and lots of green ones and we’ve had two of these Mr. Stripey ripen.

The Count So Far:

• Grape Tomatoes – 80
• Yellow Pear Tomatoes – 25
• Mr. Stripey Tomatoes – 2
• Zucchini – 9
• Bell Peppers (red and green) – 8
• Strawberries – 12
• Green Onions – 8 bunches
• Sugar Snap Peas – 110+ (I lost track) The peas have finally run their course, but not before offering up 25 more this morning.
• Bibb Lettuce – 8 or 10 heads (the lettuce is done for the season)
• Plus virtually unlimited access to green onions, fresh basil, cilantro, dill, tarragon, and parsley

We’ve also enjoyed a few lemon cucumbers and summer squash from our neighbor.

Meals I’ve made using garden produce:

• Zucchini Apple Spice Muffins (zucchini)
• Pasta Primavera with Garden Zucchini and Herbs (zucchini, parsley, basil, green onion)
• Shrimp Scampi with Zucchini and Tomato Pasta (zucchini, grape & pear tomatoes, parsley)
• Crunchy Asian Pasta Salad (sugar snap peas)
• Double Decker BLTs with Roasted Garlic Mayo (bibb lettuce)
• Pesto Sauce with Whole Wheat Pasta and Grilled Veggies (basil, zucchini)
• BLT Salad with Chunky Blue Cheese Dressing (bibb lettuce)
• Black Bean and Corn Salad (Green Onions, Cilantro, Bell Pepper)