July Garden

To start off this post, here are some pictures taken recently.

SummerFest in Spencerville

My transplanted tree thing that blooms great when watered...

...and dies off quickly if not watered.

Raspberry growing slowly

Blackberry growing more quickly

Rachel is digging, and Ainsley is sleeping

Spaghetti squash running away from the garden

Tomatoes, some turned red the other day!

Last phase before adding stone for our patio!  We're getting there!

We've been enjoying the squash from our garden.  Squashes #4 and #5 are on the table, ready to be chopped up for the grill tomorrow, and #'s 6, 7, and 8 will be ready to pick any day now.  We made some zucchini cakes with one the other day, because Rachel loves the ones from Ruby Tuesdays.  They were pretty good, but we’re going to look for another recipe to see if we can find any better ones.

Zucchini/Summer Squash

We’re about to start enjoying the spaghetti squash too.  I just need to figure out how to cook it really well.  Honestly, I’m fascinated by it, but I’ve only ever eaten it once, ironically enough at Ruby Tuesdays as well.  So I hope I like it a whole lot, or else we’ll be giving away lots and lots.

Spaghetti Squash, in the wild

I savored these peas the other day too.  I’m not holding out much hope for many more of those since peas don’t grow very well in the high heat.  And with the temps hitting 100 last week……..my desire for lots of homegrown snap peas will either have to wait until fall or next spring.

Last of the Sugar Peas

My pole beans got destroyed this year.  I mean, the plants are still spreading and growing like crazy, but there’s no way they’re going to be able to produce any beans since the leaves have been going to church every single day, i.e., they’re super hole-y!  So that’s a bummer.  I might try to plant some more in a few weeks and see what I can do to protect them from being bug lunch, instead of our fried goodness with bacon and mushrooms.  Man, I can almost taste it.  I’m going to try again this year now!  Maybe even tomorrow I’ll put the seeds in!!!!!

Destroyed Pole Beans

Oo=99999=99====[[9,=== /im/   ;   (That was from Ainsley)

Ainsley is getting so big!

On a different note, we’ve been making our own bread a lot during the past 6 months or so.  There have been times we didn’t want to or forgot and really just wanted some store-bought bread, but we’ve been enjoying the smell of fresh bread in the house about every week.  Well, I made three kinds this week, each with a new twist.

The first, and most normal, had oatmeal and flax seed mixed into it.  The second, with an amazing new twist to it, had Italian seasonings mixed in—wait for it, wait for it—with parmesan cheese on top!  It was really good.  Rachel made an ‘Italian’ meal just so we could enjoy the fresh Italian bread with it.  And the third had cinnamon and raisins mixed in, with a little sugar on the top.  It was as good as I hoped it would be.  The touch of sugar on top really sealed it too.

Oatmeal and Flax Seed

Italian Seasonings with Parmesan Cheese Topping

Cinnamon and Raisins with Sugar Coating

So if these pictures cause you to drool, here's the recipe:

Mix 2 cups of flour (bread or all-purpose, they both turn out the same for me) and 2 cups of really warm water.  Then add each of these one at a time: 2 tablespoons sugar, 2 tablespoons active bread yeast, 2 teaspoons salt, 2 tablespoons oil (I use olive oil).  Mix it all together and let it sit for about 10 minutes.  It should be really bubbly when you do the next phase.

Stir/knead in another 3 cups of flour one at a time (sometimes I use whole wheat flour for 1 cup of it—because we have it and because it’s not as modified as the others are).  When the dough is the consistency of your ear lobe, and not too sticky, it’s good.  Cover it with a warm, damp cloth, and set it in a warm spot to rise for 45 minutes.  It should about double in size before you work it anymore.

At this point, you split it into however many loaves you want (typically 2 or 3 depending how quickly we think we’ll eat it).  This is the point where you flavor it or doctor it up as you desire.  I don’t use measured amounts here.  I just add the seasonings or whatever else as I think looks good.  When you’ve mixed it in, you want to make sure you shape it as you want it.

Place them in greased bread pans (I have tried olive oil, baking spray, and butter.  Butter works the best for me.).  Cover them again and let them sit for about a half hour, until they’ve about doubled in size and are pretty much the size of a finished loaf.  Preheat the oven to 350F, and let them bake for 25 minutes.

Let them cool on a rack or a cutting board before cutting, to ensure you don’t demolish your newly baked loaf.  But if you absolutely can’t resist diving in, I completely understand.  My advice there comes from experience!!!

Enjoy creating your own!

-Mister-