Veggies, Recipes, and canning...

Well, this week I have been in the kitchen a lot trying a few new recipes, doing lots of canning, and enjoying all of the fresh veggies from my garden. I really do love this time of year and can't wait until next year because John and I are going to put in a larger garden....I am going to have a raised herb garden also. So I'll be doing a little research on cooking with fresh herbs and what I want to plant...I was given some fresh basil today and WOW it smells so good....I never realized how different it was from buying dried herbs at the store. Well, the picture below is one that I love....it shows fresh tomatoes from my garden and I just love how it looks in the kitchen this itme of year...

Below is a picture of my counter right before canning some more dill pickles....

THE HARVEST

Plowing, Tilling, preparing the land

Planting the seeds, sown by hand

Watering, hoeing, pulling the weeds

Watching the plants grow from little seeds

Seems like forever before they grow

When they'll be ready, you'll never know

Finally it's ready, cucumbers to pick

green peppers so shiny, tomatos so slick

Carrots, green beans, and ruby red beets

All these fresh veggies make for good eats!

I have so many cherry tomatoes this year and they are really big and plump and so very sweet. I was looking around for recipes calling for cherry tomatoes. Even tho' we eat them like candy, on salads, pasta salads, and anything else we can think of, I thought I' d like to try something new with them.....I ran across this recipe and made it tonight for supper! I loved it....it gives a different twist to fresh tomatoes.....

Garlic and Herb Tomatoes

3 tablespoon of good olive oil

2 teaspoons of minced garlic

2 pints of cherry tomatoes

2 tablespoons fresh chopped basil

2 tablespoons parsley

2 teaspoons thyme ( I used ground thyme)

salt and pepper

DIRECTIONS

Heat the olive oil in a saute pan, large enough so the tomatoes fit in a single layer. Add the garlic to the oil and cook over medium heat for 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes, basil, parsley, thyme, salt and pepper. Reduce the heat to low and cook for 5-7 minutes tossing occasionally, until the tomatoes begin to loose their firm round shape. You can garnish with fresh chopped basil and parsley...

This dish can be served warm or refidgerated.