The dry weather continues and the nights are now colder, with night temperatures dropping into the 40s. We have had plenty of sunshine but the sun is dropping lower in the sky and some of the garden is now being shaded by the trees. The warm weather plants like the tomatoes are not happy, but the brassicas are liking it. And for some reason the lettuce in the container has decided to bolt now that cool weather has returned.
The tomatoes are spent, with just some cherry tomatoes and a few paste tomatoes left.
We are getting into cool Fall days and my interest in the kale crop has returned. The batch above was destined for a kale, sausage and white bean dish. The Crystal Apple cucumbers were slow to get going but are still producing a lot of fruit, which is welcome.
The Tronchuda Beira went into a pot of Portuguese kale soup. The version I make from the Victory Garden Cookbook turns out to be an Azorean recipe. Not surprising because most of the Portuguese communities around here immigrated from the Azores. I tried the mainland Caldo Verde this year but found it boring in comparison to the hearty Azorean version. There are lots of recipes for it on the Internet (here is one: http://www.recipething.com/recipes/show/37153-portuguese-kale-soup). I used kale, tomatoes, garlic, and onions from my garden. I may have to try growing some dried beans so I can use them in the soup. This dish is tasty, good leftover, freezes well, and can be made vegetarian by leaving out the sausage.
That is what happened in my garden last week. To see what other gardeners around the world are doing, visit Daphne’s Dandelions, our host for Harvest Monday.
Very lovely and colorful harvest.
ReplyDeleteNice contrasting harvests, Dave, end of summer and beginning of fall. Thanks for the link on kale soup; we are blessed with an abundance of kale this year.
ReplyDeleteYum I love kale soup. Well I love almost any soup. I keep hoping for rain. It looks like we may get it this Wednesday.
ReplyDeleteThose are still some lovely tomatoes for the end of September. And envious of the kale & cucumbers - I haven't seen those in my harvest basket for so long! I haven't made Caldo Verde since last year & but it's definitely going to be on the menu this fall.
ReplyDeleteThat kale soup sounds delicious. It's amazing you're getting lots of cucumbers and tomatoes still.
ReplyDeleteIt's odd that the lettuce bolted, but then who knows? We've had some chilly nights but frost is likely a few weeks off for us. The kale dish sounds good!
ReplyDeleteNo kale this year as the woodchuck took care of every plant, thanks for the recipe link, saving for next year. Beautiful tomatoes.
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