Claude Has Another Flower

This time Claude has a more developed flower. It really opened up and showed us how big they are going to be. This is of course zoomed in a little but it's easily visible and showy. Looking forward to when it has hundreds of these guys blooming at a regular basis.

The trunk is still a little small to be carrying fruit but flowers are always a good sign that the conditions are right for producing.

Some of the other flowers we have around the garden are our daylilies and of course the green onion is a regular feature. One of the green onion blooms was almost 100 percent pollinated and is currently full of seed pods nearly ready to harvest. The bean plants are also regularly blooming and making beans. They are trailing up some of the closer plants to them and spreading fast.

The new job has kept me busy and not a lot of time to focus on keeping up here but I'm still going.  The next thing I'm going to plant are some dragonfruit seeds.  I hear they are relatively easy to sprout and grow.  Don't be fooled by the one that shows the fruit being soaked in water and sprouting though. It's all fake.  That would just rot in the water and destroy the seets.  The plant also doesn't grow like that. It's a sprawling plant that loves good soil and rocks. So hardy.

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Lemon Passionfruit Bars

For my wife's mystery series she likes to make recipes for the different books. This one is a lemon and passion fruit bar that I ended up having to finish myself because she had a teaching gig this last week.  It came out pretty good though.  It was supposed to have more passionfruit jam than we had but it still looks good.  The seeds really make it pop.

One of the seeds I'm not so fond of are blackberry seeds.  They just about always get stuck in the teeth.  Also watermelon seeds just because there are so many of them.  We got peaches recently and they too have a seed problem but a much different one.  Many peaches have a hard time removing the pit and much of the peach gets wasted.  I love when they have the freestone peach though, that sucker comes right out.

Talked about passion fruit recently but it was about the vine and flowers, how they didn't really look real in person.  That might be something to grow though since they really do taste good.

What are some other fruits that have seeds that you find annoying or at the least problematic?  Another one for me used to be pomegranates but I've since learned how to cut them to release the seeds (also get stuck in the teeth) without much hassle.

So I haven't actually put many recipes before but for all of you who might want to make this, here's the recipe

Butter, for greasing the pan

1 box (10 oz.) Chocolate Teddy Grahams

6 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted

For the Lemon Curd

1 tsp gelatin powder

Finely grated zest of 1 lemon

Finely grated zest of 2 limes

½ c. lemon juice

¼ c. lime juice

10 oz. sugar

8 large eggs, at room temperature

6 Tbsp. cold unsalted butter, cut into pats

For the Glaze Layer

½ tsp gelatin powder

10 oz. Passionfruit jam

 

Use butter to grease a 9” x 11” baking dish (which we call our lasagna pan). Line the dish with parchment paper, letting the paper drape a few inches over the long sides of the pan. Set aside.

Place the chocolate Teddy Grahams in a blender and pulse until crumbly. Add the melted butter and pulse until the mixture is the texture of damp sand.  (Originally we tried to use 4 Tbsp. but the crumble was not good.  I think too much was left in the bowl we melted it in.)  Pour the graham mixture into the prepared pan and use the bottom of a cup to press the crumbs down, to make an even crumb layer.  Place the crust layer in the refrigerator to chill.

For the curd, sprinkle 1 tsp. gelatin over 1 Tbsp. water in a small bowl. Set aside for 5 minutes until it blooms.

Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, combine lemon and lime zest, lemon and lime juice, sugar and eggs.  Whisk until smooth. Cook, whisking constantly, over medium heat until thickened. Remove the mixture from the heat. Add the bloomed gelatin and whisk until it dissolves. Add the butter in batches, whisking until melted.

Strain the curd through a fine sieve over the chilled chocolate graham crust. Spread evenly, then refrigerate for 2 hours or until set. (I left this overnight for a nice solid base)

When it is almost ready, sprinkle the other ½ tsp. gelatin over ½ Tbsp. water in a small bowl. Set aside for 5 minutes until it blooms.

Heat the passionfruit jam in a microwave-safe bowl until warm.  This should be just above body temperature.  Add the gelatin and stir until melted. Pour this mixture evenly on top of the curd layers, gently spreading with a basting brush so that the jam reaches all corners. Refrigerate for 2 hours or overnight.

Once set, cut into bars.

Cacao Tree Sizing

When sizing a tree you don't actually care quite as much about the height of the tree as compared to the caliper, or diameter of the trunk of the tree.

So whereas the height of this tree is now just at four feet high, the caliper of the tree is up to a half an inch. Compare to the little shoot it started out as, this is quite an accomplishment.  Each time a tree adds to the leaves it has to put in more tubing and thus trunk to supply nutrients to the foliage. The plan is to keep the tree to just under seven feet tall, but the trunk needs to get to at least 2 inches so it can support the fruit. I'm hoping for at least 3 inches though before I allow fruit to form just to make sure the tree is healthy.

Currently it is in it's second year of growth and will probably take at least 2 more years before it starts flowering, maybe a year and a half since it was started in the fall.  I expect the first harvest to possibly be in 2023 or 2024 which would be just in time for the total solar eclipse over Dallas in October 2024.

Recent Cacao Cookery

Before making anything with a cacao pod there are different things you need to do with it.  In this case we're not making chocolate but cacao pulp and husk additives for flavor and pectin.

Also we unexpectedly found out that you can also eat part of the pod itself.  It's not very flavorful and it's quite slimy but in the end it can keep you from being hungry if you have nothing else.  It reminds me a little bit of the pad of a prickly pear cactus, minus the spines.

Orange Blemishes

My wife had a group over today for marketing and someone brought lox.  I didn't really know before what that was but it went really well on the bagels they had during lunch.  I also had a Pokka Milk Coffee to go with it.

What I noticed here though were the oranges.  Often when we go to the store we want that perfect piece of fruit or cut of meat or what have you.  My grandpa tole me once that grocery stores won't even buy fruit if it doesn't look nice even if it's perfectly good to eat.  These oranges are a good example of fruit that has a blemish but is otherwise fine.  The oranges he had growing on the tree often had even more dark spots but there was nothing wrong with them.

Next time you're at the store take a look at how the fruit looks and think about how that affects what you buy.  Oh, and pick up some lox, they're tasty.

Apple Tree

Apple trees are really easy to grow from seed. I've grown a few of them so far and usually just let them die off after a while since I don't have anywhere to really grow a full size tree.  This little sprout came up over the weekend and needs to be put in  sunny area of the office so it can acclimate a little more before being put outside. I can probably find somewhere this guy can go, whether it's somewhere on a vacant lot or an out of the way spot where it won't drop apples on anyone's car, not the best thing for a car.

 

Unfortunately I won't be able to tell what kind of apple tree this will be. Most people don't think about it but usually the seeds of an apple will not produce the same kind of apple the seed came from. Often the trees will be grown among other apple tree varieties that are better pollinators, usually crabapple, so that the crop will be larger than if they were just by themselves.  This is why I didn't even bother to label what kind of apple it came from, just that it was an apple.  Since I'm not really picky about my apples as far as variety it won't matter anyway.  Also it takes several years for an apple tree to produce.

Cacao Pods

My lovely cacao pods came Saturday. They range from about 8" to 5" long.  Although this picture really doesn't do them justice, the small yellow pod is much more yellow than the other two.

 

We plan to have some folks over to taste the wonderful pulp and at the same time have a seed planting / roasting party. Freshly roasted cocoa beans I'm sure will smell wonderful.

 

These pods were purchased from the more and more famous Montoso Gardens, at least among the chocolate connoisseurs here in the states. These are not the GMO pods that are now starting to pervade the cacao markets but naturally grown and harvested pods historically grown in Puerto Rico.

 

If you've never tasted the pulp from a fresh pod you should either take a trip out to the Caribbean or at least order a few pods for yourself. They are fully licensed to ship to the main land.

Invasive Plants

I was reading recently about invasive plants and trees that seem to just pop up without help from us.  One such tree is the mulberry tree, especially in our area.  My first encounter with a mulberry tree was at my first job after moving to the area. Outside on the side of the building there was a nice mulberry tree growing between our building and the next.  Being the adventurous person I am I decided to try some of the berries, being pretty sure I knew what it might be.  I was told by coworkers and eventually my wife after I told her about it that I really shouldn't eat berries unless I know what it is. I'm not dead and now I'm sure I was right about the identification.

Mulberries are one of the least appreciated trees out there.  If you are fortunate enough to have some of these in your area you can usually wild harvest these berries around now by either hand picking the berries or spreading out a sheet and shaking the tree until you have enough berries.  Either way you will want to remove any stems and such and afterward soak in water to get any bugs out. In my experience there are usually a lot of little bugs in the cracks, not harmful to eat in case you don't get them all though.

You can either eat them by themselves or like all berries add them to yogurt or bake them into a pie. If you have a favorite way to eat them let us know.

Harvest Season

Summer is nearly over and the harvest time is upon us.  One of the things I look forward to each year are the pears.  A friend of ours has a pear tree and doesn't like eating them himself so just yesterday he gave us a box, about 25 pounds, of pears.  We spent yesterday evening making pear butter and today I believe the wife is wanting to make a chutney or something of the sort.  We'll see how things go.  Many of the pears weren't quite ripe yet so we left them in the box to ripen.  It's cardboard so it should do nicely for ripening them up. After we get a few more ripe ones I'll have to make the chocolate pear tart, always a crowd pleaser.

Apples are also coming into the harvest season with quite a few already on the shelves.  Unfortunately I don't have an apple tree myself or know anyone who does.  I have seen some in the neighborhood though so if I planted one it would be sure to get some pollen.  Lots of crabapple trees too.  Of course when apples are plentiful then they get cheap and we're able to make all sorts of apple treats.  What fall would be complete without a good apple pie with some ice cream on top?

Cantaloupe Season is Over

No need for a photo today.  I was hoping the cantaloupe plant was only going through a short slump but it seems the  cantaloupe season has ended for our area.  The last fruit has been picked and is sitting in the fridge waiting to be eaten.  The vine is turning yellow and the lieaves are shriveling.  The night air is reaching the mid 60's signaling the end of summer is comming.  Time for the fall harvest to start producing!

My next project is to sprout some black currant seeds and have something in the ground in the next few weeks.  Hopefully they will have time to produce for next fall.

Cantaloupe Seed Saving

Saving seeds from cantaloupes is a messy business.  After scooping out the innards you have to clean off all of the slimy stuff.  The way I get it done is by using a lot of paper towels.  Paper towels are good at absorbing moisture and pulling off all of the stringy stuff that sticks to it when you first get it out.

After that you have to let them dry in the open air.  Paper towels are good for this too.  After they're dry then rub them to get any residue left over off of them.

I like to use a little glass bowl after this step so the seeds have good air circulation.  The tips will look dry while the main part of the seed will keep some color.  If this starts to turn then you can pretty much toss it.  The above picture is a good example of seeds that are still in good shape.

They are also second generation seeds which should pretty well imitate the fruit it came from.  It goes without saying then that if you don't like the fruit you grew then you probably don't want the seeds.  Of course it could have crossed with something else in your area but chances are it didn't.

The Cantaloupe is Producing Again

Cantaloupes have a nice little yellow flower even if they don't end up making any fruit.  Fortunately if you keep it watered you should be able to get something off of it. Fertilize and you up your chances greatly and you might just get bitten by the gardening bug.

Don't confuse this with the other bugs in the garden.

This little baby is growing nicely.  You can see the flower at the bottom and the lines already forming.  On a Tuscan cantaloupe these lines will stay and get deeper. and the mesh will for between the lines.  Our variety isn't Tuscan and therefore the mesh will wrap around the entire fruit.  Fortunately this vine has produced very juicy fruit already and should continue to do so.

Below are the two other cantaloupes currently forming on the vine. As you can see they form next to leaves and can form in pairs as seen on the bottom picture although only one flower is actually making a fruit in this case.

So, go out there and don't let the heat get to you.  It was 110 yesterday and they don't seem to mind one bit.

Guano in the Garden

I don't know if it's the guano or the diligent watering I've been doing but the cantaloupe plant has start making at least two more cantaloupes.  I was looking at a neighbor's plant yesterday, a heat tolerant cucumber vine, and it's doing way better than it.

I also have one of the tomato plants wraping around pretty well now.  I'll do a little more pulling today to get it where I want it and then wheigh it to the ground for it to root well before fall creeps in. Should have plenty of tomatoes this season.

Cantaloupe Flowers

I guess the cantaloupe likes the care it's getting.  There were two new flowers this morning and the leaves are getting nice and full.  I'll have to keep an eye on it and make sure it's wattered well.  The 4 o'clocks are perking up as well.
We'll be topping the temperature hump in the next few weeks and the plants will be ready for a quick sprint of growing.  In preperatoin I still need to wrap the tomato plants around so the stems can root and provide a larger nutrient base for growth and pluck more basil flowers off to keep them happy and growing.  They've been real troopers in this heat.  If I can keep them up then we'll have plenty for a nice italian dinner using fresh tomato and basil.  Mmmmm.  Maybe even a fruit salad with cantaloupe on the side.

Heat in the garden

I have done some light weeding in the side bed and it's already taking a toll on the plants.  The 4 o'clocks really don't like the heat on the ground and are showing it by having wilty leaves.  I have since put some of the dried weeds back on top to give it some shade and hopefully keep the heat off a little better.  It's a hard battle in DFW between weeds and mulching in the heat which always comes and eventually leaves it's mark on crops.
I have watered enough to keep the cantaloupe plant happy and growing.  There's even a new shoot producing nice size leaves.  If it keeps up I hope to have more cantaloupes in the fall. One of the cats loves them.
I found wasps trying to stay cool as well by making a nest on my rose bush.I haven't gotten it out entirely yet but also don't want to be stung.  I'll try again today and see how far I can get.

Middle of Harvests

We went to visit family and found out that there is very little being picked at the moment. It's too late for figs and citrus, or too early depending on how you look at it, and it's too early for grapes, pears and peaches.
There are a few tomatoes and peppers out there and an occasional veggie that's ripening all alone but for the most part it's time to water and wait.
I still have the amazingly big beet root growing and a couple more beets growing nearby. I'm hoping they bolt soon or I'll have to eat them. They just look so tasty.

Fig Harvest

Our fig tree has produced at least five pounds of figs so far.  With this we've made preserves, fig spread, and a tart. If you looked at the fig tree today you wouldn't know that we'd even picked any off. The birds help with keeping the tree from being overloaded and make sure I know they've been helping  by whistling away while I pick some myself.
I could probably pick a cup or two each day if I wanted to but instead I go out every 3 or 4 days and  pick more at a time. I can see some of the fallen figs that I otherwise would have had if I did pick daily but that's more work for less yield and the birds will get to those in due time.
The weather hasn't been bad either for ripening them up. We usually get a cold snap or a strong wind storm that knocks most of the figs off and sometimes the heat just makes all of the figs shrivel up to nothing and makes the harvest inedible. So far this year it's been the best producing plant in the bunch.

Cantaloupe

Out of the entire garden I'm most looking forward to the cantaloupe again.  We've only one vine but it has a good size melon on it right now, larger than a softball. The last one I grew didn't get any bigger than a softball but it was big enough to eat for one person.

The tomato plants haven't put a tomato out since we bought them.  I don't know what it is about me an tomatoes, I don't think they like me much.  maybe they know I want to eat them...

We have had good success with the fig tree out back. Nearly five pounds of figs which we've eaten and mostly preserved into fig spread.  I'll probably go back out today to get some more. The birds are putting up a fight though. Last time there were over a dozen birds squawking as I picked.

Apple Season

I know fruit lovers usually know that when winter comes it's citrus time. Unfortunately it seems that these same people seem to forget that apple season is here and now is the time you can get some really good apples.

I was listening to the radio some years ago and they were interviewing a guy who helped develop new apples. By the sounds of it there were supposed to be several new types that sounded very promising. Unfortunately I can't recall ever seeing any of the varieties he mentioned. This could be due to many reasons, the most probable being a renaming of the variety to better suit the apple or because someone with more clout decided to name it after his dog. Don't laugh, I've seen it done with street names.

Even though I don't think I will be tasting some of what they were working on we can still be happy knowing that many varieties are available and can be used for a wide range of foods.

Generally for my tastes I like a sweet and crunchy apple for eating. The more tart apples like Granny Smith I use in making pies. the mealier ones can be either juiced or made into sauce.

Any way you slice it, peel it, cut it up into little chunks, apples make great snacks.

Moldy Grapes

You hope sometimes that the ruined grapes aren't really ruined, that there might be some way that you can turn back the hands of time and reclaim the little balls of sweetness. That's what happened to me at least when my wife called up and said the grapes had a blue mold all over them.

On looking up what that might be I found that it may well have been the mold responsible for making one of the most used drugs out there and one of the best known, penicillin. Unfortunately she didn't wait until I could see it and in the end she thinks it was probably more white than blue. Being on dark purple grapes, and in the middle of them, I can see how that might have been the case.

I wouldn't have known the difference but the top one is ok while the bottom one not so much.

You can call either of the sort of white.

Hard cheese I found is fine as long as you cut off the moldy part. There's something about how dense it is that prevents mold from getting too deep into the cheese.