Sep 10 2008
Golden Gleanings
Our garden and local farms have been keeping me on my feet for the past couple of days. I’ve been cooking and canning and freezing all the produce that’s been available.
One of the best ways to celebrate and enjoy all this good food is to make ratatouille. It’s a melange of the most wonderful things you can glean from the summer garden: tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, squash, onions, carrots…whatever is fresh and good. Toss in a few fresh herbs and the flavors become more complex and deeply satisfying.
It’s hard to keep up with all the good food that’s around. I grew kind of panicky when I noticed how ripe my basket of pears was growing. There was no way I could eat all of them in the short shelf life they were facing. So, I consulted my favorite book on preserving food and made Amaretto Pears.
Plain old homemade canned pears are scrumptious, but add a little bit of amaretto and they become something really special. Pears have such a delicate flavor by themselves, so I think you have to be careful when mixing other flavors with them. The amaretto is also a subtle ingredient and it adds a slightly exotic note to the fruit. I look forward to making a tart with these!
Speaking of the garden, the most glorious things in there are the sunflowers our kids planted this spring. They’re humongous! My husband is six foot four inches tall and the plants tower over him. The kids are proud of having planted and cared for them through the season. I’ve got to read up on how to harvest and roast the seeds. That should be a real treat!
Oh my, that looks so yummy. I keep wanting to make ratatouille but never get around to it.
I bet those pears are delicious!!!
the sunflowers are beautiful!