Muffin Shaped Like a House

My friend Linda Larson made these!  She also makes chocolate bugs.

Roasting Tomatoes

Place tomatoes skin side down on large cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.  Sprinkle with garlic salt and drizzle a bit of olive over the tomatoes.  Roast for 4 hours in 275 degree oven.

Cool.  Spread on crackers or smash and use on pasta.  Or eat plain -- note places on cookie sheet where my will power was nil.

Or -- slip them off into a plastic bag and freeze.  

We Perform Beethoven's Ninth, Ode to Joy in October

Ed and I became engaged in April 1965 when we sang Ode to Joy with the Mendelssohn Choir of Pittsburgh with the great William Steinberg at the podium.  We met in Mendelssohn Choir!  We have performed it several times since with the Illinois State University Civic Chorale.

We will be performing it the end of October, Friday October 24th at 8 pm and on Sunday, October 26th at 3 pm.  Two other singing groups from ISU will be joining us. 

This link will take you to a fabulous performance -- Leonard Bernstein at the podium with the Vienna Philharmonic in 1979.  Magnificent!!!  Audio only.  If you want to actually see the performance via YouTube, Google Leonard Bernstein, Vienna Philharmonic, Ode to Joy. 

Tomatoes 2014

Loving them all but the Theuret is still our favorite. The seeds of the Theuret (used to be Veronica) are being preserved at Seed Savers in Decorah, Iowa.

Here are Red Theuret, Honey Sugar Cherry, Yellow Jubilee, Green Zebra, Purple Cherokee, Black Prince, and Rutgers.  This is the first year we've planted the black and purple varieties.

AB Hatchery is where we purchase our tomatoes other than the Theuret which we grow under the lights, were out of Green Zebras.  One of the vendors at the Bloomington Farmer's Market had them and he insisted I also purchase a Black Prince 'cause it goes so well with the Green Zebra.    Righteo! Delicioso!

Kevin Lee Jacobs

Kevin does a magnificent website, A Garden for the House.  This link will take you to a surprise!  Scroll down a bit, though.  Tomato Talk....Your Favorite Varieties and Mine.  Here is exciting news about the Theuret Tomato which Kevin knows about because I wrote him the story of the tomato.  He asked if I could send him some seeds which I did. 

These are the tomatoes from Veronica and Robert Theuret, age 83 and 86 respectively, who farm some of our Pennsylvania land near Meadville, PA.  Vern Shepherd, an MG buddy and a tomato aficionado suggested we propose to Seed Savers they might want to save the seeds.  After a lengthy process required by SS in Decorah, Iowa, the seeds were accepted for preservation.   Named Veronica #2323, last year Seed Savers contacted Veronica and they decided to change the name to Theuret since the tomato has been in Robert's family for 3 generations.   


 

Observing Nature in Patio Garden

Around 2:00 pm, I went out to watch the hummingbirds drink from our feeder.  While this was going on, there was a  Monarch butterfly as well as a yellow Swallowtail! And of course bees galore and those small white moths that like to do synchronized flying in duo. Photo was taken with my Sony DSC WX80 using the Sweep Panorama feature.

Onions 'Candy'

The sweetest of all onions even sweeter than Vadalia and we grow 'em!  Take a piece of crusty bread, drizzle with olive oil, pile on a few thin slices -- man oh man, this is good eatin'. Or a grilled candy onion sandwich!  These are not available in supermarkets but happily our farmer's markets come to the rescue. 

5 Day Old Gabriella

Carla conversing with Gabriella. 

Be sure to click on the red print.  

New York Coffee

Brings back memories of when we lived in NYC when Ed did his Master's at Columbia.  Chock full o' Nuts is widely available here.  

Advertised with a jingle, really a song,  "Chock full of nuts is the heavenly coffee, heavenly coffee, heavenly coffee....."

Hummingbirds

Yesterday while in the patio garden, a hummer scared me to death because it flew so close to my face I could clearly hear the loud humming of its wings.    I believe the bird flew so very close to me because I was wearing a mummu with big red flowers and hummingbirds are attracted to reds. 

My friend Debby Funk recommended 
this type feeder.

Ruby Throat Daylily in back of hummer.