Big Messes of Tomatoes! First Pink Brandywine

Our weather has been hot, rainy, humid, and sunny all around. The hot, sunny then rainy has caused my Pink Brandywines to begin splitting. I am rescuing them a little early to salvage some of the tomatoes rather than lose them waiting for them to fully ripen on the bush. My kitchen window sill will work for the rest of the ripening.

I must note here that these tomatoes are amazing! So delicious! The pink brandywines will make a great cooking and slicing tomato. They don't have the thick hard cores in them - they are just tasty juicy and meaty goodness.

Now these Pink Brandywine tomatoes are larger than a softball to give an idea of their size.

July 6, 2011

1st Pink Brandywine - it was delicious! :-)

Then here is the 2nd mess of Husky Red Cherry Tomatoes and some Romas:

And the remaining cucumbers and first onset of green peppers:

July 9, 2011

This is another mess of tomatoes - Husky Cherry Red Tomatoes and Romas

Several more Pink Brandywines and Green Peppers - pretty good sized ones too! Notice the splitting? (sniff, sniff)

Bad Storms and First Cherry Tomato Bounty

June 18 and June 30, 2011

We had a horrible storm that was close to being a tornado.It knocked out our electricity for over 24 hours and did a number in the garden. Lots of trees were snapped in two and lots of debris all over blown around. My 6' Pink Brandywine tomato plants bent over to 4' over the basket tops. So I had to pull them back up and stabilize them.

Here is the first bounty of cherry tomatoes - they are so delicious! Then a snapshot of a mess of squash and cucumbers.

Model Cars

June 17, 2011 - As a summer project to keep little hands and minds busy, we bought a couple of model cars for the boys to put together. This was just a simple start to see how they would do. They are eager to do more cars and ramp them up a little with paint and glue. These were just snap together simple cars.

Brandywines

June 15, 2011 - Here is a selection of photos of my pink brandywine tomatoes at the garden. They are out of control!

More Brandywine buds coming on

Bracing the Brandywine bushes - these are over 6' tall!

Pink Brandywine bushes - over 6' tall!!

Other tomato plants - Yellow Jubilee, Brandywines, and Jelly Beans

Tomato plot

Candy from the garden

June 15, 2011

Here are the first husky cherry red tomatoes:

After picking, a run through the garden hose - then gulp - yum!

Proud Mama - my precious treasures

Here are some pictures over the last month of my precious little treasures. They are so much fun and huge little blessings.

Here is my "little girl": 

 

 

 

 

So unamused!

Here are my three amigos:

And one amigo with his sister:

Then here are 3 of my water bugs:

Water bugs with their cousins:

Recipe: Fiesta Rice Salad

Here is a colorful, healthy and very delicious salad I made for a garden potluck this weekend - it was a hit and winner for me to make at home for myself. If you like Mexican flavors, you are sure to enjoy this salad.

Fiesta Rice Salad

1/4 c fresh lime juice (4 limes)

3 Tbsp. olive oil

3 Tbsp roasted tomato salsa (I used a roasted corn & black bean salsa)

1 tsp. ground cumin

1/2 tsp salt

2 c cold cooked brown rice

1 c cooked fresh or thawed frozen corn kernels

2 15-oz cans black beans, drained and rinsed

1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced

1 c small cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered

3 scallions thinly sliced (I used green onions instead)

1 avocado

1 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro, optional

In a small bowl, stir together lime juice, oil, salsa, cumin and salt. In a large bowl, stir together rice and corn, breaking up any rice clumps.

Pour lime-juice mixture over rice mixture and stir well to coat. Add beans, bell pepper, tomatoes and scallions, and toss gently to combine. 

Just before serving, pit, peel and dice avocado, and stir gently into salad. Sprinkle with cilantro, if desired, and serve.