Friday fragments

in which our plucky heroine perseveres and preserves...

The last few days have been a bit of a struggle, as my body is not being cooperative despite my best attempts at nourishment and hydration. Despite that, there has been some progress made on both the dealing-with-harvest-season and on the flat piping conundrum.

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~ a worthwhile experiment ~

This year, not only did I manage to keep the Juliette tomato alive and happy in a big pot in the backyard, but as decoration, bought a six-pack of basil and a six-pack of marigolds, and planted them in a circle around the edge. So pretty to look at, and the basil grew well enough that I picked quite a bit earlier this summer and dried it for wintertime cooking. Today, noticed that even where it had been cut back, it was still putting on more growth, so another basket full went into the dehydrator today.

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Since there was a bunch of beets... well three big beets... in the produce delivery this week, and there were no more jars of pickled beets in the pantry, my mission was obvious. (abbreviated recipe for future reference)

1½# beets, 2c 5% ACV, 1c sugar, ¾t pickling salt, ¾cH₂O, 1cinnamon stick, ½t whole allspice, ¼t peppercorns. Boil beets a half hour until totally cooked through. Let cool, slip off skin and trim, then cut into slices or cubes and set aside. Mix all together syrup ingredients bring to boil, add beets and bring to simmer. ½" gap, process 30 minutes

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The detachable stabilising foot for the tiny underdesk oil filled radiator snapped in half ages ago, run over by my desk chair. While it works just fine sans foot, repairing it turned out to be feasible. Super glue held the plastic pieces together, and the break was reinforced with the Milliput epoxy putty acquired earlier this year

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Hopefully one of the farmers markets this weekend will have some organic tomatillos for less than the $7# that they are asking at the grocery store. This recipe for salsa verde is a good one, and every few years another batch or two needs made to replenish the pantry storage...

1# tomatillos ¼ c chopped onion 1 large green jalapeño ¼ c chopped cilantro 1 small clove garlic 1 t salt 2 T lime juice

Remove husks, wash, and simmer tomatillos till softened and color changes. Blend them with all the other ingredients, bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes. five 4oz. jars - ½" headspace - process 25 minutes

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September SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	4 barkcloth tea towels	box fan grille	greenwaste bin
2	yellow triangle pouch	needle gauge herb stripper	greenwaste bin
3	knitted pony	pruning elderberry	recycle bin
4	8 jars quince apple  rosewater sauce	pruning nandina	-
5	6+ jars fig lemon marmalade	picked moar figs	-
6	dried pears	picked plums	x
7	4 jars pickled beets	small radiator foot	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
- picked more plums and am gradually filling gallon ziploc bags in the freezer with frozen plum halves
- Milliput epoxy putty
- the scent of basil

Time of Isolation - Day 1916