Fairy Houses at the Beach

With all of us being on vacation for most of the past week, not much happened in the garden itself. I keep looking and seeing different ideas to rearrange and rebuild the garden but at this point, they will only be ideas. As for the beach, Jen went with the kids a day earlier so I could get a full 24 hours of work on the house done. I managed to paint the living room, build a lattice barrier so the dogs don't cool off in mud and dirt and I re-caulked the bathroom. Now that I write this it does not sound like much but the hours flew by. This was my first night away from the kids since Jen gave birth and one would think that a quiet peaceful night would be welcomed. In actuality, I had a hard time sleeping and come morning I missed the usual AM banter for chocolate milk and "lets play".

There were 11 of us at the beach this year including Jack and Charlotte's cousins; Luke and Noah. Each and every year, the family goes to Lavalette NJ to mark the end of the summer and that was no different. What was different as well as being evident was the ways in which Jen and I have gravitated in terms of lifestyle, choices and children. These differences in Jen and I is what motivates us to go to the farmer's market to buy locally, plant an organic garden, look to conserve and reuse rather than replace. Simple things like composting and recycling on one end to Consensual Living, Co-Sleeping and Attachment Parenting on the other end.

All in all, the kids played every day loving the beach and the water. Charlotte was fascinated with picking up EVERY shell she came across while Jackson just played; digging, running, making sand castles.....If I were asked to sum up the vacation in a sentence or two, I would be Jen helping both kids build fairy houses. This consumed much of an afternoon and that night as well as the next day conversation was around the likely hood o the fairy houses will still be standing and not washed away by the tides. When we packed up on Friday afternoon, the kids were shot and Charlotte slept for the hour ride home. Jackson zoned on nothing and played with new stickers from Maga (Grandma Laura). Come bed time, they were fast asleep within minutes.

Coming back to an unattended garden is fun, exciting and overwhelming all wrapped together. Even though I was only gone for three days, it looked like I never weeded, picked a thing all summer and let the dogs play in middle of the plants. I quickly noted all of the chores I have neglected and immediately remembered all of the projects I wanted to accomplish with my vacation. On the other hand, I picked about 10lbs of ripe tomatoes, Sultan's Peas, and a large stalk of Basil. The cucumber all have died on the vine but the fall planting are doing wonderful. I got my first fist full of radishes and the Chioga Beets are doing well. There are a few very small sprouts for the carrots but the golden beets are non-existent.

Roasted Red Pepper Soup

4-6 Red Bell Peppers
1 large White Onion sliced
4 cloves of Garlic - chopped
1 Tbsp Marjoram
2 Tbsp Sweet Paprika
4 cups Chicken Stock
1 cup day old Italian bread, processes to almost bread crumb consistency
Salt and Pepper to taste

Turn oven to 500 degrees and place peppers (whole) on a cookie sheet onto a high rack. Turn peppers frequently. The peppers should become black and burned on all sides. Take out and place onto foil sealed into a pouch or in a container closed loosely for 10-15 minutes or until cool enough to handle. Once cooled, skin, cut, core and clean peppers retaining any juices that are produced.

Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees. Place Onions, garlic and enough olive oil to coast onto a sheet pan. Add Salt, Pepper Paprika and Marjoram and toss to coat. Place in middle of oven for 20-30 minutes, toss often and cook until golden.

In a food processor, place all the peppers and onion mixture with any retained juices (can be done directly in the soup pot if you have a emulsion blender). Pure to a smooth consistency (add a little Chicken Stock if needed). Add 2 cups chicken stock and re-puree, then the next 2 cups. Once all is processed, place in a large soup pot and gently simmer on the stove. Add slat and pepper to taste. Served hot or cold (gazpacho like).

Food Harvested:
Tomatoes - first Yellow Ponderosa's
Radishes, both varieties
Sultan Crescent Peas
Things Planted:
None

Seeds Saved:
None

Preserved/Cooked:
Roasted Red Pepper Soup

Things to Remember:
1. Plant Brussel Sprouts 3 months prior ot the first frost - 24" apart
2. Move tomatoes to higher in the garden - 5 rows of 3 plants per row
3. Plant Garlic in front raised bed
4. Plant Hungarian Pepper as decoration throughout front