Today turned out to be a wonderful day of pickin' and eatin'. I didn't expect to be picking anything today, but was invited yesterday to join my friend Ann at her parents house to help pick from their delicious garden. Later, my friend Johnny called to invite me to an adventure at the home of his friends the Goodmans.
Ann's parents keep a small patch near their house that includes (at the moment) primarily okra and tomatoes. We wound our way through the wire fence and through the tall plants, pruning shears in hand. Around the back of the house, they have a wonderful herb garden including basil, beautiful rosemary, thyme, and oregano. The herbs are full and bountiful since they're growing in full sun. It made me long for a garden of my own!
Farther to the rear of their property, they have twisting vines of muscudines and scuppernogs, trained to grow along twine. We ducked in, under, and around the vines to pluck off the firm fruit. The birds fluttered about as we picked our shares and we saw Goldfinch, Titmouse, Cardinals, and some other types which I couldn't identify. They didn't seem to mind sharing, but we were finally chased away from the vines by hornets!
After filling our bags with veggies, herbs, and fruits from the vine, we tromped down to the start of the driveway to pick apples. The little apple tree was absolutely weighed down with its fruit! The leaves are bending precariously low as the apples seemed to pop off branches every few inches. We each filled a bag and it didn't even look like we'd made a dent! As soon as we were in the house, I couldn't risk giving one a rinse and eating it straight away. It was crisp and juicy and just a little sweet. I gobbled it up in a half dozen bites!
With two bags full of treats, I set out to meet Johnny at the Goodman's, who live at Oakton (http://oaktonhouseandgardens.com/). Oakton is a marvelous old home on three acres in historic Marietta. The fabulous house is surrounded by gardens and fruit trees. There is a lovely herb garden filled with all sorts of culinary and medicinal herbs (more herb envy!). Their vegetable gardens are finishing off for the season and I saw the remnants of squash, corn, tomatoes, towering sunflowers, and all sorts of other beautiful flowers. They also have fantastic fig trees that were bursting with fruit! Will was kind enough to grant me permission to take what figs and basil I'd like and I nearly filled a whole bag!
So now, I have an abundant supply of all sorts of delicious treats. Here's the plan: roasted apples and figs with rosemary and honey, walnut pesto for spreading over fresh bread and for pasta, muscadine pie and maybe muscadine jam. My favorite pick of the day (aside from the figs, which are ALWAYS my favorite) has to be the basil. I love herbs. They're such a wonderful way to give flavor and freshness to food. Herbs add favor without salt or fat, which can make food taste great while keeping it healthy! Many herbs also provide health benefits such as improved digestion and antibacterial properties. They make things seem special and elegant by giving it just a little something more -- the French often call it je-ne-sais-quoi when they're speaking of a person, but I think it applies to food too!
Ann's parents keep a small patch near their house that includes (at the moment) primarily okra and tomatoes. We wound our way through the wire fence and through the tall plants, pruning shears in hand. Around the back of the house, they have a wonderful herb garden including basil, beautiful rosemary, thyme, and oregano. The herbs are full and bountiful since they're growing in full sun. It made me long for a garden of my own!
Farther to the rear of their property, they have twisting vines of muscudines and scuppernogs, trained to grow along twine. We ducked in, under, and around the vines to pluck off the firm fruit. The birds fluttered about as we picked our shares and we saw Goldfinch, Titmouse, Cardinals, and some other types which I couldn't identify. They didn't seem to mind sharing, but we were finally chased away from the vines by hornets!
After filling our bags with veggies, herbs, and fruits from the vine, we tromped down to the start of the driveway to pick apples. The little apple tree was absolutely weighed down with its fruit! The leaves are bending precariously low as the apples seemed to pop off branches every few inches. We each filled a bag and it didn't even look like we'd made a dent! As soon as we were in the house, I couldn't risk giving one a rinse and eating it straight away. It was crisp and juicy and just a little sweet. I gobbled it up in a half dozen bites!
With two bags full of treats, I set out to meet Johnny at the Goodman's, who live at Oakton (http://oaktonhouseandgardens.com/). Oakton is a marvelous old home on three acres in historic Marietta. The fabulous house is surrounded by gardens and fruit trees. There is a lovely herb garden filled with all sorts of culinary and medicinal herbs (more herb envy!). Their vegetable gardens are finishing off for the season and I saw the remnants of squash, corn, tomatoes, towering sunflowers, and all sorts of other beautiful flowers. They also have fantastic fig trees that were bursting with fruit! Will was kind enough to grant me permission to take what figs and basil I'd like and I nearly filled a whole bag!
So now, I have an abundant supply of all sorts of delicious treats. Here's the plan: roasted apples and figs with rosemary and honey, walnut pesto for spreading over fresh bread and for pasta, muscadine pie and maybe muscadine jam. My favorite pick of the day (aside from the figs, which are ALWAYS my favorite) has to be the basil. I love herbs. They're such a wonderful way to give flavor and freshness to food. Herbs add favor without salt or fat, which can make food taste great while keeping it healthy! Many herbs also provide health benefits such as improved digestion and antibacterial properties. They make things seem special and elegant by giving it just a little something more -- the French often call it je-ne-sais-quoi when they're speaking of a person, but I think it applies to food too!
Oh yeah, I was also inspired by David, the gentleman who takes care of our 
landscaping today. As I drove in from my excursion, I offered to get him some cold water and he said "yes, but please don't toss out my lemon slice; water needs lemon!" This inspired me to slice up some lemons and toss in some herbs (basil and mint) and create a delicious herbed lemon water. Summer may be almost over, but I'm hanging on with today's delicious produce and refreshing drink!
landscaping today. As I drove in from my excursion, I offered to get him some cold water and he said "yes, but please don't toss out my lemon slice; water needs lemon!" This inspired me to slice up some lemons and toss in some herbs (basil and mint) and create a delicious herbed lemon water. Summer may be almost over, but I'm hanging on with today's delicious produce and refreshing drink!
2 comments:
I would love some Fig preserves!!!
Johnny
Wow that really looks delicious! And the "i believe" on the flower vase is precious.
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