Extra Eros Zlatolaska Tomatoes

Hello everyone, Welcome!

I've done what I was afraid I'd end up doing....leaving you all in silence for months! Well, I'm back with a quick little post about some exciting happenings from my very own garden.

Check out this basket of goodies I harvested the other day!

 

 

There are many things I love about summer....one of which is most definitely fresh tomatoes. I want to shine a spot light on one particular little known variety today...that entitled -

 "Extra Eros Zlatolaska."

See all those ombre orange, gold colored beauties in the basket? That would be the ones I'm talking about.  They aren't terribly big...about roma sized I'd say. They're not too small, not too big, and for me, well, that's just right! Flavor is excellent! a touch of sweet with a mild tomato flavor. Versatile for many applications, of which my favorite was to halve them, scoop out the middle then fill them with pesto and top with some shiso-kraut and feta cheese! Delicious!

The plants don't get very tall, they are after all determinate. They do however spread themselves out quite a bit in all directions, so should you grow some of these little gems, give them a little space to spread. The other cool thing that I found fascinating is their shape.  Most are pear shaped or oval, but then there's some round ones and some other combinations of the aforementioned shapes. Stuff like that really makes me fall in love with certain plants. 

Hopefully next year you will add some of these lovelies to your garden they're definitely a favorite that I will be growing again! Speaking of which, I need to go prep these tomatoes for the freezer...did I mention they're prolific and abundant? Well, add that to the list of awesome characteristics!

~Till next time, be safe, have fun and eat homegrown tomatoes!

 

Maple Syrup

Hello Again, and Welcome!

About a month ago now, I dug into the world of making maple syrup....though I think the trees are really responsible for the actual making.  I was amazed at how freely the trees poured out their sap into my five-gallon buckets for me to collect. Also, the amount of sap needed to make a little bit of syrup was quite amazing.  The ratio is about 40 parts sap to 1 part syrup and the rest becomes steam! It was a fun experience and I will be doing it again for years to come. 

The syrup I ended up with was vastly different....take a look...

 

 

The first batch was really thick and very light in color. The second one was a bit darker, but not near as thick. The last batch was a very dark amber and the thickness mid-way between the first and second.  Believe it or not, I boiled them all down (our should I say up) to the same temperature. 

Have you every tapped any trees and attempted syrup making?

Tell me what your experience was!

Strawberry Crown Squash

Well, hello there! We're back with more unique heirlooms! Today we dive into the Strawberry Crown Squash.

 

This squash belongs to the Cucurbita Maxima family of squash.  It is a vining variety that loves to stretch out and take up space in the garden. This lovely squash was brought back from Brazil in the 1980s by Mary Schultz. It is a truly unique beauty.  As it ripens in storage over the winter it turns this reddish strawberry color. It's quite spectacular. The seeds are a pure white, and also a thing of beauty.  Should you decide you want to grow it yourself, seeds are available here at Seed Savers Exchange. As for size, it averages out at 5 to 7 pounds.

 

How does it taste? For sweetness, I would say it's mid-range. Texture is a bit interesting. It appears to be a bit on the stringy side at first, but after baking and whipping with a hand held mixer, it becomes nice and smooth. The depth of flavor is also about mid-range. Definitely more flavor than an acorn squash, but not as glorious as a butternut. That being said however, it makes a lovely pumpkin pie! Not a dry squash, and not a watery squash...this one is the epitome of a happy medium in everything except color. I give it five stars for looks alone! Will I grow this squash again? Most definitely! It yielded well, stored well, took the pressures of the squash vine borers and other pests well, and tastes delicious.... did I mention it's beautiful?! What's not to love? What heirloom squash have you been growing? What countries did they originate in? Feel free to comment below and tell me all about them!

 

Bronze Orange Corn

For those of you who don't know, I'm a passionate gardener. Rare and unique plants are a common thing at our house. For example, the other night we had braised purple carrots. (Delicious, I might add.) This past summer we indulged in a sweet corn that turns hands and lips purple.

Well, the past few days, I've been shelling another rare gem....a corn...The Bronze Orange Corn.


baby corn plants





The above photo was taken just as the plants were peeking out of the ground.  The one closest to my hand was an albino corn. After some research I found out that it is a gene mutation such that the corn plant is unable to make chlorophyll. Sadly, that meant that once the food from the seed was used up the baby plant died. The rest, however, did remarkably well.  The grew to about shoulder height, and matured quite early!



 



Bronze orange corn in good lighting looks spectacular!  It has a metallic sort of coppery-bronze tone to it that you simply have to see and hold in your hand to believe.  It originated as a breeding project of plant breeder extraordinaire, Dr. Alan Kapuler, of Peace Seeds. He is still breeding unique plant varieties, and has them available at Peace Seeds Blog. 

 

Bronze Orange Corn





If you ever do grow this corn in your own backyard, please learn how to properly save seed for future plantings, because we need to do all we can to preserve rare varieties like this one for future generations to enjoy. 

 

I'm saving some of my seed for planting, and will be grinding some of it to try different recipes, which I hope to share--providing they turn out as spectacular as I think they will!

 

Tell me though, have you grown a rare variety? Was it a unique corn? I'd love to hear about it!!!

feel free to comment below and tell me all the details!

 

 

May you all make the best of today!

Thanks for riding along on our little journey through the corn patch!