Mid Summer Fun

The moon is full, the weather turned cool with a few thunderstorm clouds blowing in, and the farmers are feeling frisky.

Batch stopped in and showed the love.



Summer camp?



Rick C got a coat of paint on the tabletop.



And I got more seeds started.



We checked the watermelons for the "leaf shaped like a mouse's ear" and a spiral tendril, as advised by Dennis Biro in the ER. We now know how to tell when they are ripe. Of course, the other melons signal ripeness by loosing from the vine at a slight touch. And we checked the corn to see that kernals are forming nicely.



Out in the field, Buddy messes with Rick.



And is having WAY too much fun doing it.



But then we had to rest, because farming is SUCH hard work!



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What We're Eating

Stuffed Bell Peppers

Tomatoes
Olive oil
Onions
Ground beef or sausage, or cooked rice, or both
Jalapeno peppers, chopped
Bell peppers
Fresh oregano
Fresh basil
Salt and pepper
Sugar (optional)
Grated parmesan cheese (the real kind)

Preheat oven to 350
Halve and core a big pile of tomatoes.
Generously oil a baking sheet and put the tomaotes cut side down. It's ok to stack them if needed.
Put in a 350 oven for about an hour. Go do something fun.
After an hour, pull out the sheet and pick off the skins. If the skin won't pop off easily, don't worry about it. Mush the tomatoes around a bit, and put them back in the oven.
Cook for another 45 minutes or so. Go do something fun again.
When the tomatoes are almost done, chop the onion and saute it in olive oil with the meat or rice and chopped jalapenos until the onions are soft and the meat is browned.
Pull any remaining skins off the tomatoes, and add to the skillet with the onions and meat (or rice). Break up the tomatoes more, add the fresh herbs, and let simmer a bit.
Add salt and pepper to taste, and perhaps a pinch of sugar if the tomatoes are very acid.
Carefully cut the tops off the bell peppers and remove any white pith and seeds. Use a spoon to scrape the ribs to fully remove the pith.
Set the bell peppers in a well-oiled roasting pan, and fill with the tomato mixture. If you have extra mixture, just mound it around the peppers in the pan.
Liberally sprinkle parmesan cheese on top.
Bake in 350 oven for 45 minutes or so.

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