Homemade Pickles

Last night, I made my first batch of homemade dill pickles. It was so much easier than I thought it would be: thinly sliced some cucumbers, threw them in a zippie bag, covered with 6 T white vinegar w/ 4 t kosher salt (fully dissolved in the vinegar) and 1/2 c chopped fresh dill. Then, squished everything around to make sure the cukes were all covered. Easy peasy! (And, yummy!)

My squash plants are starting to create: spaghetti squash are definitely in the lead, but all the others have blossoms showing their potential is not far behind.

My tomatoes are almost ready to start picking from, and there is little better than a warm tomato picked right off the vine.

The only bad thing is that I managed to kill off two of my three tomatillo plants. The last survivor is planted in a 30 gallon storage container with twine holding it up and patching up the area where two branches snapped off. Next year, I will have to remember how big and heavy the plants get and plan a bit better. But, I'm still hoping for a few fruits before the season ends.

Later today, I'll be making some parsley potatoes... Later this week, red cabbage and fennel cooked with different flavors. Not sure how that will go, but time will tell. And, of course, zucchini cooked in all sorts of different ways.

Now, it's time for breakfast: honey wheat bread w/ honey peanut butter and homemade dill pickles (yes, a peanut butter and pickle sammie).