Last-minute preserving.

As I get ready to head out on my "desert adventure," which sounds much more exciting than it really is, I came to the realization that I had plenty of veggies in the garden that I needed to use up before I leave. So, what do you do with loads of green tomatoes? Make green tomato pickles! Although I don't have any pictures of the pickles I canned, I am really pleased with how they look, and I was lucky in that all the jars sealed properly. I cannot wait to come back home and try them out! Here is the recipe:

Dilled Green Tomato Pickles
yield about 6 pints

5 pounds small, firm green tomatoes
1/4 cup canning salt
3 1/2 cups vinegar
3 1/2 cups water
6 or 7 cloves garlic
6 or 7 heads fresh dill or 1/4 cup dill seeds
6 or 7 bay leaves
Wash tomatoes; drain. Core tomaotes; cut into halves or quarters. Combine salt, vinegar and water in a large saucepot. Bring to a boil. Pack tomatoes into hot jars, leaving 1/4-inch headspace. Add 1 clove of garlic, 1 head of dill (or 2 teaspoons dill seeds) an 1 bay leaf to each jar. Ladle hot liquid over tomatoes, leaving 1/4-inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Adjust two-piece caps. Process 15 minutes in a boiling-water canner.

To take care of the mass quantities of jalapeno peppers, I decided to dry them. It's really simple to do! Just thread a need with a double length of thread, and string the peppers along it. Then hang them up and wait! Here is a picture of some peppers I started drying a couple weeks ago. They will be great in chilies and sauces later.  

Finally, I mentioned before the winter garden I put in last week. I cannot believe that the peas and beans are up already! You can also catch a glimpse of the tiny lettuce(s?) behind them. Take a look: