Watermelon Rind Pickles

We harvested our first watermelon, it's a Charleston Gray!

And to put it to good use, I made Pickled Melon Rinds! They're easy to make and scrumptious to eat! You should try it with your next melon!

Remove the rind. The easiest way is to cut the melon as you normally would. Cut off all pink flesh (the part you typically eat), then using a vegetable peeler, peel off the green skin. Cut the rind into about 1" pieces. 

Prepare the brine. 

1/4 cup salt to 1 qt water. Put all cut rind chunks in brine. Let sit overnight.

Drain and rinse.

Prepare syrup. 

Mix vinegar, water, and spices. Bring to boil. 

Add rinds. Boil. Simmer about 30-minutes. The rinds should be clear. 

Pack rinds into jars, fill with hot syrup. Eat immediately or process for storage. 

I am in love and will never discard another melon rind ever again!

Have you ever had melon rinds?

This was shared at The Backyard Farming Connection, Share Your Cup Thursday, The HomeAcre Hop, and what i am eating.

-Live Simple, Be Happy-

Magnolia Holler

Spaghetti Squash

Last year one of our neighbors gave us a spaghetti squash, and I'll be honest, I had no idea how to cook it! Thanks to Google, I followed the simplest recipe and we used it in place of pasta for spaghetti. We all fell in love and decided to grow our own this year!

Our first harvest! 

Simple directions: 

Wash, cut lengthwise, scoop out flesh, drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper, bake at 375-degrees until fork insert easily (usually between 40-90 minutes depending on squash size). 

Remove from oven and let cool enough to handle. 

Using fork, scrape flesh lengthwise, should peel easily, resembling spaghetti. 

Voila! Noodles to be used for any pasta dish!

What do you do with spaghetti squash?

-Live Simple, Be Happy-

Magnolia Holler

Rose of Sharon update

Remember my enormous Rose of Sharon that we pruned way back? Well, I'm happy to say it is growing strong!

Before (winter pruning)

After (taken today)

-Live Simple, Be Happy-

Magnolia Holler

Pumpkin Patch 2013

We planted 7 varieties of pumpkins this year, in a patch 37'x50'. Just like my tomatoes and apples, most pumpkins are heirlooms. 

1) Rouge Vif d'Etampes

2) Lumina

3) Musquee de Provence

4) Connecticut Field

5) Luxury Pie

6) Jarrahdale

7) Jack o'Lantern

We've had a very wet season, most unusual for this time of year. Several of our pumpkins were hit with powdery mildew, and then finished off by squash bugs! The patch grew strong all season until this past month. In the course of 2 weeks several of our vines died. Luckily I think we'll get at least one pumpkin of each! The coloring is just starting to turn, they're beautiful! Now I am addicted to growing pumpkins!

I can't wait to carve, eat, and decorate with them!

Do you grow pumpkins? What do you do with them through the season?

-Live Simple, Be Happy-

Magnolia Holler

Garage Update, August

Almost done! The past three weeks have been VERY productive!

Framing done.

Walls done.

Roof done. 

Electric wired.

Dutch doors, aren't they pretty!

Siding and trim done. Doors and windows done. Insulation done. 

Next step, inspection and finish electrical work.  

-Live Simple, Be Happy-

Magnolia Holler

Garden Therapy

Life is full of stress! I believe your stress threshold and coping mechanism help shape your life...less stress, the happier you are. It's not to say you can't be happy, and have a stressful life, you just need to find a way to channel your stress...

I rarely get stressed...but I typically deal with stress by diving into books to escape reality. Which I've done now...I'm hooked on the Mortal Instruments series! However the stresses of work are more than usual right now, and on top of that my Mom is very sick. So I've found another, more productive, de stressor...Garden Therapy!

Before, gardening was just gardening. Now, its something I look forward to, as opposed to it being a chore. I'm not sure what it is, but something about digging in the dirt and smelling the fresh earth, is calming and relaxing. Not to mention the physical exertion needed to pull weeds, squash bugs, prune plants, and retrieve the bounty....are all great activities that just melt away the stress! I always feel very calm, relaxed, and renewed after having been in the garden. 

How do you cope with stress? 

-Live Simple, Be Happy-

Magnolia Holler

First taste of Cherokee Purple

This year we tried a few new tomatoes to see how we liked them. Our list of newbies include, Cherokee Purple, Rutgers, Pink Brandywine, Mortgage Lifter, and Early Girl.

Our review thus far? 

Rutgers are great producers, with a nice even shape and red-orange coloring. Great for mixing in, especially a fresh garden salsa, but eating plain by itself it lacks a big punch of flavor. 

Mortgage Lifter, mixed reviews. The first were large and slightly sweet. However, lately we're only getting small ones. Flavor is still present, but not as strong. This is the one that was hit by the Horn Worm. 

In the picture, Rutgers on the top, with two Mortgage Lifters below.

Cherokee Purple, we are very impressed with! Not only is it beautiful, look at the coloring! But the size is huge! The taste is unforgettable, slightly sweet, smooth taste. This is my favorite of the season thus far and it will become a regular in our garden!

We're still waiting for our first Early Girl and Pink Brandywine...but should be any day now! 

What is your favorite tomato?

-Live Simple, Be Happy-

Magnolia Holler

(These are our opinions, and several factors can alter the taste. So if you disagree I'd love to hear your opinion. Maybe there is a trick for growing a certain variety you can share! )