The Bug

So as mentioned in my last post, we hit the farmer's market last weekend. The Santa Monica Farmer's Market, to be specific. What a wonderful place- and there are 4 markets a week to choose from! Mostly organic foods everywhere you look, and all pretty dang local! Granted it's a bit pricier than at Ye Olde Big Box Generic Grocery Mart, but man oh man is it ever tastier! The extra couple of bucks spent on fresh plums and peaches are TOTALLY worth it, not to mention the varieties of tomatoes I've never even heard of. (The ones I the photo below are called 'Momotaro' and are super easy to eat just by themselves. And we got to discuss Kamen Rider with the guy who sold them to us. Best produce sale ever.) We also got some honey from hives kept in the Los Angeles National Forest, and some butter and cheese from a cheesemaker in Petaluma. And local eggs, too!

At any rate, I'd been struck by a NEED for fresh, local, seasonal fruit for one simple reason. I wanted to take a lot of this:

And turn it into this:

Because I have been, once again bitten by the preserving bug. We have here peach jam (tasted only in the making thus far. But I have Plans. Tasty, delicious plans.) plum jam, which might be my latest addiction, and peach/plum butter. Oh! And I forgot the classic old dill pickles, which really won't be ready till October sometime. (Kindly forgive the mess on my cutting board! I've been making bread today to eat all this lovely stuff on...)

There are also some nectarines that I chucked in the freezer that I can't decide what to do with. I'm ALSO looking forward to the future- I've heard wonderful things about blueberry butter, and I have designs on things like apple butter, several varieties of marmalade, and if I am REALLY lucky I'll start a rumtopf pot or a vin de pamplemousse pot. The benefits of the latter, being of course that the fruit leftover once you've decanted the booze would make for some fine, fine marmalade. Can you just imagine? Oh, my mind reels! Also tomato sauce. Sadly not from my OWN tomatoes this year, since the heat and dryness here in the Valley has left my poor plants looking like this:

Yes, that IS an automatic watering device there in the pot. No, it hasn't helped a bit. It only took one day of 100+ temps and getting dried out to destroy the plant's heat tolerance, and even with some shade on it, that's pretty much what it looks like now. I hope that it'll last long enough for the three or four tomatoes to ripen before it dies completely. Ah well.

But next year! Such plans! Self watering CONTAINER, and some better prep, and I hope to be preserving my OWN tomatoes! Till then, I'll hit up the farmers market for a few pounds of heirloom fruit, and pin my hopes on the eggplants.