Meals from the garden (and pics)

Portobello mushroom sandwich with pesto creamcheese spread (got this idea from vegetarian times magazine), potato salad

Acorn squash stuffed with sweet apple, peach, raisin filling (from Joy of Cooking book), garlic mashed potatoes (with broccoli thrown in right at the end while mashing), salad with garden fresh tomatoes

Black eyed peas and rice with fresh pepper salsa, salad, bread

Eggplant parmesan with nutritional yeast cheesy sauce (from The Farm Vegetarian cookbook), spaghetti squash, green beans

Veggie plate with leftover black eyed peas, green beans, garlic and rosemary roasted potatoes, cornbread and salad

We keep fresh cucumbers in the fridge (refrigerator pickles) to eat with lunch and/or dinner. I also made a batch of fig newtons from the figs from our yard. This was the first time I've cooked with figs. I found the recipe online and modified it a little. They tasted just like the store bought ones only better:).

I took a picture of the stuffed acorn squash because I thought it was so pretty. We got 3 from the garden this week and should get at least 3 more soon. The vine borer did some major damage to these plants.


This is a picture of the yard long green beans. I planted the seeds not even knowing how long they would grow. I have been amazed since I've never seen anything like them before. Some of the longer ones measured about 24 inches! I just cut them up and serve them like regular green beans. The skin is a little tougher but they are still really good. We also have regular pole beans that are still producing. The bean crop was awesome this year.
The beautiful eggplant--I love the deep purple color. These plants have done really well. I've made several dishes of eggplant parmesan because it is a big hit at our house. I also make babaganoush to have served with fresh bread, chips or on sandwiches. The corn in this picture was one of our best. The corn was one of the crops that did not do so well. A lack of nutrition in the soil is the main problem but also inconsistent watering didn't help. They are very picky. We pulled them all up a few weeks ago and only got a few ears from all plants.
These are the hot peppers. Very fun to have around. We thought we would be making a lot more salsa this time of year but we haven't gotten as many tomatoes as planned. So I just cut up the peppers and serve them pretty regularly with meals.


I don't have a picture of the potatoes but we have been harvested them for the past month. I told someone the other day that I feel like the guy on Forest Gump who talks about all the ways to make shrimp. I've made roasted potato wedges, baked potato slices, fried potatoes cubed and shoestring, traditional mayo potato salad, vinegar potato salad, mashed potatoes. We eat them for breakfast lunch and dinner in all kinds of ways!

When mom was here last week she took the girls out and cut tons of fresh flowers from the yard. They made this beautiful arrangement. We have lots of the red zinnias in the yard so we've been bringing those in and keep them in vases around the house. This vase has sunflowers, lantana, zinnias, crape myrtle flowers, and then greenery from our bushes.