Friday, July 1, 2022

Growing, Catching, And Cooking Stuff


That's what I did this morning. I bet y'all would appreciate it if I got new picking baskets, wouldn't you? Two days ago I turned the sprinklers on the garden all day long and the beans and cherry tomatoes and peas have made a comeback. We've been getting predictions for rain all week but haven't had much, most days none at all. It's rumbling and rolling out there right now, but as with so many things in life right now, I am not feeling a lot of hope for good chances of relief. 

I talked to Jessie this morning and Levon too. I asked him if he was having a good time with his brother and his cousins and he assured me that he was. I also asked if he was going to give me a hug when we see him soon. He allowed as how he would but he did not sound overly enthusiastic about it. Jessie says the cousins are all relating even more like siblings this year, even to the point of having more power struggles and conflicts. Nothing terrible, of course, and all normal and she said the hardest thing every day is separating them when it comes time for bed. She said all five of them spent the entire day yesterday peacefully building amazing things with Legos including a pizza parlor. I am pretty sure that those boys are not going to be very happy about coming home this year. I can't wait to get my eyes and hands on them. Vergil has arranged a fishing trip for Mr. Moon while we're there which is so very sweet. 

This afternoon my husband and I actually sat in the Glen Den and watched TV while he ordered some parts he needs online and I shelled the field peas I've picked. When I had to get up and attend to other things, he finished off the peas and we have more than I thought we did. Plenty for two meals, I think, and plenty more on the bushes. 


That may not look impressive to you if you've never known the ambrosia which is a bowl of field peas and rice, but if you have you do know what I'm talking about. The flavor is just so subtle and fresh and green and whole. That bowl right there- the contents of that- is one of the reasons people survived life in Florida in the early days. Peas and grits and sweet potatoes and game and fish and greens were the staples upon which people lived. A hog raised and butchered and smoked, and a cow to milk were necessary luxuries to round it all out. Crops of peas and corn and greens and sweet potatoes were fairly easy to grow, being heat tolerant and bug resistant. Throw in cane syrup and wild berries and fruit picked in season and you had dessert. The other day someone posted a question on Facebook- "If you had to make supper out of what you have in your yard and property, what would you be eating?" Someone had replied, "grass-clippings" and I felt so lucky, knowing that we could have venison or fish, peas, beans, tomatoes, potatoes, onions, garlic, and cucumbers. 
You can make a feast out of those ingredients. 
Oh. And eggs, of course. 

I wanted to get a picture of Violet and her child to show you how big that chick has gotten. I threw some stale raisin bran out by the back steps and they immediately began to peck away. 


Those babies will be full-grown soon. When I threw the cereal out, all of the chickens came running and I noticed that Darla left her kids way out by the hen house to come and peck at the bran flakes. They appeared confused for a few moments and then they ran to join her. She is lengthening the apron strings for sure. I wish I could tell which ones are roosters and which ones are hens (if indeed any of them are hens) so that I can name them and begin to feel affection for them. I may keep one rooster but definitely not two. 

Speaking of eating fish, I am going to pan fry these two pretties tonight. 


They will be good, I am sure. 
Grits, too, will be involved. 

Mr. Moon is leaving in the early morning to go back to the coast to fish with his friend and I am not unhappy about that. We had a good time today watching first a silly man-movie called Man From Toronto which was ridiculous and had some good lines in it. Woody Harrelson, Kevin Hart. I told him that since we'd watched a dick-flick, we should watch a chick-flick to balance things out and we watched about an hour of Love, Actually, which I know I've seen before but oh, who cares? 

Clean sheets. Martinis. 

Happy Friday. 




Love...Ms. Moon


28 comments:

  1. Lovely peaceful time at home, good to read about. Interesting how the cousins' relationships are developing.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I know the cousins love each other very much and enjoy playing together a lot. I think it's so wonderful that they have the opportunity to renew those friendships every summer.

      Delete
  2. vermilion snapper, holy catfish- you are a lucky pair of diners!! We have lettuce and zucchini and raccoons , if we were to eat what is on our property. So jealous of your garden and the vermilion snapper dinner!! YUM! And your bouquet- how charming and old fashioned it looks.- So, if they are a bunch of boy chickens , will you make a stew?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That snapper was excellent! I would not want to eat a raccoon. I wonder if it's any better than eating possum which I hear is pretty horrible.
      I do love those sweet roses.
      I don't know exactly what we'll do if we have a bunch of boy chickens. It's a conundrum every year.

      Delete
  3. Growing up in the sticks, my favorite way to have field peas and snaps was to lay whole pods of okra across the top of the peas as they were through cooking and steam them. I have lived in a huge metro area for over 50 years and finding either the peas or tender okra is as rare as hens teeth.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes. Field peas and okra go very well together and are generally ripe about the same time.

      Delete
  4. Is that May in the corner of the picture of three girls? Your roses look so sweet in that big vase.
    I wonder if I could batter dip mandevilla blossoms and treat them like elderflowers, in a hot frying pan.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes! Good eye, Joanne! That is my May.
      Hmmm... I have no idea if mandevilla blossoms are safe to eat. So. I just googled it. Supposedly they are not highly toxic but might cause tummy troubles so best not to. Have you ever eaten fried squash blossoms?

      Delete
  5. Of course children are better at living "in the moment" than we adults are. Maybe that's why Levon seemed a little off-hand with you. You're not there but you will be soon!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think you are exactly right. Out of sight, out of mind. I have a feeling though that their Boppy is still in their minds though. They do adore him.

      Delete
  6. That snapper looks delicious, even pre-cooked. I see nothing wrong with your picking baskets, I love them and used to have one myself. I need to buy another now, since I recently bought bean and carrot seeds to plant in the spring. I wondered what filed peas are every time I read about them and now I see the difference in shape, but do they grow differently from the regular peas?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes. Field peas are actually beans. Like pinto beans or baby limas. They grow like those. But for whatever reason, we call these "peas." There are two different varieties in that bowl. The lumpier ones are called crowder peas. They are very nice to eat.

      Delete
  7. I keep telling myself I need to start growing food again but so far I've not. I did plant 4 tomatoes in pots but the weather was so hot and dry they didn't do well. The two 'beefsteak' tomatoes I got were about 2" in diameter which is about as big as any of the others got before they turned red and then some critter found them all over night.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You know, it might just be smarter to pay local people who grow a lot of food for your fresh summer produce. It's probably cheaper in the long-run, too. Our tomatoes are NOT happy this summer.

      Delete
  8. I am no good at growing stuff. Luckily, my younger brother has a garden plot and he will share his bounty with us.
    Happy weekend!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Oh damn, that was me - Ellen D.- in that last post. I didn't notice that it said anonymous.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Oh shit, I did it again. There - now it says my name...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. How do you make it so that it does show your name? So many people are not being identified on blogger now.

      Delete
    2. Next to where it says Anonymous is a little gray drop-down arrow. I can click on that and select "Name/URL" and type in my name (I don't enter a URL) and "continue". Then it will show my name with the comment. I can finish the comment and click Publish. Hope that helps...

      Delete
  11. Oh, such bounty from your garden! I haven't eaten field peas in so many years, and I wish I could right now. I don't like regular peas -- but field peas are sublime with butter and salt.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Butter and salt or a little bit of bacon or ham and salt or even with olive oil and tamari. All very good. I was thinking about how lucky we are to get these delicious peas. No restaurant in the world that I know of could afford to put them on a menu. Buying fresh ones is exorbitantly expensive.

      Delete
  12. I have peace and quiet right now. Jack is sleeping, he woke up at 3am with a tummyache and never went back to sleep. My husband and his brother have gone down to Wetaskiwin to visit their father. I am a fan of peace and quiet and I'm guessing you'll enjoy yours as well:)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Poor baby. And I doubt you got much sleep after three a.m. either.
      I'm glad your husband has your brother visiting. And yes, you know me- I do like my peace and my quiet.

      Delete
  13. if field peas are anything like fava beans, I would LOVE them! If we had to eat what we grow, we'd be eating ground squirrels (vermin) chives , oregano and lots of dirt! How's that for awful! Rough week here, sorry, but will share.....lost our dear Aussie on Wed. morning just 4 days after diagnosis of invasive metastatic cancer. We are heartbroken and just processing. Now it's just hubby and I instead of the 3 of us........very hard and sad to adjust to after 11 years. At least he was home and we helped guide him through the portal and set him free.
    Susan M

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I've never had fava beans! Isn't that weird?
      I'm so sorry that your dear Aussie passed on to that other place but I'm really glad that you and your husband were there with him at home when he truly needed you. That's so precious. I know you are grieving.

      Delete
  14. 37 paddington: that summer cousin bonding lasts a lifetime. I know from my own two, who are as bonded as siblings with the cousin they spent summers with. The cousins who live in the same place bond for a lifetime too. I know from three cousins in particular who are truly my sisters. August and Levon are rich indeed.

    ReplyDelete
  15. I'm glad you caught up with Levon and Jessie. And I hope you don't have many roosters!

    ReplyDelete

Tell me, sweeties. Tell me what you think.