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Back from Vacation

We had a terrific vacation in Alaska. The scenery was gorgeous, the hiking exhilarating, and the float plane trips amazing. I was inspired by the folks I spoke with who grow and hunt food for subsistence. And when we returned home there was a bumper crop of cherry tomatoes waiting for caprese salads.

Last weekend I really dug in and preserved a bunch with both my own garden bounty and some from the farmers market. I canned roasted salsa with tomatoes, hot peppers, and garlic from my garden and an onion from the farmers market. I also canned spicy green bean pickles, garlic cucumber pickle chips, and peach butter.

Our herbs are also abundant so I made and froze fennel frond pesto and Thai basil pesto. The second I make with Thai basil, cashews, salt, garlic, Thai chilis, and coconut oil. It's delicious tossed with rice or rice noodles or stirred into a Thai-spiced pumpkin soup I make in the autumn.

Other years I have found myself forgetting to enjoy fruits and vegetables at the peak of ripeness because I get so obsessed with canning and freezing. This year I committed to make sure I taste everything too. So I buy and harvest more than I need for each recipe. Don't forget to enjoy it all!
The perfect peach for snacking!

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