Pickles!

Squash, Zucchini, Cucumber, Potato: Field to Fork

A bountiful harvest has filled our table thanks to the hard work of Chief Farmhand, Chris and all our farm helpers. Oh my gracious, the delicious veggies and foods we've been eating lately and most of it comes straight from our own garden!  Here is a list to water your mouth! I'll continue to update this with links and recipes to these soon so check back often!

Squash & Zucchini 

• Fried squash (Delicious alone but to-die-for dipped in Ramsey Farms ranch dressing!)
• Squash-Zucchini Casserole
• Sauteed onions, zucchini, and squash - simple just saute sliced onions for 3 minutes or when they onions start to brown, add minced garlic saute for 1-2 more minutes, then add your sliced summer squash and saute for about 3-5 more minutes. Sprinkle with salt & pepper, grated parmesan, herbs, hot sauce, or flavored vinegars if you like or eat as-is!
• Zucchini-Potato Frittata
• Crab / Tuna - Zucchini Cakes
• Beef-Zucchini Pasta
• Zucchini-Squash-Onion Saute
• Stuffed Zucchini

Cucumbers

• Tilapia tacos with cucumber radish dressing
• Quick cucumber sauce
• Cucumber spread / dip / sandwiches
• Cucumber Salad
• Cucumber Slaw
• Cukes in Vinegar
• Bread & Butter Pickles
• Kosher Dill Pickles
• Refrigerator Pickles
• Lime Pickles

Potatoes

• Chicken n' Dumplin's
• Beef Stew with Kale and Potatoes

• Sausage, Potato, Kale Soup (We haven't actually eaten this since winter, but it is one of our family faves and uses potatoes and kale in a scrumptious way!)
• Roasted Potatoes - Simply toss sliced potatoes in melted butter or olive oil, sprinkle with salt, pepper, and seasonings of your choice, bake in casserole dish for 20-25 minutes at 375 degrees.
• Steamed New Potatoes - Oil a lidded glass casserole dish, add a small amount of water to the bottom, toss in small, tender new potatoes, add butter and seasoning. Bake, covered, in preheated oven at 350 degrees. Alternatively, add to steamer basket inside a stock pot. Simmer, covered, on medium-low heat until potatoes are tender. 
  
• Potatoes and Green Beans - Add whole small potatoes and larger potatoes cut into chunks to stock pot with butter, salt, and pepper and side meat (a piece of raw bacon). Bring to low boil, reduce heat, simmer on low for about 10-15 minutes then add green beans and heat on medium-high to low boil. Reduce heat to simmer, simmer another 20 to 30 minutes until beans are crisp-tender.
• Grilled Potatoes - Wrap seasoned potatoes in foil, grill 15-20 minutes.

Eat dinner together as a family, know where your food comes from...enjoy every bite! Send me your favorite garden-fresh recipes!

Random Yet Important Notes

• Life is a cycle. What is born will age and eventually die. Period. Everything.
• That whole tadpole to frog life cycle thing is the most awesome of all!
• Snakes can jump! I repeat. Snakes. Can. Jump!
• The sun can and will burn flesh.
• Cucumber harvest time is better than any ol' easter egg hunt!
• Thankful for a God who truly cares about the smallest details of our daily lives.
• I never stop feeling in awe of the sky.
• Hormones in commercially raised meats seem to have made humans fatter with bigger boobs. 
• Stop and take time for the little, ordinary things. It's vital.
• Coconut oil may well be one of the best things God and man ever made. 
• Ticks are nasty.
• Fels Naptha laundry soap will get out almost any stain from any clothing.
• Blackberries taste best straight from the thicket.
• Farmhand Chris is one of the hardest working people. In the universe!
• He'd make a good vet tech, too.
• Making pickles makes me happy!
• Dirt roads are better than paved roads. For dirt road ridin'. Amen.