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Tomatoes: Last Call

tomatoes

Tomato Goodness

It’s hard to say goodbye to summer tomatoes.  Unless you buy heirlooms or ‘cherries’, the tomatoes in the store are flavorless.  I used to think I was having a streak of bad luck, until I read that farmers have spent nearly 70 years perfecting the look of the tomato, at the expense of flavor.  They’ve removed the sweet, wonderful taste.

We grow our own every summer and enjoy the harvest for a few months.  This year we had plenty of orange cherry tomatoes, a few red heirlooms, one or two orange ones and a ton of Roma’s.

It’s mid-October now, and the plants are looking tired.  Today I finally pruned away the dying branches on most of them.  I’m still seeing one or two small tomatoes a day, so it’s hard to let them go.

Spent tomato plants

Spent tomato plants

The Roma plant is still going strong, pumping out at least a dozen or so a day.  Even the garden pests can’t keep up, so we’ve had plenty for salads and salsa.

If you’re a salsa fan, here is my husband’s quick and easy recipe:

  • 6 – 12 tomatoes (we’re using the Roma)
  • 1/2 sweet or yellow onion
  • a few ounces of Jalapeno peppers (or to taste)

Combine and blend.  Serve with corn tortilla chips or as a garnish.

Halloween Countdown:

cat inflatable

Halloween at our house

16 thoughts on “Tomatoes: Last Call”

  5. Jim would love if we grew tomatoes in a home garden, he never likes store bought either. I’m a weirdo and love them really firm/unripe-almost green. I normally buy Roma because of the size. I like that you can slice and use the entire tomato for one sandwich. It’s really amazing that a plant looking so spent can still produce. Mother Nature is a wonder, all those tomato’s in one tiny seed. I just shake my head when I think of it.

    Your yard MUST be the envy of the neighbourhood! LOL that is one giant kitty cat. Looks like Slinky on steroids 😀 What’s that hanging off your canopy? Looks like the stockings I bought in San Francisco. Your party is going to be a riot!

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    • They are a good size for sandwiches. I never thought of that. They add so much flavor and juice.

      Interesting that you like green tomatoes. Honestly, I’ve not tried one green so I can’t say I don’t like them. What I don’t like are the red ones that have no juice or flavor. They don’t taste bad so much as they taste like nothing.

      It is amazing that one seed can produce plants holding an abundance of fruits and vegetables. It amazes me every time I plant something, and see where it goes a few months later. Nature at its finest.

      Our yard is a hit with the under-five crowd and I love that. Little ones stop by in the evening with their parents. If I’m outside we chat. If I’m in the kitchen I smile and wave. It is a lot of fun.

      LOL! I forgot about your SF stockings. That’s the spider with the moveable head. It terrifies the neighborhood dogs when we have it down on the lawn. Something about the sudden movement freaks them out. It doesn’t cause a ruckus when it’s up high on the canopy, and it works thematically there, too.

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      • Oh cool spider! I just had a picture of your house flying away in the wind. Like that cute little house in ‘Up’. But instead of colourful balloons, yours is being carried off by goblins, spiders and giant cats..LOL. Let’s hope not. Was the velcro you sewed on for the kitty cat?

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        • I love that image! That was a delightful movie, too, wasn’t it?

          Yes. The inflatable cat came with a zipper but it got stuck and we couldn’t get it to budge. It has to be air tight to stay inflated. I removed the zipper and added Velcro in its place. It’s working out well.

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