take 2...sundried tomatoes

i'm no quitter. so i tried again.

and because i was determined to make this batch better than the last, i made a few modifications. first, i seeded my tomatoes.

and since with the seeds, comes a whole lot of liquid, i decided to be a bit more vigilant on the time. i checked them at 4 hours and did a bit of rearranging. since the tomatoes varied in size, some were more done than others.

and after about 30-45 minutes for the beefier tomatoes, they were all done...success!


(sorry the picture's kinda weird...i've had all kinds of trouble getting things uploaded. i think it's our internet.)

how does a garden grow?

so, i've always been a gardener. back in the day, the 4-h days to be exact, i got a blue ribbon in gardening. i had my own plot in my mom's garden. i have no idea what i grew, but i'm sure it was blue-ribbon worthy. i think there may have been a bell pepper involved.

last year, my garden-attempt was limited to a 6" by 18" container. cilantro (that didn't quite make it but provided a few happy salads). sage. dill. basil. the basil was a huge hit. it even made the trip to utah with me. basil = happiness.

so this year, when we found our humble abode, and it had a small garden plot i was beyond thrilled. so thrilled, i moved 72 square feet of rock so i could get to the dirt. thrilled. i sketched out my space and planned what i would plant. i sketched. re-sketched. consulted with the hubby. resketched. and then...i planted.


and watered.


and waited.


and watered. and waited.

(ps...that's my head poking out of the tomatoes. and they aren't giant just because they are taller than me...really, have you ever seen tomatoes that tall?)


it was a joyous process. and i loved every minute of it. i even loved when the giant tomatoes fell over. i even loved when the giant tomatoes fell over again. (i didn't so love when the hubby hurt his hand helping me with the stakes for the giant tomatoes. there may have been more than one can of cream of mushroom soup harmed in the process...sorry, to my hubby, not to the decimated cans.) but i loved it. and now...it's loving me back.


i love my garden.

sun-dried tomatoes

so...i have a plethora of tomatoes (see the future post on the garden...that's a attempt for sure!). and in trying to be domestic/frugal/un-wasteful i decided to make sun-dried tomatoes. easy. right.

actually, not so hard. i...
1. quartered my juliet tomatoes (a cross between a roma and a cherry...according to me)
2. placed them skin down on a piece of foil that was covering my pan
3. interspersed unpeeled garlic cloves
4. salted and peppered liberally
5. drizzled with olive oil


6. put in the oven @ 225F for 6 hours
7. checked them a few times
8. left them in for the full 6 hours (ignoring my intuition to take them out sooner)


9. removed burnt sun-dried tomatoes from the oven
10. curbed my disappointment

so, really it wasn't that hard, and my ingredients were mostly from my garden, so i didn't waste that much. and i learned that you should always follow your intuition. the end.