Blogger-vention

Ok, ok--I get it! Thank you to the 15 or so of you that sat me down, cyber-style and admonished me to get back at it. There are always excuses why blogs go astray, so I will spare you the grovelling and will appease you with a mere three.

1. I did get MARRIED this summer--As of August 17th, We are now Mr. and Mrs. David Scott Graboski! We've been engaged forever, and we finally found a week that all of the kids could get here. It was a very special week of events that we were blessed to share with family and friends. We are in the process of creating a photo book which we will share SOON.

2. It is always a wild ride with six kids:

A--We thoroughly enjoyed an increasing amount of time with Scott's girls Angela and Kennedi. They are beautiful girls, fun and surprising reflections of their father in their own unique ways.

B--Alannah has been spending the Summer in a more therapeutic setting as we all get to know her diagnoses a bit better. What seemed like an impossible and painful decision is (as it always does!) steadily melding into another one of God's mysteriously wondrous blessings.

C--Aidan is off this week to her new technical high school. We are very proud of her! She made the decision to go into carpentry, and did all of the application and interview process on her own. She will have to work very hard, as getting into her technical area of choice will be competitive. If she stays with it, she will graduate high school and receive an associate's degree/trade certification at the same time.

D--Susie finally came "of age" this summer and got her ears pierced! She is going to take dance this year which I am THRILLED about. I think she has some serious potential.

E--Dan had grown and grown and grown this summer! He is finally old enough to keep up with the boys in the neighborhood, and seems to enjoy Scott's company more than mine.

3. It wouldn't be US without the GARDEN! Thirty quarts of marinara sauce, tons of pickles.... All of the cherry tomatoes we planted last year came back in rouge force.

On today's garden management menu:
Scott's Salsa, Stuffed Cherry Peppers and Allison's cherry tomato jam.

I have no idea what Scott puts in/does to his salsa. (It smokes, and makes weird moaning noises...)

The cherry peppers are stuffed with Parmesan cheese and prosciutto and packed in a garlic oil dressing. It is REALLY hard to wait 2 weeks for them to pickle. They taste soooooo good.

I experimented with the cherry tomato jam and came up with these two varieties:

Red Savory/Spicy Tomato Jam
Ten 4 ounce jars
*serve as a snack/appetizer with Italian hard cheese and crackers, or thin slices of toasted french bread

3 pounds ripe, red cherry tomatoes, chopped fine in food processor
2-3 hot red peppers (I used fresno chilis) chopped fine
1/2 onion chopped fine
3-4 cloves garlic chopped fine
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 white wine vinegar
1 cup chopped fresh basil
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
1-2 sprigs fresh thyme (pull leaves off)
1 small sprig rosemary
1-2 tbsp. dried oregeno
1/2 fresh lemon cut into wedges, remove seeds, squeeze slightly into everything else
1 tsp. salt
1 bay leaf
black pepper to taste

Mix everything in a large, semi-deep skillet. Cook on high until bubbly, then turn down heat and simmer gently until jam consistency--approx. 1.5 hours. Spoon into jars, process safely.

Sweet Green Tomato Jam
ten 4 ounce jars
*A sweet, citrus/mint jam. Serve with cream cheese, chopped green onion and crackers for a light, springy snack

3 pounds fresh green cherry tomatoes, chopped fine in food processor
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 white wine (I used the chardonnay left over from the wedding...)
2 cups fresh mint, chopped (I used lemon balm and peppermint)
1 whole lemon, seeded and chopped fine in the food processor (peel and all)
3-4 sprigs fresh thyme
1 whole clove (optional)
pinch salt
Green food coloring (mint turns a weird color when heated... trust me!)

Put everything in a large, semi-deep skillet and bring to a boil. Turn down and simmer gently until jam consistency, about 1.5 hours. Spoon into jars, process safely.

What else are you going to do with cherry tomatoes? :)

These are really pretty. They would probably make a nice hostess gift or little birthday gift for a friend or co-worker.