I followed the old recipe from The Oregonian (by Jan something) but ended up with 6 jars rather than 4. The last jar (of the tops and ends) didn't get quite enough vinegar so it went straight into the fridge after processing. We opened them last night and they were still a bit too crunchy - I'm not sure if I didn't let them sit long enough before opening? Will have to try another jar in a few more weeks. I'm still hoping to try canning tomatoes if I can find some at the farmers market this week or next. And maybe put up some more peppers in the freezer and nay more fruit.
The Garden
Our tomatoes are starting to get hit hard by the powdery mildew and I just picked off a green tomato with the blossom end rot. I'm hoping that this is a solitary problem! Still no red tomatoes, but lots of orange cherry tomatoes and the large tomatoes are getting big - but still green. Next year we just have to start plants earlier and probably keep them covered longer. It's only getting up to the mid 60s, low 70s during the days now and chilly at night. Not the best tomato weather. The beans are still producing and happy, and the hot peppers are going gang busters. There's one lonely eggplant on the eggplant plant, almost as big as the plant itself. And the sweet peppers have a few fruit, but not much. I'm going to try to winter those over and see if that helps. Carrots and beets are doing fine when they aren't being dug up by the neighboring cat. And I planted a second crop of potatoes because we had some sprouted potatoes in the house - don't know if they will actually do anything this late in the year. The figs are almost done - we've enjoyed those greatly. And, well, that's the garden!
