Another apple discovery

Here's a new apple I really like.

It is called Crimson Crisp and it definitely lives up to it's name--very crunchy and flavorful. Definitely one to look for again. It probably can't beat Gold Rush which is my all-time favorite late apple on the East Coast but it is certainly right up there with Honeycrisp. It's a bit sturdier than Honeycrisp with a firmer texture and a creamy rather than white flesh.

A few pictures from the wedding

Two high school classmates getting married back home. How could I miss it?

The ceremony was at Schnider Meadows. 

And a very determined ring bearer (his little sister thoroughly enjoyed her ride).

Here's everybody.

Yay!

Please pick up your chair!

Matt and Andrea

Stephanie made a beautiful cake. 

First dance. 

The girls are having fun!

It's fireworks, it's a fountain!

I haven't shared enough cool pictures of the area lately so here's a good one. We have a new high-tech fountain down the street near the ballpark. 

And here's the giant stinky flower,aka titan arum (Amorphophallus titanum),  at the botanic garden from July. OK, so I never actually got in to see it while it was in official full bloom but I saw before and after. You can see all the official portraits on their website. 

Getting close.

Here's a person for scale.

The official photography equipment.

And this is a sibling in the vegetative state.

It's wilted.

Surgery to remove pollen! We hope to get seeds from a specimen in California that bloomed a week later.

This just came in

It's really self-explanatory, isn't it?

My fingers finally stopped burning

Which definitely makes it easier to type this post. It was a good reason though: I made salsa today and the peppers were a bit hotter than I realized giving me an involuntary capsaicin treatment. The final product is quite tasty though. First things first, here's the recipe:

Mom’s Salsa

6 pounds fresh, ripe tomatoes

2 cups vinegar

½ cup brown sugar

1 tablespoon salt

3 onions, diced

2 bell peppers, diced

Hot peppers, minced, to taste

2 or 3 sticks of celery if you have any handy (I didn’t)

Scald and chunk tomatoes in eighths. Mix all ingredients.

Boil for 3 hours, watch toward end to avoid scorching. Mixture should reduce by half. Hot pack into clean jars, ½ inch headspace, process 15 minutes in boiling water bath.

I didn't take many pictures of the process because my hands were all wet but here is the kettle of cooking tomatoes.

And here is the finished product.

People like goats

The old Congressional Cemetery hired goatmowers last week. As you can see from these pictures, people like to see goats! Of course I shouldn't laugh...I biked over to see the goats too and I even took my camera.

(They were definitely mixed breeds, Erin.)

Here's the goats:

Pancake variation

As an experiment I made sourdough with farina. This was just plain wheat farina I bought in bulk at the natural food store, it did not have the extra wheat germ Mom likes to put in mush. It was a bit soupy last night when I mixed up the farina with water and sourdough but the granules absorbed water overnight and it was thick and sour this morning. Of course the ultimate test of sourdough is sourdough hotcakes so that's what I made. It worked great. The farina gave the pancakes slightly more texture and a nuttier flavor than plain flour does. It's a nice variation although I won't stop making the standard pancakes either.

As a reminder, here's the family pancake recipe. 

Sourdough Hot Cakes

Ingredients:

1 cup thick sourdough          (we use more)

½ cup dry skim milk powder

½ teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons sugar

¼ cup cooking oil

2 eggs, separated

1 teaspoon soda, dissolved in a tablespoon of water

Directions:

        Separate the egg yolks from whites. Beat whites until stiff, but not dry. Mix milk, salt, sugar, oil, egg yolks, and sourdough together in large mixing bowl. Add soda dissolved in water and stir just enough to mix. Gently fold in egg whites. Bake on medium hot griddle (350 degrees).

And here's pictures from the batch this morning.