What a georgeous day! Let's do some gardening!

By column back to front: tomatillo, Napoli & ? tomato; black cherry & honor bright tomato, gooseberry; hyssop, marjoram long purple eggplant

A closer look at the hyssop which is cute as a button

Columns (or rows depending on your perspective) back to front (left to right): society chives, thyme (because you need enough thyme to last a lifetime), eggplant purple something, eggplant antigua; tobacco Wisconsin something, tobacco little Dutch, scarlet runner bean (for fun), two more tobaccos.

A closer look at some tobacco. When they get just a tad larger I'll replant to individual pots.

A bunch of peppers

There are more on the shelf below and in the walk-up green house in front of the window in the dining room. And some flats are still sitting on the heat mat. Celery, celeriac, fennel and such all take a long time to germinate. But all in all I think we're off to a fine start.

Recipe: Tomatillo Salsa

on the left

This is the salsa for chips! Or anything else, for that matter. As Mr. Big says, "This is the freshest salsa we make." Not that all of our salsas aren't fresh-- but this one really tastes fresh!

The recipe (below) begins:

The combination of tomatillos, chilies and cilantro creates a salsa with an authentic Mexican taste. In addition to making a great dip for corn chips, this salsa works well as a condiment for fajitas, burritos and quesadillas.

Recipe: Roasted Tomatillo-Chipotle Salsa

on the right

This was a more involved recipe than other salsas we've made so we took the time to read the recipe through together before we began. Along the way, Mr. Big Food remarked, "No. It doesn't need to be 15 minutes," or some such thing. So we made a few changes to the original (below) and I've noted those in red. 

About Roasted Tomatillo-Chipotle Salsa... . I couldn't find chipotle or cascabel peppers at the Kroger in Tupelo, so we substituted pasilla peppers. This substitution may have made a difference in flavor. That said, this is not a salsa that I'd enjoy on a chip-- although Mr. Big Food would. It's... savory (?). Deep. Having tasted it, I think that the suggestion at the beginning of the recipe would be spectacular!

“For a sensational entrée, marinate a pork shoulder blade roast in this salsa overnight in the refrigerator. Then slow-roast it for about 10 hours in a slow cooker, until it practically shreds itself. If you prefer, spoon it into warm Kaiser or onion buns and enjoy a great meal of good-ole-boy pulled pork.”