Faith, Folklore, and Friends

With all the rain we have had this spring and summer, we have had an abundance of squash.  I've shared with my neighbors and cooked it every way I know how.  Still, the squash keep coming. About 35 years ago, I found this recipe for squash pickles in a magazine, and have been making them since.  They are so good! First, slice 8 cups squash in a big bowl. Add 3 cups sliced onions. Cover with 1 cup canning salt. Cover it all with ice cubes.  Let sit for an hour; rinse well. In a large pot, combine 3 cups sugar, 2 cups vinegar, 2 Tablespoons mustard seed, 1 Tablespoon turmeric. Boil for about 5-10 minutes. Pour squash/onion mixture into the pot and let heat.  Do not boil. Pack into hot, sterilized jars (I use pints).  Process in a water bath for five minutes. This recipe makes six pints. The turmeric makes the pickles a bright yellow.  It will stain your cooking utensils but will wear off quickly.  I lov...

Thanks to the Alabama Cooperative Extension System and all the other sponsors listed on the sign, Florence has its first and very popular community garden. Hub, who needed volunteer hours to complete his Master Gardener certification, did a lot of work helping build these 4' x 8' raised beds. There are approximately fifty raised beds, and all of them are full. The raised beds were constructed using pressure-treated lumber, then filled with compost, some of it consisting of decomposed trash from ginning cotton.  Soil tests were done, then lime and commercial fertilizer were added. Each bed was irrigated. First choice of the beds was given to veterans; then to people who do not have access to land to grow a garden; people who are physically unable to garden traditional, non-raised bed gardens, and   those economically unable to build a garden. Unfortunately, there was not enough for everyone who wanted one. There is a large variety of plants, and alm...

Y'all know it doesn't take much to get me excited, and I was just tickled pink when I saw this. These vines are loaded with teensy weensy little orbs that will grow into plump, juicy muscadines. Last year, we spent quality time with our neighbors eating muscadines right off the vine.  Hopefully, we can do the same this year in October.  Of course, we will have to watch for little foxes and other creatures that like them as well as we do. The tomatoes are still small, but they are looking good! Hub waters them faithfully when it doesn't rain. That little squash is about an inch long, but squash grows quickly and we will be eating them in a few days.  There is about a hundred others about an inch long.  It always happens like that; there is just a few days between the time we are yearning for squash and the time we are tired of squash. I am loving this beautiful spring we have been gifted with! The world's favorite season is the spring....