Since Tuesday afternoon I’ve been trying to think of ways to use up the 6 pounds of wonderful heirloom tomatoes we got in this week’s farm share. I’m one of those strange people who don’t particularly love raw tomatoes. I enjoy fresh salsa, bruschetta (which I made for lunch today), and Caprese salad, but a girl can only make so much of those in any given week, you know? I also am picky about my tomato sauce. My husband makes an *amazing* sauce that requires Tuttorosso crushed tomatoes — he can’t get the same taste from fresh ones and really, why mess with a good thing? But there had to be some way I could easily use these:

And that’s when it dawned on me (actually, it dawned on me just before I fell asleep last night): stewed tomatoes!!! I remember my mom and Babci both making stewed tomatoes from the ‘maters in my Uncle Frank’s graden. I think Babci used to can them, but since I have yet to dive into the world of home canning (though believe me — it’s on the horizon) I figure I can freeze them easily and then use in soups, stews, chili, or various recipes. They’re also good as a side dish. My mom and grandmother made them on the stove, but I’m going to make them in my Crock Pot!

Slow Cooker Stewed Tomatoes

• 6 whole to 8 large ripe tomatoes
• 2 tablespoons butter or margarine
• 1 medium onion — thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup chopped celery
• 1/4 cup chopped green pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon dried sweet basil
• 1 small bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley

Quickly dip tomatoes in boiling water; remove skin. Quarter tomatoes and remove core and seeds. In slow-cooker, combine all ingredients except parsley. Cover and cook on low 8 to 10 hours. Remove bay leaf. Sprinkle top with parsley. Makes 4 to 5 servings. Note: Recipe can be doubled and still fit in a 3 1/2 quart slow-cooker.

For more mouth-watering recipes, be sure to check out this week’s edition of Slow Cooking Thursday!

Well, clearly the summer’s harvest is rocking and rolling. Check out last night’s haul! OMG, look at all those tomatoes! And our farm has actually had an animal (or several) that has been eating them up, so just imagine what we’d be getting otherwise. Here is the breakdown:

6 lbs. of tomatoes
2 green peppers
1 red pepper
2 cukes
3 leeks
2 zucchini
carrots (I don’t remember how much)
3 squash
3 lbs (I think) of potatoes
2 lbs onions
3 heads lettuce
1 melon (we picked a cantaloupe - last of the season)

PLUS, PYO cherry tomatoes, basil, dill, cilantro, parsely, scallions, beans (didn’t pick any this week), and flowers.

Jake apparently ate more cherry tomatoes than he picked. Man, I never met a kid who likes tomatoes as much as him, especially considering that neither Drew nor I particularly love them. But I tried one and even I think they’re tasty! The heirlooms are delicious. We had them in a salad at lunch (of course we had a salad in prepration for fair food tonight, LOL!). In other good news, the eggplant curse is broken!!! Note the absolutely lack of eggplant this week. I have to say that I am rather relieved.

As for plans for the veggies… I think I’m going to try a recipe for potato and leek gratin that was in this week’s CSA newsletter. Maybe some tomato-zucchini soup? Minestrone? Maybe I’ll blanch and freeze the squash? Or make chocolate and zucchini bread? I really don’t have anything set in stone, so we’ll just see what I feel like

With this unseasonable (but absolutely gorgeous!) weather we’ve been having, there has been little need to turn on the A/C when we get in the car. But I remember when I was a kid, our ‘83 Chevvy Citation didn’t even have auto air conditioning so it wasn’t even an option! Nowadays we expect it as a standard feature and when it fails… well, that’s just a disaster. Luckily we have never had to replace an AC Compressor, but if you are in need of parts, check out 1AirConditioning.com. With free shipping and a warrantee on all parts, you’ll save gas AND get your AC all fixed up!

Lately I’ve been trying to get a little more freelance work. I had mentioned this to my good friend Lisanne who said that she’d pass on my name to her boss at the local paper she writes for (they have an edition for the county that I live in as well). Well guess what? This week I got two assignments! I am super excited about them, but a little nervous too. It’s been such a long time since I’ve interviewed people. I was such a ball of nerves calling to schedule my interviews but the people were both really nice and I was able to schedule both of them on Friday so I can go from one to the other. I’m writing about the 10th anniversary of a local jewelry shop and about a new gourmet burger shop. I think it will be really fun to meet people in the community as well as write about and support small businesses. So thanks again Lisanne! I *so* appreciate it!

There are only 15 days until school starts. Yes, I have a countdown going. Actually I think Jake is ready to head back too. He’s making up assignments for himself and trying to “teach” his little brother various things. He also has been watching the “Balloon School” DVD (how we learned to make the balloon animals for Jake’s party) because it’s a kind of “school.” LOL!

Luckily we lucked out this year as far as a school supply list. I expected quite a bit, but all we needed to buy was a backpack, a sturdy plastic pencil box, and two-pocket portfolios to contain homework assignments as well as other papers the school sends home. What an organizational freak like myself loves about this time of year is whipping out my Dymo and labelling all the new supplies! I put his name on everything (well, except the outside of his backpack, obviously). Plus, I have my own system for keeping track of school paperwork, so I am going to label file folders too to help keep the field trip permission slips separate from fundraising catalogs. I guess I don’t really *need* to do that, but it looks so much nicer than my handwriting. Please tell me I am not the only one who has a love affair with her label maker!

I’m so excited! This afternoon we are going to the Dutchess County Fair over in Rhinebeck. We haven’t gone in a few years, and I think the boys will really enjoy it. I picked up discounted tickets last week, and kids are free, so I was able to save a little money on admission (only to spend it on food I am sure)! The last time we were there (probably four years ago) I tried a fried Oreo. It was OK. I liked it, but I probably won’t waste my calories on that again. I am hoping to indulge in some fried dough (preferably apples & cinnamon or powdered sugar — though Drew likes tomato sauce on his). We’ll see what else they have. Maybe fried mushrooms… or a loaded baked potato… or candy apples. Mmm! What are some of your favorite fair foods?

We’ve been talking about replacing our Jeep Liberty for months, it seems, and we keep putting it off. But I really would like to replace it before November when it will have to be inspected. We’re still not sure what car we’re interested in (though we have a couple ideas), so on Sundays we’ve been walking around some of the local car dealerships to get ideas without being hounded by salespeople. We checked out a couple of Passats, but I’m not really sure that’s the right car for us. Of course, we could always get a Volkswagen turbocharger and zip along our little country roads. We’d be like our neighbor with his turbo Eclipse, LOL! He might be interested in Turbocharge Pros because they have a great selection and I bet a young guy like him would love shopping there. Or anyone who is really into cars.