Mangrove roots

Knobby Gumbo Limbo

Strangler Fig

Sprawling Ficus roots

Ficus roots up-close

This Gumbo Limbo base looks like elephant foot!

Read my article on Wandering Educators and view photos of the spectacular Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens. Here are a few extra photos that we didn’t have room for in the article.

My readers know I grow organic tomatoes and eat as many organic foods as possible. An article today in The Atlantic Monthly suggests that steering clear of toxins in our food is crucial in preventing cancer.

Organic food is indeed more costly than conventional, but I find that it lasts much longer in the fridge, tastes better and is naturally healthier. You can buy an organic broccoli from a farmer’s market, and weeks later it is still fresh. But buy a conventional broccoli from the grocery store, and it will go limp in a few days.

When we buy gallons of milk, we often don’t think about what the cows were fed or what chemicals and antibiotics are added to their diets and the milk itself. Should our daughters be drinking estrogen-induced milk? I think not. I insist on organic dairy products.

If we all stand together and demand more wholesome, hormone and chemical-free foods, we’re likely to get them. We’ll be healthier and our children will be grateful a they live to be older.

All take in my own garden.

I cannot keep up with my tomatoes! It looks like I will be canning again tomorrow. Some ways I have used my tomatoes this season include:

My kitchen counter is full of tomatoes!

• Tomato bruschetta
• Tomato sauce
• Turkey Meatballs
• Tomato Pesto salad
• Tomato and Mozzarella
• Greek Salad
• Fried Green Tomatoes
• Tomato Salsa
• Tomato Soup
• Veggie Soup
• Minestrone Soup
• Tomato and Lentil Soup
• Zucchini and Tomato Casserole
• Slow Oven-Roasted Tomatoes with Balsamic Vinegar

No wonder why I have an acid reflux problem!

I am always looking for ways to use my abundance of winter tomatoes (S Florida’s growing season). This is delicious!

Grilled Eggplant Spinach Tomato Soup

• 1 medium size eggplant, peeled and sliced into 3/4 inch slices
• 3 cups chicken stock
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 bag baby spinach
• 5 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1/2 onion
• 2 TBS basil pesto
• 2 TBS olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups chopped fresh tomatoes or canned

Brush eggplant both sides with olive oil. Grill until nice and golden on both sides with grill marks. About 4 minutes each side. Saute onions in olive oil until translucent with a bit of salt. Add garlic and saute for 2 minutes stirring so it does not burn. Add chicken stock and water. Add spinach and stir until it reduces in size. This will happen quickly. Chop up grilled eggplant and add the rest of the ingredients (except for pesto.) Let this all cook for about 15 minutes. Use an immersion blender to puree the soup. Add the pesto at the end and stir. Serve with croutons. This will make about 6 servings.

I canned my first organic tomatoes of the season today. Actually I turned this batch into sauce. This harvest is amazing, despite the freezing temps we had here for many days. I was diligent about covering the plants with tarps at night, and it paid off.

The canning process includes:

• washing the tomatoes
• cutting an X in them
• blanching them so the skin peels off easily
• chopping them
• Preparing and cooking the sauce for hours
• sterilizing the Ball jars and lids
• sterilizing the pot
• putting the sauce in jars
• swirling a (non-metallic) spatula along the inside walls of the jar to get the air out
• wiping the the rims of the jars clean
• sealing them with new lids
• boiling 3 quarts of water
• putting the hot water in the canner
• placing the jars in the canner
• securing the lid
• setting the burner on high
• waiting and watching, wait, wait, wait
• when the pressure gets up to 11, lowering the heat
• releasing steam from the release lever as needed to keep the pressure at 11
• when 15 mintues have passed with the pressure steady at 11, turning off the burner and removing pot from the heat
• waiting a long time until pressure lowers and pot cools for a long while (I wait 2+ hours)
• removing lid and jars from pot
• you’re done! well not yet . . .
• cleaning up your big mess!

Darwin, my (53 day old) standard poodle puppy wanted to get in (literally) on the canning action

Abundance of varieties, sizes and colors!

Gotta give them a good rinse

Yum! You can see the water marks on the jars from the canner.

Please pray for my organic tomatoes, which are starting to look weary

It is snowing in Central Florida as I write this. It is going to be 31 in Miami tonight. It is raining, cold and miserable. Our homes are equipped for extreme heat but not cold temps. My sympathies to all of you who endure freezing cold winters. My sympathies to you who are visiting Florida from cold climates only to be face with extreme cold here. When it’s cold in South Florida, it feels colder than it does anywhere else in the country at the same temp. Does that make any sense to you?

It has been rather chilly here for a number of days. Tonight it is going to dip down into the mid 30s! We do not have a working heater in our home! We had to cover our tomatoes just in case of a frost!

2 lb Big Beefsteak waiting to be ripened by the sun

2 Roof tarps designed for hurricane damage make great tomato plant  covers1

It is gardening season in Miami, and one of my favorite schools, Miami Christian, is starting its wonderful winter gardening program for the year. Elementary students plant organic vegetables in raised beds outside their classrooms. At harvest time, they sell their veggies to community members. And the money earned is sent to an orphanage is India. How splendid is that? The children learn so much, and they are doing such a generous deed for the needy at the same time.

Today I visited the school to talk to the students about what I know about organic gardening and especially keeping those pests off the plants. Then we planted a few tomato seedlings I grew for them. I praise Miami Christian for their project, and I adore their curious students!

There’s a whole lot more to come . . .

Raised beds make for easier gardening for the children

An eager student from Ms. Cabrera’s class plants a tomato seedling

A board in Ms. Cabrera’s classroom proudly displays photos and letters of thanks from the children in the Indian orphanage