Due to the cosmic chaos that they call weather in North Texas, I now have three green tomatoes sitting on my windowsill, and they may ripen. We received some plants from a homegrown-tomato-obsessed friend last spring, and planted them far too late and gave them too little water and attention. But somehow two of them survived the summer heat, giving me one miniature plum tomato to taste, and then started to thrive in the very warm (but no longer brutal) heat of September. They even started flowering, and set some fruit. However, a small cold front has finally arrived (and about damn time, too; mid-November is not the season for short sleeves, IMHO), and tonight, as I drove home from a 10:00 PM grocery run, I saw the bank sign say it was 37 (or maybe it was 39?) degrees. So, after I put the groceries away, I went out and plucked the three biggest tomatoes. If the plants aren't dead in the morning, there are still a few small green orbs that might grow a bit more but for now -- let's see if at least ONE of the ones I picked will ripen.
In other news--
Last Sunday's supper was a homey feast more fitting for this weekend's weather (I think we had to turn on the stupid AC last weekend!) Elsa and Ron joined us for
- Hungarian Beef Stew from Cook's Illustrated (a.k.a. paprikash), with wide egg noodles, of course - very good, but despite CI's dire warnings, G-man and I agreed to try it with some smoked paprika next time
- Green beans & cauliflower, pan sauteed with red bell peppers
- Green salad with fennel and mushrooms
- Broiled fresh pineapple and Halloween candy for dessert
Tomorrow, my plan is
- Wedge Salad with blue cheese dressing
- Shepard's Pie - my ground beef version with mashed cauliflower instead of mashed potatoes on top
- Roasted squash with ginger, paprika, etc.
- Fro-yo & sugar-free ice cream for dessert
And for the two Thanksgiving potlucks at work this week -- at least one will be graced with my favorite pumpkin bread pudding.
And now, I'd better contemplate our Thanksgiving menu...turducken? barbecued turkey in the Weber? tofurkey? (just kidding on that last one; I love turkey too much for that!)
