Abundance!

Wow, this is really the time of year where things feel ABUNDANT!

This is after a trip to the grocery last night. I decided that my hanging basket where I put fruit couldn't hold all the 'nanas' so I used my repurposed 'treat tray' for them. Those HUGE green peppers atop the taters came from MY garden. WOO HOO!

The next photo is a box o' blueberries from the grocery.

Here is what we did with them this morning.

I know I know....I need to polish my butter dish.

The following picture is of the carrots and tomatoes from my garden today.

also a few black beans....the rest are
.....right here...wanna come shell them?

I am excited to share my 'bounty' with you. Tonight I am making Tilapia so no goodies from my garden for that. However, I plan to make a crockpot roast tonight with all my usual goodies and it will be more special that the carrots are from my garden. I will also put a few dices of gr. pepper for flavor.

Then Monday I am going to make Taco Soup with my tomatoes, green peppers and black beans. Oddly, buying them might have been cheaper than the time I have spent shelling etc... but it WILL taste better. I think I might some day be 'self sufficient' if I can pull it off. Don't know if I could drink full-fat milk from goats, though, as I am a SKIM drinker. ;D

For those that have never made an easy crock pot roast here is the SECRET!

Get crock pot out and on. Get a regular skillet(preferaby NOT nonstick) nearly screaming hot. Coarse salt and pepper both sides of your roast. (I also add ground red pepper and miscellanious seasoning of the day). Listen to the sizzle. Start dicing your onions/peppers (your choice but I say ONION for sure, cut big and remove if you don't like THEM, but like the flavor). When roast is SEARED on bottom it will come loose EASY. Flip do other side. The INSTANT it is out shove in crock pot, put on lid. Now take about 3 cups of water and "Deglaze" your pan. I will often put a few ounces of soy sauce in to caramlize first, but YOUR call. Scrape up all carmalized meat and add in your onions, garlic, peppers and seasoning to taste. (I use ALOT of garlic).

Dump hot liquid over roast, put lid on. Put on high for about an hour then low for all night/day if you can. Add taters and carrots about 2hrs before dinner time. (the larger you cut them the longer they need to cook).

You can cook a really cheap cut of roast like this and put it all in fridge for a few hours and skim off the fat or use leaner/better meat. No matter what meat it will be FORK tender and tasty.

If you have leftovers. Add a few cans of tomatoes (homegrown if you can :D) and random veggies (canned/fresh/frozen) and cook for awhile and you have a heap of GREAT beef stew/soup. I have made one roast and keep adding vegs and had a weeks worth of food, when we were having 'lean' times.

ENJOY friends and be sure to be Thankful for all you have today!