On my last visit to the allotment, I noticed that I have a Uchiki Kuri squash growing. It's a little smaller than tennis ball sized but seems to have shot out of nowhere, I didn't see it when I last looked. It's a shame that it's so late in the season as it's bound to come to nothing now. I shall have a go at growing squash again next year. I don't have any seeds left from this year so I will have fun looking at all the different varieties again and making my choices. There's so many different kinds to choose from, and many look so different, I'm sure they'll all taste different too.
We've got rain today and it's got really cold over the last few days, especially on an evening. Frost has been forecast in some parts of the country, and here was I hoping for an Indian summer.
We'll just have to hope that the frost is a temporary blip
ReplyDeleteI hope so. I'd like to be harvesting my beans for a while longer yet seeing as they've only just started producing.
DeleteFried Green Tomatoes :) Never tried it myself though. Does the banana thing work with tomatoes? Again, never tried it.
ReplyDeleteIt's persisting it down here and it's cold too :(
I've never tried fried green tomatoes either, I don't know if I like the sound of them but I may have to give them a go if my tomatoes don't ripen. My grandparents used to wrap the tomatoes up in a wool jumper and put them in a drawer until they ripened, that seemed to work for them.
DeleteI think you might be needing the wool jumpers by the sounds of it. It hasn't been a great summer - even the blackberries in the hedgerows are small. Mind you - that might be a good sign - isn't there some saying about a lot of plump berries and harsh winters? In which case we might all be lying in the sun, sipping Pimms by next Friday.
ReplyDeleteI think you're right. I haven't heard that saying before but after the last couple of winters, not to mention this summer, I think we're due a mild winter this year, it's only fair.
ReplyDeleteMy tomatoes have been a dead loss.
ReplyDeleteLove from Mum
xx
You're not alone this year. There's been a lot of blight around too, though luckily I've missed that.
DeleteJo, you can be pretty sure that your green tomatoes WILL ripen. They always do! How many did you get from your Incas plant(s)?
ReplyDeleteI hope so. I got fourteen tomatoes off two Incas plants which weighed one and a half pounds. They're the ones on the right hand side of the photo. I haven't tasted them yet as they're all still green, but I've already decided that I'm going back to San Marzano next year.
DeleteI started my tomatoes off very very early this year and have been really disappointed with the harvest. I have got a few green ones left which are on the windowsill in the kitchen hopefully to ripen soon! I think it has been a poor year for most things edible.
ReplyDeleteI think it's been especially poor for tomatoes this year. Most either haven't ripened or have suffered from blight. Let's hope we get a better year next year.
DeleteI'm afraid to say the frosts have started here in Sussex Jo.
ReplyDeleteI heard that putting a banana in with tomatoes ripens them. Or was that a tomato in with bananas?
It's far too early for frosts, I haven't finished with summer yet. It's the ethylene gas which a ripe banana gives off which helps the tomatoes to ripen. I may have to resort to that if they don't ripen on the windowsill.
DeleteIt really hasn't been a good year for tomatoes generally has it, despite me having my best year so far.
ReplyDeleteWe could still get an Indian summer as a few years ago it was really good in mid October.
Flighty xx
It hasn't been a good year for tomatoes, there's been lots of blight around, though I've been lucky in that respect. If we do get an Indian summer, I hope the frosts haven't killed everything off beforehand.
DeleteOur indoor tomatoes were fine - they are just finishing now, but the outdoor ones got blight so that was a disaster. I have found Anna Schwarz which is a Hubbard squash is a good one - not pretty, but grows well and tastes good. I get the seeds from the Real Seed Company.
ReplyDeletePomona x
Sorry to hear about the blighted tomatoes, the weather this year has helped it along. Thank you for the squash recommendation, I shall look that one up. It's always good to hear of things which do well.
DeleteI'm sorry to hear about your tomatoes! My crop last season in NZ was awful as well -- it sounds like it was not a good year for tomatoes anywhere.
ReplyDeleteI hope you find a squash you enjoy -- I've never grown any (yet)! :)
Thank you for visiting and leaving a comment. I think we've had odd weather the world over just lately. Let's hope everything gets back to normal again soon.
DeleteI picked most of my tomatoes off the vines on Friday Jo as we were forecast a cold night. Glad that I did as we had a slight frost. I think that they will still ripen. Maybe the weather will come good in October - we can but hope :)
ReplyDeleteIt sounds as though we're both at the same stage with our tomatoes. The weather here today is dreadful, it hasn't got light yet.
DeleteWell that certainly is a lot of green tomatoes and I like you am not a huge chutney lover so I did a little but of looking into what I could do with them and I found this great recipe,
ReplyDeleteGreen Tomato Bread
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 50 mins
Total Time: 1 hour
Serves: 20
Ingredients
· ½ cup canola oil
· 8 ounces non-fat yoghurt, plain
· 3 large eggs
· 2 cups sugar
· 2 cups green tomatoes, pureed, juice drained and discarded
· 2 cups all-purpose flour
· 1 cup whole wheat flour
· ½ teaspoon baking powder
· 1 teaspoon baking soda
· 2 teaspoons cinnamon
· ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
· ⅛ teaspoon salt
· ½ teaspoon ground cloves
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour two loaf pans. Combine oil, yoghurt, eggs, sugar and green tomatoes in a large bowl and mix well. Sift together all purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, and spices and add to wet ingredients along with the whole wheat flour. Stir together just until combined. Divide evenly between two prepared pans and bake just until a toothpick comes clean from the centre of the bread, about 45 minutes. Let cool in pans, then remove. To retain moisture, wrap in plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator. May be frozen.
Not sure If I will get around to making it but it stood out as very different from the usual things to do with your green tomatoes.
Fingers crossed for a better season next year!!
That sounds really interesting. I might give it a go if my tomatoes don't ripen. I'm with you keeping my fingers crossed for a better season next year.
DeleteJust catching up, Jo - a few days after your post and after seeing terrible floods in Yorkshire on the news. I hope that you and your family are all okay. I read that they've closed the A1 near where I used to live (Church Fenton near Tadcaster). I haven't gathered my green tomatoes but it seems the outdoors ones have been more prolific than my balcony toms. I've had ONE tiny tomato taste this year so hoping the rest will ripen. Same story with my peppers! Roll on next year, I think!
ReplyDeleteThank you for your concern. Luckily, we were unaffected by the floods, but my heart goes out to all those people who weren't so lucky. My tomatoes are ripening well on the windowsill, there's quite a few on their way to being red but many are still green.
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