HIPSTER CAT QUILT and SALSA RECIPES

My daughter recently made this adorable "Hipster Cat Quilt" for a friend's new baby.  It is such a fun quilt to make and the pattern is free or it is available as a made to order item in my Etsy store.  We made a change when making this cute quilt.  We quilted the background first as we did in some of the Quilted Skinnies that I made earlier. Then we added the applique of the cat with Heat n Bond .  After that, we finalized the applique with the blanket stitch using my sewing machine.  My daughter chose to do this quilt in pastels, but wouldn't it be cute using bold primary colors?  Here is this darling quilt, with friend's adorable baby boy!

Along with my passion for sewing and fiber arts, I love gardening and cooking.  We recently moved from the Pacific Northwest after living there for twenty-two years, where we lived on country size acreage. I had tons of room for my gardens there.  We moved in February from Oregon to a city-sized lot near urban Salt Lake City.  Even though my city lot is fairly large, we went from 1.25 acres to .39 acres. Our new home has a very large footprint so I had to think a little outside the box, but have succeeded fairly well in getting my garden going during this first year here.  I have flower beds going around the perimeter of the yard, but the previous owner hadn't planted much of anything so I pretty much had a blank slate for a yard and have incorporated food in with my flowers. We also built some raised beds. I do have a very nice lawn and a sprinkler system, which still needs some upgrades, but I feel very fortunate that we have a secondary water system for watering our yard and garden. Along with this blank slate, there was almost no shade as the previous owner didn't like trees??  I planted fourteen trees this first year so that eventually I will have a shady yard.

Along the garage's south and west sides there are flower beds where I decided would be great places to plant my tomatoes.  I always tend to go a little over-board with tomatoes because they are my favorite crop.  I planted thirty tomato plants in my garden this year.  Everyone thinks that I'm crazy but I tend to find varieties that I want to try. WOW!  I have had a bumper crop.  The brick on the house has absorbed the heat nicely and I am getting tons of tomatoes.

Here are my tomatoes on the south wall in mid July.  You can see a couple of red tomatoes peeking through the vines. Now they are booming. Below are raised beds that we built on the northern side of our backyard and my happy sunflowers behind my asparagus bed. Along the wall, I planted raspberries, blackberries, green beans, zucchini, and winter squash.

I planted twelve cabbages (I always tend to go overboard!). Early in the season, they were showing a few signs of bug activity so I powdered them with food grade Diatomaceous Earth.  I have the most beautiful cabbages this year and no aphids or other insects!

Along with tomatoes, I planted two tomatillo plants.  They grow cute little lantern like fruit which you peel off when they are ripe.  (Most of mine just fell off.)  They are quite sticky. I added some to my salsa this year and also tried out a recipe for Salsa Verde.  I substituted about four cups of tomatillos for some of the tomatoes. Roma type tomatoes work the best for this salsa as they are less juicy and more meaty, but I still drain off some of the liquid before adding the vinegar and spices.  I got this recipe from my cousin, Gay, who grew up on a dairy farm, thus, "till the cows come home." Jalapeno peppers can vary in hotness  from year to year, so you can add as many as you like.  Mine have tended to be on the mild side the past couple of years.  I really like this recipe because it is so flavorful and the house smells wonderful when I'm making it.  It is a big hit with my family! I got 25 pints from this recipe this year!  Yum! Yum!

GAY'S SALSA

8 quarts tomatoes, peeled and chopped (I like Roma the best)

8 cups onions chopped

4 cups green peppers chopped

2 1/2 cups white vinegar

1 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

1/2 cup salt

2 Tbsp garlic powder

2 tsp black pepper

Jalapeno peppers chopped (15-16 to taste)

Put all ingredients in a very large kettle and "cook it till the cows come home!"

Pour salsa into hot jars and process according to canning guidelines for your state.

Here is another recipe that will fill your home with a great aroma.  This is the first year that I have made this.  I hope it is good.  If the smell is any indicator, it should be delicious.

Tomatillo Green Salsa

• 5 cups chopped tomatillos
• 1-½ cups seeded, chopped long green chiles
• ½ cup seeded, finely chopped jalapeño peppers
• 4 cups chopped onions
• 1 cup bottled lemon or lime juice
• 6 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin (optional)
• 3 tablespoons dried oregano leaves (optional)
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper

I doubled this Tomatillo Green Salsa recipe and got eleven pints. Be sure to check out the link for more information in making this salsa. Be careful to not change vegetable and acid amounts when making salsa.  Follow canning guidelines for your state.  Higher altitudes will need longer canning times.  ENJOY!!