My grandfather was a gardener. I didn’t really see him that much because he lived in Pittsburgh, and I grew up in Las Vegas, later moving to California. Despite that, his essence was always understood – he was a World War II Navy Veteran, and and avid gardener. He was in radar in the Navy. He was on ships. He had a sword hanging in his bedroom that was a bayonet to be attached at the end of a rifle. At the time, I was 11 years old, totally into the Thundercats, and would pretend that I was Lion-O. Picture this – unsheathing his sword, and yelling, “Thunder… Thunder… Thunder!!! THUNDERCATS – HOOOOOOOO!!!” Later in life I took much more interest in his gardening. He was also the quintessential gardener – being “organic” before that was even a thing.
I remember him growing tomatoes mostly. He grew tons of other stuff, but he really grew quite a bit of tomatoes. I remember climbing down their basement stairs in their North Versailles home, damp (always), and on the windowsill I saw a jar filled with tomatoes. I wanted more than anything to take that jar back with me to our home in Moreno Valley. He made quite a bit of jams too – black raspberry. I can’t say I’ve ever heard of black raspberries before him. I remember making tea with the mint leaves in his garden. (I didn’t like it at the time).
It’s funny how much you don’t realize how much of an impact someone has on your life, especially when they’re family. That day I saw the jar of tomatoes, and without speaking to him about it much at all, I realized that he was preserving those heavenly tomatoes from his garden so that he could enjoy them for longer than the season allowed.
It was then that the world opened up and I realized the importance of preserving. You always hear about how people would preserve foods while they were abundant so that they could get through the winter. Living in California and Las Vegas, the growing season is pretty much year round. We don’t deal with much frost. It gets friggin cold as all hell on the East Coast, and things don’t grow year round there like it does here. When I saw that jar of tomatoes, my curiosity of preserving was ignited, and this past Saturday that grew into a full-blown blaze! My friend Sara from My Imperfect Kitchen happens to be a Master Food Preserver, and for the Inland Empire Food Bloggers meeting, we got a formal lesson in how to properly preserve! (hence all of the plum bite photos!)
We preserved Plum Bites from Melissa’s Produce in a honey syrup.
We also made peach salsa.
I can’t wait to take the knowledge I gained and share it with you. In the mean time, I took full advantage of our abnormal summer thunderstorm, and tended to my own garden. The first picture on this post is one of my Grandpa’s tomatoes from a seed he gave me when I saw that jar of tomatoes on his basement windowsill. Here are some others from around my gardens:
Aside from gardening, New Mexico Hatch Chiles are almost in season. Stay tuned for some of this goodness. In the mean time, there are some hatch chile roasting events in Southern Cali.
Gelson’s- La Canada Flintridge, CA
635 Foothill Blvd.
La Cañada Flintridge, CA 91011
(818) 790-0563
Saturday August 15, 11am-4pm
Bristol Farms – Palm Desert, CA
73101 Country Club Dr.
Palm Desert, CA 92260
Saturday August 15th
Bristol Farms – La Jolla, CA
8510 Genesee Ave.
San Diego, CA 92122
Saturday August 22nd
Bristol Farms – Santa Monica , CA
3105 Wilshire Blvd.
Santa Monica, CA 90403
Saturday August 22nd
Gelsons- Santa Barbra, CA
3305 State Street
Santa Barbara, CA 93105
(805) 687-5810
Saturday August 22, 11am- 4pm
Gelson’s- Newport, CA
1660 San Miguel Drive
Newport Beach, CA 92660
(949) 644-8660
Saturday August 29, 11am- 4pm
Bristol Farms – Rolling Hills, CA
837 Silver Spur Rd.
Rolling Hills Estates, CA 90274
Saturday August 29th
Bristol Farms – Manhattan Beach, CA
1570 Rosecrans Ave.
Manhattan Beach, CA 90266
Saturday August 29th
Bristol Farms – South Pasadena, CA
606 Fair Oaks Ave.
South Pasadena, CA 91030
Saturday September 5th
Bristol Farms – Newport Beach, CA
810 Avocado Ave.
Newport Beach, CA 92660
Saturday September 5th
Gelson’s Long Beach, CA
6255 E. 2nd Street
Long Beach, CA 90803
(562) 430-6042
Saturday September 5, 11am- 4pm
Gelson’s- Dana Point, CA
24 Monarch Bay Plaza
Dana Point, CA 92629
(949) 488-8147
Saturday September 12, 11am- 4pm
It is going to be so much FUN! If you’re in the Palm Desert, me and the gals will be at the roasting event at Bristol Farms in Palm Springs. We’d love to see you.
Okay, okay. Now for the fun, beer stuff! My dear friend Jason Stockberger, whom I had a hoot with bussing at T.G.I.Friday’s waaaay back in the day, is now the Brewmaster at Mike Hess Brewing Company. Talk about a sweet gig, right? Well, they are having their 5th anniversary tomorrow (Saturday, July 25th, 2015)!
Come help fill these seats, y’all!
Jason’s brewed some really special beer for you guys! He sets an awesome example for not only being an impeccable crafter of beer, but has to be one of my favorite people – honorable, kind, and one of the most giving people you will ever meet. He sets the standard for how I want to operate my own life, both professionally and personally. He adores his family, is frighteningly knowledgeable about the science behind beer, and is full of down-to-earth awesomeness! He’s also won multiple beer awards, not only at the Great American Beer Festival, but at the World Beer Cup too!
There will be cans and special bottles available to take home with you too, so plan accordingly. You do not want to miss out on this. I hear they’re bottling some special stuff, I’m bringing my cooler filled with ice, because it’s a 1 1/2 hour journey for me from my casa in Moreno Valley, and I’m going to take full advantage. Is it worth it you ask? Hell effin’ YES!
Can’t ask for anything more than that. I’ll be there at the crack of the afternoon (12pm), indulging on a slew of special cask beers, and a hearty amount of food vendors. It’ll be a party to remember.
Beers up!
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