Farm Fresh Produce

Fresh veggies have been trickling in from the garden this past several days. With the drastic weather change we are experiencing here in the south, the garden has had to swing from spring crops to summer. We harvested our last cabbage early last week...lettuce has gone bitter...the peas are nearly gone...and the broccoli has begun to flower. Now comes basket fulls of summer squash, green beans and our first few cucumbers. The tomatoes are setting fruit and the corn is popping up in rows. Okra plants are emerging from the soil along with melons and winter squash. Onions are bulging beneath the earth and carrots tops are stretching toward the sun. We have even had a sunflower bloom already.
The garden is not the only thing bursting with summer yield. Our doe is giving a full quart of milk each day and the hens produce twenty to thirty eggs..this is every day! Wow, we are truly blessed with delicious farm fresh goodness. Now to use it.
Some is used right away for the evening's meal..some frozen for use later, when our summer sun takes its toll on the plants. Of course, delicious meals and treats are being served up (and eaten up) with great pleasure. Creamy milk and rich egg yolks make delightful foods for our table. Gently sauteed squash accompanies the green beans beside farm fresh chicken butchered only a month ago.
With all the delights of gathering our goods, we take the time to remember others who could use a basket of yummy veggies or a carton of fresh eggs. Prayerfully I gather extra to share with my church family and with the homebound around me. Many older folk remember the time when the majority of their food came from the kitchen garden...yet now, they are not able to garden for themselves. My heart goes out to them....and so..as God guides me...I share the blessings of my harvest with any in need. Sometimes a simple thing means so much to a person.
Wherever you are tonight...I pray you are enjoying fresh food and pleasant company around your table. God bless.

simplychele