Squash 2013 1st Harvest! 2nd picking post #24!

[bj taylor]

my mother is staying with me a few days & we enjoyed my first zucchini harvest tonight. i'm going to let some get to baseball bat size though, just so I can try this recipe. sounds really good

 

[majorcatfish]

hey bay heres my garden helper.
she was off duty last weekend and dd took her to the beach.
[url]http://i1111.photobucket.com/albums/h464/majorcatfish/ava5_zpsa922cc99.jpg[/url]

Major, she is a gorgeous gal! Labs can really get under your skin, can't they? Big, goofy, happy, love-you-no-matter-what best friends. DH's Lab, Danny died Christmas of 2011. The day after Christmas, our DD and DSIL adopted Parker and he has stolen our hearts. Love Labs! (and 1/2 Labs-1/2 Great Danes like our Parker)

thank you bay, after my autumn<lab mix> passed away 3 years ago. found her on the caswell county animal shelter website. there was a litter of 5 she was the only one interested in me ,so she come home with me. truth be told would have adopted all 5 of them....
while we are out in the garden ava keeps the area clear of all rabbit poop dd works at a doggie daycare so ava gets to go there a couple days a week.

just remember all our pets are waiting for us on the other side of the rainbow bridge..


copied your cobbler recipe sounds delicious......

 

[Carol Dee]

Maybe we will get our zuc planted this weekend. DH got some niceplants started. Hope to keep it alive this summer. As in .... More Rain, Less Bugs.

 

[baymule]

I picked squash again this morning. I got 10 pounds. I put 8 bags of sliced squash in the freezer and set aside 3 yellow squash for supper tonight. I made squash lasagna with 2 of the Lebanese White squash. I sliced them lengthwise and used them for the noodles. With all this squash, I gotta get creatative with recipes to use them!

This is Polly, our Australian Shepherd. She hates rain, thunder and Paris, our Great Pyrenees. She loves me. She really loves me. Then she loves DH, my mom, grand daughter, other family members. She loves being outside in the garden with me.

 

[majorcatfish]

polly is very beautiful Australian Shepherd they are a very loyal breed.
my old lab autumn in she later year hated thunder as well, she would get up on the bed and get as close to you as possible. on those nights you would not get any sleep.

very nice squash harvest. have you tried squash hash browns. shredded potato and squash mixed together.

 

[baymule]

Squash hash browns? Mixed with the new potatoes that I will be digging soon? Sounds yummy! I bet I could package some up with my Food Saver and put them in the freezer. Thanks for a new squash idea!

 

[desertlady]

I picked squash again this morning. I got 10 pounds. I put 8 bags of sliced squash in the freezer and set aside 3 yellow squash for supper tonight. I made squash lasagna with 2 of the Lebanese White squash. I sliced them lengthwise and used them for the noodles. With all this squash, I gotta get creatative with recipes to use them!

This is Polly, our Australian Shepherd. She hates rain, thunder and Paris, our Great Pyrenees. She loves me. She really loves me. Then she loves DH, my mom, grand daughter, other family members. She loves being outside in the garden with me.

http://www.theeasygarden.com/forum/uploads/7949_squash_with_polly.jpg

Pretty dog, she looks very small. I have a question, do you put something on squash before freezing? I will like to freeze mine when they are ready. Last summer I didnt have any left , so I planted more this year !!

 

[baymule]

I have blanched sliced or chunked squash and froze in zip lock bags for years with some very soggy results. Not to mention the ice crystals in the bags. Frozen squash just turns to much. Last year, I got a Food Saver. Why didn't I ever do this before?? I blanched sliced squash in water. Dismal mistake. The Food Saver sucked the water out and the bag was wet and wouldn't seal. I froze the sliced blanched squash on cookie sheets and bagged it up with the Food Saver. It sealed, but was a PITA. I laid sliced squash out on cookie sheets and oven blanched it with no water. I baked it at 350 for 5 or so minutes and let it cool. Then I bagged it up, it sealed and was satisfactory. Then for experiments sake, I sliced and Food Saver bagged some squash without blanching it at all.

Result of blanch/no blanch. No difference in taste or quality. Frozen squash, even vac sealed is still soggy, but will steam ok and taste close to fresh. On the last few bags, I drained all the water out, then twisted the bag of squash and wrung it out like a towel. I rolled the slices in cornmeal and fried them. WOW! They were crispy, not soggy and we ate them like candy! Eureka! I have found it!! :weight

The squash I put in the freezer yesterday, I merely sliced and bagged in vac sealed Food Saver bags. Or you can chunk it up or however you wish to prepare it. But definately use a Food Saver or similar vac sealer.

 

[baymule]

I got a good squash harvest for 2013. It was short lived as I planted them in a different place from last year. Between the squash borers and the broiling heat, they were done. I tried to replant, but they made it to first bloom and committed suicide. I replanted and they didn't even make it to the third set of leaves. I finally got 6 yellow squash seeds to come up and live. Just cut 3 nice squash this evening. This is the third picking. They are not growing like gangbusters like the spring squash did, but I am happy with the results. They are loaded with tiny yellow squash, so maybe I can get in a few more cuttings before frost. :watering

 

[digitS']

You planted squash seed 4 times, Bay'?

I just tossed the last zucchini from the fridge. DW thought it might still have some life to it but those days are past.

Then she informs me that I may like pumpkin but she doesn't. Here I'd thought I was so clever to have used it to replaced the zucchini in Jaques Pepin's instant veggie soup I posted on TEG, someplace. Now, what am I gonna do with all these pumpkins!?

Steve