New Hoop House!

High & Dry Farm is constructing a new high tunnel greenhouse, in preparation for the new growing season. We have almost completed installation of the supporting hoops.  No prefab kits here. The hoops are fabricated from chain link fence top rail, which is bent into the correct curve on-site.

Plum Torte

Rejoice. Italian plums are in season.

  • In mixer, cream 1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter and 3/4 cup sugar.
  • Add 2 eggs,  1 cup flour, 1 tsp baking powder, and beat until smooth.
  • Spoon into 9 inch springform pan.
  • Halve and pit 12 plums, and press halves skin side up, into batter.
  • Bake 50 minutes at 350 degrees F.
torte

Hops for sale

This year I will be selling hops for the first time. Over the next several weeks I will be supplying green hops to the Snotown Brewery. Pictured is the Kent Golding variety, usually the first hop flower to mature.  Technically, the Golding variety can be called “Kent Golding” if it is grown in Kent, but hey, Kent, Washington is just 40 miles a way.  Fun fact, Kent, Washington was so-named because it was a major hop-growing area from 1870-1891.

Kent Golding Hops

Salmorejo

We spent late June in Spain. We visited Bilbao, Salamanca, and Madrid. In each city we ate Salmorejo. Each recipe was subtly different, but all were amazing. Comparisons to gazpacho are unavoidable, but Salmorejo is, hands down, the best cold soup on earth. It is simplicity itself as the only ingredients are tomatoes, bread, olive oil, and a touch of vinegar, along with toppings, which may vary.  The key to success is that the ingredients, especially the tomatoes and olive oil, must be of superb quality. The hard boiled egg topping in this recipe is not entirely typical, but some version of the Serrano ham is entirely typical. I have tried replacing the Serrano ham with crisply fried smoked bacon. That works fabulously well.

 

Ingredients

  • 8 medium tomatoes
  • 1 medium baguette
  • 1 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 Clove of Garlic
  • Splash of sherry or red wine vinegar
  • Pinch of salt
  • 2 hard boiled eggs
  • Sliced Serrano ham or crisp bacon

Instructions

  1. Scald the tomatoes: Drop tomatoes into boiling water. After 30 seconds transfer into cold water bath then peel off skin.
  2. Remove the cores of the tomatoes and add all the rest to a blender. Blend at high-speed for about 30 seconds.
  3. Cut the crust off a baguette and add 2 cups of bread chunks to the blended tomatoes. Let the bread soak in the tomato juice for about 5 minutes.
  4. Add the splash of vinegar, salt, and garlic and blend until the soup is an even texture.
  5. With blender running, slowly add the olive oil as you are blending at a moderate speed.
  6. Add 1 hardboiled egg and blend until incorporated. Taste and adjust levels of salt and vinegar.
  7. Serve topped with diced hardboiled egg and sliced ham or fried bacon. Serve cold!

First tomatoes

Today I harvested the first cucumbers, and the first tomatoes from the hoophouse. Tomatoes included , Alicante, Flamme, Aunt Lucy Italian Paste, Coyote, Earl of Edgecombe, Baselbieter Rotelli, Beams Yellow Pear, Sebastopol, Indische fleiche, Slava, Bloody Butcher, Kimberly, Tigerella, Buckbees New 50 day, Amy’s Apricot, Amy’s Sugar Gem, Washington Cherry, Aurora and Debarao.