In spite of the extreme heat, the garden offered up a decent harvest this morning: a nice big Japanese eggplant, a healthy bunch of Thai basil and both cayenne and Thai bird’s eye peppers.
Though I harvest almost daily, the Thai birds eye pepper bush is currently covered in fruit. It’s often regarded as an ornamental, and it is very pretty with a compact growth habit and upright color changing little fruit, but in my experience these tiny peppers carry serious heat. I enjoy adding them to whatever is on the menu. What I don’t use fresh is dried for grinding into pepper flakes.
An almost tropical lushness of amaranth, purslane and eggplant, thriving in these hot sunny summer days, ensures that I am well fed.
The first of the cowpeas (Vigna unguiculata) are just coming into flower and showing the beginnings of pods.
I do love growing beans. Vigna unguiculata seem especially well suited to conditions in my desert garden.
Bees are busy in the sunflowers as the sun rises and I’m out watering because there’s been no more rain after last week’s hail storm.
Then it’s a retreat indoors to prepare a spicy garlic and ginger laden Thai eggplant, brown rice and avocado Sunday brunch bowl. It does make the house smell good!
The secret ingredient today (after reading a million recipes online) is a dash of maple syrup in the sauce and a sprinkle of fresh roasted (oops! almost burnt) cashew nuts on top. Because I don’t have peanuts on hand.
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