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we returned from a trip to the beach to find everything well watered, but overgrown. vines had climbed inside the idea shack, and morning glories were twining their way around everything. we can’t really get excited about whipping it back into shape in this heat. besides,it’s a great habitat for butterflies!
this past weekend we headed over to hickory hill in thomson, georgia. they were having a watermelon festival and i thought it would be a fun thing to do.
the festival was at the estate of the late thomas watson which will be another inspiring story sometime soon.
here are some details of our fun day at the festival.
there were a bunch of fun games for the kids!
they have a watermelon growing contest. each year people save the seeds from their melon and plant them the next year. the biggest melon wins!
each family got to take an heirloom watermelon home
this one didn't make it to the car
the muscadines are finally ripe. we picked some up the other day at the farmers market in greensboro. muscadines are a little bigger than regular grapes and eating the seeds and skin is not recommended. i like to squeeze the grape and let the flesh pop into my mouth...then spit the seeds. another southern tasty treat!
i have always been fascinated by spider webs. i love the symmetry, elegance and well, they are just simply amazing. here was a gardener spider that i saw the other day...resting on her web.
well the garden finally put out enough stuff for us to cook a whole dinner - just in time for mr. green jeans' birthday. we had fried okra, creamed corn, sliced tomatoes, pole beans, and biscuits with country ham. yum!
every year, rebecca goes with her mom and sisters to edisto island, south carolina. for two weeks, she basks in the back porch view over the salt marsh, with spanish moss blowing in the breeze, listening to the song of the indigo bunting, and taking in the incredible colors of blue sky and chartreuse expanse of marsh grass. one of her favorite places to visit there is botany bay, a 4600 acre state park with untouched beaches and skeletons of sun washed live oaks that have fallen prey to encroaching salt water. there is plenty of wild beauty at edisto to relax and restore the soul.
scapes that we bought at the market in late spring opened up flowers on their own.
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here are some more images from the supper.
recipe for shrimp rolls follows...
enjoy!
rebecca standing in the door of her idea shack:
the light inside is insanely beautiful- dim, but glowing.
meanwhile, outside...
we all loved looking at the reisling gelee', or as we called it that night, "Fancy jello shots"...
we all set the table with odds and ends and cuttings from rebecca's and rinne's gardens:
steve made sure everyone was well-hydrated. it was close to 100 degrees!
luckily, there was the slightest breeze:
some of our food:
by the end, everyone was scraping the last morsels from their plates:
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HUGH'S SHRIMP ROLLS
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Little
Shrimp rolls
Serves Four
1 tablespoon Old Bay
2 bay leaves
1 sprig of fresh thyme
1/2 pound medium sized (41/50) American white shrimp, beheaded, peeled and deveined
1 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 tablespoon crème fraiche
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon minced celery
1 tablespoon chopped capers
1 teaspoon minced shallot
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tablespoon chopped flatleaf parsley
1/4 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
pinch of red chile flake
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
4 six-inch pieces of soft baguette, cut like a hotdog bun
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
Preheat oven to 400°F.
- Bring a gallon of water to a vigorous boil and add the old bay, bay leaves and fresh thyme.
- Add the shrimp and cook for four minutes and then remove the shrimp and cool in an ice bath.
- Remove shrimp when cooled and set aside.
- Place the mayonnaise, crème fraiche, Dijon mustard, celery, capers and shallot in a bowl and stir with a wooden spoon.
- Add the lemon juice, parsley, thyme, chile flake, salt and pepper.
- Stir to combine and then add the shrimp. Toss well.
- Spread the inside of the baguette portions with butter and place on a sheet pan.
- Toast in the oven for five minutes, or until nicely golden and toasty.
- Remove bread from oven and equally fill with dressed shrimp.
- Eat.
this junk shop's signage caught my eye last weekend on a drive to north georgia.
