Blueberry Time and Drooping Zinnias

 I haven't picked blueberries for a few years now. Instead I am buying Michigan blueberries in 5-pound boxes from Martin's, a local grocery store. I bought two boxes this week. I would have preferred to buy one box this week, and another box at the end of next week; but when I tried that last year, the blueberries were no longer for sale. I choose the firmest berries in the box to freeze. This year I ended up with 2 1/2 gallons. That means the rest need to be eaten fresh within a short time.

 One of the negatives of blueberry season is that it is usually during the hottest time of summer. I don't like baking and getting my house hot when we are in the 80's and 90's, but I always make a blueberry sauce to eat over ice cream and lemon pudding. 

The fresh berries go nicely with peaches and cantaloupe also. And I often eat some on my cereal at breakfast. 

This morning I went to the local farmers' market. I already enjoyed some fresh green beans from my sister-in-law earlier this week.

I bought a banana pepper, a zucchini, a medley of small tomatoes and an onion. I have never bought an onion from the grower before. We will have peppers and chicken sausage saute tonight using the banana pepper and some slices of larger red, yellow, and orange peppers from the store, part of the onion, and some of the small tomatoes. I might throw in a little zucchini, too. We haven't included pasta for several years. I sprinkle some garlic pepper on while cooking and parmesan before serving.

I was so pleased to see several vendors selling fresh flowers. The zinnias were a real bargain at 3 for a dollar. Unfortunately, now as I photograph them I see the heads drooping. According to the internet, placing some of the bottom stem in boiling water for several minutes will revive them. I then cut off the immersed stem and put the blooms in cold water in a vase. I am going to try that right after I finish here. 

The stems were not quite mature and should have been left on the plant longer before being picked re the internet. Last year the zinnias I bought in a bouquet lasted for days. We will see if this "fix" works. At least I am only out $2. It worked pretty well. I had one white bloom that was not drooping which served as a "control". The 5 flowers I put in the boiling water have a tiny tilt compared to the control, but they look good. I checked at 20 minutes, and they still drooped though looked a little better. At 40 minutes they had mostly straightened up. Certainly counter-intuitive way to fix the drooping.

I will try to buy ones that are not drooping at all next time though.

Now I can enjoy my flowers for a longer period.

I haven't felt very well this past week. The new med my doctor wanted me to try for my blood pressure has caused problems. I stopped taking it this morning. The pressure did decrease while using it, but I cannot live with this side effect. I will call her office Monday. 

Swordfish Tonight

When I went to the store to buy some frozen marinated salmon I really like, the store had none. On sale in the case was frozen swordfish. I have never cooked swordfish but decided to grill it. Two “steaks” per package was just right. I have eaten swordfish at restaurants and knew it would be bland. I purchased some mango peach salsa. It went well with the fish.

I also used the pan I bought last summer to grill some potatoes and a yellow pepper.

Mixed fresh fruit (watermelon, cantaloupe, strawberries, blueberries, and honeydew) from the grocery produce section completed the meal. For dessert we had Jello brand lemon pudding cups topped with blueberry sauce. Lemon flavor and blueberries go together so well. I still have in the freezer about 3-4 cups of blueberries picked last year. Another month or so and the new crop will be ready to pick.

We had two beautiful days of pleasant low-humidity weather. This morning we had light rain and the humidity is higher. Feels like summer. Eat like summer.

Blueberries

We have finished eating our fresh blueberries that we picked. We still have 2 gallons frozen to use later. This sauce recipe can be made with fresh or frozen berries. I like to serve it over vanilla ice cream, or over fresh-sliced peaches, or as a topping with lemon pudding or lemon mousse. 

Cinnamon-Blueberry Sauce

 

2 tbsp. sugar (this makes a rather sweet sauce; reduce it if you prefer a tarter flavor)

1 tsp. cornstarch

1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

2 tbsp. water

1 tbsp. lemon juice

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

 

Blend sugar and cornstarch in saucepan. Stir in remaining ingredients. Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture boils. Reduce heat, simmer 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Serve warm. You may want to let it cool down quite a bit before putting over ice cream so the ice cream doesn’t melt. Can be refrigerated and warmed up using the microwave.