Ground Cherries!

Our first significant ground cherry harvest. Up until this point we've had the odd one here & there to snack on while we garden. But, BAM! We've got a pint of ground cherries all at once (weighting 3.5 oz)! This is thanks to netting the plants this year as last year the wildlife enjoyed more of this deliciousness than we did. As this bounty came just days before my induction date and the same day as picking 2 pecks of peaches, coming up with an elaborate & creative use for them was not in the cards.

However, because this is the first time we've ever had more than 4-5 at once, I felt like *something* needed to be done with them. Enter chocolate, an idea from the article that first inspired me to grow them. Behold the Chocolate Covered Ground Cherry:

I love how the paper skins act as little handles!

For those that have never eaten a ground cherry, they look kind of like yellow-orange tomatillos but taste more like a persimmon (in my opinion). They are really delicious and I recommend growing them next year as it's not something you can generally find in the grocery store or farmer's markets. Plus, unlike most fruits, these are annuals that produce a bumper crop the year you plant them. No waiting for maturing!

CSA Monday! Ground Cherry Addition!

No blogging this weekend due to feeling a bit poorly. But now I'm on the mend and almost able to taste food again! (Nose is still a little stuffy)

But this week's CSA haul is *exciting.* Why? Two words, mis amigos, two words: ground cherries. As you know, I got some ground cherry seedlings from my CSA. However, I have not netted them and I fear that the birds get to them before I do.

I've got corn (4), tomatoes (3 huge ones), tomatillos (8), ground cherries! (16), garlic (1), basil, ground cherries! (16), squash (1), bell pepper (1 small), and eggplant (1).

Last week, the bean enchiladas with mole didn't happen b/c I got sick and the husband wasn't feelin' like cooking. I can report, though, that the rest of it was delicious! This week the plan is:

Grilled Steak Tacos: Marinated then grilled london broil topped with tomatillo salsa and onions, rolled up in a corn tortilla and served with corn-tomato-black bean salad. Ole!

Ratatouille: Eggplant, squash, bell pepper, tomatoes and herbs (thyme & parsley from the garden, basil from CSA) all cooked up together into one fantastic summer stew.

Snackin': Ground cherries! Just pop out of their skins & eat! It's my dessert tonight actually. They kind of taste like persimmons to me. So delicious. Makes me want to go out & net mine. Except I'm kinda feeling lazy right now.

I should be back tomorrow hopefully after finding out what is ailing two of my tomato plants. Fingers crossed it doesn't start with "late" and end with "blight"...

All About: Ground Cherries

I had been lusting after ground cherries after reading about them in Organic Gardening Magazine. (Note the adorable & awesome-ness of the chocolate dipped ground cherries.) They look like a golden cherry tomato wrapped in a tomatillo husk. Which isn't a *huge* surprise since they are in the tomato family!

Anywho, they apparently have a sweet-tart taste and no pit in the middle. HOLLA! Plus, if keep in a cool, dry place & in its husk, they keep for months.

Despite all this awesomeness, ground cherries were not to be found in my local nurseries or my usual seed ordering catalogs. I figured I'd try again next year. Until....

I found out my CSA gives away seedlings and that this year, ground cherries were up for grabs! Hurray! The husband sacrificed a few hours of his day to go up & get us 2 plantlets of ground cherries (along with 2 more basil plants & 2 epazote).

What do these guys need? Full sun. Well draining soil (seriously well draining...no clay allowed!). Frost-free weather (meaning they'll be an annual for me). A fair amount of space (I'm going to try to trellis mine). Love (who doesn't need that?!?) .

If these guys work out, anticipate ground cherry chutney or ground cherry cobbler recipes posted!

:)