Boss's Corner 

As I mentioned in my blog on Friday and on Facebook and Twitter yesterday, we will start picking our first patch of sweet corn no later than Monday July 9.  I also hinted we might actually start on Saturday July 7.  Check my blog on Thursday July 5 for the final decision.  The first corn will be an extra early bi-color hybrid and while it is sweet, tender and delicious, the ears tend to be on the small side.  Three other patches of other early bi-color corn will follow quickly and by the 14th of July we will likely be done with the first patch and into the other three. For the Mirai lovers it looks like the first patch of Mirai (which is the corn you see growing closest to Gordon Avenue) will start around July 20.  We have planted more Mirai corn this year than ever and even included some white Mirai.

Because of the heat and lack of sufficient rain we are trying our doggonest to irrigate as much as possible.  We are using both sprinklers and drip tape.  BTW I have received news that the growers in the extreme SW counties, most notably Berrien, are really suffering from the drought.  Apparently most early sweet corn that isn't being irrigated and is on upland soils has been lost in Berrien county.  

Our green beans are really coming in now.  The next two weeks is the time to can and freeze our green beans.  Coming later this week are pickling and slicing cucumbers, SunSugar cherry tomatoes and sunflowers.

We also now have a good supply of new red potatoes, fresh garlic, zucchini, yellow summer squash, kohlrabi, sweet, tender red beets, and hulless popcorn on the ear and in pint jars. 

In addition to fresh produce we have potted flowers, both perennial and annuals, vegetable and herb plants. 

Nashle,

Tom

16 ounces fresh beets
1/2 cup white vinegar
3/4 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
salt to taste

Wash, peel and cube beets. Using a saucepan, cover beets with water, cook for10 to 20 minutes until tender.

Remove beets from water and set aside. To liquid, add vinegar, sugar, cornstarch and salt. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium; stir in beets and cook until heated through.

My notes:

• The recipe calls for white vinegar. At the time I made these, I didn't have food quality white vinegar available. I checked on the internet and everyone said not to substitute apple cider vinegar. But since that was all I had, I decided to be brave and daring and went ahead. The beets tasted wonderful so I think you can safely substitute apple cider vinegar if you don't have the good white vinegar around. 
• Remember all vinegar is not created equal. For cooking, you should only used vinegar that is sourced from fruits and grains. Many varieties of white vinegar are made from petroleum products (which I don't want in my food). Heinz distilled white vinegar is made from grains and is a safe choice.  According to the label, Spartan vinegar is also made from grain so it is also acceptable.
• This recipe got rave reviews from my taste testers. These beets have a nice sweet-tangy taste that most of us love. Every bit of the beets disappeared and I probably could have made more.