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Recipe: homemade ketchup

Still technically summer, I know… Despite the forecasted hot days this past week (80°F in the mountains is excessive, folks!), the recent afternoon thunderstorms have washed over us like clockwork every afternoon, cooling the air and recharging all living things. It’s delicious. It’s wonderful. And it’s the start of a cooling trend. We’ve seen those rogue aspen branches turning yellow in a sea of deep green. People catch sight of those and immediately think fall colors are here. They are not. But they will be. Fall approaches and well – WINTER IS COMING! But I’m trying not to get ahead of myself. Yes, even we winter-lovers milk the last days of summer for all she’s got.

visiting alpine lakes we haven’t seen before

hiking a new trail

jeremy on the continental divide

the view from on high

There is a precious time between Labor Day and the first big snowfall in the mountains when crowds disappear from trails, scrub turns brilliant red and gold, and you have to wear a warm fleece hat, a warm jacket, and gloves when you start hiking in the morning. The pika at high elevations are bouncing around gathering their stores for winter. Marmots waddle across alpine meadows, fat as they can be before hibernation. Adolescent ptarmigans strut about in their summer plummage, not knowing their feathers will turn a brilliant white for winter. And if you’re lucky, you might find a patch of ripe, sweet huckleberries at 11,000 feet.

or a straggler porcini

or two (or six…)

storm buildup on the divide (at pawnee pass)

the view south from pawnee pass

What you won’t find in the mountains are wild tomatoes, because it’s just too cold for those babies. As luck would have it, a short drive down to the flats puts you in tomatoland. I got a bazillion pounds of organic heirloom tomato seconds from Cure Organic Farm this summer. I canned tomato sauce and diced tomatoes, but I also reserved several pounds to tackle a project I’ve had on my list to try for years. Homemade ketchup.

ten pounds of heavenly flavor

tomatoes, cider vinegar, onion, garlic, peppercorns, allspice, cinnamon, cloves, cayenne, ginger, salt, sugar

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Recipe: homemade salmon lox

It’s my favorite month, you know… birthdays, autumn colors, potential snow storms, fleece weather. A three-day weekend saw August off and welcomed September with sweaty open arms. It always gets hot in early September which merely increases my anticipation of the first frost in the mountains. For the most part, we remained at home and worked through the holiday weekend to avoid the throngs of people flooding into the mountains. Except we did venture down to Denver at the last minute to score a great deal on some season passes for Crested Butte this winter.

sweeeeeeeeeeeeeet

Granted, it is technically summer until September 22nd and I accept this. If summer didn’t have such a bounty of wonderful foods, I’d be a lot less tolerant of the heat. Wild-caught Alaskan salmon graces my fishmonger’s display these days. It’s downright distracting when I’m swinging by to pick up some scallops or shrimp and then these jewel-colored filets or steaks draw my attention to the “sale” sign. Sometimes, I can’t help myself.

salmon, dill, tarragon, bay leaves, shallots, black pepper, green peppercorns, vodka, kosher salt, sugar

I’ve been wanting to cure my own lox for several years now. I’m not sure if I should be happy about finally getting around to doing it or if I should be sad that it took me this long. Part of the problem is that I wanted to use wild salmon rather than farmed salmon. Farmed salmon is available year-round while wild salmon is seasonal. Summers kept slipping past me before I remembered to make lox, and farmed salmon doesn’t really appeal to me these days.

the filet will have pin bones

remove those with some (clean) pliers

What I love about making lox is how easy it is. Aside from finding space in my refrigerator, it was just a bit of chopping, mixing, smothering, and wrapping. Most of the work doesn’t involve you at all.

mix the sugar and salt together

chop the dill

slice shallots

mix the herbs and spices and aromatics together

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Recipe: marinated mushrooms

Another weekend, another set of visitors – both have come and gone. Jeremy’s folks were out to see our new digs and explore the town. I swear Crested Butte is Colorado’s best kept secret. Right now, I’m waiting for the moon to set and hoping that our clear skies hold enough for me to catch some Perseids tonight. It’s been lovely here this past week with plenty of rain, storms, and sunshine. Cooler weather is in the air. I can smell autumn coming and I swear it makes my heart race in anticipation. The mountains are getting ready.

late season bloomers: fireweed

a busy bee, gathering nectar and pollen

alpine lake destination

Clearing afternoon storms always present the opportunity for nice color after sunset. When I have a moment, I step outside and observe how the light bounces around between the atmosphere and the mountains in the hour after the sun drops behind our local divide. It takes a little time to get to know the patterns, but I’m trying to become familiar with them. Most of the time it’s been what I call a fizzle, but the other day was delightfully colorful.

last orange rays graze the mountainside

crepuscular rays and glowing wisps of clouds over paradise divide

The rains have also been good for mushrooms. When Jeremy and I hike, I really try to keep my pace up and not revert to mushroom search mode. But if I happen to spot a mushroom of interest, I’ll stop for a photo because I like documenting what I find, where, when, and the conditions. The great thing is that Jeremy and I love to geek out on plants, fungi, critters, bugs, geology, and weather. I love the fungi almost as much as I love my fun guy.

false chanterelle (it’s a bit early yet for the real deal)

hawk’s wings are so pretty (my size 9 foot for scale)

We did find some porcini, but none that I wanted to harvest since they were a little wormed out. I always leave those in place and give the big ones a pat on the cap in the hopes of shaking out some more spores for next year’s porcini. Obviously, I’ve had mushrooms on the brain since summer began. I blame Wendy because she has porcini fever starting in like… March. But I was craving the marinated kind, something you can make with store-bought button or crimini mushrooms.

fresh crimini mushrooms, parsley, oregano, olive oil, vinegar, red onion, salt, garlic, black peppercorns, coriander seeds

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