Hidden Peppers

Yesterday was Tidy Up The Garden Day. All the dregs of harvests past had to be snatched up from the ground, the good dirt shaken from the roots and then off they went. Some to the compost, others down the steep bank, to discourage the kudzu.

This was not the best year for peppers--unlike last year when I pickled huge glowing jars of bells, jalapenos, habeneros, and bananas. This year, we only grew three varieties--a green bell, a red bell and some sweet banana peppers. I'd frankly given up on them but when I reached down to pull them up, I found stragglers under the leaves. Crisp and perfect peppers.

There were the usual lost onions. Every year there are onions that are pulled during the dry season and the tops pull loose, leaving the bulb underground. In the cool days following the last autumn rains, they send up rich green shoots again and are there to be picked and enjoyed.

So, last night for a late-night snack, I chopped up some spring onions and squirted a little mustard on them. I sliced up a long green pepper and used the fat slices to scoop up the mustardy onion.

I drank a bright beer with it and it was the perfect combination.

Honest, it was!