we made fried green tomato BLTs for dinner last night and they were delicious! we used a tomato from our garden and had sautéed zucchini as a side, which was also from our garden.

to prepare, slice a green tomato and place on a plate or splatter guard. sprinkle salt on top and let the slices sit for a couple of hours. this will cause the water to drain out of the tomatoes for a better frying experience. pour off any excess water as it builds. when ready to fry, just dip a slice in egg wash and batter before frying in oil at medium heat. we used corn meal in our batter, but feel free to use flour.

– ryan & gub

fried green tomato recipe:

ingredients:
1-2 large green tomatoes sliced
bread, mayonnaise, lettuce & bacon (if BLTs are desired)

egg wash:
2 eggs, beaten
1/3 cup milk

batter:
1/2 cup corn meal
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1 tsp parsley

directions:
– clean tomatoes and slice
– place on a splatter guard and sprinkle with salt, let sit for a couple of hours
– pour off any excess water as it builds
– heat oil in a frying pan at medium heat
– dip tomato slices in egg wash and then in the batter
– gently place battered tomatoes in frying pan and fry until golden brown
– place on splash guard to let cool and drain the oil
– serve on toasted bread with mayonnaise, lettuce and bacon or with a dipping sauce

i recently visited oak grove plantation & gardens, which is about 45 minutes south of atlanta. it’s this beautiful 1830s plantation home nestled on 20 acres of land, 4 of which have themed gardens. the plantation features a bed & breakfast as well as acres of gardens for touring. if you’re looking for an atlanta getaway, oak grove plantation & gardens is a relaxing option for an afternoon visit or an overnight stay.

– ryan

oak grove plantation & gardens

4537 north highway 29
newnan, georgia 30265

we stopped by the east lake farmers market this morning. it’s at the corner of 2nd ave. and hosea williams drive. the market is fairly small but has numerous farmers with local fruit, vegetables, eggs, chickens, salsas and more. we picked up some local peaches, blueberries, and salsa. the market is open on saturdays from may through october from 9am to 1pm.

– ryan & gub

east lake farmers market

2nd ave. and hosea l. williams drive
atlanta, ga 30317

saturdays
9am – 1pm
may – october

we recently made some fried squash blossoms from our garden that were delicious! we were getting frustrated over the amount of flowers falling off our plants but it turns out they were male flowers that don’t grow fruit. gub remembered having fried squash blossoms in italy so we found a recipe and did some frying.

to make these tasty treats, first gather and clean some squash flowers. next dip the flowers in egg and batter before frying them up in some oil at medium heat. it’s the same as frying anything, you’ll just want to use a light batter since the flowers are so delicate. we went with corn meal and loved it!

– ryan & gub

fried squash blossom recipe:

ingredients:
fresh squash flowers
whipped cream cheese for stuffing (if desired)

egg wash:
2 eggs, beaten
1/3 cup milk

batter:
1/2 cup corn meal
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1 tsp parsley

directions:
– clean squash flowers
– stuff squash flowers with a little whipped cream cheese if desired
– heat oil in a frying pan at medium heat
– dip squash flowers into egg wash and then batter
– gently place battered squash flowers in frying pan and fry until golden brown
– place fried flowers on splatter guard to let cool and drain the excess oil
– serve hot

we were quite delighted to find three cucumber in our garden that were ripe and ready for picking. yeah to our first crop of the season! we can’t wait for more vegetables to harvest.

– ryan & gub

here is our garden at four weeks.

we planted our cute little garden on the 15th of april, here’s what we are growing:

here is our garden at six weeks.

we ended up losing our one artichoke plant early on and replaced it with another much younger tomato plant to try and stagger the tomato harvest a bit.

here is our garden at seven weeks.

everything is thriving pretty well, although something pesky keeps biting off our squash blossoms. they aren’t even eating them, just leaving them on the ground. which is even more annoying. we are working on fencing in the garden and bought some organic insecticide as well, so hopefully we’ll get that under control soon.

– ryan & gub

i visited barnsley gardens over the weekend while doing a film project with the yacht rock revue. it’s located about an hour and a half north of atlanta in adairsville, ga at the base of the blue ridge mountains. these days, barnsley gardens functions as a resort where you can stay, play golf, quail hunt, or have your wedding. there is also a historic district on the grounds where godfrey barnsley originally built his mansion and gardens featuring flowers from around the world. here you can visit the beautiful 160-year-old heirloom gardens, a museum, and the mansion ruins.

the ruins were really amazing! it felt like you were walking around in what’s left of an old european castle. there were these great vines growing all over the walls, adding to its mystique. i was envious of the event going on while i took photos, having a party in the ruins of an 1840s mansion seemed like the best thing ever. the museum had photos of the estate before it fell to ruins and if you are lucky enough to catch the curator, an oral history of the barnsley family and gardens as well.

barnsley gardens is very beautiful and has a rich history. even if you’re not looking to stay at the resort, the heirloom gardens, ruins, and museum are open to the public and definitely worth the drive for a short getaway from atlanta.

– ryan

barnsley gardens

597 barnsley gardens road
adairsville, ga 30103
770-773-7480

we just discovered a great bbq restaurant called garden produce & country store! on the front page of their website they say “welcome to your neighborhood barbeque.” we wish they were doing business in our neighborhood!

we woke up this morning and decided to go on a ‘bbq adventure!’ the only rule was we had to try a place neither of us had been to before. after doing a bit of research and reading some reviews, we decided to venture out to a tiny place in stone mountain, mostly because of the words in this review. we were not let down!

we are big fans of ‘side of the road’ and ‘hole in the wall’ style restaurants that have great food. this quaint bbq joint totally fit the bill! it can be found on an unassuming canopy road near stone mountain. you’ll know you’re there when you see a couple of red gas pumps and a few cars parked on the side of a house. garden produce was quite small, with only a few tables for seating, but featured a comfortable rustic atmosphere. diners on the patio greeted us with a cheerful, “hello,” as we approached the restaurant.

we both really enjoyed the bbq; it was well worth the drive! ryan got ribs with field peas and baked beans and i got pulled pork with squash casserole and fried okra. the meals came with a delicious slice of corn bread, a pickle and a pineapple wedge. we are pretty picky about our bbq and often don’t like the same style, but we both really loved our meals! the ribs were great, not too smoky but still flavorful, and the pulled pork was excellent as well. plus the prices were very reasonable.

there were plenty of sides to choose from and they all looked great. some of the veggies came from their huge garden, including the field peas and squash. they also offer a homemade pastrami sandwich that sounded amazing! the country store sold seasonal produce and various jarred products, including pickles, jams and relishes.

we’ll definitely be going back again soon!

– ryan & gub

garden produce & country store

567 stephenson road
stone mountain, ga 30087
770-413-0338
gardenproduce@bellsouth.net

we recently tilled our garden! we rented a tiller from home depot for 4 hours, which was super easy, and got our backyard ready for spring planting. our garden plans are moving along and we hope to finish planting this week.

we realized our backyard was full of tons of random debris while tilling. we found rusty nails, roofing tiles, concrete, bricks, tools, and lots of other junk.

– ryan & gub

ryan and i are beginning to plan our very first vegetable and herb garden. we’ve been composting for over a year and have planted a few vegetables here and there, but this summer we’ve got big plans. we carved out a sunny 16′ by 10′ spot in the middle of our backyard, found some helpful info on the uga center for urban agriculture website, and we’re off!

we need to do a bit more research, come up with a planting schedule, and finalize our vegetable and herb list based on our garden space; but here’s our wish list:

we took some before photos and will post updates as the summer progresses. the garden will be under the blue tarp you see in the photos.

– gub & ryan