It has been a hot but lovely weekend at home. Bear and I went to our favorite junk shop and got all sorts of treasures: a stack of wood for projects, wonderful old books, and a gigantic pasta bowl made in Italy.

We pottered around at various chores, taking breaks for cold drinks and Olympics watching. Bear is making a wooden medieval cart and I’ve been huffing and puffing my way through digging up garden beds for my winter garden. I am delighted to say that as of this morning, it is nearly all planted and I’m excited to (hopefully!) see a bounty of radicchio, Savoy cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, purple carrots, turnips, long beetroot, green beans, black beans, celery, bok choy, lettuces, capsicum, Lebanese cucumbers, and some new herbs in a couple of months.

I also worked hard processing all sorts of fresh fruit and veggies. So far I’ve made marinated dried tomatoes and marinated olives.

These gorgeously ripe pears are in the dehydrator right now, filling the house with delicious fragrance.

ripe yellow pearsMy friends Ann and Neil brought me a tray of ripe figs from the tree in their yard. They are marvelous, delicious no matter what you do to them.

fresh figsI love eating them fresh, savoring the exquisite juice and soft flesh.

fresh figs on old boardFor dessert I like to roast them until they’re beautifully caramelized, then top them with Mascarpone Brandy Sauce.

figs for roastingI also like them dried for snacks. Did you know that figs are one of the few foods that gain even more nutrients when they’re dried?

I hope to make a dried fig compote to serve with cheese, simmering dried figs with honey, citrus peel, and whole spices. Mmm, I can almost smell it!

Next up is making marinated roasted bell peppers (capsicum) and then I need to dream up ways to use two whole boxes of luscious peaches Bear brought me.

fresh peaches and dried figsDo you have a favorite way to use fresh peaches? xo