Desert Harvest

The devil's claws are setting their fruit. The prickly pears are ripening. The mesquite pods are turning yellow. This year, we are determined to harvest the wild foods growing on our property. Yesterday Corvus collected a bucket full of prickly pears, and hardly made a dent in one cactus. He describes the flavor as "a little bit of watermelon, some pears, raspberries and citrus."

This year we have gotten some good rain, so the devil's claws are growing profusely. I've read that the immature fruit can be treated like okra. I'm hoping it will be good pickled. Now there's something cool to have in your pantry: Pickled Devil's Claw. I think that would make an excellent Christmas gift. OK, I'm kidding. You hope.

On the domestic front, Tiger has begun to crawl and now she is getting into everything. She is definitely geek material: she loves the stereo and the computers. Yikes! Also, she sat up on her own for the first time on Wednesday.

Crow's Nest weather sighting: Blue skies with scattered clouds to the east.