I’ve been fully immersed in trying to deal with the offshore yahoos who took my money to make backups of my computer but haven’t made it possible for me to retrieve said backups, as well as some end of season canning.
I’m hoping the next post to be able to load pictures of what I’ve been up to and the fall garden. I thought I would make a quick post to share what I’ve been doing in the last two weeks.
Right now at the farmer’s market, neighbor’s fruit trees and my garden it’s the end of season push. I’ve pulled out all the summer plants except the beans which will be going this weekend. The fall/winter/spring crops are coming up nicely and we are now eating some salad greens as well as early maturing carrots.
I planted Red Dragon and Nantaise carrots. The Red Dragon are particularly beguiling, red on the outside with an orange middle and yellow core. When sliced into discs they are particularly beautiful. They aren’t as crisp as some other varieties but they look so interesting and have a higher beta carotene count with early lush growth compared to the other 3 varieties I planted that they will forevermore be a staple in my garden. They are just 68 days to maturity which make them a great choice for kids or impatient gardeners.
Here is my list of things I’ve canned in the last few weeks:
pickles, fermented and vinegared
applesauce, white gold and akane
chicken broth made from backs, necks and wings I’ve been stockpiling all summer. I need that freezer space for the 1/2 pig & 1/4 cow on the way!
plum jam from foraged plums – 5 cups fruit to 1 cup sugar with an amazing fresh plum flavor unmasked by large amounts of sugar
hot sauce from habaneros purchased from Tonnamaker’s
roasted garlic purchased through Sustainable Greenlake that I froze to use in winter cooking
carmelized onions purchased at the UW Farmer’s Market and frozen to use on pizzas or in grain salads all winter
grape juice from foraged concord grapes – run through the roma, heated for 5 minutes with just a smidge of sugar and canned for winter consumption
I’ve also picked several bags of pears from a neighbor’s tree with the intention of making cider but they are still rock hard so they are sitting on my kitchen floor. The pressure canner is finally put away for the season, although the water bath canner is still out with the plan of making watermelon jelly & watermelon rind pickles, roasted red peppers or cherry bomb peppers and apple mint jelly. Then I’ll be done with the large preservation efforts for the year.
Figs are still in season and I plan to dry those to use as a sugar substitute. I will also be drying pears, making more applesauce and making fruit leather with the end of season rhubarb stalks. I need to pick off the dried chammomile flowers, wintergreen and raspberry leaves to use in winter teas before they rot or fall to the ground.
It’s exciting to see light at the end of the (poly) tunnel!
How about you? How are your fall preservation or gardens coming? What do you have planned for the “off” season?
5 responses so far ↓
1 Auburn // Oct 7, 2009 at 12:37 am
All I can say is WOW! You amaze me to no end.
Would love to see a photo of your canned foods. So many different things you’ve been able to preserve for your family. What beautiful memories you are making.
I’ll try to grow chamomile next year, would love to be able to make my own homegrown tea.
Take care.
(Left you a comment on the bread post.)
2 admin // Oct 7, 2009 at 2:42 am
Hi Auburn, I’m hoping to get the photo sw on my laptop tomorrow night and start downloading a month’s worth of pictures – however I pick up my monthly “provisions” tomorrow which include sugar to make the watermelon jelly so we’ll see which project sucks me in first.
My 3 and 6 year olds were very excited to drink grape juice from grapes that they helped to pick and talk about it incessantly to anyone who will listen. I hope these things stay with them! We are just entering the world of school lunches so the bar will never be the same again!
3 Auburn // Oct 7, 2009 at 10:16 am
Oh, yes, these wonderful memories will stay with them, no doubt about that.
Never had watermelon jelly but I think I’ve had preserved watermelon rinds (a very long time ago).
If/when you have a minute, will you take a look at the comment I left on your old blog (http://sustainableeats.wordpress.com/2009/03/30/homemade-100-whole-wheat-bread-swoon-worthy/#comment-246) and let me know what you think about the rye berries. Thanks!
4 kitsapFG // Oct 7, 2009 at 11:57 pm
Well done! I have been traveling for work this past week and so my garden and preserving have been quiet as a result. Most of the preserving is done for the year though. I have some more pumpkin to roast and then puree and freeze. The rest is either already attended to or items that will be harvested fresh from the garden through the fall/winter.
5 admin // Oct 8, 2009 at 2:47 am
Hi Kitsap FG – glad you are doing well. I am almost done. Took out the beans & last squash yesterday so now I have a large crock of beans to ferment tomorrow, and jelly to start.
I’ll be looking for more grapes at the market Sat since everyone loved the juice so much! I may be canning just a few more weeks but I can’t wait to be done with it for sure.
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