How is the preserving going?

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Permalink Reply by Lydia Riedel-Tramsek on August 9, 2009 at 10:20pm

Sauerkraut :)
you preserved so many products that you won't dy of hunger :) Do you have fresh winter vegetables like black radish, field salad, winter lettuce, cabbages, leek?
I'm freezing spinach beet and beans just now, drying zucchinis and soon drying, freezing and canning prune plums, also plums' jam, pumkin-tomatoe-jam, I'll have a lot of walnuts and I'll press some oil of them.

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Permalink Reply by Sharon on August 10, 2009 at 5:47am

We do grow cole crops during the fall and early winter. I have some row covers this year. I'm going to try and get the broccoli, etc through at least part of the winter. I also grow garlic, onions and leeks through the winter here so I have more real estate in the garden during the spring and summer for beans, squash, corn, etc.

You press your own walnuts! That's something I've got to do, get the nut orchard going. We buy local pecans and walnuts for the time being but they get more expensive every year.

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Permalink Reply by Michelle W. Flannery on August 9, 2009 at 10:22pm

I've been busier than I can express.
I've canned banana peppers, hot banana peppers, jalapenos, red hot cherry peppers, sweet pickle relish, squash relish, tomatoes, tomato juice, and antipasto. I've pickled cucumbers, dill pickles, yellow squash, giardiniers, and okra.
I've frozen strawberries, blueberries, cherries, cantaloupe, grated squash, breaded squash, and breaded eggplant.
I've dried yellow squash, pineapple, blueberries, cherries, bagel chips, and banana chips.
This week, I'm processing figs (dried, canned), more tomatoes, more squash and more cucumbers.
This fall I'll be making sauerkraut and chow chow, freezing collards, and much more.
I've still got a lot of dried apples from last year, as well as pickled green tomatoes, pickled squash, spiced apple rings, variously spiced preserved pears and apples, applesauce, and apple butter.
Haven't had enough time to make watermelon rind preserves, though I have really wanted to. But the chickens are loving the rinds.
Haven't gotten any beans yet. Corn and spaghetti, butternut, and acorn squash also yet to come. And another large harvest of apples and grapes.
I won't be making any sweet canned or preserved things this year. John and I are diabetics, and just don't need them. Also, family and friends don't seem interested.
We've given away a lot of fresh produce this summer, and will give away much this fall, starting soon with the apples, which have come in a month early.

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Permalink Reply by Sharon on August 10, 2009 at 5:48am

Frozen cantaloupe! Do you eat it frozen or thaw it out?

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Permalink Reply by Michelle W. Flannery on August 10, 2009 at 7:51am

The cantaloupe will be part of a nice fruit salad in the winter months. It's my first time freezing it. I will defrost it, but if any makes it to next summer it might be nice frozen on a hot day. Or if the texture disintegrates it can become part of a smoothie, I suppose. We'll have to wait and see! :o)

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Permalink Reply by Joy Williams on August 9, 2009 at 10:40pm

Hi, I've frozen zucchini and green beans. I've made blueberry, strawberry and plot preserves. I've made both water bathed pickles and cornichon a cru. Will probably make more pickles soon. I'm not caning green beans because frankly I think they are better for you frozen. I just froze a batch of homemade pesto. :) Still getting zucchini and yellow squash, just discovered a scarlet runner bean wanted to get going. Tempted to pull out the old green beans and plant news ones.

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Permalink Reply by Sharon on August 10, 2009 at 5:53am

I've tried growing beans late in the season. Some do better than others. This year we have a lima volunteer that appears to be doing well amongst the winter squash and we've planted field peas for a late crop that is using the corn stalks for support. Green beans are frankly best fresh. They stir-fry so much better! I'm not nuts about them canned or frozen but this year the two freezers just couldn't take everything so we did some canned.

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Permalink Reply by Jan Hack on August 10, 2009 at 7:53am

My tomatoes are still green here in Michigan, but I have so far made strawberry and blueberry jam (will do rose hip jelly today), have frozen green beans and made pickled okra (used smoked paprika like Rick's Pick's from Whole Foods: SO good!) I have been blanching and freezing spinach and chard all winter. Making pesto every other week and freezing it in ziploc bags: so much more efficient in the freezer!

Now that I've read these posts I'm excited about drying the squashes. Does this work for zucchini, or just winter squashes? Thanks.

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Permalink Reply by Sharon on August 10, 2009 at 5:51pm

I've dried zucchini and summer squash for use in soups. I'm going to try some spaghetti squash because it doesn't keep for a long period of time. Winter squash we just leave until we are ready to prepare and then freeze any extra.

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Permalink Reply by Marian Worley on August 11, 2009 at 9:29am

Whew, I need a nap after reading your posts! No wonder I do not hear from as many of you as in February and March!
I am focusing on tomato products, pasta sauce, juice, whole tomatoes in the water bath method. That is the single largest ingredient for the cooking I do. Have just about finished up the squashes. Tip for frozen zucchini, The recipe I use for zucchini bread calls for 2 cups grated zucchini, so I grate and package in 2 cups quantities, then it is good to go for the bread.
I also find that if I cook the yellow squash on down with onion and then freeze it makes a very quick squash casserole. Here in the south we cook our squash and beans to death anyway and I honestly think that the texture of the frozen foods does better cooked down after they have been frozen. Save the al dente for the fresh stuff. As for frozen beans, I think cooking them a bit, just past the blanch stage and then plunging in an ice bath to shock is the best and most flavorful freezing methood. I am not a big canner of vegetables, other than tomatoes.
Basically I am going to start pulling everything up, let the soil rest a bit and try to get the weeds and grass out. For the most part, due to our wet and cool spring and summer, we have a bit of blight going on in Tennessee. So I am going to try and destroy the plants and start on the fall planting. I got enough to keep me putting by for a little longer and at some point I begin to refer to the garden plot as "Real Estate". If the plants are not producing enough to off set the value of the real estate, off they go. If nothing else, it is time to renew the soil for the next planting.
Except the okra seems to be just beginning to come on strong. So it can stay! As the peppers.
Bon Apetite, ya'll

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Permalink Reply by Cielce on August 12, 2009 at 9:34am

I've been doing a bit of preserving, if I buy a bit much at the famers market it goes into the freezer. So far peaches and beans have been frozen :)

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Permalink Reply by N & K Grant on September 2, 2009 at 10:52am

Our gardens didn't produce real well this year because of our weather, so I haven't been canning as much as usual, but I am doing a lot of drying. Got beet greens, dandelion greens, blueberries, raspberries, cauliflower and ground cherries done and am working now on apples, beets, green beans and tomatoes. Also am doing some pickled and fermented stuff (mixtures of vegs).

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