No matter how much succession planting I try to do, our melons all seem to ripen about the same time. It’s fantastic to be able to eat as much watermelon as you want day after day but we also like to enjoy watermelon more than just one month out of the year. Watermelon sorbet is …
I know what you’re thinking….”Cucumber Lime sorbet???”….Yes, and it’s really, really good. Sorbet is traditionally served as a palate cleanser but we eat it as a dessert or as a treat on a hot summer afternoon. This sorbet recipe combines the refreshing flavor of cucumbers with the tang of lime to create a sorbet that …
What is the best way to freeze fresh basil to retain the flavor and color? We put all the the popular and not-so-popular methods to the test and came up the easiest and best way of freezing basil. Personally, my very favorite way to freeze basil is in the form of basil pesto. We go …
Fig season is short, although it does come twice a year, so be sure to preserve figs while you can. Figs can be canned, frozen, pickled, dehydrated and even fermented! Fig season is season is something to celebrate. Like mulberries, figs don’t ship well which makes it hard to find fresh figs for sale. In …
There’s a cycle that happens every year in our neck of the woods. Every November through January we have more citrus than we know what to do with. Everyone is “sharing” and hoping someone will take some oranges, grapefruit, and Meyer lemons off their hands before they go bad. Then every summer everyone is wishing …
While freezing cucumbers is probably not the first thing people think of when they want to preserve cucumbers, it’s actually a very useful thing to do. Here’s the thing with freezing cucumbers, the texture will be different when they’re thawed. If you can accept that fact, you can successfully freeze cucumbers. You can freeze cucumbers …
Preserving zucchini and summer squash in a variety of ways is a wonderful way to cut your grocery bill and ensure your family has organic food through the winter months. We are in the height of zucchini and summer squash season right now and while it is overwhelming at times, it’s also a huge blessing. …
It is almost apple season and my family is so excited. While I will buy apples out of season for eating fresh, I won’t buy them out of season for anything else. Apples make a great snack on the go or to pack in a lunch so I buy the year round. I like preserving apples …
We got seven peaches off our peach tree this year. Oh my, they were so very good! But obviously, with only seven we just ate them and didn’t even think about preserving them. So, I did what I do every year. I purchased peaches so I could actually preserve peaches for the rest of the …
Many years ago, I canned about 30 quarts of pear chutney. I had never tried pear chutney, in fact I had never even heard the word “chutney” before that day. But our pear tree was producing a bumper crop that year and I decided it would be fun to try something new. {ahem} No one liked it…not …
We kicked off July 4th weekend by going blueberry picking . Yes, we have blueberry bushes but they are not producing. Last year fire ants got into the pots and destroyed the roots. We bought new plants but they are still young. Normally, we would just go without but because of all the rain we …
Preserving tomatoes is a summer tradition in many homes. But preserving tomatoes can be more than spaghetti sauce and salsa. There are so many ways of preserving tomatoes and really, you need to do what is best for your family. Because I’m pretty simple, I mainly can tomatoes with onions and garlic and dehydrate tomatoes …
It seems to be feast or famine with cucumbers at our little homestead. Some years I just cannot get them to produce at all and other years I’m wondering what in the world we’re going to do with them all. We’re in a feasting year this year. Normally that would be a good thing but …
One of our goals this year was to add more herbs to our garden for both culinary and medicinal uses. Many times those uses overlap. The thing with herbs is that they do not grow year round outside (even in zone 9) and they are not always ready at the same time complimentary vegetables are …
Welcome to week one of Preserving the Harvest which will be a twelve week series on preserving fruits, vegetables and herbs to use throughout the year. My goals isn’t to teach you everything you need to know about every preservation method or every fruit or vegetable. My goal is to encourage you to not see …
Every spring one of the first herb seeds I sow are basil seeds. I liberally scatter them in several places in the garden. I do this for one reason…pesto! We love pesto so very much and I refuse to pay $5 for a small jar of basil pesto. So each summer you’ll find me making …
Can you freeze lemons? Absolutely! In fact, freezing lemons is a great way to ensure you have that bright, fresh lemon flavor even when lemons aren’t in season. We have an amazing Meyer lemon tree that came with our house. Each year we try to freeze lemons to last the year. I like to use …