These past couple of days it's been all about the produce coming out of the garden. You can see by the pictures I have been a busy little bee.
The single canning jars you see are filled with salsa and a variation of Boston baked beans. Also in the picture showing off all the jars are some roasted pepper in a vinaigrette.
Then yesterday when I took my trip through the garden I was pleasantly surprised to find a laundry basket's worth of different veggies needing to be picked. There's corn, green beans (which you can't see), eggplant, cucumbers, yellow crookneck and zucchini squashes, one lone pepper and more tomatoes in the basket. Which all lead to my canning again late last night.
I got to use my brand new steam juicer last night. The steam juicer by means of hot steam breaks down the cell wall of a fruit, veggie or, meat product in the steamer basket. Allowing you to collect the delicious and mostly under used liquids of anything you can think of to steam. Think chicken = chicken broth and the most tender chicken meat due to the steam. Fruits to steam gives you clear juice for the making of jellies and the pulp to make fruit leathers from. Or, tomatoes (which is what I did last night) steamed = tomato water and tomato pulp for the making of sauce. This works to free you up without the long process of cooking down the tomatoes forever to get a thick sauce. Plus, you get this almost clear liquid to use in soup bases, cook rice in or, just to drink with a bit of Worcestershire sauce added in. This liquid during conventional cooking would have gone up in steam in the room. Now it is being saved and utilized. Can you tell I like this new gadget, my steam juicer?
After picking more tomatoes yesterday I realized something had to be done with said tomatoes. Late into the night I worked to process the pounds and pounds of tomatoes I had. I now have to add to my shelves which are definitely getting full; tomato water and spaghetti sauce.
I have today off as we are going on what we call a "road rally" to the big city. But, once I get home and if, I am not exhausted.... I am canning tonight too. Just maybe this garden is a bit big this year?
1 comment:
Too big? Is there such a thing as a garden too big!! I love it and I flash back to when your friend came by and thought you could "do a lot more in this space" I remember you thinking "We are two" and that the current garden was probably big enough. So now we see that it is verging on being too big for you and Mark.
Love you, staying busy, One kid this week, just piper and Rosa came today to help me clean! Love my house on Rosa day.
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