Thread: Paring down the preserving

On 7/9/2012 4:46 PM, The Cook wrote:
> I just looked at the shelves in the basement and the freezers and
> decided I am not going to do very much preserving this summer. Both
> kids have gardens and haven't taken too much home on recent visits.
> DIL asked me a few days ago what else could she do with zucchini.
>
> I think I will just can tomatoes instead of making stuff. Will check
> to make sure I have enough pasta sauce.
>
Isn't it nice when you can decide to let it go for a year. Says he who
still has 30 half-pints of pear jelly.

On Mon, 09 Jul 2012 17:59:12 -0500, George Shirley
<[email protected]> wrote:

>On 7/9/2012 4:46 PM, The Cook wrote:
>> I just looked at the shelves in the basement and the freezers and
>> decided I am not going to do very much preserving this summer. Both
>> kids have gardens and haven't taken too much home on recent visits.
>> DIL asked me a few days ago what else could she do with zucchini.
>>
>> I think I will just can tomatoes instead of making stuff. Will check
>> to make sure I have enough pasta sauce.
>>
>Isn't it nice when you can decide to let it go for a year. Says he who
>still has 30 half-pints of pear jelly.

I don't think I will make much in the way of jams, jellies or pickles
since DH doesn't eat them. I am going to make a few that I like and
forget the rest. I will can the tomatoes and maybe make Marinara
sauce if I my supply is low.
--
Susan N.

"Moral indignation is in most cases two percent moral,
48 percent indignation, and 50 percent envy."
Vittorio De Sica, Italian movie director (1901-1974)

On 7/9/2012 6:21 PM, The Cook wrote:
> On Mon, 09 Jul 2012 17:59:12 -0500, George Shirley
> <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>> On 7/9/2012 4:46 PM, The Cook wrote:
>>> I just looked at the shelves in the basement and the freezers and
>>> decided I am not going to do very much preserving this summer. Both
>>> kids have gardens and haven't taken too much home on recent visits.
>>> DIL asked me a few days ago what else could she do with zucchini.
>>>
>>> I think I will just can tomatoes instead of making stuff. Will check
>>> to make sure I have enough pasta sauce.
>>>
>> Isn't it nice when you can decide to let it go for a year. Says he who
>> still has 30 half-pints of pear jelly.
>
> I don't think I will make much in the way of jams, jellies or pickles
> since DH doesn't eat them. I am going to make a few that I like and
> forget the rest. I will can the tomatoes and maybe make Marinara
> sauce if I my supply is low.
>
We have many descendants that don't put anything up so most of what we
make around here goes to feed the grands and great grands, all of whom
love what we make for them. Makes you feel good when the great grand
children like your jams, jellies, and pickles better than store bought.

The little girls really like the dilly carrots and dilly beans.
Introduced the to pickled beets awhile back and got an email yesterday
that they wanted more. Alas, there are no more left, we like them too.

On Mon, 09 Jul 2012 17:59:12 -0500, George Shirley
<[email protected]> wrote:

>On 7/9/2012 4:46 PM, The Cook wrote:
>> I just looked at the shelves in the basement and the freezers and
>> decided I am not going to do very much preserving this summer. Both
>> kids have gardens and haven't taken too much home on recent visits.
>> DIL asked me a few days ago what else could she do with zucchini.
>>
>> I think I will just can tomatoes instead of making stuff. Will check
>> to make sure I have enough pasta sauce.
>>
>Isn't it nice when you can decide to let it go for a year. Says he who
>still has 30 half-pints of pear jelly.

Time to *pear* them down George.
Sorry ;-).

Ross.

On 7/10/2012 9:29 AM, Ross@home wrote:
> On Mon, 09 Jul 2012 17:59:12 -0500, George Shirley
> <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>> On 7/9/2012 4:46 PM, The Cook wrote:
>>> I just looked at the shelves in the basement and the freezers and
>>> decided I am not going to do very much preserving this summer. Both
>>> kids have gardens and haven't taken too much home on recent visits.
>>> DIL asked me a few days ago what else could she do with zucchini.
>>>
>>> I think I will just can tomatoes instead of making stuff. Will check
>>> to make sure I have enough pasta sauce.
>>>
>> Isn't it nice when you can decide to let it go for a year. Says he who
>> still has 30 half-pints of pear jelly.
>
> Time to *pear* them down George.
> Sorry ;-).
>
> Ross.
>
Groan!! I still smiled at it Ross, still raining here, I think our
two-year drought is well and truly done. We've had almost eight inches
since last Friday and the forecast is more rain through the coming week.
Luckily we've several thousand feet of prehistoric Gulf of Mexico sand
beneath us.

The Cook wrote:
> I just looked at the shelves in the basement and the freezers and
> decided I am not going to do very much preserving this summer. Both
> kids have gardens and haven't taken too much home on recent visits.
> DIL asked me a few days ago what else could she do with zucchini.
>
> I think I will just can tomatoes instead of making stuff. Will check
> to make sure I have enough pasta sauce.
>

I don't can tomatoes anymore; the store-bought ones are cheap and good
and readily available (if that ever ceases, I know how to start canning
them again.) I do put up *lots* of pints of salsa every year, since
Pace went and ruined their picante sauce about 10 or 15 years ago (made
it too thick and mild, trying to appeal to Yankees and Oklahomans I guess.)

I recently found a good use for all those excess jars of homemade
marmalade -- imagine a frozen margarita made with whiskey instead of
tequila and serve it in an unsalted glass (it's kind of a whiskey
sour.) I use Canadian whiskey, bottled lemon juice, ice, and orange or
tangerine marmalade. Very tasty, but too many calories for me to drink
them often.

Has DIL started leaving bags of zucchini in her neighbors' unlocked cars
yet? :-) I'm almost there with yellow squash this year.

-Bob

On Tue, 10 Jul 2012 09:35:39 -0500, George Shirley
<[email protected]> wrote:

>On 7/10/2012 9:29 AM, Ross@home wrote:
>> On Mon, 09 Jul 2012 17:59:12 -0500, George Shirley
>> <[email protected]> wrote:
>>
>>> On 7/9/2012 4:46 PM, The Cook wrote:
>>>> I just looked at the shelves in the basement and the freezers and
>>>> decided I am not going to do very much preserving this summer. Both
>>>> kids have gardens and haven't taken too much home on recent visits.
>>>> DIL asked me a few days ago what else could she do with zucchini.
>>>>
>>>> I think I will just can tomatoes instead of making stuff. Will check
>>>> to make sure I have enough pasta sauce.
>>>>
>>> Isn't it nice when you can decide to let it go for a year. Says he who
>>> still has 30 half-pints of pear jelly.
>>
>> Time to *pear* them down George.
>> Sorry ;-).
>>
>> Ross.
>>
>Groan!! I still smiled at it Ross, still raining here, I think our
>two-year drought is well and truly done. We've had almost eight inches
>since last Friday and the forecast is more rain through the coming week.
>Luckily we've several thousand feet of prehistoric Gulf of Mexico sand
>beneath us.

Lucky you.
I can't remember when we last had rain. Most of our grass is
completely brown. We often see storms go either north or south of us
but, nothing here. We've been very sparingly watering the garden but
we're on a well and don't want to overburden it.
Striped & spotted cucumber beetles are proliferating in spite of our
efforts at removal. Cabbages, broccoli and Brussels sprouts are now
being attacked by caterpillars. We sprayed with BTK last evening so I
hope that slows them down. Our complete and total garden bounty so far
this season is 3 zucchini, each about 4 inches long ;-(.
On top of all that, we're experiencing some of the hottest weather on
record and I'm the kind of guy that could drown in my own sweat if it
gets much over 72ºF. I would melt in your temps down there.
Exceptionally warm spring and then a cold snap with heavy frost means
there's not an apple, pear, peach, cherry or apricot to be seen on any
of our trees. Dolgo crabapples are producing but the fruit is no
bigger than a sour cherry at this point. The red currants are only the
size of BBs.
I'll be a sparse preserving year this year. But, we're just like Susan
said, after looking at our basement shelves and in the freezers,
that's probably a very good thing.
One of Murphy's Laws states 'If things seem like they couldn't
possibly get any worse, they probably will'.
Keep smilin'.

Ross.

On Tue, 10 Jul 2012 15:25:08 -0400, Ross@home wrote:

>On Tue, 10 Jul 2012 09:35:39 -0500, George Shirley
><[email protected]> wrote:
>
>>On 7/10/2012 9:29 AM, Ross@home wrote:
>>> On Mon, 09 Jul 2012 17:59:12 -0500, George Shirley
>>> <[email protected]> wrote:
>>>
>>>> On 7/9/2012 4:46 PM, The Cook wrote:
>>>>> I just looked at the shelves in the basement and the freezers and
>>>>> decided I am not going to do very much preserving this summer. Both
>>>>> kids have gardens and haven't taken too much home on recent visits.
>>>>> DIL asked me a few days ago what else could she do with zucchini.
>>>>>
>>>>> I think I will just can tomatoes instead of making stuff. Will check
>>>>> to make sure I have enough pasta sauce.
>>>>>
>>>> Isn't it nice when you can decide to let it go for a year. Says he who
>>>> still has 30 half-pints of pear jelly.
>>>
>>> Time to *pear* them down George.
>>> Sorry ;-).
>>>
>>> Ross.
>>>
>>Groan!! I still smiled at it Ross, still raining here, I think our
>>two-year drought is well and truly done. We've had almost eight inches
>>since last Friday and the forecast is more rain through the coming week.
>>Luckily we've several thousand feet of prehistoric Gulf of Mexico sand
>>beneath us.
>
>Lucky you.
>I can't remember when we last had rain. Most of our grass is
>completely brown. We often see storms go either north or south of us
>but, nothing here. We've been very sparingly watering the garden but
>we're on a well and don't want to overburden it.
>Striped & spotted cucumber beetles are proliferating in spite of our
>efforts at removal. Cabbages, broccoli and Brussels sprouts are now
>being attacked by caterpillars. We sprayed with BTK last evening so I
>hope that slows them down. Our complete and total garden bounty so far
>this season is 3 zucchini, each about 4 inches long ;-(.
>On top of all that, we're experiencing some of the hottest weather on
>record and I'm the kind of guy that could drown in my own sweat if it
>gets much over 72ºF. I would melt in your temps down there.
>Exceptionally warm spring and then a cold snap with heavy frost means
>there's not an apple, pear, peach, cherry or apricot to be seen on any
>of our trees. Dolgo crabapples are producing but the fruit is no
>bigger than a sour cherry at this point. The red currants are only the
>size of BBs.
>I'll be a sparse preserving year this year. But, we're just like Susan
>said, after looking at our basement shelves and in the freezers,
>that's probably a very good thing.
>One of Murphy's Laws states 'If things seem like they couldn't
>possibly get any worse, they probably will'.
>Keep smilin'.
>
>Ross.


Yes they will. We had a storm today and it took out a huge Oak tree
in our front yard. Fortunately the only casualty was a small dent on
the back fender of my car. Now to get the stuff out of the yard. But
as DH said, the positive side is that some of the Red Oak may be good
for woodworking.
--
Susan N.

"Moral indignation is in most cases two percent moral,
48 percent indignation, and 50 percent envy."
Vittorio De Sica, Italian movie director (1901-1974)

On 7/10/2012 3:05 PM, The Cook wrote:
> On Tue, 10 Jul 2012 15:25:08 -0400, Ross@home wrote:
>
>> On Tue, 10 Jul 2012 09:35:39 -0500, George Shirley
>> <[email protected]> wrote:
>>
>>> On 7/10/2012 9:29 AM, Ross@home wrote:
>>>> On Mon, 09 Jul 2012 17:59:12 -0500, George Shirley
>>>> <[email protected]> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> On 7/9/2012 4:46 PM, The Cook wrote:
>>>>>> I just looked at the shelves in the basement and the freezers and
>>>>>> decided I am not going to do very much preserving this summer. Both
>>>>>> kids have gardens and haven't taken too much home on recent visits.
>>>>>> DIL asked me a few days ago what else could she do with zucchini.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I think I will just can tomatoes instead of making stuff. Will check
>>>>>> to make sure I have enough pasta sauce.
>>>>>>
>>>>> Isn't it nice when you can decide to let it go for a year. Says he who
>>>>> still has 30 half-pints of pear jelly.
>>>>
>>>> Time to *pear* them down George.
>>>> Sorry ;-).
>>>>
>>>> Ross.
>>>>
>>> Groan!! I still smiled at it Ross, still raining here, I think our
>>> two-year drought is well and truly done. We've had almost eight inches
>>> since last Friday and the forecast is more rain through the coming week.
>>> Luckily we've several thousand feet of prehistoric Gulf of Mexico sand
>>> beneath us.
>>
>> Lucky you.
>> I can't remember when we last had rain. Most of our grass is
>> completely brown. We often see storms go either north or south of us
>> but, nothing here. We've been very sparingly watering the garden but
>> we're on a well and don't want to overburden it.
>> Striped & spotted cucumber beetles are proliferating in spite of our
>> efforts at removal. Cabbages, broccoli and Brussels sprouts are now
>> being attacked by caterpillars. We sprayed with BTK last evening so I
>> hope that slows them down. Our complete and total garden bounty so far
>> this season is 3 zucchini, each about 4 inches long ;-(.
>> On top of all that, we're experiencing some of the hottest weather on
>> record and I'm the kind of guy that could drown in my own sweat if it
>> gets much over 72ºF. I would melt in your temps down there.
>> Exceptionally warm spring and then a cold snap with heavy frost means
>> there's not an apple, pear, peach, cherry or apricot to be seen on any
>> of our trees. Dolgo crabapples are producing but the fruit is no
>> bigger than a sour cherry at this point. The red currants are only the
>> size of BBs.
>> I'll be a sparse preserving year this year. But, we're just like Susan
>> said, after looking at our basement shelves and in the freezers,
>> that's probably a very good thing.
>> One of Murphy's Laws states 'If things seem like they couldn't
>> possibly get any worse, they probably will'.
>> Keep smilin'.
>>
>> Ross.
>
>
> Yes they will. We had a storm today and it took out a huge Oak tree
> in our front yard. Fortunately the only casualty was a small dent on
> the back fender of my car. Now to get the stuff out of the yard. But
> as DH said, the positive side is that some of the Red Oak may be good
> for woodworking.
>
Red oak is very good for woodworking. Our villa in Saudi Arabia had
American red oak doors, shutters, and was worked into the screens in the
wall surrounding the house plus the gates. We have a monster cherrybark
oak, one of the red oak types, in our backyard. Wish we could take it
with us when we move but it is nine feet through the trunk three feet
above ground. Beautiful trees with shallow roots. In twenty-two years we
have lost two water oaks, a very large white oak, an American elm, and
two peach trees. Most to storms, the peach trees to peach borer.

In article <[email protected]>,
zxcvbob <[email protected]> wrote:

> The Cook wrote:
> > I just looked at the shelves in the basement and the freezers and
> > decided I am not going to do very much preserving this summer. Both
> > kids have gardens and haven't taken too much home on recent visits.
> > DIL asked me a few days ago what else could she do with zucchini.
> >
> > I think I will just can tomatoes instead of making stuff. Will check
> > to make sure I have enough pasta sauce.
> >
>
> I don't can tomatoes anymore; the store-bought ones are cheap and good
> and readily available (if that ever ceases, I know how to start canning
> them again.) I do put up *lots* of pints of salsa every year, since
> Pace went and ruined their picante sauce about 10 or 15 years ago (made
> it too thick and mild, trying to appeal to Yankees and Oklahomans I guess.)
>
> I recently found a good use for all those excess jars of homemade
> marmalade -- imagine a frozen margarita made with whiskey instead of
> tequila and serve it in an unsalted glass (it's kind of a whiskey
> sour.) I use Canadian whiskey, bottled lemon juice, ice, and orange or
> tangerine marmalade. Very tasty, but too many calories for me to drink
> them often.
>
> Has DIL started leaving bags of zucchini in her neighbors' unlocked cars
> yet? :-) I'm almost there with yellow squash this year.
>
> -Bob

Have you got a recipe for your salsa, Bob?
Ever make tomatillo salsa? A friend says her garden has a boatload of
them and I'm welcome to some. Can you combine tomatillos and tomatoes
in the same jar or is that "not done"?
--
Barb,
http://www.barbschaller.com, as of June 6, 2012

Melba's Jammin' wrote:

> Have you got a recipe for your salsa, Bob?

Chile Salsa
(from USDA bulletin 539) yield: 6 to 8 pints

5 pounds tomatoes
2 pounds chile peppers
1 pound onions, chopped
1 cup vinegar (5%)
3 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper

Roast and peel peppers if they have tough skins (not necessary with
jalapeños or serranos) remove seeds and stems, chop. Scald and peel
tomatoes; chop. Combine all ingredients in large saucepan. Bring to
a boil and simmer 10 minutes. Ladle into pint jars, leave 1/2 inch
headspace. Adjust lids and process in boiling water bath for 15 minutes.

Notes: I generally use all jalapeños, seeds and all. If the tomatoes
are too juicy add an 8 ounce can of tomato sauce or a tablespoon of
tomato paste. I like using half bottled lemon juice and half white
vinegar instead of straight vinegar. I don't know why but it tastes
better than using all vinegar or all lemon juice.

* * *

Bob

Melba's Jammin' wrote:
> Ever make tomatillo salsa? A friend says her garden has a boatload of
> them and I'm welcome to some. Can you combine tomatillos and tomatoes
> in the same jar or is that "not done"?

I've made tomatillo salsa; lemme see if I can find the recipe. You
could mix them with tomatoes, but that would just be wrong. (with
green tomatoes at the end of the season, maybe)

I have tomatillos coming up all over the garden. Gonna dig up a few of
the big ones tomorrow morning and transplant them to a bed where they'll
be out of the way.

Okay, I think this is the right recipe. It really looks like it could
be BWB processed, but it hasn't been tested for that and there's no
reason not to pressure can it -- it's not like it would ruin the
texture. ("mixed green chiles" means jalapeños. and I don't remember
using that much oregano)

Tomatillo Salsa Verde

6 1/2 pounds tomatillos -- chopped large
1 1/2 pounds mixed green chiles
1/2 pound chopped yellow onion
1 cup lemon juice or vinegar [I used white vinegar]
1 tsp. garlic powder
2 Tbsp. dried oregano
2 Tbsp. salt
1 Tbsp. whole black pepper

Combine all ingredients in a large covered saucepan and cook over low
heat until mixture begins to boil; simmer for 20 minutes, stirring
occasionally. Liquefy with a "stick blender" and bring back to a boil.
Ladle hot salsa into hot pint jars, leaving 1/2-inch headspace. Adjust
lids and process in a steam pressure canner at 10 pounds for 20 minutes.
Makes about 8 pints.

* * *

You can also make small batches of the stuff fresh. Cook tomatillos and
peppers together (morita-style dried chipotles makes a nice smoky
reddish-colored salsa) until soft, blenderize them, add salt, lemon
juice, and spices to taste.

Bob