How To Preserve Figs

Step 5 Note: Create or find a spacer that's the same thickness as the space between the slats, and use that as a spacing guide; often a 16d nail works well.Create the ventilated shelves by cutting the 1×3 side supports and slats to length, (as pictured);...

Learn more about this fascinating—and tasty—kitchen method. Fermented-food Recipes Fermenting food is easy, especially when you're equipped with a good recipe. If you'd like to learn more about fermentation, there are several helpful books available:...

The summer harvest will keep your farm kitchen busy. Breaking up a process in this way helps it feel more attainable when coming off a busy day on the farm. Cook in Bulk When making a recipe that involves more preparation or multiple steps, cook up a...

If you become too worried about the sap spoiling, you can drink maple sap straight away, or substitute it for water in just about anything to add a sweet, nutty flavor. In any case, as a small-scale syrup maker with limited resources and many other distractions,...

According to my granny, when these first came out, the latex rubber seal lent itself to multiple use. Thirty-three canning seasons (and no exploded canners) later, I am happy to offer my no-fear step-by-step approach to successful pressure canning.

Warning: Be sure to remove any locking/latching hardware on old refrigerators. Garbage Cans or Barrels Bury a metal garbage can or heavy-duty barrel so the top of the can is several inches above ground level.

Be careful when using this method, though, as the fumes released during drying can be irritating to some people. I thread a sewing needle with heavy thread and pass it through the “head” of each pepper, piercing through the red flesh just beneath...

Generally, when people refer to pickles, they mean a product made with the former method. Peter picked a peck of pickled peppers … or maybe they were fermented. During fermentation, a fruit or vegetable is cured in a salt-and-water brine for one week...

Reheat stock and soup by boiling for 10 minutes, to 140 degrees F, before eating as an added safety precaution. “Their website isn't the prettiest, but you can easily find everything you need to can safely, including standards for the amount of pressure...

(A good source for pure vegetable glycerin is MountainRoseHerbs.com.) It's important to thoroughly wash and dry your herbs first since glycerin doesn't have the germ-killing properties of alcohol, vinegar and raw honey.

First, a bit of historical jar trivia, gleaned from www.pickyourown.org : The glass Mason jar, with its reusable, screw-top lid, was invented in 1858 by a tin smith named John L. Cotton balls, Q-tips.

Use in trail mix. Gather some friends and family and plan to preserve items that will provide versatility throughout the year. Relishes (Sweet or Sour) Brett/Flickr Mix with plain yogurt or sour cream for an instant dip.

Watermelon Rind Coming from the era of waste not, want not, watermelon-rind pickles use part of the fruit that often ends up discarded, creating a sweet treat with a pear-like texture.

“Open Kettle Canning” or “Upside Down Sealing” (still often recommended in European texts) are both vintage sealing methods no longer considered safe. If someone is set on using an old family recipe, I offer a few suggestions.

English recommends sourcing organic dried fruits whenever possible, as crops such as grapes , currants and apples are heavily sprayed with pesticides when conventionally grown. Both brown sugars have a tendency to clump, so store them in airtight glass...

Done! When you thaw it you can eat it plain or as topping for ice cream, pancakes or Lemon and Olive Oil Cake . Plum trees bear globe-shaped, thick-skinned, red or yellow fruit about 3/4 to 1 inch in diameter.

Loe says she first learned how to can at her mother's apron strings, but she extended that knowledge through training in a master food-preserver program, attending culinary school, and keeping up with the latest USDA recommendations and guidelines.

Use a large kettle that will hold all the jars for one batch. Safety Clostridium botulinum, the deadly neurotoxin that causes botulism, thrives in under-processed, low-acid, home-canned goods.

A weighted gauge is a simpler design—the gauge, sometimes referred to as a “petcock,” has three different-sized holes equidistant around the edge of the disk labeled 5, 10 and 15.

Caper Substitutes However, since capers are in actuality just pickled flower buds, there's no reason to not experiment with more bioregionally appropriate fare. Beyond these more well-documented caper-alternatives, there is ample room for experimentation.

If parts are failing or you're having frequent issues with your canner, it might be time to look into a newer model. It's all too easy to become complacent when you've been canning for decades, but Elizabeth Andress, PhD, professor at the University of...

Katz says our grandparents and great-grandparents had to store a winter's worth of vegetables by fermenting them, so they had to use enough salt to keep the vegetables from being completely soft by spring.

At this point, you want to minimize the amount of oxygen in contact with the vinegar to stop the action of the Acetobacter . Beers below 5½ percent might create a weak vinegar, but do not generally have enough fuel for the Acetobacter to survive.

This may cause some foods to be softer or darker in color than if once, but as long as you allow the recommended heat and time, if they seal, they will be safe to eat. If you find anything obvious, delegate that jar to storage or decorative use because...

If leaving in a crock, keep it in a cool basement or cellar, periodically checking for, and removing, any white surface growths or browning of the veggies that occurs. Think about a ferment like you might a stew.

Basil wilts super-fast, so a lot of energy and effort need to go into bringing it quickly to its point of sale. But there's more to that story than just passing along vegetables: By sharing our abundance, we help strengthen community ties.

Sort items by size and ripeness before packaging, and pretreat vegetables by blanching them, and add ascorbic acid to easily oxidized fruits. Regardless of the make and model you choose, all freezer manufacturers provide guidelines in their manuals for...