Gardening

Canning Day

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Mom (standing with hands on hips, a bit overwhelmed):  What am I going to do with all of these vegetables?

Five-year-old Preservation Expert:  Mommy, there is a lot of stuff here.

Mom (hands still on hips, a bit more overwhelmed):  Yeah.  Got it.  I’m still trying to figure out what to make with all of it.

Five-year-old Preservation Expert (with a look of absolute clarity):  I know!  I think we need to have a canning day!  Like, a whole day when all we do is can and freeze stuff for winter.

And so continues a day in the life with a very young child that just gets it.  Of course.  Why wouldn’t we put some of this food by for when the bounty is less?  Sometimes it takes youth to open our eyes to what is right in front of us.  Wonderful suggestion my darling girl.

Here is a walk through our day of food preservation…

{A wonderful new idea I got from this magazine.  What a fabulous idea!}

{Salsa, salsa and more salsa}

{Got to love hot pink fingers for a day.}

{I struck gold this week!  I found my grandfather’s recipe box in the back of my parents’ pantry.  It contains all of his old canning recipes, including his bread and butter pickles, my favorite of all his canning greats.}

Once A Year

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One of my favorite times of the year has arrived, and that my friends is peach time!  I love fresh peaches so much in fact that I only eat them when they are in season, in their absolute prime, in the middle of the August heat.

We buy our peaches locally from a family fruit farm where they grow all of their own peaches in their orchard, and they are to die for.  After the market last week, we ran home and got to work on my favorite pie on earth:  Grandma Dit’s Peach Pie.

I still remember being in about forth grade and I was home sick from school because I was running a high fever.   It was late fall, the time when most schoolchildren begin to fall ill, and I found myself buried beneath the afghan on the couch, watching reruns of Saved By The Bell.  My mom asked me if there was anything she could get me to eat that would make me feel any better.  I told her the only thing that would heal what was ailing me was Grandma’s peach pie.  There were no fresh peaches available in late fall in Rockford, Illinois, so my mom did what any good mother would do.  She improvised.  She went to the grocery store and bought a pre-made peach pie.  I took one bite, spit it out and said, “This is not right.  It’s not the same.  Never mind.”

I don’t know why this story has stuck with me for so long, but I think it is because there is no replacement for real, in-season peach pie, using my grandmother’s recipe.  So here goes…

I make my own crust (recipe found here).  Then I fill it with delicious sliced peaches.

I add about 10 tiny dollops of butter on top of the peaches, and then create a mixture of 1 cup sugar, 4 tablespoons flour and 1 teaspoon cinnamon.  I scoop this mixture over the peaches and butter so the entire pie is coated.  I then add just a touch (about 1/4 cup) of water to the pie.  This creates a delicious custard-like consistency.  Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes and then reduce the heat to 325 degrees for 45 minutes.

I truly hope you enjoy this recipe that I hold so close to my heart.  Enjoy!

Fun with Fungi

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Here in the Fagan house, we LOVE mushrooms.  Because of our love of this delicious treat, we have tried our hand at growing mushrooms multiple times with limited to no success.

But, it appears the tides have turned.  And it all began with a roll of toilet paper.

My brother-in-law surprised my three year old (perhaps the largest fungi fan in the house…seriously!) with a very creative birthday present:  A TeePee Pink Oyster Mushroom Kit from Fungi Perfecti.

Since we had attempted mushroom growing in the past with limited luck, I was skeptical to begin the process again.  But low and behold…it worked!  We now have beautiful PINK oyster mushrooms, growing out of a roll of toilet paper!

I would highly recommend trying this project with young kids (and let’s be honest…big kids too).  It was so interested to learn about the entire growing process of fungi, and then to watch the mushrooms grow (and grow VERY quickly) right in front of their eyes.

{We took step by step pictures of the entire growing process.  Enjoy! }

{After three weeks in a dark cabinet.}

{After sitting in the fridge for 2 days to start the fruiting process, we then let it sit on the table in our dining room and after 2 days this is what happened.}

Can It Be?

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Way, way back in the winter months, my first post on this blog contained a picture of a fig tree I received for Christmas from my sister-in-law.  She is from California where she grew up growing figs in her backyard.

I have never had fresh figs in my life.  They are just not readily available in northern Illinois.  My lone experience with figs is in the filling of my grandma’s (and now my) Italian fig cookies.  But the figs used in this recipe are dried.

When I received my tiny fig tree it was only a twig standing upright in a small pot.  And I was told I had to keep it alive inside until I could transition it to the outdoors in summer.  Now, if truth be told, I have never been able to keep a plant alive inside.  Ever.  So, this was a tall order for me.

I pulled through all winter long, transplanted the tiny plant that grew a few leaves indoor during the winter months, and have been tending to it each and every day.

This morning I was startled to discover…I can’t believe it, but it may be true…I do believe there is the beginnings of a tiny fig forming on the tree…In Rockford, Illinois…Zone 4!

Everything But The Kitchen Sink

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As I mentioned yesterday, our garden is quiet the producing machine right now.  The girls and I were in the garden all day yesterday and came out with bucket upon bucket filled with onions, tomatoes, cucumbers, greens, and carrots.

This time of garden abundance reminded me of my favorite summertime dish to make:  gazpacho.  (Gazpacho is a tomato-based soup traditionally served cold.)  You can literally throw in anything and everything you have fresh in your garden, give it a whirl in your food processor and you have a healthy, flavorful dish.  It’s a great way to ensure you are getting all of your veggies in, and it tastes wonderful too.  In our house we like to serve the gazpacho in glasses and drink it like a smoothie, but you could serve it in bowls and eat it with a spoon if you prefer it that way.

In the particular batch I made yesterday, I used:  tomatoes, green and purple sweet peppers, banana peppers, garlic, red onion and cilantro.  I then add salt, pepper and Sriracha (our kitchen could not survive without this stuff) to taste.

A Summer Snack

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We have found ourselves surrounded by fresh veggies.  They lay on every flat surface of our kitchen and sunroom right now and I have been trying to find clever ways to eat this plethora of veg in the freshest way possible.

The biggest issue I seem to run into with my little ones is they need to have the vegetables prepared and ready to go if they are going to eat them.  So, this week I decided whip up a really quick and simple tzatziki dip with cucumbers from our garden.  I then slice up a bunch “dippable” vegetables (carrots, sweet peppers, small tomatoes) and store them in a sealed container.  Now any time a member of the family gets that urge to snack, there is a nice healthy snack waiting for them in the fridge.

{A little work from a friendly fairy always helps a bit too 🙂 }

For my tzatziki, I mix together:  Greek yogurt, cucumbers (seeds removed and diced), fresh or dried oregano, onion powder, fresh lemon juice, salt and pepper.  I just taste along the way and adjust my amounts accordingly.

Tomato Time

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Sorry for stepping away for a day, but my garden work kept me detained a bit longer than I thought when I was writing on Monday morning.  The tomatoes are in full swing  and I seemed to have gotten lost amongst the vines for a very long time before resurfacing and realizing that most of my day had passed me by.

This is the first year that we have not planted any slicing tomatoes.  We planted only small cherry-type tomatoes (Juliets and Mexican Midgets) for the girls to snack on, and paste tomatoes (Viva Italias, Speckled Romans and Amish Pastes) to use for tomato sauces and salsas.  What I didn’t realize about these types of plants is how many more fruits they produce compared to slicing tomatoes.  Oh my.  On Monday afternoon while I was picking, I found 4-6 ripe tomatoes, 6-8 I’m-almost-ready tomatoes, and about 20 addition green tomatoes just waiting to get ripe.  That is also not factoring in that each plant still has about 20-30 blossoms.  Apparently the tomatoes have done just fine with all of this heat.

So what to do with all of these lovely tomatoes?  Tomato sauce it is!  I love, love, love making tomato sauce.  I have no idea why I cherish this activity so very much, maybe its my Italian roots, but I look forward to this activity come late July each and every year.

Yesterday I woke up early to begin this favorite task of mine.  I went out to the herb garden, enjoyed the cool damp air from the rain the night before, and spent some time in meditation just picking oregano and basil.  It was a great start to my morning.  Then with coffee at the ready, and ingredients laid out, I went to work.  And what lovely work it was, in the quite of the morning before anyone else awoke to begin their day.  Ah.

My Tomato Sauce

I kind of fly by the seat of my pants with this recipe as (much like with my pesto). I first put a good amount of olive oil in the bottom of a stock pot.  I then add garlic and onion (chopped) and I cook that down until the onions become translucent, but not brown.

I then add my chopped tomatoes and my fresh oregano and basil.  I add a bit of salt and pepper at this point, cover the pot and let it cook over medium heat for about 15 minutes.  I then remove the lid and allow to cook for another hour or so.

At this point, I run a hand blender through the sauce (I don’t strain my seeds.  I know all the Nanas out there may turn their nose at this 🙂 )  Add more salt and pepper to taste.  Then I bring the sauce down to a simmer and leave it for several hours.  I stir it every once in a while to keep the bottom from sticking.  At the very end I add a bit of butter to cut the acidy taste.

I freeze my sauce as opposed to canning it because I find it hard to stick to an exact recipe, which is so very important to do if you are canning.  I normally freeze my sauce in wide-mouth glass quart jars filled about 2 inches from the top of the jar (to allow for expansion during freezing.)

Grandma Dit’s Carrot Cake

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There is something about old recipe cards that I just adore.  Maybe it’s the handwriting of those who have gone before us. Or maybe it’s the tiny notations scribbled in the corners of the cards, making note of adaptations to the recipe that worked or did not work for the previous maker of this recipe.  No matter what the reason though, I adore making recipes from these small pieces of paper dotted with vanilla stains and creased corners.

Last night for our family’s weekly Tuesday Night Dinner, I rifled through my mom’s recipe box for the coveted carrot cake recipe that my Grandma Dietmeier was famous for.  I made a few adjustments of my own to this fabulous recipe and came out with a yummy little cake that was a big hit at the gathering last night.

(This is the secret to Grandma’s carrot cake recipe:  2 jars of carrot baby food!  It makes the cake extra moist, and adds even more great carrot flavor.)

Grandma Dit’s Carrot Cake

Mix together in a large bowl:

1 1/2 cups oil

2 cups sugar

4 eggs

2 cups shredded fresh carrots

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 small jars of carrot baby food

In a separate bowl, mix together:

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 cup all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

Add the dry ingredients to the wet.  Mix well.  Pour batter into a 9 X 13 inch baking dish.  Bake for 40 minutes at 350 degrees.

Cream Cheese Frosting:  Cream together 8 oz cream cheese, 1/2 cup butter, 1 teaspoon vanilla, 4 cups powdered sugar.  Frost the cake once it is cooled.

Enjoy!

Putting Food By: Pesto

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“Would you say your pesto is the besto?” ~Friends

Each and every time I watched Friends in college, snuggled up on the couch with my roomies, and heard Phoebe say this line, I roared with laughter.  Well, let’s face it, I pretty much laughed like crazy any time I watched that show.  But looking back, the funniest part is when I was in college, I had no idea what pesto even was!

Now that I have discovered the wonderful world of pesto, I definitely would not say my pesto is the besto, but by golly it is pretty darn tasty.  I love, love, love making pesto in giant batches and freezing it for use in the winter months.  It helps to bring that lovely basil taste that reminds me so much of summer to the table when the heat is on and the snow is falling outside.

The particular batch I made this weekend had toasted walnuts, basil, swiss chard, garlic, Parmesan cheese, olive oil and salt.  But the great thing about pesto is you can use a wide variety of nuts and/or greens and the pesto will turn out great.

When I freeze my pesto, I put it in 8oz, freezer safe, glass jelly jars.  I fill each jar to 1 inch from the top (to allow for expansion in the freezer).  It freezes beautifully this way, defrosts easily and allows for easy preparation when you pop it out of the freezer at a later date.

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Some of our favorite home preservation books are:

Putting Food By by Janet Greene, Ruth Hertzberg and Beatrice Vaughan

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver (There are some great canning recipes scattered throughout the piece.)

The Big Book of Preserving the Harvest by Carol W. Costenbader

Putting Food By: Dilly Beans

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We have a few little friends who have again found an entry point into our garden:  the rabbits.  So before they could reek havoc over too much of the garden space, I picked what I could from our bean patch because that seems to be their vegetable of choice right now.  I was shocked to find, that despite this incessant heat we have been experiencing, I was able to harvest quite a hefty bean crop.  In fact, I was able to gather so much that I needed to find something to do with some of them.  Enter dilly beans.

For those of you that have never had dilly beans, they are just plain yummy.  A little hot from the chilli peppers, a little sour from the vinegar and a little spicy from the garlic…what more could a girl ask for?

This year I found a great recipe in Putting Food By (listed below with a link), which only required a hot water bath canning method.  There were very few ingredients required and the entire process did not take long at all.  Now we have some more great summer veg ready to go for the winter.

What do you do with your surplus of green beans?  Leave a comment and share ideas with others.

***

Some of our favorite home preservation books are:

Putting Food By by Janet Greene, Ruth Hertzberg and Beatrice Vaughan

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver (There are some great canning recipes scattered throughout the piece.)

The Big Book of Preserving the Harvest by Carol W. Costenbader