You mean everyone uses bruised fruit? I feel really silly now! I used anything that wasn't extremely bruised and mushy and felt bad for using that. At least my guilt is appeased now. I still have a few pounds in the fridge, so I guess I'll use those up - bruises and all.
A friend who likes bananas but not spotted or streaked bananas or banana flavored foods, gave me her bananas and as I waited for them to ripen, one of them began to look like a canoe with the way it was sorta flattened in the center. When I went to peel it, it was bubbling and brewing and was completely liquefied. It had just started to ferment, I think-- Banana alcohol!
Well, in June when I planted my garden, I threw my extra bean seeds in a flat patch of ground 2 acres back. Didn't see much growth and I just left the weeds grow with them. Kind of forgot about them after that.
While haying I stopped over to take a peak, there were bean pods. I was amazed. The weeds kept the hail from breaking the stems. There weren't many plants but last night I made 6 pints of mustard beans with what I picked, a happy start for me. Yay.
~~Tam~ You can bury all your troubles by digging in the dirt.
I made up 3 quarts and a large cereal bowl of salsa last night. Apparently the 3 dozen lids I bought last week have already been used. Although I don't remember using them. I used, I think it was Rita's recipe, that was posted on the first thread. I used almost a cup of jalapeƱos, I hope it's not too spicy. It sure looks pretty though!
Apple Pie Filling: * 4 1/2 cups white sugar * 1 cup cornstarch * 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon * 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg * 2 teaspoons salt * 10 cups water * 3 tablespoons lemon juice * 6 pounds apples
1. in a large pan, mix sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon and nutmeg. Add salt and water and mix well. Bring to a boil and cook until thick and bubbly. Remove from heat and add lemon juice and food coloring. 2. Sterilize canning jars, lids and rings by boiling them in a large pot of water. 3. Peel, core, and slice apples. Pack the sliced apples into hot canning jars, leaving a 1/2 inch headspace. 4. Fill jars with hot syrup, and gently remove air bubbles with a plastic spatula. 5. Put lids on and process in a water bath canner for 20 minutes.
Be sure to use a good tart apple or these are going to be flavorless.
Triss, I believe it called for a drop or two of yellow but I don't like the idea of additives, so I never put it in. Not only will processing make them soft but you're going to bake them in a pie/cobbler/crisp later.
Last edited by LandOfOz; Aug 14th, 2007 at 02:54 PM.
Well today when I went back to the woods to check the nut trees I found a patch of wild raspberries, so I ended up making 3 mini bottles of jam after supper
~~Tam~ You can bury all your troubles by digging in the dirt.
By the way, I hate my new canner. The rack is flat and the bottles move and hit each other. When I put in a small towel to seperate them, it boils over. My pot isn't tall enough even though it states for pint jars.
Guess i'll use it for a lobster pot. Might cut down a rack and use my tall stock pot as a canner.
~~Tam~ You can bury all your troubles by digging in the dirt.
Thanks so much for the salsa recipe, Rita! I loved it! I put in a cup of chopped jalapeƱos but the salsa still has a distinctive sweet flavor. Maybe from the paste or could it be my tomatoes? Next time I make the stuff, I will definitely increase the peppers up closer to the 2.5 cups. How much do you put in?
This last time I put in 2 and a half cups and a good tablespoon of cayanne pepper... I think the sweet has to come from the bell pepper and tomatoe combo? I am trying to figure out that one as well since there is no sugar in it!!
the sweet is from the tomato. tomatoes have a lot of natural sugar that when mixed with something bitter/spicy/vinegary, it comes out strong.
Rita is all tomatoed out then ? Wish I had that problem.
Farmers Markets have gone out of hand. $4 a pound for bean pods, onions and potatoes are $1 a pound. And they wonder why each year they sell less and less. It's not even organic produce either.
~~Tam~ You can bury all your troubles by digging in the dirt.
Our local farmers market is getting taken over by price-gougers. I expect the prices to be similiar to the ones at the grocery store--heck I'm willing to pay a little more for products picked when ripe instead of picked and ripened in a semi. But I'm not paying double or triple, which is what prices are at the FM here. Maybe I should go and sell my tomatoes for like a dollar a pound. I've been taking mine to the food bank and they are so appreciative.
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