Preserving Your Harvest

[Sammster]

It was however much peach juice and double that of sugar.
So, 8 cups of juice, 16 cups of sugar. Then boil it for 10 minutes. Mine foamed up a lot so I tried skimming that off the best I could.
It was a crazy recipe, but I think it turned out good. 1/2-inch headspace for 10 minutes.

My recipe for pepper jelly said that you could add a teaspoon of butter (that was a recipe with 5 cups of sugar) to help reduce foaming.

Sorry about your broken jars

 

[Sammster]

Yesterday, I canned 3 batches of HOT pepper jelly for my DH. I minced and cooked the jelly outside, and processed the jars in the kitchen - wearing goggles, gloves and respirator. When everything was done and cleaned up, I thought it was safe to remove the respirator - but the fumes had not yet dissipated. I went into a sneezing/gagging fit and had to go spend some time in the yard with my chickens, while I aired out the kitchen.
Today I will make some blueberry/pomegranate jelly from bottled juice.

 

[Sueby]

That stinks, but I know that feeling well! I make DH hot sauce every year out of the hottest peppers I can get my hands on. Most people can't even taste a dab of it, including me. When he finishes a jar & puts it in the sink & the hot water hits the remnants I have a coughing fit!

 

[Sammster]

That stinks, but I know that feeling well! I make DH hot sauce every year out of the hottest peppers I can get my hands on. Most people can't even taste a dab of it, including me. When he finishes a jar & puts it in the sink & the hot water hits the remnants I have a coughing fit!

Yes! Exactly! This jelly included Jalapeño, Habanero, Garden Salsa, Super Chili, Hot Yellow, Carolina Reaper and Dragon's Breath. He grows them, himself.

I hate peppers. Even sweet peppers. So, I must love my DH.
I make 1/4 pint jars so that he can share it with his friends, who apparently also love burning their mouths

 

[Red Horse]

Does anyone like to make dried apple rings? If so, what's your favorite apple to dry? Mine right now are Hudson Golden Gems. They can be super ugly so my apple contact for my bakery is always willing to give me boxes of seconds that I selfishly keep for my own use. They have a nice perfume and aren't so tart that the dried product is sour.

I always think of my Grandma when I make them. She told me the story many times of sneaking with her little sister out of their second story little-used guest room window to steal drying apple slices off the tin roof of the house. When they went back inside to sneak downstairs, they found a ten-foot long freshly shed snakeskin that hadn't been there when they went out, and were so terrified they tripped over themselves to get down the stairs and were subsequently busted by my great-grandma. The worst part about the whole thing was not the switching they both received, or the tummyaches that lasted several days afterwards, but the fact that they never found the snake.

 

[tripletfeb]

I need to decide real quick if I'm doing garlic this year or not, getting chilly out there. I did save some from the harvest, but not sure if the back can handle it or not. I'd have to ask DH to put them in the ground. I've never not grown garlic.

I planted garlic the other day, for the first time. Hope it does good!

Does anyone like to make dried apple rings? If so, what's your favorite apple to dry? Mine right now are Hudson Golden Gems. They can be super ugly so my apple contact for my bakery is always willing to give me boxes of seconds that I selfishly keep for my own use. They have a nice perfume and aren't so tart that the dried product is sour.

I always think of my Grandma when I make them. She told me the story many times of sneaking with her little sister out of their second story little-used guest room window to steal drying apple slices off the tin roof of the house. When they went back inside to sneak downstairs, they found a ten-foot long freshly shed snakeskin that hadn't been there when they went out, and were so terrified they tripped over themselves to get down the stairs and were subsequently busted by my great-grandma. The worst part about the whole thing was not the switching they both received, or the tummyaches that lasted several days afterwards, but the fact that they never found the snake.

I do dried apple slices. I usually use apples from my dad's tree, Bonnie's Best they are called. Sweet and huge apples. Today, I will be dehydrating the peppers I saved off of my plants I brought inside

 

[Sally PB]

Does anyone like to make dried apple rings? If so, what's your favorite apple to dry?

I dry apple slices. My favorite to use is Empire. The tart/tangy flavor is fantastic!

 

[saysfaa]

It is time for me to move on from dehydrating grapes. This is the first year I've tried it. I tried a quart each of vanessa, mars, and concord. And went back for about a peck of Vanessas (all they had left). Vanesss and mars are both seedless so I simply rinsed them and then spread them across the trays.

Removing the seeds from the concords was difficult. I cut each grape in half and tried several ways of digging/popping/rolling/squeezing and have no recomendation - none seemed much better than the others.

The insides slipped out of the skins most of the time. I balanced it back in the skin in hopes they wouldn't stick to the tray as much. That part succeeded.

We like the taste of the vanessa raisins the best by far. The mars are ok. I'm still not sure what I think of the concord. I like the classic "grape" flavor but it is quite uneven in intensity and sweetness.

The seedless varieties took a very long time to dry. If I ever do it again, I will try opening the skin somehow. I don't like the idea of letting the juice out but I don't want to give up as much dehydrator space as they took this year.

 

[Sally PB]

I've never made raisins, so this may not work. I dried some cherry tomatoes by slicing them in half, and putting the skin side down on the dehydrator trays. They are very tasty, and I wish I'd made more.

 

[tripletfeb]

It is time for me to move on from dehydrating grapes. This is the first year I've tried it. I tried a quart each of vanessa, mars, and concord. And went back for about a peck of Vanessas (all they had left). Vanesss and mars are both seedless so I simply rinsed them and then spread them across the trays.

Removing the seeds from the concords was difficult. I cut each grape in half and tried several ways of digging/popping/rolling/squeezing and have no recomendation - none seemed much better than the others.

The insides slipped out of the skins most of the time. I balanced it back in the skin in hopes they wouldn't stick to the tray as much. That part succeeded.

We like the taste of the vanessa raisins the best by far. The mars are ok. I'm still not sure what I think of the concord. I like the classic "grape" flavor but it is quite uneven in intensity and sweetness.

The seedless varieties took a very long time to dry. If I ever do it again, I will try opening the skin somehow. I don't like the idea of letting the juice out but I don't want to give up as much dehydrator space as they took this year.

I looked into doing this as well. A tip I read said to cut a small slit into each grape, don't cut them in half, just slit them open a little so the insides dry faster. I don't know how that method works, we ended up eating the grapes before I got a chance to try it