More beans, more ditches and finally some elderberry picking!

Elderberries

When I got there this past weekend I noticed how dry it was and that the elderberry area was probably mowable with the riding mower.  So I took down the electric fence and gave it a shot.  I was able to mow it down good and trimmed a bit too.  Some of the berries were ready to pick!  I picked one entire bush clean and nipped a few clusters off of the big bush.  I got about a half gallon all told.  I think I will be getting a lot more next weekend.

The first picking.  I got another lot like this later.

Squash

I picked the squash again this weekend.  They were prolific, as usual.  I dried the zucchini and yellow squash in the dehydrator.  I set the temp to 140F and then switched it up to 150F after about 10 hours.  I cut them thick using the mandolin.  These are almost crisp!  They are a bit sweet though, I don't think just seasoning them with salt and flavorings is going to make them palatable as a snack!  We will see.

My squash.  The ones on the left look kind of like spaghetti squash, but the skin color seems wrong.

Cucumbers

I picked the cucs again this weekend.  I got a few, then I saw some outside the garden fence - some vines had grown out on the fence.  So I went around to the pumpkin side to take a look.  Yep!  Big ones were there - overripe, of course, but salvageable.  Here they are:

I used some Mrs Wages Kosher Dill mix and canned these up in pints.  I got 16 pints (or 8 quarts!).  I don't need more pickles, but I am not wasting them!

Tomatoes!

It's been relatively cool this past couple weeks and I think its helping the tomatoes to ripen early! I like having them ripen now so I can get more (maybe - depends if it cools off even more later or if we just get a longer season out of this).  I used the ones shown below to celebrate "Lammas Tide" - the beginning of the harvest season - or as I have been calling it - "First Eating".

Back-Hoe Issues

I haven't heard anything from Hines about coming to pick up and work on my back-hoe and I would REALLY like to have a functioning backhoe to dig some of these ditches and my walipini!  I tried to take the front panel off to get to the leaking area.  Here are some pictures of what I was able to get to.  Nothing helpful.  I put it all back together and will call Hines again this week to see if I can get them out.

More Green beans!

I picked the green beans in my patch and pulled a few weeds (thats a joke - MANY weeds!).  I got about 2 quarts.  I stopped at mom's place on the way back and picked another bus-tray full of green beans.  A bus-tray full is about 12 quarts from past experience.  So all told I put up 14 quarts of green beans this weekend.  Mom also gave me some more peaches - these were a bit less ripe.  I will can these as well (I got 4.5 quarts from the last batch).  

Trying to can some tomatoes today!

Well, I canned the rest of the cucumbers that we brought back.  Only got 4 quarts (3 quart jars and 2 pint jars) of kosher dills canned.  Out of cucs!

I have some tomatoes that really needed to be used, so I decided to can them as a test run.  They process 35 min in hot water bath! (for PINTS even!)

I canned 2 pints of crushed tomatoes and had some leftover in the fridge.  However, when I removed them from the hot water bath I noticed that they were leaking tomatoes!  Well, one eventually sealed, but the other didn't :(  I am confused since I had PLENTY of head space in those jars!  Was a half inch - I am pretty damn sure!

I am trying to can that one now - I also am trying a half pint with the tomatoes I had in fridge.  I know its a waste heating up the canner just for 1 pint - but its the principle of the thing now!  It's tomatoes for gosh sake!

BTW:  I followed NCHFP's recipe for crushed tomatoes.  Note that they have you add vinegar (or lemon juice or citric acid) to ensure that the tomatoes are acidic enough (some tomatoes are low acid - so better safe than sorry!).  I also added 1/4" teaspoon of salt per pint which they list as optional.  The vinegar and salt both go directly in the jars, not in the boiling tomatoes.

There might be enough tomatoes for another 3 pints to can this week.

Still have green beans and corn to deal with.  I wanted to pressure can the green beans for the experience, but Katherine wants us to do the pressure canning together since neither of us has done it before.  Therefore, we will just freeze the beans - probably this evening.   I have to do some "work" work!

Oh, while I was out walking Smokey, I noticed that a couple of the sunflowers were bent down.  One was missing a top!  I suspect squirrels!   I am gonna put some posts in and tie them up like I did with the ones in PA.

Update 9:00pm:

Katherine and I froze 4 more quarts of green beans tonight!

8/25/2013 Update

Again, making this post in retrospect.

Got up late, around 9am.  Wanted to get started on wood ASAP, but thought I had better pick green beans first.  So I went and picked green beans, I think I got a bit less than half that I got last weekend.  We will find out when we freeze them.

Then I went and picked the cucumbers - they are definitely on their way out.  Didn't even get 5gallon this time.  I think we will get more though.  

Then I went and picked the corn.  Picked many ears, but they are so small!  We will just eat them for dinner Monday, or sometime this week.

I also picked some tomatoes - not alot - but more then last weekend!  I hope we get more then a few here-and-there!  They are hard to process when they come in spotty like this!

Oh, I cut off some broccoli too - just a cup or so - that was a surprise even.  I thought that was over for sure!

Then, I had to take care of the assembly of the cement mixer I had received a week or so ago.  Finally, around 4ish (?)  I got to get working on the wood again.  I didn't finish it by 6pm, which is when we left for home.   While I was putting the tractor away, I noticed a funny sound when the tractor was in neutral - also a light that I don't recall being on before is now on while in neutral.   I took the tractor manual along for the ride home and looked to see what the light meant.  I couldn't find anything serious about that light - in fact as far as I can tell the light is only supposed to be on for a little while during startup.  Maybe loose wire?  In any case, I really need to check the fluid levels on the tractor next time!!

While I was working, Katherine canned 14 quarts(!) of kosher dill pickles and cleaned up the house and packed.  It's good to have her along with me more now - I think she is buying into the self-sufficiency idea more and is having some fun now!

Wine making

Wine:

I couldn't sleep this morning so I got up a little early (5:30am) and I am reading the instructions of the winemaking kit I got from midwest supplies (White zinfandel kit).  Seems straightforward enough that I can get it started this morning.  I need to find my optical thermometer though.  The instructions indicate that the correct temp is needed when added the yeast mix to the base.

Found optical therm and the meat therm so I can double check.

I have checked our water from the spigot - the coldest it gets is 78 F!  So i have the wine mix ready to go (even has the right density ~ 1.095), but its sitting in the fermenter cooling from 78 F to 75 F or below.  Room temperature right now is about 72-73 F.  I can't add yeast until its 72-75 F.

Screw it - I need to leave for trailer pick up - I added yeast while still at 78F.  I hope for the best!

I need to check to make sure I have a siphon for later on in this process.  Also, I need to check to see if I have enough bottles.  Maybe I should get real wine bottles and stoppering kit?


Anyway, see the trailer update page for more info on what I did this day!

More pickles!

I put up 14 more pints of dill pickles using Mrs Wages and the cucs I brought back with me from SS.  There are still more cucs left!!

Fermented Pickles Recipe

fermented dill_pickles

I want to set these up tonight!  Also, start the wine in the kit!!!  I ordered plastics stoppers for the 2 plastic carboys that I have.  I don't need either of these carboys for the primary fermentation, but in case I need them later...  I ordered them from Midwest Supplies.



Update:

Fermented pickles:

I followed the fermented pickle recipe linked to above.  I used about 9 lbs of cucumbers (I found the smallest and nicest that I had brought back from PA last trip) and essentially doubled the recipe.  I washed the smaller of the new fermentation pots that I got last week (I think its about 2-3 gallon size) and placed the cucumbers inside.   I picked all of the dill that I had remaining in the raised bed here in SS and cut it up in pieces that would fit in the crock.  I split the dill up into 3 batches and put the first batch in the base of the crock before adding any cucs, then added the pickling spices.   Then I added 4 lbs of cucs, then another batch of the dill, then 8 cups of the water/salt/vinegar solution.  I then added 5 lbs of cucs,  more pickling spices and then put the remaining dill on top, then added another 10 cups of the water/salt/vinegar solution (I just used the 8 C recipe but added 2 C water and a couple tablespoons of salt - no additional vinegar).   I placed an expanding stainless steel vegetable colander inside a gallon size freezer ziplock bag along with about 2 pints of water.   I sealed the zip and carefully placed the bag on top of the cucs in the crock.  Again, carefully, I opened the expandable colander inside the bag to make sure that all of the cucs were under the surface of the brine solution.

The recipe says that at 70F the fermentation should take 3-4 weeks.  I am supposed to check it a couple times a week to skim off any scum that rises to the surface.

The recipe above also describes how to can the pickles after fermentation is complete.   The recipe mentions that the pickles can stay in the fermentor for 4-6 MONTHS without spoilage, so no rush to can them.  Other recipes indicate the longer in the fermenter the more sour they become.

More dill pickles canned:

Using the Mrs Wages quick process dill mix, I canned another 14 pints of dill pickles.  I tasted the pickles from last night and found that some of the cucs skins were tough, so I peeled (and de-seeded) many of the larger cucs when canning these pickles.

More pickles!

Did up another 14 pints of dill yesterday afternoon.

Katherine started a bread and butter pickle before she left this morning.  Interesting recipe from the ball blue book (p. 29).  Made 8 pints of bread and butter pickles.

This is my normal dill pickle recipe: Quick dill pickles

I did a modified dill recipe for 14 more pints.  Instead of soaking for 12 hours, I cut them into spears FIRST, and then soaked for 2 hours in brine.  Then I processed them as before.  I have the rest of the cucumbers in soaking in brine right now.  I need to wait at least 2 hours I figure.  Also, I need to let the existing jars cool a bit before I can move them out of the way!

Evidently, I overtightened?  or overfilled?  a couple of the jars.  One lid buckled a little - another buckled a lot. Here is a pic:

Seems to have sealed but I am not sure I trust it.  We will see.

Rainy weather. Carrots are ready.

Updating total cucumber pickles: added 14 pints of dill pickles (done with recipe - not Mrs Wages).  Total dill pickles at 61 pints!

Also, we did 14 pints of sweet pickles using Mrs Wages mix.

Got 1.5" of rain in PA last week - really was needed.  Looks like tomatoes are doing well, but still none ripe!  Carrots look ready to pick, but it was too wet today.  Will try tomorrow.  Also need to pick over cucumbers again - Katherine and I will go to Walmart tomorrow to get more wide mouth jars (we are out!  used the last putting up those 14 pints of dill).  Will also get some Mrs Wages (if they have any - but local store has some if not).   Also I want to look at rabbit cages in TSC.

canned dill pickles today

Total of cucumber (dill) pickles canned so far to date:

• 13 done with Mrs Wages Dill Mix
• 10 done in SS using Ball Recipe Dill pickles - real dill from SS patch
• 10 done in SS using Ball Recipe Dill pickles - purchased dill seed
• 14 (today - done in SS using Mrs Wages Dill Mix) 
• TOTAL: 47 pints

TODO: Need to inventory jars to see how many  we have!

Also, other canned foods to date:

• 4 quarts of beets pickled (used our beets in PA and some of mom's beets)
  
• 10 pints of zucchini relish (5 of sweet and 5 of salty - I liked them both - however, Katherine thinks the sweet relish is too sweet)
  
• 5 quarts of peaches (they are canned in light syrup - i did these for a test - too early for peaches and too expensive!  $20/peck in Hancock - Washington Co MD peaches purchased in Hancock MD August 2, 2013)
  

Frozen so far:

• in SS freezer: 4 quarts of beet greens, 5 quarts of kale
• in PA freezer (i fixed freezer!): 5 quarts of kale, 2 quarts of elderberries (a little green - but               they ARE off my bushes!)