drying-roasting
12 August 2012, by gj
may as well get the good stuff
Buying organic is not always more expensive, if you take the time to compare prices- and use a little creativity.
from lemon to freezer
There is a store about 35 miles from us that has a wonderful selection of organic produce; our local market doesn’t carry any. So when we happen to be in that area we try to stock up.
Recently they had organic lemons 2 pounds for $4.99. Nine lemons is a lot to buy all at once, but the price was about the same per pound as our local store’s non-organic.
We even looked in a Wal-mart to compare the price and their non-organic were 50 cents each, so again about the same.
like the yellow, not the white
Here’s where it gets better. Dried Lemon Zest in the spice aisle was about $6 per ounce.
So here’s how you can beat that-
Grate the lemon peel being careful not to get the white pith underneath, that stuff is nasty.
simple and shelf stable
You can freeze that for recipes that call for freshly grated peel, or dry for those that have lemon zest as an ingredient- that is all it is, dried lemon peel.
Drying is easy enough, spread out on a pan and either let stand out overnight, place in an oven on lowest temperature until dry (about 15-20 minutes), or set out in the sun until dry.
You can use a microwave too, but I’ve never tried that.
push down and twist
We weighed the end result and the organic lemon zest cost about $5 per ounce.
There is the side benefit of fresh squeezed lemon juice as well.
Each of our lemons produced about ¼ cup of juice, which we froze in ice cube trays to use as needed.
fresh squeezed lemon juice
Organic lemon zest, freshly grated peel, and juice for less than buying them already prepared- and even less than making it with non-organic lemons.
Now we just need to pick up another bag when we are near that store next, and try our hand at candied citron.
You got to love it.
2 tablespoon per cube
Categories: drying-roasting, freezing, organic, saving money & time
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6 August 2011, by gj
fresh picked garlic
Last year I noticed that Mandolin and SaveTheWorld preferred to use the handy store bought garlic powder to chopping fresh garlic.
Alas.
So this year I thought I’d try making the fresh garlic easier to use.
drying the cloves
I separated the cloves, not worrying about peeling at this point.
Since I don’t have screens for my dehydrator, I lined the trays with parchment paper.
After a while I let them cool a bit, then removed the peels easily.
ready to roll
When they felt pretty brittle, I put them in a coffee grinder and buzzzed them into a powder.
pulverize it
I researched how to store the garlic powder and found everything from freeze it to shelf stable, sometimes the Internet has too much information.
So I decided to leave some on the spice shelf in the small salt shaker pictured below, and refrigerate the bulk of it.
After all, having it handy was the starting point.
big garlic flavor in a teeny jar
I must say the smell and flavor of this powder is extreme compared to the store bought powder thaton the shelf.
Note though that refrigerating it was a bad idea, as it absorbed moisture and became a large hard chunk. However you store it, keep it dry. A little food grade dessicant packet would help.
Categories: drying-roasting, how to store, recipes
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26 July 2011, by gj
yellow wax and purple bush beans
I purchased a ‘Bush Bean Trio’ from Botanical Interests seed company last spring, and wowzers are they doing well.
We’ve eaten some fresh and they are wonderful, now we are getting an abundance of beans.
You see, bush beans produce a lot all at once, whereas pole beans produce over a longer period of time.
pretty and colorful
This means a little storage consideration is in order.
Since we love veggie soups- which we eat almost daily from fall till summer- dehydrating seems like a good choice.
prepping beans
I washed and trimmed the beans to prep them for blanching.
They were then cut into about 2″ pieces, and blanched for 5 minutes.
This turns the purple beans green, which is unfortunate, but still kinda neat.
blanching
After cooling, I placed them in the freezer, as per my Ball Canning Book directions.
mix em up
Next they went into the dehydrator and stayed there until they became brittle.
Since I am new to drying beans, I tested one out by putting it into a mug of warm water before I went to work.
When I got home it was fully re-hydrated and tasted great.
Of course, it did looked cooked- but that’s perfect for our needs.
dem dry beans
I love the fact that they’ll be in jars on the shelf, just waiting for Mandolin to ‘pick’ them for his next soup recipe.
The song reference.
Categories: drying-roasting, how to grow, how to store
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6 February 2011, by gj
gourds come in many sizes
Gourds are about 90% water.
Towards the end of the growing season, about the mid to end of September here in Zone 5, reduce watering to encourage gourds to dry.
It is best to leave the gourds on the vine until after the first frost. They can be left this way all winter, but will dry better if taken indoors.
Be careful not to bruise the gourd, this will cause it to rot.
Cut the gourd from the stem leaving 12” or so of stem where possible. The stem helps draw the moisture from the gourd.
and can be made into many things
Spray the gourds with Clorox Spray or dip in a bleach-water solution of 1 part bleach to 10 parts water to cut down on the amount of mold that develops.
The gourds will need good air circulation.
It is best to store them in an out building as they have a disagreeable order as they dry.
Wood pallets are a good surface for them.
Spread them out giving each plenty of room.
You can wipe the mold off occasionally if you wish, but it isn’t necessary.
Drying can take up to 6 months, depending on the conditions – I’ve never had any that took that long.
The gourd is ready when you can hear the seeds inside rattle and the gourd is completely tan.
Sometimes the seeds will form a ball inside that is still attached to the inside wall. This can be deceiving as the gourd is completely dry but there is no rattle.
Don’t let them fool you!
Before crafting wash the gourd off thoroughly.
Let it dry, and then wash again.
The life of the gourd will depend on this step.
Growing GourdsGourd Resources:
AmishGourds.com Gourds, Craft Supplies
welburngourdfarm.com Thick walled gourds, gourd craft supplies, and tutorials
Numerous people sell the gourds they grow on Ebay.
Categories: drying-roasting, how to grow, how to store, odds and ends
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23 October 2010, by gj
I grew up thinking how wonderful it would be to live in the country.
Part of that dream included growing herbs and hanging them to dry.
I pictured it would look something like this:
(You can purchase this print here)
When we bought our first house I did grow some basil and other herbs, and hung them in the kitchen to dry.
How country it looked and how great it smelled.
basil on a winter windowsill
I started to notice my counters seemed to be messier than usual.
At first I thought it was just Mandolin not cleaning up after himself.
basil in the tomato bed
Then came the cobwebs attached to the herbs.
They weren’t looking so pretty anymore.
basil in the senior garden
As I tried to clean them, little bits of herbs fell onto the counters…hmmm.
we really like basil, a lot
Paying closer attention now, I see little specs falling down whenever the cupboard doors are opened or closed.
how'd that get in there?
So although I still like the way they look, I use a different method nowadays.
the more practical approach
How do you pronounce it-
Herbs or ‘Erbs?
Categories: drying-roasting, how to store
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9 October 2010, by gj
Although tomatoes can be dehydrated, I think the flavor is so much better by roasting (the same thing holds for onions).
Roasting gives a smoky flavor that a dehydrator just can’t do.
It is a little harder because the times are not as precise and you can easily burn them if your oven is too hot.
That being said, the result is well worth it.
The Roma or paste type tomatoes are best for roasting as they are meatier and have less water. I have roasted other kinds too.
Here’s how:
let the roasting begin
Cut your tomatoes in wedges or slices. Try to keep the pieces as close in size as you can.
Pour a little olive oil in your pan so the tomatoes won’t stick.
Add tomatoes, fresh basil, and some peeled garlic.
You can use a little salt and pepper if you like, but just a little.
Drizzle a little more of the olive oil on top.
basil and garlic, a tomato's bffs
Roast in an oven at the lowest possible setting. Depending on the amount of water and the thickness of your tomatoes, this can take 2-7 hours. Keep your eyes on them!
packing a flavor punch
What you don’t eat right away you can store in the fridge covered in olive oil.
And you will eat some right away…and the garlic.
Roasting Onions
Roasting Tomatoes and other ways to preserve them.
Categories: drying-roasting, how to store
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6 October 2010, by gj
A new friend, and kindred spirit, I ‘met’ through the FB page (Hi Beth!!) asked me to write about dehydrating vegetables.
Not hard to do since my little dehydrator has been running almost constantly for the last 2 months.
So here goes:
Like us, our vegetables are mostly water; some as much as 95%.
Removing that water (dehydrating) preserves food because mold etc. can’t develop without the moisture.
You can dehydrate in an oven on its lowest setting or use a dehydrator which is designed to keep the temperature even and also provide air flow which helps to absorb the moisture.
Most recently I have been drying my homegrown celery:
garden to sink
Clean your vegetables very well!
freshness
Some veggies need to be blanched first (dipped in boiling water) see list to follow.
Cut as uniformly as you can and place in dehydrator.
spread them out
I also dry the leaves and use in place of ‘celery seed’ in recipes.
celery leaves before
celery leaves after
Dehydrating can take as little as a few hours (for the leaves) or as long as 10-12 hours. The veggie and it’s size and the humidity can affect the time it takes. With practice you will get used to the different times.
You want your veggies to be totally dry, even brittle. If they are at all rubbery you’re not done yet.
Dehydrated veggies have the advantages of being able to be stored on a shelf, and they take up much less room:
talk about saving space
The celery stalk that was in my sink was bout 50% bigger than what you would find at a store. The half-pint jar pictured above is what it dehydrated to, not counting the leaves.
Rehydrate by soaking in water, adding boiling water, or just toss in any soup or casserole that will simmer!
Vegetables that need to be blanched and the times:
Asparagus- 3 to 4 minutes
Beans- 4 to 6 minutes
Carrots- 3 to 4 minutes
Peas- 3 minutes
Sweet Potatoes- 3 to 4 minutes
Potatoes- 5 to 6 minutes
Rutabagas, Turnips- 3 to 5 minutes
Corn is a little weird and I never tried it. Other veggies like squashes, tomatoes (paste types) etc. you can just go ahead and dehydrate them. Tomatoes make a real mess and are much better Roasted (more on that later).
Pumpkin is great for Pumpkin Flour.
I’m also working on some Dry Soup Mixes you can make at home, more on that when I get the recipes down.
More About Celery
PS: Whether you grow your own or not, you can save money by dehydrating veggies that are on sale and are otherwise hard to store- like celery and mushrooms.
Categories: drying-roasting, how to store
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25 August 2010, by gj
in the garden
I bought some dry Roman beans at the grocery store and planted them this past spring.
I just let them grow until I saw the leaves beginning to turn yellow, and that most of the beans were a nice mottled color.
stages of bean development
The green beans are underipe, and at the farther end are some that should have been picked sooner.
levels of dryness
Here are the just shelled beans from underipe to fully ripe.
before
Left alone, one week later they are all dried.
after
Even ignored this way (and I unintentionally shared with the local wildlife) the yield was 7:1.
Homegrown Dry Roman Beans
The Planting
Categories: drying-roasting, how to store
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17 July 2010, by gj
You’ll know your onions are ready to pick when, like garlic, they lie down. There are a few different ways to store them.
For keeping indoors (in your fridge or any cool, dry place) let cure outside in the sun for a day or so. Just trim the tops and wash off any dirt, you are good to go.
2 wooden horses and an old screen is all you need
mmm...onions
I freeze some of the onions that I know will just be used in soups or to can later in the fall in salsa (just chop, spread out on a foil lined sheet, freeze and store).
a sink full of onions waiting patiently
I like to roast/dehydrate some of the fresh cut green tops. You can use a commercial dehydrator but for onions, I prefer my own skillet. Use a non-stick pan or very lightly oil, place on medium heat while you chop the onion tops as evenly as possible. Then place in the warm skillet and reduce the heat to the lowest setting possible. It will take a few hours until your onions are crisp to the touch. Store in any food grade container on your shelf.
Dried this way they add a mild and toasty flavor to your food, and a little color to boot.
dehydrating green onion tops
When I look at all the onions, and the leeks as well, growing in the garden, it makes me think of a fall day not too long from now and homemade Three Onion Soup.
still plenty of onions and leeks left
No hurry though, I can wait
Categories: drying-roasting, how to store
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