The CQ Parade

 

Everywhere I go on the property now is a parade because we all know mama has the good stuff.  I seem to always be throwing them a bug or vegetable of some sort. I do love my quackers!

Just some samples of my continuing ongoing collection of dehydrated goods. Peas and carrots, sweet peppers, okra, shredded potatoes, onions. sweet corn and mixed vegetables.

Dehydrated tomatoes and tomato powder along with canned tomatoes and okra and tomato sauce. 

Dehydrated Mushrooms

With 2 freezers full and the garden winding down I thought I would show you some of the bounty. Much of this I will bag up in mylar bags and they will go into buckets or blue totes to further protect from sunlight and be stored until used.  

Blessings from The Holler

The Canned Quilter

Another September

  September is a rough month for me. September 4th was my Dad's birthday, September 9th was my younger brother's birthday and September 15 was another younger brother's birthday. All now deceased.  The brother who's birthday was the 9th I was especially close too. It was hard to say goodbye. Sometime in the future I want to put up a stone or meditation area in my gardens somewhere for the loved ones who have passed. Someplace to pray with a bench and maybe a small statue of some sort. 

  On a different note I look forward every year for the colors of Autumn. O Wise One and I take a yearly trek through the mountains with a picnic lunch and cameras just enjoying the beauty of where we live. I'll take plenty photos for you.

  As to what I have been up to. Hip deep!! The temperatures have cooled and the rains have returned. Every day now we are starting to pull up and clean out the gardens. Friday we woke up to the sound of a big truck and this.

  Yes Indeed the Good Lord does provide. The County has been cleaning around the power lines. So as we clean around the blueberry bushes and such we can refresh the mulch as well. We sent all the county workers away with fresh eggs, rhubarb strawberry jam and tomatoes and cucumbers. They all left happy. It's a win win situation. 

  The abundance of the month is eggs. All the pullets and the ducks are laying now. They are all such over achievers. Leroy the hen pecked rooster is now mating with the mean old hussy hens. He is strutting pretty high with his harem. And what are we doing with our egg over abundance. 

  Six eggs are scrambled and poured into a ziploc bag and the air removed as much as possible with a straw. Then they are stacked on a sheet pan and frozen. They make thin eggs discs. When ready to use they can be taken out and scrambled or added to recipes. Simply take out the night before you want to use them and allow to defrost in the fridge on a plate. 1/3 cup is equivalent to about one egg in recipes. So when the chickens slow down laying this winter I have a stash of eggs in the freezer for breakfast and baking.

  I have also been freezing these. Simply spray a muffin tin with Pam or grease. Add the filling of choice to each cup. These have sausage, onions, green peppers and cheddar. Then fill each cup to about a 1/4 inch from the top of the cup with scrambles eggs mixed with a little milk and salt and pepper. Bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for about 20 minutes. They keep in the fridge for about 4 days. I put them on a baking sheet and freeze then put in vacuum seal bags of 4 and store in freezer. Again simply take out the night before and allow to defrost in the fridge or even frozen just put in the microwave. They are like little quiches without the crust. You could add broccoli, or maybe chopped asparagus and ham or even chopped tomatoes and parmesan. My stash is growing and with 10 hens laying I am averaging about 6 dozen eggs a week.

  The other thing I am doing is using my eggs as trade goods. The farm wife down the road lost her chickens to a fox. So she came down and asked if we would trade fresh eggs for homemade goats milk soap. A bar for a dozen. She has an over abundance of soap. Should have plenty of soap for awhile. 

  I also ask that you please keep my granddaughter Graci Kate in your prayers. She was diagnosed over the weekend with Covid. She is 18 and was living in the dorm at college where she and 2 roommates caught it. 

                            

She has had a rough year. She had to have knee surgery her senior year for an injury that she sustained playing basketball. Then she did not get a graduation because of Covid or a senior trip. She started college 3 weeks ago and now has Covid. Bless her heart she is hanging in there though. 

Well that is my rambling for the moment. Hoping to see you all at the back fence. 

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Blessing from The Holler

The Canned Quilter

Tuesday September 1, 2020

Woke up to a cloudy dreary day but eventually turned off nice. The shell beans are in the spare room on a sheet with a fan running on them to help dry them so that they can be shelled. I was afraid if I left them in the field to dry the daily rain would rot them. In the dehydrator today I have blackberries and plum tomatoes and I also chopped onions for the dehydrator tomorrow. It has been running almost daily for several weeks now to keep up with the flow of vegetables from the garden. When I don't have enough for a full load I will fill in with purchased frozen mixed vegetables that I buy in 5 pound bags. I just hate not to run a full load. 

O Wise One and I worked together most of the afternoon cleaning the old bedding and straw from the chicken run and the duck run and both houses. The old straw went to the compost pile and was replaced with a thick layer of fresh  pine shavings and then wheat straw. So all the houses, runs and nesting boxes are clean and ready for another few months of the deep litter method. Hung up a whole pack of fly strips to help with that problem also. 

We finished picking the last picking for the season of paste tomatoes. With so much rain for the last month or so fungal diseases were running rampant. The small plum tomatoes are doing fine though and continue to make huge amounts of little tomatoes for our salads and the dehydrator. 

So the next couple days will be spent making tomato sauce and dehydrating onions and hoping those two jobs will be finished for the season. O Wise One will work on completing our firewood supply and cleaning up the garden. He will be pulling tomato stakes and storing and also pulling and burning the tomato stalks. We do not compost tomato stalks. 

It looks like the butter beans beans are filling out finally and the bell peppers are still blooming and making. The figs are getting bigger every day and it is a toss up if they will have time to mature and ripen before that first frost. 

As the vegetables coming in the back door wind down our minds move to other things. With plates of seeds drying and the canning winding down the circle completes itself for yet another year. 

See ya over the back fence.

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Blessings from The Holler

The Canned Quilter

Minnesota Midget

 As fall approaches I am starting to see the leaves start to turn a little bit on the earliest trees and the temperatures are cooling off now. Rain is rolling in almost every day lately. Looks to be a wet autumn coming. 

Today in the dehydrator I have okra, blackberries and tomatoes. In the oven I have tomatoes roasting. I have yet to skim and freeze a batch of chicken broth in the fridge and I sliced a new supply of cucumbers for snacking in the fridge to go along with cold cantaloupe. I put in jars dehydrated green peppers from yesterday. And labeled my jars of tomato sauce from last week ready to be stored. 

Still in the garden is my last batch of paste tomatoes waiting to be picked. I still have peppers, okra, blackberries, butter beans, figs, cantaloupe, watermelon, plum tomatoes, and my last batch of shell beans which is a horticulture bean. We have started cleaning up and getting ready to put parts of the garden to bed. 

I planted lots of garden this year because I was unsure what the grocery situation would be and we have been working like little squirrels filling our winter holes. 

One of my successes this year was the planting of a new variety of cantaloupe called "Minnesota Midget". Those of you that have followed me for years know that I have always liked the heirloom variety " Healey's Pride " and while it is a great old variety it tends to struggle in Tennessee with all the rainfall we get. It wants to crack and split and rot after heavy rains. So we switched to "Minnesota Midget" because it makes a smaller almost individual melon really perfect for 2 people. It is easy to tell when ripe because it changes color and slips easily from the vine. And best of all even in the rainy few weeks we have had there has been no cracking. So we have saved lots of seeds and will definitely be planting it again. 

That is a pint jar behind the half melon

  Perfect size for 2

So as August winds down and September comes in we are right on schedule garden wise. Soon we will be raking leaves and carving pumpkins but for now we are winding down the garden. Saving seeds for the coming year and giving thanks for all that we have already preserved. At the end of August we continue to social distance and rarely leave the property. When we do venture out and about always with a mask and hand sanitizer at ready. I am starting to look forward to wrapping up my canning for the year and resting over the winter with my knitting and quilting. Another garden year gone by  a wet and rainy one with lots of bugs and issues. But through it all we have persevered and have plenty for the upcoming winter and beyond. 

It is such a good feeling knowing that no matter what the supply chain or grocery stores do we are prepared and can simply close the doors and eat well. 

I wish for you all that same feeling of peace and plenty.

See ya at the back fence! 

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Blessings from The Holler

The Canned Quilter

Tomato powder

I have a new love in my life. Tomato powder. How have I missed this ?  

Simply dehydrate tomatoes, peels or even the left over mush after straining tomato products.

Run it through a blender.

And like magic I have tomato powder. 

Throw it in a pot for some extra tomato zing. Add hot water or broth for a cup of hot tomato soup. Oh the possibilities! 

 

Everyone in the path of this storm stay safe. Have a great weekend and see you on Monday.

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Blessings from The Holler

The Canned Quilter

Operation Ghee

 Over a decade and almost 2 decades ago when my husband had his heart attack I remember going to a class at the hospital on cooking for a heart patient. Looking back now I have to laugh. It encouraged everyone to eat margarine and butter was the enemy. Same thing with eggs. 

Turn the clock forward a decade or two and oh how thing have changed. We both grew up on real fresh cows butter as children and farm fresh eggs. But coming down hard off the fright of a heart attack we complied and changed our diets. Now that butter is healthy again I wanted to play around with making ghee. A shelf stable butter product that I could leave on the counter soft and ready for spreading or cooking without the worry of going rancid.

Hence ghee. With an arm full of  butter in the freezer that I caught on a good sale a while back I took out a couple pounds and thawed. 

Then in a heavy bottomed pot I melted the butter on the stove and turned the eye on it's lowest setting to simmer slowly while I did other things in the kitchen stopping from time to time to stir. I sliced tomatoes and okra for the dehydrator and washed what I had picked out of the garden and stirred until it started bubbling and the solids sunk to the bottom then I just watched it closely. Skimming any gunk off the top. 

And after FOREVER! (The only downside to making ghee) It was ready to slowly ladle into the jar being careful not to get any of the browned solids on the bottom of the pan. And there you have it the final product in the jar and waiting to cool and solidify. 

Next thing to tackle is canning butter. But that is a post for another day!

Ever canned butter or made ghee?  I would love to know about your experiences. 

See ya at the back fence. Zucchini are FREE cause I am generous like that!

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Blessings from The Holler

The Canned Quilter

Grape Time

 

Would you believe year 2. Reliance and Concord varieties, there is another but it failed the Holler test. Will dig up this fall and dispose of. 

I am thinking grape juice. 

This is probably the easiest recipe you will find for making home canned grape juice. I LOVE how simple it is. No cooking, no squeezing, no juicing; how great is that? And the flavor is outstanding. 

Grape Juice (Quarts)
Ingredients per quart jar:
1/3 c. sugar
1 1/3 c. grapes (I like Scuppernongs)
boiling water

Wash the grapes well. Using a funnel and ladle, pour sugar and whole grapes into hot jars. Fill jars with boiling water to 1/2 in. headspace, then cover with lids and rings. Pressure can jars for 10 min. at 5 lbs. Allow to cool overnight before testing the seals on the lids. If any didn’t seal, refrigerate immediately.

The pressure from the canner causes the juice to squeeze out of the grapes and fill the jar. Most of the grape skins will fall to the bottom of the jar eventually, although it’s okay if some still float, they are easily strained out. A layer of sugar may harden at the bottom of each of the jars, but this will dissolve over time.

My only other advice: make more than you think you’ll need; it goes fast!

Meet ya at the back fence!

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The Canned Quilter

Tomato Sandwich

 

I grew up in the south in the 50's. South Louisiana to be exact. Tomato season meant Holsum white bread, Blue plate mayonnaise from the local A&P food store and a great big one slicer tomato. In my neighborhood that was the old "Creole" variety tomato. 

Blue plate mayonnaise is still around. There is no other city like New Orleans, there is no other mayo like Blue Plate. Born across the river in Gretna, home to brands like Zatarain's, Blue Plate has a cult following and appears in select grocery stores outside of Louisiana. I grew up on it and buy some every time I visit. Tastes like home. 

The A&P food store chain is no longer in business. It went under in 2015. Holsum bread was bought by Flowers food. But I have my giant sandwich tomatoes. My favorite tomato is the heirloom yellow and red striped variety called "Big Rainbow". It's low acid so I don't can it but boy do I love those to eat fresh.

Now O Wise One he's a yankee. He has to have bacon with his tomato sandwich but I am a purist. For dinner tonight tomato sandwiches, cucumber slices, sweet iced tea and cantaloupe. Lord I love the summer.

Meet ya at the back fence!

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The Canned Quilter

Tomatoes

 

They're here. We wait all year for them and when they arrive it is Bedlam for weeks, Tomatoes everywhere. Tomatoes are the one food that I can the most of probably evrything. Stewed tomatoes, tomato sauce, dehydrated tomatoes, Rotel tomatoes  and oven roasted tomatoes. Not to mention taco soup and chili. 

What I hate about tomato season. Fruit gnats!

I picked my first cantaloupe yesterday. I grew a new variety for me called Minnesota Midget. An heirloom variety that makes a small fruit just the size for 2. The critter (probably a  possum) got the first one and approved. I will let you know what I think of the variety.

Sometime I want to make some ghee. I bought the butter just need to get the time to make it. Anyone else make ghee or can butter?

I also want to dehydrate some tomato peels for powder. Never tried that before but it does sound useful.

The other thing I want to try is cucumber powder. Dehydrated cucumber ground into powder for salad dressings sounds interesting also. 

Back to my tomatoes!

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Blessings from The Holler

The Canned Quilter

Elderberry Success

 

I love it when a plan comes together.. I had a wet area on my property and wanted to plant plants that would grow in and use that excess moisture and still produce something edible. Elderberry filled that slot beautifully. And now in it's second year my first crop. We picked about 2 gallon elderberries Saturday. Right now they are in the freezer in gallon ziploc bags. I will deal with them once the garden slows down. Hoping this will now be a yearly crop. 

Meanwhile my summer crops continue to roll in daily.

Various cucumber and squash crops are in full swing. 

My refrigerator reflects the season with half gallon jars of fermented foods.

The ladies making regular contributions.

 With rain moving in I picked some of the ripening paste tomatoes to finish their ripening on the kitchen table so they will not split. 

So we continue to social distance because we are in the "at risk" age group but strive to stay busy and be productive not concentrating on the pandemic but rather trying to concentrate on remaining  positive. We hope that everyone of you out there is staying safe and healthy also.

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The Canned Quilter

Fermenting Vegetables

 

This time of year as summer begins to fade slowly into fall the summer vegetables roll in through that back door daily. Snap beans, okra, squash, cucumbers and peppers. All those heat loving vegetables that I used to, in days of old, pickle endlessly. These days though we rarely eat pickles. Instead we prefer to eat less and ferment a few jars to keep in the refrigerator until they are gone. We enjoy that crisp fresh taste as opposed to the vinegar pickles of old. And we find that they are better for you. 

I start with a clean half gallon jar and disinfect with boiling water.

 I wash my vegetables with cold water and cut off the blossom end of cucumbers and squash and trim stems on okra.

 I took the end off of the green beans and sliced some peppers an onions, Think more chunks so that they could be gotten out of the jar easier but you could do smaller slices.

 I layered the fresh dill with the vegetables in the jar until about 2 inches from top.

 I mixed a brine of 3 Tablespoons sea salt to 1 quart distilled water and mix well until salt is dissolved.

 Pour this over the vegetables in the jar to cover. It will take more than 1. Then I take a small ziploc bag and put brine in bag removing air from bag as much as possible.

 Place bag of water on top of vegetables and brine to hold the veggies under the brine. 

Then I take a clean ring and lid and place on jar and finger tighten. 

Everyday I loosen the lid and burp the air from the jar. Then tighten the lid back down finger tight. Wash the jar and place the jar back in a glass baking dish in case it leaks. 

I let it sit on the counter after about 5 days I will taste if it is to my liking. Once I like the taste I put it in the fridge to stop the fermentation process. Keep if refrigerated and enjoy. 

The longer it ferments the softer the vegetables get. I like my vegetables to be a little crunchy. 

They should last 6 to 8 weeks in the fridge if not longer. 

There are lots of sites and videos out there on fermenting but that is the basics. 

Blessings from The Holler

The Canned Quilter

Canning Ground Beef

 

With the situation the way it is in the nation right now I came across a sale on ground meat and thought I should take advantage of it while it was available. To conserve freezer space I canned part of it. It really is very simple and straight forward. I put the meat in a skillet and browned it about 2 pounds at a time. I did not brown it dark because remember it is going to pressure can for 90 minutes. I try to buy the leanest I can get. This was 85 percent lean. As I cooked it I took a spoon and ladled out as much fat as I could with a spoon. Then I put it in a large bowl and browned another 2 pounds. Remember the less fat the better. 

Then I took my meat and put it in a large colander and poured boiling water over it to wash away any remaining fat. Just a quick pour you are not bathing it. 

Once the meat has drained I placed it in sterile pint jars and poured hot broth made from beef base and boiling water over the meat to cover. 

Then I removed air bubbles. Then I took a paper towel with a little vinegar water on it and wiped the rims to remove any oil on the rim and placed lids and rings on the jars and finger tightened. 

Each pint jar held a little under a pound. Then I processed for 90 minutes in the pressure canner. 

Remove jars and let cool for 24 hours. 

They say it will last for several years.

Mine has never lasted that long.

To use you can drain the broth off and use it in another dish and use the meat or use the broth in your dish. I use this to make tater tot casserole. I make homemade mushroom soup with the broth and add it back to the burger. Add a pint of mixed vegetables and some sauteed onions and garlic. Add your tater tots to the top and you are ready to bake. Shepherds pie same way. To me this is like making your own convenience food. 

Note** These jars in the picture are still hot. When they cooled there was a fine white film of fat on the top. Not very thick at all.  Maybe 1/8 inch. 

Blessings from The Holler

The Canned Quilter

A Day Off

 

Lord have mercy I am tired! I finally finished the last of the green beans yesterday. I went out and pulled up them plants quick and threw in the chicken yard before they could bloom again. There are jars all over my house waiting to be put up. Not today though because I am taking the day off. 

I canned ground beef the day before yesterday. I think or maybe the day before that. Lol

The dehydrator has been going pretty steady these days.

I wanted to show everyone how I freeze my yellow squash. I take a potato masher to them and freeze in small square container then put in vacuum bags. I use this to make a cream of squash soup with onions and garlic, butter, chicken broth and heavy cream. I also make a casserole with it like this. 

These days of plenty are daunting as I watch the arm loads of food come in several times a day. Something always seems to need picking. 

My kosher dills have fermented and now I have two half gallons of vegetable pickles fermenting. We seem to like fermenting our pickles so much better. For the small amount of pickles we eat between the two of us this is enough to last for months in the refrigerator. 

I hope you all are also experiencing such abundance. And I am off to start some laundry and maybe read some. It is raining today so maybe curl up and take an afternoon nap. 

See ya over the back fence!

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The Canned Quilter

Canning Season Love

Nothing a cat loves more than warmth. Phineus  has a great fondness for canning season and warm jars and especially the dehydrator.  He is convinced that God has placed this heavenly invention on earth just for him. CATS! 
Blessings from The HollerThe Canned Quilter

Counting One's Blessings

Such a busy time of year for us. Phineus the big yellow tom cat is just wore out. Never let a table full of warm jars go to waste. A little afternoon nap with an automatic bed warmer is always in order.

This time of year is always humbling to me but especially this particular year. A year of shortages and hunger in so much of the world. A year of sickness and death. Yet here we are surrounded by such blessings. Good health and food so plentiful.Tomatoes hanging heavy on the vines. Beans, squash, okra, cucumbers, melons. Eggs in the hen house. Far too much to name. Herbs and vegetables and fruit galore. Ripening in the sun. 

Squash, cucumbers and zucchini.

Red beans and green beans canned, fermenting dill pickles, hen eggs drying and a warm stuffed pepper casserole.

Squash and sausage dressing,

Frozen okra to be vacuum bagged.

We rarely leave the place anymore as the turmoil and sickness in the outside world increases. We continue to put away as much food as we can unsure of what times lay ahead. We are so fortunate in that our bills are paid, our health is good, our table is overflowing and we have each other.

With every jar of food we can we are thankful for the health to produce and preserve it. May you all be equally blessed!

Blessings from The Holler

The Canned Quilter