Juice of two lemons To ensure a proper set I feel every cut. “Can’t finish the peach. The juice runs sticky, too far down my elbow, mom.” My apricots float They will do it every time Maybe more syrup? (big thanks to Harriet Fasenfest for this one) Met the orchard man Blushing fruit, picked by…
Archives for August 2011
Get Off The Rack: A DIY Alternative To The Canning Rack
Most beginner food preservers (and I count myself as an advanced beginner) start with the standard issue water bath canner. It’s usually blue or green with funny speckles on it and can be found pretty cheaply new or really cheaply used. My ginormous canning kettle came from the thrift store and cost, as I recall,…
Culture Your Cukes: Lacto-Fermented Pickles
My pickling cukes are starting to come on, which means it’s time to get cozy with your friend and mine – the beneficial microbe! I am a tremendous fan of pickling through lacto-fermentation. Think of it as yogurt making with vegetables. Beneficial bacteria chomps down on the natural sugars and starches in the vegetable and converts it…
Roadtrip! Peppers, Sun, And Locavorism
Because summer refused to come to me this year, I went to summer. Yesterday I drove to Eastern Washington, a region as dissimilar from Western Washington from a gardening perspective as Iowa. I was visiting a friend and, for the first time, stomping around her garden. Eastern Washington is hot, dry and seasonally distinct. If you…
Gardening Goals And Edible Expectations
My friend Fruit Lady is brand new to veggie growing. This spring she put in several good-sized raised beds, but doesn’t care how much she harvests. She grows vegetables so that she and her kids can learn about the process. Really, it’s mostly for the kids, and anything picked is bonus. That’s not how it…
Salad Days, Summer Style
Salad Days are here….again. But this time, spring’s tender lettuce isn’t taking center stage. Because it’s moderately warm here in the Maritime Northwest (and, I gather, roughly as hot the 6th circle of Hell elsewhere in the U.S.) I want to cook and eat cold food, and entree salads fits the bill perfectly. Here’s a…
Toddler: 1 – Zucchini Chips: 0
I made zucchini chips for the first time. They were easy, they were a hit, they made zucchini into something fun. Something really fun. Maybe too fun. This is how it happened. Zucchini Chips 1 medium zucchini Olive Oil, for brushing dehydrator trays Salt, to taste Slice zucchini very thin. I used a Japanese slicer (like a mandoline,…
Nosy Neighbor Urban Homestead And Garden Tour 2011
Wowza! I am so excited to share some incredible gardens and urban homesteads with Northwest Edible Life Readers. I’ve taken a sneak peak at a few of the gardens being shared today by amazing gardeners all over the US (and possibly beyond!) and I’ve been blown away by the creativity and solutions I’ve observed. It…