Tasty Fermented Fruit: Apples & Cranberries

Right after the holidays, fresh cranberries go on clearance, so it's a great time to buy a bunch. 

Last year I made and canned cranberry sauce, but this year I wanted to try a recipe I found at Homesteading Family blog for fermented cranberry sauce. I lacto-ferment a lot of vegetables, but have never tried fruit before; this just seemed like the time to try it.

Ingredients: fresh cranberries, apples, raisins, pecans,
sea salt (mine is Himalayan), whey, and apple juice.

The fruit and pecans are chopped to bite-size pieces.

Sweetener is stirred in (I used unbleached sugar),
and the mixture spooned into a large glass jar.

The brine is made from apple juice, whey, & salt.

Ferment time is only a couple of days. Then it's ready to eat.

I was pleased with how delicious this is.
A wonderful addition to our winter diet.

I try to serve something probiotic at least once a day. When we have fresh milk, that's usually kefir and fruit as part of our breakfast. But with less milk now, I was looking for something else to fit with oatmeal or toast. Fermented fruit is perfect. I noticed pineapple is on sale at Aldi. Maybe I'll give that a try next.

Have you lacto-fermented fruit? Have a favorite? I'm looking for other ideas to try.

Tasty Fermented Fruit: Apples & Cranberries  

© Dec 2020 by Leigh at http://www.5acresandadream.com

Hoping to Save Some Elderberries

Last year my elder bushes bloomed well, but birds got most of the berries. They will eat them green, which means I don't have much of a chance when it comes to getting a share of the harvest. I never mind sharing with the birds, but I want some too!

This year, I decided to try netting bags, to see if I could save some of my elderberries.

I bought them on Amazon (link here), 50, approximately 10-inch by 6-inch net bags for about $16. The netting is sturdy, seams are double folded, and each bag has a drawstring.

Size-wise, they are a little small for large clusters of elderberries, but the next larger size jumped too much in price.

I made do by either stuffing the clusters into the bags, or splitting them between two bags.

I thought 50 would be a lot, but in fact, they didn't go very far! So I bought another set and ended up using about 90 total.

How well they'll work, I have no idea. I suppose it depends on how much sun the individual berries require. I think they would be useful for seed savers too, to prevent cross-pollination by insects.

Making these bags would be an easy DIY project, if one could find sturdy enough netting. The netting and tulle I see in fabric stores would be too soft. But that would be the best way to have larger bags. Dan was hoping to use them on his sunflowers to protect the seed from the birds, but these are too small. Larger bags are definitely in order.

Hopefully, I'll get plenty of elderberries this year! Do you have critter problems? What are your solutions for critters who help themselves to more than their fair share?

Hoping to Save Some Elderberries © July 2020

by Leigh at http://www.5acresandadream.com

Summer Days in the Garden

When the daytime highs reach the mid-nineties, (mid-thirties C), something in me switches to pick-and-preserve mode. It just seems like that's what I ought to be doing, and it is!

We're enjoying fresh steamed beans & I'm canning
canning as many as I can. These are Tendergreens.

Summer squash is doing well. I only have about 3 or 4
plants because we all know how prolific it can be!

I've tried a number of varieties over the years, but the standard
yellows seem to do best. Love these sauteed with onion & basil.

I planted cushaw for winter squash where I planted clover as a
living mulch. Cushaw has always done well for me, although
the clover is beginning to wilt from the hot dry weather.

I have two varieties of tomatoes, Homestead and
a  Roma type. The Romas are struggling with
anthracnose, unfortunately, which seems to be
a recurring problem for me with paste types.

I have one row of sweet potatoes that seem happy. For the past couple
years, however, I've grown my own slips and never gotten very many.
I'm not sure why, but would honestly love about 4 - 6 times as many.

Okra is a favorite and doing well. We eat it
oven fried and it freezes without blanching.

Lots of cucumbers too! We're eating plenty fresh
and I'm restocking my shelves with lots of pickles.

My several rows of popcorn are doing well. 

Field corn. Half of the patch has done well, the other
half has no ears! I suspect nitrogen deficiency. I
plan to cut those plants back and dry for stover.

Amaranth has only done so-so. This is a
feed crop for me so the more the better.

No shows for me this year have been Swiss chard, which I planted twice! No joy with watermelons either. I had half a dozen indoor starts that didn't make it, and neither did the seeds I planted directly in the ground to replace them.

In the fruits and nuts department, we had no peaches or almonds this year, even though there were plenty of blossoms! No strawberries either, because I lost all my plants in last summer's horrific heat and drought. The apple harvest will be okay, although less abundant than last year.

This Gala is still a little green but has good flavor.

Pear trees have produced only a few, so I'm not expecting much of a harvest there. A first this year will be my Japanese persimmon!

First time for fruiting this year, four of them!

I planted it in my first hedgerow two years ago and confess I haven't given it a lot of nurturing. It's had to struggle on it's own but it's survived and beginning to produce! We have a wild persimmon too, but it's so tall that the only way to get fruit is the ones that fall to the ground. Critters both tame and wild keep the area pretty well cleaned up, however, so there's never any left for us. Even so, those fruits are small compared to the Japanese variety!

Another first will be crabapples.

I'm thinking pectin and jelly!

This is the first year I've gotten more than only 5 or 6 of them!

Blueberries and figs are my old faithfuls.

Even though it's been cooler this summer and with more
rain, the blueberries haven't produced as well as last year.

Figs are usually ready for harvest in August.

So there's my mid-summer garden report. How about you?

Summer Days in the Garden © July 2017 

by Leigh  at http://www.5acresandadream.com/

Time to Clean Out the Freezer

The first week of December was cold and rainy in our neck of the woods, so I decided it was time to clean out the freezer. This is an annual late fall/early winter project for me, because I've been tossing fruits, tomatoes, and bones into it all summer long. Once the harvest is over, I can begin to process all of these into jams, jellies, and sauces.

First up - elderberries.

Their destination is elderberry jelly. I tried making an elderberry pie last summer, but we did not like it! The seeds totally ruined it. But the pigs loved it, so there was no waste. That was my clue to stick to elderberry jelly and never mind trying jam.

I'm going to include the recipe here because it isn't in my Ball Blue Book or the boxed pectin directions. If it's here, I can add it to my recipe page and always know where to find it.

Elderberry Jelly

6 cups elderberry juice
1/4 cup lemon juice
4 cups sugar
1/3 cup (rounded) bulk low sugar pectin

Combine juices. Mix pectin with about 1/4 cup sugar and mix into juice. Bring to a boil. Add sugar and bring to a boil again. Pour into sterile half-pint jelly jars, cap, and process in boiling water bath for 5 minutes.

NOTE: My favorite pectin to use is Pomona's Universal Pectin, but it's not easy for me to get at a decent price. My frugal side decided to try bulk pectin. It was still pricey and I still prefer Pomona, although next year I'm hoping my crab apple tree will finally produce enough that I can start making my own.

Next I got out a gallon bag of my frozen figs. With these I wanted to make a fig and orange jam. Earlier this year I made a fig jam and used orange juice to replace the water needed to make 5 cups. It was really good, but I thought real oranges would be even better.

Fig & Orange Jam

3 cups crushed figs
1 cup filtered water
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 whole orange finely chopped
1 tsp cinnamon
4 cups sugar
1/3 C (rounded) bulk low sugar pectin

Combine figs, orange, lemon juice, and water. Simmer until the orange peel is tender. Meanwhile mix pectin with about 1/4 cup sugar. Stir pectin and cinnamon into the figs and bring to a boil. Add sugar and bring to a boil again. Pour into sterile pint jars, cap, and process in boiling water bath for 15 minutes.

Fig jam by itself is kinda blah, but it combines well with other fruits

Lastly, I got out my frozen tomatoes to make sauce.

The recipe for my pizza sauce is here. This year, though, I drained off the liquid from the thawed tomatoes and saved it for soup. (Thanks to Kris for that idea.)

While I was digging around in the freezer I found a half-gallon of broth from cooking chicken. What better thing for lunch on a dreary, drizzly day than Thanksgiving leftover Scrap Soup.

I used chopped garden arugula for the greens and it was pretty tasty.

The soup was so good that it got me started on making more soup to can. Home-canned soup is one of my favorite convenience foods.

So I got the fridge cleared out as well as most of the freezer. It's nice having a productive day like that.

Time to Clean Out the Freezer © December 2015
2015 by Leigh at http://www.5acresandadream.com/

Homestead Harvest: Fruits and Nuts

August has found me busy picking and preserving fruits.

Blueberries. I'm able to harvest these for about 4 or 5 weeks.

Figs all ripen over a couple of weeks.

Apples. Our first year to harvest!

The blueberry bushes and fig trees were well established by the time we bought the place. We planted the apple tree almost four years ago and this is the first year it's produced enough for even a small harvest.

Another first harvest is elderberries.

Elderberries beginning to ripen.

These bushes, too, were planted our first year here and, finally, I've gotten enough to pick. Well, I might have last year, but competition with birds is stiff, especially since they'll eat them green. I'm wanting to make elderberry jelly with this first harvest.

Peaches were ready earlier in the summer, but they produced only a pitiful few.

Peaches

Last year I was able to freeze three quarts in addition to eating them fresh. This year, barely enough for a bowl or two of cereal. Not even enough for ....

Peach pie, made with last year's frozen peaches. I used my whitest rendered
goat fat for the crust, and it was the tastiest and flakiest crust I ever made!

I got about a dozen plums for the first time, but almonds were a complete no-show although there were loads of blossoms. Neither did I get any hazelnuts, but those trees are still pretty small. Pears have yet to produce and I think my few cherries were eaten by the birds.

The other thing I've been harvesting is rose hips.

Rugosa rose hips

Still to come, wild persimmons and pecans. Maybe even some wild muscadines too. Last year I didn't get any persimmons or muscadines, but it was my best pecan year ever.

In the garden, melons have been a bust I reckon because of all the rain and so little sun. No matter, I'm thankful for whatever we get.

Homestead Harvest: Fruits and Nuts © August 2013 

by Leigh at http://www.5acresandadream.com/

Peach Problems & The Sink Window

Photo of my peach tree, taken 31 May 2012

Last year about 98% of my peaches were infested with Oriental Fruit Moth (also called peach moth) larvae. This year, I've found them in less than half. This year's problem I've identified as Brown Rot.

Brown rot is a fungus which infects the tree about three weeks before the fruit ripens. It starts with a small, soft, brown spot on the fruit which spreads quickly. The fruit literally rots away on the tree. It's not uncommon in humid weather, and our spring has certainly been that, with all the rain we've gotten.

This would have been something to address before spring growth (chalk up this year's crop to another valuable learning experience. :) The Organic Gardner's Handbook of Natural Insect and Disease Control recommends inspecting for and removing any gummy lesions on twigs and branches, before the tree starts it's spring growth. A sulfur spray helps protect the flowers when they begin to open, with a second application later, to protect the fruit. Copper spray is also said to be helpful. I admit I would not have known to look for this beforehand, but will know better next year.

At first it wasn't too bad and I managed to salvage enough for fresh peach slices on our breakfast cereal every morning, and a delicious pie...

Our first (and only) fresh peach pie of the year

There wasn't enough to can, so I opted for dehydrating some.

I dried about a quart's worth of this year's peaches

While canning requires enough for a canner load (7 quarts for a standard size canner), drying and freezing are good for small amounts. I froze about three quarts worth. Another nice thing about freezing is that I can use as is, in smoothies, in baked goods, or make jam later on. Sadly, the remaining peaches are going bad before they have a chance to ripen. Sadly, my second peach tree, which ripens later, is a lost cause. War is officially declared for next year.

While I was busy with the peaches, Dan was busy trimming out the window over the kitchen sink....

The shelf helped solve the problem of how
the window fits between the cabinets.

Stool, apron, and a closer look at the trim.

That's another thing checked of the kitchen project list. I get to do the painting. :)

Peach Problems & The Sink Window © June 2012 by Leigh at http://www.5acresandadream.com/

Fruits & Nuts 2012 Tour

Looks like it's going to be a good year for fruits and nuts.

Peaches

Peach trees planted fall of 2009

My peach trees are loaded, one (pictured above) in particular. The branches are bending to the ground under the weight of the fruit. Impressive but not good management. I should picked off a bunch at an earlier stage. That would have meant less of a burden on the branches, and larger peaches. Last year all my peaches were loaded with worms. I'm hoping for better this year. They're almost ripe so we'll be harvesting these later this month.

Apples

Apple trees planted fall of 2009

This will be our first year to get a few apples! I planted two varieties, Gala and Fuji, and we'll get some of both.

Crabapples

Crabapple tree planted fall of 2010

I have one crabapple (our first) on my little crabapple tree! I planted it because my brother loves crabapple jelly. Also, I'm hoping to use these to make cider vinegar one of these days.

Blueberries

Surprise trying her hardest to get a taste of blueberry bush

I have to say that the blueberry corral has worked very well. Last year it was an ongoing battle with the goats to try and harvest any blueberries (that tale here.)

Blueberry bush was here when we bought the place

This year will be a different story because the bush is loaded with unripe berries. Blueberries are ready to harvest here in July.

Elderberries

1st elder bushes were planted winter 2009.

We planted our first elderberry bushes December 2009. I've added more every year since, with a goal to make an impressive hedge. This year we have more flowers than ever before, but experience has taught me that the birds love elderberries, even green ones. Maybe I should net them. Hmm.

Red Raspberries

Red raspberries, planted spring 2010 and 2011

I haven't done well with my red raspberry plants. For every three I plant I lose at least one, often two. It may be the spot I chose to plant them, up the hill from the elder bushes. The higher up the hill the more quickly the ground dries out. Watering more would have helped, but some things are difficult to get to. Above is the sum total of my very first raspberry harvest, two whole berries. (Hey, it's a start, right?)

Sand Cherries

Sand cherries, planted spring of 2011

Something unexpected has been our sand cherries. I planted these to make a pretty privacy hedge, not thinking a lot about the fruit, except that I try to only plant things that are edible or medicinal. The largest plants have produced these for me....

My very 1st bowlful of cherries

Not enough to do much with and they're pretty extremely tart. Still, they aren't as seedy as I expected for a native type cherry bush. One of these years they'll probably make an excellent batch of jelly.

Figs

Baby figs are beginning to grow. Mature trees were here when we got here.

I discovered that we had fig trees while I was clearing out overgrown brush our first summer here. Since then we've enjoyed a good harvest every year. My dad especially loves the canned ones and has put in his request for as many as I care to send. Fig harvest will be in August.

Grapes

One vine, variety unknown, was here before we were

One grapevine was here when we bought the place. I don't know when it was planted, but unfortunately it is now in all shade and doesn't do very well. The grapes will turn dark purple later in the summer and are seedy and very sour. The birds will get to them before I do. I should consider propagating a few of my own vines from this one, but we haven't decided yet where to put them.

We have Muscadines as well, wild ones. I got a good harvest our first autumn, but none since, so I'm hoping it will be a good year for them. Some day I will plant some muscadine vines.

Rugosa Rosehips

Rugosa roses with hips beginning to ripen. Planted fall of 2010

I love my rugosa roses. Beautiful, single hot pink blooms and huge bright red hips. I'd like to have an impressive hedge of these too. I did transplant some volunteers, two of which look like they'll survive if they get plenty of water this summer.

I also promised some nuts on this tour, and here they are,

Almonds

All-in-One Almond. Planted winter 2009

Last year we got a small handful of almonds, but this year looks like we'll have a modest harvest. Almonds are Dan's favorite nuts, so I planted it just for him. I love them too, so it's a welcome addition to the yard. I bought an all-in-one because I read that Hall's Hardy, while indeed hardy and easier to crack, weren't as sweet. All-in-one is self pollinating (not sure about Hall's) and it's pale pink flowers in the spring are a delight to the eye.

Pecans

Pecan trees just finished blooming, so we'll have to see what makes

Mature pecan trees were one of the bonuses when we bought the place. Last year was my best ever for pecans; not terms of quantity, but quality. This year? We'll have to wait and see. :)

Non-producers this year are the pears. Theses were planted the same time as the apples. Trees that are still small and young aren't producing yet either, my Stanley prune-plum, North Star cherry tree, and my two hazelnut trees. I also wasn't expecting much from the strawberries and wasn't disappointed. Last year's plants were swallowed up by wire grass. I transplanted the ones I could, and also planted some new. Unfortunately wire grass seems to love strawberries and it's found it's way into this new bed too. Some days I feel like I just can't win. On the other hand, looks like we've got a lot to be thankful for this year.

Fruits & Nuts 2012 Tour © June 2012 by Leigh at http://www.5acresandadream.com/