handmade salami

 Ground beef and a few spices turn into a wonderful treat for the holidays. It is so easy.....

To make your own salami

5 pounds ground beef (the fattier the better)
4 teaspoons Morton's tender quick curing salt (I easily found this at my local grocery store)
1 teaspoon garlic powder
2 1/2 teaspoons ground black pepper
2 1/2 teaspoons mustard seed
2 1/2 teaspoons liquid smoke
Mix spices and beef together let stand in the refrigerator for several hours
Roll the beef mix into 2 inch wide logs.
bake in a very slow oven 175 degrees  for 8 hours.
Store tightly wrapped in the fridge for up to a month.

pickled purslane

                                           


When I was reading about the effects of Omega fatty acids on the body and brain. I read about Purslane, a weed that grows wild in these parts. It is a noteble source of Omega 3's. I looked in my garden. Purlsane was abundant and ready to be picked. I picked a bunch, cooked some, and put some in my salad. I then decided to preserve some for later use.

It is actually pretty good for a weed.



PICKLED PURSLANE

1 quart purslane stems and leaves
3 garlic cloves, sliced
1 quart apple cider vinegar
10 peppercorns

Clean the purslane stems and leaves by rinsing with fresh water.
Cut into 1" pieces and place in clean jars with lids. Add the spices
and pour the vinegar over the purslane. Keep this in the refrigerator
and wait at least two weeks before using. Will keep for up to a year.

PS. There is a weed similar to purslane called spurn which can be poisonous.
 Below is a link to a blog that talks about the difference along with some great photos.
spurge vs purslane

Freezing limes and ginger root

Who knew? you can freeze citrus fruits! I did not know this until I bought a bunch of limes. I got such a great deal, I got a little carried away. We used a bunch but there are still some left.

There are two different methods for freezing citrus fruits. Freeze them whole, or freeze the juice and rind.

The rind can be taken from the fruit and frozen in an a freezer bag.
The juice can be squeezed and poured into ice cube trays, frozen, then placed in freezer bags. It is recommended to measure the juice into 1 Tablespoon cubes for ease of use later on.

I chose to freeze the limes whole. Just pop them into a  ziptop style freezer bag and into the freezer they go. When you are ready to use them thaw a bit under running water, or thaw in the microwave for a few seconds on high.

As a side note:  The freezer changes the texture of the fruit, once frozen, it is only good for juicing or grating the rind. You can freeze lemons, limes, and oranges; then you will  have the juice or rind for your favorite dishes.

Ginger root, It is fabulous. Great in the winter for making tea when you are sick. When you are cooking asian dishes, it tastes so much better than the dried stuff. There is no comparison. I keep ginger in the freezer for just such uses.

Peel the root, the place in a resealable freezer bag. Keep in the freezer for up to a year.
When I need some grated ginger root, I pull it out of the freezer and grate off what I need. I make sure to put it right back in the freezer. Now you will always have "fresh" ginger when needed.





this post shared with penny pinching party

preserving the harvest....green tomato relish

A few years ago when I inherited a garden full of green tomatoes I found this recipe.

It is a great way to use up a crop of green tomatoes late in the fall when frost happens before they have time to get ripe. 

To make green tomato relish you will need

24 large green tomatoes
3 red bell peppers halved and seeded
2 green bell peppers halved and seeded
12 large onions peeled
3 Tablespoons celery seed
3 Tablespoons mustard seed
1 Tablespoon salt
5 cups white sugar
2 cups cider vinegar



In a grinder or food processor corsely grind the tomatoes, bell peppers and onion. (I had to do in batches because my food processor is small.)

Pour this mixture into a colander lined with cheesecloth and let drain for 1 to 1 1/2 hours

Pour the drained mix into a non aluminum stock pot with the remaining ingredients

Bring the mix to a boil and then simmer for 10 minutes stiring frequently

Pack into sterilized jars.Cut down the jar to release any air pockets and fill in any spaces Fill to the top leaving no headroom.

Screw on  lids.

Process in a hotwater bath for 30 minutes. I live at a very high altitude so I increased the processing time to 40 minutes.


Yeilds approx 12 pints relish

dehyrdrating cantalope

We got a surprise the other day at the grocery store, free cantalopes!  We dried three of them, and gave several away. You can read about us blessing others with cantalopes here.

Drying the melons was really easy.

Peel the melons, and slice them about 1/2 inch thick

Toss them with a little sugar. For three small melons we used about 3/4 cup sugar.

Lay them out on cookie sheets

Dry them in a very low oven overnight. We set the oven dial to just barely on (about 125 degrees)

Turn them and then let them dry on the other side for several hours.

We ended up with something sweet and chewy that tasted a bit like the dried mango that you get in a prepackaged trail mix. Over all it was a fun experience.

Freezing cheese

GOT A GREAT DEAL ON MOZZERELLA CHEESE!  It ended up costing me $.79 a pound. The catch....It expired in two days. Eating twelve pounds of cheese in two days is not the best option. I chose to freeze  it instead.

Cheese can be frozen and kept for several months. The more firm the cheese, the better suited for freezing. Soft cheeses do not take to freezing as well. Freezing can affect the texture of cheese. Many cheeses are best used in recipes after freezing.


Cheese is best frozen in the original packaging if it is in good shape. The cheese I bought was in large two pound bricks. I broke those down into usable portions.

The bricks of cheese I wrapped tightly with plastic wrap and then in a zip top freezer bag squeezing out as much air as possible.

The majority of the cheese I grated. Once grated I put into a zip top freezer bag, labeled and dated them then into the freezer they went. My four year old was a great helper with filling up the bags.

Thaw in the fridge for a day before use and you are ready to go.
Not to bad for a few minutes worth of work.

This post linked up with carnival of home preserving

also linked atpennywise platter

 also shared at homestead barn hop

SHARING IN THE CHERRY HARVEST

We got a call from the neigbors telling us  "cherries are ready come and share the harvest."

we ended up with about 16 pounds of fresh cherries

The children and I woke up the next morning and picked cherries.  The children really enjoyed helping to pick cherries.They were eager and willing to help. It was a fun experience for them. I loved being able to teach them about real food. We spent several hours processing the cherries. My four year old made up a song to sing as we pitted cherries. We made some good memories as we prepared the harvest for storage. We ended up with 16 half pints of cherry jam, 3 quart size bags of frozen cherries, and 1 dehydrator full of cherries to be dried.

 It was nice to see the harvest all laid out. We were tired and sticky red by the end of the day, but it was well worth our efforts. I was glad to be able to teach the children how to work hard towards a good goal.

This morning when we had fresh cherry jam on our pancakes, the smiles on the kids faces said it all.

I am grateful for my neighbors who shared with us their abundance. I am also very grateful that I have put our family in order to be able to receive such gifts. We keep our preserving supplies on hand and within easy reach. When these opportunities come along we can take advantage of them. I know many people who are far to busy to enjoy these simple pleasures. Many of my freinds are so busy that  things meant to be a blessing end up being a burden. I know several people that 2 am is the only time they have to do such projects. Not wanting to waste an opportunity, they preserve in the middle of the night leaving them groggy, and irritable the next day. They miss out on the real opportunity of teaching the children the art of the harvest.

 (You can read about me learning how to preserve the harvest with my Grandma here)

SIMPLE LIVING HAS ALLOWED ME TO LIVE AN ABUNDANT LIFE
SIMPLE LIVING MEANS THAT I CAN ENJOY REAL BLESSINGS
SIMPLE LIVING IS REAL LIVING.


this post is linked at mondays baryard hop #66, and what joy is mine, monday musings #17
also linked at raising homemakers anddeep roots at home link up #41
shared at carnival-of-home-preserving-16