Dehydrated Soup

My dehydrator is running constantly this harvest season.  I'm putting together soup mixes. 

Onions

Squash

Beans

Peas

Carrots

Lovage

Basil

Bay

Garlic

Dehydrating these, mixing them, and putting them in plastic bags.  For soup in the winter, just add meat and stock of your choice, or even just meat and water. 

I hope to dehydrate some tomatoes, also.  We had a killing frost last night.  My garden is too big to cover everything, so we lost the squash, pumpkins,  corn, and sunflowers.  I covered the cukes and tomatoes and have yet to check to see if they made it.  Corn, tomatoes and squash weren't even done yet.  Such is life.  We do have a fantastic cabbage crop.

Well, off to school we go.

From Glory Farm

Homeschoolfreebieoftheday.com

Every Monday, I receive a list of five free homeschool resources.  One available each day of the week.  I find something I can use almost every week.  We especially enjoy the history lessons.  I've also downloaded great organizing helpers.  This week there's a  resource that has bath and body recipes.  Lotions, creams, etc.  I'm posting this because it's a great resource and they would like more people aware of it.  You don't need to buy a thing, but they do have great deals on stuff from time to time.  Actually, I first found out about it through someone's blog here at hmesteadblogger. 

So check it out.

Drying Onions and Garlic

I love garlic and I grew a great crop this year.  I've decided to put up a lot of it as garlic powder.  This isn't hard to do, but I thought I'd post on it.

First the onions and garlic-

(the out of focus onions and garlic)

Peel skins off of garlic bulbs and then off of cloves.-

I slice the garlic in my ancient food processor.  It goes much faster.-

Then I peel and slice the onions.  I do this by hand as my food processor doesn't like onions.

Next, place onions-

and garlic-

On the drying trays for your dehydrator.  I think you can also dry them on screens or in your oven on low.

I dry them until they are brittle and crisp and then back to the food processor to grind them into powder.-

Yes, I should have washed this off before taking a picture.

And-VOILA! 

Out of focus onion and garlic powder!

I think I just wanted to take pictures today.  I'm making beet pickles now, but I promise, no more tutorials.

Have a blessed night.

Making Sauerkraut

We've been blessed with wonderful, large cabbage.  We grew 40 of them and now I get to make sauerkraut.  I've never made it before and I don't really like it, but I've been told that homemade tastes better than storebought.  So here goes...

Get approximately 20 lbs. of cabbage-

(pay no mind to the date on these pictures)

Next you chop it up five pounds at a time and add three tablespoons of salt to each five.

You could use a kraut cutter-

But as you can see, mine is old and needs sharpening so I just used a knife-

After you have salted five pounds and stirred it, let it set several minutes.  It should get wilty.  While it was setting, I cut another bowl full of cabbage.  After it gets wilty, put into crock-

Pack it down with a wooden spoon or your fist-

Continue to fill the crock with the salt and cabbage mixture until it is about 3-4 inches from the top-

If the liquid isn't at the top and going over the cabbage, make some more.  One quart of water to 1 1/2 tablespoons of salt.  Bring to a boil and then let it cool.  Pour over cabbage so there is brine up to the top of the cabbage.  I ended up making about 2 more quarts of brine.  Next cover the cabbage with cheesecloth.-

Then it will need to be weighted down.  I used a plastic bag filled with water.  This will keep air out and form itself to the top of the cabbage.-

Store in a cool place.  Remove and discard scum from the top every day.  It takes 3-6 weeks for fermentation to be complete.  To can it after it's done-bring it to a simmer-not a boil- and put into hot jars.  Put on lids that have been heated.  Put in hot water bath for 30 minutes.  This is for quarts.

I'll let you know how it turns out.  I've never done this before.

Pressure Canner

My mom went and bought a brand new pressure canner from Lehman's.  I know that she bought it for me, even though she's just borrowing it to me for an indefinite period of time.  What a blessing!  I canned some beans yesterday.  Today I hope to can some pears.  I also want to put up some pear jam and can some carrot juice.  Lord willing, I will also start some sauerkraut and dry some oregano and thyme.  Can you tell it's harvest season.

**************************************************************

Tonight they're predicting frost.  It'll be the second of the season already.  My plants were nipped by it a week ago.  Corn, tomatoes, winter squash, pumpkins, none of these are done yet.  A bit early even for us.

***************************************************************

Best get going.  School time.

From Glory Farm