I noticed on a walk this week there were still many chokecherries hanging from the branches of the trees around the hay field. I had expected them to be long ago eaten by the birds. However, it has been a bumper year for fruit and maybe because of the bounty there was more than they could eat. Or, it could be they prefer the apples and blackberries. Whatever the reason, I'll happily take the leftovers.
Cole and I took a bucket, and after feeding the pigs, we picked enough fruit for one more batch of chokecherry preserves. Its Rob's favorite. If you haven't tried chokecherry preserves (mine is somewhere between a jelly and a jam) you are missing out. The fruit has a mild spicy flavor which is contrasted by the sweetness of the sugar. It works beautifully on toast or biscuits but it is equally at home drizzled over a mild goat cheese and served on a savory cracker. It makes a nice contrast when paired with venison or used to dip grouse strips in.
The first batch I made was too syrupy, I hadn't boiled it enough. I now know the color needs to turn to a deep garnet red before its ready. If it still shows pink it needs to boil longer. I re-boiled the lot and am much happier with the result.
As I mentioned the blackberries were very good this summer. I've made several forays into the woods and picked baskets and baskets of fruit. We've enjoyed blackberry cobbler, blackberry fungi and blackberry jelly. I played with a couple of different recipes including one with less sugar and no pectin.
I dug some of the early potatoes, picked some beans, pulled a few carrots and plan to cook these for supper. We've enjoyed to the garden. We still have a lot to learn. Some things did really well this year, and other crops - such as beets and Swiss chard were at best -- lackluster. I did freeze both cauliflower and beans.
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| Cabbage, potatoes, cauliflower, beans and carrots from the garden. |
The far north-western corner of the garden is completely overtaken by the pumpkin and squash. These have crowded out the onions, second lettuce and second bean plantings. I'll know better next year and plant these well away from the main garden.
One crop doing better than last year is the tomatoes. I picked five pounds of ripe fruit over the last couple of days and now a simple tomato sauce is simmering on the stove. The house smells wonderful.
The best success story may be the garlic. It flourished and now I have 70 heads hanging and curing in the barn. I can't begin to describe how good it is. The flavor is spicy and pungent, unlike the garlic we buy in the grocery store. My stash won't last the winter but it gives us an idea of how much more we'll need to plant this fall for next year. We'll have it in the ground by late October.
Rob and I built a cold-frame earlier in the month. We filled the bottom with composted manure and I mixed in some potting medium as well. I sowed some mixed lettuce and some Mache (a hearty winter green). I'm looking forward to seeing what happens and how well the food grows. Worst case scenario the chickens and turkeys get a few greens in the middle of winter.
This is such a rewarding time of year. We start to fill the cupboards and basement with the food we've grown or collected and know we'll have plenty to feed us through the winter.
