tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7189165.post2553278972903765850..comments2024-03-25T09:59:02.715-07:00Comments on Eat The Blog: Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving 2015 EditionGoodyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383404429461423998noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7189165.post-53994155334214683232015-09-30T03:10:47.346-07:002015-09-30T03:10:47.346-07:00I'll be chopping them into crumble-filling-siz...I'll be chopping them into crumble-filling-sized chunks and freezing them.<br /><br />I don't think we're anywhere near as good at preserving here in the UK as you are in the US. Aside from pickling stuff in vinegar, and making jams/chutneys, it's not a big thing. I don't know anyone who dehydrates foods or bottles them, though I know the WI did have a big push towards bottling and canning during both wars. Possibly our climate's too damp for successful drying, though bottling would work.Mimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01578612522819952936noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7189165.post-18251281387485380602015-09-28T19:04:11.613-07:002015-09-28T19:04:11.613-07:00@Mim
Do you dry any, or do they all get baked or ...@Mim<br /><br />Do you dry any, or do they all get baked or bottled? <br />Goodyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17383404429461423998noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7189165.post-59812697455140800832015-09-28T01:41:35.805-07:002015-09-28T01:41:35.805-07:00I'd never heard of that book, but it sounds ex...I'd never heard of that book, but it sounds excellent. We've had a glut of apples this year in Britain - a warm spring plus a dampish summer have made the trees really productive. Even my shoulder-high one in my garden is cropping heavily.<br /><br />Yoghurt on bratwurst?! NO. BAD!Mimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01578612522819952936noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7189165.post-30977351827527462702015-09-22T13:27:34.338-07:002015-09-22T13:27:34.338-07:00@Beth Waltz
In recent years it has been difficult ...@Beth Waltz<br />In recent years it has been difficult to find Concord grapes unless you have the vines. I used to buy a crate and do all the juice making, letting it stand overnight so it didn't get crystals, etc. I've since discovered that you can make excellent grape jelly from bottled, unsweetened organic juice. Much less work and mess, but not the same. <br /><br />Still, you can't make a grape pie from juice and I do miss that. Slipping the grapes from their skins and using a food mill to remove the seeds was a hell of a job, but oh...grape pie is a wonderful thing. <br /><br />We get, "Concord-style" grapes from California that neither smell nor taste like a Concord, and they are seedless. I've seen them marketed as, "Jelly Drop Grapes" but no self-respecting jelly would want to be associated with anything that dull. <br /><br />Parafin is a no-no these days for canning (because everything goes through a water-bath canner) but it sure was fun to play with. I have old cookbooks that show layers of coloured jellies in wine glasses coated with a wax top. I wouldn't dare try it today, but I'm sure they were consumed with no harm done. Sometimes we're probably too safe for our own good. Goodyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17383404429461423998noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7189165.post-20344911134298023492015-09-22T10:35:58.959-07:002015-09-22T10:35:58.959-07:00Preserving means grape jelly to me. Cleaning out ...Preserving means grape jelly to me. Cleaning out the wire fence grape arbor and fending off the wasps. Damp wiping the Concord grapes with cheap paper towels. The spooky jelly bag drip, drip, dripping over the sink. Getting chased out of the kitchen 47 times because the boiling water for the jars was dangerous, you idiots! Then the great ordeal of pouring, followed by the mysterious sealing with parafin wax. Loved to lick the jellied wax leftovers!Beth Waltzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02720634636307254576noreply@blogger.com