It's always nice to eat fresh, but sometimes you've just had your fill. Or you know you'll want a fill later. I always preserve berries, either in jams or by freezing. I used to can blueberries for a ready-made sauce, but it's way easier to freeze them whole and whip up a 5 minute sauce when you need it.
The Berry Deal
I'm a firm believer in using two hands, and I'm not a fan of blueberry rakes. I wear a 2 quart jug fastened to my front by a belt. One hand holds the branches, the other picks--it's easy and fast. No spilled berries unless you fall!
I let blueberries soak in water for a few hours to purge any worms. I clean them then spread them in a single layer on a baking sheet. I freeze them on the sheet then transfer them to gallon-sized plastic bags. (This can work for any berry). After the summer gorge of crisps, muffins, pancakes, and waffles, three gallons of blueberries does the trick for my family. Red huckleberries are frozen if I can keep from eating them all. I store salmonberries, in the form of jam, and it's our most coveted flavor. I always go crazy on jam since I want to try so many combinations of fruit and spice. Luckily, they make great gifts!We also make fruit leather, as my son is a huge fan. Huck and I made bunch berry/blueberry leather this week that is almost gone already! Bunch berries are bland alone, but they mix in with other things wonderfully. They are easy to find, easy to pick, and are ready when most other berries are done.We used about half blues and half bunches and an old mushy banana. The trick is to not over-dry it and to roll it off the drying rack while it is still warm. Let the rolls cool then store them in an air-tight container in the fridge.
Chicken of the Woods
I usually saute mine in oil and eat it like I do any other mushroom. I put it on pizza, in stir fries, and in burritos. I recently had some boiled, breaded, and fried by the Wabi Sabi crew at the JAHC market. SPECTACULAR! This year, I decided to try preserving it. After searching a bit on the internet I decided to try four different methods. Freezing raw, freezing after sauteing, drying raw, and drying after sauteing. The taste test will come in a month!It's out right now, so go on a hike and find your own stash! Remember not to take all you find, and leave the bases attached to the tree trunk so they can continue to grow.
Herbs
I can't come close to using all the herbs I have. Last year I dried oregano and rosemary. Both were great. This year, I gave flavored vinegars a try. I was inspired by a friend who gave me some apple cider nasturtium flower vinegar last year, which was phenomenal on rice. I did a trial run of 12 quarter-pint jars. I tried using white, apple cider, rice, red wine, and white wine vinegars. For the herbs I used sage, thyme, oregano, rosemary, and even nasturtium leaves. It'll be interesting to see what combinations are best. They are all steeping in the dark for a few more weeks.
Garlic
I wash off my garlic and let it dry on a wire rack. I put a sheet of newspaper over it to keep it dark while it dries, and I have it in the living room so there's some heat from the woodstove. I usually store mine in fridge, but I've recently read that just cool and dark is best, so I'm going to try storing some in a mesh bag in the shed and some under my kitchen sink. I only have about 20 bulbs to keep, so I don't need to worry about saving them too long. At the JAHC market last week I bought 4 different types of garlic from Orsi Organic Produce to use as my planting stock. Their website has Juneau directions for planting, caring, harvesting, and drying. They recommend planting garlic 1-2 inches deep. When I dug the last of mine up yesterday they were 5-6 inches underground--opps! I guess garlic ain't tulips!
Next week I leave for a moose hunting trip, so hopefully I'll be busy wrapping, canning, and drying! What are you going to save this fall?
