a friend told me about this cool foodie pen pal program so i signed up. receiving a box of goodies in the mail sure sounded fun so i decided to give it a whirl.
you sign up and then the lovely lindsay of the lean green bean matches you up with someone. i got matched up with a very sweet gal from PA named theresa.
the limit is $15 and you need to have your box in the mail by the 15th of the month. homemade items are encouraged but not required and it's suggested that participants send items local to their state or town or just simply some of their own favorite treats.
here is what i sent to the keystone state.
1. some amish granola from one of my favorite little markets
2. cajun peanuts from akron's oldest and finest - the peanut shoppe!
3. spicy mixed nuts (homemade - i got a 1/4 lb. of unsalted all tree nuts from the peanut shoppe, roasted them at home, and then tossed them with olive oil, salt, brown sugar, cayenne, and fresh rosemary. mmm!)
4. honey from my favorite blueberry pickin' patch
5. homemade ginger simple syrup that i scored from my pal ginnie at the food swap i recently hosted
6. a 4oz jar of my homemade plum ginger jam
7. and 3 buckeyes (we are buckeye state after all) for the three kiddos theresa mentioned in her email
i heard back from her and her email sure sounded like she liked it. i hope so!
and lucky for me a very sweet gal named rachel got my name and sent a delightful box of her favorite healthy snacks. check it out!
how - HOW - did she know that i LOVE dates? and even better - how did she know that i had just scored a tub of riccota from my favorite cheese man at my local farmers market and would be able to stuff said dates, roll in salt, and bake till warm soft and delightful? she's telepathic! and a genius!
the goodie box also included some sun butter, cinnamon sugar popcorn, sweet potato chips, dried strawberries, oatmeal, assorted teas, and dark chocolate covered almonds (those almonds are killer!).
my friend ginnie also participated and sent one helluva goodie box (that included my homemade peach honey spread).
here is what gin received.
apple butter, mustard pretzels, store-bought dip mix, and some fall themed sprinkles. hmmm.....
she wasn't too excited but i tried to encourage her not to give up! the next time might be incredible! she agreed to give it one more shot.
me? i will definitely be participating again. what fun! and delicious to boot!
a couple of weekends ago i hosted a backyard food swap - the first of what i hope will be many, many, many more swaps.
it was awesome! here is the evidence!
i offered up pickled peppers, two kinds of jam, canned salsa verde, canned tomato soup, and a dozen backyard eggs. i swapped those items for some handmade notecards, homemade candles, bacon wrapped jalapenos, chocolate jam candies, caramel corn, goat cheese, and a really cool pumpkin centerpiece.
there was so much great stuff! besides the things i swapped for there was also wine, homemade root beer, breads, ginger simple syrup, essential oils, fresh herbs and produce, heirloom plants, sweet potato waffles, granola, sauerkraut, goat cheese - even dog treats!
verdict - food swaps are freakin' sweet!
it all started with strawberries and for some reason late may/early june seems like a really long time ago.
these strawbs became a strawberry balsamic jam. YUM! i have several quarts of berries in the freezer still so i'll be doing that flavor again once the garden slows down.
our tomatillo plants are killin' it in the garden. easy peasy tomatillo preservation - roast 'em with some poblanos or jalapenos, a little onion, and some olive oil. then pulse the roasted veggies along with some fresh cilantro in your food processer and freeze in 2-4 cup increments. this will be a great base for winter salsas, chili verdes, and other tasty meals.
this summer i am really into small batch jams.
my usual ratio is about 2 - 2 1/2 lbs. fruit to 1 lb. sugar.
my cheapo big lots paula deen scale needs to go. i mention that i need a fancy new digital kitchen scale at least once a week. i hope bartman is picking up on this. i also drop hints about this too but i think my chances are better with the kitchen scale.
my mother-in-law and i have a booth again this year at our local farmers' market and i love it. love, love, love going every saturday and chatting with customers and fellow vendors and of course spending the majority of our profits. my jams have been selling really well despite the fact that i raised my prices a bit (more fruit and less sugar equals more costs on my end but a superior product is worth it!). i was "crunching some numbers" the other night and i have made well over 300 jars of jam since june. holy cow!
some of the fruits and flavors i've been working on include:
blackberry basil
blueberry.
if you live in northeast ohio you should probably check out vytko farms. great berries. and cheap. and tons of them!
peach and black raspberry.
the peaches in NE ohio are amazing this year. like the best i've ever had. i have probably bought over 50lbs of peaches this summer. jams, cobblers, freezer, snacks. delicious.
peach honey spread. mmm.....
peach jalapeno
notice that little packet? that is a sachet of HEAT! my first round of peach jalapeno wasn't too spicy and some of my customers asked for more heat. for the second round i used 4 jalapenos (2lbs peaches) and i made a little cheesecloth sachet full of jalapeno ribs and seeds. this one is WAY spicier. whew!
pepper jam
our pepper plants are LOADED. i can't even remotely keep up. i've pickled tons. made stuffed peppers. frozen some. jammed some. and we have more. lots, lots more.
raspberries were great this year - especially black raspberries. i picked a ton. i did several different jams and i also froze quite a bit.
roasted tomatoes. or the lazy woman's process for canning tomatoes.
core and cut tomatoes. add them to a roasting pan with some olive oil. if you're feeling like doing additional work add onions, garlic, and fresh herbs. roast it for a couple of hours, put it through the food mill, and voila! roasted tomato base. i've canned several quarts and this winter it will be the base for soups, stews, chilis, sauces, etc., etc.
i've also done a couple batches of tomato jam. i had great success with these little yellow bell cherry tomatoes. i turned them into a tomato & ginger jam which was really tasty.
and here is my spicy red tomato jam.
i ordered 20 lbs of pitted sour cherries.
i've made cobblers and sauces and i froze a bunch. i also made cherry jelly from the juice and my favorite thing - sour cherry and mint preserves. mmm. so good.
i still have loads of berries in the freezer so i'll be making jam well into winter. right now i am pretty consumed with peppers - pickling, freezing, and otherwise preserving what has been a serious bumper crop. i messed around with some pickling brines and think i have just about perfected my sweet/hot pepper brine. we did 7 quarts last night and i'll be heading home to several more quarts worth after work.
I also have the ass end of the tomatoes to deal with and i'm hoping to can some crushed romas this week.
basically my life revolves around food preservation and even though i've slowed down a bit i'm sure i'll be canning 4-5 nights a week for at least the next 3 weeks. i'll admit i'm exhausted but this winter when i make chili from my own tomatoes and peppers or crack open a jar of pickles and a cold beer it will all be worth it.
i haven't posted in FOREVER! i think i am probably beyond erratic and can now be classified as mostly negligent.
anyways, pretty much all i do is gather vegetables and fruits and herbs from the garden and the farmers' market and then stand over my dutch oven and canning pot and food saver. seriously.
on a high note - we're totally kicking ass at the farmers' market with our produce, hypertufas, and homemade jams and jellies.
and my no pectin, small batch black raspberry won a blue ribbon at the local county fair! bitchin'!
and this picture is pretty so check it out too.
maybe one of these days i'll get around to posting about something worth reading. we'll see.
