a busy domestic blog of knitting, sewing and all kinds of needlecrafts, cooking my garden produce and preserving it
Showing posts with label squash. Show all posts
Showing posts with label squash. Show all posts

Wednesday, 11 October 2017

Preserving time again

'In progress' chutney




Autumn's always the time of year for making chutneys and jams on a massive scale. Although sound pumpkins and apples keep easily enough, there are always damaged ones thatneed to be processed in some way, so ... out with the preserving pan - first to rescue a couple of butternut squash by making chutney, then to turn some damaged apples, with the help of blackberries from the freezer, into jam.

The finished chutney
































Tuesday, 17 March 2015

Panic stations!

 I was shocked at the weekend to discover most of the pumpkins and squashes stored from last year were starting to rot - some just a little, some past hope of salvaging!

I then decided I ought to use up some of the remaining good bits - quickly!
So, time for some marmalade making.


 It's possibly simpler than traditional marmalade - cube the pumpkin/squash, add some chopped up lemons (all from the freezer where I keep the bits leftover after squeezing for juice or grating the rind) simmer till cooked and squashy. Add sugar and stand over night. Then boil till set.




Lovely orange-coloured, lemon-flavoured marmalade.

Tuesday, 7 October 2014

Rainy Monday

Yesterday was a really wet, generally horrible autumnal day - and so I got busy in the kitchen.

First, my lazy passata which is basically skinned tomatoes,cooked for a while, then when I think everything looks thick enough, pop it in jars, and re-boil them to seal.



Next task - freezing runner beans. These were so big and tough that a lot of them weren't fit to keep, but they did have beans inside which I've kept.

They look quite pretty when raw....





but boiling them turns the pink-shelled beans grey so I popped them out of their skins.









On to dinner - an almost free goulash-style meal using our allotment-grown squash and red pepper, onions, mixed batch of cannelini and borlotti beans, tomatoes and potatoes.

I used a small amount of smoked paprika, instead of my normal home-grown chilli which can be too hot, a small piece of pork from the Sunday roast, some left-over breadcrumbs and cheese for topping - so very nearly a 'free' dinner.








And, last thing before settling down with my knitting, setting up cucumber and onion to soak in brine overnight before pickling tomorrow.