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GNOWFGLINS has a new regular carnival called Tuesday Twister, “What’s Twisting in Your Kitchen This Week?” that I probably won’t participate in very often, but this week I am proud of all the new things I’ve tried.
Here are the kitchen adventures I’ve embarked upon for the first time this week:
- Canning pickles (first time canning anything)
- Canning applesauce
- Lacto-fermented pickles
- Lacto-fermented salsa
- Water kefir
- Oatmeal Challenge
- Using bread/roll dough I had previously frozen
- Freezing cherries
- Freezing peaches (although not for the first time)
It’s been a busy week in the kitchen! I’ve got granola and granola bars on my list for tomorrow, although they’ve been on the list since last Friday, so we’ll see if they get accomplished or not.
Canning Pickles
Crunchy or mushy? We'll have to see!
I tasted some of my friend’s home-canned garlic-dill pickles a few weeks ago, and when I saw a basket of “seconds” (ugly) organic cucumbers for two bucks, I decided on a whim to give them a try. I called her for the recipe, and even though I didn’t find pickling salt, I tried it anyway with sea salt.
One disaster after another! No one should ever can without someone there who’s done it before to help troubleshoot. Everyone told me canning was easy, and I got comfortable enough to just try it without even looking up what “processing” the jars meant until it was too late! I was hoping that the jars would “just pop” without processing like many friends have told me they would, and at 1:30 a.m. found myself googling “how to process canned pickles”, only to learn that I had to cover the jars with the boiling water completely. I rushed upstairs and snatched my jars out of the regular pots I had been trying to use, because there wasn’t enough room to cover them with water. Luckily I have a huge pot that fit the jars and the water, but I don’t know if the amount of time they were hanging around before being processed will make mushy pickles or not!
I finally got everything to seal (3:00 a.m.!) but I’m supposed to wait 8 weeks for the flavors to meld before opening the jars. You can bet I’ll be opening one next week because I’m too curious! I will either be successful, or have mushy pickles, or have bacteria-laden unsafe pickles. We shall see!
UPDATE: They taste awesome, but they’re mushy! I tried again, and I think I had success. See the Garlic-Dill Pickle Recipe here.
Canning Applesauce
Since I had such great success with the pickles (ha, ha) I decided the next night to can applesauce. I had a huge bag of “sauce apples”, as my dad called them, from a tree in my Great Aunt’s yard. They were tiny, sour and wormy, and my daughter kept using them as toys (and trying to eat them) because the bag was sitting on the floor of the kitchen. It was beyond time to make them into sauce!
I am seriously running low on freezer space after picking 35 or so pounds of strawberries, 7 quarts of raspberries and 30 pounds of blueberries this summer. I thought – hey, I can CAN this stuff and store it on the shelf! So off I went, trying something new again. I used my plain old applesauce recipe (cook up them apples and add a LOT of cinnamon) and if we need it sweetened a little, we can add sugar or honey later. I decided to leave the skins on like this applesauce with skins for extra fiber recipe (except I cooked mine). That cuts the work in half, which was helpful with those small apples especially. (Drum roll, please!) I had success! All my jars sealed. Hopefully the end result will be safe applesauce, and I’ll repeat this again in the fall when we go picking apples.
This is how to make applesauce if you're a one-year-old...
...whose mother lets you have a fork and get into the bag of apples...(See the great effort here?!)
The gleeful apple-and-a-fork laugh!
Lacto-fermented pickles
Yes, there's an oak leaf in there. And a plastic lid inside to help keep the cukes in the liquid. I hope they don't mold!
I cut way too many pickles for the jars I had prepared and the dill I had on hand when I canned pickles, and I thought I might try my hand at lacto-fermentation. I read helpful posts on lacto-fermented sour pickles and traditional lacto-fermented vegetables. The great thing about lacto-fermenting is that you can do just one jar, and it’s not a ton of work like canning is. I was a little weirded out by the thought of putting an oak leaf in the jar (for crispiness – I don’t have access to grape leaves…), but I just washed it well and tried to forget that I had just picked it up off my lawn. They need to sit another two days before I’ll know if they’re crunchy, mush, or somewhere in between!
UPDATE: Mush. The definition of mush, in my fridge. See the results of Pickles, take two here.
Lacto-fermented salsa
Just gorgeous, don't you think? Nothing better than fresh-cut veggies!
I tried a small batch of my homemade salsa recipe with whey to lacto-ferment them like I learned in this lacto-fermented salsa post. It was good (although fresh is soooo much better tasting!), so I decided I’d do a larger batch this week. We ate a big bowl of it fresh, and I have 3 jars perking along in the cupboard over my stove for a day or two.
Lacto-fermented stuff has to be stored in the fridge, which is the drawback, but it’s definitely less work than canning and you can do small batches. I’m hoping to can tomatoes and salsa in a few weeks when I can get a bushel (or half bushel?) of toms at the Farmer’s Market…and my grandmother can be there with me for support! 
Water Kefir
The kefir "grains" are in that little bag.
Supposedly kefir will be a substitute for soda pop, something my husband shouldn’t drink but loves. I doubt it will be that good, but I’m so excited to try different variations. I got the starter culture from Cultures for Health a few weeks ago, but I didn’t get around to trying it until this week. We tasted some this evening, and it tastes just a shade different than water right now, but I read here that I can bottle it tightly and let it sit out a few more days for even more carbonation, so I think I’ll try that too. I love a good experiment!
Note: Cultures for Health is giving away starters like the one I used, and even countertop incubating yogurt starters at Food Renegade this week. Hopefully I’ll be hosting a giveaway of the yogurt starters in the near future!
The Nourishing Gourmet’s Oatmeal Challenge
Kimi has challenged us to eat oatmeal every day for a week as a frugal venture. We’re in! This morning I had my favorite mix-ins with soaked oatmeal: raisins, flax meal, unrefined coconut oil, crispy walnuts, raw milk and lots of cinnamon. I find I don’t even need a sweetener with the coconut flavor going on. Lovey Girl had FIVE helpings! She’s going to have a good week!
Frozen Bread Dough
…is a total failure in my house. I like to be able to take half a batch of something and freeze it for later, but I guess I need to just make the rolls or breadsticks and bake them, then freeze them. Twice now, with two different dough recipes, I’ve made dense, brick-like rolls that can’t quite get done in the middle before they brown too much on the outside. I’m not a fan of frozen dough! What am I missing?
Freezing Cherries and Peaches
I got a few quarts of cherries from the tree in my Great Aunt’s yard (the biggest cherry tree you’ve ever seen, no kidding!) and of course because it’s just growing naturally, they’re really tiny. It took me half an hour to pit one quart (maybe less than that even). What a job. I never want to purchase cherries on purpose for freezing, but free is such a good deal that I’ll take advantage of it! Still have a quart-and-a-half to go…I’m pecking away at them when I get a chance throughout the day.
I bought a peck (?) of peaches at the Farmer’s Market Friday, and they are soooo sweet and delicious! I sliced and froze 3 quart-sized bags (with a little sugar) and froze in halves or quarters another gallon bag’s worth for smoothies. I had to leave some in the fridge to put over ice cream and yogurt this week. I can already imagine the joy of bringing out those peaches in the dead of winter when no local fruit is in season. Mmm!
This post is also linked in to What I Learned This Weeko at Musings of a Housewife and Food Roots at Nourishing Days and Finer Things Friday at The Finer Things in Life.
Firsts on the First at Make-it-from-Scratch.
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I must confess I have never pickled OR canned, or even made jam!
(am I a terrible home-maker?)
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Katie Reply:
August 18th, 2009 at 8:50 am
I don’t think so! Those things certainly aren’t necessary…this was the first time I tried any of the three, and I’m not sure if they’ll be habits, or not. We’ll see about those mushy pickles…
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Okay, I so want to do that with peaches! What a great idea. Methinks we will need more freezer space soon.
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I just tried the lacto fermented salsa myself! Did you have any mold form on top? I did and I think next time I’m going to use my vacuum sealer to vacuum seal the jars.
I just scooped the mold off and the salsa underneath was tangy and yummy! I’m going to make some black beans to go with it this week.
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Katie Reply:
August 18th, 2009 at 11:57 am
I had no mold. That would scare me off a little…maybe it depends how old the whey is. ?
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Okay, with frozen dough, you have to let it thaw before you bake it. The frozen Rhodes rolls have thawing instructions on them (not that… I’ve used those… well, it’s been at least a couple years.
) Otherwise – a VERY impressive week. All things I’ve wanted to try, and haven’t gotten around to – good to see how it’s working for you.
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Katie Reply:
August 18th, 2009 at 11:56 am
The dough was thawed, and I let it sit out of the fridge after I formed the breadsticks for maybe 2+ hours. Maybe I needed to let it come to room temp first before making the shapes? I dunno…I am gunshy of trying it again after two failures, although hubby will still eat the breadsticks. I thought they were gross. Thanks for the tips anyway!
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Wow! You’ve been super busy! The salsa looks amazing. Your daughter is a cutey-pie.
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What a week! I’m happy you joined in the Tuesday Twister this week! Your little girl is adorable. What fun you must have together.
I tried LF salsa and pickles this week, too. My husband would agree with you that fresh salsa is better – but the rest of us are loving the LF style. I know you’re limited on freezer space – and so am I – but I like making raw sauce with apples, pears, plums, whatever… wash, blend, freeze. So low maintenance, but you have to have space. 
Use in baking, smoothies, etc. for the rest of the year.
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What a fun and busy week you had! I hope your pickles turn out. I’ve not yet attempted canning. Maybe sometime.
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What kind of container do you find works best for freezing your fruit? I don’t have much freezer space and I’ve not had luck with frozen fruit in the past.
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Katie Reply:
August 18th, 2009 at 1:52 pm
Because of space limitation, I use plastic Ziploc bags. I know, I know…plastic. They’re recycle number 4, no BPA, and I don’t heat them. You can see how I freeze strawberries at this post: http://www.kitchenstewardship.com/2009/03/18/10-easy-prep-foods-youll-always-find-in-my-freezer/, blueberries and raspberries just get washed (or not, keeps skins from getting tough if you know they haven’t been sprayed) and put in bags, and the peaches were sliced and sugared lightly, then poured into bags. The cherries I froze separately on a cookie sheet, then poured into the bag. They are SO good on yogurt all year long! If you do this, try to freeze the bags of peaches or sugared strawberries very flat so they take up as little space as possible.
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Home canned pickles are the best….I LOVE the lacto-fermented ones! We didn’t make any this year, and sadly, we’re out of last year’s. I’m curious to see how your water kefir turns out…we’ve done regular kefir, but never the water kefir. Peaches…yum! Did you know you can freeze them whole, skin and all? We learned that last year from the owner of the pick’em yourself place we go to. I still have a couple of bags of whole, frozen peaches from last summer in my chest freezer and they still make delicious cobbler!
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Katie Reply:
August 18th, 2009 at 10:41 pm
Kara, Do you just thaw them to get the pit out and then cook with them? I froze some in halves with the skins for smoothies… The water kefir is interesting. It’s pretty sweet, but only slightly different tasting from the sugar water you start out with. (I tried both side-by-side today.) I need to do some flavoring now – vanilla, lemon juice, dried fruit, etc and see what we think.
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Great post! I’m curious to hear how your sour pickles turn out…I’ve got beets going now, but haven’t worked up the courage to try pickles…maybe this week though! We’ll see what’s available at the farmer’s market.
Thanks for sharing!
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I have a 1/2 gallon jar of whole pickles fermenting now… first attempt. I didn’t have grape or oak leaves, so I thought fermenting them whole might prevent the mushiness. I’m so excited!! They are on day 11, and might be ready today. A friend and I sampled one at day 6, and it was good, but not pickled enough yet.
I have scooped very small colonies of mold off the top for the past few days, but I hear that’s ok. They smell delicious, and I hope the move to refrigeration will kill the mold.
I tried LF salsa a few months ago, and it was WONDERFUL fresh! I moved it to the fridge after 2 days. When I went to use some later, it was nasty! I haven’t got the nerve to try it again yet.
My recent kitchen endeavors: cleaning, blanching, and freezing 22 pounds of green beans, and 60 ears of corn (after cutting it off the cob). I recently froze 5 pounds of blueberries.
Next up: 40 pounds of heirloom slicing tomatoes, to be delivered tomorrow from the farm with my CSA box. These are SO good, and they were having a great sale, so I couldn’t help but purchase extras to put up for winter. I will remove the skins, dice and freeze them for winter additions to sauces, soups and chilli. YUM!!!
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Katie Reply:
August 19th, 2009 at 9:10 pm
Wow, girl, you have been busy! I don’t think I’d have the patience for that much corn…I buy frozen!
Tasted the pickles today…they’re doing okay, which is better than expected at this point. I thought I only needed to let them ferment for a few days, but I think I’ll go longer based on what you said and the fact that they could use a little more flavor. Good luck with those tomatoes!! Phew!
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Jen Reply:
August 19th, 2009 at 10:30 pm
My pickles aren’t quite ready yet, but they are still crunchy so far. I see you linked to the Nourished Kitchen post for pickles, and that is the recipe I most closely followed. She says that it can take up to 10 days. I’m past that, but as I understand, the move to refrigeration for LF foods is for the purpose of slowing down the souring once it’s reached the point you prefer. I think it’s taking longer because I left the cucumbers whole. So I’m going to be all brave about it and go longer.
I think the reason I had a few colonies of mold on top is because I used dried dill, instead of fresh. It floated to the top, and wasn’t completely submerged in the brine. I didn’t use a weight, because I was able to position the whole pickling cucumbers in the jar so that they were covered with brine. Anyway, all the floating dill has been removed or is submerged now, so nothing nasty is growing anymore… YAY!
The tomatoes arrived today, and boy do I have some work to do now!
Good luck with your pickles!!!
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be careful with the canned pickles. improperly canned foods can make you REALLY sick. botulism sick. i recommend googling canning & extension (as in county extension) for a lot of time & scientifically tested info on all types of canning. the ball blue book would be a good resource too.
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Katie Reply:
August 20th, 2009 at 12:22 am
I hear/read that I will be able to TELL if they’re bad…or maybe that was with lacto-fermented stuff. I better google it! Thank you!
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I’ve been on a canning kick lately, too, and have done three types of jam, bread-and-butter pickles, and dill green beans. I’ve found that once you have all the stuff and a bit of experience it’s actually not that hard. Preparation is everything – have the water boiling ahead of time and such.
You’ve totally inspired me to can tons of applesauce next time we go picking. Do look for a recipe, though, for safety! I checked out a few canning books from our library, and the Ball’s applesauce recipe has 4 Tbsp lemon juice to 12 lbs. of apples. It says sugar is optional, but the lemon juice is necessary to ensure sufficient acidity to make it safely cannable, since some types of apples have enough acid naturally and others don’t. I know if the tops of your cans pop up they’re unsafe, and mold, gasses, smells, or anything off indicate spoilage.
One more tip: a friend of mine uses straws to pit cherries, and swears by it for being easy and quick. I haven’t tried it, but maybe it’ll simplify your cherries!
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Katie Reply:
August 21st, 2009 at 10:47 am
Yikes! Now I’m nervous about my applesauce…will have to see if I can find any info about lemon juice and applesauce. Oh, dear. My adventures…!!!
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Katie Reply:
August 22nd, 2009 at 1:15 am
I did some serious research (while tasting a jar of applesauce…) and I think I’m ok b/c apples are a high-enough acid food. Phew! I need to be more careful, though. That bit of experience will be nice…
On the cherries, I think the straw would have taken half the fruit, they were so small!
I’ve tasted the lacto-fermented and canned pickles, and both are mushy. Shucks. I think I would just do the l-f version for about 3 days, no longer, and maybe I need more oak leaves (I only used two). It’s been an interesting week!
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You’ll be a canning machine in no time! Guess what I found today on Craigslist? 150-200 wide mouth canning jars for $25! Hmmm… should I take the plunge?
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Katie Reply:
August 25th, 2009 at 9:41 pm
Oooo, girl! Do you have space to store all those? That’s definitely taking the plunge. Do you know if they come with at least the rings? If not, they might not be a good deal… Best of luck! (Can you can zucchini?)
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150-200 jars for $25? even w/o rings & lids, that’s a DARN good deal. rings & lids can & do go bad. My gma would be all over it if she didn’t have a huge supply of jars.
wow…i feel like i should be canning. guess i’m glad i helped my gma do lots of it as a child. pickles, applesauce, fish, lard, beans, beets, etc
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Oh my you have been busy!
Canning is easy after the first time 
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Be careful with your canning recipes: botulism has no taste, color, odor or gas, so it is basically undetectable.
Make sure you’re following a tested recipe and are processing for the correct length of time.
Good luck. Planning on making some raspberry jam and pickles tomorrow.
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Homemade applesauce freezes extremely well too, and I sort of like it half frozen and a little ‘crunchy’ with ice! Although it’s not nearly as quick as snapping the lid off a can when you have a preschooler that has a taste for applesauce!
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