LOVE ALL THE ZERO WASTE IDEAS. I CANNOT KEEP UP WITH ALL YOUR SUGGESTIONS, BUT THE JOURNEY IS GREAT. I'VE LABELLED MY DANDELION JELLY: JERRY'S "LAWN WEED" DESERT AND GIFTED TO MY NEIGHBORS WITH THEIR PERFECTLY MANICURED GRASS LAWNS
Drying more catnip and some anise hyssop. Lots of herbal soap is curing on the racks. This is a good year for purslane and lambsquarters. Bringing some to farmers' market today for people to taste.
Drying poppy, calendula, and chamomile, as well as comfrey leaves and lavender. Tincturing, vinegaring, honeying, and syruping every day--the herb harvest is abundant. Making sour cherry syrup as well, not enough to bake a pie. Curious how the local like the lambsquarters :)
We pick chamomile by hand, and it does take a while, but we never have more than a quart or two of fresh blossoms. I've seen people use blueberry rakes, the ones you use to harvest wild blueberries, and they're the perfect size for chamomile blossoms: https://www.instagram.com/p/CDznqMIsfu4/
Like you, things tend to be a little late around here. The garlic scapes have mostly come up -- I've pickled some and will grill the rest at BBQs this weekend. A local hot sauce vendor makes an amazing garlic scape hot sauce and I'm tempted to experiment to see if I can get something similar. The rhubarb is just about ready to harvest -- we don't have any on our property but both neighbours have it and don't want it. Last year I harvested about half of it and ended up with 95 pounds; I wash, chop, and freeze it so it's available year-round. Any tips for rhubarb use that's *not* dessert? We're not really dessert people so we don't make pies or crumbles. I sometimes make rhubarb jelly for my aunt and I've made rhubarb BBQ sauce and relish. I regularly make rhubarb wine using your recipe and I make lots of rhubarb ginger gin.
I put together this list of savory rhubarb recipes a while back, with everything I could find on the internet at that point (about a dozen recipes). There are more now for sure, I need to go update it: https://adamantkitchen.com/savory-rhubarb-recipes/
One of the real game changers is thinking of it as a crunchy vegetable, and in the middle east they eat it in lamb curry. I really loved this one: https://adamantkitchen.com/khoresht-rivas/
I love rhubarb. I'm in West Virginia, and I'm past harvesting my 10-12 pounds. I typically make pies and crisps and muffins, but did try a savory recipe where I made a sauce with rhubarb and onion, let it simmer down with salt, pepper, and a touch of hot pepper (I used a black Czech, I think, from my garden). Then I poached a few pieces of cod in the sauce and served over basmati rice. The recipe is in Mark Bittman's FOOD MATTERS cookbook. I have a friend who makes a mean rhubarb chutney--need to get that recipe. I do need to find out more about that rhubarb ginger gin! Peace...
Other recipes I've come across tend to say put in two or three coin-sized slices of ginger and... really... that's not enough. I use a hunk of ginger the size of my hand (which is an inexact measurement, lol) and that's about right. The sharpness of ginger really mellows out in the gin.
I think I need to explore ways to use the rhubarb BBQ sauce I have -- for some reason I only associate that with BBQed burgers so I only pull it out a few times a year. I did baste an easter ham in it once and that was delightful.
Nice! There's still a lot of rhubarb out there, but it's getting stringy in my yard...but that doesn't matter for this recipe =) I'm going to give this one a try, thank you!
I hope you enjoy it! I find this one hard to keep in stock on my liquor cart because people love it so much. It tastes great as-is, but also tastes super good with Coke.
We just put strawberries in the ground a few weeks ago. Literally 3 days later we had 8 inch suckers! First time with a garden, so it will be excited to see how green a thumb I have.
Nice! Strawberries are one of those crops that people either love or hate. They'll grow for you, or they wont. Over here, they grow like crazy, but for some reason many people just can't get them to do anything. Looks like you're part of the strawberry success club! Congrats =)
Sitting in my lounge looking down my garden reading your wonderful articles lifts my spirits, you write so beautifully and work so hard. I have arthritis and struggle in the garden but I’m determined to keep going. Thank you so much for everything you do for us as readers and for nature, wildlife and setting such a warm caring example to us all. 🐝🌻🌈🥂 Xxx
I have seen those, and I even used one at a friends house once, but they never really did work for me. They take me a lot longer to use, maybe because my hands are well practiced with a knife and there's a learning curve there. But in the end, they take out about the same amount of strawberry. (The ones in that picture I cut generously on purpose, specifically because I was trying to develop recipes using them. Usually we cut them pretty sparsely if we're working with that type of berry...but for the most part, we're working with local heirlooms where the hull just pulls right out on it's own.)
Oh Ashley! Those baby geese are just precious. We are drying lots of catmint, chamomile and we foraged a good amount of plantain today. Our garden is coming along slowly so we have time to focus on getting herbs and greens up for winter. Our extremely spoiled rabbit wants us keeping her favorite greens ready on demand.🤣
I bet she loves all those greens you harvest! Our rabbits were the same way, so spoiled by fresh greens delivered several times a day. Now it's the geese spoiled by fresh green weeds delivered every few hours =)
I enjoy reading your posts; there is so much simple knowledge contained in them, like all the information about the ducks. And how to use strawberry tops! I used to feed them to my chickens but now I will think twice about that. :) God bless you!
Oh boy how much would I love to have some snuggling geese one day. Cuddles plus gorgeous and delicious huge goose eggs! I wonder if they like to eat slugs and snails like ducks do.
Oddly, geese don't really eat slugs or snails, they just mow grass like a cow. They do a great job weeding the garden, since they love all those tiny young weeds that come up, but they won't touch tomatoes (or even strawberries). Keep them away from the lettuce though.
An old-time farmer demonstrated how to push the strawberry core out without any hulling by hand. You push a straw through the bottom of the strawberry, blow through the straw and out pops the hull. It's a hoot 😊 and a great timesaver. Love your site and would never think to do a lot of the things you make. Ramona from NC
I'm going to have to show that method to my son and we'll give it a go. He loves eating watermelon with a straw...just stabs it and then sucks up a tube of watermelon. I bet he'd get a kick out of blowing the tops off of strawberries like that. Thank you!
Beautiful article! Thank you so much for all this good information, good recipes, and good inspiration. We bought goslings for the first time in 2020, and snuggling with them in their coop to comfort them in storms is still one of my happy-place memories.
Many thanks for your story about the snuggle geese. We were lucky to have many geese spend almost year round at our university and museum area of town. Unfortunately, several weeks ago, “university officials” decided these beautiful creatures were a nuisance and destroyed all of them, including their babies, as well as many duck & their young. Heartsick is a mild emotion for what many of the citizens in this town are feeling. Keep writing about the acts of kindnesses you are teaching your children. They are our hope.
LOVE ALL THE ZERO WASTE IDEAS. I CANNOT KEEP UP WITH ALL YOUR SUGGESTIONS, BUT THE JOURNEY IS GREAT. I'VE LABELLED MY DANDELION JELLY: JERRY'S "LAWN WEED" DESERT AND GIFTED TO MY NEIGHBORS WITH THEIR PERFECTLY MANICURED GRASS LAWNS
Lol, that’s a great troll!
Love it!
Drying more catnip and some anise hyssop. Lots of herbal soap is curing on the racks. This is a good year for purslane and lambsquarters. Bringing some to farmers' market today for people to taste.
Drying poppy, calendula, and chamomile, as well as comfrey leaves and lavender. Tincturing, vinegaring, honeying, and syruping every day--the herb harvest is abundant. Making sour cherry syrup as well, not enough to bake a pie. Curious how the local like the lambsquarters :)
I harvested chamomile up to a few weeks ago. Pretty tedious process. But it smells great. What method do you use?
We pick chamomile by hand, and it does take a while, but we never have more than a quart or two of fresh blossoms. I've seen people use blueberry rakes, the ones you use to harvest wild blueberries, and they're the perfect size for chamomile blossoms: https://www.instagram.com/p/CDznqMIsfu4/
Thanks. I'll take a look at blueberry rakes.
Likewise, I'd also love to know how people at the farmer's market take to lambsquarter. Personally, I like it a lot better than spinach.
Like you, things tend to be a little late around here. The garlic scapes have mostly come up -- I've pickled some and will grill the rest at BBQs this weekend. A local hot sauce vendor makes an amazing garlic scape hot sauce and I'm tempted to experiment to see if I can get something similar. The rhubarb is just about ready to harvest -- we don't have any on our property but both neighbours have it and don't want it. Last year I harvested about half of it and ended up with 95 pounds; I wash, chop, and freeze it so it's available year-round. Any tips for rhubarb use that's *not* dessert? We're not really dessert people so we don't make pies or crumbles. I sometimes make rhubarb jelly for my aunt and I've made rhubarb BBQ sauce and relish. I regularly make rhubarb wine using your recipe and I make lots of rhubarb ginger gin.
I put together this list of savory rhubarb recipes a while back, with everything I could find on the internet at that point (about a dozen recipes). There are more now for sure, I need to go update it: https://adamantkitchen.com/savory-rhubarb-recipes/
One of the real game changers is thinking of it as a crunchy vegetable, and in the middle east they eat it in lamb curry. I really loved this one: https://adamantkitchen.com/khoresht-rivas/
Ah, yeah, I whipped up Khoresht Rivas once and it was great!
That list of recipes is amazing -- thank you! I'm definitely going to try some of them!
I love rhubarb. I'm in West Virginia, and I'm past harvesting my 10-12 pounds. I typically make pies and crisps and muffins, but did try a savory recipe where I made a sauce with rhubarb and onion, let it simmer down with salt, pepper, and a touch of hot pepper (I used a black Czech, I think, from my garden). Then I poached a few pieces of cod in the sauce and served over basmati rice. The recipe is in Mark Bittman's FOOD MATTERS cookbook. I have a friend who makes a mean rhubarb chutney--need to get that recipe. I do need to find out more about that rhubarb ginger gin! Peace...
Hello! This is my rhubarb ginger gin recipe: https://urbanhomesteading.ca/how-to-make-rhubarb-ginger-gin/
Other recipes I've come across tend to say put in two or three coin-sized slices of ginger and... really... that's not enough. I use a hunk of ginger the size of my hand (which is an inexact measurement, lol) and that's about right. The sharpness of ginger really mellows out in the gin.
I think I need to explore ways to use the rhubarb BBQ sauce I have -- for some reason I only associate that with BBQed burgers so I only pull it out a few times a year. I did baste an easter ham in it once and that was delightful.
Nice! There's still a lot of rhubarb out there, but it's getting stringy in my yard...but that doesn't matter for this recipe =) I'm going to give this one a try, thank you!
I hope you enjoy it! I find this one hard to keep in stock on my liquor cart because people love it so much. It tastes great as-is, but also tastes super good with Coke.
We just put strawberries in the ground a few weeks ago. Literally 3 days later we had 8 inch suckers! First time with a garden, so it will be excited to see how green a thumb I have.
Very educational and enjoyable read, thank you
Nice! Strawberries are one of those crops that people either love or hate. They'll grow for you, or they wont. Over here, they grow like crazy, but for some reason many people just can't get them to do anything. Looks like you're part of the strawberry success club! Congrats =)
Sitting in my lounge looking down my garden reading your wonderful articles lifts my spirits, you write so beautifully and work so hard. I have arthritis and struggle in the garden but I’m determined to keep going. Thank you so much for everything you do for us as readers and for nature, wildlife and setting such a warm caring example to us all. 🐝🌻🌈🥂 Xxx
I'm so glad you enjoyed it Julie!
I guess you haven’t heard of strawberry hullers then Ashley?
I have seen those, and I even used one at a friends house once, but they never really did work for me. They take me a lot longer to use, maybe because my hands are well practiced with a knife and there's a learning curve there. But in the end, they take out about the same amount of strawberry. (The ones in that picture I cut generously on purpose, specifically because I was trying to develop recipes using them. Usually we cut them pretty sparsely if we're working with that type of berry...but for the most part, we're working with local heirlooms where the hull just pulls right out on it's own.)
Oh Ashley! Those baby geese are just precious. We are drying lots of catmint, chamomile and we foraged a good amount of plantain today. Our garden is coming along slowly so we have time to focus on getting herbs and greens up for winter. Our extremely spoiled rabbit wants us keeping her favorite greens ready on demand.🤣
I bet she loves all those greens you harvest! Our rabbits were the same way, so spoiled by fresh greens delivered several times a day. Now it's the geese spoiled by fresh green weeds delivered every few hours =)
I enjoy reading your posts; there is so much simple knowledge contained in them, like all the information about the ducks. And how to use strawberry tops! I used to feed them to my chickens but now I will think twice about that. :) God bless you!
Your chickens might not like that, lol!
Chicken's love them too for sure! (But you can always give them to the chickens after you make syrup/jelly/etc from them =)
Ooo, can't wait to use up some chive blossoms in infused vinegar! Thanks for all the great ideas, as usual.
You're quite welcome!
Oh boy how much would I love to have some snuggling geese one day. Cuddles plus gorgeous and delicious huge goose eggs! I wonder if they like to eat slugs and snails like ducks do.
Oddly, geese don't really eat slugs or snails, they just mow grass like a cow. They do a great job weeding the garden, since they love all those tiny young weeds that come up, but they won't touch tomatoes (or even strawberries). Keep them away from the lettuce though.
Yumm the pansy jelly looks delicious! I didn't even know you could do that. So cool!
Yeah, it came out pretty darn good. So much you can do with edible flowers =)
An old-time farmer demonstrated how to push the strawberry core out without any hulling by hand. You push a straw through the bottom of the strawberry, blow through the straw and out pops the hull. It's a hoot 😊 and a great timesaver. Love your site and would never think to do a lot of the things you make. Ramona from NC
I'm going to have to show that method to my son and we'll give it a go. He loves eating watermelon with a straw...just stabs it and then sucks up a tube of watermelon. I bet he'd get a kick out of blowing the tops off of strawberries like that. Thank you!
You're welcome. Eating watermelon through a straw made me laugh out loud. Have a great weekend.
My loquat tree produced a lot of fruit, so for the first time I made loquat jam!! And the boysenberries are going in the freezer!!
Loquat jam is still on my list to try! Enjoy it!
Beautiful article! Thank you so much for all this good information, good recipes, and good inspiration. We bought goslings for the first time in 2020, and snuggling with them in their coop to comfort them in storms is still one of my happy-place memories.
Lovely!
Many thanks for your story about the snuggle geese. We were lucky to have many geese spend almost year round at our university and museum area of town. Unfortunately, several weeks ago, “university officials” decided these beautiful creatures were a nuisance and destroyed all of them, including their babies, as well as many duck & their young. Heartsick is a mild emotion for what many of the citizens in this town are feeling. Keep writing about the acts of kindnesses you are teaching your children. They are our hope.
Wow...that's unbelievable! I'm so sorry, for the feathered ones, and your whole town. That's just horrible.
Very creative ideas I never had thought of!
Thank you Marsha!