tortoise
Wild Hare
We love cream on berries! Especially blackberries or raspberries!
Britesea - Living the good life in rural Oregon
- Thread starter Britesea
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Britesea
Sustainability Master
Summer has finally finished, fall is here... although it was snowing on the pass last week when I drove home from my sleep study.
Speaking of which, it turns out I need a CPAP--- got sleep apnea and low oxygen levels. Hope getting one will help with my energy levels, but knowing the VA, it will be at least a month before I get one.
The garden is essentially finished for the season. We had a week of temps in the low 30's, and even with my frost covers the tender plants just didn't make it. I need to bring in the green tomatoes, the rest of the bell peppers and chilies, the patty pans for sure. Probably also the winter squashes and the potatoes. The chard and kale are still going strong, of course, and I found a double handful of late strawberries (yay!).
We ended up with 10 roosters out of the 30 chicks we got- not a bad ratio. We've had roast rooster the last 3 Sundays and will continue until we have only 2 roosters, but may have to stop for a little bit as they are starting to molt. The first chicks I got turned out to be all hens- 3 white leghorns, 1 rir, and 1 of something else (she's the one that tried to go broody on us, but I decided it was too late in the season to raise a bunch of babies)- they have been laying beautifully for us. The speckled sussex (aka The Speckled Horde) have just started; their eggs are a very light brown, so I get white, dark brown, and now light brown.
My freeze-drying efforts are going well. I started out with 2 flats of strawberries that I quartered and FD'd, then moved on to the green beans from my garden, followed by some garlic cloves from the freezer and a few mixed bags of vegetables in there. Lovely to make more room in the freezer!
Deciding I was on a roll, I pulled out all the freezer-burned meat I could find in hidden nooks and crannies and dumped it all- beef, chicken, pork, fish, giblets, a couple of pig hearts and a few stray packages of leftovers- into my biggest stock pot, covered it with water and cooked everything within an inch. Then I ran it all through the meat grinder. Took the resultant "pate" and FD'd it as treats for the dog. I can give her a little flake of it as a treat, or crumble it up over her kibble; either way she adores it, and it looks like there's enough for at least the winter.
Next on the list is to FD some of our excess eggs. I haven't been selling them, so with five layers, and 15 more coming on board, we are going to be overwhelmed. I've been giving Millie (the dog) 1 every night with her dinner, and of course I could cook some up and give them back to the hens; but I'd like to have some set aside for when they aren't laying in the dead of winter. I also ran across an idea to FD small cheese slices; apparently they come out crispy and amazingly like cheese crackers, only without the flour that I can't have.... hmm...
I tried FD'ing some of my bell peppers, but the skins turned out to be tough. I think I need to blanch them first. The chilies will be used in salsa, which I will can. The potatoes and patty pans will be shredded and either dehydrated or FD'd (or maybe try both to see which works better) for hash browns and squash patties.
I've never made anything with green tomatoes, even though I know fried green tomatoes are a classic. I guess this year I'll be trying some recipes as I have no idea how many of my green tomatoes will ripen indoors.
I canned a bunch of tomato sauce and took the 'squeezins' and dehydrated them to grind into powder for adding a more intense flavor. This week I canned up a load of dill pickle relish and just finished a load of dill pickle spears.
So. That sounds like I better get off the bloody computer and start working!
Speaking of which, it turns out I need a CPAP--- got sleep apnea and low oxygen levels. Hope getting one will help with my energy levels, but knowing the VA, it will be at least a month before I get one.
The garden is essentially finished for the season. We had a week of temps in the low 30's, and even with my frost covers the tender plants just didn't make it. I need to bring in the green tomatoes, the rest of the bell peppers and chilies, the patty pans for sure. Probably also the winter squashes and the potatoes. The chard and kale are still going strong, of course, and I found a double handful of late strawberries (yay!).
We ended up with 10 roosters out of the 30 chicks we got- not a bad ratio. We've had roast rooster the last 3 Sundays and will continue until we have only 2 roosters, but may have to stop for a little bit as they are starting to molt. The first chicks I got turned out to be all hens- 3 white leghorns, 1 rir, and 1 of something else (she's the one that tried to go broody on us, but I decided it was too late in the season to raise a bunch of babies)- they have been laying beautifully for us. The speckled sussex (aka The Speckled Horde) have just started; their eggs are a very light brown, so I get white, dark brown, and now light brown.
My freeze-drying efforts are going well. I started out with 2 flats of strawberries that I quartered and FD'd, then moved on to the green beans from my garden, followed by some garlic cloves from the freezer and a few mixed bags of vegetables in there. Lovely to make more room in the freezer!
Deciding I was on a roll, I pulled out all the freezer-burned meat I could find in hidden nooks and crannies and dumped it all- beef, chicken, pork, fish, giblets, a couple of pig hearts and a few stray packages of leftovers- into my biggest stock pot, covered it with water and cooked everything within an inch. Then I ran it all through the meat grinder. Took the resultant "pate" and FD'd it as treats for the dog. I can give her a little flake of it as a treat, or crumble it up over her kibble; either way she adores it, and it looks like there's enough for at least the winter.
Next on the list is to FD some of our excess eggs. I haven't been selling them, so with five layers, and 15 more coming on board, we are going to be overwhelmed. I've been giving Millie (the dog) 1 every night with her dinner, and of course I could cook some up and give them back to the hens; but I'd like to have some set aside for when they aren't laying in the dead of winter. I also ran across an idea to FD small cheese slices; apparently they come out crispy and amazingly like cheese crackers, only without the flour that I can't have.... hmm...
I tried FD'ing some of my bell peppers, but the skins turned out to be tough. I think I need to blanch them first. The chilies will be used in salsa, which I will can. The potatoes and patty pans will be shredded and either dehydrated or FD'd (or maybe try both to see which works better) for hash browns and squash patties.
I've never made anything with green tomatoes, even though I know fried green tomatoes are a classic. I guess this year I'll be trying some recipes as I have no idea how many of my green tomatoes will ripen indoors.
I canned a bunch of tomato sauce and took the 'squeezins' and dehydrated them to grind into powder for adding a more intense flavor. This week I canned up a load of dill pickle relish and just finished a load of dill pickle spears.
So. That sounds like I better get off the bloody computer and start working!
frustratedearthmother
Sustainability Master
Awesome! You're on a roll. Glad to hear the FD'ing is working out. Love your idea of dog treats.
sumi
Rest in Peace 1980-2020
You have been busy! Glad to hear the freeze drying is working so well for you.
The eggs, you mentioned freeze drying some for winter, but if you want/need some "fresh" for something, I've experimented with freezing them in the shell and they turned out quite alright. The shells cracked, so they are a bit messy when defrosting, but apart from that I found them not much different than fresh from the nest, except a bit watery, the whites were a bit runny.
The eggs, you mentioned freeze drying some for winter, but if you want/need some "fresh" for something, I've experimented with freezing them in the shell and they turned out quite alright. The shells cracked, so they are a bit messy when defrosting, but apart from that I found them not much different than fresh from the nest, except a bit watery, the whites were a bit runny.
frustratedearthmother
Sustainability Master
I've always wondered how that would work - I might be the next one trying 'em!
Mini Horses
Sustainability Master
GLAD you are now using the FD unit! I know you had it for a while before you got to using it. Amazing patience. LOL
Super grats on the weight loss.
Sounds like "retirement" is agreeable to you both. Your gardening is an adventure and I love to hear what everyone grows, uses and such. The dog treats sound awesome! Best my Molly will get along that line is something dehydrated or frozen and thawed. She's fine with both.
As to the frozen eggs. I've cracked from shell and put into vacuumed containers, frozen, and used well when thawed. Yes, the texture of the whites is looser but, taste if fine. Scramble & fry or use in baking, etc. This year I have young hens who will begin lay Oct-Dec, so expect eggs all winter. However, I do prefreeze, then seal with my Foodsaver unit. A couple eggs that were left in the barn last yr did crack but, a little warm water and they peeled fast... have a bowl ready!
So now that Summer has turned to Fall I hope you will be able to visit us more and share some of your adventures again (and menus, LOL).
Super grats on the weight loss.
Sounds like "retirement" is agreeable to you both. Your gardening is an adventure and I love to hear what everyone grows, uses and such. The dog treats sound awesome! Best my Molly will get along that line is something dehydrated or frozen and thawed. She's fine with both.
As to the frozen eggs. I've cracked from shell and put into vacuumed containers, frozen, and used well when thawed. Yes, the texture of the whites is looser but, taste if fine. Scramble & fry or use in baking, etc. This year I have young hens who will begin lay Oct-Dec, so expect eggs all winter. However, I do prefreeze, then seal with my Foodsaver unit. A couple eggs that were left in the barn last yr did crack but, a little warm water and they peeled fast... have a bowl ready!
So now that Summer has turned to Fall I hope you will be able to visit us more and share some of your adventures again (and menus, LOL).
- Thread starter
- #1,037
Britesea
Sustainability Master
Do the frozen egg whites whip up?
The reason I'd rather use the FD'd eggs is because I don't really trust my freezer- especially when it's loaded to the hilt like it is right now. I've had several freezers die on me over the years, and I'm tired of losing all that food. Now that I have the cabability to protect my foods WITHOUT freezing, I'm tending to look on it as more of a temporary solution, rather than a permanent one. I will have eggs in the freezer, because that's the first step in FD'ing them; I bought a few cheap plastic containers to fill with whole eggs, egg whites, and egg yolks- then I'll freeze them and put the "pucks" on the FD trays for processing. I've found out you can even FD fresh whole milk successfully!
Now I just need a few crates of this:
The reason I'd rather use the FD'd eggs is because I don't really trust my freezer- especially when it's loaded to the hilt like it is right now. I've had several freezers die on me over the years, and I'm tired of losing all that food. Now that I have the cabability to protect my foods WITHOUT freezing, I'm tending to look on it as more of a temporary solution, rather than a permanent one. I will have eggs in the freezer, because that's the first step in FD'ing them; I bought a few cheap plastic containers to fill with whole eggs, egg whites, and egg yolks- then I'll freeze them and put the "pucks" on the FD trays for processing. I've found out you can even FD fresh whole milk successfully!
Now I just need a few crates of this:
sumi
Rest in Peace 1980-2020
I'm afraid I can't tell you… I just tossed mine in the frying pan to see how they fry up and taste. The reason I froze them in the first place was because we had a discussion on the topic on BYC at the time and I decided to try it and post pics of the results. Maybe freeze some and give it a try and let us know?
Goodness, freezers dying on you I can understand that putting you off! I've never had that happen to me, thank goodness, but I can imagine…
Dehydrated water??
I'm a bit confused now!
Goodness, freezers dying on you I can understand that putting you off! I've never had that happen to me, thank goodness, but I can imagine…
Dehydrated water??
I'm a bit confused now!- Thread starter
- #1,039
Britesea
Sustainability Master
I ran across the pictures and laughed while I shook my head.
Mini Horses
Sustainability Master
Never whipped them after freezing but the looked ok when scrampled. I'm sure I did whisk them with a fork as I almost never eat an egg not scrambled & well done.
While I have eaten foods that had been FD & rehydrated I never had the ability to do the FD. So, when you put that frozen egg onto a tray to FD, does it remain in that same form while being dried? (Square, round, etc. I mean). Do you need to freeze all liquids first? I'm thinking tomato sauce to make a powder after FD. Can you/do you put things into a container or must it be on their tray? Is it a specialized material?
While I have eaten foods that had been FD & rehydrated I never had the ability to do the FD. So, when you put that frozen egg onto a tray to FD, does it remain in that same form while being dried? (Square, round, etc. I mean). Do you need to freeze all liquids first? I'm thinking tomato sauce to make a powder after FD. Can you/do you put things into a container or must it be on their tray? Is it a specialized material?
