I ended up skipping one of the weeks of this challenge (preserving in vinegar), because I’m super disorganized these days. I didn’t have vinegar, my basil went bad, I ended up eating all my cilantro, etc. etc. The timing never ended up working out. But just so all of you know, you can preserve things in vinegar! Things like herbs (think salad dressing) and other veggies as well. I may end up getting to it later or I may not. I moved on to the next challenge: preserving in booze.
One of the super fun things about living in the Pacific Northwest is that once a year, free food grows everywhere. More experienced foragers may argue that this is true anywhere, almost any time. But I’m a novice and I need my wild-grown bounty to be pretty obvious. In the Pacific Northwest, blackberries are easily recognizable. And boy are they IN YOUR FACE. Just my kind foraged fare.
Photo: CC || http://www.flickr.com/photos/calliope/
For the last few weeks I’ve been munching the occasional ripe blackberry while I walk the dogs. It’s a little guilty pleasure to come home with my fingers stained purple and with yet another snag in my jeans. But the berries are finally starting to ripen en masse around our usual route, so I went out collecting in earnest last week. And since I can’t possibly eat that many blackberries right here, right now, preserving it is.
So far I’ve frozen blackberry pie filling packs for winter and blackberry preserves are still on the list to make once I pick another batch. But those seem fairly run of the mill compared to the blackberries in booze.
Blackberries In Booze
I made two different types of blackberries in booze. Decadent, I know, but in February whose house will you want to have dessert at? Huh? Huh?
A little googling turned up this recipe for blackberries in rum (I’m also probably going to try her recipe for jam). While not technically meeting the criteria for this challenge – it requires freezing – this recipe for blackberry-sangiovese coulis sounded too good to pass up. I wish I knew more about canning, as freezer space is still at a premium in my house, but I wasn’t willing to risk canning this one. Maybe next year.
Summer is winding to a close and I’m not even remotely ready (food-wise) for winter. But I’m a lot closer than I was last year. It’s all about making progress, one step at a time, and continuing to strengthen and support our local food systems.
Happy September, everyone!
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Yum, yum, YUM! I’m going to get blackberries this weekend and do the fruit in rum. I wonder if you can use vodka since I’m not a huge rum fan. I suppose I can try both, right.
You can definitely do vodka – I found a few recipes that were with vodka instead of rum. I think it’s more or less any type of hard alcohol with any fruit, so it’s just what suits your preference. I’m hoping the rain doesn’t mess with my blackberry ripening schedule. I need more berries!
Jess,
What time is dinner?
More importantly, what time is dessert?
Jess tomatoes aren’t really ripe here yet. I haven’t canned much but it’s not too late for pickles (cukes are just ripening now) and tomatoes. I’ll be doing salsa, sauce, canned tomatoes, pickles and hot sauce this month. Talk to a farmer at your farmer’s market and see if you can buy 20#s for a deal. They usually make them with you!
Good to know! We’ve had some tomatoes at the market and in our CSA share, but that’s mostly because they are passive-greenhouse grown. I may jump in on your tomato order, since I have to drive up to Seattle next week anyways.
I was stunned to see yesterday that some of my cherry tomatoes are blushing! I really figured with as cold as it’s been, mine were done (I didn’t do anything smart like you did with plastic and red metal).