Hi Farmgirls! Harvest season is in full swing up here in Alaska, I imagine your gardens are producing (or everything is bolting?) in excess with the amount of heat the lower 48 has been getting. On the farm, we have seen especially high yields of peas, zucchini and broccoli–nearly to the point of having too much to sell and eat! In the past, I would have dedicated a few days to putting up food for the winter, but it turns out that small children make this pretty difficult. Who would’ve thunk?
These girls are so helpful! Yes, that is a mud goatee on Opal…soil is good for gut flora, they tell me.
I just made zucchini chocolate bread with some of my zucchinis. wow, it tastes like brownies. Can’t tell zucchini is even in there. I cut into small chunks and froze it for a sweet snack. I will try your Caramelized Zucchini. I make lots of soups in the winter in the crock pot. That will blend in well. I just caught up on all your posts. I missed you, don’t know how I missed them. Keep up your good work. Joy
Thanks for the check in, Joy. I, too, LOVE zucchini chocolate bread. Zucchini chocolate chip bread was a staple during my childhood summers. I will have to try your frozen brownie chunk treat. It sounds delicious!
Just talking about this very topic with friends, ’tis the season to put good food by! Thanks for the post brimming with good information, lovely photos and a recipe to boot! Have a great day Alex, sounds like anyone that drops by your home is treated with delicious nourishing food.
Thanks, Diana! You’re right–I love to feed others good nutritious food when possible and feel a bit guilty when I don’t. I hope this finds you well!
Hi there Alex! Love the pictures of the girls, the veggies, and the dirt! What a beautiful combo- I know that all too well! Right now in my area peaches are in but very sparse due to a late spring freeze that killed about 60% of the crop so we get what we can get. My girls and I could only pick one bushel and we canned them in apple juice instead of a sugar syrup. We will savor our few jars this winter! We will be putting up more applesauce instead to help keep enough jars of fruit on hand. Still waiting to see how the pears are doing(those are canned in white grape juice). We are also in the middle of putting up green beans and sweet corn and the tomatoes are FINALLY starting to ripen! Soup, sauce and salsa to can!! We don’t have the amount of zucchini that you do but I am always looking for new ways to eat it and yours sounds really good! We also put up jams and pickles (we NEED pickles!) and flavored vinegar. My girls are older now and are able to help out more (although there can be a good amount of whining involved some days!) but they have always loved to listen for the pop of the lids when they seal! I wish you and your family many happy lid pops too!!
Awesome, Amanda! Thanks for sharing your pantry staples with us. I’ve been wondering about how to can fruit without sugar, thanks for the fruit juice tip. We also need pickles!! I’m thinking of adding daikon radish to the jars to extend our cucumber supply. Hope you are well!
I have been guilty of food waste in the past. Sometimes I struggle because I am so busy with life or simply forgot I put it in the fridge. The last 2 years I have made sure to put aside what I know I will eat and then I freeze the rest. I have been doing this mainly with zucchini, because that is what I have overwhelming amounts off. Right now we are staring to get pears so I am getting ready to can them to prevent waste. The one thing that has recently come to mind is composting. Since I have started my own garden this year I have started noticing so much that goes uneaten, such as the tops to carrots. I have been running the idea past my husband to see what we can do with all these extras rather than throw them in the garbage. Thanks for the recipe and other ways to save my food for later use! It’s nice to expand my food saving skills.
I am SO guilty of food waste every day. We all live lives that are arguably too busy, but we do the best we can, right? I love compost piles/bins. I highly suggest it! As soon as possible (when we live somewhere where possible..) I am starting a compost system. Let us know if you get it going. Maybe I should have a post dedicated to various farmgirl’s compost systems…hmm. Where do you live? Some cities even have municipal compost programs! Thanks for being honest with us and sharing your successes. Zucchini forever!
I grew buckingham (yellow zuch) and cocozelle (striped zuch) this year. Two plants produce prolifically and I think I could give every family on my block enough to eat every single week. I’ve had to be creative with preserving! We are swimming in zuch! I’ve made zucchini “pickle” relish which turned out awesome (I canned it), shredded it up and put it in zip locks to freeze for use later to make squash croquettes, and of course we eat it ever stinkin’ day! 🙂 I had not ever considered blanching and freezing kale. I do eat kale every day in the summer, when production is high. I saute bacon and onion, add in the kale and water, simmer until done. REALLY great for breakfast – wakes you right up! I miss it in the winter when I don’t have it, so blanching and freezing will certainly help! Thanks for the tip!
Your breakfast kale sounds amazing! The blanched Kale isn’t as good as the fresh summer stuff, but it definitely works and is still tasty. Zucchini pickles, yum! Thanks for sharing your tips.
Great post!!! for some reason my garden doesn’t grow those sweet, beautiful babies, tee hee. Really love all your info and your super pics. God bless.
Real life cabbage patch kids! Thank you 🙂