Preservation

What do you do with all your produce from the lottie? Some produce such as potato, onion and garlic store very well but other things such as tomatoes or corn on the cob do not store at all. One thing you can do preserve the produce ina different form. I like to make pickles, chutney and jams.

This year I made a couple of jars of pickled onions from the smaller shallots. Then some Picallili from the Cauliflower, Gherkins, Tomato and Onion together with spices. Onion marmalade and green tomato chuntney, no to list there ingredients. I Have some red cabbage going at the lottie which is due for pickling when it is ready. I made jam from 4 jars of Blackberry, 7/8 jars of Damson and 4/5 of Yellow Plum. I pickled some Gherkins but I do not hold out much hope that they will be nice although I learned something about pickling when do them. I still have a lots of apples so apple sauce is on the cards as is Mint sauce. I just have to find a good recipe.

Beans and Peas can be eaten raw but when you have a glut you have to either freeze them or turn them into something else. Some crops can be left in the ground until needed and benefit from that treament. Leeks, Swedes, Parsnip, Carrot and Brocolli fit into this category. Just lift them and cook 'em. But generally, where we can, we pick and eat what is in season which is the new way of eating if you listen to the TV health gurus.

The main things is that all the raw materials are essentially free. I get the food from either the lottie, the hedge row or peoples fruit trees [by permission]. The containers come from jars and bottles saved from going in the dust bin.