Foody gifts

Galtizz · 1 July 2005 at 11:28AM

Loadsabob, you've given me some inspiration to start thinking about Christmas presents. Don't all shoot me at once :rotfl:

What foody presents can we make now, using home grown or pick your own or just from the market while it's in season so cheap??

My first thought is chilli oil, if my chilli plant ever produces any flowers, might use up my basil this way too.

Anyone else got any ideas? I've got strawberries, french beans, courgettes and herbs growing so far, but any ideas for anything growing at this time of year would be good. I'm looking for things that will keep until after Christmas and that will be suitable for nice presents.

squeaky · 1 July 2005 at 11:29AM

Jams and chutneys? Of which we have a few recipes and surely will have even more before long?

Loadsabob · 1 July 2005 at 11:51AM

Perhaps bags of dried herbs? Anything you have an excess of that can be harvested and dried through the season, then roughly chopped into pretty labelled bags as "organic homegrown" herbs for cooking? I have chives, rosemary, lemon balm, coriander, parsley, basil, mint...I've never dried herbs, but they might be a nice gift for someone who cooks a lot and would appreciate something from our gardens?

Also, oven-dried tomatoes, just thinking ahead to when there are lots of toms on the vine later on. I will look this up, as I had good guidelines for it somewhere, and I'll edit the post when I find it! Not too sure about the preserving of these, but will check it out first.

apprentice_tycoon · 1 July 2005 at 11:56AM

Could the oven-dried tomatoes be packed in olive oil in a Kilner -type clip jar? I always pick these little jars up at boot sales, I think that they often had toiletries in them originally but if they are glass they will wash OK

Loadsabob · 1 July 2005 at 12:08PM

apprentice_tycoon wrote:

Could the oven-dried tomatoes be packed in olive oil in a Kilner -type clip jar? I always pick these little jars up at boot sales, I think that they often had toiletries in them originally but if they are glass they will wash OK

I bet they would - I just know there's a concern of botulism with storing things in oil...I remember Squeaky put up a link about this before. Lots of American "canning" sites would probably have advice.

I guess we could oven-dry chillis in the same way, and they would keep just in bags?...

I'm trying to think of foodie plants or foodie plant kits that would be suitable for the winter; seeds that we can save fom our gardens that might be suitable for giving, with pot and compost, to be sown in the New Year...

Ooh - lavender, of course can be dried and used for loads of things...not that I have any yet...

bugs · 1 July 2005 at 12:08PM

This month's Kitchen Garden magazine (which in true money saving style you might find in your library) has a substantial article on drying fruit and veg that might be useful for that. The Book Peope might still have Preserved for a fiver too, and that's very good on snazzy expensive looking ways of preserving.

Please don't preserve the dried toms in olive oil unless you've looked in to it very carefully, vegetables in oil can lead to some seriously nasty growths. I can't remember offhand what causes it but I do know it is worth being very, very, very careful of.

Loadsabob · 1 July 2005 at 12:11PM

Ooh - I've been so money-saving that I think I've missed July's KG mag...I bet the new one hit the shops yesterday...and I DO so like to have the full set! Thanks for those tips, Bugs, I really like The Book People, too.

bugs · 1 July 2005 at 12:13PM

Loadsabob wrote:

I guess we could oven-dry chillis in the same way, and they would keep just in bags?...

Chillis are breathtakingly easy to dry. We've done it by washing them and spreading out on trays, someone else on our site seems to be self-supporting in chillis by threading them (through the flesh, it helps with drying). You should use the oven for the fruit and veg!

I'm going to make lavender wands, hopefully this will be a short article with pics on our site, but there are instructions out there on the wibbly wobbly wotsit and they are *very* easy (not foodie though, sorry Galtizz!).

bugs · 1 July 2005 at 12:14PM

Loadsabob wrote:

Ooh - I've been so money-saving that I think I've missed July's KG mag...I bet the new one hit the shops yesterday...and I DO so like to have the full set! Thanks for those tips, Bugs, I really like The Book People, too.

Sorry to scare you Loadsabob, don't worry, when I say this month's, it will be the one that has just come out in the shops as it's in my subscription copy that arrived earlier this week. So you should still be OK (and I think they do back copies at the same price).

Loadsabob · 1 July 2005 at 12:15PM

Excellent - unfortunately I've not grown chillis this year, after them not doing very well last year...typical!!

Loadsabob · 1 July 2005 at 12:17PM

bugs wrote:

Sorry to scare you Loadsabob, don't worry, when I say this month's, it will be the one that has just come out in the shops as it's in my subscription copy that arrived earlier this week. So you should still be OK (and I think they do back copies at the same price).

Thanks Bugs, I'm still kicking myself though, as I think it's the previous one that I've missed. I bet the new one in the shops is August's...but at least I'll get the drying article, which will come in very handy! (and probably I'll end up getting the missed July back issue too!)

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Foody gifts

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